Rosemount Girls Basketball Wins First-Ever State Championship in a 63-62 Thriller Over Hopkins

Rosemount Girls Basketball Wins First-Ever State Championship in a 63-62 Thriller Over Hopkins

March 15, 2026|5 min read|By South Metro Scoop

TLDR

  • Rosemount beat top-seeded Hopkins 63-62 Saturday night for the program's first-ever Class 4A state title

  • The Irish were down 7 with 5 minutes left before going on a 10-2 game-closing run

  • Amisha Ramlall: 20 pts, 8 assists; Ashna Ramlall: 16 pts; Isla Silk: game-sealing block

  • Rosemount finishes 29-3; this is their first title after runner-up finishes in 1988 and 2021

  • Hopkins was trying to win their 10th championship in program history


Rosemount just made history.

On Saturday night, March 14, 2026, the Rosemount High School girls basketball team beat top-seeded Hopkins 63-62 at Williams Arena in Minneapolis to win the program's first-ever Class 4A state championship. It wasn't pretty. It wasn't comfortable. But it was absolutely real.

Rosemount is one of the South Metro cities we cover every week — and this is the biggest moment in that school's basketball history.

How It Happened: The Comeback

Here's the situation with five minutes left: Rosemount was down 60-53. Hopkins had just taken control. The Royals were the defending Class 4A champions going for their 10th title all-time. The Irish were the No. 2 seed, and they looked like they were running out of time.

Then something shifted.

Junior Gianna Carpentier hit a three-pointer with just over four minutes left to make it 60-57. Less than a minute later, sophomore Kaylee Dilger — who had zero points on the night until that moment — hit another three to give Rosemount the lead at 63-60.

That's back-to-back threes. That's a 10-2 run. That's a three-point lead.

Hopkins cut it to one when junior Erma Walker hit a jumper with 2:54 left. Those turned out to be the last points Hopkins would ever score.

What followed was nearly three minutes of brilliant, aggressive Rosemount defense. The Irish didn't add to their lead. They didn't need to. They just needed to get stops and protect the ball — and that's exactly what they did.

The Final Seconds

With three seconds left, Hopkins had the ball out of bounds under their own basket. One last chance to tie or win. Rosemount junior Isla Silk didn't give them that chance — she got a hand on the shot and knocked it away.

Horn sounds. Irish win.

The celebration on the south side of Williams Arena was immediate. Tears, hugs, jumping — everything you'd expect from a team that just won its first state championship in program history.

Coach Chris Orr summed it up perfectly: "An amazing game. That's everything you want in a state championship. I could not be more proud of how our girls executed our game plan on short notice."

The Players Who Made It Happen

Amisha Ramlall was the best player on the floor. The junior guard and University of Minnesota commit finished with 20 points and 8 assists. She scored 15 of her points in the second half, getting to the basket repeatedly as Hopkins shifted its defense to stop her from the perimeter. Every time Hopkins doubled her, she found the open teammate.

She also got to do this on the same floor she'll be playing on as a Gopher next year. That's a pretty good warmup.

Ashna Ramlall — Amisha's younger sister, a sophomore — put up 16 points and grabbed a team-high 6 rebounds. The Ramlall sisters combined for 36 points in the championship game. Together they've been Rosemount's engine all season.

Isla Silk had 12 points (10 of them in the first half when the Irish were building an early lead) and made the single most important play of the game: the block at the buzzer.

Gianna Carpentier was crucial in the comeback — 10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals, and she played the smartest basketball of anyone down the stretch when Rosemount had to protect its lead and run clock.

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The History Behind This Win

This one matters because of how long Rosemount has been waiting for it.

The Irish made their first state tournament appearance in 1988 and finished runner-up. They came back in 2021 and finished runner-up again. Saturday night, in just their third trip to the Class 4A title game, they finally finished on top.

Meanwhile, Hopkins has been the standard-bearer of Minnesota girls basketball for decades. They were going for their 10th championship. They had 27 wins coming into Saturday. They had the top seed. None of it was enough.

For additional coverage of the championship, check out MSHSL's official recap and the Star Tribune's full game story.

The Bottom Line

Rosemount is a state champion. First time ever. The Irish went 29-3, beat the defending champion on the biggest stage in Minnesota high school basketball, and did it with a comeback that nobody in that arena will forget.

If you went to Rosemount, if your kid plays for the Irish, if you live anywhere near Highway 3 — you've got something to celebrate this weekend.

FAQ

Is this really the first state championship for Rosemount girls basketball?

Yes. The Irish were runner-up in 1988 and runner-up again in 2021, but Saturday's win is the first state title in program history.

How did Rosemount win when they were down seven with five minutes left?

Back-to-back three-pointers by Gianna Carpentier and Kaylee Dilger turned a 7-point deficit into a 3-point lead. Rosemount's defense then locked Hopkins out of the game for the final three-plus minutes.

Who is Amisha Ramlall and why does she matter?

She's a junior guard and the University of Minnesota's latest commit in women's basketball. She's Rosemount's best player and floor leader — 20 points and 8 assists Saturday.

What happened on Hopkins' final possession?

Hopkins got the ball out of bounds with three seconds left and a chance to tie or win. Rosemount's Isla Silk blocked the shot at the buzzer to end it.

Will Rosemount be good again next year?

Very likely. Ashna Ramlall is only a sophomore, Isla Silk and Gianna Carpentier are juniors coming back, and Coach Orr has built a real program here. The Irish lose Amisha to college, but there's a lot of talent returning.

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