My apologies for not getting this in sooner. First, I didn't get to get to more practices the way I would have liked to - first and foremost because of lingering concerns with COVID-19 even though I am fully vaccinated. Second, just a lot going on my end right now with work as there's several nights where I'm staying an hour or more later than I normally would just to keep my head above water with my workload. Throw in the pending merger between my employer, Canadian Pacific, with the Kansas City Southern along with the ever-shifting fortunes of my Los Angeles Rams and UCLA Bruins so now I've got to find a way to juggle the MIAC Women's Hoops scene with it all (along with all the D2 and Girl's HS stuff that I like as well). Somehow, I'll find a way - I think. Nevertheless, I wanted to break out my crystal ball and peer into the upcoming season and unveil my predictions for the 2021-22 season.
First, I want to just say how incredibly thankful I am that we're still slated to have a full and "normal" season. I just hope it stays that way.
Without further adieu, here we go:
Title Contenders
1. Bethel
2. Concordia
I wasn't prepared to go this particular route a mere month ago but given some of the misfortunes of a certain program down in St. Peter, I think this is the only logical way to go now. Bethel features a very talented and a very experienced roster that still very likely remembers too well that 1st round NCAA Tournament loss in 2020 to Bethany Lutheran. Fifth-year seniors Makenna Pearson and Bella Williams are back and ready to wreak havoc on the defensive end bolstering this squad is senior Megan Boegel and willowy junior Kat Brown-Erdal. There's also a lot of good, young talent as well on this roster; particularly freshman Courtney Nuest out of Becker who will almost certainly be a standout player down the road...... The other team that I wasn't quite prepared to move into this spot is Concordia and although I realize that they're probably a longshot in the title race, I think you still at least have to involve them in the discussion. We saw this squad take some big steps last year in a truncated season that was highlighted by a home win over Bethel. The Cobbers will be led by seniors Autumn Thompson, Vanessa Kedl, Mary Sem and junior Emily Beseman. Despite the fact that they dropped their opener to UM-Morris a week ago, I can kind of forgive that and I think you should too. This Cobber team is probably one of the best teams you've never heard about and it's really not their fault that they haven't yet been able to get themselves the recognition they deserve. This is a team you'll want to keep your eye on. I guarantee it.
Solid Playoff Contenders
3. GAC
4. CSB
After watching them this last summer at the Midtown YWCA Women's College Summer League, I just thought to myself at the time that there's simply no one who could touch GAC in the upcoming season. But some very unfunny things happened to the Gusties once the season approached: (1) Both Paige Richert and Caitlin Rohrman opted out of playing this season for different reasons and (2) sophomore guard Riley Queensland; who figured to be a prominent scorer for the Gusties this season, tore her ACL on the third day of practice. Throw in a concussion and a few other bumps and bruises on the rest of the team and it's easy to see why the high hopes coming into this season just aren't as high anymore. Fortunately, the Gusties aren't completely depleted of talent. Junior sharpshooter Maddy Rice and fellow junior Anna Sanders will be a 1-2 punch that GAC will have to rely on heavily this time around. It looks as if freshman Morgan Kelly will likely fall into the forward/post spot down low although, presumably anyway, 6'5" junior Betsy Schoenrock is healthy now and ready to provide some quality minutes down low as well. Given GAC's inability to once, just once, win an outright MIAC title over the last 20 years or so makes you wonder sometime if this program is cursed although I'm not aware that anyone has tried to bring a billy goat into Lund Arena yet. Certainly I haven't anyway.... Meanwhile, up in St. Joe, all one has to do is look at the roster and you'll probably come away with the notion that youth must be served. The CSB roster is peppered with freshmen and sophomores, a few juniors and only two seniors - Kate Seyer and Madison Doran. So there's just a lot of unknown dynamics here with this team but I still think they'll have enough to be in the mix safely enough to snare a playoff spot.
Fighting For The Last Two Playoff Spots
5. St. Kate's
6. Hamline
7. Carleton
8. SMU
In theory, this could very well be the year that the Wildcats finally separate themselves from the rest of the pack and perhaps upend CSB in snaring that fourth playoff spot - and a home playoff game that would go with that. However, if history is any guide, I think you probably have to be a bit more conservative in your views on St. Kate's as teams in recent years have been beset with injuries and other maladies that have kept this squad from reaching its full potential. However, if the practice I was able to attend is any indicator and, just as important, IF they can stay healthy, this team certainly has a shot of surprising a lot of opponents. The good news is that seniors Katie Benjamin and Sam Orth are healthy and presumably (and hopefully) will stay that way. Ditto for fellow senior Mackenzie Kurczek who is a solid leader and contributor. And I have to give props to 5th year senior and grad student Brooke Torvik for being a great leader and contributor on this team as well. I've always thought it was important for St. Kate's to develop its young talent to augment the starting chain gang and one person who stood out this last weekend in their two games in Chicago where the 'Cats came away with a split was freshman Kiley Wood out of Carey, ID. If Head Coach Don Mulhern can get similar performances out of her and others, St. Kate's is going to be a very tricky match-up for a lot of teams..... Just up the road on Snelling Avenue is Hamline and this is a team that has a lot of similarities with St. Kate's: A handful of good senior leaders and contributors; namely Gabby Robinson, Sophie Findell, Sarah Loken, Paige Condie and Lindsey Bernardy. Just as important, junior Chan'el Anderson-Manning is back on the roster after taking a year off last year to dabble as a student-coach. This is a team that certainly knows how to get up and down the floor and when they're clicking, they can be awfully tough to beat. The big question when it comes to the Pipers is can they find some consistency that may elevate them to a new level? That's always been their downfall when it matters so we'll see if they can take another step forward this time around..... Two other teams could very well find themselves in the fight to grab one of those last two playoff spots. Down in Northfield, I think Carleton has to be one of them. Head Coach Tammy Metcalf-Filzen has a lot of young talent assembled - emphasis on the "young". It's difficult for me to form an opinion on them too much simply because, other than the Midtown YWCA Women's College Summer League, I really haven't seen any members of this team play and I don't think you should infer too much from what took place this last summer. Still, if there's one coach who knows how to put her chess pieces in the right place at the right time, it's Metcalf-Filzen so this squad will definitely be worth keeping an eye on..... Down in Winona, it's much the same story as Head Coach David Foley has a smattering of newcomers on his squad. But he does have two reliable seniors on his squad who can score in Brooklyn Paulson and Jada Biermeier.
The Not-Quite-Ready For Primetime Teams
9. Augsburg
10. Macalester
11. St. Olaf
12. St. Scholastica
It's admittedly hard to have Augsburg down so far in my rankings; particularly when you consider how tantalizingly close they were to winning two MIAC titles and the "Fab 5" that took this program to new heights just a few short years ago. But, as we all know, players come and graduate and now a new cast is trying to make a name for itself. While senior Selena Lor is a solid backcourt player and leader for this team, the real scoring threat - as the final box score from their opening game earlier this week would seem to indicate - is junior Jaley Coplin. Sophomore Kalena Myers should also figure heavily on the scoring front. And Head Coach Ted Riverso will rely heavily on the skills of senior Jen Masello down low. I just don't know how consistent this team can be over the stretch of the regular season and defense has always been the achilles for the Auggies..... Still another very young team resides on Snelling Avenue just south of I-94 - Macalester. Five freshmen and five sophomores are featured on this roster so Head Coach Katie Kollar has a lot of work in front of her in developing that young talent so they can make contributions right away. Two players on this Macalester team to keep your eye on - senior Celine Sabbagh and junior Solana Cushing. I was particularly impressed with Cushing's shot-making ability during the Midtown YWCA Women's College Summer League......One of the bigger mysteries of the MIAC might be on the west side of Northfield as St. Olaf does have a handful of experienced veterans back for this season - notably in seniors K'Lynn Lewis and Camryn Scott along with juniors Rachel Kelly, Cassie Fix, and Sarah Howdeshell. But this program has been looking up for quite some time now and it may be asking a lot for this squad to take a significant step forward. But again, we'll see......The new kid on the block in the MIAC is located clear up by Gitche Gumee; otherwise known as that ice water mansion of Lake Superior in Duluth. It likely will be a season of figuring out things in the MIAC for the Saints and new Head Coach Jason Schmitz. St. Scholastica will likely rely heavily on senior forward Emma Schmidt for scoring and rebounding.
So there you have it. How accurate this all is remains to be seen. Feel free to fire away with thoughts and hope to catch you at games this winter.
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