HAYTI — Addison Neuendorf is looking to lead the Hamlin Chargers to one more postseason run.

Neuendorf, a 5-foot-6 senior point guard, has piloted Hamlin to a 13-1 record this season, currently sitting as the top seed in all of Class A girls basketball.

The Chargers are ranked as the No. 2 team in the most recent Class A South Dakota Prep Media Basketball Poll, most recently knocking off No. 3 Lennox, 45-42, for the second time this season at the Dak-XII/NEC Clash on Feb. 7.

And Neuendorf played a big role in clinching the win with a game-high 19 points, hitting 11-of-12 free throws in the second half alone to keep the Chargers on top.

“We knew coming in it was going to be a tough game just because we had played them a couple weeks ago,” Neuendorf said following the win. “We knew they were going to come in with full force so we had to be ready but I think it was a good team win. We played hard and we played together.”

Despite it being the Chargers third-ranked win of the season, the schedule doesn’t get any easier. Hamlin still has three more ranked opponents on the schedule, including a home meeting with Class A No. 9 Aberdeen Roncalli on Feb. 10 and a matchup with No. 5 Sioux Falls Christian at the DWU/Culver’s Classic in Mitchell on Feb. 13.

“We don’t want to get too high, we don’t want to get too low so just staying in the happy medium,” Neuendorf said. “Keep working hard at practice, keep getting it done and hopefully we can get where we want to get.”

But the five-year starter is no stranger to big wins. In her eighth grade and freshman seasons, Neuendorf was part of two runs to the Class A state title game, helping the Chargers secure a state championship in 2023.

Hamlin's Addison Neuendorf shoots a three-pointer during the Chargers' 45-42 win over Lennox at the Dak-XII/NEC Clash on Feb. 7, 2026, in Madison. (Jon Akre / 605 Sports)

While she may not have been the focal point of the offense as an eighth grader, Hamlin head coach Tim Koisti says her growing leadership over the years has made the biggest impact.

“When she was younger and we won it in 2023, she just handled the ball and distribute and make a shot here and there, to now she’s full on, the ball has to be in her hands,” Koisti said. “She does a really nice job of controlling the pace, getting us into our sets and making sure everyone knows what’s going on. I think she almost knows our plays and sets better than I do.”

Koisti also noted how vital Neuendorf has been to her teammates with her ability to take command of the basketball.

“A good point guard has the ability to really take a lot of pressure off of everyone else,” Koisti said. “For her to come in as an eighth grader and just be our point guard for the next five years, we’ve been solid because of that. Teams can’t press us because she’s so good with the ball and so good with passing so it takes pressure off of her teammates, for her to take on that role.”

As she’s gotten older, Neuendorf has made it a point to be a vocal leader, especially when the going gets tough against top competition, she’s focused on “being that voice when things are getting a little chaotic.”

“The young girls that we have are pretty good at staying composed but in times like the first time we played Lennox,” Neuendorf said. “They made a huge run and we went from being up 13 to down two so that was a time where I had to step in and be like ‘We’re just fine, if we keep doing the things that we know we need to do, we can come out and win this game’, and we did.”

Hamlin's Addison Neuendorf attacks the basket during the Chargers' 71-47 win over De Smet on Jan. 19, 2025, in De Smet. (Jon Akre / 605 Sports)

But a lot of the ins and outs of basketball have come easy for Neuendorf growing up in a basketball family. 

Her father, Todd, is the head coach for the Hamlin boys basketball team while her mother, Jaime, is an assistant coach on the girls team. Addison’s older brother, Easton, is averaging nearly 14 points and five assists per game as a freshman on the Dakota Wesleyan men’s basketball team.

But she’s also had the opportunity to play with her younger sister, Paxton, for the past three years as she’s grown into a similar role on the varsity squad.

“It’s been fun, it’s definitely been a journey,” Addison said of playing with Paxton, a 5-foot-5 freshman guard. “We’re like the same person so we kind of butt heads a little bit but it’s all out of love. We want each other to be the best that we can be so we might get frustrated with each other and the conversation might continue on after practice but just knowing that we’re pushing each other to be the best we can be.”

Neuendorf committed to play college basketball for Northern State University last March, returning to the same town she grew up in, to now playing for the seven-time Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference champions.

“The basketball program is great,” Neuendorf said of NSU. “They have a huge fan base so that’s awesome for me and it’s somewhat close to home so I know the area I’m going to be in, but also just the coaches. The coaches buy-in and they want to win just as much as you do but they also treat you as if you’re a human being too.”

And as Neuendorf enters the home stretch of her senior basketball season, she’s trying to play every possession like it’s her last. And if the Chargers are able to make a run to the Class A state tournament in Watertown, the Chargers will play in the same building it won a championship just four years ago.

“This year with it being my last and I’ve realized that, I’m just trying to play with no regrets,” Neuendorf said. “I don’t want to think after a game ‘If I would’ve done this, we could’ve won.’ Just playing with no regrets and playing hard for my teammates, knowing they’re going to do the same for me.

“With it being in Watertown, that’s huge, that’d be such a fun place to play in with it being so close to home so hopefully we can get to where we want to go.”