Above left: With the defender on her back—literally–Breana Peterson drives into the lane against the South Ridge Panthers and hits a lay-up. Far right: Just a ninth grader, Lily Gruber- Schulz won not only this jump ball, but also she won the battle of the glass. Lily grabbed12 defensive rebounds and 8 offensive rebounds to tally an outstanding 20 boards for the game against South Ridge. Right: Sweet shooting senior forward Theresa Morrin led the Vikings with 14 points against the South Ridge Panthers. Morrin also had several assists and played a very good game defensively against the Panthers.
New Head Coach Todd Toulouse started his tenure with the Cook County Viking girls’ basketball team with a win when the Vikings defeated the Northeast Range Nighthawks 51-45 on Friday, November 30 at Northeast Range.
Leading the way for the Vikings was Leah Utities, who scored 14 points and had 3 assists. For her efforts she was named Viking Offensive Player of the game.
Lily Gruber-Schulz grabbed 16 rebounds, 12 of them defensive boards. She also had a couple of steals and ended her night with 10 points. Gruber-Schulz was named Viking Defensive Player of the game for her fine play.
Two other Vikings, Kaitlyn Linnell with 8 points and Breana Peterson with 13 points, also had fine games, said Coach Toulouse.
On Tuesday, December 4, the Vikings picked up their second win with a 41-32 victory at home over the South Ridge Panthers.
The Vikings led all the way, taking a 25-10 lead into halftime. The Panthers hit two big 3-point shots to pull the margin within 10 points near the end of the game, otherwise it was never close.
Viking Offensive Player of the game was Theresa Morrin, who scored 14 points and had numerous assists. Kaitlyn Linnell hit for 8 points and pulled down 11 rebounds while once again Gruber-Schulz grabbed teamhigh 20 rebounds to earn Defensive Player of the game honors. Leah Utities also had a great all-around game scoring 11 points.
Against the Panthers all five Viking starters played the entire game. Three seniors, Leah Utities, a guard, Theresa Morrin, a guard, and Kaitlyn Linnell, a forward, lead this year’s squad and will shoulder much of the burden offensively and defensively of the young Vikings.
The other two starters, Breana Peterson, a junior guard, and Lily Gruber-Schulz, a freshman center in her second year as a starter, will also have to play well for the team to contend in the very tough Polar League Conference.
Last year’s squad finished with an 18-8 overall record and placed third in the conference with a 10-3 record. This year’s squad isn’t as deep in talent or experience, but so far they have played with a lot of hustle and heart and have two wins to show for it.
The Vikings’ next four games are at home. At press time, they were facing McGregor on Friday, December 7.
They next play Two Harbors on Tuesday, December 11. Then the Vikings square off against Esko on Thursday, December 13 where they will face 6’8’’ senior Savanna Trapp for the last time. The last home game in this holiday string will be against the Mountain Iron Buhl Rangers on Monday, December 17.
Toulouse, who hails originally from St. Cloud, spent seven years coaching and teaching in Las Vegas and then three years teaching in Moreno, California before coming to Cook County. He replaced T.J. Super, who left for a new coaching/teaching position in the southern part of the state after coaching the Vikings for the last eight years. In addition to coaching, Toulouse also teaches junior high science.
When asked what style of play fans can expect from the Vikings, Toulouse answered, “We will rely on playing tough defense and work the ball around for good shots on offense.”
Although he didn’t see Ashley Deschampe play, Toulouse heard about the graduated senior’s scoring exploits and he doesn’t see any one player picking up her 23.1 point per game average. Instead, the coach expects a more balanced attack.
The Vikings return three seniors from last year’s squad, Theresa Morrin, Leah Utities and Kaitlynn Linnell and one junior, Breana Peterson. Three sophomores are on the roster, Jami Sjogren, Liz O’Phelan, and Kayla Cronberg, and six freshmen, Shauna Blake, Trace McQuatters, Linda Sutton, Jocelin Deneweth, Jordyn Deschampe and Lily Gruber-Schulz fill out the squad.
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