City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin) &
Owen McCue (@Owen_McCue)
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ATLANTIC CITY — The Select Events Atlantic City Showcase filled up the AC Convention Center this weekend, with more than 500 teams taking part in the action, with Division I (plus II and III) coaches out for the May live recruiting period. A high-level field featuring some of the area’s top teams as well as sneaker-sponsored and independent programs from around the country came out, along with hundreds of college coaches.

Here’s who stood out in games we watched on Friday:

Aiyonna Alexander (2024 | Philly Belles 17U)
The 5-10 wing/forward piled up 12 points and seven boards in a win over CT Premier. She attacked the offensive and defensive glass, earning herself a few putback opportunities. While she did her damage on offense inside, Alexander had active hands and quick feet to guard. She’s more of an undersized forward but she showed off some perimeter skills, driving the length of the court for a tough bucket after a steal.

Anna Barry (2024 | Fencor 17U)
Barry isn’t afraid to let it fly from deep even from a few feet beyond the arc. After hitting early then going through a cold stretch, she got hot late to help Fencor pull tight late against NJ Shoreshots-Select. The 5-5 guard from CB East finished with 17 points, knocking down five threes — knocking down pull-ups and stepback from long range. She is also comfortable running the offense, tallying three assists as her shooting gravity opened the floor for drives.

Ellie Cerf (2024 | Philly Belles 17U)
Cerf STUFFED the stat sheet with 17 points, 10 assists, five rebounds and five steals in a win over CT Premier. The lefty has range that extends well beyond the arc and a crafty finisher with touch around the basket.  She used an assortment of passes to pile up her 10 assists, wraparounds, bounces inside, skip passes and more. She consistently pressures on defense and battles down low and on the floor as she scraps for rebounds and loose balls. 

Carly Coleman (2024 | LGB Select 17U)
The 5-11 wing/forward found a number of different ways to score during a 13-point outing (which had two points wiped off the board). Coleman put the ball on the deck and drove on both the left and right sides of the lane. She was active as a cutter as well. The wiry Cardinal O’Hara standout didn’t shy away from contact inside, earning three trips to the line, including an and one.

Emily Knouse (2025 | Comets GUAA 16U)
There were two main ways that Knouse stood out in the Comets’ 39-33 win over United NJ on Friday afternoon. First was her 3-point shooting, as the 5-10 Archbishop Wood wing was 3-of-5 from downtown, accounting for all nine of her points. Second was her full-court passes: three of her inbounds passes were of the court-length variety, all leading a wide-open teammate to an easy layup. Her nine-point, four-assist, two-rebound, two-steal effort was efficient and clean.

Addison Levensten (2026 | Lady Runnin’ Rebels 15U)
Levensten was a two-way force in the Rebels’ 34-32 win over the Maine Firecrackers on Saturday evening. The 5-9 guard from Germantown Academy was especially dominant on the glass, where she gobbled up 13 rebounds, her long arms wrapping up everything they could grab, and she made sure she was in the mix on every carom and loose ball. Offensively, she chipped in 10 points, mostly on tough driving layups through traffic, and also added two assists, two blocks and a steal.

Grace McDonough (2025 | Lady Runnin’ Rebels 17U)
Going up against a high-major post in Natalie Wetzel (see below), McDonough certainly held her own. The 6-2 forward has a strong frame and established position down low to help her to a 10-point, 10-rebound outing, grabbing four on the offensive end. She’s got good footwork in the post and good hands around the rim, and she also knocked down a mid-range jumper to show her face-up ability. McDonough also showed a good understanding of when to kick out and re-post, not forcing too much in traffic.

Kaci Mikulski (2024 | NJ Shoreshots Select 17U)
The 5-8 guard tallied 16 points in a win over Fencor on Friday and added four rebounds as well to the impressive outing. Mikulski, who plays at Wildwood Catholic, pulled up from deep and in the lane for jumpers. She was effective driving to the hoop and got to the line twice. Off the ball she showed off a good feel for floating to space.

Makayla Presser-Palmer (2026 | WPA Bruins 15U)
An athletic, 5-10 wing, Presser-Palmer is an excellent slasher and finisher, which she showed with a 17-point effort in a win over the Empire State Blue Flames on Friday afternoon. Presser-Palmer can get to the bucket with the ball in her hands, but she’s also great in the pick-and-roll, catching and getting to the rim in one stride, and she’s got great body control around the bucket. She also grabbed nine rebounds (four offensive), dished out three assists and grabbed a steal in the win. 

Molly Rullo (2025 | Comets GUAA 16U)
We’ve written about how hard Rullo plays quite often, and that was on display yet again as she bulldozed her way to an eight-point, nine-rebound, five-assist, three-steal, two-block effort in the win over United NJ. She didn’t have her best shooting day as United NJ threw everything it had at her defensively, but she fought her way to offensive boards (four), dove on just about everything on the floor, found cutting teammates and made some nice high-low passes, and generally just impacted the win.

Addison Schneider (2026 | Minnesota Fury 15U)
The Fury had their struggles (mostly from beyond the arc) with New Heights in a 42-37 loss, but Schneider battled through it to have a strong game. The 5-9 combo guard was excellent driving the lane and finishing with her right hand, and she played aggressive on both ends all game long, helping create offensive opportunities for her teammates by getting into the lane. She also was strong on the glass, grabbing six rebounds, more than anybody else in the game. 

Francesca Schiro (2025 | United NJ 16U)
Similar to Rullo, Schiro was just around for United NJ, standing out in a losing effort. The 5-7 guard from Hillsborough (N.J.) contributed eight points, seven rebounds, four steals and three assists for her team, doing everything from picking off passes like a free safety to crashing the offensive glass, getting into the lane and knocking down an outside shot. Schiro’s a good athlete with a strong handle and plays hard, which all bodes well.

Kayla Solomon (2026 | New Heights 15U)
Solomon was thinking ‘bombs away’ during New Heights’ win over the Minnesota Fury, as the 5-6 shooting guard from NYC hit her first five 3-point attempts of the afternoon, powering her to a 16-point showing. She was hitting with range, off both wings, spotting up and/or pulling up from NBA range without thinking about it, every time the ball flying perfectly through the net. She also added four rebounds, two assists and two steals to round out her game.

Mia Washington (2026 | Empire State Blue Flames 15U)
A 5-10 combo guard from Pope John (N.Y.), Washington led the Blue Flames with 16 points in a losing effort. An athletic slasher with good length, Washington had great feet and showed a lightning-quick spin move to a finish, but she also could shoot, stepping out and knocking down her only 3-point attempt as she went 5-of-6 both from the floor and the foul line.  

Natalie Wetzel (2025 | WPA Bruins 16U)
A 6-3 post with great mobility, the ability to put the ball on the floor and stretch the floor, Wetzel has drawn plenty of Division I attention, and she was one reason that the WPA Bruins and Lady Runnin’ Rebels 16s had more than two dozen D-I coaches courtside for their Friday AM matchup. Wetzel impressed with a 11-point outing knocking down her only 3-point attempt and a smooth reverse layup high off the glass, while grabbing six boards (two offensive) and showing her rim protection skills with at least four blocks.

Brooke Wilson (2024 | Comets 17U)
Wilson had an efficient nine points to go along with a pair of assists, four rebounds and a steal in a win over the LI Lightning. Efficient is a good word to describe Wilson’s game. The Army commit gets to where she wants to on the floor easily, but doesn’t overbounce. She has a picture perfect shooting motion and makes good reads on offense that helped a balanced Comets attack keep rolling on Friday.

Ashlyne Woods (2025 | WPA Bruins 16U)
A 5-6 combo guard from Wheeling Park (W.Va.) HS, Woods absolutely turned it on in the second half of the Bruins’ 52-47 win over the Rebels, scoring 15 of her game-high 18 after halftime. The right-hander had a smooth, deep pull-up 3-pointer and followed that with a corner triple; she also had a nice two-dribble pull-up off the left wing. She’s got a good handle, the ability to finish with her off hand through contact, and was an engaged defender who came away with a couple steals.

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Honorable Mention

Leah Ault (2026 | Penn Fever 15U), Jineen Ayyash (2024 | NJ Shoreshots Select 17U), Colleen Besachio (2026 | Comets GUAA 16U), Skylar Bolden (2026 | New Heights 15U), Elizabeth Brown (2026 | Lady Runnin’ Rebels 15U), Kate Cimador (2025 | CT Premier 17U), Grace Corelli (2024 | LI Lightning 17U), Luciana DAndrea (2026 | Mid-Atlantic Magic 15U), Rian Dotsey (2025 | Philadelphia Belles 16U), Alexis Eberz (2026 | Comets GUAA 15U), Ryanne Gulbin (2025 | CT Premier 17U), Kate Holmquist (2026 | Minnesota Fury 15U), Jill Jekot (2024 | Comets 17U), Ryann Jennings (2026 | Comets GUAA 15U), Jaelyn Jensen (2026 | Maine Firecrackers 15U), Jenna Jensen (2026 | Maine Firecrackers 15U),  Taylor Lasky (2026 | Lady Runnin’ Rebels 15U), Mariah Luke (2024 | Philly Belles 17U), Daniela Maletsky (2026 | NJ Rise 15U), Aliviz Mauz (2025 | Lady Runnin’ Rebels 16U), Sam Pastore (2026 | Penn Fever 15U), Ava Persichetti (2025 | WPA Bruins 16U), Mac Pettinelli (2024 | Comets 17U), Brooke Pfeiffer (2026 | Empire State Blue Flames 15U), Joanie Quinn (2024 | Comets 17U), Megan Rullo (2026 | Comets GUAA 15U), Tegan Simms (2026 | Penn Fever 15U), Katie Tiffan (2024 | LGB Select 17U), Sophia Topakas (2026 | Mid-Atlantic Magic 15U), Isabella Valencia (2024 | LGB Select 17U), Xola Wade (2024 | Philly Belles 17U)