Robert’s Sterling Invitational All-Day 1 First Team

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's always great to attend the Sterling Invitational. Good coaching, teams from different parts of the state and a great place to see veteran and new talent. It is also a favorite of mine because all games are back-to-back. The usual cast of characters returned - Hugoton, Hutchinson Trinity, Kingman, Lyons, Scott City, Smoky Valley, Southeast of Saline, and Sterling. I will be creating three posts that cover my day one first and second teams as well as a ‘Shout Out!” list. Enjoy my reports beginning with the first team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='616730' first='Katja' last='Blanchat'], 6'0", PF, Smoky Valley, 2025 - While I list Blanchat at a post position she played and frequently defended every position. Her fluidness on takes and scores with hops, extension and athleticism were nice to watch. By game's end she picked up a double-double with 10 points and at least 13 rebounds. Blanchat also picked up a couple assists, steals and blocked shots. She did have nearly a dozen turnovers but the majority of which in situations where she was trying to do too much to get her team back into the game against Hugoton.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='398383' first='Morgan' last='Freund'], 5'8", SG, Kingman, 2025 - While Freund was erratic at times those brief stretches seemed to be when she was pushing the team's efforts to get a hoop when the team needed one. She showed herself to be the team's most consistent and diverse scoring threat in transition and working in the half court. She had a dozen points including going 7/8 from the line and knocking down a three. Freund also finished with a few steals and assists.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1161398' first='Reese' last='Hinrich']</strong>, 5'1", PG, Southeast of Saline, 2028 - The Trojan floor leader has quickly stepped into the significant shoes of now graduated point guard Brielle Ptacek. And because of her mature, all-around game the team's up-tempo floor game has not missed a beat. The quick, small guard passed well and showed herself to be a credible perimeter threat. On the other end she stood out as a good defender working against players moving off the ball.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='939142' first='Amiley' last='Lewis'], 5'2", PG, Hugoton, 2028 - Lewis put Smokey Valley's guards immediately on their heals from the first possession. From about the top of the key she blew by her defender, flew down the lane and scored easily against help. She also showed her perimeter shooting game which included a made three that turned into a four point play. Finishing with 14 points Lewis gathered 6 rebounds and 5 steals while dishing out a couple assists. Lewis' handles in the open court and against a single defender were especially strong. The Vikings clogged things up more with a mixture of zone defenses. She adjusted well, working in the Eagles' scheme to make the extra pass to get quality shots. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='779228' first='Katie' last='Weathers'], 5'10", SF/PF, Scott City, 2027 - Weathers has added a couple inches in the past year and her longer, solid frame was put to good use. She showed quality finishing ability off the transition catch and at the end of wing drives on the way to 13 points in the Beaver win. Her versatility showed as she could be found playing on the wing as well as inside</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->