Championship Sunday: Drama aplenty in 8th and 9th
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There never seems to be a shortage of drama on Championship Sunday when the stars come out to sparkle, the action is extra intense, and the winners are crowned at the annual AAU State Tournament. This year’s finals at Shakopee…
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Continue ReadingThere never seems to be a shortage of drama on Championship Sunday when the stars come out to sparkle, the action is extra intense, and the winners are crowned at the annual AAU State Tournament. This year’s finals at Shakopee High School were no different, particularly in the 9th grade championship game between North Tartan 2027 EYBL and Minnesota Fury 2027 UAA. We’re here to recap that exciting contest along with the 8th grade title game. We’ll bring you the best of the 10th and 11th grade battles in a separate article.
North Tartan EYBL captures the 9th grade crown
After pulling off a dramatic finish in Sunday morning’s 9th grade semifinal – the Fury came from behind to better
Minnesota Stars
3SSB Antl by a single point – Sam Ebbenreiter’s 2027s could not have started off with a bigger bang than they did in the championship game. Just 5 minutes had elapsed before the Fury were having their way with a 10-point lead. Then
North Tartan
, which had handled
E1T1
Queens in the semis, finally got rolling. Their run was sparked by
Ava Cupito
Ava
Cupito
5'10" | CG
Hopkins | 2027
State
MN
‘s driving bucket followed quickly by a three-pointer from
Sydney Friedly
Sydney
Friedly
5'7" | CG
Benilde-St. Margaret's | 2027
State
MN
. With under 6 minutes left in the half,
North Tartan
took the lead for the first time on a
Laila Moses
Laila
Moses
5'11" | SF
DeLaSalle | 2027
State
MN
score that capped a 17-6 run. Thanks to Cupito’s three triples and a resurgent offense,
North Tartan
had cut the lead to just one at the break.
The teams were neck and neck for much of the second period. By the time
Annika Kieser
Annika
Kieser
5'9" | SF
Wayzata | 2027
State
MN
of the Fury made a pair of free throws at the 4:49 mark, the margin was just two points. Then the squads went on a scoring rampage the likes of which you will seldom see, engaging in an endless sprint from one end of the floor to the other and back with limited defense and plenty of fireworks. They combined for six baskets in just 40 seconds! By the time Jordan Christofferson‘s long-bomb inbounds pass found
Emma Millerbernd
Emma
Millerbernd
5'9" | CG
Providence Academy | 2027
State
MN
in a coast-to-coast sprint-and score,
North Tartan
was up three at 61-58. With no timeouts remaining, the Fury were in a pickle – until
Pressley Watkins
Pressley
Watkins
6'0" | CG
Benilde-St. Margaret's | 2027
State
MN
found just enough space from Caitlin Clark range to launch a desperation three that banked off the glass and in. That tied the game and Watkins was also awarded a free throw but she missed.
That left North Tartan with a mere 9.6 seconds to execute some heroics of their own. Inbounding the ball at midcourt, Millerbernd found Christopherson with her feet on the three-point line and her back to the basket. Jordan made the catch, hesitated for a split second, and then took off on a counterclockwise curl to the basket, getting up a contested hook shot over her defender. The ball hit the glass, bounced down onto the rim, took a funky little hop and fell through the cylinder to give North Tartan a 63-61 victory and some shiny new championship rings.
Christofferson finished with 15 points. The big power forward from West Fargo Horace capped off two great weekends for North Tartan , no doubt raising her recruiting stock in the process. She is a huge physical presence in the paint and has excellent skills, as well. Prep Girls Hoops North Dakota has not ranked the Class of 2027 yet, but when they do you’d have to think Christofferson will be near the top of the list.
Cupito, who just joined
North Tartan
after starting the season with the
Metro Stars
, scored 16 points in the contest while Millerbernd had 10. In addition to her last-minute bomb, Watkins made another five triples for 20 points in total. Ramlall finished with 13 points while
Alivia Bell
Alivia
Bell
5'7" | PG
Winona | 2027
State
MN
had 12.
Top 8 finishers in Division 1
- North Tartan EYBL
- Minnesota Fury UAA
- Minnesota Stars 3SSB Antl
- E1T1 Queens
- Minnesota Rise Busse
- Minnesota Fury S40
- Minnesota Stars Lindahl
- North Tartan Elite
Division 2
- Champion: Southern Minnesota Fury 2027
- Runner-up: MN Crossfire South Mester
Division 3
- Champion: Southwest Minnesota Fury 2027
- Runner-up: Northern Lights
![](https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2024/05/Sarah-Poepard-photo-crop-2852x1873-1715614982.jpg?w=800)
Minnesota Fury takes home the 8th grade title
While the 8th grade championship game could not quite match the drama we witnessed in 9th grade, the caliber of play was no less impressive. The Fury’s 2028 UAA team, coached by Tim Peper, features a ton of talent as per usual, including sharpshooter
Ashna Ramlall
Ashna
Ramlall
5'9" | CG
Rosemount | 2028
MN
of Rosemount, lengthy post
Logan Miller
Logan
Miller
6'0" | PF
Andover | 2028
MN
of Andover, talented wing
Sarah Poepard
Sarah
Poepard
6'0" | SF
Mahtomedi | 2028
MN
of White Bear Lake (pictured above), and energetic guard
Brooke Soash
Brooke
Soash
5'6" | CG
Champlin Park | 2028
MN
of Champlin Park. Ditto for Scott Lauinger’s
North Tartan
2028 Nike team, whose roster includes giant post
Sahara Wilson
Sahara
Wilson
6'1" | PF
Lakeville North | 2028
MN
of Lakeville North, elite point guards
Amelia Mills
Amelia
Mills
5'6" | PG
Rochester Mayo | 2028
MN
of Rochester Mayo and
Ally Moore
Ally
Moore
5'6" | PG
Orono | 2028
MN
of Orono, plus emerging star
Maggie Dyer
Maggie
Dyer
5'10" | SF
Rochester Mayo | 2028
MN
, also of Mayo.
The Fury, which had defeated Minnesota Stars OU in a hard-fought semifinal win, got the early jump with an 18-11 lead by the midway mark of the opening half before North Tartan assembled a quick 8-0 run. That spurt spawned even more solid execution on offense for Lauinger’s squad. By the time the game reached its midway point, the Fury found themselves down by 10 to North Tartan , which had knocked off an impressive West Central United squad to reach the championship game.
The Fury’s response was immediate as they opened the second period with renewed energy and went on a sprint. Miller cashed in on an and-1 opportunity after bullying her way to the basket before Ramlall buried a long pull-up three. Then Poepard went end to end to score and North Tartan ‘s lead had been cut to just two. The teams traded leads throughout the period before the Fury found an extra gear in the home stretch. It was Poepard who provided much of the spark. When the lead was just three, the 6-footer knocked down a baseline jumper, scored again a minute or so later, and then nailed both ends of a one-and-one opportunity in the final minutes. That gave the Fury a 9-point margin from which North Tartan never recovered.
With 42.9 seconds still on the clock, Piper Ohnstad Piper Ohnstad 5'10" | CG Lakeville South | 2028 MN completed a pair of free throws to stretch the Fury lead to 11. After that it was all just window dressing as the Fury took care of their business to capture the 8th grade hardware with a 61-54 victory. Ramlall finished the game with 18 points while Poepard had 12. Mills led North Tartan with 16 and Dyer had 12.
Top 8 finishers in Division 1
- Minnesota Fury UAA
- North Tartan Nike
- West Central United Blue
- Minnesota Comets Boone
- MN Crossfire Herman
- Minnesota Stars DeSart
- Minnesota Stars Hobbs
Division 2
- Champion: Air Minnesota Bromeling
- Runner-up: Minnesota Starks Lindquist
Division 3
- Champion: MN Crossfire Kuehnel
- Runner-up: MN Crossfire Langmade