North Dakota Players of the Week
The postseason is right around the corner. With teams fighting for postseason positionings, it’s go time for teams. That creates opportunities for individual players to have standout performances and earn the spotlight even more than before. Here are the top…
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Continue ReadingThe postseason is right around the corner. With teams fighting for postseason positionings, it’s go time for teams. That creates opportunities for individual players to have standout performances and earn the spotlight even more than before.
Here are the top performances from last week:
Olivia Manuel, Fargo Shanley
The Deacons are in the driver’s seat to finish No. 2 in the EDC and Manuel picked a good week to play her best ball. The 5-foot-7 senior guard scored 18 points in a key win over West Fargo Sheyenne to start the week, and added 14 points in a pivotal win over Fargo Davies. Manuel is averaging less than seven points per game, but showed last week that teams cannot simply focus all their attention on slowing down Reile Payne, Hadley Huber and Morika Hakim, because she will make them pay.
Samanatha Oase, Hettinger/Scranton
Hettinger/Scranton has picked things up in recent weeks, going 5-1 in its last six games. Oase has had her fingerprints all over the recent surge, as she’s averaging better than 16 points and 10 rebounds per game. In a critical win over Beach last week, the 6-foot junior scored 24 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and recorded two steals. She picked up 12 points, 14 boards, two blocks and three steals in the win over New England on Saturday as well.
Maria Mann, Bismarck St. Mary’s
One of the best rebounders in the state each of the last couple years, Mann is picking things up down the stretch of the season. The 6-foot-2 senior post scored 20 points and hauled in 11 rebounds in the Saints’ one-point loss to Mandan. She followed that up with 12 points, 17 rebounds and three blocks in a win over Minot. She’s leading Class A in rebounding, averaging 11.4 rebounds per game, while she’s increased her scoring to 10.6 points per game.
Morgan Freije, Langdon/Edmore/Munich
LEM is undefeated on the year and Freije has emerged especially in recent weeks as a legitimate difference-maker on both ends of the floor. She’s picked up her scoring lately and was terrific in both of the Cardinals’ wins over ranked teams last week. She scored a team-high 17 points in the win over Four Winds/Minnewaukan and chipped in 15 points in the win over Grafton/St. Thomas. LEM has a real shot at winning a state title and while Callie Ronningen draws a lot of the attention (well deserved as she’ll be on the all-state teams), Freije is giving the Cardinals another viable scorer and playmaker.