2024 State Tournament: Unlikely Heroes (Part 1)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Throughout the past week we have had some eye-opening performances on the hardwood during this State Tournament. In this article we highlight some unlikely heroes that stepped up in major ways in attempts to help their team pull off a victory or two.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Thanks for tuning in and enjoy!</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='901710' first='Avah' last='Underwood']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2026","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'0u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"12124","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"St. Albert's ","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Prior to the State Tournament, I only had the chance to see [player_tooltip player_id='901710' first='Avah' last='Underwood'] play a handful of times and in those contests she was alright but this week she really impressed me with her knowledge of the game and ability to produce, no matter the circumstances . The St. Albert's Saintes have a group of players that dominated most of this season. They put together a winter to remember and this week was no different even though they fell just short of the State Championship game. In all of their contest, Underwood made her presence known on and off of the basketball, every opportunity she could. Not to mention that she would make herself available whenever things broke down, usually ending the possession with some nice finish at the rim. Defensively, she held her own and made her opponents earn everything they got while they were coming down the floor. I'm not too sure where Underwood's recruitment is as of right now but from what I've seen the past few days, she could compete at the collegiate level. She has length, physicality, balance, and knowledge of the game. All of that together usually leads to a lot of success in one way or another.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["595146"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Everyone knew about [player_tooltip player_id='595146' first='Jaidyn' last='Sellers'] and her ability on the court but this week she took things to a whole new level in my eyes. Sellers has always been good for this Panorama program but the word good might be an understatement in this situation. This week she was great. She handled her personal matchups with ease a majority of the time and she registered some wild stat lines each game while doing it. This team and program, doesn't get to this point without the play of Sellers these past few years. She has been a physical presence that is second-to-none and that was on full-display at the Well. In their Championship contest she had the task of guarding [player_tooltip player_id='314094' first='Payton' last='Petersen'], a Lousiville Women's Volleyball commit, and she did a solid job of keeping her in check somewhat. Seller is going to take her talents to the University of Iowa after her Senior year to compete with the Hawkeyes on the Softball diamond and I'm sure she is going to thrive. If she competes as hard as she did this past week at State, she is going to be just fine.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_2_player_details_player_name":"Anna Quillin","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_2_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_2_player_details_height":"5'8u0022","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_2_player_details_position":"12124","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_2_player_details_school":"Solon","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_2_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_2_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_2_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_2_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"Different types of prospects, have different roles within their perspective programs and understanding your role may be one of the most important factors to a teams success. A perfect example of this is Guard, Anna Quillin of Solon High School. Quillin isn't the type to go out and get you 20 Points/20 Assists every night but instead, she is going to rebound hard and defend like her life depends on it. As of this past week, Quillin broke the record for Rebounds in the 3A Class at the State Tournament with 40, including grabbing 16 in her teams Championship win on Saturday night. In this game, Quillin went 0-1 from the floor shooting, with 16 Rebounds. I'm not sure what that says about her game to you but to me, it says that she is willing to do anything for her teammates to be successful. This is the type of stat line that really shows what a player is all about. When you consider the number of rebounds she had in three games and the fact that she only stands at 5'8, you start to realize how impressive this feat was. I'm sure it's not something she even thought about being a possibility before the State Tournament but I'm sure she will take it.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_3_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='1194333' first='Addy' last='Oetker']","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_3_player_details_graduating_class":"2026","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_3_player_details_height":"5'6u0022","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_3_player_details_position":"12123","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_3_player_details_school":"Des Moines Christian ","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_3_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_3_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_3_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_3_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"The Des Moines Christian Lions may have fallen in their Second Round matchup to the eventual 3A Champs but that didn't stop [player_tooltip player_id='1194333' first='Addy' last='Oetker'] from having a noteworthy tournament. Oetker was the swift PG, that all of her teammates know and love. She came into the week with an aggressive attitude and that definitely helped her have some solid games on the offensive side of the floor. She shot a high percentage, got the looks she wanted to from almost anywhere off of the dribble, and she demonstrated what it means to be selfless in the regards of passing whenever a teammate would become open. If we are talking about Guards that showed out this weekend as leaders and playmakers, Oetker is in that conversation for me. She kept to what she knows best and because of that, her team competed and even won a contest on the State floor. That is something to be proud of.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["592181"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"When you hear about the CCA Clippers, you don't usually hear about their Center in the Middle, [player_tooltip player_id='592181' first='Bliss' last='Beck'] but I think that she was as much of a factor this season, as any other prospect on their roster has been. Beck is their presence in the paint. She stands at 6'0 and plays the true center position a majority of the time. Within a program that has a good amount of collegiate level talent when it comes to this sport, Beck still did a great job of showing up whenever they needed it the most. Whether thats her scoring off of a post feed or creating a stop under the hoop against other smaller opponents. It doesn't matter. You know that each night that Beck took the floor, she was going to make something happen and that was the same this past week during their Championship run. Everyone showed out and because of it, the Clippers are now the new 4A State Champions of 2024. An accomplishment I'm sure they will remember for the rest of their lives.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":5,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65e4b5e76c240"} /-->