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Hortonville’s Riley Mueller leads FVA title hopes

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The catalyst for the Polar Bears, senior Riley Mueller is leading a Hortonville team, who have their sights set on a Fox Valley Association championship as they currently are tied for the lead in the conference standings.

Mueller is following up a junior season where he was Second-Team All-FVA. He leads his team in scoring and is third in points per game in the conference.

Riley started in organized basketball in the YMCA 4K league, “My parents got me into it specifically, my dad got me into it at a young age, and it just stuck with me early.” Mueller, has been enthralled by the sport throughout his adolescence, “it has always been my favorite sport and my passion throughout my life.”

Time management and varying workloads have been a difference in Riley’s time in high school, “As a freshman and sophomore, it was more difficult because I have so many classes along with basketball because I didn’t have any periods off from school or breaks throughout my day so having so many classes in one day along with practice and games can be a lot. Compared to now, where I have a few hours off from school throughout my day to help with studying time and a break in between school and basketball.”

Riley has a feel for the game that he attributes to his success on the court, “My basketball IQ is something I think I have an advantage of over others. I feel like I know what’s going to happen before it does. The game feels kind of slow to me so having that IQ is an asset,” and both teamwork and individuality as a reason he stuck with the sport, “I love how it requires so many people doing their job to be good and how it’s such a team sport and needs so much teamwork. But also, you can do so much work by yourself to make yourself better and be the best individual player you can be.”

Competing against Oshkosh North has given Riley memorable moments in his career, as he scored 39 points on Jan 10. and defeated them on a buzzer-beater in his sophomore season, “There have been so many great memories playing in this program, but a few that stick out is when we beat Oshkosh North my sophomore year on a game-winning shot from almost half court.”

Every coach on our staff has played a role in the player I am now, so it’s hard to pick one. But I would love to shout out to Brett Sommer. The other guard with me when I was a sophomore and graduated 2 years ago. He was the ultimate team-first teammate, pushed me to grow and improve, and was there for me when I had an off game and helped me learn so much as a young player.”

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