Undefeated's & Their Chance To Stay That Way (Part 1)

<p>With most teams having played 10-12 games thus far up to this point, we are basically at the half-way point of this season already. So far there are undefeated teams in MOST classes here in Iowa. In this article, I'll be highlighting those undefeated teams and their chances to stay perfect throughout the rest of the regular season in two parts. Enjoy!</p>   <h2>- 5A -</h2>   <p>In the 5A class there are two teams that are undefeated up until this point, those teams are the returning state champs in the Johnston Dragons, while the other team is the Pleasant Valley Spartans. </p>   <h2 class="has-medium-font-size">Johnston Dragons</h2>   <p>The Johnston Dragons have started this year with a 13-0 record and feeling great after winning a state championship just a year ago. The Dragons are loaded. Nothing else to say or speculate on. This is a team that has the potential to win back to back ships in a short two year span and maybe even more within the following years to come. The roster of the Dragons is one of the best in the state as they possess 5-8 players that would start and be a dominate, leading player at any other 5A high schools throughout Iowa. Where do I start. We could talk about their star freshman point guard in [player_tooltip player_id='557354' first='Jenica' last='Lewis'], who has been put into a position this year to create for others while also being consistent herself and she is accomplishing that. We could talk about their D1-Iowa State commit in [player_tooltip player_id='246121' first='Aili' last='Tanke'], who is as pure as they come shooting the ball from behind the arch while being able to finish at the rim when over-played. You could mention [player_tooltip player_id='63027' first='Emma' last='Hampton'], their athletic forward who cleans up their mess on the offensive glass with her impressive rebounding ability. Honestly the list could go on and on about this group but I think the one thing that I can confidently say is that this team will be favorited in every game they play the rest of this season wether it be in the regular season or playoffs, we will just have to wait and see if they can finish it while looking to go undefeated at the same time. </p>   <h2 class="has-medium-font-size">Pleasant Valley Spartans</h2>   <p>Pleasant Valley is going to go 21-0 this season going into the playoffs and will have a great argument for being the #2 team in the state behind the Johnston Dragons. This Spartan team knows how to win as they do a great job of starting and finishing off games in the long run. Led by their star senior in Marquette basketball commit [player_tooltip player_id='545645' first='Halle' last='Vice'], this team can really stifle some good offenses and make the contest into a metaphorically dog fight down the stretch. The Spartans as a team have been solid this year and have been absolutely dominating most of the games in which they have played, winning by an average margin of victory of 33.5 PPG. This domination has led them to an overall 13-0 record with 8 games left to be played. When you examine their future schedule, it is easy to see this team win out. Most teams they will play are conferences opponents which means that they have already played once up until this point with the Spartans winning, and in most cases, winning convincingly. When talking about individual performances around this season and the players that have kept their undefeated season afloat, we have to touch on [player_tooltip player_id='545645' first='Halle' last='Vice'] and [player_tooltip player_id='311385' first='Reagan' last='Pagniano']. [player_tooltip player_id='545645' first='Halle' last='Vice'] is their "Swiss army knife" type player who really does it all for them. She can pass in a plethora of ways, score from all three levels, and defend guards or bigs depending on the situation. Their star guard is Pagniano. Reagan has been a great facilitator from the shooting guard position all season long while also being a knock down shooter when defenses tend to overplay the post position. Moving forward I anticipate this team to stay at the #2 spot in the state going into the 5A playoffs. This will put them in good spot in the seeding that will favor them to get to Des Moines, where in the end they will have to face the toughest competition up to this point in their season thus far. </p>   <h2>- 4A -</h2>   <p>To this point in the season there are ZERO undefeated teams in the 4A class, therefore this article will not feature a 4A team. I would like to add that though there is no 4A team with a zero loss record, there are a handful of programs with only 1-2 losses up until this point which is extremely impressive. I think that the 4A class not having a undefeated team is more of a good thing and really shows how close this class is to each other. Anyone in the top 10 of the class going into playoffs will really have a chance to make a lasting impact and win it all before it's said and done. </p>   <h2>- 3A - </h2>   <p>The 3A class falls as in interesting one this year with only currently having 1 undefeated team in Estherville Lincoln-Central high school. ELC was the state championship from a year ago and they are looking to repeat once again this season but it won't be just a breeze like it sounds as they are some real BALLERS throughout 3A. </p>   <h2 class="has-medium-font-size">Estherville Lincoln Central Midgets</h2>   <p>First off let's talk about the goal of the undefeated season and it's possibilities for ELC. Looking forward this team will have about a 70% chance to go undefeated by my predictions. They will end up playing a team in Newell-Fonda next Monday whom they have already played once this season and barely escaped with the victory by a slim margin of only 2 points. If ELC can get past that 1A power house then I can really see this team running the table during the regular season and into the playoffs behind the leadership of star guard [player_tooltip player_id='311389' first='Haylee' last='Stokes']. Stokes has been a beast this season at the point guard position averaging just above 20 PPG and 6 APG. She is one of the highest ranking players in her class and for good reason. Secondly, when talking about the bigger goals for this team in the long run, a state championship, it's going to be much more difficult than one might think. This class, like all classes in iowa, is stacked with D1 talent throughout all different programs. The type of players that can have a career night and win the game for their perspective team any evening, players such as [player_tooltip player_id='246099' first='Callie' last='Levin'] of Solon, [player_tooltip player_id='127632' first='Jenna' last='Twedt'] of Benton Community, or a forward powerhouse like [player_tooltip player_id='127623' first='Katy' last='Reyerson'] from West Marshall. ELC is going to be the favorite going into Des Moines as long as they can keep on the same track of what they have been producing so far this season.</p>   <p></p>

With most teams having played 10-12 games thus far up to this point, we are basically at the half-way point of this season already. So far there are undefeated teams in MOST classes here in Iowa. In this article, I'll be highlighting those undefeated teams and their chances to stay perfect throughout the rest of the regular season in two parts. Enjoy!