In celebration of senior night Friday at Chaska High School, the Hawks' upperclassmen sported t-shirts with their head photoshopped on NBA players' bodies.
Senior Emily Waletski wore Kobe Bryant’s frame and fittingly embodied the Laker sharpshooter's persona in a career outing against Metro West Conference frontrunner Bloomington Kennedy.
“In practice, you know if (Waletski) gets the ball, she’s going to do something with it,” junior teammate Sarah Althaus said. “Whether if she shoots - which she proved tonight she can - or if she drives, you never know with her. She works hard, and she really wants it.”
Waletski hit six three-point baskets to lead Chaska to a 59-55 upset over the Eagles on Friday night with a clutch performance that secured the Hawks a tie for first place in the league standings.
“It was one of the best games I’ve seen (Waletski) play, and her confidence was there. It was great to see,” Chaska coach Tara Seifert said.
The win also gave the Hawks a regular-season sweep of the Eagles, who are ranked No. 10 in Class 3A by Minnesota Basketball News. Chaska defeated Kennedy by two points in the first meeting.
Waletski drew a foul with 30 seconds left in that game and sank two free throws to seal the win for the Hawks (10-12, 8-2).
It was more of the same for Waletski on Friday, as she hit five of her three-pointers in the first half to carry Chaska to a 31-31 deadlock at halftime.
She sank her final three-pointer with under three minutes to play to force the Eagles to play the foul game the rest of the game.
“I’m just more happy we got the win,” Waletski said. “It was a big win for our conference, especially because we were only a game behind Kennedy. So to get the win as a team, it was a big deal.”
As significant as Waletski was on the scoreboard, the win was a team effort as the Hawks collectively defended Eagles' star and South Dakota commit Lashayla Wright-Ponder.
Wright-Ponder, a 6-foot-1 forward, entered the game as the state’s sixth top scorer and a matchup nightmare. She scored a game-high 28 points and surpassed the 500-point milestone for the season, ending the night at 509.
Seifert knew the Hawks couldn’t neutralize Wright-Ponder, but they continued to double- and triple-team her in the paint and forced the Eagles' backcourt to shoot.
“(Wright-Ponder’s) one of the top forwards in the state,” Seifert said. “I knew we wouldn’t be able to shut her down, but forcing a lot of their other kids to take shots and play team defense was our goal.”
Kennedy (12-9, 8-2) held out starting point guard Tyrah Spencer, who suffered a head injury against Robbinsdale Cooper on Tuesday, as a precaution.
“We tried to do what we’ve been doing all season, but without (Spencer), things weren’t quite opening up how we like them to,” Eagles coach Quintin Johnson said.
The loss ended Kennedy’s seven-game win streak that followed the first loss to Chaska. In both games, the Hawks didn’t allow another double-digit scorer besides Ponder.
With two weeks left in the season, the Hawks have two significant games remaining as they try to keep pace with Kennedy in the battle for the league championship.
Chaska plays at Cooper, the Metro West's second-place team, next Tuesday. A week later, the Hawks host Benilde-St. Margaret's, which won the first matchup by four points.
“For us to have a chance in the long run, we have to win a tight game. So to see us finish something like this is a huge factor,” Seifert said.
Bloomington Kennedy's Lashayla Wright-Ponder with a rebound and a basket during action Friday night. Photo by Korey McDermott
First Report
Emily Waletski posted a career-high 25 points in Chaska’s 59-55 upset victory over Bloomington Kennedy Friday night at Chaska High School.
With the win, the Hawks (10-12, 8-2) secured a tie for first place in the Metro West Conference standings and swept the Eagles this season.
Ranked No. 10 in the Class 3A Minnesota Basketball News poll, Kennedy (12-9, 8-2) shot 3-of-15 from the free-throw line.
Eagles senior Lashayla Wright-Ponder had a game-high 28 points and surpassed the 500-point mark this season.
