Mill City Invitational 2023 Stock Risers

It’s never too late to make a good impression. For the Class of 2023, the NCAA Live Period events in July are their last chance to make a statement in AAU competition, and tournaments like this week’s Mill City Invitational in Chanhassen are vitally important for incoming seniors who have yet to make their college plans. In Friday’s final session of the three-day event, two players stepped up and stood out for the remaining few college coaches still in the building. Well done <strong>Alexis Moberg</strong> and [player_tooltip player_id="148335" first="Camryn" last="Smith"], who lead our look at five incoming seniors who raised their stock at Mill City. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-338528" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/10/137-Camryn-Smith.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /> [player_tooltip player_id="148335" first="Camryn" last="Smith"] <strong>– guard, Minnesota Comets Metro Elite (Spring Lake Park)</strong> Cam is a grinder who’ll give you an honest day’s effort virtually every time she takes to the floor. The 5’8 guard, who joined Barry Peterson’s new group of Comets from the Twin Cities this spring, had a terrific tournament. On the offensive end of things, she scored 59 points in five games, including 16 in the Comets 49-42 win over Minnesota Heat Gustafson late Friday. Before they were even finished, most of the chairs had been put away, the banners had been removed and the handful of Division 3 coaches on hand were impressed. Of course Smith is always great defensively. She is a feisty bulldog who makes life challenging for opposing ball handlers and isn’t shy about getting up in their kitchen in a way your mother might find rude. Shooting from distance has always been a trouble spot for Camryn, however, but she has improved dramatically in that regard over the years and she’s still got the ability to bully her way to the basket to score on a consistent basis. Smith is ranked #68 in the state and offers up a boatload of great intangibles for the next level. <strong>Alexis Moberg – forward, Minnesota Heat Gustafson (Rogers)</strong> While Smith was giving the latest in a long series of tough, physical performances, Moberg was raising eyebrows on the opposite side of the floor with a little grit of her own. That’s not something we’ve seen much of from the talented forward/wing over the years. At 6 feet tall, with long legs and long limbs, Moberg is a gifted athlete who gets up and down the floor with grace and pace. She’s got nice touch around the basket and can knock down shots from multiple locations. She has remained outside of the Prep Girls Hoops Class of 2023 rankings, however, because she has often lacked the kind of physical presence and energy level needed to compete in college. Not on Friday. Moberg was locked in a ferocious battle with big [player_tooltip player_id="220825" first="Alex" last="McGeehan"] of the Comets and she more than held her own. In fact she was the aggressor much of the time and was not shy about claiming her space and holding it by whatever means necessary. Moberg played with a ton of verve, and it was the subject of much conversation among the gathered observers. This is the Alexis Moberg we have been waiting for, a version that could have a very nice future at the next level. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-338610" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/10/234-Taylor-Sodeman.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /> [player_tooltip player_id="352768" first="Taylor" last="Sodeman"] <strong>– forward, Minnesota Rise Busse (St. James)</strong> While Moberg waited until the last possible hour to make a good impression at the Mill City Invitational, Sodeman earned her way into the coach’s notebooks first thing Wednesday morning. The 5’11 small forward with the big frame offered up one of the best performances we’ve seen from her against 43 Hoops Premier. The versatile athlete was playing at a high tempo, providing her team with a physical presence at both ends of the floor, and just making plays all over the court. A 360-degree spin move to slip past her defender and score in the lane elicited some oohs and aahs from those in attendance and rightly so. It was pretty. We’ve seen this before from Sodeman, of course. The challenge for her has been delivering consistently. When Taylor is on, she looks like a scholarship-level talent. She just needs to come through with that level of performance as often as possible if she’s going to be successful in the college environment. Taylor averaged about 9 points per game this week as the Rise went 4-1 at the tournament. Sodeman is currently ranked #127 in the Class. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-338468" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/10/73-Savannah-Schlueter.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="200" /> [player_tooltip player_id="339166" first="Savannah" last="Schlueter"] <strong>– guard, Minnesota Rise Busse (Hutchinson)</strong> Consistency isn’t a problem for Schlueter, the 5’5 shooting guard who runs the show for Rise Busse. Savannah never takes a play off, and she is a constant threat to drop long bombs from absolutely anywhere on the court. Let’s cut to the chase and say that Schlueter is one of the top half dozen shooters in the state, a fact she has proven week after week this AAU season. I’m embarrassed to tell you where she’s ranked because her performance this season could make her the biggest stock riser of the summer when we rewrite the 2023 rankings in a couple of weeks. Schluetter had 10 threes in a game earlier this season and followed that up shortly thereafter with a 9-triple performance. This week she had games of 7 and 6 makes from beyond the arc as she averaged nearly 20 points per game. Schlueter is the very definition of scrappy. She plays so hard and never, ever gives up on a play. When opponents provide even the slightest of openings she’s going to let it fly and the ball is more than likely going to find its way through the cylinder. If every player could make the most of their God-given talent the way Savannah does their results would be stellar. [player_tooltip player_id="220824" first="Piper" last="Carlson"] <strong>– forward, Metro Stars Wiese (St. Micheal-Albertville)</strong> Like Schlueter, Carlson (top photo) is a lunch-pail performer who brings her best to the court every time out. She plays hard and physical, is a fierce rebounder with a terrific sense of timing, and she’s got enough of a mean streak to keep opponents wary. Piper is pushing 6 feet, which should have put her at a distinct disadvantage going against gigantic [player_tooltip player_id="302273" first="Abigail" last="O’Reilly"] of Rise Wolfe, one of the state’s most improved players this year, when the two clashed on Thursday. That didn’t turn out to be the case, though, as Carlson kept her opponent in check as she so often does. That helped the Metro Stars win in convincing fashion. We love Piper’s game. She’s not the smoothest kid on the court, and she won’t wow you with her quickness or ball handling, but night in and night out she has as much positive impact on behalf of her team as anyone on the floor. Carlson has a huge motor, a ton of strength, a high degree of will and competitiveness and a commitment to perform the role assigned to her to the best of her ability. That’s why she consistently makes the PGH Hard Hat All-Star Team! Carlson is currently ranked #64 in the Class and we’d be shocked if she doesn’t earn a roster spot in a scholarship-level program.