Undefeated’s & Their Chance To Stay That Way (Part 2)
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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…
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Continue ReadingWith 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!
– 2A –
Moving down into the 2A class we have three programs that thus far have stayed perfect. You have Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont at 12-0, Central Lyon at 9-0, and Dike-New Hartford at 11-0. All have played some good opponents up to this point and have proven they deserve to be where they currently are in the rankings.
Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont Rockets
EBF has put together an impressive season thus far and hopes to finish it out as the top dog of their conference, along with trying to stay undefeated on their way to compete for a state championship. This EBF team is built on the play of their veteran leader in Whitney Klyn accompanied with a healthy amount of underclassman who can really compete. Klyn has been leading her rockets team by averaging 18.8 PPG on the way to their 12-0 record. Behind her you have star sophomore Ava Eastlick who is ranked second on her own team in scoring and third in assists per game. After that you have Sophomore guard Molly Shafer Molly Shafer 6'0" | PF Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont | 2025 State IA . Shafer is averaging 14.7 PPG on 49.3% shooting to help the rockets to this hot start as well. The list of players on this squad that contribute in every little way goes on and on. Looking toward the rest of their schedule to finish out their season it looks like they will have a good chance to stay perfect and close to it. I’m sure this goal isn’t on their mind or any other undefeated teams mind for that matter but it is always fun to see who can keep the perfect streak together for the longest amount of time before things get a little bit more serious moving into the playoffs.
Central Lyon Lions
The Lions of Central Lyon high school have put together their 9-0 start with efficient teamwork and the constant production of their top 2-3 players. Earlier in the season the Lions had a matchup against #1 Estherville Lincoln Central of the 3A class, which ended up eventually getting postponed. Due to this I think the chances of the Lions to run the table are much more likely. The ELC team of the 3A class is a powerhouse that would end up matching really well across the board in this situation VS the lions. If they end up playing this game before the end of the regular season it’ll definitely be one to keep your eye on as it could be a really close contest throughout the longevity of the game. This Central Lyon team is led by one of the best sharp shooters in the state in Addison Klosterbuer Addison Klosterbuer 5'9" | SG Central Lyon | 2023 State IA . Klosterbuer is a U of South Dakota basketball commit and has been letting that thing fly this season. She is averaging just over 20 PPG while also being a key distributer for her fellow teammates. In my honest opinion I think it’s going to be challenging for this team to finish the regular season off perfect. They are good enough to do so but have some matchups down the road that really aren’t in their favor overall. While taking that into effect I think this team does make it to Des Moines and compete for a state title before the end of this season.
Dike-New Hartford Wolverines
The Wolverines made it to the state playoff a season ago and I anticipate the same for the playoffs ahead. Led by a solid group of upperclassmen that have put together an undefeated season up until this point but will they be able to keep it that way? To be honest it’s going to be the hardest challenge out of the all of the undefeated teams I have named the 2A conference solely because of one specific matchup at the end of the season in which they must face the #1 team in the 1A class, Bishop Garrigan. BG is led by Iowa State commit and the #1 ranked player in Iowa in her 2023 class, Audi Crooks Audi Crooks 6'3" | C Bishop Garrigan | 2023 State #42 Nation IA . If the Wolverines can put together a good plan and stop the production of Crooks and their star point guard Molly Joyce Molly Joyce 5'7" | PG Bishop Garrigan | 2023 State IA , then it’s possible for an undefeated finish to the year but it’s going to be tough. From a coaching perspective I think it was great choice to schedule this matchup for the end of their year, right before playoffs. This will give them the best competition they have played all season which will show them all the major flaws they have as a team. If they can compete and take some lessons away from it, then it would show to be a bigger advantage for them in the long run to play this game and lose compared to smashing a bad team. The Wolverines are led by Payton Petersen Payton Petersen 5'10" | C Dike-New Hartford | 2024 State IA . Petersen is an athletic forward with a high skill set for her position. Throughout their 11 games thus far she is averaging 16.2 PPG on 52% shooting and 10.6 RPG. This is really getting it done for this squad as some other players have also stepped in big this season in other forms. Players such as Junior Jadyn Petersen who is averaging 13.5 PPG on 65% shooting, or senior Ellary Knock Ellary Knock 6'0" | SF Dike-New Hartford | 2023 State IA who is grabbing 5.2 RPG along with dishing out 4.5 APG, are the players that come to mind. If we consider their efficiency as a group and they focus up once playoffs start, this team should be playing in Des Moines.
– 1A –
There are equal the amount of undefeated teams alone in the 1A class than there are with all the other classes combined. The following teams are undefeated thus far; Winfield-Mt Union at 14-0, AGWSR at 12-0, Westwood at 12-0, North Linn at 11-0, West Fork 11-0, Woodbine at 11-0, and Central Elkader at 11-0. This is going to be a crazy class when it gets to playoff time as you have all these powerhouse teams and we aren’t including the state champs from a year ago whom only have 1 loss on their record along with a plethora of other teams that could step up and win it all this season. I can’t wait to see how it unfolds.
Winfield-Mt Union
To start off our journey throughout the 1A class we have to consider some things before we speak about each team. With being the smallest class in the state there are less opportunities for most, if not the majority, of teams to play games. So in the Wolves case they are currently 14-0 with the average margin of victory being 35 points with only 5 games remaining, totaling 19 games being played on the year. Their closest game thus far was in a contest against the Waco Warriors, in which they won by 7 points early on this season. This team lives on defense. They have some great individual pieces but when any team comes togethers to hold their opponents to 23 PPG through 14 games, it really says something. This team is built on the foundation of hard-work and dedication in the offseason by its senior class, who are really bringing something special to the court this year. Their leading scorer is Bradie Buffington, a senior who is averaging 15.8 PPG and 8.3 RPG from the forward position. She plays a good, efficient game down in the post with the ability to stretch the floor in a set offense or transition. Next to her is senior forward Melina Oepping. Oepping and Buffington do a great job working off of each other as the game continues to progress. If one of them is scoring then the other is looking for the rebound or vise versa. Looking at their reminding schedule I would be shocked if they didn’t go undefeated with their last real challenge being a rematch VS the Waco Warrios at their place. Once the playoffs start I’m expecting to see this team make a deep run but who knows as there are so many equally matched teams at this level, it could be anyones game.
AGWSR Cougars
There is a lot to say that can be said about the AGWSR Cougars but I think the most important thing is that this team is going to have played the most diverse schedule of the 1A class and will be prepared for a big splash in the post season, even while some underclassmen are playing heavy/majority of their varsity minutes. The Cougars come into this at 12-0, registering some quality wins under their belt. They have been a complete team that hasn’t won by double digits against other ranked opponents in every contest this year but came out with the win, every time, thus far. The leader of this squad has been a player that came into her freshman year highly ranked and recruited in Nakia Olivierre. Olivierre has lived up to anything said about her and more. She is their starting point guard and has been averaging 21.6 PPG by scoring in a number of ways. She is also leading her team in assists with just over 2.7 per game. She really is a special talent with a high ceiling. She works hard on defense and plays through things honestly while being a three level scorer on the offensive side of things. I think that as she grows in age and size, she will receive more and more looks from college recruits as she can really play efficiently and with great pace. Looking forward for this team in the attempt to finish the season perfect, it’s going to be a challenge. They have their hardest opponent of the year in West Marshall coming up shortly but if they can get through that with a win, I think this team has a good chance to finish out with a zero in the loss column.
North Linn Lynx
North Linn has their hardest test of the season tonight against the Iowa City-Regina Regals at home. The Regals come into the building with a 12-1 record and have been dismantling teams so far this season but don’t think this is just going to be an easy victory for the Regals. I think that with the home court advantage, the coaching and program in place, and the players in this contest that the Lynx are going to make this one a real good ball game. They possess the ability to push the ball and play at the same pace as Regina as well they have the athletes to matchup with their opponents best players throughout the contest. The consistency for the Lynx comes in the form of 3-5 players on a nightly basis but their leading scorer thus far this season is Kamryn Kurt Kamryn Kurt 5'6" | PG North Linn | 2024 State IA . Kurt is a 5’6 point guard who gets to the hoop a good amount each evening off of a quick dribble move. She also does a good job of being the leading distributor for her team as well. Another big time player for them is Molly Boge Molly Boge 5'6" | PG North Linn | 2025 State IA . Boge is a fundamental shooting guard who is averaging 11.5 PPG and 3.8 APG through their 13 games. Looking forward I think tonight is their biggest game of the year. This one shows us what both teams are all about when they play another great opponent. It’s going to be a good one and if the Lyxn can get throughout this, they maybe able to compete this year with an undefeated record.
Westwood Rebels
The Westwood Rebels are in a weird spot in my mind as they are undefeated up to this point without playing a whole lot of great competition but the common opponents that they have played, they played tough thus far. The Rebels have started this year at a cool 11-0 and will attempt to keep that going as the reminder of the regular season goes forth. Next on their schedule they will have 3 remaining games until their conference playoff’s begin. In this conference this season it looks like by their schedule that they will be doing a playoff bracket-type system to determine their conference winner at the end of things. This is common practice amount smaller schools who either don’t have a home conference or they don’t play enough contests as a conference therefore they can’t really get a feel of the competition level of all the schools involved so this is seen as the most-fair way. The Rebels are being led by sophomore Ashlyn Davis Ashlyn Davis 6'0" | SF Westwood | 2025 State IA . Davis has been doing it all for this squad during this season so far by averaging 15.5 PPG and 8.8 RPG while also making her mark in other categories on the way. Westwood is ranked 5th in the 1A class at the moment and they do have the chance to move up in time but that will take them to go undefeated throughout the rest of the regular season and/or an opponent of their’s that is ranked above them, to lose. In the end I see this team at the state tournament, just not sure where they will be seeded exactly.
West Fork Warhawks
When I spoke about some schools above having a smaller schedule because of whatever the reasoning, this does not apply to the Warhawks. This team plays an extensive 21 game regular season schedule on their way into the playoffs each and every year. So far up to this point they have gone 11-0 and beaten every opponent placed in their way. With having 10 game left before the end of their year their goal should be to just go 1-0 during every game played and go from there. It’s when teams look ahead too far that they get caught up on the opponents right in front of them. The production on the offensive end so far for the Warhawks has been constant and even between the top 2-3 players. They are led by senior Emma Martinek in scoring and rebounding at 18.6/6.3 while sophomore Leah Weavers leads the team in assist at 4.4 per game. The combo of these two athletes has been the downfall to every opponent so far and hopefully they can keep it up. It’ll be interesting to see where this team is set once the regular season ends and who they will have to go through to get to Des Moines out of their region.
Woodbine Tigers
The grouping of Charlie Pryor, Amanda Newton, Nicole Sherer, and Addison Erickson has been overpowering teams all season and for good reason. This group of players along with some other individuals that come off their bench have been doing work this year. The Tigers are 11-0 with some good wins but still have 11 more games to be played before the end of their regular season, their last game coming against undefeated Westwood high school, whom I mentioned above. The head of the attack for this team comes in the main form of two players in Pryor and Newton. Pryor is averaging 14.5 PPG on 41.8% shooting while Newton is sitting at 12.6 PPG on 45.9% shooting. Newton also ranks first on the team in rebounds per game at 8.5 with senior Nicole Sherer coming in second at 5.8 RPG while also dishing out 5.7 APG thus far. The work of these three and company speaks for itself in their record and average margin of victory, which is currently sitting at 26.5 PPG. This group is one of the more diverse undefeated programs left and it’ll be great to see if they can make a lasting impact once the playoffs start this season.
Central Elkader Warriors
The Warriors are ranked as the #8 team in 1A currently despite their undefeated start of 11-0. This ranking at the moment I think is right about where I would put them myself as they are undefeated but there are some other programs with 1 or 2 loses that I would put above them for the time being. They are being led by senior Delaney Scherf Delaney Scherf 5'7" | PG Central Elkader | 2023 State IA who has been tearing it up from the guard position thus far. She is averaging 19.2 PPG, 4.9 RPG, and 2.7 APG on the way to starting undefeated and being an ultimate leader for this group. This squad currently sits in first place in the Upper Iowa conference standings and should end up finishing it out in first place as well when I look who their opponents are remaining. They have some quality wins from the beginning of their season which will fair well for them in the long run. I’m not sure if this group will end the season undefeated but nevertheless it’ll be fun to watch them play against some better competition so that we can see what they are really made off.