Alyvia Padgett capped another dominant season by earning South Dakota Basketball Coaches Association Class AA Player of the Year honors for the second straight season, leading a first team loaded with talent from some of the state’s top programs.
Padgett, a 5-foot-7 senior guard from Brandon Valley, averaged 26 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game while shooting 60% from the field. She also totaled 63 steals and finished with 520 points, anchoring a Lynx squad that placed two players on the first team.
Joining Padgett on the first team were Sydney Terveen of Sioux Falls O’Gorman, Brinley Altenburg of Sioux Falls Jefferson, Dana Harpe of Sioux Falls Washington, Ruby Moore of O’Gorman and Gracie Salter of Brandon Valley.
Terveen, a senior guard, averaged 18.4 points and added 67 steals, while Altenburg, a junior, poured in 18.8 points per game. Harpe, a senior, was one of the state’s most versatile players, averaging 18.2 points and 6.8 assists per game. Moore, a junior, contributed 15.3 points and 82 steals, and Salter, a senior forward, posted 12.2 points, 8.3 rebounds and 34 blocks.
The second team featured a strong mix of scorers and post players, including Mitchell senior Addie Siemsen, who averaged 18.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per game, and Huron senior Hylton Heinz, who scored 20.6 points per contest.
Rapid City Central junior Leah Landry averaged a double-double with 15.5 points and 10 rebounds, while Aberdeen Central seniors Taryn Hermansen and Lauryn Burckhard anchored the paint with balanced production. Sioux Falls Washington sophomore Josie Biteler rounded out the second team after averaging 13.5 points and 4.5 assists.
Several players earned repeat recognition from previous seasons. Padgett, Terveen, Altenburg and Moore were all first-team selections in 2025, while Harpe, Salter, Landry and Burckhard moved up after earning second-team honors last year. Siemsen, Heinz and Hermansen also improved on previous honorable mention selections.
The honorable mention list included Sioux Falls Roosevelt sophomore Henlee Loof, Tea Area freshman Jayna VanLaecken, Yankton junior Eden Wolfgram, Spearfish senior Kate Scharf, Brandon Valley senior Ava Kellenberger and O’Gorman senior Sadie Mehrman.
CLASS AA
First Team
Alyvia Padgett, Brandon Valley, 5-7, sr., G (26 points, 4.5 rebounds & 2.9 assists per game. 63 steals)
Sydney Terveen, O’Gorman, 5-11, sr., G (18.4 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 2.5 apg, 67 steals)
Brinley Altenburg, SF Jefferson, 5-10, jr., G (18.8 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 2 apg)
Dana Harpe, SF Washington, 6-0, sr., G (18.2 ppg, 5.9 apg, 6.8 apg)
Ruby Moore, O’Gorman, 5-8, jr., G (15.3 ppg, 4.6 apg, 82 steals)
Gracie Salter, Brandon Valley, 5-11, sr., F (12.2 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 2.8 apg, 34 blocks)
Second Team
Addie Siemsen, Mitchell, 5-8, sr., G (18.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 2.8 apg)
Hylton Heinz, Huron, 5-8, sr., G (20.6 ppg, 5 rpg, 2.2 apg)
Leah Landry, RC Central, 5-9, jr., G-F (15.5 ppg, 10 rpg, 3.3 apg)
Taryn Hermansen, Aberdeen Central, 6-1, sr., C (12.3 ppg, 8.4 rpg)
Lauryn Burckhard, Aberdeen Central, 6-1, jr., F (12.7 ppg, 7.7 rpg, 2.4 apg)
Josie Biteler, Sioux Falls Washington, 5-10, so. G (13.5 ppg, 5 rpg, 4.5 apg, 60 steals)
Honorable Mention
Henlee Loof, Sioux Falls Roosevelt, 5-8, so., G (14 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2 apg)
Jayna VanLaecken, Tea Area, 5-9, fr., G (11.2 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 41 steals)
Eden Wolfgram, Yankton, 5-5, jr., G (13.3 ppg, 4 rpg, 50 steals)
Kate Scharf, Spearfish, 5-7, sr., G (13.9 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 40 steals)
Ava Kellenberger, Brandon Valley, 5-8, sr., G (9.7 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 64 steals)
Sadie Mehrman, O’Gorman, 5-10, sr., G (8.3 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 3.6 apg)
- Player of the Year — Padgett, also in 2025.
- Repeat Selections — 2025 (Padgett, Terveen, Altenburg and Moore, first team; Harpe, Salter, Landry and Burckhard, second team; Siemsen, Heinz, Hermansen and Wolfgram, honorable mention); 2024 (Padgett and Altenburg, first team; Hermansen, second team; and Siemsen, honorable mention).