Dodson leads EHS to Sunbelt championship

Nathaniel Dodson, a Canyon Lake senior and point guard for the Sunbelt League Champion Elsinore High Basketball team, was high scorer in the final nail-biter against 100-year rival Perris High School on February 10. The Tigers beat the Panthers 69-67 in overtime.

The headline of the February 11 pe.com news stories was “Dodson scores 29 to lead Elsinore to bloody good win over Perris;” with the first sentence stating “It was a classic league rivalry game featuring multiple technical fouls, bad blood between players and coaches – and actual blood shed on the court.”

Nathaniel was one of those who suffered “numerous bumps and bruises,” according to the article. His mom, Tracy Dodson, says he took a lot of “cheap shots.” In spite of that, he earned 29 points, five assists and was 12/15 from the free throw line.

For the season, Nathaniel has averaged 19.9 points per game with 4.9 assists. He has made 62 3-pointers for the season, which, according to Tracy, puts him in the top five in 3-pointers for division 2A Southern Section. For assists, he is ranked third, and for scoring he is ranked 5th.

Born and raised in Canyon Lake, Nathaniel began playing NJB at the age of 4. His dad, Robert Dodson, coached him through junior high. He began playing freshmen ball at EHS; then joined varsity for his last three years. Elsinore High School has won league the past seven years in a row.

The coaches, Rick Wolter and Peter Rettinger, have been coaching youth and high school basketball in the valley for many years. “The coaches are amazing,” says Tracy. “They have been incredible the entire time (Nathaniel has been with the team).”

Tracy says her son is a hard worker in all he does, carrying a cumulative 3.8 GPA. “He is super fun to watch play and we have enjoyed every second. We will miss it, but for now we have playoffs and college ball in his future – not sure where yet.”