Tournament Preview: Class 4A, Region 4
Mason Asher
With the 4A tournament set to get underway on Wednesday, February 13th, we are going to be breaking down each region with in depth analysis. We will cover who you should watch for, the teams that could come out of nowhere, and of course, the bracket buster candidate. We will also list five players from each class that you need to keep an eye on throughout the bracket as they can really change the game in a hurry. The complete Region 4 bracket is posted below.
The Teams Ballard (19-2) Waverly-Shell Rock (18-2) Bondurant-Farrar (11-9) Newton (3-17) Waterloo, East (2-16) Charles City (0-19) The Favorite Ballard Ballard is a team that I really like. They are young and have really good guard play. While they don't score a ton of points, they like to play in your face defense and turn turnovers into points. They are scoring 48 points a game this season while only allowing 31 points a game. Ballard leads the region in assists, steals, and 3-pointers made. The trio of sophomore Molly Ihle, sophomore Josie Fleischmann, and freshman Brooke Loewe lead the charge for Ballard. Loewe leads the team scoring 10.4 points a game and Ihle and Fleischmann score 9.8 points a game. Ihle is a stat sheet stuffer as she leads the region in assists, steals, and is fourth in the region in rebounds. The Sleeper Waverly-Shell Rock This is a team that I think is very close to Ballard, but not the favorite. Waverly-Shell Rock is a team that is averaging 52.8 points a game, which is the best mark in the region. They are shooting 42 percent from the floor and have made 70 3-pointers on the season. They rarely turn the ball over as they have just 265 turnovers on the year, which is the best in the region. Sophomore Abbie Draper is leading Waverly-Shell Rock scoring 14.8 points a game. Draper is also second in the region in blocks with 31. The Outside Shot Bondurant-Farrar Scoring 49.0 points per game, Bondurant-Farrar is the best outside shooting team in the region. They play solid defense, and allow 40.7 points a game. They had a five game losing streak this season which included a 16-point loss to Ballard, who they had lost to previously this year by two points. Like Ballard, they are a very young team with just three upperclassmen on the roster. Avery Fried, a sophomore leads the team in scoring at 15.5 points a game on 46 percent shooting. Players to Watch 2019 Kerris Roberts (Waterloo, East) Amanee Clark (Waterloo, East) Olivia Phillips (Waverly-Shell Rock) Josie Sindlinger (Charles City) Peyton Maher (Newton) 2020 Britney Young (Waverly-Shell Rock) Maggie Larson (Ballard) Taylor Berggren (Bondurant-Farrar) Camryn Grawe (Waverly-Shell Rock) Madison Whitson (Waterloo,East) 2021 Avery Fried (Bondurant-Farrar) Abbie Draper (Waverly-Shell Rock) Molly Ihle (Ballard) Josie Fleischmann (Ballard) Riley Gilroy (Bondurant-Farrar) 2022 Brooke Loewe (Ballard) Ashlyn Hoeft (Charles City) Lydia Staudt (Charles City) Ellasa Horton (Waterloo, East) Aurora Nehring (Newton)
The Teams Ballard (19-2) Waverly-Shell Rock (18-2) Bondurant-Farrar (11-9) Newton (3-17) Waterloo, East (2-16) Charles City (0-19) The Favorite Ballard Ballard is a team that I really like. They are young and have really good guard play. While they don't score a ton of points, they like to play in your face defense and turn turnovers into points. They are scoring 48 points a game this season while only allowing 31 points a game. Ballard leads the region in assists, steals, and 3-pointers made. The trio of sophomore Molly Ihle, sophomore Josie Fleischmann, and freshman Brooke Loewe lead the charge for Ballard. Loewe leads the team scoring 10.4 points a game and Ihle and Fleischmann score 9.8 points a game. Ihle is a stat sheet stuffer as she leads the region in assists, steals, and is fourth in the region in rebounds. The Sleeper Waverly-Shell Rock This is a team that I think is very close to Ballard, but not the favorite. Waverly-Shell Rock is a team that is averaging 52.8 points a game, which is the best mark in the region. They are shooting 42 percent from the floor and have made 70 3-pointers on the season. They rarely turn the ball over as they have just 265 turnovers on the year, which is the best in the region. Sophomore Abbie Draper is leading Waverly-Shell Rock scoring 14.8 points a game. Draper is also second in the region in blocks with 31. The Outside Shot Bondurant-Farrar Scoring 49.0 points per game, Bondurant-Farrar is the best outside shooting team in the region. They play solid defense, and allow 40.7 points a game. They had a five game losing streak this season which included a 16-point loss to Ballard, who they had lost to previously this year by two points. Like Ballard, they are a very young team with just three upperclassmen on the roster. Avery Fried, a sophomore leads the team in scoring at 15.5 points a game on 46 percent shooting. Players to Watch 2019 Kerris Roberts (Waterloo, East) Amanee Clark (Waterloo, East) Olivia Phillips (Waverly-Shell Rock) Josie Sindlinger (Charles City) Peyton Maher (Newton) 2020 Britney Young (Waverly-Shell Rock) Maggie Larson (Ballard) Taylor Berggren (Bondurant-Farrar) Camryn Grawe (Waverly-Shell Rock) Madison Whitson (Waterloo,East) 2021 Avery Fried (Bondurant-Farrar) Abbie Draper (Waverly-Shell Rock) Molly Ihle (Ballard) Josie Fleischmann (Ballard) Riley Gilroy (Bondurant-Farrar) 2022 Brooke Loewe (Ballard) Ashlyn Hoeft (Charles City) Lydia Staudt (Charles City) Ellasa Horton (Waterloo, East) Aurora Nehring (Newton)
