On Monday, December 30th; Jr All-Star hosted it’s first Jr High Camp, the Holiday SZN Showcase; which was a complete hit among players and parents alike! Tentatively mark your calendars for our next event, that is in the planning stages for March 1st! (email exposure@jrallstar.com to be put on our mailing list)
Monday morning gave a preview of some of the names us fans may be hearing a lot about coming up in the near future of Minnesota Girls Basketball. Some players put their stamp as standouts from the class of 2024, 2025, 2026 and 2027 in the Showcase. The camp was led by Daniel Makepeace who does a fantastic job of explaining and displaying the drills and skill exercises. He makes it easy to follow, explains why and how each move will help the player and makes it enjoyable for the attendees of the camp and makes Each game had some impressive performances and some names to keep an eye on going forward.
5th Grade/Class of 2027 and 6th Grade/Class of 2026 Game:
Class of 2027:
A fun and energetic group of four players participated and played in a game with and against 6th graders. This group of four players from class of 2027 all showed unwavering energy on the court. Players Ava Brynteson and Berkley Blaisdell showed no fear and the ability to compete with the bigger 6th grade players on the court. Both showed the ability to get out of the fast break and stay right in step with their teammates. Bailey Olson showed confidence to attack the paint off the dribble and looked to finish layups over the tall opponents. Kira Parker showed no fear in putting up 3-pointers and was able to connect on one for her team.
Class of 2026:
The two standouts in this game came from this class. Kate Holmquist put on an impressive performance leading to her being named one of the Performers of the game. She showed great instincts when it came to reading passes leading to multiple steals from her and she was able to turn that into fast breaking layups. She was able to finish with regularity and even completed an impressive and-1 through contact. Has a solid overall skillset on the offensive side of the ball that will allow her to score from all over the court. The co-performance of the game was Callie Oakland. She has a strong post skillset. She appears to have good hands catching passes down low and using her body to power up for layups. She showed the capability to box out a taller opponent in Reese Hagenbart and secure rebounds. Her solid screen setting helped her guards get open often. Reese Hagenbert was comfortable putting the ball on the floor driving and also stepping out looking shoot 3s and Callie was able to stay with her on the drive and not get beat off the bounce.
7th Grade/Class of 2025 Game:
This game produced possibly the two most impressive performances of the day. Tori Schlagel and Brooklyn Holmberg were named Co-Performers of the game and it was a fun head to head matchup. Tori Schlagel is a player that seems ready to take her skills to the high school level. She showed an overall game that appears to be developed beyond her years. She looked like a natural leader and a guard who can run a team with no hesitation. Displayed up-n-unders that defenders bit on almost every time. Her frame makes it able to absorb contact and she finishes through it. Her overall game puts her in the discussion for performance of the day. The counterpart on the other team Brooklyn Holmberg stood out equally as much as Schlagel for her team. A tall guard who glides up the court with ease. She scored from all 3 levels on the court and had a silky-smooth jump shot on the perimeter. She slide past defenders with relative ease going to the basket and finished through contact multiple times. Guard Mya Karsten displayed a crafty and enjoyable ability to pass the ball. One of the better passes in the camp, she shared the ball with ease. She would put the ball right on the money for her teammate. She was a threat to both score and pass in pick-n-rolls with Schlagel. That was a hard to stop combo for the other team. Other guards who stood out in the game was Annika Peper and Julia Halstead. Annika was a relentless guard who drove to rim through multiple defenders. Displayed an ability to read defenses and when they would retreat on defensive pressure she would attack. Had an effective cross-over she unleashed more than once. Halstead showed strong hands with the ball as she was able to catch many passes that were off the mark. Seemed to be able to read passes and caused deflections that would lead her team to get out on the break.
One of the more impressive wing players in this game was Morgan Halverson. Slim and lanky player who showed a tenacity going for rebounds out of her area. Hunted down rebounds that helped her team have multiple possessions. Showed elite timing with multiple blocks in the paint.
The 7th grade game was very enjoyable to watch and has names that I fully expect to continue to impress in future camps and onward in their basketball careers.
