MITCHELL — Moving into 2025, the Mitchell High School girls basketball team has found multiple ways to win games in a similar vein to a year ago.
Showcasing their toughness on the floor, the Kernels are also not afraid to create chaos against their opponents.
Mitchell has started the year at 4-1 going into Friday’s game against Harrisburg, rebounding from a season-opening loss on Dec. 13 against current Class A No. 2-ranked Vermillion. The Kernels have averaged 52.3 points per game as a team offensively during their four-game winning streak to close out 2024.
Wins included a marquee victory over Class AA No. 4 Rapid City Stevens on Dec. 20 and Sisseton, last year’s top seed at the Class A state tournament, on Dec. 30. In both games, it was their instinctive play on defense to set up rallies in order to finish the game on top.
Adam Thury / Mitchell Republic
“Once they get into the zone, you get over that you’re tired and (our team) knows we have to do that,” head coach Dave Brooks said. “They go on instinct, they’re scrappy and that’s what we said on Day One. This is what we have to do to be competitive.”
The scrappiness of the defense derives from the small-ball concept Mitchell has used for years to combat going up against more imposing teams. Addie Siemsen and Delaney Zoss are the only players listed at 5-foot-8 or higher to have appeared in all of the Kernels’ games this season.
Kenzie Peterson, who’s 5-foot-7, has been generally found underneath the basket with teammate Kenzie Hetland sidelined with a strained knee, matching up with some of the top forwards in the state. Battling for rebounds and coming away with those 50-50 boards open the opportunities in transition, where the Kernels have shown off their speed to drive towards the rim with force.
“There’s going to be a lot of mismatches on the floor,” Peterson said. “If we can’t get every rebound and every opportunity to score and get the ball out of our defense, that’ll be the best thing we can do.”
Adam Thury / Mitchell Republic
“Once we start looking up the floor, getting passes, getting layups, that’s when we really start going and teams just can’t keep up,” added Londyn Hajek. “We tell ourselves that we just have to keep pushing through, and use our speed to our advantage and in transition.”
Spending much time on both transition offense and defense at the start of the year along with pace, Mitchell has created chances through its situational awareness and anticipation. The Kernels average 11.2 steals per game, including 17 steals in the victory over Sisseton.
Mitchell has also slightly deviated from its traditional modified zone defense in favor of more man-to-man looks to put the players in position to make plays on the ball. The Kernels will also call for the press on the floor if there’s a chance to capitalize on momentum.
“We always focus on that,” Carsyn Weich said. “Getting up and down the court is what we really strive on and what we focus on doing to the best of our ability, and I think that’s really the key to our game as they fall into place.”
Adam Thury / Mitchell Republic
It all equates to Mitchell having the fifth-best scoring defense in Class AA girls basketball, allowing only 40.4 points per game to start the year, with a plus-31 point differential, one of nine teams to have a positive differential at the beginning of the season.
As the Kernels move forward into the heart of the season and its Eastern South Dakota Conference slate, the team knows there’s going to be moments of adversity and teams that will stretch the roster beyond their limits.
But if there’s one guarantee each night Mitchell takes the floor, they’re going to compete.
“We’ve got some competitors,” Brooks said. “From that, we know that they’re kind of warriors. The size doesn’t matter. They’re just going to compete, and that’s a good thing to know. The kids got some confidence and know they have to work hard just to clean up some things. Hopefully, they’ll respond and we’ll play some more good games.”
Blake Durham is a Sports Reporter for the Mitchell Republic, having joined in October of 2023. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in December of 2022 with a bachelor’s degree in Communications. Durham can be found covering a variety of prep and collegiate sports in the area.
