One game into the Lake Region Invitational, Aubrey Kenner’s teammates were celebrating her.
Kenner didn’t even know it was coming.
“I had no idea that I was about to get it,” Kenner said. “I didn’t even know I was close. It was kept secret.”
Kenner’s dad and head coach, Bryan Kenner, called a timeout immediately after one of his daughter’s baskets. It was shortly before halftime and his team was up by more than 30 points — which would normally be an odd time to call a timeout.
The reason was that Kenner had just surpassed 1,000 points in her high school basketball career. She achieved the feat in just Benson County’s second game of her junior season.
Kenner’s teammates formed a mob around her and cheered alongside her. But after the achievement was announced over the PA and the girls had their quick chance to celebrate, it was back to business on the court.
“I’m really happy about it,” Kenner said. “But I can’t do it all on my own. My teammates are honestly the reason, and they helped me get there.”
The Kenners live on a farm just outside Maddock, North Dakota, where Bryan operates the business BK Seeds. But when not on the farm, Aubrey is often found putting in extra work on the basketball court — outside of the spotlight, with no eyes on her.
Bryan said he was hesitant to brag about his kid, yet couldn’t deny the value of his daughter’s work ethic and how proud that makes him. He said her outside shooting in particular has improved a lot over the last couple of years.
“It’s tough being a dad and coaching your kid. It’s one of those weird things,” Bryan said. “But I’m super proud of her. She puts a lot of time in with closed doors, where she’s just shooting by herself and working on things, and she’s developed into a real great player. Super proud of her as her dad. And it’s pretty awesome coaching her and having her play on the team.”
The two of them keep their home-life and court-life roles separated.
“It’s a little different, but I think we do a really good job at it, honestly,” Aubrey said. “We keep it professional at practice. And obviously, he’s my dad at home, but he’s my coach at practice, and so it’s just keeping the border between those two, is really the key for everyone.”
Aubrey’s Benson County teammates made a personalized poster for her to celebrate her 1,000 points, which they all posed for a photo with after the game. But while her scoring makes the headlines, Bryan said her defensive game has come a long way, too.
“Honestly, she takes pride in her defense,” Bryan said. “I think she’s probably known for some of her scoring, slashing, but her goal is to be one of the best defenders in the state. And I don’t think you’re gonna find a lot of kids that lead you in scoring and play that level of defense, and a lot of times take away the other team’s best offensive player.”
She’s had to adjust during games, too, especially when teams are putting more pressure on her. The Wildcats, ranked No. 6 in Class B to start the season, won each of their first four games by 30-plus points and were champions of the Lake Region Invitational. Kenner had 57 points over the three-game tournament and was named the MVP.
But it wasn’t all just her. Sometimes, she just didn’t have any open looks, and she had to pass the ball around and make plays happen with the help of her teammates. Bryan credited her ability to contribute on the floor in a variety of ways.
“She’s played the most varsity minutes for us over the years, and sometimes you’ve gotta let her kind of create and distribute,” he said.
Aubrey’s assists helped players like Lacie Fautsch and Kaitlyn Maddock reach double figures in all three games as well. The three of them were named to the all-tournament team.
The same trio are teammates on the Benson County volleyball team, too, which finished as the runner-up in a competitive Region 4 this fall. The Wildcats only fell to the eventual state champion, Langdon Area/Munich. Kenner happened to be the star of that team as well, leading the squad in kills.
Still a junior, she has plenty of time to decide which sport she’ll pursue at the next level.
“I love volleyball and basketball,” Aubrey said, “but I think I like basketball a little bit more.”
Kenner is also a member of the Maddock Public School choir. She sang the national anthem at the New Rockford-Sheyenne/Maddock football team’s semifinal game, alongside her friend and volleyball teammate Kale Williams. Maddock, combining with NR-S for the second straight year in football, ended up winning the nine-man state championship.
“I love singing,” Aubrey said. “I sang the national anthem with my friend Kale Williams, and we’re both in the choir. And actually, Maddock has a really small choir, but it’s honestly more fun that way.”
Aubrey’s well-roundedness makes her dad proud, but the array of options doesn’t stress him out too much.
“I figure those are all her decisions in what she does there,” Bryan said. “I honestly don’t think a lot about it. She’s a great kid; she’ll be good with no matter what she does, whether it’s sports or whatever.”
For now, the Kenners and the rest of the Wildcats are focused on extending their dominant start on the basketball court into something special.
Last year, Benson County lost in a state qualifier, coming just one game short of reaching the state tournament. The Benson County girls’ co-op (Leeds/Maddock) has only ever made a state tournament in 2013. A standalone Maddock team made the tournament back in 1977.
But this Wildcats team is battle-tested, and no longer as inexperienced as it’s been in years past. Kenner is an upperclassman, while Maddock is a sophomore and Fautsch is a freshman. Starting guards Ella Fossen and Isabella Engstrom are juniors as well. So while the team is still relatively young with only one senior, the core of the group is in its prime high school years.
“We all have this goal of making it to state, and maybe even winning a championship,” Aubrey said. “And I honestly think we can do it. And we’re gonna keep working at it until we get there.”
But the work starts on the floor, and in the practice room when nobody’s watching.
“We work at practice every single day,” Aubrey said. “We don’t show up on game night thinking to win; we show up at practice thinking to win. That’s our main thing.”
