Ryan Ladika/MDN McKenna Rolland (23) dribbles to the paint during the Panthers' March 5 contest against Kenmare.

The 2020-21 Glenburn Panthers girls basketball squad reached heights previously untouched by any other team in the program’s history.

Head coach Jordan Pederson led the Panthers to a 19-1 record in the regular season and two subsequent wins over Our Redeemer’s and Mohall-Lansford-Sherwood in the District 12 tournament. Glenburn’s encore followed in the form of three Region 6 tournament wins against Westhope-Newburg, Velva and Rugby, and it was off to its first-ever Class B state tournament berth.

Under the bright lights at the Minot State Dome, the Panthers were stifled by the Grafton Spoilers in a 65-33 loss in their state quarterfinal matchup and scored a season-low 27 points against Kenmare in the consolation semifinals.

They were able to find their offensive footing in the March 6 seventh-place contest with a 59-55 victory against Hettinger-Scranton to end the season on a high note, and Pederson noted it was nice to see them complete the year playing “Glenburn basketball,” shooting well and playing together.

“We’d had that goal set at the beginning of the season, and I’ve always had that one deep in the heart because there’s no banner in the gym yet,” he said of advancing to the tournament. “That’s always been a goal to get a program going in Glenburn and eventually get there. To be able to do that, it’s a huge honor to be the first team to be able to do it.”

The Panthers were led this season by senior McKenna Rolland’s 16.4 points per game, and the forward contributed 19 points to push her squad to a win in the season finale. Lorelei McIver and Nadia Post were also impact performers throughout Glenburn’s Cinderella season, averaging 12.5 and 12.4 points per game, respectively.

How could such an offensively-gifted team struggle to score when it mattered the most? Pederson chalked it up to the nerves that accompany anyone blazing a trail through uncharted territory.

“I think playing in the dome got us a little frazzled,” he explained. “We shot pretty well in the auditorium, but it was that and the first-game jitters of making the state tournament. We struggled to get some shots to fall those first two days; normally we shoot a higher percentage than that, so it got in our heads a little bit.”

Despite the bumpy performance in the tournament, Pederson stressed how proud he was of his student-athletes. He pointed to their overall mentality and their ability to bounce back from runs against them during games, and noted that even though they fell short of their goal, they have the championship mentality and confidence that bodes well for the future of the program.

“Their chemistry, family mindset and the way they treat each other plays into a huge role of our team,” he continued. “The way they can play on the floor and they find the open shot, there’s no selfishness there. A lot of them play a selfless ballgame, and they’re always looking for that next best shot, so the way they played together was a huge impact.”

That is the legacy that Rolland, Post and Lila Farden will be leaving as they complete their high school careers and move on to bigger and better things, but Pederson is not worried about losing productivity with the trio’s departure.

The team will look to rising-juniors Brooklyn Heinle and DeAnna Heinze to rack up increased minutes on the floor, and Heinze and rising-sophomore Sophie Bachmeier to replace Post’s production at point guard.

McIver, entering her final season at Glenburn, will join Megan Lahtonen as the only two seniors on next year’s squad, and Pederson noted that he will be looking for them to take that next offensive step, McIver especially, in order to top their 2021 state tournament finish.

As a collective unit, Glenburn’s head coach does not see anything changing beside the usual roster turnover as the team closes the book on the 2020-21 campaign. He greatly appreciates the support shown by the entire Glenburn community, and expects the same mentality to be had by all his returning players in setting an example for the newcomers.

“We know we can compete now at that region tournament to get there and we have that same expectation that we can beat any team in there,” he said. “We know our strengths are next season will be a little bit different than this one, but we have to have that same mindset that we want to get there and compete and have the ultimate goal to make state again.”