Kempf, the 5-foot-11 senior forward, was selected to the list of Class AA’s honor list following a highly successful season for the Kernels girls basketball team, which finished sixth in Class AA with a 16-8 season.
Every player on both the first and second teams competed in the Class AA state tournament, including two representatives from the state champions Sioux Falls Washington. On the first team, the Warriors’ senior center Sydni Schetnan and junior guard/forward Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda were joined by Harrisburg senior guard/forward Brecli Honner, Aberdeen Central senior guard Brooklyn Kusler and O’Gorman senior guard Isabelle Moore, with Brandon Valley sophomore forward Hilary Behrens. The teams were selected by the South Dakota Basketball Coaches Association.
The second team included Kempf, Aberdeen Central senior guard Abby Kopecky, Harrisburg junior forward Emilee Boyer, O’Gorman junior guard/forward Hannah Ronsiek, Rapid City Central senior guard Jordon Heckert and Rapid City Central junior guard Jayda McNabb.
Kempf averaged 12.8 points, 7 rebounds and 2.3 rebounds per contest, while blocking 15 shots and making 33 steals for the season. From the field, she was nearly a 51% field goal shooter and made 73% of her free throws. On defense, Kempf frequently had the task of guarding the opponent’s tallest or most skilled interior player, a task she embraced.
“Macy has been so important to our success the last couple of years,” Mitchell coach Cole Knippling said. “She has become a consistent scoring threat both inside and outside on the court, but what really makes her stand out is her defense and rebounding.”
Kempf scored in double-figures 16 times for the season for Mitchell, including a season-high 18 points three times, along with three double-doubles.
Kempf was also the lone Kernel picked to the all-Eastern South Dakota Conference following the season. She is the first MHS girls basketball player to receive all-state honors since Taylor Volesky was named to the Class AA second team in 2015. Kempf intends to play basketball at Mount Marty University in college.
“She was a high-level defender and had the ability to control the boards at the end of games," Knippling said. "She had a great career for the Kernels, and this honor is just validation of that fact. I am excited to see what she will do at the next level.”
Sioux Falls Washington's Sydni Schetnan puts up a shot over the Rapid City Central defense during the Class AA state girls basketball quarterfinals March 11, 2021 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls. (South Dakota Public Broadcasting photo)
The first team honorees included a number of do-it-all standouts for their teams. Schetnan, a 6-foot-5 center, was among the state’s most imposing players on both ends of the court in a championship season. The only repeat first-team selection in 2021, she averaged 16.1 points and 9.2 rebounds per game, along with 67 blocks for the season, shooting nearly 58%. Schetnan was the Class AA coaches’ pick for player of the year, which goes to a top senior in each class. She intends to play both basketball and volleyball at the University of Louisville, which played in the Elite Eight Tuesday for the third consecutive tournament.
Her teammate Mwenentanda helped the Warriors to a 20-2 season and the Class AA title. A 6-foot-2 junior, she averaged 15.3 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game, shooting 46.8% from the field and 77% on free throws. Mwenentanda is a top-25 national recruit in the class of 2022, according to ESPN.com, with Clemson, Duke, Iowa State, Louisville, Maryland, Oregon, Stanford, Vanderbilt, Texas and UCLA among the schools she’s considering.
Honner, a 5-foot-10 guard/forward, led Harrisburg to a fifth-place finish at 21-3. She paced the Tigers in scoring with 14.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game, shooting 47% from the field and 44% from 3-point range. She will play basketball for the University of Sioux Falls collegiately.
Kusler, a 6-foot senior, averaged a Class AA-best 18 points and seven rebounds per game, shooting 65% on field goals and 90% on free throws, helping Aberdeen Central to a 19-5 season and seventh place in Class AA. She has signed to play volleyball at Southwest Minnesota State University.
Moore, the Class AA Spirit of Su winner, helped the Knights finish third in Class AA with a 17-7 record. She averaged 13.3 points, 5 rebounds and 3.8 assists, shooting almost 46% from the field and nearly 80% on free throws. The 5-foot-10 guard will play basketball at Augustana.
The lone underclassmen honored on the team, Behrens scored the most total points of the Class AA honorees with 339 points, or 17 points per game, along with 5.5 rebounds each game. She helped the Lynx to a fourth-place finish in Class AA with a 17-7 record.
Honner, Kusler and Mwenentanda moved up from 2020 second team honors to the first team in 2021. Ronsiek was named to the all-state second team for a second straight year.
Class AA girls basketball all-state teams
As selected by the South Dakota Basketball Coaches Association
First team
Sydni Schetnan, Sioux Falls Washington, 6-5, sr., forward-center (16.1 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 67 blocks)
Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda, Sioux Falls Washington, 6-2, jr., forward-guard (15.3 ppg, 7.6 rpg)
Hilary Behrens, Brandon Valley, 6-0, so., forward (17 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 54 steals)
Brecli Honner, Harrisburg, 5-10, sr., guard-forward (14.8 ppg, 5.4 rpg)
Brooklyn Kusler, Aberdeen Central, 6-0, sr., guard (18 ppg, 7 rpg)
Isabelle Moore, O’Gorman, 5-9, sr., guard (13.3 ppg, 5 rpg, 3.8 apg)
Second team
Hannah Ronsiek, O’Gorman, 5-11, jr., guard-forward (13.4 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 62 steals)
Jayda McNabb, Rapid City Stevens, 5-10, jr., guard (12.2 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 4 apg, 55 steals)
Macy Kempf, Mitchell, 5-11, sr., forward (12.8 ppg, 7 rpg)
Abby Kopecky, Aberdeen Central, 5-10, sr., guard (14 ppg, 4 rpg)
Jordon Heckert, Rapid City Central, 5-9, sr., guard (17.1 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 3.2 apg, 57 steals)
Emilee Boyee, Harrisburg, 6-1, jr., forward (10.4 ppg, 8.4 rpg)
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Macy Kempf named Kernels' first Class AA all-state honoree in six years - The Daily Republic
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