2A State Tournament Players to Watch

And then there were 8. Here’s who to keep an eye out for in the 2A state tournament. Quarterfinals are Tuesday, March 9; semifinals are Friday, March 12; and the Championship will follow on Saturday, March 13. <h2>Berean Academy at St. Mary’s-Colgan</h2> Kaitlyn Crossland, 5’7", W, St. Mary’s-Colgan, 2021 - Quick to get into the paint off the bounce by attacking gaps. Finishes athletically and with elevation or elevates for a quick pull-up mid-range jumper. [player_tooltip player_id="261949" first="Lauren" last="Torrance"], 6’1", PF, St. Mary’s-Colgan, 2023 - Good transition speed. Quick hops on rebounds. Showed athleticism and elevation on interior scoring opportunities. [player_tooltip player_id="227691" first="Lillie" last="Veer"], 5’7", PG, 2023 - Good handles, quickness and transition speed. [player_tooltip player_id="191218" first="Sally" last="Wine"], 5’9", SF/PF, 2022 - Wine boxes well and battles inside on both ends. She clears rebounds well and has strength to rip rebounds away from opponents. Offensively, Wine is a good mid-range shooter and power dribbled to create solid turnaround jumpers. <h2>Trego Community at Sterling</h2> [player_tooltip player_id="158592" first="Sadie" last="Beagley"], 5’8", PF, 2022 - Beagley is a undersized, solidly built, power forward with good strength. She knows how to use her body to create shots and score inside using post moves and otherwise does a good job of playing within herself on both ends of the floor. Very consistent. Solid hands and good transition speed. [player_tooltip player_id="124974" first="Kali" last="Briar"], 5’6", PG, 2022 - Good court vision to advance the ball up the floor to break pressure. Good perimeter stroke including a good, soft, quick three point shot. Solid threat overall. Attacked down the lane in the half court, split 2 defenders, and scooped for the score + 1. Consistently attacks weaker defenders off the dribble. [player_tooltip player_id="125016" first="Bennie" last="Horsch"], 5’10", SF, 2022 - Good rebounder on both ends of the floor...always seems to be around the ball. Keeps the ball up and quickly goes back up of offensive rebound. Fast. Good quickness and solid hops. Usually plays inside but has the quicks to defend quicker wings and small forwards. Consistent scoring threat from face-up and back-to-basket games. [player_tooltip player_id="186675" first="Tillie" last="Malinowsky"], 5’11", SF, 2021 - Malinowsky is quick, disruptive, and high energy. Throw in her length and she gives opponents a great deal of trouble. [player_tooltip player_id="123505" first="Lili" last="Shubert"], 5’8", PG/SG, 2021 - Heading into February Shubert was averaging 21.5 points, 8 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 2.9 steals. She was shooting 37% from three and 78% from the line. A strong scorer at all three levels, Shubert has 25’ range, can hit the quick 15’ and step-back jumper, get to the lane with good head and shoulder fakes, and finish with athleticism. [player_tooltip player_id="125002" first="Madison" last="Walt"], 5’9", SG, 2022 - Walt has strong handles including in transition, good hands, and makes good use of head and shoulder fakes to create shots for herself and her teammates. A high IQ player, she is fierce, composed, and can score at all three levels. With her longs limbs and ability to box out Walt is able to limit offensive rebounding opportunities. <h3>Garden Plain at Moundridge</h3> [player_tooltip player_id="125006" first="Kate" last="Eichelberger"], 6’0", PF - Eichelberger is lanky and competitive on both ends of the floor. Able to absorb contact, she is a effective scorer around the basket. [player_tooltip player_id="125025" first="Brooke" last="Hammond"], 5’8, G, 2022 - Hammond has a diverse, solid, skill set. She is a consistent three point threat in the past year. Hammond has great speed, which she displayed as the 2019 2A 100m state champion and as the final runner on the 2019 4x100 state champion team. Averages 6.3 points, 4 rebounds, 2.7 steals, and 2 assists. [player_tooltip player_id="123538" first="Kourtney" last="Kaufman"], 5’10", SF/PF - Kaufman has solid transition speed and is a solid shooter beyond the arc. [player_tooltip player_id="123552" first="Alli" last="Puetz"], 5’8", CG, 2021 - An effective scorer and rebounder with good hops, she averages 9.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.4 steals per game. [player_tooltip player_id="186669" first="Madysen" last="Zoglman"], 5’8", W, 2021 - A perimeter shooting threat, Zoglman is shooting 32% from beyond the arc with 38 made. In total, she averages 11.9 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.4 steal. She is also shooting 59% from the line. <h4>Wabaunsee at Valley Heights</h4> Kara Hafenstine, PG, 2022, Wabaunsee - Good speed in transition with the ball. Creates well off the bounce. Karli Meseke, 5’3", SG, 2024, Wabaunsee - Solid three point shooter. Solid transition speed. Lauren Schutter, C, 2022, Wabaunsee - Lanky defensive player with good transition speed. Elevates well on transition finish at speed. [player_tooltip player_id="94008" first="Catherine" last="Toerber"], 5’6", PG, 2022 - Toerber has a quarterback style in the half court. She has good handles with the ability to get the ball up the floor off with the pass. Toerber has good length and hand speed as well as good defensive rebounding ability which can lead to end-to-end takes. She is solid playing inside as well as a distributor with Vermetten playing the point. .Fast and athletic. [player_tooltip player_id="123490" first="Emma" last="Toerber"], 5’10", PF, 2021 - She has the ability to score out of her back-to-basket game and from beyond the arc. She is also a solid shot blocker and passer. [player_tooltip player_id="124986" first="Maddy" last="Vermetten"], 5’10", PF, 2022 - A very versatile player, Vermetten has good size, length, and athleticism that she uses off the bounce to her advantage. She has good handles against full court pressure, makes quick and catchable passes, and is an effective scorer around the rim to 15’ feet. [player_tooltip player_id="93995" first="Emma" last="Yungeberg"], 6’0", C, 2022 - Yungeberg is a difficult match-up. Big, strong, long arms, and a good rebounder. Great at controlling the ball after a rebound and outletting, passing up the floor, or bringing the ball up herself. Runs well. Good anticipation. Elevates well. Is also a perimeter threat with the capability of knocking down the three. Featured image: Sterling 2022s [player_tooltip player_id="124974" first="Kali" last="Briar"], left, and [player_tooltip player_id="125016" first="Bennie" last="Horsch"], right, box out Scott Community’s Brooke Strine during their 2021 Sterling Invitational game. Photo: Robert Kelly.