Girls basketball: Another challenge for New London-Spicer Wildcats at state
Mar. 14—MINNEAPOLIS — First and foremost, New London-Spicer girls basketball coach Mike Dreier is thankful that his Wildcats have made it to the state Class AA tournament.
It's always a goal for NLS, which makes its 20th state appearance since 1985 at 8 p.m. Wednesday at Williams Arena. The fourth-seeded Wildcats (28-1) play fifth-seeded Minnehaha Academy (22-7) in the Class AA quarterfinals.
"It's an awesome feeling to be there," Dreier said. "We have a group of kids who have worked really hard to get to this point."
Now, the challenge is how to deal with a talented Red Hawks squad that has been a frequent state entrant as well. Minnehaha Academy makes its 16th state appearance since 2001. In that run, the Redhawks have won state championships in 2010 and '19. They've earned their third straight state berth and ninth in 10 years.
Dreier believes Minnehaha Academy has outstanding talent, led by Addison Mack. The 5-foot-11 sophomore guard averages 29.9 points per game. Another top Redhawk is Angel Hill, a 5-11 junior forward who averages 14.9 ppg. Sinae Hill, her sister, is a 5-8 freshman guard who averages 7.2 ppg.
Amina Allen, 5-9 sophomore, averages 10.1 ppg and Ava Cupito, a 5-9 eighth-grader, scores 9.8 ppg.
Like NLS, the Redhawks aren't overall tall, but are atheltic. Dreier is concerned about Angel Hill's 3-point shooting and trying to contain Mack.
"We have to play strong defense and we have to rebound the ball," Dreier said. "And, hopefully, someone will be able to shoot it well, too."
NLS has won state titles in '97 and '02. The Wildcats were state runner-ups in '91, '92, '93, '94, '01 and '16. They're back at state for the third time in four years after missing last season.
They are led by guards Jaden Coahran (5-5, Sr.), Avery Rich (5-6, Sr.) and Dakota Rich (5-8, So.) and forwards Ellary Peterson (5-9, Sr.) and Delaney Hanson (5-9, Jr.).
NLS has a deep bench that includes Ayla Caskey (5-6, Fr.), Ava Carlson (5-10, So.), Kaylee Thorson (5-9, Sr.), Emma Revier (5-7, So.) and Katelynn Tortorella (6-1, Sr.).
"Hopefully, we can make a strong showing and feel good about ourselves," Dreier said. "I think we're thankful to be there."
Quarterfinals Wednesday
* Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial (29-1) vs. No. 1 Providence Academy (27-2), 6 p.m. at Williams Arena
* No. 5 Minnehaha Academy (22-7) vs. No. 4 New London-Spicer (28-1), 8 p.m. at Williams Arena
* Crosby-Ironton (23-7) vs. No. 2 Goodhue (27-3), 6 p.m. at Maturi Pavilion
* Perham (26-3) vs. No. 3 Albany (28-1), 8 p.m. at Maturi Pavilion
Consolation semifinals Thursday
(at Concordia-St. Paul)
* Lake Crystal-WM/Providence loser vs. Minnehaha/NLS loser, 6 p.m.
* CI/Goodhue loser vs. Perham/Albany loser, 8 p.m.
Semifinals Friday
(At Williams Arena)
* Lake Crystal-WM/Providence winner vs. Minnehaha/NLS winner, 6 p.m.
* CI/Goodhue winner vs. Perham/Albany winner, 8 p.m.
Consolation final Friday
2 p.m. at Concordia-St. Paul
Third-place game Saturday
Noon at Concordia-St. Paul
Championship Saturday
2 p.m. at Williams Arena
