State Tourney Semis: Most Valuable Players

It is the question we have been asked this week and last week and the week before that. Ever since the high school basketball season opened on January 14 everyone wanted to know, ‘Can anyone beat Hopkins?’ Well now we have the answer, and it is an emphatic, ‘YES!!!’ Against all odds, while swimming in a sea of non-believers, the Chaska Hawks dethroned the mighty Royals Wednesday night by a score of 67-62 to advance to Friday’s State Championship game at Target Center in Minneapolis. Thus ends the Hopkins streak, a three-year, 78-win romp through Minnesota basketball. When host Matt Bare asked me ‘the question’ a few days ago on the ‘Bare’s Den’ podcast, I provided my standard answer: ‘If Hopkins has an off night shooting, and Chaska plays a near-perfect game, it could happen.’ This is, after all, the formula that both Eastview and Elk River had used in recent years to do the deed, but the odds were still long. Really long. Well that’s exactly how it went on Wednesday. The numbers don’t lie: Hopkins shot 22-of-63 for 34.9% from the field while Chaska went 28-of-54 for 51.9% That didn’t happen by accident, as Chaska took control of the game from the opening tip and never let go. They played fast, moving the ball at a rapid pace and executing on offense at a tempo that prevented Hopkins from assuming their usual defensive stance. Credit to Chaska coach Tara Seifert, who came up with a winning game plan, and to the talented group of kids who executed it. Even while the rest of us were highly skeptical, Chaska refused to concede to the doubters. They simply took to the floor and played their you-know-whats off. It was an outstanding performance from start to finish, which is why they will face Rosemount, an equally unlikely opponent, in the title game. This was a total team effort in every sense, and the contributions of players like [player_tooltip player_id="57170" first="Kelsey" last="Willems"], [player_tooltip player_id="108310" first="Ashley" last="Schuelke"] and [player_tooltip player_id="147447" first="Kendall" last="Karrmann"] in particular cannot be overlooked. They were all very, very good. But there were three Hawks who soared a little bit higher than the others, which is why [player_tooltip player_id="108301" first="Kennedy" last="Sanders"], [player_tooltip player_id="12714" first="Mallory" last="Heyer"] and [player_tooltip player_id="57077" first="Kaylee" last="Van Eps"] top our list today of the Prep Girls Hoops Most Valuable Players of the State Semifinals. [player_tooltip player_id="108301" first="Kennedy" last="Sanders"] <strong>– 2023 guard, Chaska</strong> The game was essentially a three-act play, and Sanders was the star of the opening stanza. Sanders started the scoring with a nifty little floater two minutes into the contest, followed with another floater two minutes later, then a driving layup and a coast-to-coast fast break and a pair of free throws. By the midway point of the first half Kennedy collected 10 points and had established the fact that Chaska had come to the party ready to dance. Sanders is an elite point guard, and the #4-rated prospect in the Prep Girls Hoops Class of 2023. She is a terrific ball-handler, a high-level tactician, and as cool as the proverbial cucumber. She finished the night with 21 points on 8-for-14 shooting with 6 assists. [player_tooltip player_id="12714" first="Mallory" last="Heyer"] <strong>– 2022 forward, Chaska</strong> The second act belonged to Heyer. Offensively Mal got off to a slower start, but she had other duties that took precedence. The 6’1 or 6’2 Heyer – we have heard both heights batted around of late – was facing 6’4 [player_tooltip player_id="12712" first="Maya" last="Nnaji"], an athletic anomaly ranked #1 in the class of 2022. Nnaji is the darling of high-major Division 1 college coaches everywhere, who consider her a can’t-miss prospect. On this night, however, she was neutralized and Heyer deserves a ton of credit for that. Maya scored just two field goals and had 9 points in total. As is her custom, Mallory declined to give an inch throughout. She played physical, she displayed a soft touch, and she scored buckets that kept the Hawks flying in the right direction. Heyer was 11-for-17 from the field, scored 24 points, and had 13 rebounds. The University of Minnesota commit was nothing short of excellent. [player_tooltip player_id="57077" first="Kaylee" last="Van Eps"] <strong>– 2021 guard, Chaska</strong> That brings us to the third act, during which the Hawks senior standout Van Eps stole the show. The Lehigh commit is the glue that holds Chaska together. Since the 8th grade, Kaylee has been the one player who has consistently shown the kind of grit and determination that set the tone for a group of talented youngsters on the rise. So much of what she does is underappreciated and unnoticed, so much so that the Miss Basketball committee did not see fit to include Van Eps in its final 30. That’s a travesty. We have had Kaylee in our top 10 in the class of 2021 from the beginning, and what she did in the latter stages of Wednesday night’s game is the reason why. With the game on the line in the second half, Van Eps scored four huge baskets, including one on a sweet spin move that capped a 6-0 run to open the period. She had two more crucial scores down the stretch, took a big charge, and made countless hustle plays of the variety that have become her trademark. Kaylee finished with 13 points but her most telling stat, the one that clearly defines what Van Eps is all about is this one: She was plus 25 on the night. Enough said. These are the rest of the top semifinal performers in Class AAAA: <ul> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="109123" first="Alexa" last="Ratzlaff"] – The knock-down, drag-out slug fest otherwise known at the ‘other’ semifinal was the perfect type of game for the Rosemount junior. Alexa has never been flashy, but her defensive prowess has become a trademark. Rosemount’s win over Farmington last week was nearly as big as Chaska’s upset over Hopkins. On Wednesday Ratzlaff led the Irish to a hard-fought 40-33 defeat of Centennial to advance to the championship game.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="108348" first="Nunu" last="Agara"] – The Hopkins sophomore was the star of the Royals opening act against Chaska. She scored inside and out, displaying the athleticism and acrobatics that have made her a top-three prospect in the Class of 2023. Agara finished the game with 14 points and 10 rebounds.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="108298" first="Taylor" last="Woodson"] – The Hopkins sophomore was her team’s best player from start to finish against Chaska. Ranked #2 in the 2023 class, Woodson has speed, power and touch. She is a prototypical high-major talent. On this night she was 7-for-15 from the field for 16 points and 13 rebounds.</li> </ul> Here are the rest of the semifinal MVPS, who were all called out in our recap of Tuesday’s games. <strong>Class AAA MVPs</strong> <ul> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="2122" first="Julia" last="Bengtson"] – The Becker senior is the heart and soul of the Bulldogs program. The program’s rise to prominence has been built on the back of the Eastern Illinois commit, who is a consistent producer and the consummate team leader. Julia was outstanding against Holy Angels, collecting 19 points, 10 assists and 7 rebounds. She was a remarkable plus 40 on the night.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="30163" first="Adeline" last="Kent"] – The Becker junior set the tone for the game, scoring early and often and forcing Hill-Murray into a series of turnovers. It was the kind of energy-infused performance that typifies why she was a Class AAA all-state selection. The University of Tampa commit shot 57% on the night and had 18 points.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="109746" first="Jordyn" last="Hilgemann"] – The Marshall senior had a dominant second half Tuesday, enabling her team to run away from Holy Angels and advance to Friday’s championship game. Hilgemann, who will play next season at Northern State, finished with 30 points, 5 rebounds, 5 steals and 3 assists and was 14-for-16 at the free throw line.</li> </ul> <strong>Class AA MVPs</strong> <ul> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="109739" first="Paige" last="Meyer"] – She might be the ‘other Paige’ but the contributions Meyer has made in Albany throughout her career are second to none. The South Dakota State commit is a warrior who has impressed us from the first moment we laid eyes on her in the 7th grade. Paige had 27 points, 10 assists and 7 rebounds on Tuesday to lead the Huskies into the state championship game.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="148338" first="Grace" last="Counts"] – The big sophomore from Providence Academy has tantalized us over the past couple of years with a smattering here and there of what might be possible. This season it has all come together for Counts, who offers a nice combination of size, skill and savvy. She had a double-double against Glencoe-Silver Lake and made the biggest block of her career to seal the deal in the final second. A scholarship-level talent to be sure.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="252381" first="Maddyn" last="Greenway"] – The 7th grader from Providence Academy struggled in the early stages of Tuesday’s contest. She had trouble getting the ball in the basket and appeared to be forcing things a little too much on the distribution side of things. That’s totally understandable in a monumental game on the biggest stage. But Maddyn did what great players do. She kept shooting, eventually caught fire and led her team to the win. She finished with 16 points.</li> </ul> <strong>Class A MVPs</strong> <ul> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="231694" first="Allisa" last="Knight"] – Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa is not a team we see a lot during the regular season, but they made a nice first impression last spring when they arrived at the State Tournament in Minneapolis. On Tuesday they Panthers showed once again that they are for real. Much of the credit goes to Knight, a 6-foot-something senior who did it all for BBE on Tuesday. While senior <strong>Josie Knutson</strong> knocked down some big threes off the bench, it was Knight’s 15 points and 10 rebounds that drove the Panthers to a 51-50 win.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="109764" first="Abby" last="Hennen"] – The Minneota senior has been a mainstay at the State Tournament since forever and this week reminded us once again why that is. Abby was simply Abby. She had 19 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists for the Vikings. Hennen was also 6-for-8 at the free throw line, and it was one of those charity-stripe makes that closed the sale for Minnesota with two seconds remaining in a 54-53 victory.</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="109147" first="Natalie" last="Rolbiecki"] – Hennen’s partner in crime is the junior Rolbiecki, whose length, athleticism and oh-so-sweet stroke gives the Vikings a potent one-two combination that few teams have been able to nullify. On Tuesday Natalie was 7-of-13 from the field and 6-for-8 at the line for 18 points. She also had 8 rebounds and made a laundry list of important plays.</li> </ul>