Preview: Independent Metro Athletic Conference

A tale of two teams, and a strange one at that. This is the story of the Independent Metro Athletic Conference where a team can be the best and still not win the championship, and the squad that wins the championship may not get the credit they deserve for being the best. Say what? Yep. This strange set of circumstances describes the IMAC scenario of last season and serves as a preview of the year to come. Providence Academy took home the championship trophy with a record of 7-1 and went all the way to the state tournament. The Lions had a great year by pretty much every measure. The Blake Bears ended up in second place with six wins and four losses. Finishing third was Minnehaha Academy, which went 4-1. “How can that be?” you might ask. “How can one team play an 8-game schedule, one play a 10-game schedule and the third-place finisher only gets five games?” Good question. It really boils down to inequity. Because Minnehaha Academy has historically been so good, making umpteen state tournament appearances in a row while rolling over numerous opponents along the way, a couple of the teams in the IMAC don’t want to play them anymore. As a result, the Redhawks did not face either St. Paul Academy or Mounds Park Academy last season, and because of that missed out on the opportunity to take home the title. The funny thing is, MA doesn’t even mind this oddball scenario because it gives them more opportunities to play tougher opponents to get ready for the ultimate prize – a shot at the state AA title which they last won in 2019. Here’s what the standings looked like last season: <ul> <li>7-1 – Providence Academy</li> <li>6-4 – Blake School</li> <li>4-1 – Minnehaha Academy</li> <li>3-6 – Breck School</li> <li>2-5 – St. Paul Academy</li> <li>1-6 – Mounds Park Academy</li> </ul> So what happens now? Who is going to win the championship this year? Given the voodoo mathematics involved you would have to give the nod to Providence Academy. Heck, even if the schedule was equitable, Providence would deserve serious consideration. With the depth of their roster, and the progress they made as a group last season, the Lions might be good enough to take home the banner anyway. Here’s how we see it. Providence Academy (7-1) Providence (26-5) split its series with Minnehaha last winter, with the Redhawks winning by six on Jan. 10 and the Lions prevailing by 19 on Jan. 28. PA’s other four losses were to quality opponents, and they never were knocked out of contention for a state AA championship. After opening with a five-point win over mighty Sauk Centre at the state tournament, the Lions were set to face Duluth Marshall in the semifinals when the event was scuttled. It was a sad ending to a terrific season for coach Connor Goetz’ girls. Gone from last year’s squad is point guard [player_tooltip player_id="145081" first="Hailey" last="Hohenecker"] (Sioux Falls) who averaged nearly 15 points per game and was a defensive dynamo. Returning are the Counts sisters, who are a force to be reckoned with up front. The 5’11 [player_tooltip player_id="57963" first="Maria" last="Counts"] is a junior who averaged 11 and 10; the 6’0 [player_tooltip player_id="148338" first="Grace" last="Counts"] is a sophomore who averaged 10 and 7. Senior Olivia Klammer, a team captain, is also back, along with freshman guard Brooke Hohenecker. Missing from the lineup will be sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="148331" first="Kyra" last="Miller"], who had an outstanding freshmen season and was a key piece for the Lions. She’s out with a torn ACL. The most important addition to the team is – believe it or not – a 7th grader. Point guard Maddyn Greenway from Wayzata has joined the squad and is likely to end up as a starter. Maddyn is one of the most dynamic guards we have seen in Minnesota of any age, and is among the very best talents in the class of 2026. She is highly skilled, super athletic and has a motor that runs flat out from start to finish. Minnehaha Academy (4-1) The Redhawks (19-9) lineup has undergone a significant makeover this off season, following the graduation of starters [player_tooltip player_id="110532" first="Mia" last="Curtis"] (Dartmouth), [player_tooltip player_id="110921" first="Tanna" last="Gallo"] (Augsburg) and Kate Pryor (Boston University softball). Curtis leaves the program as one of the Redhawks’ best ever following a six-year career chock-full of superlatives. As a senior, Curtis averaged over 25 points per game. She topped the 20-point mark 20 times last season, including six 30-point games and a 42-point show against Sauk Centre. Mia made 81 threes. Curtis, Gallo and Pryor combined for 48 points per game, and that’s a lot to replace. Minnehaha coach Matt Pryor, who won a state championship in his first season at the school, has worked tirelessly to reload. Returning for MA is 6’0 junior forward [player_tooltip player_id="109128" first="Telia" last="Graham"] (9 & 5) and 6’0 freshman guard Jennica Suggs, along with junior Penny Sedgwick and freshman Berit Parten. It is the roster additions that are most worthy of note, though, as Minnehaha brings in Addison Mack, [player_tooltip player_id="108319" first="Aniyah" last="Rueben"] and [player_tooltip player_id="178268" first="Anisa" last="Longs"]. Mack, who transferred from Blake, scored over 500 varsity points as a 7th grader last season. She had 23 points in her first varsity game, topped the 30-point mark three times and averaged nearly 19 ppg for the season. She will pick up where Curtis left off. The 5’10 Rueben (10 & 5), who adds aggressiveness and big physical presence, comes over from Park Center. Longs did not play high school ball last season, but she is a top-10 prospect in the class of 2024 and figures to be an immediate impact player. In addition, junior forward Lindsay Irmiter, who transferred in one year ago, is now eligible after averaging 12 & 12 playing JV. Excellent 7th grader Jaelle Suggs is also good to go, and could turn out to be something special in the long haul. In one more player move of note, St. Cloud Cathedral guard [player_tooltip player_id="109134" first="Charita" last="Lewis"], a top-40 prospect in the class of 2022, has also transferred to Minnehaha but a torn ACL will keep her out of action for the foreseeable future. Blake Bears (6-4) The Blake School in Hopkins went 6-4 last season in conference play, enabling the Bears to finish second in the IMAC. That’s impressive, but the fact that Blake rode the talents of a 7th grader to such success is even more noteworthy. That now-8th grader – the aforementioned Addie Mack – has moved on which means it will be a more difficult road ahead for coach Jim DeSart’s Bears. Blake also lost center Cheryl Minde to graduation but return senior [player_tooltip player_id="109775" first="Cate" last="Moe"], who has been their consistent leader over the past few seasons. The 6-footer is long and lanky and averaged 15 points per game. She’s joined by 5’5 guard Rachel Winkey, who averaged 10 points, 4 rebounds and 6.5 assists. Blake may not be quite as good as before, but with the strange math of the IMAC you never know. Breck Mustangs (3-6) The Breck School in Golden Valley finished 3-6 in conference play, scoring a pair of wins over St. Paul Academy and one over Mounds Park Academy. Breck was 10-16 overall. The Mustangs’ most impactful player was then-7th grader Kendall McGee. The point guard, who made all-conference in the IMAC, led her team in scoring at better than 11 ppg. The second-leading scorer, junior Nicole Blake, returns as does senior forward Melanie Oden and sophomore Noelle Murray. Coach Marcus Harris’ team will still be young but they should be a little bit better. St. Paul Academy Spartans (2-5) Playing in one of the coolest little gyms in the Twin Cities, SPA finished 5th in the conference at 2-5, 12-15 overall. Coach Natalie McElligott’s Spartans play a schedule heavy on charter schools and small privates with their best wins coming against Christ’s Household of Faith and St. Croix Prep. Although SPA has had some nice young players over the years – Kennedy Herndon, who moved on to Phillips Academy in Massachusetts, and long-bomber [player_tooltip player_id="1518" first="Katey" last="Brattland"] of Minnetonka, come to mind – it’s not easy to draw great basketball talent to a school with rigorous academics and an astronomical price tag. The top four scorers return for SPA in seniors Pilar Saavedra-Weis. Rashmi Raveendran and Gabriella Thompson, along with sophomore Lindsay Brown. Mounds Park Academy Panthers (1-6) Based in St. Paul, Mounds Park Academy went 1-6 in conference play, 13-12 overall. The Panthers play a schedule similar in nature to SPA, against whom they captured their lone conference victory. Mounds Park graduated one of its core players over the past several years in Katie Goodno, along with fellow seniors Chloe McCluskey and Catherine Moore. Coach Dan Haase’s Panthers return their leading scorer, however, in Audrey Jakway. The sophomore forward averaged 11 ppg and is coming off an excellent summer and fall during which she impressed at a number of events. Junior Kaija Kunze-Hoeg (10 ppg) also returns as does freshman Nora Peterson, who averaged nearly 8 ppg as an 8th grader. Top photo: Providence Academy celebrated their IMAC championship last spring. (Photo courtesy of Providence Academy)