AAU Week 7 recap: State Tournament Standouts

Unlike most weeks of the AAU season our focus at the AAU State Tournament is less on individual players and more on the teams, especially those who have the most success and win themselves some hardware. (You can read about those squadrons in our <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/2022/05/aau-state-tournament-championship-sunday/">recap of Championship Sunday</a>.) Along the way, however, we still encountered some other strong individual performances, rising stars and fresh faces. Here is a look at some of those prospects in our AAU Week 7 recap. <strong>STARS ON THE RISE</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="302307" first="Elisabeth" last="Gadient"] <strong>– 2024 guard, Minnesota Fury Premier</strong> When we watched Liz (top photo) against 43 Hoops Elite it was pretty clear what the strategy was to curtail the effectiveness of the 5’10 guard from Goodhue: go right at her with one, usually two players who were aggressive, physical and in her face. It’s a logical tactic against a skilled floor general who largely sets the tone for Fury Premier. It didn’t work, though, because the Top 50 talent is unflappable. Liz has an abundant array of tools. She’s long and rangy, highly skilled, her court vision is very good and she can score – nearly 16 points per game in high school this season. What sets Gadient apart, though, is her mental toughness. She just never seems to get rattled. The Fury were bumped from championship contention in 2024 Division 1 by Comets Elite but came back to score an impressive 16-point win over a strong Minnesota Rise team that had earlier taken the eventual champions from North Tartan all the way to overtime. Fury Premier has a ton of talented players but it is Gadient who keeps them all moving in the right direction. <img class="alignnone wp-image-430880 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/05/Alexis-Rose-224x300.jpg" alt="" width="224" height="300" /> [player_tooltip player_id="304938" first="Alexis" last="Rose"] <strong>– 2024 guard, Minnesota Comets Elite</strong> It has been a very good year for Rose who stepped into the starting role at Becker and ran the Bulldogs’ show with poise and precision all winter long in spite of having limited experience. It’s not easy to follow in the footsteps of an elite PG like <strong>Julia Bengtson</strong>, now at Eastern Illinois, but Rose did it and she did it well. This weekend we saw her go head to head with another elite guard who also led her high school team to the state tournament – [player_tooltip player_id="215969" first="Nicole" last="Maenke"] of Crossfire Schuck and Shakopee. It was fun to watch these two very similar practitioners do work against each other. The 5’9 Rose, currently ranked #62 in the class and rising, led her team all the way to the 2024 final four this weekend as the Comets defeated Crossfire Schuck and Fury Premier before falling to North Tartan. While Albany studs [player_tooltip player_id="302300" first="Kylan" last="Gerads"] and [player_tooltip player_id="302297" first="Alyssa" last="Sand"] were key for the Comets, it was Rose who set the tone with the ball in her hands. <strong>Morgan Korf – 2026 guard, Inspired Athletics</strong> One more rising star we watched is Korf, who plays for a strong Inspired Athletics squad out of Fargo. The crafty point guard hails from Pequot Lakes where her dad Brian is the coach of the Vikings. Although she’s only an 8th grader, Korf has established herself as a force in Class 2A. Physically she is really strong for her age, with a bigger frame and more than ample athleticism. She handles the ball really, really well and runs the show like you’d expect from a coach’s kid who understands what’s up and knows full well what is expected of her. She can also score as a three-game stretch this winter will attest, a spurt during which Morgan accumulated 77 points. Korf, who is good enough to start for any 2026 team in the state, should emerge as a top-shelf prospect among the 2026s and we look forward to seeing her again soon. <strong>FRESH FACES OF THE WEEK</strong> <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-430881" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/05/Brielle-Janssen-209x300.jpg" alt="" width="209" height="300" /> <strong>Brielle Janssen – 2026 guard, Minnesota Rise Hulke</strong> Coach Ryan Hulke, who is also the club director for the Minnesota Rise, had given us a tip that he had a new player who had to be added to our ‘must-see’ list. I’ve known Ryan for long enough to know that he doesn’t blow smoke. When he says a kid can play, well that kid can no doubt play. We watched Brielle for the first time this weekend playing up a year with the Rise’s top 2025 squad and are happy to report that Ryan was right again: This kid can play. Standing nearly 6 feet tall, Janssen is super-long with a wingspan that stretches from here to there and back again. She’s lean at this point, and needs to gain strength as most 8th graders do, but the raw material is first class. Janssen handles the ball really well for her size, her footwork down low is very good, and she has those natural instincts you can’t teach. The athleticism, the ease of movement, the elevation – it’s all there in spades. She can guard multiple positions, is really even-keel in tone and demeanor, and never seems to get sped up by the opposition. Janssen plays varsity at MACCRAY High School, an amalgamation of 186 students from the Maynard, Clara City and Raymond schools about two hours west of the Twin Cities. She averaged 11 points and 7 rebounds per game this winter for the Wolverines. Janssen is also an elite volleyball player so her appearances with the Rise are limited by a prior commitment to her Junior Olympic team. We hope she’s able to get in at least a couple of games this coming weekend at the Lake Slam because we’re eager for more of this scholarship-level freshman-to-be. <strong>Avery Krumwiede – 2025 guard, Crossfire Corley</strong> The 5’6 guard from Burnsville spent many years with the Fury before moving over to Dan Corley’s 2024 Crossfire South squad this spring. She has added a nice element of aggressiveness, defensive ability and never-ending energy to the team. Avery’s on-ball defense is particularly sound, and she is an exceptional rebounder for a player of her stature. Krumwiede can also shoot it when she gets her feet set. At one point when we watched, Avery exploded past her defender on her way to the rim but missed the layup and the opposition was off and running in the other direction. Avery turned and took off in hot pursuit, catching up to the ball handler and forcing a turnover to give Crossfire possession once again. That type of hustle is what Krumwiede is all about. I suppose that shouldn’t surprise us given the way her older sister <strong>Morgan Krumwiede</strong> played. Morgan was a Top 50 prospect whose grit, determination and defense earned her a scholarship at the Division 2 level. Avery has a ways to go to reach those lofty heights but the possibility is on the table. <strong>BLOCK PARTY</strong> <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-430882" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/05/Taylor-Tool-231x300.jpg" alt="" width="231" height="300" /> [player_tooltip player_id="178273" first="Taylor" last="Tool"] <strong>– 2024 forward, Crossfire Schuck</strong> Taylor is a 6-foot power forward from Delano currently ranked #37 in the Prep Girls Hoops Class of 2024. That type of prospect profile should tell you what kind of player Tool is. Unfortunately she has been hampered by injury and, according to Crossfire coach Linda Schuck, had not even practiced with her team prior to the weekend. We are pleased to report that it didn’t take Taylor long to make an impact. There was one play in particular that showcased what she can do. Late in their battle with 43 Hoops Elite on Saturday Crossfire had pulled ahead by one. 43 Hoops possessed the ball and had a last-ditch opportunity to try and win it. As they attacked the basket and attempted what could have been the winning shot Tool rose up into the air and with a perfectly timed, accurately placed, not-in-our-house variety of swat did her best Big Syl impression. It was a big-time block party to secure a 49-48 win. Give her some time to get back up to speed but do give Tool a look. She’s a scholarship level big who can get it done at the next level. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-430884" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/05/Evie-Schmitz-231x300.jpg" alt="" width="231" height="300" /> <strong>DROPPING DIMES</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="344357" first="Evie" last="Schmitz"] <strong>– 2024 guard, Minnesota Suns Blue Star</strong> The Minnesota Suns top team of incoming juniors has plenty of players to get excited about, from 2026 phenom [player_tooltip player_id="205310" first="Tori" last="Oehrlein"] to 2024 forwards like [player_tooltip player_id="215991" first="Abby" last="Richter"], [player_tooltip player_id="302308" first="Casey" last="Beck"], [player_tooltip player_id="215985" first="Olivia" last="Pawlicki"], Wisconsin imports <strong>Lila Posthuma</strong> and <strong>Molly Janke</strong>, and more. The one player who nearly always gets overlooked is dime-dropper extraordinaire [player_tooltip player_id="344357" first="Evie" last="Schmitz"]. The diminutive point guard from St. Louis Park is an assist machine, the type of player who sees it all, times it well and puts the ball where it needs to be. On Saturday we saw the artist at work as she slipped the ball here, slid the pass there and otherwise put on a show of PG precision. Evie is a bit of a street baller, the type of unimposing figure who can lull an opponent into complacency, execute a slick play and leave the defender blushing. When you see Schmitz pull off that kind of move, have a glance over to the Suns bench and observe the giddy reactions from her teammates who clearly love and appreciate what Evie brings to the table. Maybe it’s time for the rest of us to appreciate her a little bit more, as well. <strong>COMING UP</strong> Our colleagues Tony and Rudy will be highlighting some strong individual performances over the next couple of days. We’ll also select our All-Tournament Teams for each of the top four age groups from the classes of 2026 through 2023. This weekend it’s a live viewing period for Division 1 coaches. Many of Minnesota’s top teams will once again scatter across the country but there will be plenty to see locally at the Lake Slam. That’s where we’ll be starting on Friday.