Wasilewski putting his stamp on Bureau Valley girls basketball

There’s a new head coach for the Bureau Valley girls basketball program, but it is a familiar face.

Matt Wasilewski, who served under two head coaches at BV, gets his time to put his stamp on the Storm program as the man in charge.

That familiarity will help the transition run smoothly for the Storm.

“Having coached these seniors since their freshman year, I know what to expect from them, and they know what to expect from me,” Wasilewski said. “Our practices are similar to prior years. I have taken what I observed and absorbed from both Coach (Jim) Nugent and Coach (Daniel) Sinclair and implemented it into what I have previously done.”

Wasilewski’s expectations for his team are simple.

“We expect to compete with every team every night,” he said. “Defensively, we will try and put pressure on teams in the half court and full court. We lack size but have good quickness. The players know they will have to be able to guard any person at any time, regardless of size.

“This has been the case in the four years I have been here. The players like to play physical, and we will be well versed in good defensive fundamentals.”

Offensively, the Storm will look to push the pace a bit and get easy buckets in transition.

“All of the varsity players will be able to play on the outside, and we will need to take advantage of post opportunities when possible,” Wasilewski. “We have to be better at handling and passing the ball than in the past. That will be a focus for all players.”

There are 24 players in the Storm camp, including 15 underclassmen and nine juniors and seniors. Kyra Stoller, a 5-9 senior guard, heads a list of six returning letterwinners, including classmates Aspen Balensiefen (5-4/G), Kaleen Carlson (5-6/G), Jennifer Etheridge (5-9/F), Lexie Marquez (5-6/G) and Ashley Nordstrom (5-5/G).

Stoller returned for the final nine matches of the volleyball season after breaking her leg in the final summer league volleyball game.

“It goes without saying, Kyra’s performance on the court and her leadership is one of the keys to our season,” Wasilewski said. “She was able to get back in time to finish the volleyball season. That was a boost to her confidence. My focus early in the season is making sure she is 100% healthy.

“Kyra is a tremendous competitor. This is great when she is near 100%, but can be a detriment if she is far less than that.”

Wasilewski said the rest of the seniors will need to play to their capabilities and accept the roles the team needs. Marquez and Etheridge are going to be called on to score more, he said, while Balensiefen will be looked upon to be a 3-point threat.

Nordstrom and Carlson both have the ability to be lockdown defenders, Wasilewski said, adding that Carlson is “good at attacking the basket,” and Nordstrom “may be our best returning rebounder.”

Junior Nikki Kerber (5-7/G) will “need to be confident running the point, and willing to look for more of her own opportunities to score.” She’s joined by classmates Jillian Hulsing (5-9/F) and Alaina Wasilewski (5-10/F), who the coach/father hopes returns from injury in early January to provide some height and a defensive presence in the lane.

The Storm coach said he is looking forward to seeing if any F/S players will be able to fill roles at the varsity level.

After the first couple of practices, Wasilewski said the girls were a bit tired and sore, adding, “They go as hard in practice as any athletes I have ever coached. This has always been the case for the ladies in the basketball program.”

The Storm will open the season at the Princeton Tournament from Nov. 15-20.

Wasilewski, 48, who teaches special education and leadership at BVHS, is also an assistant football and baseball coach. He recently coached boys basketball at Gilman Iroquois West and Peoria Heights. He was also head football coach at Iroquois West from 2013 to 2018 and has been a head softball coach.

He is being assisted by longtime BV staffer Bret Helms at the sophomore level and BV alum Savannah Wall with the freshmen.