Prep Sports Notebook: Manion’s transfer leaves major void for Proctor-Hermantown Mirage

Taylee Manion’s transfer to Hill-Murray leaves Proctor-Hermantown facing a defining challenge before the girls hockey season begins: replacing the player who would have been the centerpiece of its lineup, an accomplished defenseman whose value extended well beyond her scoring totals.

Manion, the 2025-26 HowieHanson.com All-Area Player of the Year and a member of the United States’ gold medal-winning team at the 2026 Under-18 Women’s World Championship, leaves after helping the Mirage win the Section 7A championship and finish fifth at state. Her move takes an elite player out of a lineup already losing its two leading scorers, three senior defensemen and all three goaltenders.

The impact reaches both ends of the ice. Manion recorded five goals and 17 assists in 23 games last season, providing offense from the blue line while earning first-team All-Lake Superior Conference recognition. She produced those numbers despite missing three weeks while competing internationally, and her departure removes the player who would have brought the strongest combination of defensive credentials, offensive production and international experience to the returning group.

For a team that allowed 46 goals in 29 games last season, replacing that presence is a central task. Proctor-Hermantown must develop a new defensive foundation while finding ways to sustain an offense that helped produce a 20-7-2 record.

Last season ended with a strong postseason run. Top-seeded Proctor-Hermantown defeated Rock Ridge 9-0 in the Section 7A semifinals and North Shore 5-1 in the championship game. At state, the fifth-seeded team lost 3-2 in overtime to fourth-seeded Dodge County before beating Luverne 4-0 and Mankato East 1-0 for the consolation championship.

The transition begins quickly. Proctor-Hermantown opens at home against Moose Lake Area at 7 p.m. Nov. 12, then travels to Benilde-St. Margaret’s on Nov. 13 and Edina on Nov. 14. Three games in three days will provide an immediate examination of a team with substantial changes to address.

There is offensive experience available to build around. Avery Milbridge leads the returning candidates after finishing with 19 goals and 17 assists for 36 points in 29 games, which ranked third on the team in scoring and second in goals.

Ella Kaups and Natalie Heitzman each scored 15 goals as sophomores. Kaups added 15 assists for 30 points in 29 games, while Heitzman finished with nine assists and 24 points in 28 appearances. Their production gives Proctor-Hermantown two experienced scoring options as their class moves into its junior season.

Aubrey Miner contributed three goals and 21 assists for 24 points last season. Her assist total ranked second on the team, making her an important returning candidate for an offense that must replace considerable finishing and playmaking ability.

Those four forwards accounted for 52 of Proctor-Hermantown’s 115 goals last season. Their continued production would help ease the losses of Mya Gunderson, who led the team with 21 goals and 38 points, and Grace Nichols, who contributed 12 goals and a team-high 25 assists for 37 points.

Other senior departures include Peighton Paulson, who had six goals and 15 assists, and Mylie Chesley, who finished with five goals and eight assists. Together, those four graduating forwards accounted for 44 goals and 109 points.

The defensive changes are equally substantial. In addition to Manion’s transfer, Proctor-Hermantown loses seniors Ashlee Pruse, Rylee Kalkbrenner and Cambriia Thomas. Pruse contributed 13 points, Kalkbrenner nine and Thomas four.

Elise Eckstrom is among the experienced defensemen eligible to return after recording two goals and three assists in 28 games as a junior. Savannah Baker, and Cadence Downs are returning junior defenders.

A new goaltending group also must emerge. Suri Langley, Lillian Clemons and Avery Kuras all graduated. Langley finished with a 1.78 goals-against average and .913 save percentage, while Clemons posted a 1.23 goals-against average and .935 save percentage.

This season’s schedule includes several opportunities to measure the rebuilt lineup against familiar opponents. After the opening three games, Proctor-Hermantown hosts Maple Grove on Nov. 20 and North Shore on Nov. 24 before visiting Andover on Nov. 28.

December includes home games against Rock Ridge on Dec. 1, Hibbing/Chisholm on Dec. 8, Breck on Dec. 18, Dodge County on Dec. 19 and Cloquet/Esko on Dec. 22. Road dates are scheduled at Orono on Dec. 5, Grand Rapids/Greenway on Dec. 10, North Shore on Dec. 15 and Rock Ridge on Dec. 29.

January begins with home games against Blaine on Jan. 2, Superior on Jan. 5, Roseau on Jan. 8 and Duluth on Jan. 12. Proctor-Hermantown then visits Cloquet/Esko on Jan. 19, Gentry Academy on Jan. 22 and River Cities on Jan. 29.

The final game brings Hill-Murray to Proctor-Hermantown on Jan. 30. It also creates the possibility of Manion facing her former team — a late-season meeting that would underscore just how much the lineup has changed.

Hermantown boys bring back scoring core

Hermantown’s boys basketball team enters the 2026-27 season with something an eight-win team does not always have: an experienced scoring foundation. The challenge is turning that experience into more consistent basketball against a schedule that repeatedly puts the Hawks across from the teams they must catch.

Sawyer Senst, Ben Sundland, Noah Schulz and Corbin Petcoff give Hermantown four established offensive options spanning three classes. Their production offers a reason to expect improvement, but last winter’s finish supplies the necessary restraint: The Hawks went 8-19 and lost 83-69 to Chisago Lakes in the Section 7AAA quarterfinals.

Senst, now a senior, averaged 15.6 points and 8.2 rebounds last season, collecting 405 points and 213 rebounds in 26 games. His ability to provide both scoring and rebounding makes him central to Hermantown’s prospects. He earned second-team All-Lake Superior Conference recognition, while Schulz received honorable mention.

Schulz enters his sophomore season after averaging 13.5 points and scoring 365 points in 27 games. Sundland, a senior, averaged 13.4 points and 4.6 rebounds, while Petcoff, a junior, contributed 9.4 points per game. Those four combined for 1,373 points last season, providing substantial continuity at the offensive end.

Their experience also comes in different forms. Senst and Sundland enter their final high school season with the urgency that accompanies it. Schulz already has a full varsity season behind him despite having three years of eligibility remaining, and Petcoff has an opportunity to become a larger part of the offense.

HowieHanson.com has Hibbing, Grand Rapids and Duluth Denfeld ranked ahead of Hermantown in the 2026-26 Lake Superior Conference Preseason Ranking.

The potential supporting group includes seniors Bryce Lundeen, Neo Carlson, James Kleist, Matthew Strukel, Nate Haedrich and Jordan Wilcox; juniors Shea Eckel, Vinny Bolf, Hudson Folen, Henrik Wikstrom and Drew Sonneson; and sophomores Simon Banaszak, Ayden Maki and Lake Decker. 

The schedule offers a useful early comparison. Princeton visits Dec. 4 after beating Hermantown 97-78 in last season’s opener, when Sundland scored 24 points, Senst 12 and Petcoff 11. The rematch will give the Hawks an immediate opportunity to show whether a more experienced group can better manage the defensive stretches that separated the teams a year ago.

Hermantown travels to North Branch on Dec. 8 and hosts Minneapolis Roosevelt on Dec. 12. Hibbing follows at home Dec. 22, making the final preholiday game an important early test against a section opponent. Cambridge-Isanti is scheduled for Dec. 28 at Romano Gymnasium, according to the Basketball Hub listing.

January places several consequential games close together. Duluth Denfeld visits Jan. 2, followed by Chisago Lakes on Jan. 12. The latter brings a direct postseason reference point: Hermantown’s last season ended against the Wildcats, and this meeting offers a chance to measure progress well before another tournament begins.

The Hawks then visit Cloquet on Jan. 14 and return home against St. Paul Harding on Jan. 15. That consecutive-night stretch will test recovery and bench contributions, particularly after a rivalry game. Grand Rapids visits Jan. 22 before Hermantown travels to Duluth Marshall on Jan. 26.

February shifts more of the burden to the road. Hermantown visits St. Thomas Academy on Feb. 2, hosts Cloquet on Feb. 5 and travels to Rock Ridge on Feb. 9. The second Grand Rapids meeting comes on the road Feb. 16, followed by Superior at home Feb. 18.

The closing stretch is particularly revealing: trips to Duluth Denfeld on Feb. 23, Esko on Feb. 26 and Bemidji on March 4, then a home game against Duluth East on March 5. 

Five of the seven February games are away from home. That makes the earlier home opportunities especially valuable and gives Hermantown a clear late-season assignment: demonstrate that its improvement travels.

The Hawks have enough returning production to make a stronger season plausible. Whether that becomes reality will depend on how consistently they defend, rebound and support their leading scorers when the schedule becomes most demanding.

Hermantown girls face substantial reset after 18-win season

Hermantown’s girls basketball team begins the 2026-27 season facing more than the usual work of replacing a graduating class. Seven seniors have departed, and Jailynn Sherill, an All-Lake Superior Conference player who would have been a prominent returning contributor, has transferred to Proctor.

That combination changes the outlook for a program coming off an 18-10 season and a four-point loss in the Section 7AAA semifinals. The Hawks must replace much of the group that established last winter’s success while asking players who shared supporting responsibilities to take on larger ones.

Graduated senior Bailey Hermanson was a second-team All-LSC selection last season.

Other senior departures include Brooke Wiese, Avea Harriman, Danika Bolf, Alexis Chandler, Aurora Decker and Claire Niksich. Together, they formed a substantial part of the team that beat Grand Rapids 80-54 in the section quarterfinals before falling 46-42 to Cloquet in the semifinals.

The returning group is led by seniors Bryden Giesen, Vienna Kolenda, Payton Holt, Kenzie Zagelmeyer and Sophie Schulz, along with junior Audra Schott.

Giesen has demonstrated an ability to contribute offensively, including a 15-point performance in last season’s 70-55 victory over Thief River Falls. Schott also has varsity experience to bring into a larger role, while Kolenda, Holt, Zagelmeyer and Schulz give the Hawks a senior group with an opportunity to establish its own identity.

Last season, Hermantown swept Duluth East, winning 65-58 and 61-54, and beat Esko 68-59 and 57-50. The Hawks also won close games against Anoka, 55-53, and Hibbing, 76-71, demonstrating an ability to finish competitive contests.

The ending remains the most relevant lesson. After advancing past Grand Rapids, Hermantown finished four points behind Cloquet with a section championship appearance at stake. 

Hermantown opens at Bemidji on Dec. 3 and visits Esko on Dec. 11, then faces Como Park on Dec. 17 and Grand Rapids on Dec. 18. The consecutive-night games will require a developing rotation to adjust quickly between opponents.

The December schedule closes with Cloquet on Dec. 29 in the Wood City Classic and Cromwell-Wright on Dec. 30. Cloquet provides an early rematch with the team that ended Hermantown’s season, while the two-day event offers another opportunity to assess depth under a short turnaround.

January is the busiest month on the schedule, with 10 games. The Hawks visit Duluth Denfeld on Jan. 5 and North Woods on Jan. 7 before facing East Grand Forks on Jan. 15 and Thief River Falls on Jan. 16.

Those consecutive dates lead into a particularly concentrated portion of the season: Rock Ridge on Jan. 19, Proctor on Jan. 21, Duluth East on Jan. 23, Hibbing on Jan. 26, Superior on Jan. 28 and Cloquet on Jan. 29. Including the East Grand Forks and Thief River Falls games, Hermantown is scheduled to play eight times in 15 days.

That stretch will test more than conditioning. Practice time between games will be limited, making it important for a changing lineup to carry corrections directly into competition. The Proctor matchup also takes on added interest with Sherill now listed with the Rails.

February begins against Duluth East at home Feb. 2, followed by trips to Mesabi East on Feb. 4 and Superior on Feb. 5. The schedule then brings Duluth Marshall to Hermantown on Feb. 9 and Grand Rapids on Feb. 11 before a Feb. 16 trip to Hibbing.

The closing stretch features home games against Duluth Denfeld on Feb. 19, Esko on Feb. 25, Chisholm on Feb. 26 and North Branch on March 2. The Esko-Chisholm pairing creates another consecutive-night test, but the concentration of home games offers a chance to build consistency late in the season.

Repeat meetings with Duluth East, Grand Rapids, Hibbing, Cloquet, Superior, Denfeld and Esko will provide useful comparisons as the winter develops. For a team replacing so much experience, improvement between those first and second meetings may be as revealing as any early record.

Hermantown’s next step depends on how quickly its returning candidates turn experience into greater responsibility. Last season’s team established an 18-win standard; this group must find the scoring, rebounding and cohesion to pursue it with a markedly different lineup.