Battle of the Beasts: Minot tops Horace in a Thriller

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Minot Majettes made the long trek to Horace on Monday night for an instant classic. These two teams are arguably the best each region has to offer and the game delivered many exciting moments. This game was filled with talent, with Horace having two Division 1 recruits in [player_tooltip player_id='555488' first='Lakyn' last='Donnelly'] and [player_tooltip player_id='555487' first='Jordan' last='Christofferson'] and Minot having the top rated prospect in the State in [player_tooltip player_id='379041' first='Leelee' last='Bell']. Minot was able to sneak away a victory despite [player_tooltip player_id='245114' first='Maggie' last='Fricke'] not being available yet due to injury (another Division 1 player!). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The game began with each team turning the ball over, an indication of the emotions involved when two top teams play. Horace stormed off to an early 11-6 lead after the initial sloppy play, forcing a Minot 30-second timeout. [player_tooltip player_id='379041' first='Leelee' last='Bell'] came out of the timeout and easily calmed the storm with an easy mid-range jump shot and a fastbreak layup.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Majettes stormed back and took a 21-18 lead at the 7 minute mark after a Bell And-1. The Hawks responded with two quick layups by Katrina Flanagan and a steal and layup for [player_tooltip player_id='555488' first='Lakyn' last='Donnelly']. Minot fought right back with an And-1 from freshman [player_tooltip player_id='1152479' first='Ava' last='Knutson']. Minot went into half leading 40-32.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Hawks started the second half much like the first half, with a couple of early turnovers. [player_tooltip player_id='760534' first='Kinley' last='Bartsch'] capitalized on those turnovers with a sweet eurostep finish in transition. Leelee had another And-1 finish, two free throws, and a drive and kick assist to [player_tooltip player_id='1152175' first='Ariana' last='Rood'] for a three to stretch the lead to 18. Lakyn stopped the bleeding temporarily with two free throws of her own and another steal leading to a layup. She continued her stellar performance by hitting a three, and getting another steal and And-1 to cut the lead to 57-44 with 11:20 remaining in the game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Just when you thought Minot had the game sealed, Horace came out with one more run after a timeout. [player_tooltip player_id='1246817' first='Maya' last='Klabo'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1055443' first='Ava' last='Larson'] hit back-to-back threes to cut the deficit to 7, forcing a Minot timeout at the 8:49 mark. [player_tooltip player_id='555487' first='Jordan' last='Christofferson'] came out of the timeout and hit a midrange jump shot followed by Donnelly going 1 of 2 from the free throw line. Donnelly hit another tough shot to shave the lead to 57-55, the closest the Hawks would get. [player_tooltip player_id='1053416' first='Eve' last='Knutson'] calmly answered with a three pointer, followed by a couple of [player_tooltip player_id='379041' first='Leelee' last='Bell'] layups and free throws. Freshman [player_tooltip player_id='1152503' first='Sisi' last='Stevick'] hit a handful of nice finishes around the rim that helped finish off the Hawks for a final score of 73-61.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Key Takeaways</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='555488' first='Lakyn' last='Donnelly'] was outstanding and finished with 24 points. She played really hard and defended in the full-court nearly the entire game. You could see her leadership on display last night.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='555487' first='Jordan' last='Christofferson'] was outstanding defensively but was held in check on the offensive side of the ball, only scoring 9 points. These girls will be hard to beat when this team is firing on all cylinders.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1055444' first='Ava' last='Niewind'] did as good of a job defending [player_tooltip player_id='379041' first='Leelee' last='Bell'] as possible, meeting and greeting her in the lane. She did a solid job of fighting for positioning by the basket.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Laina Donnely (7th) and Coty Christofferson (8th) both made appearances in this game, indicating that the talent pipeline is strong in Horace.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='379041' first='Leelee' last='Bell'] is an incredible talent. The Oklahoma commit can basically score whenever she wants. She is always able to deliver in big games, finishing last night's contest with 34 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1053416' first='Eve' last='Knutson'] is a steal for Williston State. She hounded Donnelly all night and knocked down critical shots for her team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='760534' first='Kinley' last='Bartsch'] is really good. She is averaging 16 points per game and is really good at finishing around the basket.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1152503' first='Sisi' last='Stevick'] is a stud and will be a multi-year All-WDA selection in the future. She is incredibly athletic and cuts effectively. She has a super quick first-step and can knock down the three.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1152175' first='Ariana' last='Rood'] has stepped up in the starting point guard role with Fricke still not being cleared to play. She is having an excellent season and is another great ball-handler for the Majettes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Final Conclusion</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Minot is my pick to win the WDA and Horace is my pick to win the EDC. I am keeping those two predictions after watching these two teams battle Monday night. They are talented, deep, and athletic. Minot will be very scary once Fricke gets cleared and back on the floor. Hats off to both teams for their willingness to play anyone, anywhere, anytime.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->