Pride Of Iowa Conference: Class Of 2021’s Who Should Be Valued

<p>In an effort to provide new and unique ways to cover prospects, we thought it would be important to give some coverage to those that might not always get it. To do that, we will be digging deep into each conference in the state.</p> <p>We will be breaking down each conference starting with the Class of 2021 first to show college coaches who they need to be placing a value on heading into the year.</p> <p>We will continue to go through each conference to try and hit as many players as possible with the hopes of helping these seniors-to-be catch the attention of prospective college coaches. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964813" first="Trey" last="Baker"] - Martensdale-St. Mary’s</strong></p> <p>The leading returning scorer in the Pride of Iowa Conference regardless of age is Martensdale-St. Mary’s senior-to-be [player_tooltip player_id="964813" first="Trey" last="Baker"], who posted 450 points a year ago.</p> <p>Baker helped the Blue Devils reach the state tournament after claiming a substate championship over league rival Mount Ayr. They finished the season 23-4 overall and should be a top contender once again in Class 1A.</p> <p>Along with averaging almost 17 points per game on 48 percent shooting from the field, Baker also led the team with almost eight rebounds per contest. He made 29 three-pointers and also contributed 50 assists, 21 blocks and 16 steals. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964879" first="Toby" last="Bower"] - Nodaway Valley</strong></p> <p>Pushing [player_tooltip player_id="964813" first="Trey" last="Baker"] for the top scorer in the league will be Class of 2021’s [player_tooltip player_id="964879" first="Toby" last="Bower"] from Nodaway Valley.</p> <p>This past season, Bower scored 363 points for the Wolverines, who went 17-8 and advanced to a substate final before falling to Montezuma. </p> <p>Bower, the second-leading scorer on the team, shot over 47 percent from the field with 62 made three-pointers to go along with 138 rebounds, 51 assists and 37 steals.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964949" first="Mason" last="Merfeld"] - Southeast Warren</strong></p> <p>It was a difficult season for Southeast Warren, but [player_tooltip player_id="964949" first="Mason" last="Merfeld"] was a bright spot, scoring almost 15 points per game with 2.6 assists. </p> <p>Merfeld, who finished with 338 points in all and 59 assists, shot 43 percent from the field and made 26 three-pointers for the Warhawks. He also recorded 77 rebounds, 72 steals and 59 assists. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="796180" first="Jack" last="Franey"] - Martensdale-St. Mary’s</strong></p> <p>An assist machine, Martensdale-St. Mary’s junior [player_tooltip player_id="796180" first="Jack" last="Franey"] produced 181 dimes a season ago against just 56 turnovers. </p> <p>Franey also scored 278 points for the state-qualifying Blue Devils, shooting 50 percent from the field with 20 made triples. He also chipped in 77 rebounds and 48 steals on the season.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="965116" first="Payton" last="Weehler"] - Mount Ayr</strong></p> <p>Mount Ayr will try to get past league rival Martensdale-St. Mary’s this season behind Class of 2021’s [player_tooltip player_id="965116" first="Payton" last="Weehler"].</p> <p>The Blue Devils topped them in the race for the conference title and also knocked Mount Ayr out of the postseason in a substate final by five points.</p> <p>Weehler led the team with 70 assists last year, adding 274 points on 44 percent shooting with 42 made three-pointers. He shot 41 percent from deep and also made 70 percent of his free throws with 54 rebounds and 46 steals.</p> <p>Like most on this list, Weehler is a multi-sport standout, having picked up offers from Graceland and Grand View to play football. </p>