Recruiting Update: More than 100 college commitments

In this article:
Yesterday across Minnesota student athletes sat down at their respective schools for a little ceremonial flick of the pen as they made their college commitments official by signing a National Letter of Intent. Most of the girls basketball players involved had already made their commitments public weeks or even months ago. In fact, according to the numbers we have been able to put together, there are more than 90 Minnesota seniors who have said ‘yes’ to a collegiate opportunity. That’s up nearly 40 percent since we last brought you up to speed on college commitments during the first week of October. Here’s a rundown on where we are at.
So far in the senior class there are 20 Division 1 commitments, 35 in D2, 9 to NAIA schools, 7 players going the JUCO route, and 19 players have made commitments to play D3 ball, a number that will increase substantially over the next couple of months.

HIGH MAJORS
Led by Hopkins post
Maya Nnaji
Maya
Nnaji
6'4" | PF
Hopkins | 2022
State
#7
Nation
MN
(Arizona), nine players have committed to high-major Division 1 schools, including the big four who have chosen to stay home and play for the University of Minnesota:
Mara Braun
Mara
Braun
5'11" | CG
Wayzata | 2022
State
#21
Nation
MN
(Wayzata),
Amaya Battle
Amaya
Battle
5'10" | PG
Hopkins | 2022
State
#29
Nation
MN
(Hopkins),
Mallory Heyer
Mallory
Heyer
6'1" | PF
Chaska | 2022
State
#36
Nation
MN
(Chaska) and
Nia Holloway
Nia
Holloway
6'0" | PF
Eden Prairie | 2022
State
#45
Nation
MN
(Eden Prairie). Joining those four in the Big 10 are
Lilly Meister
Lilly
Meister
6'2" | PF
Rochester John Marshall | 2022
State
#55
Nation
MN
of Rochester John Marshall (Indiana),
Callin Hake
Callin
Hake
5'8" | PG
Chanhassen | 2022
State
#64
Nation
MN
of Chanhassen (Nebraska) and
Savannah White
Savannah
White
6'1" | SG
DeLaSalle | 2022
State
MN
of DeLaSalle (Wisconsin).
Lizzie Holder
Lizzie
Holder
6'1" | PF
Stillwater | 2022
State
MN
of Stillwater will play at Colorado of the PAC 12.

MID MAJORS
Every year the Summit League grabs its share of the top Minnesota prospects, and why not? It includes some of the best mid-major programs in the country (South Dakota & South Dakota State), two North Dakota schools (UND & NDSU) with a lot of Minnesota connections, and a number of other attractive options for D1 play that isn’t too far from home. The addition of the home-town University of St. Thomas to the D1 circuit means the numbers will probably grow even more.
Four Minnesota seniors have committed to Summit League schools:
Ellie Colbeck
Ellie
Colbeck
5'9" | PG
Fergus Falls | 2022
State
MN
of Fergus Falls and
Madison Mathiowetz
Madison
Mathiowetz
5'10" | CG
Sleepy Eye St. Mary's | 2022
State
MN
of Sleepy Eye-St. Mary’s (SDSU),
Mikayla Aumer
Mikayla
Aumer
5'9" | CG
Cambridge-Isanti | 2022
State
MN
of Cambridge-Isanti (UND) and
Amber Scalia
Amber
Scalia
5'9" | CG
Stillwater | 2022
State
MN
of Stillwater (St. Thomas).
Other Minnesota seniors who have committed at the mid-major level include:
-
Kiani Lockett
Kiani Lockett 5'9" | PG Minnetonka | 2022 State MN of Minnetonka (Creighton, NE)
-
Desiree Ware
Desiree Ware 5'8" | CG Minnetonka | 2022 State MN of Minnetonka (Alabama-Birmingham)
-
Ellie Buzzelle
Ellie Buzzelle 5'9" | SG Rogers | 2022 State #60 Nation MN of Rogers (Grand Canyon, AZ)
-
Lily Fandre
Lily Fandre 6'2" | SF Eagan | 2022 State MN of Eagan (Lehigh, PA)
- Katie Hurt Katie Hurt 6'0" | SF Roch. John Marshall | 2022 State MN of Rochester John Marshall (Lehigh, PA)
-
Kaylynn Asberry
Kaylynn Asberry 5'5" | PG Como Park | 2022 State MN of St. Paul Como Park (Saint Peters, NJ)
-
Lily Niebuhr
Lily Niebuhr 6'3" | PF Chaska | 2022 State MN of Chaska (Indiana State)

DIVISION 2
Much as the Summit League serves the role of primary D1 destination for Minnesota kids, the Northern Sun League is the de facto D2 stopping-off point. With programs in Minnesota, the Dakotas, Iowa and Nebraska, it represents an option that is within reasonable travelling distance and it is one of the strongest, most competitive Division 2 circuits in the country.
The big winner in the Northern Sun in the Class of 2022 is, without a doubt, Minnesota State-Mankato. Mavericks head coach Emilee Thiesse, associate head coach Amy Sander and assistant Janay Morton deserve a ton of credit for landing not one, not two, not three, not four but five of the top 50 in the Prep Girls Hoops 2022 prospect rankings. Although many D2 programs have certainly benefited from the COVID-related rulings that diminished the number of Division 1 opportunities available, the Mavs certainly took advantage of the unique circumstances. The 5 new Mavericks are:
- #24
Mackenzie Schweim
Mackenzie Schweim 5'10" | PG Mankato East | 2022 State MN – point guard, Mankato East
- #29
Natalie Bremer
Natalie Bremer 5'11" | CG Lake City | 2022 State MN – combo guard, Lake City
- #34
Lilly Nuytten
Lilly Nuytten 6'1" | PF Hastings | 2022 State MN – power forward, Hastings
- #41
Hannah Herzig
Hannah Herzig 6'0" | CG Totino Grace | 2022 State MN – guard/wing, Totino-Grace
- #42
Ava Stier
Ava Stier 5'10" | PF Waconia | 2022 State MN – forward, Waconia
That, by any estimation, is a homerun recruiting class. The other NSIC programs who did well with the 2022s included:
- Concordia St. Paul –
Ally Schultz
Ally Schultz 6'0" | CG Lakeville South | 2022 State MN (Lakeville South), Ella Campbell
Ella Campbell 5'10" | CG Edina | 2022 State MN (Edina), Leah Dengerud
Leah Dengerud 5'9" | SF Totino Grace | 2022 State MN (Totino-Grace) and Lauren Feddema
Lauren Feddema 5'9" | CG Buffalo | 2022 State MN (Buffalo)
- UM-Duluth – Lexi Karge Lexi Karge 6'2" | PF Mankato East | 2022 State MN (Mankato East), Myra Moorjani Myra Moorjani 5'8" | CG Eden Prairie | 2022 State MN (Eden Prairie)
- Southwest Minnesota State –
Audrey Swanson
Audrey Swanson 5'11" | SF Waconia | 2022 State MN (Waconia), Zoie Centers
Zoie Centers 5'5" | PG Mahtomedi | 2022 State MN (Mahtomedi), Maddie Thorfinnson Maddie Thorfinnson 6'1" | SF Minnewaska | 2022 State MN (Minnewaska) and Rian Aune Rian Aune 5'7" | CG Virginia | 2022 State MN (Virginia)
Other notable Top 50 prospects who ended up in Division 2 included
Sydney Runsewe
Sydney
Runsewe
5'8" | CG
DeLaSalle | 2022
State
MN
(Quincy, IL),
Maddie James
Maddie
James
6'0" | SG
Princeton | 2022
State
MN
(Mary, ND),
Tayah Leenderts
Tayah
Leenderts
6'0" | PF
Rosemount | 2022
State
MN
(Sioux Falls, SD),
Adeline Kent
Adeline
Kent
5'8" | CG
Becker | 2022
State
MN
(Tampa, FL),
Emma Miller
Emma
Miller
5'1" | PG
STMA | 2022
State
MN
(UM-Crookston),
CJ Adamson
CJ
Adamson
5'9" | CG
Rochester Lourdes | 2022
State
MN
(Augustana, SD),
Champ Danso
Champ
Danso
6'0" | PF
Simley | 2022
State
MN
(Quincy, IL),
Kassie Caron
Kassie
Caron
6'0" | SF
Holy Angels | 2022
State
MN
(Missouri Western),
Paige Peaslee
Paige
Peaslee
6'0" | PF
North Branch | 2022
State
MN
(Winona State) and
Nicole Bowlin
Nicole
Bowlin
5'6" | PG
Holy Family | 2022
State
MN
(Colorado Christian).

CLASS OF 2023
Of course seniors aren’t the only ones to have already announced their college commitments. Sophomore
Kadence Hesse
Kadence
Hesse
5'10" | PG
Sleepy Eye | 2024
State
MN
of Sleepy Eye recently became the first member of the Class of 2024 to commit early when she verballed to D2 Southwest Minnesota State. So far 16 juniors from the Class of 2023 have said ‘yes’ – 11 of them in D1, four in D2 and one to Division 3. There are two high major commits in
Nunu Agara
Nunu
Agara
6'1" | PF
Hopkins | 2023
State
#32
Nation
MN
of Hopkins (Stanford) and
Kennedy Sanders
Kennedy
Sanders
5'8" | CG
Chaska | 2023
State
MN
of Chaska (Colorado). The other early D1 commits are as follows:
-
Maren Westin
Maren Westin 5'8" | CG Becker | 2023 State MN of Becker (UW-Green Bay)
-
Molly Lenz
Molly Lenz 5'8" | CG Eden Prairie | 2023 State MN of Eden Prairie (Illinois State)
-
Clara Glad
Clara Glad 6'0" | SF Rogers | 2023 State MN of Rogers (California-Davis)
-
Sophi Hall
Sophi Hall 6'1" | CG Holy Family | 2023 State MN of Holy Family (Providence)
-
Ella Johnson
Ella Johnson 6'2" | SF Elk River | 2023 State MN of Elk River (Montana State)
-
Taryn Hamling
Taryn Hamling 5'9" | PG Grand Rapids | 2023 State MN of Grand Rapids (North Dakota State)
-
Zoey Washington
Zoey Washington 5'9" | CG St. Croix Lutheran | 2023 State MN of St. Croix Lutheran (St. Thomas)
-
Sophie Lahti
Sophie Lahti 6'1" | SF Pine City | 2023 State MN of Pine City (UW-Green Bay)
- Avery Koenen Avery Koenen 6'3" | SF Montevideo | 2023 State MN of Montevideo (North Dakota State)
The early Division 2 commits are
Dani Nuest
Dani
Nuest
5'6" | CG
Becker | 2023
State
MN
of Becker (Michigan Tech),
Allison Milbrandt
Allison
Milbrandt
5'10" | SF
Buffalo Lake-H-S | 2023
State
MN
of Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart (Southwest Minnesota State),
Brynn Busse
Brynn
Busse
5'6" | CG
G-F-W | 2023
State
MN
of GFW (Southwest Minnesota State) and
Jordan Munson
Jordan
Munson
5'8" | CG
Tracy Area | 2023
State
MN
of Trace-Milroy-Balaton (Augustana).
WHO’S NEXT?
One question still to be answered is where
Ronnie Porter
Ronnie
Porter
5'2" | CG
Como Park | 2022
State
MN
of Como Park will end up. The #16-rated senior is still searching for the right opportunity. We’re told she has offers but is still working through the recruiting process. The other Top 50 seniors who have yet to sign include #38
Ari Gordon
Ari
Gordon
5'10" | SF
Maple Grove | 2022
State
MN
(Maple Grove), #40
Charita Lewis
Charita
Lewis
5'4" | CG
Minnehaha Academy | 2022
State
MN
(Minnehaha Academy), #48
Ella Runyon
Ella
Runyon
5'11" | CG
Hill-Murray | 2022
State
MN
(Hill-Murray) and #49
Amelia Valentino
Amelia
Valentino
5'10" | CG
Champlin Park | 2022
State
MN
(Champlin Park). Stay tuned!
Top photo:
Lily Fandre
Lily
Fandre
6'2" | SF
Eagan | 2022
State
MN
of Eagan and
Maddie James
Maddie
James
6'0" | SG
Princeton | 2022
State
MN
of Princeton are both headed to the next level.