Hoop Mountain Fall Showcase: '23 Standouts-Part 1

Now let’s take a look at what players from the ’23 class impressed at the Hoop Mountain Fall Showcase.   <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-325939" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/09/IMG_9878-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1631543390-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="325469" first="Samantha" last="Jones"] - Pingree - 5’8’’ - PG Jones had one of the more impressive all-around days of any player at the showcase regardless of class. Three things stood out when I watched Jones: her floor facilitation, court vision, and defense. She does an excellent job controlling the pace of the game and orchestrating the offense. Jones is a pass-first point guard who, instead of hunting for her shot every possession down, looks to get her teammates involved. When she decided to assert herself on offense, I thought Jones took high percentage shots and showed confidence in her long-range shooting. Jones is not the flashiest point guard but one of the most effective that I saw.   [caption id="attachment_325957" align="alignnone" width="300"]<a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/09/IMG_9933-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1631545232.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-325957" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/09/IMG_9933-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1631545232-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> Photo: [player_tooltip player_id="299627" first="Juliette" last="Tarsa"][/caption] [player_tooltip player_id="296783" first="Jessica" last="Grodzicki"] - Cromwell - 5’7’’ - CG I liked watching Grodzecki operate in transition because she does a good job changing speeds when weaving in and out of defenders in the open court. She is at an advantage going downhill full speed because of her athleticism and size at the guard spot. Grodzicki did a good job keeping the defense off balance and being a dynamic playmaker. Also, she has a beautiful jump shot with three point range. Her combination of size, length, and lateral quickness propelled Grodzicki to be one of the better defenders of the day.   <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-325955" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/09/IMG_9901-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1631545170-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="287405" first="Emily" last="Quinn"] - Nashoba - 5’4’’ - PG Don’t mind Quinn’s 5’4’’ frame! She attacks the rim and finishes like a 5’10’’ wing. One trip down, she is blowing by the first line of defense and finishing a lefty layup high off the glass over the rim-protecting big. Later on, I see her ripping middle and hitting a floater in the lane over the big, once again. Quinn stays aggressive and relentlessly penetrates the lane, unintimidated by whatever the defense is throwing at her.   <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-325953" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/09/IMG_9910-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1631545112-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="263815" first="Ana" last="Von Rumohr"] - Rivers - 5’10’’ - SG/SF For the first time since I’ve been covering Von Rumohr, I will not talk about her lethal outside sharpshooting. Instead, I want to emphasize how she is one of the few athletes who consistently communicates on both sides of the ball. In most cases, the defensive anchor of the team or the point guard does the majority of quarterbacking on the court; so it is cool that the loudest player on the court is someone of Von Rumohr’s ilk. Every coach should want Von Rumohr on their team because she sees and calls out everything. Whether it be picks, where the help defense is coming, or directing traffic, no one had a better feel for the game than Von Rumohr.   <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-325949" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/09/IMG_9894-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1631545052-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="267240" first="Colleen" last="Fogarty"] - Fontbonne Academy - 5’7’’ - CG Fogarty showed high energy on defense and was constantly disrupting passing lanes and getting steals. She read the passer’s eyes well and covered a lot of ground on defense to get in position to create turnovers. Fogarty’s shot creation off the bounce in the mid-range area stood out, and she showed various ways to score the basketball. Fogarty is a big-time shooting threat behind the three-point line but sells her shot fakes well enough to get the defense to bite so she can carve her way to the basket.   <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-326337" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/09/IMG_9995-scaled-crop-1559x1024-1631630923-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="273256" first="Melissa" last="Leone"] - Ashland - 6’0’’ - SF/PF Leone is insane! She is listed at 6’0’’ but looks about 6’2’’ when dominating inside. There is no answer defensively for Leone inside. She is too athletic and quick for bigs and too strong and long for wings. She was a cheat code on offense, not just because she owned the block, but Leone can rip three-pointers like it is nothing. She runs the floor well and is deadly in transition because she always gets behind the defense. The list of ’23 efficient inside-out forwards is short, but Leone most definitely is a name that is on it.   <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-325947" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2021/09/IMG_9934-scaled-crop-1707x1121-1631544980-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="287180" first="Emma" last="Shinney"] - Wakefield - 5’7’’ - CG Shinney was one of my favorite players to watch defend because she was one of the few guards who were quick enough to contain a smaller point guard but strong enough to handle bigger wings. Shinney rarely comes out of her stance and cuts off the ball handler’s angles consistently. Her quick feet and upper body strength made it extremely difficult for her assignment to turn the corner on her and make a play. Shinney is a player to continue to keep an eye on this fall and winter because I think she has the potential to become one of the premier on-ball defenders in her class.