Way Too Early Look at Class 4A

The featured image is of [player_tooltip player_id="177317" first="Destini" last="Craig"] (2024) of Fort Wayne's R. Nelson Snider High School and [program_tooltip program_id='716173' first='Always' last='100'] Elite 15U. As I have done to preview the past three high school seasons, I will provide subscribers with a much more thorough and in-depth look at each of Indiana's four school classifications at some point in mid to late October. But in the meantime, I wanted to take a quick glimpse into five Class 4A teams who I felt, on the surface without a great deal of research, stood out as teams to watch during the 2021-2022 high school season.   THE TOP THREE 1. Crown Point (25-1 in 2020-2021, Class 4A State Champion) What will Crown Point do for an encore? In 2018-2019 they entered the state tournament at 23-0 before falling in the Semi-State, finishing with a 28-1 record. In 2019-2020 the Bulldogs were 24-0 entering the Sectional, ending their season at 26-1 following a Regional loss. Last year their lone blemish came to Class 3A Silver Creek during the regular season, and ironically both teams were crowned State Champs. Now they return their two best players and four of their top five scorers, so what's next? Crown Point relies heavily on all-everything Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id="61030" first="Jessica" last="Carrothers"] (23.3p, 5.4r, 3.9a, 4.1s). She is an emotional leader, a tough scorer at all three levels, plus she plays with a lot of energy and will defend extremely hard. She has already verbally committed to play at IUPUI. 6-4 Senior forward [player_tooltip player_id="128115" first="Lilly" last="Stoddard"] (10.7p, 9.1r, 2.3b) has steadily improved each season, and the Purdue University commit provides them with size, length, and athleticism around the paint. Senior front-liner [player_tooltip player_id="243580" first="Nikki" last="Gerodemos"] (6.1p, 4.4r) seemed to find her stride last year, as she offers them a tough-nosed, high-motor rebounder and interior defender. I look for her to step up her offensive game a little more this season. Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id="128172" first="Alyvia" last="Santiago"] (5.6p) also gave the Bulldogs quality minutes a year ago, and the athletic wing can defend any of three positions. That element of her game will come in handy, as she can take care of the nightly opponent's best player. Santiago will join her sister, 2021 graduate [player_tooltip player_id="62555" first="Alyna" last="Santiago"], at Indiana University-Northwest during the 2022-2023 season. One player I'm curious to see this year is Sophomore wing [player_tooltip player_id="298252" first="Ava" last="Ziolkowski"] (3.1p). She got her feet wet last season, but now she could be relied upon for a much bigger role. At six-feet tall, she has great length, and she's a nice perimeter shooter who offers them another threat from around the arc. She put together a strong Summer in grassroots basketball. Juniors Emily Phillips and Zoey Wells, plus Senior McKayla Henry, could also be in for bigger minutes this time around. 2. Noblesville (21-5 in 2020-2021) It seems like the Millers have been building up to these next few seasons, as they have strong classes in 2023, 2024, and 2025. Their backcourt will be as strong as any in the state, so they'll just have to prove they can rebound and defend the interior to make it beyond the Regional rounds this year. Junior guard, and highly ranked National prospect, [player_tooltip player_id="59773" first="Ashlynn" last="Shade"] (23.9p, 8.1r, 4.2a, 4.3s) leads the way for Noblesville. She is an elite scorer who can consistently make shots at all three levels. It will be a nightly chore for opponents to keep her from getting to the basket/free throw line. Sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id="177361" first="Reagan" last="Wilson"] (9.4p, 3.5r, 2.7a, 2.3s) saw a great deal of action as a Freshman, and I expect her to really take off in year-two. She has good speed and quickness, plus she plays with outstanding energy. From there, I think Junior guard [player_tooltip player_id="264991" first="Kaitlyn" last="Shoemaker"] (5.8p, 2.1r) is in for a much bigger role this season. She isn't very tall, but she is one of the more under-the-radar guards in the state, as she can bury shots with deep range, she can run offense, and she's feisty defensively. Add to them Top-10 Freshman [player_tooltip player_id="295776" first="Meredith" last="Tippner"], and the Millers will be incredibly hard to take the ball from and to keep off the scoreboard. Tippner is a long, wiry athlete who can create offense for herself or teammates. Up front is where they are the most unproven, but there is talent present. 6-4 Junior post [player_tooltip player_id="127235" first="Brooklyn" last="Smitherman"] (3.5p, 4.0r) just continues to gain more confidence and add productivity. She has length, wiry strength, and she runs the floor well. She's starting to flash much more skill around the paint as well. Junior forward [player_tooltip player_id="178230" first="Dani" last="Mendez"] (1.7p, 3.4r) has played in big games already, and she is a tough-nosed, high-motor, physical front-liner who is willing to mix it up inside and do a lot of the blue-collar work for Noblesville. Sophomore forward [player_tooltip player_id="264119" first="Ava" last="Shoemaker"] could see her opportunities rise quite a bit, after seeing limited action in ten games as a Freshman. She is another high-motor kid who is a nice athlete with some skill at all three levels. 3. Westfield (16-5 in 2020-2021) I don't know that Westfield is an "obvious" choice in this spot, but they return a top National prospect, their top three scorers overall, they only graduated about 13.5 points and 8.0 rebounds per game, and they have a number of nice, talented prospects ready to step into much more critical roles this season. 6-3 wing [player_tooltip player_id="10744" first="Alyssa" last="Crockett"] (17.2p, 7.6r, 2.6a) has put together an outstanding 12-18 months of play, and she has legitimately put herself into the Miss Basketball race. She has tremendous ball skill, she's a highly accurate perimeter shooter, and she's a nice all-around athlete as well. Senior classmates [player_tooltip player_id="182139" first="Chesney" last="Tebbe"] (7.9p, 4.3r, 2.3a) and [player_tooltip player_id="128161" first="Olivia" last="Robey"] (7.4p, 2.7r, 2.3a, 2.0s) man the backcourt. Both have speed, quickness, and some length. Robey is more of a traditional point guard who can shoot/score, while Tebbe is a versatile combo guard who does a little of everything well. But also keep an eye on Sophomore point guard [player_tooltip player_id="177334" first="Elizabeth" last="Kelleher"] (2.1p). She had a tremendous Spring and Summer, and at 5-9 she offers them another legitimate ball-handler who doesn't get fazed by much at all. Freshman guards Lyndsay Van Dyke and [player_tooltip player_id="295759" first="Aubrey" last="Crockett"], Alyssa's younger sister, could see immediate opportunities to contribute for the Varsity 'Rocks as well. Senior forwards Hailey Remaks (4.1p) and Mikayla Rudolph bring energy and experience to the lineup, and both should see an uptick in minutes this year. I also think Senior [player_tooltip player_id="61046" first="Madison" last="Kerrigan"] and Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="239350" first="Kiarra" last="Loveless"], both in the 6-1 range, bring nice athleticism, motors, and some skill to the frontcourt and could also contribute a great deal more during the 2021-2022 campaign. There are certainly several unknowns that accompany this Westfield team, but when you have a player like Crockett, plus additional Senior leadership in the backcourt, they are going to cause problems for a lot of teams.   SLEEPER Z...Z...Z... Warsaw Community (18-6 in 2020-2021) While the Warsaw Tigers did graduate three contributing 2021s, they return three really nice 2022s, plus they always tend to play with great balance and efficiency, and they have a pair of nice, young prospects ready to step into key roles this season. The Senior trio of [player_tooltip player_id="97256" first="Abby" last="Sanner"] (9.8p, 8.5r), [player_tooltip player_id="128147" first="Kacilyn" last="Krebs"] (8.9p, 2.9r), and [player_tooltip player_id="128132" first="Bailie" last="Stephens"] (6.6p, 2.7r, 2.5a, 2.0s) look to make their mark on the program this year. Sanner is a 6-1 post who led the team in both scoring and rebounding a season ago. She looked as strong and productive as ever this Spring and Summer, and I anticipate a double-double type of season out of her. Krebs is a tough-nosed, high-motor wing who has already committed to the University of Indianapolis. She has point forward type skill, she gets downhill with aggression, and she will defend with great energy. Stephens is an Energizer Bunny type of guard. She flies around the floor, she plays with grit and toughness, and she can create offense for others or score the ball herself. She has committed to play at Lawrence Technological University. Looking to step up on the big stage this season will be Sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id="298255" first="Joey" last="Rastrelli"] and Freshman forward [player_tooltip player_id="295782" first="Brooke" last="Winchester"]. Rastrelli is long and lean, fluid, and somewhat smooth as a combo guard. She can handle it and run offense, she's a good deep shooter, and she just has a natural instinct for the game. Winchester is a tough-nosed, high-motor combo forward who can play physically and effectively in the mid-post, but she's also comfortable stepping out and playing around the perimeter. I would also look for Junior forward Lauren Grose (2.6p, 3.1r) to play a bigger role this season. She is another worker on the interior, and she comes from a big basketball family.   UP-AND-COMING Fort Wayne Snider (13-8 in 2020-2021) The Snider Panthers made their presence felt a year ago, offering up scares to quite a few opponents. They look to improve this season, especially behind a trio of Sophomores who were each double-digit scorers one year ago. Point guard [player_tooltip player_id="177351" first="Jordyn" last="Poole"] (13.9p, 2.4r, 3.1a) leads the way and is as dynamic as they come at the lead guard position. She is quick/fast, explosive, and great off the bounce. She can also guard the ball anywhere on the floor. Backcourt 'mate [player_tooltip player_id="177321" first="Joh'nea" last="Donahue"] (13.9p, 4.4r, 3.3s) is an energetic, productive, and aggressive athlete who can really score the ball. She can make shots outside, but she's tremendously effective getting to the basket and drawing contact, plus she rebounds her position well. Forward [player_tooltip player_id="177317" first="Destini" last="Craig"] (11.9p, 3.6r) is a matchup problem because she possesses great strength and toughness, but she's also a nice athlete who can play at all three levels. They will need her to battle on the boards a little more in year-two due to some graduation losses, but I look for her to make a jump in all aspects of the game. 6-1 Sophomore front-liner [player_tooltip player_id="298261" first="Tia" last="Phinezy"] (5.9p, 4.4r) continues to show improvement, and I would look for her to be a bigger threat offensively around the basket. She is starting to show more comfort at 15-feet, but her athleticism and length around the rim could be a matchup problem for most Fort Wayne area teams. There are even more Sophomores and a nice little group of Seniors who could step up this season and contribute, but the four Sophomores mentioned above are the nucleus of this group, and they have three more years left together causing problems for opponents.