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Our Belgian ladies abroad

Part 1 - 26 / 11 / 2012

L.S.

With the holiday period approaching slowly but steadily, it is time for us to take a first look at our Belgian girls currently playing abroad. In this first review we look at how they did so far in the current competition.

Ann Wauters (Galatassaray - Turkey)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
After spending most of her summer in the WNBA with Seattle Storm, Ann Wauters (photo: htspor.com) is currently playing for Galatasaray Istanbul in Turkey. In her first year in the Turkish competition, Ann continues to impress. Her team is currently second in standing behind Cappie Pondexter’s Fenerbahce with a 5-1 record. Together with Sancho Lyttle, Ann dominates the inside play of the TKBL league. In last weekend’s victory against Besiktas (81-43), Ann played 33 minutes and had a stunning double-double with 23 points and 12 rebounds. Currently she averages 10.2 rebounds and 15 points a game in the Turkish league. In the FIBA Euroleague, Galatasaray has a perfect record of 5-0 and the 1.92 cm tall center averages 11.2 points and 6.6 rebounds. In Galatasaray’s next European game (5.12.2012), the Belgian star player will face her former team and most serious contender in the group C, UMMC Ekaterinburg.

Anke de Mondt (Wisla Krakow - Poland)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
Anke de Mondt (photo: FIBA Europe) is in her second year with the Polish team Wisla Can-Pak. The 33 year old Flemish swingman has had a terrific career so far. She even crowned herself Euroleague champion two years ago with Avenidas Perfumerias. However, she experienced a minor setback this summer with missing out on the international competition because of an ankle injury. Having won the Polish championship and cup last year, nothing less is expected from her Krakowian team this season. So far Alana Beard, Tina Charles & Anke de Mondt recorded a 8-1 streak. They only lost two weeks ago to the other Polish Euroleague contender, CCC Polkowice. Anke averages 10. 6 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.2 steals in the Polish competition at the moment. In last weekend’s victory over Rzeszow, Anke played 21 minutes, grabbed 3 rebounds and scored 7 points. She had a better game in last week’s Euroleague competition where she scored 18 points along with grabbing 5 boards in 34 minutes of playing time. She was one of the key players in Wisla’s surprise victory over Bekky Hammon’s and Candice Dupree’s Sparta & K Moskow. In the Euroleague Wisla is only fifth placed in group A with 1 victory and 3 losses but the Belgian player is recording her best stats ever with an average of 11 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2 steals a game.

Kathy Wambe (Schio - Italia)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
Kathy Wambe also continues to impress. After spending several years with Taranto, the guard has returned to the Italian competition after a year in France with Villeneuve d’Ascq and currently plays for Familia Schio. In the Euroleague, Familia Schio stands at the top of group B with a 4-1 record. Alongside the Italian stars Sottana and Masciadri, Kathy Wambe only lost the last game against the Slovakian Good Angels Kosice. Wambe did not play in that game. In the Italian competition, Familia Schio has had only one minor shortcoming against Parma. All their other five games they won and they share first place in standings with the team Lucca. In last weekend’s victory in Umbertide (34-51), Kathy Wambe played 23 minutes, made 4 points, grabbed 3 rebounds and stole 3 balls. She is currently averaging 5 points, 2.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 2 steals in almost twenty minutes of playing time in the Italian A1.

Evelien Callens (VS Praha - Czech Republic)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
The 1,88 cm tall power forward Evelien Callens (photo: vsbasket.cz) has resigned this season with VS Praha in the first Czech division. She started decently into the season with 8.8 points and 4.6 rebounds per game in the first five games with her team but injured herself after that. After surgery on her knee, she is currently recovering and working on her comeback. Her team is currently fifth among twelve contenders with a 7-5 record.

Emma Meesseman (ESB Villeneuve d'Ascq - France)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
In her first season as a pro, Emma Meesseman (photo: ESBVA.com) plays for Villeneuve d’Ascq in France. Unfortunately she had to miss out on the beginning of the season due to a hand injury, but since four games Emma is back in the competition. She plays on average 29 minutes in which she scores remarkable 11.3 points, hands out 2 assists and grabs 6.8 rebounds. Villeneuve d’Ascq has had a bad start into the season and only won two out of their first 10 games. They won their last game against Romina Ciappina’s former team Union Hainaut with 72-68. Emma contributed with 17 points, 7 rebounds to that victory.

Romina Ciappina (Union Hainaut Basket - France)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
After spending several years with Slovakian and Italian teams Romina Ciappina (photo: trutnovinky.cz) signed this season with a team closer to home, Union Hainaut Basket in the LFB. However, things went not that well for her and Romina does not fit into the plans of her coach anymore. She has thus been released of her contract and has so far not found a new team. In the French competition, she played regularly for around 17 minutes in which she scored 4.3 points and took 1.8 rebounds along with 0.6 assists. Saint-Amand Hainaut has had a terrible season so far with only one victory in 10 games in the LFB. In the FIBA Eurocup, the next opponent of the Young Cats has done a lot better. They are first in their group with a record of 4-1 and will proceed to round of the last 16. In the European competition Romina did a lot better. Her stats read 11.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists in 20.3 minutes of playing time.

Kim Mestdagh (CD Zamarat - Spain)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
Also in her first season as a pro is Kim Mestdagh (photo: laopiniondezamora.es). The former Colorado State ram has signed with the team Caja Rural Zamarat in the first Spanish division. The shooting guard plays there alongside the Finnish and Greek stars Taru Tuukkanen and Olga Chatzinikolaou. In seven games, Kim plays on average 16 minutes, shoots above 50% behind the arc and scores 8.1 points a game. The team in currently fourth behind Rivas Ecopolis, Perfumeridas Avenidas and Uni Girona with a 4-3 record. In last week’s victory over Burgos (96-72), Kim had a terrific night with 16 points and 6 rebounds.

Hanne Mestdagh (Colorado State Universtiy - USA)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
Kim’s sister, Hanne Mestdagh is in her sophomore year at the Colorado State University. Her school, which is based in Fort Collins plays in the Mountain West Conference in the NCAA Division I. Hanne missed out on most of last year’s competition because of a recurring knee injury and is still working on her comeback. Her team has so far played five official games and has won three of them. All about Hanne Mestdagh on her blog.

Hatti Bende Nawhezi (Limoges - France)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
The Congolese born Harriet (Hatti) Bende Nawhezi (photo: limogesabc.com) plays this season for Limoges in the second French division after spending most of her youth with Mondeville. The ’94 born center plays there 15.7 minutes grabs almost 3 rebounds and is good for 4 points on average per game. Currently, her team has yet to get a victory and is last in standings with a 0-8 record. Last weekend, in Calais, they lost by 64 points (47-111).

Elodie Lemmer (Racing Luxembourg - Luxembourg)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
The less known Elodie Lemmer currently plays, alongside former Waregem player Kayla Tetschlag, in Luxembourg for the team Racing Luxembourg. The 22 year old swingman is one of the pillar’s of the team from the capital with 9.3 points and almost 4 rebounds on average per game. However, her team has yet to record a win.

Caroline Bourlioux (Lindenwood University - USA)
Our Belgian ladies abroad
The other Belgian girl playing in the NCAA is Caroline Bourlioux (photo: Don Adams Jr). In her junior year at Lindenwood University (NCAA Division II) in Missouri she plays 27.7 minutes, grabs 5.3 rebounds and scores 14.3 points on average. Her team, the Lindenwood lady lions, have only won one of their three regular games so far.




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