Photo gallery: Prior Lake vs. Minnetonka
When the fearless Hofschild wasn’t pinballing through Minnetonka’s lengthy lineup, she was running around them and shooting over the top. She finished with a season-high 42 points, 26 of them in the second half.
“She’s a super-tough matchup for us,” Minnetonka coach Leah Dasovich said. “She’s just a motor. They feed off her offensively.”
For much of the first half, the only question about the outcome was how decisive would Minnetonka’s victory be. The Skippers cruised to a 28-6 lead behind five three-pointers from guard Katey Brattland and held a 41-27 halftime advantage. Brattland finished with a team-high 30 points.
“We’ve got young players and this our first section championship game in a long time,” Prior Lake coach Mike Gidley said. “I think we were a little shell-shocked.”
But Prior Lake had cut into Minnetonka’s lead in the latter stages of the first half and built on that momentum. The Lakers increased the tempo, forcing the bigger, taller Skippers out of their comfort zone.
“Coach told us to play fast, speed the game up and have fun,” Hofschild said. “That’s been our thing all year. We never give up, never stop fighting.”
Minnetonka (18-11) began fumbling away the ball and Prior Lake took advantage. The Lakers closed out the game by scoring the final 10 points, eight of them by Hofschild.
“She’s a special talent,” Gidley said. “The game never gets too big for her. The bigger the game, the bigger she gets.”
Hofschild shook off talk about her size, or lack thereof. Being short doesn't stop her.
“I’ve been short all my life,” she said. “I just attack every game with the same mentality.”