Outside looking in

One year ago, the Valley City Hi-Liners were languishing in the second division of the former Class A's Eastern Dakota Conference (EDC), finishing as the ninth seed with a 6-16 record and losing in the play-in round.

What a difference a new classification, and a talented freshman in the mix, makes.

The Hi-Liners maximized their size advantage and physicality inside and on the wings to quash Carrington's bid for a state tournament with a 62-56 win Saturday, February 24, in the newly-created Division A/B qualifying round at Mayville State's Lewy Lee Fieldhouse.

The first time the two teams met at Valley City on January 2, Carrington had their best shooting game of the season, connecting on 12 three-pointers and defeating the Hi-Liners at the Activity Center, 72-60. In that game, the Cards scored 26 points in the fourth quarter to close it out.

Aware of this, VCHS made sure to keep Carrington from getting hot early, and forwards Katie Burchill and Kailee Nielson took control inside in the first half.

Carrington largely matched Valley City on the scoreboard in the first half, but the freshman and sophomore, Burchill and Nielson, used their quickness inside for a combined 16 of the team's 31 points.

"It was really a contrast in styles," Braaten said. "Their height gave our post defense issues, but our perimeter shooting, free throws and only five turnovers kept us in it."

Though Valley City's zone defense guarded the perimeter, the Cards still managed to hit 10 threes.

When Braaten's team attempted to go inside or didn't have a quick three-ball release, VCHS was there to stifle their efforts.

The mind-blowing stat of this game on the Hi-Liners' side was 10 blocked shots, which, believe it or not, surpassed the Cards' cumulative total for the entire 25-game season.

Burchill, along with Tesa Olson, had four blocks each. Olson would finish with 10 points, as did Nielson and Drew Potratz.

The spotlight belonged to Burchill in the end, as she helped deliver the Hi-Liners' first trip to the state tournament since 2014 with 12 fourth quarter points (4-for-5 from the line), and finished with a game-high 25, to go with 12 rebounds. Dacota Potratz had six assists.

From the field, Valley City shot 53.5%, or 23-for-43.

"Valley City shot the ball well, to their credit, and made more plays down the stretch," Braaten said.

Johnson, with 15 points, six rebounds and three treys, along with Wendel (14 points, two threes, five assists) were the offensive stars for the Cards in the loss.

Defeat at the doorstep of the first Division A tournament brought an end to the roundball careers of Johnson, Rexin and Threadgold. Braaten said that their example, leadership and class on and off the court will be a standard for future Cardinals to emulate.

"It was an honor to coach these three young ladies," he said. "We wish them much success in the future, and thank them for all their contributions to Cardinal basketball."

The Cards' season ended with a 17-8 record, and the coach said that adjustment to the new three-division system was one his team was able to navigate successfully.

"We showed we can compete with the best teams, and with offseason work from our underclassmen, we will continue to do so," Braaten concluded.

On to the 'A'

Valley City (18-7) took on the Bottineau Stars (21-2) in the opening game of the first round of play at the Division A State Tournament in Minot last Thursday, February 29. The Hi-Liners were seeded seventh and the Stars, making their first tournament appearance since 2008, were second.

The top-ranked Thompson Tommies, who escaped with a 70-69 thriller over Devils Lake for the Region 2 title, came in at 22-0, and faced #8 seed Watford City (18-7) in game three.

The Firebirds (18-6) drew the three spot following a 60-48 win over Kindred in their state qualifier, and were matched up with Region 1 champion Northern Cass (17-7) in the second game.

In the final game of the evening, Shiloh Christian (19-4) played South Prairie-Max (22-3) in the #4/#5 matchup. The SP-M Royals are making the school's (and co-op's) first state appearance in any sport.

State Qualifier

Valley City 62, Carrington 56

Cgtn. 17 12 12 15 56

VC 17 14 13 18 62

Carrington: Madison Johnson 15, Isabel Wendel 14, Edyn Hoornaert 8, Kenadie Pazdernik 7, Kacie Rexin 5, Olivia Threadgold 5, Kaydence VanRay 2. Totals: 18-64 FG, 10-10 FT, 15 fouls. Three-pointers: Johnson 3, Wendel 2, Hoornaert 2, Pazdernik, Rexin, Threadgold. Fouled out: Threadgold.

Valley City: Katie Burchill 25, Kailee Nielson 10, Tesa Olson 10, Drew Potratz 10, Dacota Potratz 4, Madison Anderson 2, Hadley Thoreson 1. Totals: 23-43 FG, 14-20 FT, 12 fouls. Three-pointers: Drew Potratz 2.

Carrington Additional Stats

Rebounds: Johnson 6, Threadgold 5, Wendel 4, Hoornaert, Pazdernik and Rexin 2, VanRay 1.

Assists: Wendel 5, Johnson and Rexin 3, Threadgold 2, Hoornaert 1.

Steals: Hoornaert, Johnson, Pazdernik, Threadgold and Wendel 2, Rexin and VanRay 1.

Valley City Additional Stats

Rebounds: Burchill 12, Olson 7, Greta Goven, Olson, Dacota Potratz and Drew Potratz 4, Nielson 3, Anderson and Thoreson 1.

Assists: Dacota Potratz 6, Goven and Olson 2, Anderson 1.

Steals: Goven, Olson and Drew Potratz 1.

Blocks: Burchill and Olson 4, Nielson and Dacota Potratz 1.