Iowa all-state girls' basketball 2020: North Linn's Grace Flanagan follows title with 1st-team selection

DES MOINES — Basketball has always been good to Grace Flanagan.

This year, though, it became a lot more fun.

'I used to put too much on myself,' said the senior from North Linn High School. 'This year, I was able to let loose.'

Flanagan led the Lynx to their first girls' basketball state championship last week. And now, she has finished her climb to first-team all-state status.

The Iowa Print Sports Writers Association released its all-state teams Tuesday. Flanagan is one of 11 area players named to the first team of their respective classes.

Aubrey Joens of Iowa City High and Mallory McDermott of Cedar Rapids Prairie were named to the first team in Class 5A.

Marion's Kayba Laube and Riley Wright, Cedar Rapids Xavier's Caitlynn Daniels, Clear Creek Amana's Karsyn Stratton and Center Point-Urbana's Ryley Goebel were honored in 4A.

Cascade's Nicole McDermott and West Branch's Sasha Koenig joined Flanagan on the top team in 2A, and Montezuma's Shateah Wetering earned first-team status in 1A.

Sportswriters from around the state voted on the teams Saturday.

Caitlin Clark of West Des Moines Dowling was selected as Miss Iowa Basketball 2020.

A 5-foot-11 guard bound for the University of Iowa, Clark averaged a state-best 33.7 points per game as a senior and scored more than 2,500 points in her career. She shot 50.9 percent from the field, making 84 3-pointers.

Brian Wheatley, coach at North Linn, noticed a change in Flanagan's on-court demeanor this season.

'She smiled a lot more,' Wheatley said. 'If she made a mistake, she would shake it off a lot quicker.

'It was obvious she was enjoying it more this year, and she really improved her game.'

Flanagan averaged 18.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 4.0 steals per game this season as the Lynx went 25-2, capping it with a 66-42 rout of Osage in the 2A state final.

'We had some ups and downs. The two regular-season losses (to Bellevue Marquette and Cascade) hit us pretty hard,' said Flanagan, who was a third-team selection in 2018 and a second-teamer last year.

'We knew what we needed to do to fix the problems we had in those games.'

Flanagan will play at Des Moines Area Community College next year.

Six of the 11 area first-teamers were repeat picks, and two of them — Laube and Nicole McDermott — were honored for the third time.

Laube, who has signed with the University of Northern Iowa, netted 21.1 points per game. The Indians went 21-2, but were upset by Clear Creek Amana in the 4A regional finals. That snapped a streak of three straight years they reached the state finals, topped by a championship run in 2018.

McDermott also piloted her team to a state title in 2018. Cascade went 26-1 and reached the 2A state semifinals this season. She averaged 16.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.3 rebounds per contest. She will play at Clarke University next winter.

Joens, Daniels, Wright and Wetering were first-teamers for the second straight time. Wright is a junior, the others are seniors.

Class 5A

First Team

Caitlin Clark, sr., West Des Moines Dowling — Miss Iowa Basketball

Aubrey Joens, sr., Iowa City High

Maya McDermott, sr., Johnston

Mallory McDermott, sr., Cedar Rapids Prairie

Grace Larkins, jr., Southeast Polk

Katie Dinnebier, jr., Waukee

Emerson Green, sr. Cedar Falls

Kendall Nead, sr., Johnston

Second Team

Halli Poock, fr., Waterloo West

Rose Nkumu, sr., Iowa City High

Caroline Waite, jr., Ames

Sidney McCrea, sr., Cedar Rapids Prairie

Hannah Stuelke, soph., Cedar Rapids Washington

Audrey Koch, jr., Iowa City West

Maya Gyamfi, sr., Urbandale

Anaya Barney, jr., Cedar Falls

Third Team

Nyamer Diew, sr., Sioux City East

Meg Burns, sr., Ankeny Centennial

Alex Honnold, sr., West Des Moines Valley

Brooklin Dailey, fr., Southeast Polk

Peyton Kelderman, jr., Waukee

Arianna Jackson, fr., Des Moines Roosevelt

Camry Dillie, sr., Davenport North

Sahara Williams, fr., Waterloo West

Class 4A

First Team

Grace Boffeli, sr., North Scott

Kayba Laube, sr., Marion

Caitlynn Daniels, sr., Cedar Rapids Xavier

Karsyn Stratton, sr., Clear Creek Amana

Riley Wright, jr., Marion

Taylor Veach, soph., DeWitt Central

Megan Witte, sr., Lewis Central

Ryley Goebel, soph., Center Point-Urbana

Second Team

Presley Case, sr., North Scott

Ava Hawthorne, soph., Gilbert

Madison Camden, soph., Glenwood

Abbie Draper, jr., Waverly-Shell Rock

Anna Deets, sr., Mason City

Adrianna Katcher, sr., Center Point-Urbana

Katie Keitges, sr., Knoxville

Kenzie Foley, sr., Sergeant Bluff-Luton

Third Team

Molly Ihle, jr., Ballard

Ella Van Weelden, jr., Marion

Allie Meadows, soph., DeWitt Central

Nell Sybesma, sr., Maquoketa

Libby Arnold, sr., Cedar Rapids Xavier

Jordan Cunningham, sr., Dallas Center-Grimes

Maggie Wilkins, jr., Knoxville

Aree Beckman, soph., Cedar Rapids Xavier

Class 3A

First Team

Sharon Goodman, sr., Crestwood

Kallyn Stumbo, sr., Okoboji

Ella Skinner, sr., Sioux City Heelan

Sara Faber, sr., Clear Lake

Jaedon Murphy, sr., North Polk

JeMae Nichols, jr., Cherokee

Kelsey Fields, jr., Creston

Katelyn Stanley, sr., Sioux City Heelan

Second Team

Maggie Phipps, jr., North Polk

Mariah Prewitt, jr., Des Moines Christian

Mya Merschman, jr., Central Lee

Regan Freland, sr., Monroe PCM

Ellie Foster, sr., Dike-New Hartford

Brooklyn Meyer, soph., West Lyon

Abbey Holmes, sr., Algona

Reagan Barkema, soph., Roland-Story

Third Team

Jenna Twedt, fr., Benton Community

Janie Schoonhoven, jr., Unity Christian

Haley Rasmussen, jr., Atlantic

Sophie Walker, sr., Red Oak

Finley Hall, fr., West Liberty

Magan Christopherson, sr., Okoboji

Kaia Holtkamp, soph., Solon

Jayden Nichols, soph., Estherville ELC

Class 2A

First Team

Grace Flanagan, sr., North Linn

Rachel Leerar, jr., West Hancock

Amanda Chizek, sr., West Hancock

Nicole McDermott, sr., Cascade

Taryn Scheuermann, sr., Van Buren County

Sidney Brandau, sr., Osage

Sasha Koenig, jr., West Branch

Kylee Morrison, sr., Logan-Magnolia

Second Team

Sam Stewart, sr., Mount Ayr

Kinsey Scheffler, sr., Avoca AHSTW

Kailey Jones, jr., Avoca AHSTW

Mallory McCall, jr., West Monona

Isabel Manning, jr., Van Buren County

Chloe Loftstrom, sr., North Union

Ella Imler, jr., Maquoketa Valley

Hayden Heimensen, jr., Central Lyon

Third Team

Ellie Ware, jr., North Linn

Olivia Terrones, sr., East Marshall

Molly Schany, sr., Emmetsburg

Lexi Branning, sr., IKM-Manning

Helaina Hillyard, sr., Mediapolis

Taya Tucker, jr., Maquoketa Valley

Bailey Winter, sr., MFL MarMac

Kennedy Kelly, soph., West Hancock

Class 1A

First Team

Shateah Wetering, sr., Montezuma

Kori Wedeking, sr., Clarksville

Audi Crooks, fr., Algona Garrigan

Molly Joyce, fr., Algona Garrigan

Macy Sievers, soph., Newell-Fonda

Jayde Barto, sr., Kingsley-Pierson

Maddie Paulson, sr., Woodbury Central

Jensen Archibald, sr., Martensdale-St. Marys

Second Team

Hali Anderson, jr., Saint Ansgar

Hannah Erickson, sr., Elkader Central

Kassadi Steel, sr., North Mahaska

Maggie Walker, jr., Newell-Fonda

Tori Michel, sr., Bellevue Marquette

Allie Petry, jr., Council Bluffs St. Albert

Taylor Harpenau, soph., Marcus MMCRU

Mallory Loftus, sr., Lynnville-Sully

Third Team

Danielle Hoyle, jr., Paton-Churdan

Megan Stuhr, sr., Sigourney

Lauren Wilson, soph., Springville

Madison Hough, sr., Graettinger GTRA

Addison Weber, sr., Le Mars Gehlen

Alyssa Hames, jr., Ackley AGWSR

Macy Emgarten, soph., Exira-EHK

Meagan Mudderman, soph., Lansing Kee

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