AAU State Prelims: Incoming freshmen to watch, part 1

There are a lot of ways for players to get noticed in a basketball game but one sure-fire method to catch our attention is this: Play defense! There’s nothing quite like an on-ball defender who gets up in the ball handler’s kitchen early and often to let her know it’s about to go down. As we spent most of last weekend at the AAU State Prelims hunting for 2026s with collegiate potential, it was a display of big-league defense that first caused us to notice Neveah Weimert of the Minnesota Rise. She leads our look today at incoming freshmen to watch, part 1. Neveah Weimert – guard, Minnesota Rise 2026 Heiderscheidt I always feel sorry for teams that are relegated to the hinterlands of court 6 at Chanhassen. It’s a tiny gym with very limited seating and an air temperature that usually hovers somewhere between ‘meat locker’ and ‘cryotherapy chamber.’ Veteran spectators often arrive with blankets and hot chocolate. On Sunday morning, however, Neveah’s defensive pressure had things feeling pretty balmy right from the get go. Pictured at right in the above photo, you can see for yourself that Neveah’s not real big, but she is super-quick, deadly fast, and decidedly ferocious. Her on-ball pressure is straight out of the [player_tooltip player_id="178269" first="Liv" last="McGill"] school of defense, albeit with the volume just a little lower. Hailing from Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton, about 20 minutes east of Mankato, Weimert is a feisty competitor who puts on pressure, forces frequent turnovers and knows how to cash in at the other end of the floor. She can control tempo and run an offense very nicely, too. When Weimert grows a little and gets a lot stronger she’s going to be formidable. Katelyn Olson – guard, Minnesota Rise 2026 Heiderscheidt Kately and Neveah are teammates at JWP and together form the core of the backcourt for Coach Madi Heiderscheidt’s Rise 2026 squad. Madi knows a little something about playing point guard. She was a standout at Sleepy Eye and is now imparting her knowledge to Neveah and Katelyn on what may be the best so-called “second team” the Rise has ever brought to a gymnasium near you. Olson (top photo left) isn’t very big, either, but she’s got some strength. With a wiry athletic build, first-class quickness, commendable elevation and all the straight-line speed you need, Katelyn showed us she also has the smarts to out-fox defenders by reading the seams and timing her attack just right. It’s impressive, and she knows how to cash in upon arrival at the intended destination. Olson averaged 9 points per game at the State Prelims. Did we mention she can also defend? <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-427857" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/05/Elli-Howard_crop-237x300.jpg" alt="" width="237" height="300" /> Elli Howard – guard, Minnesota Fury 2026 Yellow Elli is a pure shooter. She gets it up quick, she gets it up high and it is a thing of beauty. Howard is not at all afraid to let it fly and why not. When you have an arrow like that in your quiver you absolutely, positively need to use it early and often. It’s money. But that’s not all Howard can do. Listed at 5’7 but looking a lot bigger, the Wayzata guard has the length and athleticism necessary to stand out from the crowd. She moves beautifully, playing with pace, getting out in transition at a good clip and possessing the ability to make things happen while moving at full tilt, eyes up. She can also get downhill one-on-one which has a tendency to keep defenders wary when the ball is in her hands. Plain and simple, Howard is a game-changer and we like that. We suspect college coaches will like it, too. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-427859" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/05/Audrey-Schmidtke_crop-258x300.jpg" alt="" width="258" height="300" /> Audrey Schmidtke – guard, Crossfire 2026 Schmidtke Coach Paul Schmidtke’s 8th grade Crossfire squad is one of the scrappiest teams we’ve seen this spring. Nobody epitomizes that sandpaper-infused approach to the proceedings better than the coach’s daughter Audrey. She is a gamer! The 5’7 guard from Lakeville South also happens to be an incredible athlete, the kind of player with the type of God-given speed, agility and quickness that immediately sets her apart from everyone else on the court. It certainly caught our attention. With a motor that doesn’t quit, and the ability and willingness to get after every loose ball, the former North Tartan player has the intangibles every college coach is looking for. She also has skill. Schmidtke attacks the basket regularly, shoots the three well, and never stops working. It will not be a fluke when she cracks the Cougars’ varsity lineup this winter. There’s too much there to leave her on the sidelines. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-427860" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/05/Megan-Doughty_crop-219x300.jpg" alt="" width="219" height="300" /> Megan Doughty – wing, Minnesota Stars 2026 Doughty Standing 5’11, with a wingspan of note, Megan has the physical makeup of a collegiate basketball player. She may not be super-fast but the lanky 2-3-4 from Stillwater moves up and down the court very well. We saw her get out in transition, catch passes in full flight, and create scoring opportunities with a move or two, finishing with either hand. Even when she got hit hard en route to the basket, Megan hopped right up, dusted herself off and was ready to get back at it immediately. Doughty also showed the ability to knock down threes without hesitation, illustrating that the work she’s been putting in on her shooting is paying off. Still growing into her body, the incoming freshman needs to get a lot stronger but once she fills out she has the potential to be a force. Megan is the daughter of former Apple Valley and current Stars coach Bryan Doughty, so it’s not a surprise that she understands the game well and has a very nice on-court IQ. Verdict: scholarship player.