In mid-August, Mt. Vernon’s starting point guard and leading scorer senior Michael Ertel, tore his meniscus in an open-gym workout. Initially, the injury was seen as a big setback, but Ertel had surgery on August 26, with the expectation that he’d be back on the court by mid-November.

Now, in mid December, with the season underway, Ertel is not only back on the court, but is playing at the highest level of his high school career.

“I feel like I am a lot better player this year,” said Ertel, 12. “I know we haven’t gotten off to the best of starts, but I think we will be better because of it.”

After being named to the 2016 Indiana Junior All-Stars team back in March, Ertel committed in November to play at the University of Louisiana-Monroe, a Division I school.

The Marauders are 2-2 so far, as the season begins to pick up with games on Friday and Saturday evenings. Ertel will look to continue his strong start to the season so far, and is a prospect to watch for the 2017 Indiana Senior All-Stars team.