Class AAA Title Contender Series: Alexandria

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cardinals from Alexandria are thinking in threes: conference, section, and state (we assume). And they should be because the talent is there to contend for three very important trophies. Alex is next in the contender series.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Key Wins in 22-23 (25-6)</strong>: Mankato East, Holy Family, Detroit Lakes (x2), St. Cloud Tech (x2), St. Francis, Moorhead, Brainerd</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Oops</strong>: Totino-Grace, Orono (x2), Benilde-St. Margaret's, St. Cloud Tech, Brainerd</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Moving On</strong>:  The top player lost to graduation was Jaxon Shoenrock, an all league honored talent. Jaxon was often that fourth scoring option for the team. I'm sure you will find Jaxon playing baseball somewhere as he's a very good baseball player. Starting guard Travis Hoepner also graduated as did deep bench seniors Jacob Balcome and Bryce Paffrath. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Returning Starters (3)</strong>.  [player_tooltip player_id='1284138' first='Grayson' last='Grove'] had an all state junior season leading the team in scoring and rebounding. Grove hurt his ankle in the state tournament which led to off-season surgery but in that time Grayson committed to Minnesota and will play for the Gophers in the future. Also returning for the Cards is second leading scorer [player_tooltip player_id='1572690' first='Chase' last='Thompson'] who is the team's stretch four as well as their best shooter. Grove is a top 5-6 area player in the senior class and Thompson is a top three player in the junior class. Then you have [player_tooltip player_id='2025473' first='Bralyn' last='Steffensmeier'], a senior guard that scored a dozen points a game and was named all Central Lakes Conference. All three players are back and are a big reason that the Cards are considered a top contender for the title. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Reserves Playing a Bigger Role:</strong> In [player_tooltip player_id='2118449' first='Mason' last='Witt'], [player_tooltip player_id='2118495' first='Talan' last='Witt'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1450112' first='Dawson' last='Roderick'] the Cards have three reserve guard/wings that played a huge role last season and all three can step right into spots that graduation voided. The Cards have one of the most impressive zone pressure systems you will see and every player - the graduated, the returning starters and the returning reserves - do it well. [player_tooltip player_id='2118449' first='Mason' last='Witt'] played big minutes last year and will have no problem stepping into the starting lead guard role as a sophomore. [player_tooltip player_id='2118495' first='Talan' last='Witt'] can play both guard spots and he will be a sophomore. And [player_tooltip player_id='1450112' first='Dawson' last='Roderick'] will go from reserve scoring option to replacing the wing scoring numbers. This group will step right in and likely upgrade a couple starting spots and the 6th Man role. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Potentials from the JV</strong>. Walker Hennen and Evan Moore are the guards/wings that could step into those 7th/8th man role as the Cards will go deeper with their full court pressuring system (assuming that is still something they will do regularly). Also keep eyes on juniors Mason Gorghuber and [player_tooltip player_id='1946855' first='Samson' last='Hagstrom'] who were sophomores that played on the junior varsity a season ago. And keep in mind the depths of the 2026 group the Cards have as its more than the Witts: Gavid Roderick is the next Roderick, [player_tooltip player_id='1946855' first='Samson' last='Hagstrom'] was on the JV last year as a frosh as was [player_tooltip player_id='2115658' first='Myles' last='Gray']. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We just went through seven guard/wing possibilities for those two or three reserve spots, it will be interesting to see who grabs them. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>New to the Varsity program</strong>. If I had names they would be from the tenth grade or ninth grade teams (and this is usually for transfers) because Alex has no transfers coming in like six of the other nine top ten teams have in Class AAA. But then keep in mind Totino-Grace, Benilde-St. Margaret's and St. Cloud Tech also lost multiple transfers too so there is give and take. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Final Thoughts</strong>: I think Alex has the pieces to make a run. They have size, they have high major talent, they have experience, they have a ton of skill at all spots, they have experience in a system that gives teams trouble, and they are very familiar and comfortable with one another. This could be a really fun season at Alexandria. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->