Watertown-Mayer's Kirstin Klitzke (4) is one of 29 girls nominated for 2017 Miss Minnesota Basketball, an award given to the state's top senior player by Minnesota Girls Basketball Coaches Association. Photo by Brian Nelson, SportsEngine
Twenty-nine of Minnesota’s best girls’ high school basketball players made the first cut for the 2017 Miss Basketball award, which is given to the state’s top senior player and presented by the Minnesota Girls’ Basketball Coaches Association.
Twenty-five programs are represented on the list of semifinalists, which was released in early January, with three teams boasting multiple nominees.
Seven of the players are in the top 10 in the state in total points, scoring average, three-pointers made or assists, and all have had a great impact on their teams’ success — with 16 of the squads represented ranked in the top 10 of their respective classes by Minnesota Basketball News.
A list of finalists is scheduled to be released in March while the winner will be announced at a banquet for the Minnesota Girls High School All-Star Series in April.
Previous winners include Nia Hollie of Hopkins (2016), Eastview’s Madison Guebert (2015) and Carlie Wagner of NRHEG (2014).
Below is the list of semifinalists (arranged in alphabetical order by school) and stats were current as of Friday, Feb. 3.
East Ridge's Mariah Sexe.
Jolene Daninger, Andover. The DePaul commit ranks fifth in the state with 52 three-pointers made, helping Andover to a 12-7 record. She scored a season-high 31 points in the first game of the season, a 71-57 win over Forest Lake.
Lyndsey Robson, Apple Valley. Robson has guided No. 3-4A Apple Valley to a 17-2 record with a team-best 20.1 points per game. The Wisconsin-Green Bay commit scored her 2,000th career point on Jan. 24.
Noelle Tomes, East Ridge. Tomes ranks second on her team with 15.8 points per game and has made 18 three-point baskets. She scored a season-high 24 points for East Ridge (15-4) in a 69-52 win over Woodbury on Jan. 17.
Mariah Sexe, East Ridge. The Lehigh commit averages 10.4 rebounds per game and grabbed a season-high 16 in a 56-52 loss to Lakeville South. Sexe leads East Ridge at a 16.3 points per game.
Rachel Ranke, Eastview. Ranke, a McDonald's All American nominee, is ranked as 58th-best senior in country by ESPN and has led No. 5-4A Eastview to a 15-4 record. The Kansas State commit posted a season-best 26 points in back-to-back games in mid-January - a 58-20 win over Eagan and 62-24 win over Burnsville.
Annika Jank, Edina. The Colorado commit was also a McDonald's All American nominee and leads Edina (14-6) with 18.7 points per game.
Gabi Haack of Elk River.
Gabi Haack, Elk River. The Bradley commit's scoring has greatly impacted No. 2-4A Elk River's 19-0 record. She has 506 points and boasts an average of 26.6 points per game this season, ranking fourth in the state in both categories. Haack set a school record for points in a single game after posting a season-high 45 in an 87-68 win over Moorhead on Jan. 28.
Halle Busse, Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop. The Wayne State commit has helped her team to an 11-6 record and scored 24 points in a 78-63 loss to Glencoe-Silver Lake in early January.
Maddie Monahan, Glencoe-Silver Lake. Monahan leads her team in points (18.4), rebounds (6.2) and assists (7.2) per game. The Drake commit has converted on 28 three-point shots this season.
Dee Dee Winston, Hopkins. The Sienna commit has guided No. 1-4A Hopkins to a perfect 20-0 record, ranking second on her team in assists (21). She recorded a season-best 14 points twice - in a 77-49 win over Minnetonka on Dec. 9 and in a 53-34 win over Edina a week later.
Hutchinson's Tori Wortz.
Tori Wortz, Hutchinson. Wortz leads No. 9-3A Hutchinson (12-5) with 15.6 points per game and scored a season-best 23 points in two games - in a 98-70 win over Glencoe-Silver Lake on Dec. 9 and in a 61-46 win over New Prague Jan. 31. She has committed to play at St. Cloud State.
Kristin Scott, Kasson-Mantorville. The Iowa State commit is a McDonald's All American nominee and recorded 27 points and 14 rebounds in the No. 5-3A KoMets' 79-64 loss to Hutchinson in the season opener on Nov. 29.
Temi Carda, Lakeville North. Carda leads No. 4-4A Lakeville North (17-2) with 14.8 points per game, scoring a season high 31 in a 67-58 win over New Prague in early December, and has committed to play at Creighton.
Lindsey Theuninck, Mankato Loyola. The South Dakota State commit ranks second in the state in total points (520), third in scoring average (27.4) and ninth in three-pointers made (49). Theuninck scored her 3,000th career point in late January and recorded a season-high 51 points in the No. 5-1A Crusaders' 82-32 win over Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial on Jan. 20.
Chelsea Mason, Mountain Iron-Buhl. Mason leads No. 1-1A Mountain Iron-Buhl (19-0) with an average of 21.2 points per game and is first in the state with 67 three-point shots made.
Maizie Deihl, New Prague. The Minnesota-Duluth commit ranks second on New Prague (12-8) with 15.3 points per game and scored a season-high 23 points in a 69-58 win over Stillwater on Nov. 26.
Tori Andrew of Orono.
Tori Andrew, Orono. The Yale commit ranks second in the state in three-point shots made (67) and is the leading scorer for No. 3-3A Orono (16-3) with a 20.6 points-per-game average.
Mikayla Hayes, Park Center. The McDonald's All American nominee recently reached the 1,000th career rebound mark and boasts a team-high with 9.3 rebounds per game. She is tied for first on her team with 11.4 points per game and has committed to play at Florida.
Danielle Schaub, Park Center. The Concordia St. Paul commit recorded her 1,000th career point in a 70-45 win over Osseo. She scored a season-high 23 points in a 64-47 win over Totino-Grace in mid-January.
Ann Simonet, Park Center. Simonet has committed to play at Minnesota-Duluth and leads Park Center in assists (3.2) and is second in rebounds (4.7) per game.
Riley Wheatcraft, Prior Lake. The Northern Iowa commit ranks second on her team with 20.3 points per game. She scored a season-high 32 points in a 79-78 win over Moorhead and again in a 75-39 win over Simley. Wheatcraft broke the Prior Lake record for career three-pointers made with 170 - a record that stood since 1997.
Grace White, Red Lake. The Denver commit has guided No. 8-1A Red Lake to a 17-2 record and totaled 19 points in a 70-34 win over Minneapolis Washburn on Jan. 13.
Olivia Korngable, Rochester Mayo. The South Dakota commit has led Rochester Mayo to an 11-6 record.
Kiley Borowicz, Roseau. Borowicz ranks fifth in the state in points (498) and scoring average (26.2). She has scored 25 or more points in 12 of the 19 games she has played in this season, helping No. 1-2A Roseau to a 19-0 record.
Kaia Porter, Roseville. Porter scored her 1,000th career point in a 49-37 win over White Bear Lake on Jan. 20. She leads No. 7-4A Roseville (18-2) at 18.8 points per game.
Rae Johnson (4) of St. Michael-Albertville.
RaeAnnah Johnson, St. Michael-Albertville. The Iowa State commit and McDonald's All American nominee leads No. 8-4A St. Michael-Albertville (14-4) at 19.7 points per game and with 60 assists.
Claire Killian, Watertown-Mayer. Killian has helped No. 5-2A Watertown-Mayer to a 20-2 record by averaging a team-high 17.9 points per game. The Nebraska-Omaha commit scored her 2,000th career point in mid-January.
Kirstin Klitzke, Watertown-Mayer. The Minnesota State commit ranks third on her team with 12.8 points per game and posted a season-high 29 points in a 66-54 win over Mayer Lutheran on Dec. 3.
Eden Nibbelink, Winona. The Fairfield commit has guided No. 10-3A Winona to a 13-4 record.
The MN Girls' Basketball Hub poll is based on opinion and not used to determine who is named the state's Miss Basketball.
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