BROOKINGS – St. Thomas More came out on top again.
It wasn’t easy.
The Cavaliers (24-0), playing without their top performer, overcame a rough first half on the offensive end to beat Lennox 47-36 on Saturday night at Frost Arena for their fourth consecutive Class A State Girls’ Basketball Tournament title.
“This one is definitely special in a lot of ways,” said STM coach Brandon Kandolin, a South Dakota School of Mines and Technology graduate and former player for the Hardrockers. “I guess four in a row was pretty special. That’s the very last thought that we had, it’s just a new team that had something to prove with the previous players and teams that we’ve had.
“And they accepted the challenge.”
They certainly did.
Utah commit Dru Gylten went down with a knee injury a few minutes into STM’s semifinal victory the night before.
The Cavaliers found a way to win that one, primarily with their defense; and the defense kept them in it in the championship matchup, before the offense came alive.
Lennox led 10-7 after a quarter and 18-14 at halftime.
The Cavaliers shot a chilly 20 percent (4-of-20) from the field in the half. The Orioles weren’t much better at 29.4 percent (5-of-17) and they committed half of their 18 turnovers during that stretch.
Aislinn Duffy was the difference, scoring 14 of her game-high 16 points in the second half.
She didn’t see the floor much in the first half, picking up two fouls in the game’s first 3:08.
STM got a stop defensively and Duffy hit a midrange jumper to spark a 14-1 run following intermission. She later tied things up at 18-all with 6:21 to go in the third period.
“The first play was definitely to Duffy,” Kandolin said about the 6-foot-1 junior. “I wanted to see if we could expose the middle if they wanted to stay in the zone, or even man. The set that we had was kind of versatile. And from there, she still was able to get into the middle and cause problems.
“Thankfully, I think she grew up a little bit – she was physical, she was strong and she was able to score.”
Jayden Bies, who finished with 13 points, hit a couple of 3-pointers after that as the streak reached 10 consecutive points, making it 24-18.
Lennox’s Abbie Strasser stopped the run with a free throw with 3:15 left in the stanza, but Kayla Jacobson went 2-for-2 at the line on the other end and Alex Kandolin converted a putback to put STM in control ahead 28-19 at the 1:40 mark of the third.
The Cavaliers led 31-23 through three.
“Looking at it, we knew we put up enough shots (in the first half) and they weren’t bad shots, it’s just we weren’t making shots,” Kandolin said when asked what changed in the second half. “And that part had to change. We knew, again, if the score was only 14-18, the defense must be working so we have to figure out ways to score; and somebody has to focus and step up.
We had two or three set plays coming out that we wanted to try and I think we were 3-for-3 to start it. And that was a huge start. That kicked off everything else for everybody.”
The Orioles never got closer than seven points in the fourth as the Cavaliers’ lead peaked at 13 – 41-28 – after Duffy capped a personal 6-0 spurt with a layup following a Klaire Kirsch steal with 3:42 showing on the clock.
The game ended in a special manner as Gylten, sporting a heavy brace on her right leg, was able to enter with 8.7 seconds remaining and received the final pass to run the clock down to zero, much to the delight of the STM faithful.
What was involved in the pregame talk?
“This is where true champions are made,” Kandolin said. “This is where we have to figure out, also, when you have adversity, how do you step up? And who’s going to step up? And how do you grow? That’s going to be important because we have a lot of young girls on the team. And to be a part of that adversity, whether it’s on the floor or wherever, how are you going to handle that?
“They accepted the challenge. They were very confident in our walkthrough this morning. We watched some film, they were confident. And again, I think they just trust in each other and they definitely trust in the defensive end.”
Confidence is key.
Notes: The Orioles shot 22.9 percent (8-of-35) from the field and turned it over 18 times. … Alex Kandolin started in place of Gylten. Lennox (22-3) was making its first title game appearance since 1997. The Orioles won it all in 1998 and took second in 1987 and 1997. … STM only played 19 regular-season games this year.
Dynasty
STM has won five of the past six state tournaments overall but this, surprisingly, marked the first undefeated season in school history.
Four in a row is incredibly difficult, by the way, as only two girls’ teams and one boys’ squad have won at least that many consecutively in South Dakota history:
Five
• Armour girls, 1983-84 Class B (two class), 1985-87 Class B (three class)
• Sioux Falls Roosevelt girls, 1997-2001 Class AA (three class) – led by legendary coach Fred Tibbetts.
Four
• Yankton boys, 1922-25 (one class)
STM is the first Class A team to do it, though.
What?
St. Thomas More was founded in 1991, and its girls’ basketball dynasty is actually 20 years younger than that.
The Cavaliers didn’t appear in their first state tournament until 2011, a year in which they started the season 23-0 but took fourth at state after dropping their final two games in the winners’ bracket to finish 23-2 – they lost by a point to eventual champion Sisseton in the semifinals.
And then they got going.
2011-12 – 25-2, state champions
2012-13 – 20-2, lost 41-36 to Spearfish in the District 16A championship on Feb. 28, 2013 (the last time they lost to a Class A or B South Dakota team; A, in this case)
2013-14 – 23-1, state champions
2014-15 – 24-1, state champions
2015-16 – 23-2, state champions
2016-17 – 24-0, state champions
Since 2010-11: 162-10
Since 2011-12: 138-8
Since 2013-14 (four-peat): 94-4
Notes: STM lost to Crofton, Neb., in the 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons, and also Class AA Sioux Falls Washington in 2015-16. … Worth noting, the STM boys’ squad has won four Class A titles in six finals appearances since 2006. Those Cavaliers have been to state nine times (the first came in 2004), including this season.
How?
Four Division I players, including Gylten, were key in the recent run.
• Dru Gylten (high school class of 2017) – Utah.
• Ciara Duffy (2016) – South Dakota – 11.3 points per game on a 22-8 team this year.
• Alexys Swedlund (2015) – Washington State – 10.9 points per game as a sophomore this season.
• Caitlin Duffy (2013) – Colorado State/South Dakota – averaged 8.8 points as a sophomore for the Coyotes when they won the WNIT title in 2016 and was named Summit League Transfer of the Year, before sitting out this season due to an injury.
ST. THOMAS MORE 47, LENNOX 36
Lennox (22-3)
Megan Hinker 0-4 0-0 0, Tiffany Plimpton 0-0 0-0 0, Jenna Bruns 0-0 0-0 0, Madysen Vlastuin 1-11 5-6 8, Abbie Strasser 0-1 1-2 1, Gracie Bowers 0-0 0-0 0, Katie Daugherty 0-0 0-0 0, Riley Peters 4-11 3-3 13, Courtney Weeldreyer 0-4 0-0 0, Bailey Nelson 0-0 0-0 0, Rianna Fillipi 3-4 5-5 13, Leslie Fillipi 0-0 0-0 0, Jordan Kruse 0-0 1-2 1. Totals 8-35 15-18 36.
St. Thomas More (24-0)
Jayden Bies 3-11 4-6 13, Dru Gylten 0-0 0-0 0, Kayla Jacobson 0-1 2-2 2, Klaire Kirsch 1-7 6-13 8, Alex Kandolin 2-5 4-4 8, Tintin Almqvist 0-1 0-1 0, Ashley Wojcik 0-2 0-0 0, Aislinn Duffy 7-10 2-2 16, Ciara Benson 0-0 0-0 0, Haleigh Timmer 0-0 0-0 0, Bailee Robbins 0-0 0-0 0, Morgan Gorman 0-0 0-0 0, Meg Carlson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 13-37 18-28 47.
Lennox 10 8 5 13 – 36
STM 7 7 17 16 – 47
3-point goals – L 5-19 (Fillipi 2-3, Peters 2-5, Vlastuin 1-3, Weeldreyer 0-4, Hinker 0-4), STM 3-13 (Bies 3-7, Wojcik 0-1, Kandolin 0-2, Kirsch 0-3). Rebounds – L 25 (Vlastuin 8), STM 33 (Bies, Wojcik 7). Assists – L 3 (Peters, Strasser, Nelson 1), STM 8 (Kandolin 4). Steals – L 4 (Peters, Fillipi 2), STM 10 (Kirsch 4). Blocks – L 1 (Nelson 1), STM 3 (Bies 2). Turnovers – L 18, STM 11. Total fouls – L 21, STM 17. Fouled out – Kruse, Wojcik.
Third place
• Webster Area 57, Vermillion 37
Haley Rithmiller had another dazzling performance in her final high school game and the Bearcats (21-5) took control in the third quarter en route to the 20-point triumph.
The Northern State-bound senior dropped in a game-high 27 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to complete the double-double. She also came up with seven steals, dished out five assists and blocked a pair of shots.
Rithmiller led all players with 63 points and 15 steals in the tournament.
The Tanagers were on top 14-13 after a quarter.
Webster moved ahead 26-22 at halftime and then limited Vermillion to 1-of-10 shooting in the third period while opening up a 44-24 advantage. Rithmiller had nine points in the big quarter.
The lead peaked at 25 points – 57-32 – following a McKenzie Volesky layup with 1:30 remaining. She finished with 11 points.
Mariah Volesky added nine points and Lindsey Shoenbeck eight to go with 10 rebounds. Olivia Breske had the team’s other bucket and grabbed six boards.
Vermillion (18-8) got 19 points from Kasey Jensen as she went 8-of-11 from the field and added seven rebounds. Jensen led the tourney in assists with nine in the three games.
The Tanagers ended up at 29.8 percent (14-of-47) from the field and turned the ball over 20 times.
WEBSTER AREA 57, VERMILLION 37
Vermillion (18-8)
Mady Gilbertson 0-2 0-0 0, Kasey Jensen 8-11 3-6 19, Maddie Regnerus 0-2 0-0 0, Madisen Martinez 0-6 2-2 2, Haleigh Melstad 2-14 1-2 6, Kara Mulheron 0-0 0-0 0, Emily Bye 0-0 0-0 0, Jadia Anderson 2-5 0-1 5, Lexi Saunders 0-1 0-0 0, Kasey Herbster 1-3 1-1 3, Rachel Brady 0-0 0-0 0, Lexi Plitzuweit 1-3 0-0 2. Totals 14-47 7-12 37.
Webster (21-5)
Olivia Breske 1-5 0-0 2, Mariah Volesky 2-5 3-4 9, Lindsey Shoenbeck 3-6 1-2 8, Briana Mount 0-0 0-0 0, Taylor Ryan 0-0 0-0 0, Cara Shoemaker 0-1 0-0 0, Caitlyn Schlotte 0-1 0-0 0, McKenzie Volesky 4-8 2-2 11, Haley Rithmiller 9-19 9-11 27, Faith Shoemaker 0-0 0-0 0, Alecia Vogl 0-0 0-0 0, Kayla Fischer 0-1 0-0 0, Emily Breske 0-0 0-2 0. Totals 19-46 15-21 57.
Vermillion 14 8 2 13 – 37
Webster 13 13 18 13 – 57
3-point goals – V 2-18 (Anderson 1-4, Melstad 1-9, Saunders 0-1, Regnerus 0-2, Plitzuweit 0-2), WA 4-7 (Mariah Volesky 2-2, Shoenbeck 1-1, McKenzie Volesky 1-1, Breske 0-1, Rithmiller 0-2). Rebounds – V 34 (Jensen 7), WA 36 (Rithmiller 11). Assists – V 6 (Gilbertson 1, Regnerus 1, Martinez 1, Melstad 1, Mulheron 1, Bye 1), 8 (Rithmiller 5). Steals – V 8 (Melstad 4), WA 12 (Rithmiller 7). Blocks – V 5 (Regnerus 3), WA 2 (Rithmiller 2). Turnovers – V 20, WA 16. Total fouls – V 19, WA 15. Fouled out – none.
Fifth place
• Hamlin 63, Madison 54
Lexi Wadsworth posted another double-double as the Chargers (24-1) closed the season with back-to-back wins.
The junior had 19 points and 12 rebounds to go with four assists and a pair of steals.
She finished the tourney with 39 boards – tops amongst all players – and her team ended up plus-51 on the glass in the three games combined.
Hamlin led 11-8 after a quarter and 22-16 at halftime.
The Lady Bulldogs got as close as three points in the third; however, the Chargers closed strong and led by as many as 13 points in the period en route to securing a 46-35 cushion heading to the fourth.
The margin peaked at 18 – 62-44 – with 2:21 remaining.
Brynn Alfso also had a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds as Hamlin dominated the glass for a third consecutive game, finishing with a 45-32 advantage.
Grace West also scored 12 points and dished out four assists. Chloe Grantham came up with three steals and Stacia West had seven boards.
For Madison (16-10), Valorie Nowstrup dropped in 14 points off the bench. Nicole Brown, who had seven rebounds, and Jessi Giles contributed 13 points apiece. Olivia Rud tallied nine points, seven boards and four steals.
HAMLIN 63, MADISON 54
Hamlin (24-1)
Lexi Wadsworth 9-18 0-0 19, Reagan Nebel 1-3 0-0 3, Grace West 3-6 4-4 12, Miranda Lakness 0-0 0-0 0, Chloe Grantham 2-4 0-1 5, Stacia West 1-7 0-0 2, Brynn Alfson 5-11 2-2 12, Faith Leiseth 0-1 1-2 1, Logan Keszler 3-5 0-0 9, Mara Sprang 0-0 0-0 0, Payton Lakness 0-0 0-0 0, Kylee Wadsworth 0-0 0-1 0. Totals 24-55 7-10 63.
Madison (16-10)
Olivia Rud 4-11 1-2 9, Kyla Kasuske 0-1 0-0 0, Jessi Giles 6-16 0-0 13, Valorie Nowstrup 4-5 4-6 14, Nicole Brown 5-15 2-5 13, Kenna Nighbert 0-1 0-1 0, Anna Theophilus 1-4 0-0 2, Maddie Gerry 1-3 1-1 3, Brianna Steuerwald 0-0 0-0 0, Kendra Leighton 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 21-58 8-15 54.
Hamlin 11 11 24 17 – 63
Madison 8 8 19 19 – 54
3-point goals – H 8-14 (Keszler 3-4, G. West 2-4, Nebel 1-1, Grantham 1-1, Wadsworth 1-3, Alfson 0-1), M 4-18 (Nowstrup 2-3, Brown 1-3, Giles 1-6, Nighbert 0-1, Leighton 0-2, Theophilus 0-3). Rebounds – H 45 (Alfson 13, Wadsworth 12), M 32 (Rud, Brown 7). Assists – H 13 (Wadsworth, G. West 4), M 8 (Giles 2). Steals – H 7 (Grantham 3), M 11 (Rud 4). Blocks – H 1 (Wadsworth 1), M 3 (Brown 3). Turnovers – H 18, M 11. Total fouls – H 13, M 11. Fouled out – none.
Seventh place
• Dell Rapids 59, Little Wound 54
The Quarriers used a big second quarter to turn a five-point deficit into a five-point lead – 35-30 – en route to the victory. They were up 48-41 through three.
The Lady Mustangs pulled within two points three times in the fourth, the last occurrence coming at 54-52 with 3:34 showing on the clock.
Dell Rapids’ Emma Paul scored in the lane with 2:37 to go and Arial Hoffman added a bucket in the paint with 1:45 remaining to put the Quarriers on top 58-52.
Jayda Knuppe scored a game-high 21 points and grabbed nine rebounds in the victory.
Paul finished with 16 points and Hoffman added 13.
The Quarriers shot 44.9 percent (22-of-49) and had 12 turnovers, while the Lady Mustangs finished at 38 percent (19-of-50) with 12 giveaways.
Little Wound, which led 19-14 after 8 minutes, got a double-double of 17 points and 12 boards from Paula Yellow Boy. She also blocked four shots and finished the tourney with 11 – the most in the three-game stretch.
Janay Jumping Eagle had 13 points and Miracle Spotted Bear 12.
Dell Rapids finished the season with a 19-6 record, while Little Wound went 20-5.
DELL RAPIDS 59, LITTLE WOUND 54
Dell Rapids (19-6)
Tiffanie Dorale 0-0 0-0 0, Aspen Hansen 0-2 0-2 0, Averi Pankonen 0-2 0-0 0, Ravyn Hoffman 0-0 0-0 0, Kaylee Hennen 1-2 2-2 5, Emma Paul 6-12 2-2 16, Regan Stone 0-1 0-0 0, Sydney Stofferahn 0-0 0-0 0, Kali Graham 2-6 0-0 4, Arial Hoffman 5-10 1-2 13, Jayda Knuppe 8-14 5-8 21. Totals 22-49 10-16 59.
Little Wound (20-5)
Janay Jumping Eagle 5-15 2-4 13, Chante Ferguson 0-1 0-0 0, Ashley Steele 0-1 0-0 0, Jacynda Blacksmith 2-5 1-3 5, Katerri Weston 2-4 0-0 5, Chelsea Iron Crow 1-1 0-0 2, Sophia Hatten 0-1 0-0 0, Paula Yellow Boy 5-9 7-8 17, Rayna White Eyes 0-1 0-0 0, Mia Vasquez 0-2 0-0 0, Miracle Spotted Bear 4-10 0-0 12. Totals 19-50 10-15 54.
Dell Rapids 14 21 13 11 – 59
Little Wound 19 11 11 13 – 54
3-point goals – DR 5-12 (Hoffman 2-2, Paul 2-5, Hennen 1-2, Knuppe 0-1, Pankonen 0-2), LW 6-23 (Spotted Bear 4-9, Weston 1-2, Jumping Eagle 1-7, Ferguson 0-1, Blacksmith 0-1, Hatten 0-1, Vasquez 0-2). Rebounds – DR 29 (Knuppe 9), LW 37 (Yellow Boy 12). Assists – DR 8 (Knuppe 3), LW 8 (Jumping Eagle 4). Steals – DR 9 (Pankonen, Hoffman 3), LW 3 (Iron Crow 2). Blocks – DR 1 (Hansen 1), LW 5 (Yellow Boy 4). Turnovers – DR 8, LW 12. Total fouls – DR 13, LW 15. Fouled out – none.
All-Tournament Team
Dru Gylten, St. Thomas More; Jayden Bies, St. Thomas More; Aislinn Duffy, St. Thomas More; Madysen Vlastuin, Lennox; Riley Peters, Lennox; Rianna Fillipi, Lennox; Haley Rithmiller, Webster Area; Kasey Jensen, Vermillion; Lexi Wadsworth, Hamlin; Jessi Giles, Madison; Jayda Knuppe, Dell Rapids; Paula Yellow Boy, Little Wound
Spirit of Su
Janay Jumping Eagle, Little Wound
Spirit of Six
Madison
