GRAND FORKS — Now a sophomore, Grand Forks Red River guard Jocelyn Schiller has played varsity for the Roughriders since eighth grade.
Each year, Roughriders coach Kent Ripplinger has seen a new skill added to her repertoire.
"She works her tail off," Ripplinger said. "We knew when we brought her up that she was aggressive and a talented player especially on defense. What she needed to work on was offense, and she went to work on her shot. She improved that, especially her 3-point shooting. Then every year we asked her, okay, now let's add a pull-up jump shot. Okay, now let's add finishing moves around the rim.
"She works very hard at her skill development and it has paid off. She'll do the same this summer, and she'll be that much better next year."
That's a scary prediction for Red River's future opponents, as Schiller was already named to the North Dakota Class A all-state second team, the North Dakota Associated Press Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association announced Tuesday.
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The all-state first team included Bismarck Century's Logan Nissley, West Fargo's Miriley Simon, Fargo South's Adie Wagner, Bismarck Century's Bergan Kinnebrew and Jamestown's Anthonett Nabwe.
The second team includes Schiller, Devils Lake's Rachel Dahlen, Minot's Maggie Fricke, Mandan's McKenna Johnson, Minot's Leelee Bell, West Fargo's Chloe Pfau, Turtle Mountain's Amya Gourneau and Fargo Shanley's Emily Srejma.
Schiller averaged 21.4 points per game, finishing with 557 points for the season. Schiller added 5.5 steals, 5.7 assists, 4.2 rebounds and just 2.0 turnovers per game.
Despite replacing five senior starters from the previous season, the Roughriders returned to the state tournament this year. Red River won a first-round game before pushing Bismarck Century to the limits in a tight loss in the semifinals.
With a new-look lineup, the Riders turned to Schiller to provide leadership.
"We identified her as a captain of our team as a sophomore," Ripplinger said. "We look to her to be our leader, and it doesn't matter what grade she's in. What she does through her actions and how she plays, you can't help but get behind that and follow."
