Time Capsule: A look back at the winning basketball team of 2012

By Nick Robbe

On Nov. 11, 2021, a family gathered to remember its patriarch.

That’s when a few members of the 2011- 12 Summit boys’ basketball team came together to honor Robert T. Hertzel ’81, 10 years after his passing. Hertzel was the father of senior Holden Hertzel ’12 and the man who inspired their 2012 state championship.

Moments such as those allow memories of all kinds to flood to the forefront.

“I still remember his funeral service,” Jake Rawlings ’13 says. “There had to be more than 1,000 people there. You couldn’t find a spot in St. Gertrude’s chapel, gym or cafeteria. He had a massive impact. Robby changed all of our lives.”

In February 2010, Mr. Hertzel was diagnosed with cancer, starting an arduous up-and-down journey. Eighteen months later, when his health took a turn for the worse, doctors determined that treatment would no longer be beneficial.

Two weeks before the 2011-12 season’s first tip off, Mr. Hertzel passed.

Coach Michael Bradley gave Holden time away from practice and team activities until after the Thanksgiving holiday.

“At that point, I decided all my energy would go into the season,” Holden says. “Basketball was therapy, and the guys became a second family. My family and I really needed that. The Summit community was so good to us. I had Montessori teachers and students I’d never met offering prayers and condolences. They had our backs through everything. That’s the Summit way.”

Tommy Kreyenhagen ’12 said the experience was traumatic but it bonded the team together. “We were playing for a purpose,” he says.

The Silver Knights took the court armed with their cause and a wealth of talented players. They started the season with a 17- game winning streak and held an average margin of victory of 26 points.

“I think we knew it was going to be a special season from the beginning,” Tommy says. “We had a lot of natural talent -- guys went on to play professionally overseas and at Division I colleges. We also had a coach who was the 17th pick in the first round of the NBA draft.”

Jake adds, “You have to give Coach credit. He took a bunch of competitive guys and got them to set their egos aside for the betterment of the team.”

As Tommy put it, the team was used to winning; it was a team with good depth on the bench, and the players knew they had the chance to do something special. The only blemish on the Silver Knights’ season was a loss to Taft.

“After that game, things turned for us,” Jake says. “We knew we didn’t want that game to ruin what we had done to that point in the season. We made up our minds that practices weren’t going to be fun anymore. We were going to work.”

After that setback, Summit was unstoppable and rolled into the playoffs.

In the seven playoff games, Summit managed six double-digit victories, the only slim margin coming in the state semifinal game against Bedford St. Peter Chanel.

Next was the state championship game against Portsmouth. Mr. Hertzel’s widow, Cindy, and his brother, Chris ’89, addressed the team.

“It wasn’t a ‘rah-rah’ speech,” Jake says. “They just impressed on us how much this season meant to them and how important this last game was to their family. After that speech, the game was over before we left the locker room. They had one of the players of the year in the state, but that didn’t matter to us. It was inevitable.”

After the tip, Summit built a lead and never looked back, winning 53-37.

“We felt relief,” Holden says. “We put so much effort into that season, and everything we did paid off for us.”

While the winning 2011-12 season had a massive storyline and a state title to boot, members of the team are also quick to point out the peculiar prominence of the number 11.

Mr. Hertzel passed away on Nov. 11, 2011 (11/11/11). In the first game of the season against Reading, Holden scored 22 points on 11 field goals. Kevin Johnson ’13 scored 11 points in the game.

In the state championship game, Kevin again had 11 points as did Mike Barwick ’14. The Silver Knights also started the game on an 11-2 scoring run.

They played that game in front of 11,000 people.

“I don’t believe in ghosts,” Jake says, “but Mr. Hertzel was there that day watching us play. He was there all season long.”