WINNER — Blake Volmer plays for his teammates, the Winner community and his grandmother. 

Blake’s grandmother, Delores Volmer, died in Dec. 2022 at the age of 89. She was a devoted grandmother and a regular at all her grandchildren’s activities. 

“She was at almost every single home game in Winner,” Volmer said. “She lived in Presho and she drove to almost every home game. I have two older siblings. She was at almost all their home games and she came to away games. She meant a lot to us.”

This season, Volmer has “RIP Grandma” written on his shoes to honor Delores and says a prayer before each game for her.

“Basketball is a huge part of my life obviously,” Volmer said. “So I thought that was a good way to remember her.”  

Winner's Blake Volmer Volmer has “RIP Grandma” written on his shoes to honor his Grandmother Delores, who died in December. (Ryan Deal / 605 Sports)

Delores would beam with pride watching Blake this season. A three-year starter, Volmer is again piloting the Winner boys basketball team on the court. He’s averaging 17.3 points, 9.4 rebounds and three assists per game. 

A 6-foot-3 guard, Volmer has scored in double figures in all seven games and has collected double-digit rebounds in five games. 

“He does what’s right for the team,” Winner coach Brett Gardner said. “He’s never going to go stat padding. He’s never going to get his shots just because he wants to. If he only scores 10 points and has nine assists, he will take that. If he needs to score 25, he will score 25. It’s nice to have a three-year player and a returning first-team all-stater on your team.” 

Offensively, the Warriors go as Volmer goes. Against Custer at the Sacred Hoops Classic, Volmer logged 22 points and 11 rebounds, while he did most of his damage in the third quarter to spark the offense. 

“Usually I let (the game) come to me,” Volmer said. “In the second half we needed a spark. I just tried my best to give our team that spark.” 

The rest of the Warriors followed his lead. Aiden Barfuss added 13 points, while 6-foot-7 Shawn Hammerbeck added 11 points and 15 rebounds as the Warriors pulled away.  

“We settled in and then Aiden Barfuss hit a couple of threes,” Gardner said. “Shawn Hammerbeck took over on the glass. We just needed a spark and Blake provided that and our team followed suit.”

Winner's Blake Volmer plays defense against Chamberlain earlier this season. (Rodney Haas / 605 Sports)

Volmer, who was Winner’s quarterback in the fall, has continued to facilitate on the hardwood. He dished out 21 assists this season and nearly logged a triple-double against Chamberlain, finishing with 21 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.

“I’ve been the point guard for three years now,” Volmer said. “So I like getting teammates involved, and when everybody has confidence and everyone is involved, it’s a lot more fun for the whole team and for the whole community.”

The Warriors are 6-1 this season and are gunning for their third consecutive state tournament appearance. Then Volmer will focus his attention toward next year. 

Volmer plans to play college basketball and has narrowed his choices to NCAA Division II power Black Hills State University, along with NAIA schools Dakota Wesleyan University and Morningside College.

Volmer’s parents, Todd and Rona, both played college basketball at BHSU. 

Blake hopes to make a decision within the coming months and has a list of factors for his college destination.

“I want to go to a program that’s going to win,” Volmer said. “But it’s a lot of trying to find the right fit, find the guys you think you will get along with and style of play.”