[Friday night, the last game of the regular season. The foe was poor St. Cloud Apollo, a team that did not win a game all year. The outcome was really preordained. (Apollo will represent our section in the boys’ state hockey tournament – we’ll cheer for the Eagles there.) As the last game, it was also senior night . . .]
[And there you have it.]
[The JV game (the above two photos) was almost identical to the following varsity game. This was the last game of the season for the JV’s, who had a terrific year (2 or 3 losses?).]
[The pre-game stop-and-chat.]
[Ruth (the other Super Fan Ruth) with Aria, her point guard of the future granddaughter.]
[The Carly Dropik (# 33) Fan Club; and the student section whose sign contents were scrupulously perused by the authorities before they could be displayed! 😉 ]
[Meanwhile, back at warm-ups.]
[Good luck to your hockey team.]
[And back to warm-ups.]
[Shereee Saxton, whose official title (I believe) is in-charge-of-a-lot-of-school-stuff, e.g., the Cardinal Connection, chaperones the student section while really keeping an eye on the old people to make sure we don’t get out of hand!]
[The point guard-of-the-future is back with her scouting report.]
[Kelby Olson-Roedel (13) leads the team back to the bench, lest they otherwise get lost.]
[The seniors gather to be introduced . . . and be feted with their folks.]
S-S-S-EN, I-I-I-OR, S-E-N-I-O-R-S, SENIORS!
[Anna Lee (23)]
[Brooke Heggie (45)]
[Group shot]
[Carly Dropik (33)]
[The coaching staff says good-bye to Kohler’s . . . 30th group of seniors?]
[Cheyenne Hendrickson (55)]
[Gretchen Revering (25)]
[Emily Korkowski (Manager)]
[On loan from somebody’s Facebook posting.]
[And as captured by Ms. Saxton.]
[ESPN high school gameday hosts. I recognize Jaran Roste (middle), our football quarterback and a guard on the basketball team.]
[The real refs were jolly good sports and posed for a photo with their white-caned impersonator.]
[The five seniors started. Since that was new to some, they weren’t sure in what order and to whom to share an introductory fist bump.]
[Let’s get ready to ruummmmbbblllleeee!]
Video of the opening minutes:
***
[After the opening video, we pick up play with the usual starters back on the court.]
[Kendall Kohler (3) forechecking at the center line, recognizing I’m using a hockey analogy.]
[Kendall now on the offense . . . I believe she avoided a charge here and drew a foul.]
[Macy Hatlestad (11) feeds Cheyenne in the post.]
[Kayla Feldhake (43) at the free throw line. She has the daunting task of replacing both our 6-footers, Brooke and Cheyenne, next year! 😉 ]
[Amazingly, one game after catching Macy in an on-court figure skating maneuver, Kiyana Miller (21) looks like she’s sliding into a take-off for a triple Lutz!]
[Kendall eyeballing the pumpkin from a distance.]
[Brooke on the foul line. She pretty much had her way in this game as the Eagles didn’t have anyone who could defend her.]
[Look! Is that Oscar-winner J. K. Simmons? He was at the AAAA in 2012.]
[(Just checking to see if you were paying attention.)]
At the half, the Winter Drum Line:
***
[And a shooting contest. Can you find the ball?]
[Brooke again . . . ]
[All five Cardinals poised for a defensive assault.]
[Kendall and Kiyana prepare for a special ‘K’ double-team.]
[And did Kiyana get it?]
[Guess not, but still on in-your-face defense.]
[Cheyenne and Brooke go for a block, Macy prepares for a deflection.]
[Fast break!!]
[Macy for the lay-up.]
[Brooke was leading scorer.]
[Carly on top as the Cards go into their motion offense.]
[Kelby displays what I believe are the teams’ best hops. And though running styles may affect perception, she and Kiyana appear to be the teams’ greyhounds.]
[Clap-clap-clap, clap-clap-clap as the JV players wrap up the victory.]
Whadya mean we only got a 2 seed? ~ Cub Reporter
Bonus end-of-season quote: Doh!!! ~ Homer Simpson
Up next: We host Sauk Rapids-Rice in the first round of the sections on Tuesday.
[See you at the tournament! (Photo on loan from a no-longer-remembered social media site – apologies.)]
p.s. The very next night . . .
[It’s really tough to beat an evening with The Cheese Bots, an SRO crowd, and a bottle of Don David malbec at Sixth Avenue Wine & Ale! 🙂 ]
alexandriacardinals 