Catching up with former area athletes: Winner alums helping Black Hills State women's basketball
Dec. 27—SPEARFISH, S.D. — Winner High School products Morgan Hammerbeck and Kalla Bertram are proving to be critical pieces of the Black Hills State women's basketball program this season.
The two players rank second and third, respectively in points scored, with Hammerbeck leading the team in minutes (29.6 per game) and Bertram second (28.6 per game).
Hammerbeck, a 5-foot-11 forward and fourth-year senior, posted a season-high 21 points in the opening game against the University of Mary on Nov. 14, while adding eight rebounds. She also had 16 points at New Mexico Highlands on Dec. 15. She has now started 54 games in the last three seasons, including all nine this season, averaging 8.2 points and 5.1 rebounds per game.
Bertram, a 5-foot-9 guard who is a third-year junior, is averaging 8.1 points and 4.8 rebounds per game, while shooting 43% from the field. She had 19 points on Dec. 2 in a game at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs as a season-high, and posted 13 points in a rivalry game against South Dakota Mines on Nov. 27.
The second half of the season begins on Jan. 5 for the Yellow Jackets (6-3, 3-2 RMAC) when Adams State (Colo.) visits the Young Center in Spearfish.
LINDSBORG, Kan. — Mitchell High School alumnus Trevor Flemmer is in a new role this season as the head basketball coach for Bethany College men's basketball in Kansas.
Flemmer was hired in March as the NAIA squad's new head coach, replacing former coach Dan O'Dowd. Flemmer was previously the head coach of the Presentation College program, leading the program for a year before the university closed its doors in May.
Bethany is a Lutheran-affiliated Christian college with about 800 students. Lindsborg, a town of nearly 3,800 people, is located about 70 miles north of Wichita and about 200 miles west of Kansas City.
The 2023-24 season has started 2-8 for Flemmer and the Swedes, who are 1-5 in Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference play. Flemmer got his first victory with Bethany on Oct. 28 in the opening game, a 77-64 road win over Mount Marty in Yankton.
Prior to Presentation, Flemmer was an assistant coach at Dakota State for four seasons, plus had assistant coach stints at Riverland Community College (Minn.) and Briar Cliff (Iowa).
Bethany will play at Hastings (Neb.) on Dec. 30, followed by a KCAC game at Ottawa (Kan.) on Jan. 3. The Swedes' home schedule resumes on Jan. 6 hosting Saint Mary (Kan.).
TOLEDO, Ohio — Bella Swedlund's college basketball debut has had to wait a little longer, as the former Winner standout remains sidelined with a leg injury.
The school has classified her as being out indefinitely. Swedlund posted a video on social media earlier this month showing her on crutches and with a brace around her leg.
Swedlund, a 5-foot-8 freshman guard, transferred from Kansas during the middle of the 2022-23 season, joining with Toledo in the second semester last season but was not able to play in games.
The Rockets are the preseason favorites in the Mid-American Conference and are currently ranked No. 7 in the women's Mid-Major Top-25. They open play in the MAC at Miami University (Ohio) on Jan. 3 in Oxford, Ohio, with the Rockets' home conference opener on Jan. 10 against Western Michigan.
