SHAKOPEE 60, CHASKA 48
Shakopee kept section 2AAAA rival Chaska winless with a 60-48 victory at home Thursday night. This was the second straight night of section 2AAAA charting, and also the second straight night a visiting Metro West team fell to a bigger conference (last night Eden Prairie beat Richfield).
As is the case more often than not when teams win, they shoot better. The Sabers shot 47% in two point range to only 23% for the Hawks. Both teams had similar attempts in the prime spots, but Shakopee cashed in with eight more field goals, or 16 more points. Despite the clear differential in shooting percentage, the game was a nail biter at half time with Shako up 24-23 at the break. Chaska narrowed the margin thanks to a buzzer beater three by freshman Kaylee Van Eps. But that momentum vanished at the start of the second half as Shakopee scored on four of their first five possessions to take a 35-27 lead (11-4 run). Isabell West led the charge to start the half scoring nine of her game high 19 points (tied with teammate Ashley Herold). Chaska was forced to play catch up after that and couldn’t narrow the gap.
Youth movements abound more and more as the years go on. Seniors seem to be a dying breed. Chaska is one team that starts three players in the single digit grades. The Hawks’ leading scorer tonight was 8th grader Mallory Heyer. The point guard’s responsibilities lay with freshman Destinee Bursch. The Chaska starting line up was a good year and half younger on average.
The Sabers are in a new competition gym. The “old” gym will be repurposed as a commons area. Shakopee is on a building spree and the facility is under construction still. They will be getting a new field house with four more courts.
Shakopee is now 6-3 on the year. Chaska is 0-8.
| Team | PP100 | scorer | Distributor | D stops |
| Shakopee | 95.2 | Two with 19 | Jaley Coplin 6 | Ashley Herold 14 |
| Chaska | 77.4 | Mallory Heyer 12 | Destinee Bursch 5 | Kylie Williams 6 |
TRENCH PLAYER: Ashley Herold with a double double of 19 points and 14 d stops. Herold converted ten free throws.