The Week That Was No. 9: Turning up the temperature

Even in a topsy turvy climactic environment where nobody is quite sure what weather phenomenon is coming next, we can still count on one thing: Minnesota will probably be cold in January. The other thing that always seems to happen at this time of year is a handful of individual players and teams starting heating up at just the right time. That was certainly the case over the past several days as we entered the business end of the girls high school basketball season. Let's take the temperature, shall we, as we recap the Week That Was #9.   PLAYER OF THE WEEK   [player_tooltip player_id='866106' first='Lola' last='Christianson'] – 2027 guard, Goodhue   Speaking of hot, nobody was sizzling more during Week 9 than the crafty point guard who can hurt you in so many different ways. Consider Christianson's productivity, particularly from beyond the arc:   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>7 threes and 30 points versus Stewartville</li>   <li>7 threes and 36 points versus Pine Island</li>   <li>7 threes and 27 points versus Plainview-Elgin-Millville</li> </ul>   What can you say other than, ‘Wow!'   Prior to yesterday, the last time we watched Goodhue play was at the Granite City Classic. Christianson was sidelined that day – she missed four games in all– as was her twin sister [player_tooltip player_id='1078537' first='Aubrey' last='Christianson'] along with veteran guard [player_tooltip player_id='589279' first='Ava' last='Wallaker'].The Wildcats struggled, falling hard to Duluth Marshal.   Fast forward to last week and Christianson was on a roll. She's now averaging 21 points per game for the season, double her production last winter as a sophomore. With the graduation of Liz Gadient (now at Minnesota State-Mankato), Lola has taken on a much more prominent role. It hasn't hurt that she has grown taller and become stronger. She's never lacked for confidence. Christianson is an explosive scorer who can hurt you from the outside or beat her defender going downhill. She's also an excellent facilitator with nice court vision and a great sense of timing. Did we mention Christianson's tenacious defending and vocal leadership on the floor?   We watched Lola again live on Monday at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Classic at St. Kate's where she once again excelled. Prep Girls Hoops scout Tony Ragulen has a couple of evaluation articles posted from St. Kate's already, including an evaluation of Lola's game. Take a look.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2025/09/K-Berken.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1316431" /></figure>   NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK   [player_tooltip player_id='1275272' first='Kyleigh' last='Berken'] – 2029 guard, Faribault   We haven't seen Faribault live this season but we have caught a couple of games online, including one last week against Belle Plaine. The Falcons haven't been very good for a long time, but last season Faribault showed sings of life with 11 wins. Until they went to Providence Academy on MLK Day, the team was riding a four-game win streak and has a record of 9-7. The play of Berken, in combination with junior forward [player_tooltip player_id='1257459' first='Amira' last='Williams'], has been crucial to their improvement.   Berken does a little bit of everything – from her deep shooting range to her ability to attack off the dribble and put constant pressure on the defense. She is a also a solid defender who plays with a big motor. The 5'8 guard competes with energy and aggressiveness while having composure as a younger player. Kyleigh had a season-high 27 points last week against Rochester John Marshall – she had a 30-point game last year against Winona – and has been consistently scoring in double figures over the past couple of weeks. She's a player to watch in the Class of 2029.   NOTABLE GAMES   Stewartville 85 Benilde-St. Margaret's 76   We were at the Breakdown West Metro Classic on Saturday but you could practically hear the roar from the event in Kasson-Mantorville more than 100 miles away. The excitement was the result of Stewartville's upset of the three-time defending state champion Red Knights.   These are two teams with some high-powered offensive weapons. Stewartville has South Dakota State commit [player_tooltip player_id='458305' first='Audrey' last='Shindelar'], University of St. Thomas commit [player_tooltip player_id='339214' first='Jayci' last='Rath'] and up-and-coming standout [player_tooltip player_id='991231' first='Danika' last='Shindelar']. BSM boasts high-major recruit [player_tooltip player_id='498661' first='Pressley' last='Watkins'] and a cast of potential Division 1 prospects that includes [player_tooltip player_id='659118' first='Alivia' last='Bell'], [player_tooltip player_id='786398' first='Zaida' last='Jenkins'], [player_tooltip player_id='939000' first='Kiera' last='Willis'], [player_tooltip player_id='1280312' first='Jayda' last='Nobles'], Sydney Freidley and [player_tooltip player_id='1124601' first='Rose' last='Kalscheur']. For all that firepower it was the defensive efforts of Stewartville that made the difference.   In talking with Stewartville coach Tanner Teige there's no question his group was pumped up for the win. The rest of Class 3A was certainly intrigued, as well. BSM's only other loss in Minnesota is to top-ranked Orono. Until proven otherwise, in our opinion Benilde is still the team to beat in 3A.   Rosemount 87 Farmington 51   On Monday we watched Rosemount knock off Farmington for their 12th win of the season in one of the most impressive displays of shooting you'll see. The Irish set a new school record for most three-point baskets in a single game with 18. That's not surprising when you consider the kind of shooters in the Rosemount lineup: 2027 standout and University of Minnesota commit [player_tooltip player_id='578467' first='Amisha' last='Ramlall'] (23.3 points per game), her 2028 sister [player_tooltip player_id='716527' first='Ashna' last='Ramlall'] (13.8 ppg), 2027 guard [player_tooltip player_id='630245' first='Gianna' last='Carpentier'] (9.6) along with sophomore forward [player_tooltip player_id='1096421' first='Maren' last='Powell'] (7.4). Then there's three more elite bombers – [player_tooltip player_id='478366' first='Riley' last='Ang'], [player_tooltip player_id='963569' first='Kaylee' last='Dilger'] and [player_tooltip player_id='630243' first='Arshia' last='Ramlall']. With another win over Lakeville South on Friday, Rosemount is now 13-0 with 13 more games to go.   Champlin Park 72 Robbinsdale Armstrong 54   On Friday the Rebels defeated the Falcons, which probably isn't newsworthy on its own. What is notable, however, is the fact that it was Champlin Park's fifth straight victory. After struggling early in the season losing five of their first seven, Champlin Park entered 2026 with a record of 4-7 before reeling off wins over Osseo, Coon Rapids, Jordan, Centennial and Armstrong. That's a marked improvement from recent years as the team has averaged 11 wins a season since before COVID. The squad is led by the one-two combination of senior post [player_tooltip player_id='502599' first='Reese' last='Hagenbart'], who is averaging nearly 20 points per game, and sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='667771' first='Brooke' last='Soash'], a top-30 prospect who puts up over 15 per game.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepgirlshoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2026/01/Acelynn-Hacker-KMS-2000-team-photo.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1671496" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: KMS Athletics, <a href="https://x.com/KMSGBB" target="_blank">X.com</a></figcaption></figure>   MILESTONES   If you've been tracking our weekly updates on elite career scorers this winter then you know that both [player_tooltip player_id='498662' first='Jadyn' last='Kor'] of Pipestone and [player_tooltip player_id='862791' first='Acelynn' last='Hacker'] of Kerkhoven- Murdock-Sunburg both set new standards for most career points in their program. Now the pair of each hit the 2,000 career points mark on the same night – Kor in a victory over Jackson County Central, Hacker in a win versus Eden Valley-Watkins.    [player_tooltip player_id='1145714' first='Katie' last='Olson'] – The 2026 guard from Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton became the school's all-time scoring leader with 1,829 career points. She did it on Tuesday in a win over United South Central, a game in which she had 26 points, 8 rebounds and 9 steals.   1,000-point Scorers   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>[player_tooltip player_id='782560' first='Lauren' last='Grimm'] – 2026 guard from Watertown-Mayer (Jamestown commit)</li>   <li>[player_tooltip player_id='1145715' first='Nevaeh' last='Weimert'] – 2026 guard from Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton.</li>   <li>[player_tooltip player_id='861905' first='Clara' last='Jeddeloh'] – 2026 guard from Lake Crystal-Wellcome-Memorial</li>   <li>[player_tooltip player_id='1230331' first='Brynn' last='Stensrud'] – 2026 guard from Lakeview (Briar Cliff) on Jan. 5.</li> </ul>   Other Milestones   Kinley Soiney of Spring Grove reached 1,000 rebounds for her career after becoming a 1,000-point scorer last year. We missed another one a couple of weeks ago with big post [player_tooltip player_id='515672' first='Aria' last='Garrett'] of Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton also reaching 1,000 boards. She is committed to D2 MSU-Moorhead.   [player_tooltip player_id='759866' first='Samantha' last='Bennett'] of New Life Academy became the all-team leader in three-point baskets for the private school in Woodbury with 234. She still has a season and a half of high school remaining.   WHAT WE WATCHED   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Monday – The aforementioned aerial assault by Rosemount against Farmington.</li>   <li>Tuesday –  Rogers' last-second win over Totino-Grace, Chaska at New Prague</li>   <li>Wednesday – South Dakota's 62-52 win over North Dakota at Vermillion led by the post play of  Benilde-St. Margaret's graduate Patience Williams.</li>   <li>Thursday –  Monticello's dramatic win over Crosby-Ironton, Maple Grove's rather pedestrian victory at Duluth Marshall</li>   <li>Friday – We saw UM-Duluth's dramatic comeback fall short in Mankato as the Mavericks held on to win. It was former Eden Prairie standout Myra Moorjani who led the comeback from 18 down after three quarters.</li>   <li>Saturday – Three games at the West Metro Classic in Waconia</li> </ul>   COMING UP   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Monday – We were at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Classic at St. Kate's</li>   <li>Tuesday – Crosby-Ironton as [player_tooltip player_id='205310' first='Tori' last='Oehrlein'] attempts to become the state's all-time scoring leader.</li>   <li>Wednesday – St. Thomas vs North Dakota State, which last week broke South Dakota State's 67-game Summit League winning streak.</li>   <li>Thursday – Pelican Rapids at Breckenridge, Eastview at Prior Lake</li>   <li>Friday – Wayzata at Hopkins, Chanhassen at Orono, Lakeville North at Lakeville South</li>   <li>Saturday – Benilde-St. Margaret's at Cretin-Derham Hall, Hill-Murray at Marshall</li> </ul>

Even in a topsy turvy climactic environment where nobody is quite sure what weather phenomenon is coming next, we can still count on one thing: Minnesota will probably be cold in January. The other thing that always seems to happen at this time of year is a handful of individual players and teams starting heating up at just the right time. That was certainly the case over the past several days as we entered the business end of the girls high school basketball season. Let's take the temperature, shall we, as we recap the Week That Was #9.