Last Year’s AA Top Ten: Whats Next?
Minnehaha Academy brought home the title last year and brings back all of their main pieces. How is the rest of last year’s top ten looking?
****THIS IS THE FINAL 2016-17 TOP TEN FROM LAST MARCH
One. Minnehaha Academy. Jalen Suggs is one of the nation’s elite sophomores. Terry Lockett and Kaden Johnson were freshmen starters and they return. JaVonni Bickham is a top 20 senior. And let’s not forget about shooter Lorenzo Smith and the flurry of young talent.
Two. Crosby-Ironton. The Rangers had a senior group that went 55-8 as upperclassmen so a lot needs to be replaced. Jon Jacobson and Isaac Burley return and the Rangers have a great coach in Dave Galovich but they aren’t going to be contending level like they were in 16-17.
Three. Melrose. The Dutchmen are not going to be what they were at 29-1 but they won’t be below 20 wins either. A top ten squad? There is an outside change. Very good? With Reegan Nelson and Preston Keaveny back they will win their strong share of games once again. Just not at the elite level.
Four. Annandale. The team has been to state the last five straight seasons behind Skip Dolan. They haven’t made the title grabbing run yet and they likely won’t this year but they will be in the mix as usual. The difference is that St. Cloud Cathedral is now in their section. That said, Nick Bieniek, AJ Hinz, Trent Peper, and Trenton Peterson all return.
Five. St. Cloud Cathedral. The Crusaders made a big push last winter and are expected to be a top five team once again as they return four starters. Winona State committed Mitchell Plombon returns as does Michael Schaefer, both of which are versatile forwards that compliment each other well.
Six. NRHEG. The loss of Oakley Baker means repeating a 30 win season is not likely. Twenty plus wins is quite likely though with Benji Lundberg know being the team’s scoring threat. This will always be a good team just not quite a sure fire top ten this year.
Seven. Caledonia. You can expect Caledonia to be a bit higher in the Breakdown initial rankings when they come out in the book in the early fall. They were 25-5 last year and return leading scorers Owen King and Noah King. If there is an outstate team that has the scoring power to win state it’s Caledonia or Cathedral.
Eight. Esko. After a 26-4 season Esko went through a lot of controversy. Four straight trips to state were stopped short of a fifth and complaints ran wild. The news has died down but Esko now just has to hope that the leg injuries Adam Trapp suffered in the summer won’t linger too long. With Quinn Fischer, Ryan Pantsar, and Camden Berger all back expectations are high with Trapp in the middle. They will be a top ten team if the past is behind them.
Nine. Breckenridge. They finished as a top ten team and will start as a top ten Class AA team. Their 1-2 scoring punch this year will be Noah Christensen and Derek Dahlgren. Steven Lipp is gone but they still have the talent to contend for state again and to be a top ten team.
Ten. Perham. Another top ten finisher that will stay in the top ten. Four regulars are back from the line-up. Top scorer Jenson Beachy, big man Logan Richter (a Gopher football commit), guard Ben Winkels, and Martin Lafond all return plus the young talent is strong. Who else should you watch for as top ten? Minneapolis North, Maranatha Christian, and Byron all moved into Class AAA which makes this class much tougher and more balanced. Brookyln Center, Lake City, Jordan and Breck all are good top ten Class AA picks and teams like Virginia and Sibley East are right there too.