Patriot players honored
Girls' Basketball
Pequot Lakes girls' basketball players receiving All-Mid-State Conference honorable mention included, front row: Kendra Johnson, left, Sarah Thomas, Katelyn Schmidt, and Kirsten Noska. Patriots earning all-conference honors included, back row: Emily Lueck, Kayla Wangen, Kylie Beltz, and Mattie Lueck.
Junior Emily Lueck was chosen Most Valuable Player for the Pequot Lakes girls' basketball team at the Patriots' banquet on Tuesday, March 16, at The Commander in Breezy Point.
Lueck led her team in scoring (18.8-point average), assists (157), and steals (106). She also shot 47.1 percent from the field and made 57 three-point baskets. Lueck is currently seventh in Pequot Lakes girls' basketball all-time scoring with 1,573 career points.
Other individual awards included four All-Mid-State Conference selections - Emily and Mattie Lueck, Kylie Beltz and Kayla Wangen, and four all-conference honorable mentions - Sarah Thomas, Katelyn Schmidt, Kendra Johnson and Kirsten Noska.
Special awards went to sophomore Rachel Mott (rookie of the year), Beltz (best field goal shooting at 48.9 percent); Wangen (most improved); Mattie Lueck (best free-throw shooting at 66.9 percent and most rebounds with 228); Thomas (best defensive player); and Thomas, Noska and Schmidt (Patriot Award for dedication and team spirit).
The Pequot Lakes varsity also made the State Academic Gold Team list with a grade-point average of 3.76.
Coach Jon Dale said the Patriots had four pre-season goals.
"The first goal was to have a better record than last year, and we did with three more wins," said Dale, whose team finished 23-6 overall. "The second goal was to win the Mid-State Conference, and we did with a 9-1 record. The third goal was to go further in the playoffs than last year, which we matched (before losing to Hawley in the South Subsection 8AA final). The fourth goal was to make it to state, which we didn't do. But there's always next year."
JV awards presented
Also at the banquet, junior varsity coach Kate Dale gave certificates of participation to the members of her 14-11 squad. They included: Sydney Johnson, Kaycee Nelson, Megan Hogen, Rachel Mott, Michelle Hayes, Abby Palmer, Jessica Kreitz, Emma Clement, Carissa Maher, Lindzee Johnson and Kristin Rettkowski.
"Sydney, Kaycee and Megan were our top scorers, but the whole team worked hard and never backed down," Dale said. "A couple big highlights were beating Barnum and Sebeka, who were both unbeaten when we played them."
