ELMWOOD — With just a pair of games before the postseason, Spring Valley boys basketball had an eventful week. Head Coach Rob Bosshart reached 500 career wins, and one game later the Cardinals survived a comeback scare from Elmwood/Plum City to win 65-55 and split the season series.

“It’s a lot of games, and with that comes a lot of seasons and a lot of people. When you reach milestones of any kind, it’s a good time to reflect a little bit,” Bosshart said. “It just brings back all the thoughts of all the people that I’ve had the chance to work with and get to know in the last 36 years. It’s no coincidence that some of my former players have now become some of my best friends. It’s kind of overwhelming to think about the people I’ve had the chance to work with and then look at what they’ve gone on to become… To just think that maybe you had a little bit to do with it is really humbling.”

Bosshart has coached Spring Valley girls basketball Head Coach Sean Hoolihan, Athletics Director Matt Ducklow, Assistant boys basketball Coach Sean Borgerding and Middle School boys basketball Coach Jameson Bauer among many, many others in his time with the Cardinals.

“Coach Bosshart has meant a lot to me over the years. It was so awesome to be able to be present for his 500th win. I was fortunate to see and play for his first win at Spring Valley. Coach has always been consistent in his approach to the game and, most of all, the student athletes he works with. He demands a lot, respects his players, pushes them, embarks on humor with his players, sees the big picture of the game and what it brings to young people, shows passion for the game, shows passion for seeing his players succeed on the court and in life. Not only has he had 500 wins on the court… he has had thousands of wins off the court with his players, students, staff and the Spring Valley community,” Hoolihan said.

Bosshart’s impact has been felt not just in the program, but throughout the school and the community as a whole.

“Rob has been a staple in our community for the last 36 years. Rob is Spring Valley Basketball,” Ducklow said. “He has such an impact on our kids on the court and off the court as well. It is very rare in today's world to have a coach who will coach as long as he has. Many of his former players have gone on to become coaches and teachers themselves, which is a testament to Rob's leadership and impact that he has had on our players.”

Riding the high of Bosshart’s Feb. 13 500th win 56-51 over Mondovi, the Cardinals headed to their rivals’ house in Elmwood to face the EPC Wolves. After losing to the Wolves 65-48 in their own house back on Jan. 15, Spring Valley had revenge on its mind. The early minutes were nothing short of perfection for the Cardinals, blowing the doors off the gym to take a 36-11 lead with five minutes to play in the first half.

EPC made a bit of a push to cut the lead late in the half, trimming the scoreline to 41-22.

A trapping 1-3-1 zone in the second half found the Wolves some life. Forced turnovers, transition buckets and fluid offense absolutely revitalized EPC. Just eight minutes into the second half, EPC trailed just 50-49.

“They could’ve gave up, but the conversation we had in the locker room, it takes heart and determination to battle back,” EPC Head Coach Paul McDonough said. “They did; I think we just lost some of our legs there toward the end.”

With 5:40 to play in a 53-53 stalemate, the Cardinals broke the dam, as freshmen big men Jake Kotten and Sam Bauer hit some big shots to secure a win.

“It took just for us to play as a team, stay together, not just do the same mistakes over and over,” sophomore guard Tyler Traynor said. “We really wanted this as a get-back game. They beat us by 20, and we showed them that we’ve got a lot better since then.”

“Once our kids started to relax a little bit and started to attack the pressure rather than playing defensively and playing on their heels, we were able to pull away again,” Bosshart said.

Freshmen Kotten, Bauer and Cooper Supri had 22, 13 and nine points to lead the Cardinals. Bosshart said as the wins have started to roll in and the team has gained understanding of the team’s system, the confidence has followed from the young guns.

“The game is finally starting to slow down a little bit for them. They're becoming much more relaxed and starting to see things on the court, feel more confident in what they can do,” Bosshart said. “I couldn’t be happier with the progress of all three of those kids.”

He said it can be frustrating as freshmen to deal with the ups and downs of the season, but the trio has been nothing other than impressive of late.

“We just finally started to know how each other play, working together as a team. When we’ve lost by a lot we just did not mesh together. Had a lot of turnovers, we’re starting to work on that,” Traynor said.

With Spring Valley at 7-15 and EPC at 6-16 this season, both teams are expecting to face tough opponents in the postseason; however, both teams have found their groove in recent weeks and are accepting the challenge.

“We’re going to be in the bottom part of our bracket because of our record, but I think our kids are going to believe that whoever we play, we’re going to have a chance to go in there and win,” Bosshart said.

“I just want them to keep meshing and finish off strong so we can go into the tournament on the right foot,” McDonough said.