The Week That Was #13: Down the home stretch

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A few weeks back in this space we began our speculation about who was going to make the Minnesota Ms. Basketball award first cut list. The award goes to the top senior in the state, and is more of a career accolade than a single-season accomplishment. This past week the first cut list was released by the Minnesota Girls Basketball Coaches Association. As usual, most of the big names were included, there were a few mild surprises, and of course some omissions of note. As we recap a little of this and a little of that from the past seven days, let's begin with some speculation about Ms. Basketball from the Week That Was #13.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>THE MISS BASKETBALL 30</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are the 30 players who made the official list:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='215968' first='Kendall' last='Barnes'], Roseville (UW-Milwaukee)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='392476' first='Natalie' last='Beaver'], Hayfield (Luther)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='215957' first='Gabby' last='Betton'], Lakeville North (Loyola Maryland)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='339129' first='Ja'Kahla' last='Craft'], St. Michael-Albertville (Seton Hall)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='215987' first='Daviney' last='Dreckman'], New Ulm (Jamestown)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='215953' first='Marisa' last='Frost'], Centennial (North Dakota State)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='302307' first='Elisabeth' last='Gadient'], Goodhue (MSU-Mankato)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='302300' first='Kylan' last='Gerads'], Albany (St. Cloud State)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='178263' first='Laura' last='Hauge'], St. Croix Lutheran (St. Thomas)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>Grace Hennen</strong>, Minneota</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='178265' first='Kadence' last='Hesse'], Sleepy Eye (Southwest Minnesota State)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='178266' first='Angel' last='Hill'], Minnehaha Academy</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='178267' first='Rhyan' last='Holmgren'], St. Peter (MSU-Mankato)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='302309' first='Karly' last='Jusczak'], Pine City (Idaho)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='304915' first='Rachel' last='Kottke'], Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart (St. Cloud State)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='322999' first='Jocelyn' last='Land'], Holy Family (Butler)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='461344' first='Elizabeth' last='Lukken'], Underwood</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='178269' first='Liv' last='McGill'], Hopkins (Florida)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='215958' first='Tori' last='McKinney'], Minnetonka (Minnesota)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='177728' first='Olivia' last='Olson'], Benilde-St. Margaret's (Michigan)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='304938' first='Alexis' last='Rose'], Becker (Sioux Falls)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='302297' first='Alyssa' last='Sand'], Albany (St. Thomas)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='461340' first='Hali' last='Savela'], Mountain Iron-Buhl (North Carolina)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='215956' first='Claire' last='Stern'], Maple Grove (North Dakota State)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='178271' first='Willow' last='Thiel'], Perham (UM-Crookston)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='178273' first='Taylor' last='Tool'], Delano (Northern State)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='392470' first='Kristen' last='Watson'], Hayfield</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='335641' first='Trinity' last='Wilson'], Lakeville North (Vanderbilt)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='339168' first='Misti' last='Zempel'], Hancock (Mayville State)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='178277' first='Jordan' last='Zubich'], Mountain Iron-Buhl (North Carolina)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As is always the case, there are some omissions from the list that jump out. Sometimes it is because the coach didn't nominate the player, or isn't a member of the coaches association. Other times the committee has deemed that a player is not worthy of being on the list. The three glaring omissions in our mind are Lakeville South's [player_tooltip player_id='178270' first='Finley' last='Ohnstad'], [player_tooltip player_id='178274' first='Amy' last='Thompson'] of Stillwater, and [player_tooltip player_id='215986' first='Tresa' last='Baumgard'] of Chisholm. Committed to Kansas State, Ohnstad is a top 10 prospect in the class and the all-time leading scorer at her school. Thompson is a South Florida commit who has been an outstanding performer since before high school. Just this week she had another 47-point game against East Ridge.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The committee always seeks to have rural representation among the 30 players selected, and this year is no different with half a dozen representatives from small Class A schools. The one Class A standout who should have made the cut is Baumgard. The MSU-Moorhead signee is a highly accomplished player ranked among the top 35 in the class, a standout performer who has rewritten the Chisholm record book.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Others who probably deserved consideration would have to include unsigned guard [player_tooltip player_id='215943' first='Somah' last='Kamara'] of Cooper, who just set a school record for most points in a single game with 43 against St. Paul Como Park. She's top 20 in the state in scoring (23 ppg) and top 10 in steals (5 per game). [player_tooltip player_id='215983' first='Drew' last='Buslee'] of Eagan (Sioux Falls) would have been a good choice along with [player_tooltip player_id='215981' first='Kylie' last='Waytashek'] of Royalton (Valparaiso), [player_tooltip player_id='304934' first='Ava' last='Miller'] of Rochester Mayo (South Carolina-Upstate) and [player_tooltip player_id='304895' first='Macy' last='Birkholz'] of Mankato East (MSU-Mankato).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>So who's going to win? To me it's a three-horse race. There's no question that Zubich will draw votes. The North Carolina commit has had an incredible career, leading Mountain Iron-Buhl to the Class A state title last spring and breaking records left and right. The last small-school winners of Ms. Basketball were <strong>Kacie Borowicz</strong> of Roseau in 2019 and <strong>Carlie Wagner</strong> of New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva in 2014. Eight of the last 10 winners have been from big Class 4A schools in the Twin Cities Metro.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Entering the season, [player_tooltip player_id='177728' first='Olivia' last='Olson'] of Benilde-St. Margaret's had to be the odds-on favorite. The Michigan commit has done it all for the Red Knights, leading BSM to the Class 3A state championship last season. A veteran of Team USA, and now a McDonald's All-American, Olson is one of the best players we've seen in recent years. This year, however, she missed a month of action with a broken bone in her hand.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In our minds, the current favorite is [player_tooltip player_id='178269' first='Liv' last='McGill'] of Hopkins. She, too, is a McDonald's All-American and is committed to the University of Florida. Coming into the season there were question marks surrounding the Royals with the graduation of long-time stars <strong>Taylor Woodson</strong> (Michigan) and <strong>Nunu Agara</strong> (Stanford). It was clear the burden of Hopkins' success was going to fall on the shoulders of McGill. What we've seen from Liv this season has been truly remarkable. She has answered every question, doing all things possible to spark Hopkins to a perfect record against Minnesota opponents and putting the Royals in the driver's seat for the Class 4A state title.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Who knows what the committee will do in the end. All three of these kids are winners.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>WACONIA IS ON THE WAY BACK UP</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Waconia has a great history in girls basketball led by long-time coach Carl Pierson, who passed away last month after a lengthy battle with cancer. The program has turned out a spate of fine college players, but current coach Dusty Neibauer has been patiently building back to that level over the past couple of seasons. After going 6-21 last year, and starting this season off by losing 10 of their first 11 games, the Wildcats are back on track. Waconia has won 10 of its last 15, including two victories apiece over Orono and New Prague. One of the key reasons for that is the play of senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='605702' first='Ashley' last='Bryfczynski'], who has been shooting the ball at a high level. Ashley had 8 threes in a game against Bloomington Jefferson and has made 79 on the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior <strong>Gabby Lauwagie</strong> and junior <strong>Faith Turner</strong> have done good work, too, but it is the sophomore group, all of whom play AAU for [program_tooltip program_id='712362' first='Legacy' last='Hoops'] and are starters at Waconia, that has coach Neibauer excited about the future. [player_tooltip player_id='717676' first='Addison' last='Bryfczynski'] is one of the toughest competitors around, a forward who can push the pace, score at the rim, and rebounds like crazy. She's a +34 on the year. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1194442' first='Audrey' last='Brown']</strong> is an athletic guard who also rebounds and scores at a high clip. She has shown great improvement of late. And [player_tooltip player_id='773415' first='Emma' last='Hanson'] is a defensive dynamo with a big motor. She's a remarkable +67 on the year.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Section 2AAAA is tough with Minnetonka, Chaska, and Eden Prairie all in the mix, but Waconia is clearly trending in the right direction again.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":857247,"sizeSlug":"medium","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-medium"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/02/Maggie-Westling-Milaca-2000.jpg?w=300" alt="" class="wp-image-857247" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>MILESTONES IN WEEK #13</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='461341' first='Maggie' last='Westling'] of Milaca topped 2,000 career points on Friday night in a win over Mora. The 6-footer, who missed substantial time with an ACL injury, had set the school career record (1,774) earlier this season. She's also closing in on 1,500 career rebounds.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":857249,"sizeSlug":"medium","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-medium"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/02/Jordan-Ode-record-team.jpg?w=300" alt="" class="wp-image-857249" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='205298' first='Jordan' last='Ode'] of Maple Grove became the Crimson's all-time scoring leader surpassing the 1,386 points scored by <strong>Jordyn Lamker</strong>, who now plays D1 ball at St. Thomas. Ode is the #2-rated junior in Minnesota and has committed to Michigan State.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='178270' first='Finley' last='Ohnstad'] of Lakeville South became the Cougars' all-time scoring leader surpassing the old record of 1,607 set in 2017 by <strong>Jade Geif</strong>, who went on to play at Navy. Finley, who is having an excellent senior season, is a top 10-rated prospect committed to Kansas State.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='205299' first='Ella' last='Kuhlman'] of North Branch became the Vikings' career scoring leader on Friday night against Princeton, surpassing the 1,633 points standard set by <strong>Kelly Johnson</strong>. Ella is a top 40 junior. Also notable in the game was a 30-point performance by Ella's teammate [player_tooltip player_id='716769' first='Kayla' last='Diedrich'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1,000-POINT SCORERS</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Junior [player_tooltip player_id='208184' first='Zahara' last='Bishop'] of Benilde-St. Margaret's (banner photo)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":857261,"sizeSlug":"medium","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-medium"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/02/Ajiem-Agwa-trio-1000-crop-1161x762-1708364986.jpg?w=300" alt="" class="wp-image-857261" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Junior [player_tooltip player_id='453728' first='Ajiem' last='Agwa'] of Austin</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":857262,"sizeSlug":"medium","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-medium"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/02/Lily-Hubin-1000.jpg?w=300" alt="" class="wp-image-857262" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='773408' first='Lily' last='Hubin'] of Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":857274,"sizeSlug":"medium","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-medium"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/02/Alexis-Rose-1000-family.jpg?w=300" alt="" class="wp-image-857274" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior [player_tooltip player_id='304938' first='Alexis' last='Rose'] of Becker (Sioux Falls)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":857283,"sizeSlug":"medium","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-medium"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/02/Kayla-Christy-1000.jpg?w=300" alt="" class="wp-image-857283" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior [player_tooltip player_id='215982' first='Kayla' last='Christy'] of Elk River</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":857286,"sizeSlug":"medium","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-medium"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/02/Brooklyn-Fischer-BBE-1000.jpg?w=300" alt="" class="wp-image-857286" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior <strong>Brooklyn Fischer</strong> of Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":857294,"sizeSlug":"medium","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-medium"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/02/Kirsten-Koopal-1000.jpg?w=300" alt="" class="wp-image-857294" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Junior <strong>Kirsten Koopal</strong> of Lyle-Pacelli in Austin</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>OTHER MILESTONES OF NOTE</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior [player_tooltip player_id='178265' first='Kadence' last='Hesse'] of Sleepy Eye achieved two more milestones this past week as she is in the home stretch of an outstanding high school career. The Southwest Minnesota State commit recorded her 500th career assist and 500th steal.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior <strong>Lexie McBroom</strong> of Legacy Christian Academy recorded her 500th career rebound.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='502574' first='Haylie' last='Wolbeck'] of Royalton broke the school record for most steals in a season previously held by <strong>Emily</strong> <strong>Fussy</strong>, who had 105. Haylie is up to 120 and counting.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='344332' first='Kate' last='Holmquist'] of Maple Grove broke the school record for most three-pointers in a game when she put up 10 against Robbinsdale Armstrong on Friday night. In the past two games, the 11th-rated 2026 prospect in the state went 15-for-20 from beyond the arc.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='252381' first='Maddyn' last='Greenway'] of Providence Academy tied her season high for points in a game with 49 last week in a win over Alexandria. The top-ranked player in the Prep Girls Hoops Class of 2026 has bettered 40 points eight times this winter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->