Two area teams win, eight fall in SoDak 16 state-qualifying Class A, B hoops

WATERTOWN — This might actually be a good sign for Hamlin’s sixth state Class A girls finish basketball The seven-year road to competition is not as easy as imagined.

The top-seeded Chargers trailed No. 16 seed Sisseton by nine points in the second quarter before winning 60-40 in a SoDak Class 16 state qualifier on Thursday, March 5, 2026, at Civic Arena.

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Hamlin overcame some early shooting woes and foul trouble, coupled with some great shooting from Sisseton, to defeat a member of the Northeastern Conference for the second straight year in the SoDak 16 in Watertown.

“It wasn’t the start we wanted, but you’ve got to give them credit,” Hamlin coach Tim Coisty said of Sisseton. “They stepped up and hit some 3-pointers that really got them going, but they got us into a little bit of foul trouble. I’m really proud of the way my girls hung in there. They started running and we could have given up, but we never say die.”

Here are three takeaways from this game:

Sisseton fought a good fight

Sisseton did have some success in high school girls basketball over the years, a trend that continued into this decade when it finished third in the state tournament in 2023 and 2024.

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The Redskins were just 11-10 entering Thursday’s games, including a 69-39 home loss to Hamline in late January. However, coach Sarah Lincoln’s team has won its previous six games, including a 45-36 victory over eighth-ranked Aberdeen Roncalli to seal a spot in the SoDak 16.

Hamlin led 15-0 in the teams’ previous meeting, but fell behind 6-2 behind a pair of 3-pointers by Sisseton’s Faron Hawkins and stared at a nearly 10-point deficit for much of the first 11 minutes of the game.

“The thing about us is we usually want to throw the first punch,” Hamlin’s 5-foot-6 senior point guard Addie Neuendorf said. “We wanted to come out early and put them away because that’s what we pride ourselves on. Our shots weren’t falling and the shots were falling on them.”

Small team vs. big team

Hamlin’s team consists essentially of guards, except for 6-foot sophomore Addie Jensen. They faced a Sisseton team led by 6-foot-2 junior Saylor Langager and her 6-foot freshman sister Piper, as well as 6-foot senior Elliot Hortness. It didn’t help when Jansen picked up two early fouls and was benched.

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Without Jansen in the paint, Hamlin was forced to shoot from the outside. After failing to connect early, the Chargers hit back-to-back 3-pointers and went on a game-changing 16-4 run to end the first half. Hamlin led 29-26.

At the start of the second half, Hamline went on a 15-1 run and the atmosphere was more relaxed.

“Coach Coisty has been telling us in practice that even if we take 10 three-pointers and miss them all, we have to keep shooting the 11th three-pointer,” Neuendorf said. “I’m very proud of my teammates. When the shots weren’t falling, we just kept shooting and eventually the ball started falling.”

Another chance to make some noise at state

Neuendorf was a five-year regular at North State, where he played on Hamlin’s team that won the 2023 state A championship at Civic Arena. She also competed on the 2022 Chargers team, which finished as state runner-up for the second consecutive year. Hamlin finished third last winter before losing to eventual champion Sioux Falls Christian in the semifinals.

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The Chargers are certainly capable of competing for a championship again, especially as the closest school to Watertown. Junior guard Issy Stephenson led Hamlin by scoring 17 of her game-high 28 points in the second half. Neuendorf scored 12 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists, and Jensen got rid of early foul trouble and scored 11 points and 9 rebounds.

Hamlin deserves credit for winning the rebounding battle 45-28.

“Addie Jansen just found a way to get some space and finish, and our girls found her in transition,” Coisty said. “Addie Neuendorf may not always score a lot, but look at what she does for our team. She drives the ball, ups the tempo. She keeps us involved in everything, getting assists and shooting when we need to. And Issy (a 5-foot-8 junior) had to guard a 6-foot-2 girl and still score 28 points. It was amazing.”

Hawkins hit 4 three-pointers for Sisseton and scored 12 points. Thaler Langage scored 9 points, Hotness scored 8 points, and Piper Langage had 6 rebounds.

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Here are some highlights from other state qualifiers on March 5 involving area teams:

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Class A (No. 4 Sioux Valley No. 49, No. 13 St. Thomas More No. 29)

CHAMBERLIN — Sioux Valley earned another trip to state with a fast start. The Cossacks led 11-4 after one quarter and 30-13 at halftime.

Amari Ward had a balanced attack with 11 points for the Cossacks. Talya Vincent, Liberty Trygstad, Kailey Cradduck and Masey Top each contributed eight. Craddock also had 10 rebounds.

Leighton Scherr scored 10 points and Rachael Hyde had nine rebounds for STM (16-6).

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Class A (Sioux Falls Christian 55 No. 6, Groton Area 25 No. 11)

MADISON — Defending state champion Sioux Falls Christian earned its chance to defend its title by controlling most of the game.

The Chargers led 15-5 after the first quarter and 24-10 at halftime before a 26-6 scoring climax broke out in the third quarter.

SFC’s Aubrie VanBeek scored 17 points, Lezlei Setzer 13 points and Dvoracek 11 points. Selzer added 7 rebounds and Emery Rhimes added 5 assists.

Jerica Locke had 11 points and six rebounds for Groton Area (16-7).

Grade B (3rd Bennett County 72, 14th Ipswich 21)

Winners – Sisters Peyson and Reagan O’Neill combined for 43 points and 24 rebounds to lead defending state champion Bennett County.

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BC only led 21-13 after one quarter, but then surged 17-5 in the second quarter and went on a 21-0 run in the third quarter.

Payson scored 24 points and 10 rebounds, and Reagan scored 19 points and 14 rebounds. Morgan Walln scored 13 points and had 7 steals.

Marley Guthmiller had eight points and nine rebounds for Ipswich (15-8), and Jalyssa Hutson had seven rebounds.

Class B (No. 9 Corsica-Stickney 38, No. 8 Wobai-Summit 32)

HURON — Waubay-Summit has been aiming to qualify for state as the Mustangs’ girls basketball team since the co-op’s 2015-16 season, but ultimately fell short.

Corsica-Stickney’s Brayley Boduvic scored 22 points and grabbed 6 rebounds.

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Waubay-Summit (20-3) got 14 points from Brynlee Amdahl and 13 points from Addison Heinje. Peyton Rumpza and Heinje each grabbed 11 rebounds, and Liza Purdy grabbed seven. The loss ended the Broncos’ 12-game winning streak.

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Class B (Ethan No. 53 No. 4, Deubrook Area No. 34 No. 13)

PARK — DuBruck Area’s bid to return to state for the second straight year ended in failure.

Ethan’s character, Tazia Hawkins, proves to be a big reason why. She made 5 three-pointers in the first half and a total of 8 three-pointers, scoring 27 points. Rachel Klock had 11 points and seven rebounds. Marissa Storm dished out eight assists.

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The Thieves led 18-3 after the first quarter and went on a 14-0 run in the second quarter after Dubrook scored on a field goal.

Mataya Gouws scored 15 points and Peyton Trooien scored 7 points for the Dolphins (13-10).

Class B (No. 2 Parkston 40, No. 15 De Smet 36)

Mitchell-DeSmet (11-12 overall) had a late fight with Paxton before falling.

Keeara Oakley (15 points) and Morgan Maxwell (10 points) led Parkston. Berkeley Ziebart scored 7 points and Caris Tapio had 9 rebounds.

DeSmet’s Hazel Luethmers totaled 13 points and seven rebounds. The Audi Currier adds nine and eight. Brooke Jennings had 10 rebounds.

Class B (5th Colman-Egan 49, 12th Warner 44)

LAKE HURON — Coleman-Egan won a back-and-forth game with a 15-8 scoring advantage in the fourth quarter.

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Coleman-Egan led 20-9 after one quarter and 25-18 at halftime before Warner took the lead with an 18-9 scoring surge in the third quarter.

Bynee Landis had 20 points and seven rebounds and Quinn Meyer had 12 points to lead CE. Jolie Flatten scored nine points and Maci Voelker had seven rebounds.

Jaycee Chan scored 12 points and Kayde Macknee scored nine points for the Monarchs (16-7). MaKenna Leidholt grabbed 10 rebounds and Mackner grabbed eight.

Other SoDak 16 results

Scores from other state qualifying girls basketball games on March 5:

• Class A — Mahpiya Luta 79-2, McCook Central-Montrose 21-15; No. 3 Wagner 46, No. 14 Dale Rapids 31; No. 5 Lennox 62, No. 12 Miller 33; No. 7 West Central 54, Mobridge-Pollock 42-10; and No. 9 Lakota Tech 72, No. 8 Rapid City Christian 59.

• Class B — Lyman 53 No. 1, McIntosh 22 No. 16; Hardin County No. 6 73, Jones County No. 11 No. 30; and Centerville 57 No. 7, Highmore-Harold 41 No. 10.

State Championship Pairing

• State A (March 12-14 at Watertown Civic Arena) — First-round games on March 12 include No. 1 Hamlin (21-1) vs. No. 8 Lakota Tech (19-4), 11 a.m., No. 4 Sioux Valley (21-2) vs. No. 5 Lennox (19-3), 5 p.m., No. 2 Mapia Luta (21-0) vs. No. 7 West Central (18-4), 6:45 p.m. No. 3 Wagner (19-2) vs. No. 6 Sioux Falls Christian (19-4)

• State B (March 12-14 at Brookings) — First-round games on March 12 include No. 1 Lyman (21-2) vs. No. 8 Corsica-Stickney (17-5) at 11 a.m., No. 3 Eason (21-2) vs. No. 5 Coleman-Egan (22-1) at 12:45 p.m., No. 3 Paxton (20-3) vs. No. 7 Centerville (21-2) at 5 p.m., and No. 3 No. 3 at 6:45 p.m. No. 1 Bennett County (20-3) vs. No. 6 Hardin County (22-1)

Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly Twitter) @PO_Sports Or send an email to: rmeriam@thepublicopinion.com

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This article originally appeared in the Watertown Public Opinion: SoDak 16 state Class A and B girls basketball tournament