ADAMS TWP — Since Matt Getsy, Garrett Ashbaugh and Mitch Buzard were little, they dreamed of playing college basketball.

Next year, they will.

In fact, the 2012-13 Mars boys basketball team has produced four college-bound players. Josh Goetz recently committed to the Naval Academy Preparatory School.

“It’s awesome,” Getsy said. “All of us had a dream of playing basketball in college. Now it’s really coming true. It’s exciting.”

Getsy and Ashbaugh will both attend Westminster College next year. Buzard is going to Grove City College.

Getsy and Ashbaugh will find a familiar face at Westminster. Mars graduate Steve Cress is coming back to the program to use up his final year of eligibility after winning his fight with testicular cancer last year.

“Steve is 5 years older than us, so we never had a chance to play with him,” Getsy said. “We watched him while we were growing up and he helped us this season in the gym. I never thought I’d get a chance to play with him, so, it’s great.”

Getsy, a 6-foot-3 forward, averaged 12.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per game for the Planets this season.

His game evolved throughout his career as he became a bigger force inside on offense and defense.

“I felt I got a lot better,” he said. “I wasn’t the greatest defensively, but this year I stepped up. On offense, I really worked on my shot and ball handling and my strength. All the work I did translated into me being a better all-around player.”

Getsy had several schools to choose from.

Juniata College and Penn State Behrend were two other schools he strongly considered before opting for Westminster.

Ashbaugh was the point guard and the best defender on the team. He was often given the task of guarding the opponent’s best player and often shut his man down.

He also averaged a team-best six assists per game.

“I took a lot of pride in my defense,” Ashbaugh said. “To me, it’s the most fun thing to do on the basketball court.”

Ashbaugh had a very difficult decision to make. Not only did he have to choose a school from among Westminster, Juniata and Allegheny, but he had to pick a sport.

Ashbaugh was also a standout defensive back for the Planets’ football team.

“It was insane, it was such a tough decision,” Ashbaugh said. “It took me a long time to decide. I love both — I’ve been playing football longer than basketball. I didn’t make the decision until the very last minute.”

Ashbaugh said he hasn’t ruled out playing both at Westminster. Like Getsy, he fell in love with the school when he made his visit.

“It was a no-brainer after I saw the campus,” Ashbaugh said. “I knew this was the place for me.”

Buzard, a 6-1 shooting guard, led the Planets in scoring at 13.3 points per contest. He also drained 37 3-pointers.

Buzard, though, was often overlooked with the dominance of Goetz inside and the explosiveness of Getsy.

“We were all real close in scoring all year,” Buzard said. “All that did was help us spread things out and opponents couldn’t focus on one person. We played so well together, and we all trusted each other.”

Buzard and his family moved back to Pennsylvania from California when he was in the eighth grade.

The transition was not easy on Buzard, but basketball helped him make the adjustment.

“I think when I came back I knew one kid,” Buzard said. “The guys on the basketball team all became close friends.”

Buzard chose Grove City College for academics above all else.

Buzard plans to major in either electrical engineering or computer engineering.

He said balancing class and basketball at Grove City, one of the most challenging academic colleges in the country, will be his top priority.

“I’ll have to be better at time management than I am now,” Buzard said. “But I think I will be ready for it.”