Player Of The Week - Week 5 (Dec. 18th - Dec. 24th)

As we tip off the girls high school season throughout Iowa, there are going to be a few new articles/evaluations that we publish every week during the season, that we have not done recently in the past. One of those articles being our MVP Of The Week and Players Of The Week.   The MVP Of The Week is an individual that displayed what it means to put on a major performance/s for their perspective squad throughout the week. Someone who came out firing on all cylinders and dominated in more ways than one on the hardwood while putting up an eye-opening stat line.   The Players Of The Week are other individuals that were in consideration for the MVP of the week but fell just short in the end when taking into consideration all outlying factors.   Thanks for tuning in and enjoy!    MVP Of The Week   [player_tooltip player_id='788579' first='Paige' last='Rummans']   <ul> <li>12/21/23 vs Hampton - 21 Points (10-12), 29 Rebounds, 3 Assists, 3 Steals, 11 Blocks, 3 TO's</li> </ul>   On Thursday night [player_tooltip player_id='788579' first='Paige' last='Rummans'] did it again. She recorded another incredible stat line for the second week in a row and her Saydel High School team got the W because of it. Rummans has been on a tear this season. She has put up some massive numbers while trying to help her team out in any way possible. As you can tell from the numbers, Rummans is talented at several different things but I think she is super successful because of her motor. It's like she never stops. Not matter what she is doing, she is going to continue on until the job is complete, no matter the mission. Rummans is the heart and soul of her Saydel team and that has been pretty obvious the past few weeks. The numbers she is putting up going into break are special and I'm hoping that continues moving forward. If so, to end the 2023-2024 year, she is going to have one of those individual seasons that we all remember for a very long time.   Players Of The Week   [player_tooltip player_id='671465' first='Claire' last='Lueken']   <ul> <li>12/19/23 @ Waterloo West - 20 Points (9-19), 13 Rebounds, 8 Assists, 3 Steals, 2 TO's</li> </ul>   Wahlert Catholic traveled to Waterloo West on Tuesday and came out with a convincing victory, 74-50. Their top overall player in the contest was [player_tooltip player_id='671465' first='Claire' last='Lueken']. Lueken put up a double-double with 20 points on 9/19 shooting and 13 rebounds. While at the same time she also dished out 8 assists and grabbed 3 steals. This was a balanced game for Lueken by the looks of it. Her team jumped out to a quick start in the first half and never looked back. They went into halftime with a 48-18 lead and that was it. Waterloo West came out in the second half and won it by 6 but at that point, it was already too late. Lueken is someone that most know if you have been paying attention this past year or two. She is diverse in the game and skilled in a number of ways. She is going to be a future college player that produces at that level almost immediately. Her game is versatile enough that she can move to a number of positions on the floor right now and I think that will be the same in college as long as her game continues to expand.   [player_tooltip player_id='246133' first='Eva' last='Solseth']   <ul> <li>12/19/23 vs Valley - 21 Points (7-13), 4 Rebounds, 1 Assist, 2 Steals, 2 TO's</li> </ul>   #2 ranked Valley High School started off this week by having to travel to Southeast Polk and take on a tough Rams team. This game shocked a good amount of people. Southeast Polk came out on fire and the Tigers just couldn't find their rhythm. In the end, it was a group effort but a player that made their presence known early and often was SG - [player_tooltip player_id='246133' first='Eva' last='Solseth']. Solseth is a Grandview commit and a heck of a shooter. She ended her night with a team high 21 points on 7-13 shooting and the Rams won by 30 points. On any given night a team can play their best or a team can play their worse, the regular season is a rollercoaster and everyone has to strap in for the ride. I'm glad that Solseth showed out. Sometimes it can be hard with other great players on the floor but she is good enough and that especially showed out in this case.   [player_tooltip player_id='777233' first='Romey' last='Croatt']   <ul> <li>12/19/23 vs Urbandale - 17 Points (6-8), 4 Rebounds, 8 Assists , 2 Steals</li> </ul>   One of the most productive freshman at the beginning of this season has been [player_tooltip player_id='777233' first='Romey' last='Croatt'] of Waukee Northwest. In one of her most recent adventures, Croatt registered 17 points, 4 rebounds, and 8 assists in her teams 66 point win on Tuesday. The most impressive part of this stat line is not that she scored 17 points and only missed two shots in the process but that she dished out 8 assists and had 0 turnovers throughout the entire contest. You don't see many players getting close to the double-digit mark at the high school level when it comes to assists during one contest so to do that, while also not turning over the ball, is note-worthy. The 2027 Class rankings comes out in a few weeks and I think that Croatt is going to be happy where she lands in this update.   [player_tooltip player_id='311365' first='Journey' last='Houston']   <ul> <li>12/21/23 vs Central DeWitt - 26 Points (12-18), 14 Rebounds, 3 Steals, 2 TO's</li> </ul>   Someone that I have recently featured for being dominant this season on both sides of the floor is [player_tooltip player_id='311365' first='Journey' last='Houston'] but there is just no way that I can create an article like this and not have someone with a 26 and 14, double-double. Not to mention, that the team she did it against was undefeated at 8-0 and being ranked as the #8 team in the 3A Class during this moment. Houston's game speaks for itself. That's why she is going to Iowa after she graduates Davenport North. She is skilled, athletic, physical, and smart. If she is put in the right positions to succeed, she is always going to kill it. Doesn't matter if it's at the high school level or college level.   [player_tooltip player_id='311389' first='Haylee' last='Stokes']   <ul> <li>12/21/23 vs Central Lyon - 36 Points (13-24), 6 Rebounds, 4 Assists, 5 Steals, 1 Block, 3 TO's</li> </ul>   If I'm not mistake, at this point [player_tooltip player_id='311389' first='Haylee' last='Stokes'] has been featured within this article in some sort of way for the past few weeks and I think that is going to continue moving forward. As of most recent, Stokes scored a school record 36 points on 13-24 shooting in her teams 24 point win against #6 Central Lyon High School. You know the story with Stokes by now. She is a high level scoring guard, that can lead her team from all different positions on the floor. Wether it be scoring, passing, or defending. This ELC team has been really good this season. We knew coming into the year what we would see from Stokes but others are stepping up and they are winning games, against some good teams, by massive margins. They will ride into break with a 10-2 record, with the hopes of starting of 2024 the same way.

As we tip off the girls high school season throughout Iowa, there are going to be a few new articles/evaluations that we publish every week during the season, that we have not done recently in the past. One of those articles being our MVP Of The Week and Players Of The Week.