2026 win capped a Championship sweep for North Tartan

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As the final State Championship game was winding down on Sunday afternoon at Shakopee High School, an AAU coach who shall remain anonymous walked past me and said what we were all thinking: “It's a great day to be [program_tooltip program_id='712722' first='North' last='Tartan'].” Indeed. In a tournament littered with elite talent and deep rosters, on a day that could have played out in any number of different ways, the final win of the weekend by the club's 2026 EYBL group gave Tartan a clean sweep of the primary championships: 2030, 2029, 2028, 2027 and 2026.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Although NT has a long record of success at the top of Minnesota's AAU pyramid, I don't recall seeing them run the tables in the decade during which I have been closely following Minnesota girls basketball. Not surprisingly, the number 1 prospect in the Class of 2026 – [player_tooltip player_id='252381' first='Maddyn' last='Greenway'] of Providence Academy – was smack dab in the middle of the success. All she does is win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coming off three consecutive high school state championships, Greenway did it again in AAU. She was joined in the excellence department by Orono's [player_tooltip player_id='471360' first='Mya' last='Moore'], whose performances throughout the weekend were every bit as good as Maddyn's. In Sunday's final against the multi-time champion [program_tooltip program_id='714566' first='Minnesota' last='Stars'] <strong>3SSB</strong>, everything came up roses for [program_tooltip program_id='712722' first='North' last='Tartan']. Fitting, I suppose, since it was Mother's Day and there were plenty of flowers being delivered.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[program_tooltip program_id='712722' first='North' last='Tartan'] started quickly, constructing a 15-4 margin in the first few minutes. Before the opening half was over, the lead was 18 points against a potent team nobody wanted to face. By the time Moore cashed at the line with a pair of free throws at the 13-second mark, &nbsp;NT had built a 40-24 cushion.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Import <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='533077' first='Adaline' last='Sheplee']</strong> – the top-rated junior in Wisconsin – opened the half by scoring on the run. Stars guard [player_tooltip player_id='567377' first='Sadie' last='Hall'] of Shakopee countered with a corner three. When North Dakota's top prospect and Stars stalwart <strong>LeeLee Bell</strong> finally ventured down low where she is always an impossible matchup, the Stars came to life. After spending most of the game out on the perimeter, Bell's paint presence yielded a couple of field goals before she stepped back outside and nailed back-to-back triples. That spurt, which accounted for 10 of her 17 points, closed the gap to 10. &nbsp;At the 9:54 mark, prolific Park Center scorer [player_tooltip player_id='589280' first='Lyric' last='Singleton'] buried a corner 3 to cut the lead to single digits. That was as close as the Stars would get as [program_tooltip program_id='712722' first='North' last='Tartan'] once again pulled away while coach Gerard Coury's group defended according to plan. The final score was 68-53.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coached by P.J. Hill, the Stars' run of success speaks for itself. Last year they captured the title with a one-sided win over [program_tooltip program_id='712687' first='Minnesota' last='Fury'] <strong>UAA</strong> while [program_tooltip program_id='712722' first='North' last='Tartan'] <strong>EYBL</strong> finished third. With a lineup that includes Bell, elite point guard [player_tooltip player_id='252383' first='Lanelle' last='Wright'],player_tooltip player_id='478390' first='Sinae' last='Hill'] and [player_tooltip player_id='472446' first='Amaya' last='Penn'] along with Hall and Singleton, the Stars were a legitimate threat to repeat. [program_tooltip program_id='712722' first='North' last='Tartan'] had other ideas.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Moore scored 14 points in the game while Sheplee had 13 and Greenway 12. Top 5 prospect [player_tooltip player_id='344333' first='Cail' last='Jahnke'] added 11 and as did Iowa standout <strong>Averie Lower.</strong> Tartan had valuable contributions from [player_tooltip player_id='498663' first='Madison' last='Ohm'], [player_tooltip player_id='502602' first='Morgan' last='Staloch'] and [player_tooltip player_id='644878' first='Sahara' last='Wilson'] along with [player_tooltip player_id='567387' first='Mirabel' last='Wismer'] and [player_tooltip player_id='478362' first='Morgan' last='Korf']. It's a deep roster and every one of them earned a shiny championship ring.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top finishers in Division 1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"ordered":true} --> <ol class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[program_tooltip program_id='712722' first='North' last='Tartan'] <strong>EYBL</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[program_tooltip program_id='714566' first='Minnesota' last='Stars']<strong> 3SSB</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[program_tooltip program_id='712687' first='Minnesota' last='Fury'] <strong>UAA</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[program_tooltip program_id='712700' first='Minnesota' last='Suns'] <strong>P24</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[program_tooltip program_id='712699' first='Minnesota' last='Rise'] <strong>Hulke</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[program_tooltip program_id='712665' first='Metro' last='Stars'] <strong>3SSB</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ol> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>D1 Scoring Leaders</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong>LeeLee Bell </strong>– [program_tooltip program_id='714566' first='Minnesota' last='Stars'] <strong>3SSB </strong>(73)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='502561' first='Marta' last='Forsline'] – [program_tooltip program_id='712700' first='Minnesota' last='Suns'] <strong>P24</strong> (61)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='515673' first='Brielle' last='Janssen'] – [program_tooltip program_id='712699' first='Minnesota' last='Rise'] <strong>Hulke</strong> (60)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='351665' first='Vienna' last='Murray'] – [program_tooltip program_id='712687' first='Minnesota' last='Fury'] <strong>UAA</strong> (60)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='471360' first='Mya' last='Moore'] – [program_tooltip program_id='712722' first='North' last='Tartan'] <strong>EYBL</strong> (59)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='515651' first='Addi' last='Schneider'] – [program_tooltip program_id='712687' first='Minnesota' last='Fury'] <strong>S40</strong> (55)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='502563' first='Lauren' last='Hust'] – [program_tooltip program_id='712722' first='North' last='Tartan'] <strong>SE</strong> (49)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='533077' first='Adaline' last='Sheplee'] – [program_tooltip program_id='712722' first='North' last='Tartan'] <strong>EYBL</strong> (48)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='589275' first='Sophia' last='Anderson'] – [program_tooltip program_id='714566' first='Minnesota' last='Stars'] <strong>Nilsen</strong> (48)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='339179' first='Brylee' last='Miller'] – [program_tooltip program_id='712699' first='Minnesota' last='Rise'] <strong>Hulke</strong> (47)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Division 2</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Champion: [program_tooltip program_id='784736' first='High' last='Impact'] <strong>11G</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Runner-up: [program_tooltip program_id='712699' first='Minnesota' last='Rise'] <strong>Wendland</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Division 3</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Champion: [program_tooltip program_id='713420' first='Minnesota' last='Diamond Elite'] <strong>Walker</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Runner-up: [program_tooltip program_id='712697' first='MN' last='Crossfire'] <strong>Heller</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list -->