Senior Night is an important tradition for most teams, as they honor those who are playing in their final high school season after giving so much to their respective programs.
Winning on Senior Night is not always a guarantee, but so very special when a team can do it.
It’s even better when those very seniors, particularly the less heralded ones, can contribute so much to a team victory. And that’s exactly what happened on Jan. 31, Friday night for the Hawks’ Girls Basketball team.
Senior Hanah Thul hit a game-winning layup off a perfect pass from fellow senior Macy Anderson with just 41 seconds remaining, as Chaska beat crosstown rival Waconia 62-59.
The Hawks used a different starting lineup than they had all season to commemorate Senior Night, with five seniors starting. Joining usual starter Alexis Schaefer were Anderson, Mallory Allen, Reagan Niebuhr and Kaedynn DeBruine, a foursome that typically comes off the bench.
Schaefer had the hot hand early, scoring the first 5 points of the game. But baskets would be at a premium for both teams on this night, as the defensive intensity was dialed up between the two rivals.
The Hawks led 28-25 at the half. Waconia made their run early in the second half, taking the lead by as many as 6 points halfway through the frame.
As she has all year, Junior Addi Schneider picked up the scoring slack, with a game high 23 points. Coach Sam Canter praised Schneider for her tough-nosed play as one of the keys to victory.
“Down the stretch, Addi breaking their press and being able to attack the basket and finish strong really stood out as a key to victory,” Canter said.
The Hawks, playing shorthanded on this night, saw their senior trio of Anderson, Niebuhr and Thul step into key roles.
“Reagan started the game off strong with some big rebounds, blocks and put-backs,” Canter said. “She did the same thing in crunch time, getting big rebounds on both ends of the floor. Macy played strong defense in the second half along with Hanah having some clutch layups.”
Anderson scored 9 points and made some big baskets and free throws down the stretch, as the Hawks and Wildcats traded leads. Niebuhr made a couple of key blocks, and Thul contributed with some hustle plays on defense to keep Waconia at bay.
The Wildcats were able to tie the game at 59 with just under a minute left. That set up Thul’s game-winning bucket.
“One of our sets broke down and Macy attacked the basket, saw the help coming and passed to Hanah for the finish. We were then able to lock in on defense their last couple of possessions and work together to get stops,” said Canter.
Coach Canter had nothing but praise for their opponent after the game.
“Waconia is a well coached team,” Canter said. “They knew what to do to make things difficult for us to run our sets. They know what our tendencies are and were able to capitalize by anticipating our next move.”
The Hawks had beaten Waconia handily in their first meeting. Canter saw this as a reminder that every game is different and no one can ever be taken lightly.
“The close win solidifies that, no matter how previous games went, the next game can always go the opposite,” Canter said. “Whether we lost or won, everyone is going to make adjustments for the next go around. I hope this win shows us that we can handle tough moments together by trusting everyone on the court, but it will be important in this second half of the season for us to handle adjustments and make adjustments ourselves.”
For this special Senior Night, Canter was proud that two of her less heralded seniors were able to make the play of the game on the winning basket.
“We love a senior-to-senior connection,” she said.
The Hawks return to action on Tuesday, Feb. 3 against rival Chanhassen. The girls varsity game starts at 5:30 p.m. as part of a double-header, with the boys playing at 7:30 p.m.
