Fresh off a 21-3 season and a conference title, the Braves have settled in to being a program that everyone marks on their calendars and puts a bullseye on to try and beat. Last year, just a pair of SAC powers and eventual Class 3A state champion Norwell were able to topple Bellmont.
Now in his 15th year at the helm, Bellmont coach Andy Heim looks to seize more control in the NE8 and carry it over into the postseason, where the team they lost to last year went on to win state.
While Bellmont lost a Bleke in the graduation of all-area player Emily Bleke, the return of Ashley Bleke returns to lead the charge after a great freshman season and fellow sophomore Mary Bleke is back as well for the Braves. Last season, Ashley Bleke averaged a team second-best 13.1 points to go with 4.6 rebounds, while Mary Bleke brought in 4.6 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.
Also returning in Decatur are the junior duo of Lanie French (4.9 ppg) and Kate Kitson (4.6 ppg), giving a big bolster to Bellmont’s desire to repeat as NE8 champions. To have four starters back from last season’s three loss team is a major place to start at.
Just one senior, Bri Converset, is likely to get significant time as she returns to the lineup. Also back after seeing time last season are sophomores Oni Krueckeberg (2.8 ppg), Kaitlyn Barton and Hadley Caffee, which means that Bellmont will lean heavily on their sophomore class with five of the top 8 players on their lineup coming from the 2028 class.
Heim notes that outside of their obvious depth and unity with so many returners, he expects this team’s defense and ability to score from multiple spots to be big momentum gatherers for Bellmont. The Braves return nearly nine steals per game from last season, with Ashley Bleke’s 2 per game leading the way. Mary Bleke, Kitson and Krueckeberg (2.8 ppg) each also averaged more than a steal per contest. Both returning Blekes averaged over 3.5 points in the paint per game, while Ashley averaged 1.5 three pointers made per game; she also brings back a team best 37.4 percent from behind the arc.
“While losing Emily [Bleke] and Gwen [Laurent] is difficult, I am really excited for our returning players,” Heim said. “On top of being great basketball players, I think our unity is something not all teams have; they truly love each other. That, on top of being hard workers, is what makes practices so productive and full of energy.”
WHY #7?
Bellmont stays in the hunt amongst the top teams in the area for obvious reasons: Andy Heim has never taken his foot off the gas since the Braves flipped from 7-16 under his watch in 2015-16 and to 18-5 the following season.
Bellmont has not won less than 17 games in a season since.
They are built for pressure games and pressure moments and it is a credit to Heim and his staff for making sure the program’s ideals and visions trickle down year after year to the next group. So if so positive, why seventh? Well they did graduate one of the best players in program history and have a few other pieces that will need to adapt.
That said, if the adaptation happens early, this team could be another area power this season.
KEY GAME
January 17 at Norwell
Write it down, circle the date, take a picture of this article, all of the above.
You rarely want to miss Bellmont/Norwell any year. Now Norwell wants to look for dominance after eliminating the Braves a season ago in the postseason, with the lingering knowledge that Bellmont’s win the regular season allowed the Braves to snatch the conference title for themselves.
This game will be full throttle as they always are and Bellmont will be looking to disappoint their chief rival once again. Both teams will be strong and this could be the deciding factor in the run for a NE8 title. It is also, as always a monster momentum piece heading into the postseason.
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