Top 250 Expo Report: Outstate players who made their mark

The first year of the Prep Girls Hoops Top 250 Expos has exceeded all expectations. Illinois last weekend was on fire – sold out with a long waiting list and a who’s who of nationally relevant players in the gym. Iowa is sold out, as well, and the feedback we have received from the Minnesota event has been amazing. Thanks to everyone who participated. We look forward to having you back with us next year. This is my last evaluation report from the Expo. Mason Asher has been traversing the country making these events happen, but he’s still got a notebook full of information coming. Mr. Asher has a great eye for talent, and it has been terrific getting his fresh perspective on Minnesota’s college prospects. Even on a couple hours of sleep he’s pretty sharp! For my final installment we take you to outstate Minnesota – to the southwestern and southeastern parts of the land to be more specific – to look at five more prospects who did nice work at the Top 250. These guards made their mark against top competition and will be firmly on the Prep Girls Hoops radar in the months ahead. Here they are listed in alphabetical order by last name. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="57939" first="Natalie" last="Bremer"], 5’10 guard, 2022, Lake City</strong> As we told you in our Top 250 Expo preview, Natalie is long and lean, with big strides, and natural athleticism. She’s a slasher and a shooter and she knows how to score, putting up about 20 points per game throughout her high school career to date. Bremer scored 20 or more 15 times last season. She had a season high of 31 at Chatfield. At the Expo she reinforced our opinion from previous viewings: Natalie has nice handles, is a quality shooter with range and has the quickness to beat most defenders one-on-one. She is also a committed rebounder. This is a top-60 prospect who will no doubt continue to move up in the rankings and be firmly in the scholarship conversation. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="109805" first="Lexi" last="Cloyd"], 5’9 guard, 2021, Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial</strong> Heading into the Expo we really liked what we had seen from Lexi in fairly limited viewing. After the Expo we can tell you that Cloyd is definitely a Top 100 player in the Class of 2021. Her numbers in high school basketball are impressive: An average of 20 ppg, a shooting percentage of 44 from beyond the arc and solid averages in assists and steals. She’s clearly one of the top long bombers in Minnesota. It’s one thing to do that against small-school opponents but Lexi showed us at the Expo that her skills will translate well against tougher competition. It doesn’t hurt that she knows how to handle the basketball and makes quality decisions in the process. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="109196" first="Brooklyn" last="Scheitel-Taylor"], 5’6 guard, 2022, Worthington</strong> Brooklyn is an athlete. It doesn’t take much research to figure it out. She is a do-it-all track competitor with natural tools. She plays volleyball for Worthington, as well. And as we saw last winter at the Big South Showcase in St. James, Schietel-Taylor can make her way around a basketball court at top speed. The Trojans’ starting point guard has quick feet, nice elevation and a natural skill set that is most intriguing.  Brooklyn plays with that smooth, easy-going flow that lets you know she has been blessed with next-level talent. Of course she’s only a sophomore so there is still plenty of polishing to be done, but this is a player with a lot of potential. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="109185" first="Rylie" last="Schnell"], 5’9 guard, 2022, Byron</strong> Rylie has been lurking in the background at Bryon. She made 12 varsity appearances as a freshman, averaging just under 3 points per game. This time around she’ll probably earn all the minutes she can handle. With the graduation of Lexi Glynn (the only senior lost), Schnell becomes Byron’s primary ball handler and it will be her job to get the orb into the hands of junior post [player_tooltip player_id="109753" first="Sacia" last="Vanderpool"], a top 40 player in the 2021 class. Schnell sees the floor well and does a nice job of sending the ball to the right locations which, more often than not, is to Vanderpool in the paint. Rylie’s shooting is much improved, and her overall skillset is becoming more polished over time. She is a consistently hard worker who is committed to the process. Rylie will play up a year next summer with Air Minnesota of Rochester. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="147459" first="Megan" last="Wegner"], 5’7 guard, 2022, Marshall </strong> Our first glimpse of Megan came during the opening week of the high school season last year when she made a brief appearance for Marshall at the Breakdown Tipoff. She didn’t play a ton that day, but what we saw during Megan’s second-half cameo appearance was very intriguing. She’s got nice foot speed and instincts you can’t teach. She shoots the ball well from three, and is an aggressive rebounder. One thing that stands out about Wegner is her strength. She’s physical and aggressive and rather solidly built. Megan has mostly played JV to date. Her ball handling is improving, which is vital if she’s going to become a varsity regular sooner rather than later. Megan also excels at volleyball and softball and it remains to be seen which of the three sports captures her fancy long-term. <span style="font-size: 10pt;"><em>Top photo: Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="109185" first="Rylie" last="Schnell"] of Bryon went up to the basket in traffic at the Top 250 Expo. (Photos by Chris Drake, Prep Girls Hoops)</em></span>