Five Returning Defensive Leaders From The 1A Class

Here we have five defensive leaders from the 1A Class returning from last season to make their mark once again in anyway that they can out on the Varsity floor. If you are looking for some hoopers that EAT on defense, while being really solid overall competitors, this is a group to know!   Thanks for tuning in and enjoy!    Keagan Eischeid registered 67 total blocks last Winter as a Sophomore for IKM-Manning High School, ranking her within the Top Five out the 1A Class in total Blocks on the year. When you see that number and read that Eischeid is a 6'0 PF, it makes a lot of sense. She is her team's source in the middle on both ends. She definitely stands out on defense as being someone to note but she can also score at a high rate and rebound as well. This Winter as a Junior Eischeid will have a chance to lead her team once again in multiple positive statistical categories. She just needs to stay locked in with the eyes on the prize. She has all the weapons and intangibles to make a difference every time she laces up her kicks so now we just need to see it happen.     I will be concerned and somewhat confused if Taryn Petersen doesn't find herself on a college roster following this Winter season. I'm not sure if Petersen has even thought about this possibility yet but she has been one of the best producers throughout the 1A Class for three years now. It seems like every year when we review the stats from the following season, she is in the Top Five of every positive statistical category. To give you an example - last season Petersen recorded 147 Steals in 24 games, making that an average of about 6.1 SPG throughout the year. That would be a number that would compete for the top spot in the state, no matter of Grade level or Class. If you really think about it, anyone who is grabbing 6 SPG has an act for getting their hands on the ball. They must play with active feet and quick reaction times, along with having a great for eye for timing certain moments so that she can strike and make something happen. All in all, we will hear this name multiple times this Winter once again. From there, who knows where she might end up.     Ruby Phelps comes into this article for a different reason than Eischeid. Phelps is listed here because of her ability to take charges on the defensive end. Last season as a Junior she recored 18 Charges throughout her team's 22 games, placing her second in the 1A Class overall. The crazier part about this stat is the player that was ranked #1 with 19 Charges was her Phelps own teammate, who has graduated since. It's always tough when team's know how and when to take a charge. It makes the offense change how they view their strategy and how they might want to attack. If Phelps can do this again for her Senior year, I will be thoroughly impressed. There is a lot of the time where we see prospects who won't take ONE Charge during their season, never mind 18. This shows dedicated, heart, and a willingness to sacrifice your body for the sake of the team. Something everyone can respect from the outside looking in.     This is the second time we have covered Corinne Anderson in as many weeks but for good reason. Anderson was one of the Top Rebounding forces out of the 1A Class last season and she especially stood out on the defensive side as someone that knows how to clean up the glass on a consistent basis. It helps that Anderson mainly sticks by the blocks on both ends but she still does a great job of making her presence known. It's fair to say that when an opposing team is creating a game-plan against Heartland Christian, the top person they need to watch out for is Anderson or else she will have 20/20 by halftime. She is coming off of a successful AAU season on the road with her Western Iowa Express AAU program and she is looking to build off of that success throughout the next fews months. As long as she works on her weaknesses leading up to the season, she should put together another season to remember.     Emma Zabel is another big-time Blocking prospect that opposing defenses need to account for whenever they are going into a matchup with her. This is a true 6'1 C, that understands what her role is and where she stands out the most. She protects the lane like her life depends on it, she communicates well with those moving around her, and she isn't afraid to get physical when it's called for. Zabel holds a current D2 offer with more interest coming in from all across the Midwest. If she puts together another big time Winter season, those offers should continue to float in. That is if she is still uncommitted at that point. By that time, who knows.

Here we have five defensive leaders from the 1A Class returning from last season to make their mark once again in anyway that they can out on the Varsity floor. If you are looking for some hoopers that EAT on defense, while being really solid overall competitors, this is a group to know!