Prep Scene
Tara Starks, in her second season as head girls’ basketball coach at Hopkins, led the nationally ranked Royals to the 2022 Class 4A State Girls’ Basketball Championship with a 26-1 record. 
Tanysha Scott, in her second year as head girls’ basketball coach at Roseville, led her unranked team to a fourth-place finish in the 2022 Class 4A State Girls’ Basketball Tournament. 
Yolonda England, in her second season as head girls’ basketball coach at St. Paul Como Park, led the Cougars to a third-place finish in the 2022 Class 3A State Girls’ Basketball Tournament with a 24-7 record.
This week’s Prep Scene features three Black female coaches—Tara Starks (Hopkins), Yolonda Englund (St. Paul Como Park), and Tanysha Scott (Roseville)—and a key player from each of their teams—Liv McGill (Hopkins), Ronnie Porter (St. Paul Como Park), and Kendall Barnes (Roseville)—during the 2022 State High School Girls’ Basketball Tournament.
Sophomore guard Liv McGill led the way with 25 points in a 72-56 Hopkins victory over St. Michael-Albertville in the 2022 Class 4A State Girls’ Basketball Championship game at Williams Arena in Minneapolis Saturday, March 19. 
Roseville sophomore guard Kendall Barnes scores two of her 15 points in the Class 4A quarterfinal game against Shakopee in the State Girls’ Basketball Tournament at Williams Arena in Minneapolis on Wednesday, March 16. Roseville won 39-32 and finished fourth overall in the tournament. 
Senior guard Ronnie Porter scores two of her 20 points in leading St. Paul Como Park to a 91-69 victory over Mankato East in the Class 3A third-place game in the State girls’ Basketball Tournament at Gangelhoff Center in St. Paul on Saturday, March 19, 2022.
All photos by Dr. Mitchell Palmer McDonald