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Cards hope to pick up where they left off
New London-Spicer senior guard Avery Rich (left) and Willmar junior guard Maycee Gustafson battle for possession of the basketball during the WildCard championship on Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2022, at Willmar High School. Michael Lyne / West Central Tribune
Willmar, which closed last year winning 7 of 9, returns 3 starters
BY MICHAEL LYNE | West Central Tribune
WILLMAR — The Willmar girls basketball team feels it is heading in the right direction with a unique sense of versatility throughout its roster.
Willmar, which finished with an 11-17 overall record and was 6-8 in the Central Lakes Conference, won seven of its last nine contests to close out the 2022-23 season.
“After a rough start to our 202223 season, we started to find our groove in the middle of the year and we felt that we were playing some good basketball down the stretch,” said Willmar head coach Brendan Hedtke, who enters his second season at the helm. “We gained a lot of good experience, both as players and coaches, last season that should lead to more confidence and success this year.”
The Cardinals return both of their All-CLC picks from a season ago. Those pair of players are sophomores Telilie Lange and Brielle Ogdahl. Both return to the varsity roster to serve as captains with senior forward Kenedee Salonek, who was an All-CLC Honorable Mention a season ago and rounds out Willmar’s trio of returning starters.
Lange, a 5-foot-7-inch sophomore guard, averaged 8.1 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game and 2.0 steals per game and shot 42.6% from beyond the arc last season. She was an All-Area Third Team pick and was named Willmar’s most valuable player.
Ogdahl, a 6-0 sophomore forward, averaged 8.4 points and 8.4 rebounds with 31 blocks and just 24 fouls in 800 minutes of action in 2022-23.
“This season our offense should be more dynamic and harder to scout,” Hedtke said. “We should also be a lot quicker on the defensive end and be able to mix up our coverages throughout the games and throughout the season to throw off our opponents.”
Joining the mix as players to watch for the Cardinals are senior guards Maycee Gustafson and Adali Laidlaw, juniors in guard Kendall Hanson and forward Madison Norsten, sophomore forward/center Lyza Gustafson and freshmen Maddison Molacek and Isley Ripperger.
“We’re all excited to get going this year, both us as coaches and the girls,” Hedtke said. “We feel that we might still be a little underestimated coming into this year, but the girls are more focused than I’ve ever seen them and that is exciting.”
Key roster losses for Willmar include guards Allie Rosendahl and Deshawna Hodges and forward/center Zoe Schroeder. Jossyn Heck, currently a sophomore, will also not be back.
“We will miss our seniors from last year, but we also feel we have a handful of great options to fill those roles,” said Hedtke, who will be assisted by Jason Hulstein, Leah Brogdon, Tanner Soupir, Kendra Kvebak and Carrie Ogdahl.
