MARSHALL — Heading into the season, the Marshall girls basketball team carried lofty expectations. The Tigers reached the state championship last season and returned four of their five starters, but have lived up to the hype thus far, earning their second consecutive 2AAA championship and state tournament berth.

“Some of our kids, especially [senior guards] Taleigha Bigler and Reese Drake, this is their third state tournament. They both played as freshmen, and that state tournament experience is always a positive thing,” Marshall head coach Dan Westby said. “They’ve been through the routine, they’ve played in some of those bigger venues, and I think any time that you have that, there’s always a comfort level and we should have that heading into this state tournament.”

Bigler and Drake were both named to the Class AAA All-State team by the Minnesota Girls Basketball Association last week, the selection marking the second for Bigler and first for Drake after being named an honorable mention last year. They were also named to the Independent’s All-Area first team last year, with Drake being the Player of the Year for girls basketball as well as twice for volleyball.

Through the end of the regular season, Drake averaged a team-leading 19.3 points per game on 54% shooting from the field, 41% from 3-point range and 77% from the free-throw line, while Bigler added 12.4 points per game on 42-31-68 splits. Drake also led the team with six assists per game, as well as 4.8 rebounds, while Bigler averaged a team-leading 3.8 steals per game with 4.3 rebounds.

Westby noted that it’s not easy to have multiple players selected to the all-state team, with only Benilde-St. Margaret’s and Stewartville — the top two seeds in this year’s state tournament — also earning multiple selections at the Class AAA level.

“That’s pretty good company, and those two kids are certainly deserving,” Westby said. “We like to think we’ve got a lot more than that as well. We’ve got a lot of kids that have had a very good year, and we’re going to lean on those kids this week at the tournament.”

One of the strengths of this year’s Marshall squad has been its depth of talent within the starting lineup. Avery Fahl, Avery Schneekloth and Danielle Nubile have given the Tigers a strong frontcourt.

Nubile has been a force for the Tigers in the paint after breaking out for the team in last year’s state championship game against Benilde-St. Margaret’s. Taking on an increased role this year, she’s averaged team-leading 4.8 rebounds per game while also averaging about a block per game.

Schneekloth and Fahl have also given the Tigers a strong defensive paint presence, with each of the three Tiger forwards standing at 6-foot, and Fahl has been a premier perimeter option for Marshall on the offensive end with a team-high 68 3-pointers made on a 45% clip.

Maddie Panka also took on an increased role for Marshall off the bench this year, averaging 5.1 points per game on 47-42-65 splits.

As of March 10, Marshall has compiled a 25-4 record on the season and was ranked fourth in the state in the final coaches poll, earning the No. 3 seed in the Class AAA state tournament. The mark keeps the Tigers just shy of last year’s 29-2 finish after also earning the third seed in the state tournament.

Part of the slight difference in record is due to the strong schedule Marshall assembled this year; Marshall played five teams ranked in the top 7 of the final coaches polls, including Class 4A No. 1 Hopkins, Class 2A No. 5 Duluth Marshall, and Class 3A No. 2 Stewartville, No. 5 Hill-Murray and No. 7 Delano. Marshall earned wins over Duluth Marshall and Hill-Murray, with their only other loss coming against South Dakota’s top-ranked Brandon Valley.

“Our standard for this group was pretty high, and I think that’s evidenced by the schedule we put together,” Westby said. “We went out and tried to schedule some of the best teams in the state. I think any time you have that opportunity to play good teams, that’s only going to make you better. We have extremely high expectations for this team, but I don’t think that bothers them. I think that they have high expectations for themselves as well, so we’re really excited about this.”

Win or lose in the state tournament, this group’s senior class has left a legacy to remember. Drake, Bigler, Fahl and Bryn Webb have all been a part of three state tournament berths in basketball season and three state championships in volleyball season. The quartet has advanced to the state volleyball tournament every year of their high school careers and has made at least the section championship game every year as well. Bigler was also a member of the girls cross country team’s state championship in 2023.

“Between the four of them, they’ve got more than 20 state tournament appearances across all sports, so they’ve certainly enjoyed a lot of success,” Westby said. “There’s a reason for that, and it’s because they’ve been extremely committed to everything that they’ve done. We’re excited for them, and we’re proud of what they’ve done to this point, but I know that they want much, much more.”

Marshall continues its quest for a state title on March 11, taking on sixth-seeded Totino-Grace. From there, the Tigers will have a rematch of one of the teams they faced in last year’s state tournament by taking on either Rock Ridge — who they defeated in the quarterfinals — or Benilde — who they lost to in the state championship.