Quantcast
skip navigation

Eastview throttles White Bear Lake in season opener

By Trevor Squire, SportsEngine, 11/23/17, 10:00AM CST

Share

Lightning senior Megan Walstad led all scorers with 18 points.


Megan Walstad (right) scored a game-high 18 points to lead Eastview to a 66-41 victory Friday night in the Pat Paterson Thanskgiving Tournament. Photo by Trevor Squire, SportsEngine

Eastview has made six straight state tournament appearances but lost five seniors who were highly involved in last year’s third-place campaign.

That six-year streak hasn't been built around a few key players, or a class or two, but instead has been laid brick-by-brick in the youth ranks. With a wealth of stellar athletes, the Lightning’s motto this season, “Zoom Out,” is meant to remind the team to step back and take a broader look at their game.

“Zoom out means really not to focus on yourself,” University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee commit Megan Walstad said. “We don’t want to be selfish players. We want to be selfless, and zoom out and see our team as a whole. Everyone has a responsibility on the team everyone is a part of the team. You are just as important.”

Eastview’s rotational players began to find their roles in the lineup as the Lightning ran away with a 66-41 victory over White Bear Lake Friday night in the Pat Paterson Thanksgiving Tournament at Hamline University. Walstad had a game-high 18 points.

Eastview tallied 17 steals as its defense found its form in the final half. The Lightning (1-0), ranked second in the Class 4A preseason Minnesota Basketball News poll, went on a 20-6 run in the second half to put the game out of the No. 11-4A Bears’ reach.

White Bear Lake (0-1) has its own postseason pedigree making three consecutive state tournament appearances, and when both teams felt the officials would allow the game flow, the energy and intensity began to boil in Hutton Arena.

The Lightning struggled at the outset, scoring just one basket in the first five minutes of play.

“Once things turn to game speed for the first time, you realize when you’re not over in the right spot what that can do and what the other team can do with that,” Eastview coach Molly Kasper said.

Eastview turned its attention to defense and began creating opportunities off White Bear Lake’s mistakes and turned it into a dominant run where University of North Dakota soccer prospect Lauren Glas scored seven of her 13 points off the bench.

“I went in thinking ‘we just need to get one stop’ and as a team we did that and it transferred to our offense,” Glas said. 

A bubble player for two years, Glas is joined by starters Macy Guebert and Emma Carpenter who played extended minutes for both varsity and junior varsity. The Lightning also return Mariah Alipate to the starting lineup after she tore her anterior cruciate ligament last year.

Kasper, knowing the versatility and talent in her lineup, said that many players will have their nights as opponents will struggle to hone in on a single scoring threat.

“It was a huge team win for us, but this is just the beginning,” Glas said.


Tessah Anderson (center) goes up for a basket in the second half of the Bears' loss. Photo by Trevor Squire, SportsEngine

First Report

Megan Walstad tallied a game-high 18 points to carry Eastview to a 61-44 season opening victory over White Bear Lake Friday night in the Pat Paterson Thanksgiving Tournament at Hamline University in St. Paul.

Ranked second in the preseason Class 4A Minnesota Basketball News poll, the Lightning (1-0) used a 20-6 run midway through the final half to put away the Bears (0-1).

Junior forward Lauren Glas chipped in 13 points for Eastview.

Sophomore Ella Janicki posted a team-high nine points for No. 11-4A White Bear Lake. Senior teammates Tessah Anderson and Jordan Ferrand finished with eight apiece.

Photo Gallery

Spotlight Games

  • Familiar powers land highest state seeds

  • By RON HAGGSTROM, Star Tribune 03/09/2024, 1:30pm CST
  • Hopkins, Minnetonka and St. Michael-Albertville lead the Class 4A list. Benilde-St. Margaret's heads 3A, and Providence Academy is atop 2A.
  • Read More

Most Popular

The MN Girls' Basketball Hub polls are for entertainment purposes only.