Section 7A Preview

After Mountain Iron-Buhl lost to Goodhue in last spring’s state Class A final, MIB coach Jeff Buffetta praised his senior guards Mya Buffetta and Chelsea Mason (and why not?). MIB has now been to 7 straight state tournaments, and Mya Buffetta and Mason have played in six. They never won a state championship but Jeff Buffetta gave fair warning. “Now, there are lots of little girls all over Mountain Iron and Buhl who want to be like Mya Buffetta and Chelsea Mason.” A few weeks later I ran into coach Buffetta at a summer tournament and I mentioned to him that, apparently, there are little girls all over the Iron Range who want to be like Mya Buffetta and Chelsea Mason. Of course, he already knew that much better than I did. In fact, he wanted me to check out one of them, Kaelynn Kudis from Cherry, then a freshman, now a sophomore, who was playing at Kennedy that day. The point is, girls basketball on the Iron Range—or, rather, the Arrowhead, not just the Range, but everywhere north of Hinckley—hasn’t been very good. In more than 40 years now, only one team from the Arrowhead has ever won a state title. That was Chisholm in 1984. Even 3-4 years ago in Section 7A, there was MIB. Then there was MIB and Cromwell. Now there’s MIB, Cromwell, Bigfork, Cherry. MIB’s run of state tournament entries could even come to an end, though we’re not making that call. But the competition is there. But, while life will be a little tougher for MIB, there’s no question that Jeff Buffetta is thrilled. 1. Mountain Iron-Buhl 31-2, lost to Goodhue 73-51 in state final Still, we’re going with MIB to return to the state tournament for an 8th straight year. I don’t think they’re a threat to win it all this time. They could go unseeded. But 5-11 Mary Burke and 5-10 Allie Negen are the toughest pair of bigs in the valley. Ultimately, their ceiling will be decided by their guard play. Macy Savela and (fill in the blank with Mattison Bennett, or Miah Gellerstedt or Madisen Oberbye) is not going to make people forget Mya Buffetta and Mason, but Jeff Buffetta insists that their going to be better than you think. 2. Bigfork 27-3, lost to MIB 71-64 in Section 7A final The Huskies gave MIB a game last year and they return, well, everybody. There were no seniors on that roster. Point guard Kia Tower and wing Haley Grover are the real deal, and Brianna Haley and Emma Rauzi inside and Lexi Becker and Desiree Kobal on the perimeter bring a lot of capability. A win over MIB in March is not out of the question. 3. Cherry 18-8, lost 67-48 to Bigfork in Section 7A QF Cherry was not as good as Bigfork last year and loses a couple players to graduation. But, all of their top players with 8th and 9th graders, so we expect a bigger bump up. Guards Kudis and Karlee Grondahl are now sophomores and post Jessalyn Schroetter is a freshman. A win over Bigfork and even a win over MIB is not out of reach. 4. Cromwell 27-5, lost to Goodhue 70-48 in state SF Cromwell has lost a tremendous amount of talent over the past 2 years, but they remain a contender with sophomores Taya and Shailey Hakamaki and senior Teeana Hakamaki. There is not depth and the Cardinals love to run and gun, so we’ll have to see how that goes. They’ll outrun most people, but at the top of the food chain…? 5. Floodwood 19-10, lost to Bigfork 58-47 in Section 7A SF The Polar Bears are deeper than some, younger than some, more experienced than some. In short, a nice mix of senior Mikayla Koivisto, juniors Kennedi Johnson, Ryanna Koivisto and Alexis Stokke, and sophomores Imijyn and C.J. Thompson. One thing: They’re all guards. 6. Deer River 18-10, lost to MIB 79-20 in Section 7A QF The Warriors feature a big junior class led by 5-10 guard Hope Schjenken and her 15.5 ppg. But, you see that they got totally torched by MIB last year. They’re unlikely to make up that kind of a gap. 7. Ely 13-13, lost to Cherry 64-36 in Section 7A 1st round Ely is led by 5-6 sophomores Erika Mattson and Brielle Kallberg, while 5-10 senior Shayla Zaverl provides some size. 8. South Ridge 12-13, lost to Cook County 55-49 in Section 7A QF Senior guard Marissa Bober and junior forward Celia Olesiak lead the way. 9. Chisholm 9-18, lost to Nash-Kee 55-42 in Section 7A 1st round Forward Tessa Yaroscak is solid,and she and her help are all seniors. Best to do it now. 10. Carlton 13-15, lost to Floodwood 40-25 in Section 7A QF 4 sophomores join senior point guard Millie Grothe. Another program that’s getting better, little by little. 11. Silver Bay 6-19, lost to South Ridge 62-55 in Section 7A 1st round 5-7 senior forward Jocelyn Russell and her 21 ppg leads the way. This could be the Mariners best team in a long time. 12. Cook County 14-11, lost to MIB 91-37 in Section 7A SF The Grand Marais school lost center Emily Jacobsen and her 22 ppg. Junior guard Sophie Eliasen leads the way. 13. Nashwauk-Keewatin 10-18, lost to MIB 73-24 in Section 7A 1st round The last team to get to state before MIB’s big run, the Spartans are led by freshman Jacie Clisiau. 14. Littlefork Big Falls 14-11, lost to Deer River 63-30 in Section 7A 1st round The Vikings lost the great Kaylee Kennedy and her 29 ppg. 3 starters return but that’s a lot of ground to make up. 15. Fon du Lac Ojibwe 7-15, lost to Cook County 87-17 in Section 7A 1st round 6 contributors but none of them averaged in double figures. But, there’s 3 sophomores and an 8th grader, so there’s hope for the future. 16. Hill City 2-22, lost to Wrenshall 46-26 in Section 7A 1st round Junior forward Brianna Fike and senior guard Hannah Nutter both averaged in double digits last year. If they can find some help…. 17. North Woods 8-19, lost to Bigfork 87-38 in Section 7A 1st round 4 juniors and a sophomore will do the heavy lifting, led by junior guard Bria Chiabotti at 9.5 ppg. 18. Northland 8-18, lost to Carlton 59-42 in Section 7A 1st round Guards Taylor Tschida, a 5-1 junior, and Maddy Greene, a 5-3 sophomore, lead the way. 19. Wrenshall 2-24, lost to Floodwood 50-33 in Section 7A QF Senior post Gracie Bergman (11 ppg) leads the way. 20. Northeast Range 2-20, lost to North Woods 67-35 in Section 7A 1st round 5-10 junior Chloe Aase leads the way. The other returning contributors are all 5-3. Conferences at a Glance The Range is pretty strange in that conference membership is fluid. Some teams belong to more than one. Here, hopefully, is how the conferences stack up. Arrowhead Conference—MIB is a member and therefore the favorite in the Arrowhead. Cherry and Ely are next in line. Iron Range—Only Chisholm among the Class A teams is in the Iron Range Conference, where AAA Hibbing and AA International Falls are the favorites. Northern Lakes—MIB is not a member, but Bigfork is, and is favored. Deer River and Nash-Kee are next in line. Polar Conference—The Polar goes from Cook County, Silver Bay, Floodwood and South Ridge down to McGregor. Cromwell and Floodwood will battle it out for the Small Division title. Barnum is favored among the Bigs. St. Louis County—There used to be a St. Louis County Conference that encompassed a lot of the Class A schools in this area. It appears to have gone under after school consolidations whittled 6 schools down to 3 (Northeast Range, North Woods and South Ridge). All-Section 7A Center—Mary Burke, MIB, 5-11, senior, 18 ppg Power Forward—Allie Negen, MIB, 5-10, junior, 10 ppg Small Forward—Jocelyn Russell, Silver Bay, 5-7, senior, 21 ppg Point Guard—Taya Hakamaki, Cromwell, 5-4, sophomore, 15 ppg Shooting Guard—Kaelynn Kudis, Cherry, 5-6, sophomore, 14 ppg 2nd Team Center—Jessalyn Schroetter, Cherry, freshman, 10.5 ppg Power Forward—Emma Rauzi, Bigfork, 5-9, senior, 10 ppg Small Forward—Haley Grover, Bigfork, 5-8, senior, 12 ppg Point Guard—Kia Tower, Bigfork, 5-5, senior, 15 ppg Shooting Guard—Teeana Hakamaki, Cromwell, 5-6, senior, 16 ppg 3rd Team Center—Gracie Bergman, Wrenshall, senior, 11 ppg Power Forward—Tessa Yaroscak, Chisholm, 5-9, senior, 11 ppg-4 reb Point Guard—Macy Savela, MIB, 5-6, junior, 7 ppg Shooting Guard—Shailey Hakamaki, Cromwell, 5-8, sophomore, 11 ppg Shooting Guard—Hope Schjenken, Deer River, 5-10, junior, 15.5 ppg Stock Raisers Center—Katie Peterson, Cherry, 5-10, sophomore, 7 ppg Forward—Tannia Misquadance, Fon du Lac Ojibwe, sophomore, 7 ppg Point Guard—Imijyn Thompson, Floodwood, sophomore, 14 ppg Shooting Guard—Karlee Grondahl, Cherry, 5-6, sophomore, 13 ppg Shooting Guard—Jacie Clusiau, Nash-Kee, freshman, 12 ppg