This story is sponsored by: All Insurance of Marshfield
By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
Marshfield had three players selected to the 2017-18 All-Wisconsin Valley Conference Girls Basketball Team, as voted on by the seven conference coaches following the season.
Senior guard Meg Bryan was a second-team selection, while senior forward Hannah Meverden and junior forward Jenna Jakobi were honorable mention choices for the Tigers.
Marshfield finished 5-7 and in a tie for fourth place in the conference standings, and ended up 12-13 overall and reaching the WIAA Division 2 sectional semifinals before losing to Hortonville.
Bryan averaged 12.8 points per game in conference play for Marshfield and led all WVC players with 38 3-pointers made as she shot 34.2 percent from long range to rank fifth in that category. Bryan also averaged 2.7 assists per game.
“Meg was the most consistent scorer for us game in and game out and her breaking the school record for most threes in a season was a great accomplishment, especially with teams keying on her and making it hard for her to get shots,” Marshfield coach Heidi Michaelis said. “She didn’t force and really let those shots come to her. She hit some huge shots for us in big games.”
Meverden put together a solid senior season before suffering a season-ending injury in the Tigers’ final WVC game of the season. Meverden finished second in the conference in field goal percentage (60.9 percent), was third in free throw shooting (81.3 percent), and was tied for sixth in rebounding (6.3 per game).
“Hannah really played well and was playing her absolute best basketball when she got hurt,” Michaelis said. “She made us so much better with her ability to control the boards and defend hard. She had become a very good interior passer to the other post making us better that way.”
Jakobi led the Tigers in scoring at 12.9 points per game and assists at 4.0 per game, while shooting 52.3 percent from the field and 72.4 percent at the free throw line. She also averaged 5.1 rebounds per game.
“Jenna is one the most athletic kids I’ve ever coached and can hurt teams in so many ways, from scoring to passing and her ability to run though passing lanes,” Michaelis said. “She does something not many girls can do, which is stop on a dime and shoot a 15-footer. That’s a tough shot
to defend.
“I very much enjoyed coaching these young ladies and am sad to see Hannah and Meg graduate, as well as my other seniors. This was a fun team to be around and as always I was sad to see it come to an end.”
Stevens Point senior Maggie Negaard and D.C. Everest senior Taylor Petit were named Co-Players of the Year.
Negaard was second in the conference at 18.6 points per game, while Petit scored 14.6 points per game and shot 40 percent from 3-point range.
In addition to Negaard and Petit, Wausau West junior Maddie Schires, Stevens Point sophomore Leah Earnest, and Wausau West junior Kadie Deaton were named to the first team.
Schires was second in the conference in scoring at 19.9 points per game, assists at 5.0 per game, and free throw shooting at 95.3 percent (41 of 43), while shooting 41.3 percent from 3-point range. Her 26 3-pointers made were second to only Bryan.
Earnest topped the conference with 9.8 rebounds per game and tied her teammate Negaard for third in scoring at 18.6 points per game.
Deaton, who played only eight of Wausau West’s 12 conference games due to injury, led the conference in points per game at 20.0.
Petit and Schires were repeat first-team selections. Negaard, who missed last season due to injury, was also conference Player of the Year and a first-team pick in 2015-16.
2017-18 All-Wisconsin Valley Conference Girls Basketball Team
(*unanimous selection)
First team: *Maggie Negaard, sr., Stevens Point; *Taylor Petit, sr., D.C. Everest; *Maddie Schires, jr., Wausau West; *Leah Earnest, so., Stevens Point; Kadie Deaton, jr., Wausau West.
Second team: Maddix Bonnell, sr., Merrill; Tess Hauer, jr., Wausau West; Natalie Mohring, sr., D.C. Everest; Meg Bryan, sr., Marshfield; Lexie Higgins, sr., D.C. Everest.
Honorable mention: Jenna Jakobi, jr., Marshfield; Hannah Meverden, sr., Marshfield; Patience Pyan, sr., Merrill; Madisyn Rogan, jr., Stevens Point; Gracie Reineking, sr., Wausau East; Shelby Samz, sr., Wausau West; Breally Kautzer, sr., Wisconsin Rapids; Maddie Paitel, jr., Wisconsin Rapids.
Co-Players of the Year: Maggie Negaaard, Stevens Point, and Taylor Petit, D.C. Everest.