Class 1A – Region 1: 2022’s who can Breakout

As we look for other ways to cover prospects we thought it would be beneficial to cover players in a way that allows us to cover those we don’t write much about. We will be using the region’s from last season as they were constructed. Obviously, these regions will change into next season but for these stories it was the easiest way to divide players and teams as equally as possible. We will be writing a series of three stories for each region in the state and the categories are as follows: 2023’s to put on Your Radar, 2022’s who can Breakout, and 2021’s Who Should be Valued by Colleges. We will continue to go through each region and aim to hit as many players as we can that we haven’t talked about previously. Here are five 2022’s who could breakout this upcoming season. <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="129080" first="McKenzie" last="Goodwin"] - 5’10 PF - Kingsley-Pierson HS</strong> After losing a valuable senior class some teams will need to find a new identity. Kingsley-Pierson loses a senior who scored 17.1 points a game but I don’t think they have to find a new identity at all. Goodwin was the second-leading scorer on the team a year ago and she’s in for a big junior campaign as she helps to shoulder the load for a team that on paper looks very good. She scored 11.6 points a game and pulled down 7.1 rebounds a year ago. Goodwin is a tough competitor who shines in the spotlight. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="129063" first="Lauren" last="Heying"] - 5’8 SF - Gehlen Catholic HS</strong> Heying was the leading scorer for a Gehlen Catholic team that made it all the way to Wells Fargo. Unfortunately, they lose seven seniors to graduation and Heying is left as the only sophomore on the team to score over 2.8 points a game. This is the year that she can take a huge step forward with her game and help lead Gehlen back to Des Moines. She’s a very skilled wing who is smooth with the ball getting to the rim. She scored 12.0 points a game last year while grabbing 3.8 rebounds. <strong>Ava Rasche - 5’6 PG - Harris-Lake Park HS</strong> Harris-Lake Park really struggled last year but they do return the bulk of their roster for this season. Rasche was the leading scorer a year ago and scored 6.9 points a game for a team that went winless. She shot 33.3 percent from the floor and could up those numbers this year as she takes on a much bigger responsibility within the system that they run. If Rasche can cut down on her turnovers I think that she will really be able to make her mark on the team. The talent is there as long as she doesn’t have to do everything. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="63622" first="Emily" last="Dreckman"] - 6’ SF - MMRCU HS</strong> MMRCU has a trio of talented sophomores who scored over 10 points a game this past year. Dreckman scored 13.4 points a game and should have a big junior year as she takes control of the offense. She might not score more but as a versatile player her leadership is going to be vital as MMRCU looks to get to the next level. She dished off 4.9 assists per game this past year and with the improvement that they are likely to show next year that will only improve next season. Dreckman is in a good position to improve a lot over the next year. <strong>Mackenzie Hoffman - 5’6 PG - GTRA HS</strong> Much like Goodwin, Hoffman and her team lose a very important contributing senior from their team this past year. With the graduation of close to 60% of their points from this past year, Hoffman among others are going to have to step up. She scored 6.2 points a game this past year and grabbed 2.1 steals a game. Hoffman is the second leading scorer returning next year and is poised for a breakout season. For GTRA to improve Hoffman will have to continue the improvements that she showed at the end of the year last season.