State Tournament: Day 1's top 10 performers

She arrived in our consciousness as a precocious 8th grader with a funky mop of strawberry blonde hair and a skillset that dazzled onlookers at the 2016 Minnesota girls basketball state tournament. In doing so she earned a spot on ESPN’s plays of the day and more than one high-level college offer. Four years later, the 5’9 guard is a highly-decorated veteran with a pocketful of accolades and nearly a year of college already under her belt. On Friday, St. Micheal-Albertville’s [player_tooltip player_id="1916" first="Mackenzie" last="Kramer"] was nothing short of outstanding as she led the Knights to an impressive win over Lakeville North at Williams Arena in Minneapolis. In doing so Kramer earned a spot on our list of top 10 performers on day 1. Kramer was a member of the Becker Bulldogs back in 2016, but she has spent the remainder of her high school career at STMA which has returned to state this year after not quite getting over the section championship hump in recent years. On Friday, Kenzie was the Knights’ floor leader, knocking down threes, driving to the basket and handling the ball with a level of aptitude that few in Minnesota can match. “She was amazing,” said STMA coach Kent Hamre. “I like when the ball is in her hands because I know if they are going to foul her it is probably going to go in on a free throw. She is a calming presence for the rest of the kids, and that really helps someone like Tessa (Johnson) who is still a young kid.” Kramer came out firing, nailing a three that put the Knights ahead by six in short order. She followed with another three at just under the 8-minute mark and another a little over a minute later. STMA was moving the ball, finding the opening player, and putting up high-quality shots on prime open looks. It was impressive stuff. By the time Kenzie drained another triple with under 5 minutes left in the first half St. Michael was up by 17, a lead that would stretch to 20 at the break. Kramer scored 18 points in that first half and finished with 22. The Lehigh University commit was 5 for 7 from three and 7 of 8 at the free throw line while recording 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals and a block. She played all 36 minutes as STMA overcame a second-half Lakeville North surge to win 63-55. One more thing: Kramer’s productive day pushed her past Iowa State point guard Rae Johnson, who had previously held the STMA career scoring record with 1,730 points. While Kramer was definitely a force on Wednesday, she wasn’t the only standout on day 1. We couldn’t watch all of the games, of course. That’s impossible with two courts operating simultaneously for 11 hours so we did not witness top performances by the likes of [player_tooltip player_id="12712" first="Maya" last="Nnaji"] for Hopkins and [player_tooltip player_id="28784" first="Liza" last="Karlen"] of Stillwater. But we did see all or part of eight of the day’s 12 games. From that sample size, these are the rest of the best. [player_tooltip player_id="109742" first="Kendal" last="Cox"] – 5’9 junior guard, St. Michael-Albertville (#27) Kramer wasn’t the only Knight in shining armor Friday. Freshman [player_tooltip player_id="108299" first="Tessa" last="Johnson"] scored 15 in her state tournament debut while senior [player_tooltip player_id="56242" first="Lily" last="Tennyson"] (MSU-Moorhead) had a half dozen rebounds and 11 points. As usual [player_tooltip player_id="109742" first="Kendal" last="Cox"] contributed a little bit of everything including 12 points, 4 rebounds and a whole lot of stuff that doesn’t show up on the score sheet. Often overlooked but never under appreciated by her coach, Cox is the glue that holds STMA together. She got off to a great start against the Panthers, scoring a couple of early buckets and setting the tempo for what was to follow. “Kendal had a great game,” Hamre said. “She hit some big shots early. She also had the task of guarding [player_tooltip player_id="1919" first="Lauren" last="Jensen"], too, and that’s not a fun thing. Kendal was just huge. [player_tooltip player_id="109756" first="Peyton" last="Blandin"] – 5’8 junior guard, Farmington (#50) Farmington made its state tournament debut on Friday. The Tigers played well for the most part in an epic struggle with Eden Prairie. Despite a second-half lull, Farmington held on to advance with a 58-54 win. There’s little doubt the Tigers would not have moved on if not for the stellar play of junior point guard [player_tooltip player_id="109756" first="Peyton" last="Blandin"], who shot 6 for 9 on the day, including 3-of-3 from three. She was also 3-for-4 at the free throw line for 18 points. “Peyton had the most confident, well-played game of the year for her,” said Farmington coach Liz Carpentier. “She was phenomenal. She was knocking down threes, she drove to the basket and just played a great defensive game, too. She was really composed down the stretch. Peyton knows now what she has to do and what is expected of her and she did it.” [player_tooltip player_id="2109" first="Paige" last="Kindseth"] – 5’10 junior guard, Farmington (#10) Blandin wasn’t the only Tiger who turned in an excellent performance Wednesday. Senior Kaitlyn Mohr hit shots early. Senior [player_tooltip player_id="110903" first="Morgan" last="Ebel"] made a couple of big 3-pointers in the first half. And junior guard [player_tooltip player_id="2109" first="Paige" last="Kindseth"], who had an outstanding game in the Tigers’ section 1AAAA championship win over Rochester Mayo, picked right up where she left off. Kindseth had 13 points, 10 rebounds, 5 steals, an assist and a block while guarding Eden Prairie standout sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="12732" first="Nia" last="Holloway"] for much of the game. Kindseth has only been back two weeks from foot surgery, but the top 10 prospect in the class of 2021 has played better than ever. “Paige was phenomenal, both offensively and defensively,” said Carpentier. “She had some big-time rebounds in the second half and drew fouls.” [player_tooltip player_id="2126" first="Gianna" last="Kneepkens"] – 5’11 junior guard, Duluth Marshall (#7) It was not an easy night for Duluth Marshall in their class AA encounter with a scrappy squad from New London-Spicer. For much of the game the shots were not falling, the calls were not going their way and the Hilltoppers were more than frustrated. Throughout the game, however, it was [player_tooltip player_id="2126" first="Gianna" last="Kneepkens"] who kept Marshall in the hunt. Playing in front of a bushel of D1 college coaches who had come to town to watch the top 10 prospect work, Kneepkens went 9-for-18 from the field and was 8-for-9 at the line for 26 points. She also had 15 rebounds. Her partner in crime, senior Grace Kirk, overcame a streak of cold shooting to come through in the clutch with 25 points as Marshall scored a hard-fought 60-56 victory. [player_tooltip player_id="12727" first="Kiani" last="Lockett"] – 5’9 sophomore guard, DeLaSalle (#13) The defending state class AAA champs from DeLaSalle got off to a bit of a slow start in the day’s opening game but put it together late in the first half to build a 38-29 lead on Hermantown after the first 18 minutes. In the second half sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id="12727" first="Kiani" last="Lockett"] went to work and the Islanders were off to the races. As usual, Lockett employed her superior foot speed, elite quickness and tenacious demeanor to play stellar defense on the Hawks. On the perimeter she smothered Hermantown’s ball handlers, forcing turnovers and getting steals. Lockett can stare you down and lock you up, and that’s what she did on Friday. Kiani was equally good at the other end of the floor, recording 19 points and 8 assists to lead DeLaSalle to an 85-52 win. [player_tooltip player_id="12736" first="Sydney" last="Runsewe"] – 5’8 sophomore guard, DeLaSalle (#20) Lockett wasn’t the only Islander who came to life in the latter half of Wednesday’s game. Sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id="12747" first="Savannah" last="White"] and freshman [player_tooltip player_id="108306" first="Kennedy" last="Klick"] both played very well, as did senior forward [player_tooltip player_id="110529" first="Nurjei" last="Weems"], who finished with 20 points. It was sophomore shooter [player_tooltip player_id="12736" first="Sydney" last="Runsewe"], however, who made the most big-time shots. Runsewe can fire the basketball. On Friday she was 6-for-11 from 3 (DeLaSalle was 13-of-23 overall from beyond the arc) for 20 points. Sydney’s delivery is so smooth. The ball comes off her fingertips oh so softly and appears to spin at a much slower rate than most players as it launches into a high arc and more often than not finds its way into the cylinder. On most nights Runsewe makes this part of the game look so easy, and that’s what she did against Hermantown. [player_tooltip player_id="6529" first="TeeTee" last="Danso"] – 6’0 senior forward, Simley (#13) The Simley Spartans are on a roll, having now won 25 straight games. Even if a team is hot you never quite know how they’ll play on day 1 of their first state tournament. From the opening tip on Friday there was little doubt that the group from Inver Grove Heights was ready to go against Holy Angels. The Spartans senior-laden lineup turned in a strong performance. Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id="110527" first="Zareia" last="Chevre"] (Monmouth) had 18 points to lead the scoring while sophomore forward [player_tooltip player_id="12749" first="Champ" last="Danso"] had a dozen. Combo guard [player_tooltip player_id="1941" first="Sydney" last="Stensgard"] (Montana State) continued her outstanding senior season with 11 points, the same total as senior guard [player_tooltip player_id="110537" first="Ravyn" last="Miles"]. But it was senior forward [player_tooltip player_id="6529" first="TeeTee" last="Danso"] who made the biggest difference. The long, lean, athletic leaper is known for her rebounding ability, a reputation she reinforced with 17 of them against the Stars. She was also really productive offensively, finishing 7 of 10 from the field for 16 points to go along with 6 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Danso, who is headed for D1 Bradley University in the fall, was terrific. [player_tooltip player_id="2122" first="Julia" last="Bengtson"] – 5’10 junior guard, Becker (#25) The Becker Bulldogs had a great run in last year’s class AAA state tournament, as they rode the coattails of their point guard [player_tooltip player_id="2122" first="Julia" last="Bengtson"] to a runner-up finish. Julia has grown a couple of inches and continued to develop her skills over the past year. On Friday she led Becker to a 63-55 opening day victory over a scrappy Alexandria squad. The two teams went toe-to-toe all afternoon in a physical contest, but largely thanks to a strong second half from all-state sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="30163" first="Adeline" last="Kent"] and the leadership of Bengtson (not to mention their clutch free throws in the game’s waning moments) the Bulldogs pulled it out. Bengtson had 16 points and 6 rebounds on the day and showed us once again why she is deserving of a top 25 ranking in the Prep Girls Hoops class of 2021. [player_tooltip player_id="109792" first="Rachel" last="Kawiecki"] – 5’10 junior forward, Holy Angels (#104) You’ll note that the previous nine honorees in our opening day’s 10 best are all highly ranked college prospects with proven pedigree and very bright futures. [player_tooltip player_id="109792" first="Rachel" last="Kawiecki"] clearly does not fit that mold. It’s not that she doesn’t have a very bright future in athletics. She does, but it is likely to take place largely on the softball diamond where the Holy Angels standout has placed her primary attention. Rachel also happens to be an excellent power forward who is a physical presence and an inspirational leader for the Stars. Holy Angels bowed out of title contention Friday, falling to Simley as described above, but Kawiecki had an outstanding game. Rachel was 9 for 11 from the field for 22 points to go along with 7 rebounds and 3 steals. On a day when the rest of her team shot just 28 percent, and their leading scorer [player_tooltip player_id="2117" first="Frankie" last="Vascellaro"] was held to just 10 points, Kawiecki was a shining star. If we could only convince her that basketball should be her primary interest, Rachel would rise 30 or 40 places on our list of top prospects. Top photo: [player_tooltip player_id="1916" first="Mackenzie" last="Kramer"] of St. Michael-Albertville. (Photo courtesy of StarTribune)