By Rich Winter

605 Sports

It has been a busy week of basketball for Castlewood High School Principal and Athletic Director Angela Keszler.

Keszler’s oldest son Brennan is a senior starter playing for a Hamlin squad that will play for third place at the Class A state tournament in Sioux Falls on Saturday. Her son Jamison is a sophomore on a Castlewood squad that will play Viborg-Hurley for fifth place at the Class B state tournament in Aberdeen. 

Needless to say Keszler and her daughter Logan have had some interesting ventures this week trying to be two places at one time. 

“On Thursday my daughter and I got up early and went to the Crooked Pint (in Sioux Falls) and watched Jamison play on my computer,” Keszler said. 

While they had warned the servers of what they were doing several of the patrons gave a few crooked looks with the “oohs” and “aahs” as the Keszler’s watched Castlewood take on No. 1 seed Lower Brule. 

“There were a couple times when we hollered pretty loud,” Keszler said. 

Following that game the Keszler’s made an appearance at the Denny Sanford Premier Center where they watched Brennan’s Hamlin team defeat Sioux Valley 72-64. 

On Friday the Keszler’s jumped in a car for a drive to Aberdeen to watch Castlewood knock off Faith 59-49. Immediately following the game the pair jumped in a car to drive through not very good road conditions to watch Hamlin take on Dakota Valley. 

Keszler knows a thing or two about state basketball tournaments. 

“I played basketball at Waubay,” she said. “We went to the state tournament in 1993 and that’s the last time Waubay went.” 

She’s no slouch in the finer points of the game of basketball. 

“I coached girls basketball at Hamlin for 13 years as an assistant coach for Tim Koisti,” she said. 

In her final year of coaching she helped Hamlin reach the state tournament in 2020 (COVID-19) with her daughter being a senior on that team. 

Having worked at Hamlin High School for over a decade and with Hamlin and Castlewood being separated by 20 miles Keszler left it up to her boys to decide where to attend school when she took the job at Castlewood in the fall of 2021. 

“My youngest Kamden said he wanted to come with mom to Castlewood,” she said. “Jamison was on the fence but he decided that once Brennan graduated he would be graduating by himself so he decided to come to Castlewood.” 

Jamison Keszler takes it to the rack during Friday's game against Faith - (Matt Gade / For 605 Sports)

Brennan was a fervent no all summer and then wavered slightly before deciding to stay at Hamlin entering his junior year. 

“It really came down to the last seconds,” Keszler said. “He wanted to be with his mom and his brothers but he also wanted to be with his friends and the kids he grew up with.” 

While basketball season ends Saturday it has been an eventful season for the Keszler’s enjoying basketball success in two classes. 

“My administration and school board have been very understanding,” she said. “If we have a conflict we are lucky enough to have people cover for me.” 

Ex-husband Kurt and grandparents and cousins from both sides of the family are regulars at the boys games. 

“One night Castlewood played Clark/Willow Lake and Hamlin was playing Sioux Valley so in that instance I deferred to my senior,” she said. 

Brennan Keszler looks to score during Friday's game against Hamlin - Rodney Haas - 605 Sports

No official travel plans for Saturday although the Keszler’s will likely try to make both placing games. 

“We will see what happens in Sioux Falls Friday but I’m guessing we’ll try to get to Aberdeen for the early game and then back to Sioux Falls for Brennan’s last game,” she said.