Recapping My Weekend (Part One)

I spent my Thursday through Saturday going back and forth from Wisconsin to the Twin Cities. Today, I want to look back and talk about kids who did positive things during the games I watched in Delano, Rice Lake, and the Breakdown Tip-Off Classic.   [player_tooltip player_id='458302' first='Abbie' last='Pietila']   I saw Pietila play a complete game and some of one other this weekend, and I don't think I'd ever sat down and watched her play a full game before. However, I thought she was one of the smoothest lead guards I'd seen this season. There is no wasted movement to what Pietila does on the offensive end of the floor. In the game against Princeton, the Tigers ran away with the game early and didn't look back, but you could tell she was the engine of the Delano offense. That group has a chance to do some big things this year.   [player_tooltip player_id='266988' first='MiKayla' last='Werner']   Watching a kid like Werner become the player she is now over the last two years has been neat. As a sophomore, she came off the bench for a loaded Hortonville team, and in the biggest game of the year, her coach trusted her to play crucial minutes down the stretch against Neenah. Although that game didn't go the Polar Bears' way, you could tell Werner had a role to play in their success in her junior and senior seasons. Over the weekend, St. Thomas commit posted another double-double against a loaded Providence Academy team. Her patience under the basket drew multiple fouls, converted some perimeter jumpers, continued to rebound at a high level, and constantly put pressure on Providence's backline defense.   [player_tooltip player_id='205310' first='Tori' last='Oehrlein']   Everything I hear about Oehrlein's game is about her scoring, and in all fairness, she does a lot of that, but her passing has always been the one aspect of her game that's blown me away. I was talking to a few people about how understated her games feel. I said I'd watch her and think she finishes with about 24 points, six assists, and six rebounds, which is an excellent game, but after the game ends and I see the box, she has 39 points, 12 assists, nine rebounds, and six steals or something to that effect, which happened again this past weekend against Sauk Centre. No matter the situation, score, momentum, or anything else, Oehrlein plays the game the same way every time she steps on the court, and it's why she's become one of the best players in her class across the Midwest.   [player_tooltip player_id='215979' first='Cece' last='McNair']   A senior from the state of Minnesota who'll play their college ball in Wisconsin had an excellent showing against St. Michael-Albertville. The future Milwaukee Panther routinely caused issues for STMA around the basket. McNair is a strong and physical post player with outstanding footwork. Whenever she got the ball within seven feet of the basket, it felt like you might as well put two points on the board because of how easily she would spin off defenders for layups.   [player_tooltip player_id='927238' first='Lexi' last='Champeau']   Another Delano Tiger I loved was [player_tooltip player_id='927238' first='Lexi' last='Champeau']. Although she's a small guard, she's strong and athletic, which makes up for the height she'll give up against some of the top AAA teams in Minnesota. Champeau flies all over the place on the defensive end of the floor and made plenty of solid defensive plays against Princeton, but I also thought she did a good job staying under control and not playing at 100 miles per hour all the time.   [player_tooltip player_id='339107' first='Jordyn' last='Schmittdiel']   White Bear Lake had a tough draw against one of the favorites in AAAA, Minnetonka. However, I thought the future Northern Michigan Wildcat had an excellent game. I thought she did as good of a job as you could ask defensively against one of the best players in the country, and she still showed her ability to make perimeter jumpers on the other end. She'll have an excellent career in Marquette, Michigan.   Lucie Habas   Last season, Rice Lake felt like they were missing a kid who could handle the ball a little and stretch the floor out, which they were when Habas got injured. I loved what she brought to the Warrior offense. She's never rushed, sees the floor well, moves the ball quickly, and the ball never feels like it could get turned over when she has it. There's an element of confidence in her game that you can't quantify. Habas is incredibly important to this Warriors group.   Isabelle Schmidt   The Warriors newcomer had a solid showing against Chippewa Falls last Friday. Schmidt showed the potential she has as a post-player in the Big Rivers. She looked like the most physical player on the floor and finished shots around the basket. I thought she moved well and ran the floor well for a kid who likely doesn't have to, which says a lot about how hard she plays.

I spent my Thursday through Saturday going back and forth from Wisconsin to the Twin Cities. Today, I want to look back and talk about kids who did positive things during the games I watched in Delano, Rice Lake, and the Breakdown Tip-Off Classic.