Preview: The Minnesota Fall Exclusive tips off Friday

Let the games begin! It’s time for the Minnesota Fall Exclusive, the inaugural fall league presented by Prep Girls Hoops and Jr All-Star. Play gets underway at 5:30 p.m. at Bloomington Kennedy with 18 teams in three separate divisions. Each team will play a pair of games on Friday nights through Oct. 23 with a week off on Oct. 17 for MEA Weekend. Although a number of players had to withdraw due to the unexpected return of high school volleyball, 157 athletes are expected to compete including such top 10 prospects as [player_tooltip player_id="12715" first="Mara" last="Braun"] (Wayzata,) [player_tooltip player_id="108299" first="Tessa" last="Johnson"] (St. Michael-Albertville), [player_tooltip player_id="108306" first="Kennedy" last="Klick"] (Roseville), [player_tooltip player_id="178263" first="Laura" last="Hauge"] (St. Croix Lutheran), [player_tooltip player_id="108300" first="Clara" last="Glad"] (Rogers) and <strong>Tori Oehrlein</strong> (Crosby-Ironton) The Minnesota Fall Exclusive was designed to provide a nice balance between exposure, competition, and structure heading into the winter season. With every game live-streamed and stored for future viewing on BallerTV, as well as Prep Girls Hoops and Jr All-Star Scouts and Analysts covering games, the league is a nice opportunity for college prospects from all levels to showcase their skills for a broad audience. The WNBA East Division is intended for players in grades 11-12, WNBA West is for grades 9-10 and the NCAA Division is intended for players in grades 6 through 8. To balance the competition, and distribute the number of players evenly, there are plenty of athletes who will compete above grade level. Here’s a quick preview of players to watch in the top two age groups as well as five fresh faces to see among the 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. <strong>WNBA EAST</strong> <strong>FEVER </strong>– The Fever are led by [player_tooltip player_id="12715" first="Mara" last="Braun"] of Wayzata, the second-ranked player in the Prep Girls Hoops Class of 2022. She’ll combine with the talented trio of [player_tooltip player_id="57928" first="Amber" last="Scalia"] (Stillwater), [player_tooltip player_id="108324" first="Drew" last="Johnston"] (Roseville) and [player_tooltip player_id="108344" first="Chloe" last="Brunsberg"] (Southwest Christian). <strong>SKY </strong>– A pair of Minnesota Stars Nilsen teammates – [player_tooltip player_id="30174" first="Lily" last="Fandre"] of Eagan and [player_tooltip player_id="57917" first="Ally" last="Schultz"] of Lakeville South – will be at the core of the lineup for the Sky along with Cambridge-Isanti workhorse [player_tooltip player_id="30162" first="Mikayla" last="Aumer"] and talented guard [player_tooltip player_id="108345" first="Brynn" last="Senden"] of Wayzata. <strong>SUN </strong>– The highest-rated player in the league – 2023 #1 [player_tooltip player_id="108299" first="Tessa" last="Johnson"] of St. Michael-Albertville – is the headliner for the Suns who also boast 2023 top 10 [player_tooltip player_id="108306" first="Kennedy" last="Klick"], now of Roseville. STMA speedster [player_tooltip player_id="109124" first="Emma" last="Miller"], Centennial wing [player_tooltip player_id="109145" first="Hannah" last="Herzig"] and Eden Prairie guard [player_tooltip player_id="108323" first="Ashley" last="Fritz"] will be key. <strong>MYSTICS </strong>– Although she will be absent on opening night there’s no doubt that St. Croix Lutheran freshman [player_tooltip player_id="178263" first="Laura" last="Hauge"] will be an important part of the Mystics lineup. She’ll be joined by the Hill-Murray trio of [player_tooltip player_id="2134" first="Lilli" last="Mackley"], [player_tooltip player_id="109165" first="Ella" last="Runyon"] and [player_tooltip player_id="186144" first="Payton" last="Mackley"], along with Rochester Lourdes teammates [player_tooltip player_id="108335" first="Vivica" last="Bretton"] and [player_tooltip player_id="148325" first="Emily" last="Bowron"]. <strong>DREAM </strong>– The dream have some height in [player_tooltip player_id="57174" first="Ella" last="Giorgi"] (Coon Rapids) and [player_tooltip player_id="57158" first="Delaney" last="Hoke"] (Eagan) along with Shakopee guards [player_tooltip player_id="6410" first="Natalie" last="Holte"] (Black Hills State) and [player_tooltip player_id="57118" first="Kelley" last="Brennan"] (Gustavus). Their highest-rated prospect is 2023 top 10 [player_tooltip player_id="108300" first="Clara" last="Glad"] of Rogers. Watch for strong out-state prospects <strong>Paige Ford</strong> of Randolph and [player_tooltip player_id="109163" first="Taya" last="Jeffrey"] of Albert Lea. <strong>LIBERTY </strong>– The Liberty may be in a New York state of mind but they’ll have a heavy St. Paul flavor thanks to a trio of Como Park stars in guards [player_tooltip player_id="57908" first="Kaylynn" last="Asberry"] and [player_tooltip player_id="57914" first="Ronnie" last="Porter"] and forward [player_tooltip player_id="30186" first="Cloey" last="Dmytruk"]. Throw in Eden Prairie point guard [player_tooltip player_id="108328" first="Priyanka" last="Satish"] and the very gritty [player_tooltip player_id="148335" first="Camryn" last="Smith"] of Spring Lake Park and you have a nice mix. <strong>WNBA WEST</strong> <strong>STORM </strong>– The Storm have some highly skilled freshmen leading the way in the 9th-10th grade division, including <strong>Ava Cossette</strong> of Maple Grove, <strong>Gabby Betton</strong> of Lakeville North, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="178273" first="Taylor" last="Tool"]</strong> of Delano, <strong>Bella Sutch </strong>of Spring Lake Park and <strong>Kate Drury</strong> of Chanhassen. <strong>ACES </strong>– Versatile talents <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="178262" first="Emma" last="Frost"]</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="178261" first="Piper" last="Engelby"]</strong> will be crucial for the Aces. The pair of Andover guards are sure to make a splash at the high school varsity level when the regular season begins. They’re joined by some sizeable forwards in <strong>Cecelia McNair</strong> (Prior Lake), <strong>Kayla Christy</strong> (Elk River) and <strong>Casey Beck</strong> (Coon Rapids). <strong>SPARKS </strong>– The Sparks will no doubt be sparked by guard <strong>Nicole Maenke</strong> of Shakopee, who was one of the summer’s most impressive breakthrough talents. Her Suns Blue Star teammates <strong>Olivia Pawlicki</strong> (Shakopee) and <strong>Evie Schmitz</strong> (St. Louis Park) will be right there with her along with <strong>Maddie Kamm</strong> of St. Peter. <strong>LYNX </strong>– Guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="178274" first="Amy" last="Thompson"]</strong> is one of the top shooters in the state and the Stillwater freshman is certain to be among the premier prospects when the 2024 top 50 is released next month. She’ll lead the Lynx along with <strong>Claire Stern</strong> of Maple Grove, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="191923" first="Estelle" last="Atkinson"]</strong> or Orono and <strong>Jenna Kluxdahl</strong> of Jordan. <strong>MERCURY </strong>– Skilled guards are important (duh!), and there aren’t many better PGs in the class of 2024 than <strong>Drew Buslee</strong> of Eagan. The talented floor general will have the ball in hand for the Mercury who also have her Metro Stars teammates <strong>Britta Hagen</strong> (Eastview) and <strong>Ryan Thue</strong> (Prior Lake) along with [player_tooltip player_id="186135" first="Braziel" last="Fairbanks"] of Edina. <strong>WINGS </strong>– Speaking of guards, St. Louis Park’s <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="178264" first="Kiya" last="Hegdahl"]</strong> is one of the most exciting in the class of 2024. She’ll no doubt lead the Wings along with her Minnesota Stars Gardner teammates <strong>Mattea Henry</strong> (Woodbury) and <strong>Sydney Klauer</strong> (East Ridge). They’re joined by lengthy wing [player_tooltip player_id="148340" first="Shannon" last="Fornshell"] of Wayzata and gritty guard <strong>Isa Nelson</strong> of Edina. <strong>NCAA DIVISION</strong> Prep Girls Hoops is not yet covering players in the class of 2025 through 2027 but we have certainly taken notice of a few of them this summer. Here are five players to watch among the 6th to 8th graders competing in the NCAA Division. <ul> <li><strong>Tori Oehrlein</strong> – 2026 guard from Crosby-Ironton (team: UCONN)</li> <li><strong>Jordan Ode</strong> – 2025 guard/wing from Maple Grove (team: Stanford)</li> <li><strong>Ella Kuhlman</strong> – 2025 guard of North Branch (team: Stanford)</li> <li><strong>Sophie Hawkinson</strong> – 2025 guard from Wayzata (team: Stanford)</li> <li><strong>Bree Bowman</strong> – 2025 forward/wing of Prior Lake (team: Maryland)</li> </ul> <strong>ROSTERS</strong> <img class="alignnone wp-image-204550" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2020/09/Fall-Exclusive-MN-rosters.png" alt="" width="600" height="536" /> <span style="font-size: 10pt;"><em>Top photo: Lakeville South junior [player_tooltip player_id="57917" first="Ally" last="Schultz"] will be among the participants when the Minnesota Fall Exclusive tips off Friday. Ally is a top 20 prospect in the class of 2022.</em></span>