Class A Hamlin, Sisseton and Florence-Henry and Class B Arlington lead the pack

The 2023 South Dakota High School girls basketball season is officially off and running and northeastern South Dakota teams and players are hoping to make their mark.

Here's a quick look at the some of the Watertown and Aberdeen area teams to watch this winter:

Four teams at the top

Hamlin — I'm not listing the Chargers here because I want to put any additional pressure on them. Yes, they lost a lot of size and ability with the graduation of 5-foot-11 seniors Kami Wadsworth and Ally Abraham (and guard Brooklyn Brandriet) off a team that went 25-0 and won the state Class A championship last winter. That came after back-to-back runner-up finishes in the state tournament.

Sure, Tim Koisti's squad will be a lot smaller (something that could play a role on how far the Chargers go) but Hamlin still should have a solid season with 5-foot-9 senior guard Marissa Bawdon and 5-6 sophomore guard Addison Neuendorf back.

"We play a tough schedule and that will help prepare us for postseason play," Kosti said. "We will greatly miss Kami, Ally and Brooklyn, but Addie and Marissa are ready to up their scoring and leadership We lack size and experience, but we will find a way to overcome and be competitive."

Sisseton — Sara Lincoln's Redmen compiled a 22-3 record and a third-place finish in the state Class A. They have pretty much every one back, including 6-2 junior center Krista Langager and her sister Chloe (a 6-1 senior). The Redmen opened the season with a 61-17 thrashing of Castlewood, a state Class B tournament team last winter, and have opened as the No. 2-rated team in the South Dakota Prep Media Poll.

You can pretty much mark Sisseton down for having another really good season this winter.

"Sisseton will most definitely be a tough matchup this year," new Webster coach Michael Dunse said.

Florence-Henry — Another Class A team, the Falcons return senior standouts Caylin Kelly and Taylor Watson off a team that went 17-3 for Coach Mitch Reed last winter, a season that ended with a Region 2A semifinal loss to a talented Flandreau team. Reese Schmidt, another senior, missed the volleyball season with a knee injury but is listed on the roster and could return this winter.

"We return four starters and have a good combination of speed and shooting," Reed said. "High-level defense and a tough schedule will have the Falcons ready to a deep postseason run."

Arlington — Former Watertown High School standout Tara (Heiser) King has gradually built the Arlington program back up in Class B. The Cardinals had a very successful 17-5 season that ended with a Region 2B semifinal loss to Castlewood last winter.

Senior Harley Johnson, juniors Addalyn and Jolysssa Steffensen and sophomore Jaelyn Huntimer spearhead a solid returning group for Arlington.

How about some more to watch

Aberdeen Roncalli, Groton Area and Milbank — Sisseton has to be one of the clear-cut favorites in Region 1A but at least one other team will advance to a SoDak 16 state-qualifying game. These three teams could well fit the bill.

Junior Isabella Anderson of Milbank (14-8), which lost to Hamlin in a SoDak 16 game last winter; junior Ava Hanson of Roncalli (11-10) and senior Sydney Leicht of Groton Area (13-9) are each returning All-Northeast Conference performers.

"Sisseton made the state tournament and has everyone back," Milbank coach Brian Pauli said. "Roncalli, Groton and ourselves could be battling for the second seed in the region."

Warner and Leola-Frederick — The Monarchs and Titans each compiled 16-7 records last winter in seasons that ended with losses in Class B SoDak games.

Seniors Ava Nilsson (first team) and Lauren Marcuson (honorable mention) each earned All-Lake Region Conference Conference honors for Warner as did seniors Laura Sumption (first team), Sofia Losure (first team) and Chloe Arneson (second team) for Leola-Frederick.

"The LRC is looking to be equally as competitive as it was last season," Warner coach Tina Winter said. "Building off of the success and growth from last year, we believe we will be very competitive against this group of teams."

2022-23: These are the area girls basketball teams, players to watch in 2022-23

Castlewood — Don't write off the Warriors just yet after looking at the Sisseton score. Castlewood lost All-State standouts Maddie Horn and Mackenzie Everson to graduation and also has a number of players who started practice right after playing in the state volleyball tournament. The Warriors have a new head coach in Angela Keszler.

"We only have a couple of girls with varsity experience, so we have a lot of learning to do right away with a new head coach," Keszler said. "We have a lot of athleticism and girls who are eager to improve and compete."

Some others to keep an eye on

There are certainly a wide varsity of area Class A and B schools that will be looking to match or improve upon their 2022-23 seasons.

The group includes Class A schools Mobridge-Pollock (15-7), Elkton-Lake Benton (12-9), Great Plains Lutheran (10-11), Estelliine-Hendricks (9-12) and Clark-Willow Lake and Webster Area (each 7-13).

Other Class B teams to pay attention to include Deubrook Area (15-5), Potter County (14-4), Northwestern (13-8) and Herreid-Selby Area (11-11), among others.

Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: rmerriam@thepublicopinion.com

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Some of the top area girls basketball teams to watch in 2023-24