Bellevue East Winter Varsity Sports Preview for boys’ and girls’ basketball, boys’ and girls’ wrestling, bowling, and swimming/diving as provided by the coaches.
Boys Basketball
- Head Coach: Trevor Lenear
- 1st Season as Head Coach at East
- Assistant Coaches: Joe Chavis, Brain Lecheler, Lee Reimer, Ryan Lowry, Shaq Esparza
- Last Year’s Record: 8-17
Season Outlook: I’m looking forward to building on the chemistry that I have with this group of guys. I coached them all when they were on the freshmen team a few years ago, and I had nearly all of them when they played JV for me last school year. The players and I work really well together. There is a trust there from those two years that many first year head coaches often don’t have, which I am extremely thankful for.
I hope the community sees a team that they can relate to. The Bellevue community is full of so many hard-working people, and we want our team to represent that every time they step on the floor. A team that is going to go out there work hard, compete, and have fun while doing it.
Our first game is on Thursday, November 30. Tip-off is 7:15pm at Norfolk High School
Team Leaders
We have a lot of guys entering into new roles this year as many of them did not have an overwhelming amount of varsity experience last year. We have some guys who have the potential to emerge as leaders for this team. Ammi Williams is a two year starter who is returning for us. He has shown he can compete at the varsity level. We will be counting on him to be more of a vocal leader on and off the court this year. Kael Walker is a guy that guys respect and brings a lot of positivity to the table. Kris Brown has done a great job of leading by example. He has shown up every day since summer workouts began in June. And Isaac Gore. He is another guy that we are hoping to be more of a vocal leader this coming season.
Most Improved
Kris Brown. He has been a gym rat all summer and preseason. Working hard to expand his game beyond being a pretty good shooter. Kevin Matthews. He is a very raw, and athletic sophomore who can play multiple positions. He had a few games this summer where he was a spark plug for us in terms of getting us going on both ends of the floor. He has continued to improve on his skill level throughout the off-season.
Girls Basketball
- Head Coach: Brittany Wilson
- 5th Season as Head Coach at East
- Assistant Coaches: Eric Lenear, Morgan Lampe
- Last Years Record: 21-5
Season Outlook: Young roster with many younger athletes with varsity experience. We are excited to see this talented young group continue to develop throughout this season. The first game is on November 30th at Norfolk.
Team Leaders
- Jayla Wilson – Started at point last two seasons and now stepping up into a leadership role as a Junior
- Jamyla Gilmore – Junior forward who leads by example and effort consistently.
- We only have 1 senior this year, so we will look to these two for a ton of leadership.
Most Improved
- Mya Weber – (Junior) Huge off-season development. 3 sport athlete that has greatly improved each year. We will rely on her a ton this season. Great rebounded and high IQ player.
- Loveyah Jones – (Junior) shot the 3 over 40% last season. Will step into a big role as one of our guards this year.
Boys Wrestling
- Head Coach: Matt Malcom
- 2nd Season as Head Coach at East
- Assistant Coaches: Pat Rush, Wesley Dawkins, Kaleb Gammon, Nolan Koehler
- Last Year’s Record: Dual Record 8-9
Season Outlook: This season I am very excited to continue building on a great foundation that was set last season. We have had great off-season attendance at our workouts, and the kids seem very excited and motivated to get going! We are excited to continue the promotion and growth of wrestling in the Bellevue community this season. Be sure to be on the lookout for some great things we have going on; including camps, community engagements, and involvement in all age levels of the sport here in Bellevue!
Our first competition is on December 2nd at the Kearney High Invite.
Team Leaders
With such a large senior class (8+) we have a great deal of leaders on our team. We have been relying on them to help guide the underclassmen and build on our great team culture. LaBrian Parker (150 lbs) and Hunter Teeters (132 lbs) have been leading the charge this pre-season with running workouts and holding their teammates accountable. I am very excited to see how that leadership develops and the impact it has on their own wrestling as the season progresses.
Most Improved
Seniors Ben Ewing and Evan Gann have shown tremendous growth this offseason, and I am excited to see their hard work pay off on the mat. Both have been on our team for the past 3 seasons, and they have both set themselves up for a breakout season with the effort they have put in since last February.
Swimming & Diving
- Head Coach: Cassidy Benjamin
- 1st Season as Head Coach at East
- Assistant Coaches: Katelynn Caniglia (Assistant Coach), Tami Dolphens (Diving)
- Last Year’s Record(s): 1-6 Girls (In Dual Meets), 4-3 Boys (In Dual Meets)
Season Outlook: As a new head coach who has grown up around the sport, I am looking forward to this new chapter of my coaching career and being able to establish a new culture for the Bellevue East Swimming and Diving team. This year I am looking forward to watching swimmers and divers grow and break personal records while also having fun. For most of them, this is a new sport or a sport they do for fun. I want this season to bring many achievements and memories for both swimmers and divers.
Our first competition this year is December 1st for diving at Burke High School and December 2nd for swimming is the Benson Invitational at Monroe Middle School Pool.
Team Leaders
Noah Davis and Allison Rutherford are both amazing leaders on our team.
Noah will be a senior with a swimming background who was part of the relay team that made it to state last year as well as an individual event. Noah is a well-versed athlete who puts time and effort into making himself successful. It will be great to watch the growth of Noah throughout his senior season.
Allison is a sophomore who swims year-round and has big goals for herself this season such as making it to state. Allison is definitely someone who will be looked up to this season by teammates as a leader on the team. She pushes others in the pool every day to give their best and be the best they can. She is always encouraging and is a bright light to have on the team. I am looking forward to what she does in the pool this season and in the next couple of seasons during her high school career.
Most Improved
Most of our boy seniors on the team have stood out to me throughout the off-season in all the other sports they compete in which helps condition them for swimming. They will be great to watch and I know will excel in and out of the pool this season.
One thing I would like the community to know is that we are looking forward to their support and would love to invite them to come watch our swimmers and divers at one of our 4 home meets. 3 which are short dual or the Chieftain invite on February 3rd.
Girls Wrestling
- Head Coach: Bryan Irsik
- 3rd Season as Head Coach
- Assistant Coaches: Pat Fetter (3rd Season), Nick Allman (1st Season)
- Last Year’s Record: 4-3 Dual Record, 2 State Qualifiers
*The girls’ wrestling program is a united team between both Bellevue East and West, with our practices taking place at BJSA during the season.
Season Outlook: The First Competition of the year will be In Kearney Nebraska on December 1 against the Kearney Girls Wrestling team and on December 2 we will again be in action in Kearney for the Kearney High Girls Invite. Our First Home Action will be against Millard North at Bellevue West on December 19th at 6:00 PM.
Team Leaders
Jay Knight, Senior – Jay shows a strong work ethic and attitude in practice and competition. Jay’s effort in the practice room not only helps with Jay’s success on the mat but also in the success and development of the practice partners who work with Jay in the practice room.
Jamela Khaitov, Senior – Jamela is going into her second season with the girl’s wrestling program after showing great strides in her first-ever season of wrestling. Jamela brings leadership experience from her years of cheerleading with Bellevue East High School.
Elaina Fletcher, Sophomore – Elaina is our most experienced wrestler on the team and has taken a leadership role in helping newer and younger athletes on the team as they develop throughout the season. Elaina uses her strong knowledge of wrestling to help guide her teammates during practice and competition. Elaina set the program win record for Freshmen with 26 wins and is a returning state qualifier for the program.
Kaliyah Evans, Freshman – Before even stepping on the mat Kaliyah has demonstrated strong commitment to the wrestling program this season as she has been to nearly every team workout for the off-season and pre-season.
Most Improved
Paris Plough, Senior – Dedicated herself this summer to improving her wrestling skills over the summer by traveling to Florida this summer to train. Paris returned from Florida with a stronger understanding of how to train in wrestling and wrestling technique and skills.
Makaela Davis, Sophomore – Has shown an improved understanding of technique combined with a newfound confidence that will make her a force to be dealt with on the mat this season.
We are in the third year of existence, and the growth of our program is evident as we have grown from 17 in year 1 to 22 in year 2. We are currently looking to welcome 36 lady wrestlers this season. Girls wrestling is growing throughout the state of Nebraska and to help encourage that growth we want to promote girls wrestling at BJSA season and let it be known that we also offer girls wrestling at the Middle School Levels. We want to encourage any young lady in Bellevue who has an interest in wrestling to try it and help continue our growth in girls’ wrestling.
Bowling
- Head Coach: Kent Crossley
- 4th Season as Head Coach
- Assistant Coaches: Brandon Fisicaro, Dave Dieterich, Bob Cote
- Last Year’s Record(s): Boys 11 – 8, Girls 13 – 8
Season Outlook: The boys’ varsity has three returning starters, and it is pretty wide open to see who we can develop to fill in those two remaining starting spots. The girl’s situation is similar: we lost two key starters from last year’s team, so I hope our coaches can get a couple of girls ready to go immediately. Overall, I like the leadership of our returning starters. I really like our coaching staff and feel like we are hitting our best stride in understanding each other’s strengths and weaknesses, which ultimately helps our kids.
Our first Dual is vs. Omaha Burke on November 30, 3:00pm at Chops Bowl.
Team Leaders
I have to mention seniors Jayce Hollars and Kevin Dillingham. They have stuck with the program and have worked through some tough times since we were winless when they were freshmen. Junior Matt Dieterich is another great kid who finished 7th in state singles last year. He seems to thrive on competition and he’s a strong student in the classroom. For the girls, senior Chloe Fisicaro has been a leader since her freshman year, and I think she can help with the confidence of our younger players who have to step up this year.
Most Improved
Shania Curtright (sophomore). I love her mental focus on the game. You hardly hear two words from her in a couple of hours of practice because she’s thinking of how she can get better.
