Mid-Town YWCA Women's College Basketball Summer League Results For Wednesday 7-27-11

The Mid-Town YWCA Women's College Basketball Summer League for 2011 had the first round of the playoffs begin last night and here's what I was able to catch:

5:00 P.M. Games

Rams - 56
Augsburg - 36

UW-Eau Claire - 59
Hamline/St. Kate's/Bethany - 32

Anoka-Ramsey - 44
Northwestern - 39


5:55 P.M. Games

GAC Black - 52
CSB - 49

GAC Gold - 52
UST Freshmen - 46

GAC Alumni - 35
UW-Superior - 30


6:50 P.M. Games

UW-River Falls #1 - 32
Knight Train - 27

Northern St. - 57
Rams - 46

UW- Eau Claire - 61
SMU - 53  OT


7:45 P.M. Games

Anoka-Ramsey Gold - 50
GAC Black - 45  OT

Did not get the scores of the other two 7:45 games but Team Gray advanced with a victory over the GAC Gold squad and Sweet Sensation did likewise with a victory over Anoka-Ramsey.  The 8:40 games had the Team Bundle, Minnesota State, and and Concordia St. Paul teams with sizable halftime leads over their opponents.

Some excellent games last night to be sure; the UW-Eau Claire team staved off defeat as they had to go to an extra OT session to hold off a stubborn SMU team.  The 5:55 games were a Gustavus sweep but the GAC Black and GAC Alumni teams had to hold on for dear life coming down the stretch.  The GAC Alumni team started out hot; leading by as much as 19-2 in the early going and held a seemingly safe lead in the second half.     But the UW-Superior team to their credit made a furious late comeback that fell just short in the end.  The game of the night, though, had to be the clash in the 7:45 slot between the GAC Black squad and the Anoka-Ramsey Gold team.  WHAT a game this was to watch.  Some great individual match-ups that you don't otherwise get to see and late game drama as well.  The Anoka-Ramsey Gold team looked to have the game wrapped up late but GAC's Molly Geske buried a long "3" to force the extra session where the Anoka-Ramsey Gold squad led by Marie Hanson and Mallory Cramer was finally able to pull out the win. 

Metro Stars Reiter vs All Iowa Attack Jensen 7-24-11

2011 NORTH TARTAN MELTDOWN

HOPKINS H.S.

7-24-11  11:30 A.M.

METRO STARS REITER vs ALL IOWA ATTACK JENSEN

1^st Half

Was situated and ready to go for this late-morning tilt between one of the local favorites in town; the Metro Stars Reiter team and the All Iowa Attack Jensen team which is comprised of players from Iowa between their sophomore and junior years.  This one promised to be a contrast in styles as Metro Stars Reiter generally likes to get it down low to one of their two big post players while the AIAJ team likes to get out and run and gun and put up the “3”.

MSR would hold the advantage in the early going of this contest although AIAJ was able to keep things fairly tight.  After AnnMarie Healy got MSR on the scoreboard first at the 15:01 mark AIAJ’s Shaya Kellogg out of Ames buried a “3” at the 14:48 mark for a 3-2 AIAJ lead.  MSR would come back to take the advantage and was able to forge a 9-5 lead at the 11:26 mark on Hannah Schonhardt’s basket down low.  But AIAJ would come right back and tie it up at 9-all by the 9:20 mark when Madison Weekly from Benton Community drained a “3”. 

This one would remain pretty close over the course of the next few minutes.  MSR’s Taylor Finley from Providence Academy showed off her three-point shooting skills at the 8:38 mark to make it a 12-9 game in favor of MSR but AIAJ kept hanging in there despite the size disadvantage.  With MSR clinging to a 16-13 lead, AIAJ’s Jadda Buckley out of Mason City swished a “3” to knot things up again at 16-all at the 5:10 mark.  But on the ensuing possession, MSR finally began to open up some distance between themselves and their opponent.  Jackie Johnson let loose with a “3” from the top at the 4:58 mark and Britney Scherbert followed suit at the 3:19 mark.  Then MSR’s Alexis Foley out of White Bear Lake did her share of damage coming down the home stretch of the first half; scoring off the glass with 1:09 left and finishing up a transition opportunity with just :40 left in the first half which enabled MSR to take a 26-18 lead going into the break.

2^nd Half

The run that MSR made late in the first half seemed to break the spirit somewhat  of the AIAJ team as MSR kept on rolling to begin the second half.  Johnson scored inside and was fouled in the process and the obligatory freebie gave MSR a 29-18 lead which essentially set the tone for the rest of the game.  Healy buried a “3” of her own at the 13:09 mark as MSR pushed the lead to 32-18.  AIAJ would try to answer this MSR jolt with a mini-run of their own as Kellogg sank one freebie after being fouled and Mallory Boyle out of North Mahaska got a lay-up at the 11:54 mark.  Weekly would knock down a “3” at the 7:50 mark and an AIAJ transition play followed by a free throw enabled AIAJ to creep back into things as they whittled the MSR advantage to a 34-28 lead.  But from that point on MSR stepped on the gas and was able to get the cushion they needed to propel them into the championship game later on that afternoon.  Foley; who thrives on doing the dirty work down low, snared a rebound and got a putback at the 5:21 mark and then Healy made a beautiful move along the baseline and finished at the 4:44 mark .  Two Scherbert freebies and a lay-up by Schonhardt made it a 42-30 game.  Johnson’s bucket down low at the 2:39 mark helped put the finishing touches on a 52-33 MSR victory.  The east end scoreboard, unfortunately, went on the blink right around the 2:00 minute mark so I was forced to keep track of things on paper the rest of the way.

The victory gave the MSR team a berth in the Championship Game later that day against the tournament favorites – the North Tartan Nike Elite team.  But this MSR team, when it’s clicking on all cylinders, is tough to beat.   

All Iowa Attack Mauro vs Kingdom Hoops 7-24-11

2011 NORTH TARTAN MELTDOWN

HOPKINS H.S.

7-24-11  10:15 A.M.

ALL IOWA ATTACK MAURO vs KINGDOM HOOPS

1^st Half

After getting a bowl of Lucky Charms and a cold Pepsi into me for Sunday breakfast I got myself settled in at Hopkins H.S. for the mid-morning tilt between the All Iowa Attack Mauro team and Kingdom Hoops Elite based out of Ankeny.  This looked to be an interesting game and I was thinking that this might be a day where the All Iowa Attack could really shine. 

Initially, All Iowa Attack started well enough.  McKenzie Piper out of Iowa City West made a free throw after being fouled at the 15:42 mark and Jessie Pauley from OABCIG (her hometown is Ida Grove if that helps) drained a “3” a few seconds later to give Randy Mauro’s team a quick 4-0 lead.  But, like yesterday, AIAM promptly went flatter than my groundstrokes (which is saying something because I hit the ball flat a la Jimmy Connors) and simply couldn’t get much going offensively.  Kingdom Hoops Elite crawled right back into things as Maddie Manning scored at the 14:31 mark and then KHE took the lead at the 13:33 mark when Maddie Muhlenbruck drained a “3”.  AIAM then decided it was time to wake up on this beautiful Sunday morning after all as Pauley hit her second “3” at the 12:46 mark.  AIAM was able to build an 11-8 lead thanks to post Alyssa Johnson’s work inside.

But right back came Kingdom Hoops Elite.  Sierra Michelis scored at the 9:18 mark and Courtney Owens scored at the 8:15 mark to forge a 12-11 Kingdom Hoops Elite lead.  Now it was AIAM’s turn to respond.  Morgan Mauro swished a “3” at the 5:52 mark and a 14-12 AIAM lead.  Johnson then got inside at the 4:06 mark to score and was fouled in the process.  Her two freebies made it 16-12 AIAM.  KHE was able to tie the score at 16-all thanks to both Manning and Michelis but then it was Taylor Shull’s turn to get her scoring groove going.  A layup at the 2:19 mark got AIAM to 20-16 and Morgan Vandersloot scored with just :48 left on the clock to provide a bit of a cushion at 22-16 going into the halftime break.  Maybe this was the spark that AIAM needed to open up the second half. 

2^nd Half

Unfortunately, though, for AIAM, their hopes of trying to build a lead and coast the rest of the way to ultimate victory went straight to Kingdom Come.  KHE proceeded to go on an unbelievable 22-0 run to start the second half and it was largely in part due to Maddie Manning being on fire after the break – simply unstoppable at times.  It was a trip to – well – hell for AIAM as they proceeded to not only go stone cold from the outside but couldn’t get the ball into Johnson inside either.  Manning started the deluge at the 14:47 mark with a “3” and KHE tied it up at 22-all at the 14:30 mark.  KHE took the lead for good at the 13:44 mark when Manning drained a graceful-looking “3”.  Manning would stick another dagger into AIAM’s heart at the 11:15 mark with another trey and then finished off a transition opportunity at the 10:44 mark.  At 9:07, Manning scored a lay-up and was fouled in the process and the ensuing freebie made it 38-22.  KHE got one more score with a steal and lay-up before AIAM finally put a halt to the 22-doughnut whiplashing and scored at the 8:40 mark when Johnson finally got inside and finished.  AIAM would make a brief run and cut the KHE lead to 42-29 but they would never get any closer as KHE was able to eat enough clock and get enough scores to earn a comfortable 49-33 victory.  It was a puzzling downward spiral for the AIAM team in this game; particularly when things looked so promising for them at halftime.  But as Taylor Shull’s mother told me towards the end, this is a team that has its ups and downs and the downs are eerily familiar to a submarine dive.

Metro Stars Reiter vs Cornhusker Shooting Stars 7-23-11

2011 NORTH TARTAN MELTDOWN

HOPKINS H.S.

7-23-11  7:30 P.M.

METRO STARS REITER vs CORNHUSKER SHOOTING STARS

1^st Half

Got in my seat and settled in at the 13:12 mark with the score tied at 4-all in this game.  This was a close, competitive first half.  Metro Stars Reiter standout Alexis Foley of White Bear Lake made a strong move inside (one of her specialties) and finished to give her team a 6-4 edge.  But the Cornhusker Shooting quickly answered with a “3” and a 7-6 lead.  They increased that lead to 9-6 when Brooke Panzer knocked down a jumper at the 11:06 mark but Metro Stars Reiter was able to tie things up at 9-all a bit later thanks to both Jackie Johnson and Alyssa Eschrich and their free throw shooting abilities.

Things would be nip and tuck for a bit but at the 6:08 mark the Metro Stars Reiter team made their move.  Britney Scherber knocked down a jumper for a 13-11 lead and canned two freebies a bit later from the charity stripe.  Then Katybeth Biewen got into the act at the 3:50 mark when she put down a jumper of her own for a 17-11 lead.  Eschrich put down a jumper of her own with 2:07 left and then Biewen struck from behind the arc with 1:20 left and all of a sudden the Metro Stars lead had ballooned to 22-11 before the Cornhusker Shooting Stars knew what hit them.  And the Metro Stars Reiter team was not done yet.  Taylor Finley drained a “3” with :44 left and then Biewen slithered her slender frame inside and scored at the buzzer for a commanding 27-11 halftime lead.

2^nd Half

As bad as things went down the stretch for the Cornhusker Shooting Stars in the first half.  It only got worse in the second half.  Metro Stars Reiter’s AnnMarie Healy continued the slaughter as she scored off the glass at the 15:22 mark.  Then Biewen in sly fashion got inside again and finished at the 13:44 mark for a 31-11 cushion.  Foley finished off a breathtaking transition sequence at the 11:49 mark and then Scherber knocked down two charity stripe shots after she was fouled at the 11:00 mark.  FINALLY, at the 10:26 mark, the Cornhusker Shooting Stars were able to end the God-forsaken drought when Rachel Jelden was fouled going to the hole and canned two free throws.  This ended a 27-0 onslaught by the Metro Stars Reiter team that began with Scherber’s score at the 6:08 mark.  Running time was in effect at the 6:00 minute mark and the Metro Stars Reiter team was able to coast to an easy 48-19 win to end the day for them on a good note.  

Metro Stars Reiter vs Wisconsin Playground Elite 7-23-11

2011 NORTH TARTAN MELTDOWN

HOPKINS H.S.

7-23-11  5:20 P.M.

METRO STARS REITER vs WISCONSIN PLAYGROUND ELITE

1^ST Half

This was another intriguing matchup featuring one of the local AAU teams here in the Twin Cities; Metro Stars Reiter going up against a team I had not seen play yet – the Wisconsin Playground Elite team based out of Milwaukee.  This game would be a contrast of styles; the run and gun style of the Wisconsin team and the more deliberate, power-oriented Metro Stars team coached by former Blaine coach Steve Reiter and well- assisted by current Minnesota State (Mankato) player Sarah Wiens; a former Burnsville standout.

Wisconsin Playground Elite would show off their speed and athleticism early on as Terri Bender grabbed the opening tip and raced to the basket to get a quick lay-up and a 2-0 lead.  That lead increased to 5-0 when Dilonna Johnson drained a “3”at the 15:33 mark.  The Metro Stars team got on the scoreboard when Jackie Johnson out of state runner-up Eden Prairie was able to score inside and then Katybeth Biewen from Edina sliced Wisconsin’s lead to 5-4 with her lay-up at the 14:47 mark.  Johnson then gave Metro Stars a brief 6-5 lead when she scored off the glass at the 13:06 mark but then it was the Wisconsin Playground Elite’s turn to turn up the heat  as they used their speed and athleticism to help ignite an 11-2 run over the next few minutes that gave them a 16-8 run.  Wisconsin Playground Elite then upped things to 20-10 at the 8:56 mark on Eileen Van Horn’s lay-up at the 8:56 mark before Metro Stars Reiter was finally able to stop some of the bleeding.  Alexis Foley hit one “3” at the 8:36 mark and then another one at the 7:30 mark that cut the Wisconsin Playground Elite lead in half. 

Wisconsin Playground Elite was able to mount another charge soon thereafter that helped them to forge an eleven point lead by the 6:32 mark but again the Metro Stars team would not buckle.  Britney Scherber scored a lay-up with 5:13 left and then AnnMarie Healy  knocked down a shot of the glass with 4:07 left and the Wisconsin Playground Elite team’s lead was now only 28-21.  The Metro Stars kept chipping away at the Wisconsin Playground Elite team but perhaps, even more important was that Steve Reiter had his team go to a zone defense that effectively choked off the middle and really started to make things miserable for the Wisconsin Playground Elite team as they could not only get it down low to their big post but now they were forcing errant “3”s from behind the arc that would eventually catch up with them.     Still, the Wisconsin team managed to hold a lead coming down the stretch of the first half and held the advantage at the half 31-27.

2^nd Half

What advantage the Wisconsin Playground Elite team had in the first half evaporated in the second half.  Clogged up inside with the 2-3 zone defense the Metro Stars Reiter team employed on defense the Wisconsin Playground Elite team slowly wobbled into disaster.  The game was tied at 33-all when Scherber connected with a jumper at the 12:15 mark and Metro Stars Reiter took the lead for good at the 9:53 mark when Hannah Schonhardt put down two freebies.  The height and rebounding advantage of Metro Stars Reiter also took its toll on Wisconsin Playground Elite as the second half progressed.  Healy snared a rebound and got a bucket on a putback and Johnson was able to score as well at the 6:19 mark.  Johnson had another score at the 5:42 mark and then also knocked down an unlikely “3” with 5:01 left as Metro Stars Reiter enjoyed its biggest lead at 44-36.

But Wisconsin Playground Elite had one more run left in them to make this one a soul-tugger coming down the stretch.  Dilonna Johnson hit a “3” with 4:47 left  and then Mehryn Kraker who may be the best athlete on the team struck from behind the arc with her own “3” with 3:27 left that cut the Metro Stars Reiter lead to just 44-43.  Wisconsin Playground Elite actually grabbed the lead at the 2:16 mark and gave Steve Reiter and Sarah Weins just cause to hit the panic button but the Metro Stars Reiter team calmly responded with some key buckets and free throws.  Schonhardt’s freebie with just 2:04 left knotted things up at 45.  Despite another Kraker freebie that gave the Wisconsin Playground Elite team one more lead at 46-45 with just 1:16 left, it was then Biewen and Foley who came to the rescue for Metro Stars Reiter with just under a minute – Biewen’s improbable lay-up in traffic with :41 left and then Foley doing the same with only :04 left – that earned Metro Stars Reiter a hard-fought 49-46 win.

All Iowa Attack Mauro vs Team Iowa 7-23-11

2011 NORTH TARTAN MELTDOWN

HOPKINS H.S.

7-23-11

4:10 P.M.

ALL IOWA ATTACK MAURO vs TEAM IOWA

1^st Half

Was looking forward to covering the All Iowa Attack team in this tournament as this was the first time I’ve been able to watch them since their only other visit this year to the Twin Cities back in May.  While the All Iowa Attack faces looked familiar to me, their opponent, Team Iowa, was not a team I was familiar with at all and, on paper anyway, this was a game that All Iowa Attack should have won.  As ESPN’s Chris Berman would say, “That’s why they play the games.”

Not terribly surprisingly this game was close from the outset with All Iowa Attack Mauro holding a slim advantage.  Alyssa Johnson started things off for AIAM by scoring inside but that was quickly countered by Team Iowa’s Liz Skotowski’s “3” at the 14:23 mark.  With AIAM clinging to an 8-7 lead they finally made a move to open a little distance between themselves and their opponent.  A “3” at the 12:10 mark made it 11-7 and then Taylor Shull (best player on AIAM team, IMHO) knocked down a “3” at the 7:13 mark.  Then Johnson knocked down a “3” off the glass at the 6:50 mark and AIAM had some breathing room with a 17-9 lead. 

But Team Iowa would not fade into the night in this one.  Carly Pagel’s bucket at the 6:10 mark got the underdogs going again.  Courtney Strait was able to knock down two freebies from the charity stripe as well a bit later.  Trailing 19-14 at the 3:46 mark, Team Iowa’s #34 knocked down a “3” at the 2:54 mark that cut AIAM’s lead to a scant two points.  Still another three by Team Iowa’s #34 gave it it’s first lead  since the 14:23 mark.  The lead was short-lived, however, as AIAM’s Morgan Mauro drained a “3” of her own with 1:35 left.  Team Iowa would briefly regain the lead thanks to Pagel’s free throw with a little over a minute left but Shull was able to knock down a turnaround jumper with just under a minute left in the first half and AIAM held a 24-21 halftime lead. 

But Team Iowa made it clear early on in the second half that they were in this thing to win it.  Strait muscled her way inside at the 15:34 mark to score and was fouled in the process.  Her ensuing freebie tied things up again at 24-all.  Still, AIAM was not about to be intimidated by the challenge either.  McKenzie Piper drained a “3” to put the AIAM team back in front at the 15:11 mark.  AIAM would maintain this slim, slim advantage over the course of the next few minutes before Team Iowa was able to knot things up again at 31 all at the 7:52 mark and then went ahead on Alexis Lozano-Dobbs’ jumper with 5:58 left.

The lead would bob back and forth for a bit but it looked as if AIAM had finally regained control of this game with just 2:22 left when Mauro canned a “3” from the top and gave her team a 37-35 lead.  Unfortunately for AIAM, it would be the last lead they would enjoy in this contest.  Team Iowa’s Madison Baier scored inside at exactly the 2:00 minute mark to tie things up again at 37-all.  Then, with just :43 left on the clock Team Iowa’s Alyssa Jones drained a “3” that gave her team the lead for good at 40-37.  Team Iowa applied some pressure defense as well and it caused a costly, costly double-dribble error on AIAM’s Tember Schechinger.  Team Iowa was able to get the necessary trips to the charity stripe to salt things away and, in the end, came up with a somewhat improbable 43-39 victory.  

Mid-Town YWCA Women's College Basketball Summer League Results For Wednesday 7-20-11

5:00 P.M. Games

Team Gray - 63
UW-River Falls #2 - 59

Hamline - 59
SMU - 58  OT


5:55 P.M. Games

Team Bundle - 41
Hamline/St. Kate's/Bethany - 28

Old Tymers - 52
Augsburg - 27


6:50 P.M. Games

Concordia St. Paul - 69
UW-Eau Claire - 49

St. Olaf - 50
GAC Black - 26

Anoka-Ramsey - 54
GAC Gold - 43


7:45 Games

UST - 62
Rams - 41

UM-Crookston - 60
Anoka-Ramsey Gold - 47

GAC Gold - 65
UST Freshmen - 46


A very exciting game in the 5:00 P.M. slot as SMU saw their sizable lead in the first half gradually dwindle as a feisty Hamline squad had to come back from the brink of defeat twice and scored a lay-up at the buzzer to win it in overtime.  UST looks to me like the team to beat in the MIAC right now but am becoming more and more impressed with St. Olaf with each outing this summer.  They have, IMHO, the best PG in the conference in Mackenzie Wolter and perhaps one of the top two 1-2 punch tandems down low in Erin Haglund and Elise Raney.  Also, Kirstee Rotty and Eileen O'Donoghue compliment this group nicely.  St. Olaf could make a big statement this coming season.  

Mid-Town YWCA Women's College Basketball Summer League Results For Wednesday 7-13-11

5:00 P.M. Games

UST - 44
GAC Gold - 35

UM-Crookston - 62
GAC Black - 58


5:55 P.M. Games

Anoka-Ramsey Gold - 60
SMU - 37

SCSU - 64
UW-Eau Claire - 45

UST - 49
Hamline/St. Kate's/Bethany - 27


6:50 P.M. Games

Sweet Sensation - 67
GAC Alumni - 43

Northern St. - 57
UW-River Falls #1 - 44

Knight Train - 41
Augsburg - 31


7:45 P.M. Games

Concordia St. Paul - 49
Anoka-Ramsey - 46

Rams - 38
CSB - 36

Old Tymers - 61
Team Bundle - 58


Some very good, entertaining games again on this evening.  Both GAC teams in the early games were close but were unable to get over the hump.  Two VERY entertaining games in the 7:45 tilts as both Concordia St. Paul and the Anoka-Ramsey alumni team (Rams) had to hang on for dear life.  The Anoka-Ramsey alumni team DID get a little help from recent ARCC grad Mallory Cramer that probably helped some.  An unusual occurence happened right around 8:30 as the 7:45 games were in the home stretch.  I had just gone out to my car to retrieve my jacket (it was cold in there) and came back inside the building when the fire alarms had gone off which resulted in everybody having to vacate the facility for a good 10-15 minutes before order was restored.  I did get to watch the first half of the (delayed) 8:40 P.M. game between Winona State and St. Olaf and the Warriors were up 23-10 at the break.   

Mid-Town YWCA Women's College Basketball Summer League Results For Wednesday 7-6-11

5:00 P.M. Games

Sweet Sensation - 56
UW-River Falls #1 - 40

UW-Eau Claire - 55
GAC Alumni - 49


5:55 P.M. Games

Old Tymers - 57
UW-River Falls #2 - 32

Team Bundle - 25
Knight Train - 20

St. Olaf - 51
Augsburg - 35


6:50 P.M. Games

GAC Gold - 46
CSB - 40

UST - 64
Concordia St. Paul - 34

Team Gray/Augsburg - 42
Northwestern - 21


7:45 P.M. Games

Anoka-Ramsey Gold - 48
Hamline - 34

UM-Crookston - 71
Hamline/St. Kate's/Bethany - 34


The two 7:45 games were both pretty much bloodbaths but the real fun one to watch on this evening was the 5:00 P.M. game between the GAC Alumni and UW-Eau Claire.  The Gustie alumni missed several lay-ups on fast break opportunities that cost them in the end.  The game between Team Bundle and Knight Train was not one for offensive purists as the Team Bundle squad held a 7-6 lead at the half.  Former Carleton Knight Linnea Engel ('04) admitted afterward it was definitely not a great shooting event for either squad.  UST was incredibly impressive on this night as they thrashed Concordia St. Paul.  Three-point shooting queen Ali Johnson was lighting it up from behind the arc in this one.  St. Olaf continues to impress as well and I have to think that they'll be a factor this next season. 

I headed out midway through the 8:40 P.M. games.  In one game SMU was leading the GAC Black squad 31-14 behind hot-shooting Emily DeWitt and her pal, former CSB player Joelle Waytashek.  In the other game, St. Cloud St. was up on the Anoka-Ramsey team 26-9 at the half.