The Raider lady hoopsters (13-7-0) have been on a roll winning the last five games, including the two latest outings at Northfield (4-15) and Tartan (8-10). The conference win over Tartan helped move them back up in the standings of the Metro East Conference. Last week, Hastings was sitting atop the conference but Mahtomedi and North both passed them due to playing more conference games this past week. Hastings now sits just behind Mahtomedi at 8-0 in the conference and 13-5 overall. Hastings is 7-1 in the conference with their only conference loss to the Zephyrs.

“The kids are on a nice run, with five straight wins (and eight of last ten) as we head into the final three weeks of the season,” said Head Coach Trent Hanson. “Their play is defensive-oriented, unselfish, and a ten-player rotation has lots of kids contributing to the team's success. The second trip through the conference schedule should be pretty exciting, especially with games against North and Mahtomedi at home.”

The two games this week were a close carbon copy for the Raiders. The Raider defense did a great job keeping the opposing players off balance, transitional play was huge for Hastings both offensively and defensively, and the Raiders simply controlled the pace of play.

Getting down to some specifics about the game against Northfield on Jan. 31st, Hanson had this to say.

“It was a solid win on the road against a young team, in our final non-conference game of the year. It wasn't our best shooting night as a team, but we had 19 points off turnovers, 16 assists on 14 made shots, and held Northfield to only 23% shooting. All that contributed to a convincing 59-37 final score. Lindsey Wagner scored a season high 13 points that included three 3-point makes on five attempts. Emma Bakker (10) and Keagan McVicker (11) both grabbed double-digit rebounds.”

Against Northfield, McVicker had 11 rebounds, eight Assists and nine points. Bakker had 10 rebounds, three assists and six points. Wagner had three rebounds and 13 points, Haley Strain had 17 points, 10 rebounds and one assist. All ten players contributed somehow to the stat sheet and the win.

Moving on to Tartan, Hanson said, “This was our third straight road game and started the ‘second half’ of the conference schedule. Tartan sits right in the middle of the league and at just under .500 overall, and this was a really good win for us. We shot 61% from the field, a season high shooting percentage for one game, including 11/14 from 2-point range in the second half alone. Our defensive pressure came alive mid-way through the first half, leading to some fun transition opportunities and a 38point half.”

“We scored 46 points in the paint overall, a tribute to the players focus on getting the ball inside,” added Hanson. “Haley Strain was dominant and efficient, with 23 points on 11/14 shooting in only 17 minutes played. Each of our ten kids in the rotation played at least 15 minutes, an awesome all-around team contribution. We held Tartan to 23% shooting, and the consistent defensive effort is really paying off over the last few weeks. During this 5-game win streak, the kids have held their opponents to less than 20 points in a half in seven of the 10. It's a testament to their teamwork and toughness and is fun to watch them work.”

The high accuracy shooting of the Raiders was evident in the first half. With just 3:30 left to go, Hastings was up 25-11, in the final three minutes, Hastings scored an additional 13 points to Tartan’s nine to take the 38-19 lead into the intermission. They ultimately won 69-41 Strain led in points with 23, she had six rebounds and two blocks. McVicker was next in points with 15, she had seven rebounds, three assists and also had two blocks. Bakker had 13 points, nine rebounds and one assist.

Undoubtedly, this group of kids is fun to watch, and their team first attitude should be infectious to everyone. Sadly, the team will graduate a senior this year, but thankfully only one, Natalie Caflisch. Caflisch is the individual embodiment of the team first attitude. She is sixth on the team in points, fifth in assists, and fourth in rebounds, a good overall balanced player that is not afraid to mix it up in the paint and dish it to other players.

The good news is, you still have a chance to see all of the Raiders in action a few more times at home and on the road. They have five games left, all scheduled for 7:00 p.m. tips. Feb. 9th at Two Rivers, Feb. 15th at South St. Paul, Feb. 17th hosting Mahtomedi, Feb. 21 at Hill-Murray and the final regular season home game against Simley on Feb 24. After that, it will be section and state time!