Boys Basketball Turns it Around

Despite being mildly successful in previous years, some feel the FCHS varsity boys basketball team managed to go from the proverbial “zero to hero” in just a span of one year. They made it to the regional semi-finals, along with beating a long-time rival, Western Albemarle.

“I feel like we had a very successful year,” said junior guard Kobe Edmonds. Once again led by Coach Heath Bralley, the team brought in two new transfers who contributed greatly to the team’s success as well. “This year was different because we had way more chemistry than the past two years and two transfers that helped a lot,” said senior guard Johnboy Rittenhouse.

Fluvanna managed to finish the regular season with a record of 10-4, while finishing their whole season at 11-5. This is the first time in over five years that Fluvanna has been able to reach double digit wins in a season, and many of the players were ecstatic. “I wouldn’t change a thing about this season. It was the best year of basketball that I have ever played while in high school,” said Rittenhouse.

Edmonds added, “I feel like we could have gone farther in the playoffs this year and made a run for the state championship, but other than that, I loved the team this year, and I have high expectations for next year’s team.”

Western Albemarle is a long-time Fluco rival, and the last couple of years Fluvanna has struggled to compete with Western. But this year was different. “It felt good beating Western because we hadn’t beat them in so long and it just showed that we were a good team this year,” said Edmonds.

Rittenhouse agreed. “It felt amazing. That was definitely the highlight of the year for us. They are a rival and have beaten us for a long time so it felt good to finally come out on top.”

Whether this season continues to prove to be a game changer for the varsity team remains to be seen, but Bralley is hopeful. “The future of the Fluco boys basketball program is bright and full of potential with several returners and players ready to step up, as well as a strong JV team of rising juniors. With continued development, chemistry, and growth we will continue to build on our successes, ” he said.

He added that “hopefully, we will have a closer than ‘normal’ summer workout and camp schedule which would be a huge springboard for us building on our successes of the last few years. All credit for success goes to the young men we have the privilege to coach and the big man upstairs. I can’t wait to see how great we can be.”