Sectional Preview: Class 3A North
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The featured image is of Makenzie Fuess Makenzie Fuess 5'5" | PG Norwell | 2024 State IN (2024) of Norwell High School. The regular season has concluded, and the state tournament begins soon. While brief, below is a look at…
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Continue ReadingThe featured image is of Makenzie Fuess Makenzie Fuess 5'5" | PG Norwell | 2024 State IN (2024) of Norwell High School.
The regular season has concluded, and the state tournament begins soon. While brief, below is a look at the eight Sectionals in Class 3A in the Northern half of the state. All statistics provided here have been pulled from each school’s MaxPreps page, so if your stats are not represented here, your team’s MaxPreps page has not been updated by your coach/school.
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Sectional #17 – Highland
Favorite: Highland
Contender: Hanover Central
Longshots: Bishop Noll, Boone Grove, River Forest, Griffith, Calumet
Preview: Highland (13-7) and Hanover Central (14-7) are the only two teams in this field with more than seven wins, and Highland already beat Hanover earlier this year, 42-36. I would expect Sectional #17 to come down to those two teams, with Senior Aaliyah Keil Aaliyah Keil 5'7" | SG Highland | 2024 IN (12.2p, 5.7r, 2.3s) and Sophomore Jordan Steele Jordan Steele 5'8" | SG Highland | 2026 State IN (17.6p, 3.1r, 3.2s) leading the way for the Trojans. The Wildcats have an experienced group of Seniors, led by Emmi Doty (8.8p, 3.8r, 2.3s), Skylar Ferry Skylar Ferry 5'8" | SG Hanover Central | 2024 IN (7.5p, 2.5r, 2.8a, 3.5s), and Gabi Comia (7.5p, 4.6r, 3.4s). Sophomore Sienna Stilley (7.9p, 3.9r) has had a nice season as well for Hanover Central.
Our Pick: Highland
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Sectional #18 – Rochester
Favorite: Tippecanoe Valley
Contender: Culver Academy
Sleeper: Bremen
Longshots: John Glenn, Rochester, Knox
Preview: Tippecanoe Valley has played everyone in Sectional #18 and is 5-0 against the field. Not many of the other schools have played each other. The Valley Vikings boast good size, skill, and aggressiveness. Senior Ava Egolf Ava Egolf 5'10" | PF Tippecanoe Valley | 2024 IN (13.0p, 5.6r, 2.6s) is the only double figure scorer, but fellow Seniors Kelsey Cox Kelsey Cox 6'0" | PF Tippecanoe Valley | 2024 IN (6.9p, 5.1r) and Chesnee Miller (6.2p, 2.1r, 3.6s) are also major contributors. Culver Academy has a great deal of young talent, but they need to gain experience on the fly. Freshmen Kayla Herron Kayla Herron 5'7" | PG Culver Academy | 2027 State IN (9.8p, 4.3r, 3.1a) and Jimara Combs Jimara Combs 5'9" | SG Culver Academy | 2027 IN (8.0p, 4.3r), plus Sophomores Valencia Miller Valencia Miller 5'10" | SF Culver Academy | 2026 State IN (8.8p, 5.8r) and Piper Brumm Piper Brumm 5'7" | SG Culver Academy | 2026 IN (6.5p, 2.8r) hope to be enough to offer redemption if they play Valley again. Also keep an eye on Bremen. Junior Kila Foster Kila Foster 5'6" | SG Bremen | 2025 State IN (17.9p, 3.9r, 2.4s), plus Sophomores Eliana Grubbs Eliana Grubbs 5'7" | CG Bremen | 2026 IN (11.0, 5.9r, 3.5a, 2.0s) and Emma Kincaid (10.3p, 4.6r, 2.1a) are all capable of big games.
Our Pick: Tippecanoe Valley
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Sectional #19 – New Prairie
Favorite: New Prairie
Contenders: Jimtown, South Bend St. Joseph
Longshots: South Bend Clay, Mishawaka Marian
Preview: Despite a bit of a rough patch right around the New Year, New Prairie (18-5) had a great regular season and looks to be a strong favorite in Sectional #19. Seniors Jayden Flagg Jayden Flagg 5'6" | PG New Prairie | 2024 State IN (14.4p, 3.3r, 4.7a, 2.4s), Jolie Johns Jolie Johns 5'9" | SF New Prairie | 2024 IN (12.8p, 5.5r, 2.2a, 2.4s), and Morgan White Morgan White 5'9" | SF New Prairie | 2024 State IN (12.0p, 3.6r, 3.1a, 2.6s) are talented enough to carry the Cougars to several wins this postseason. Just how far will depend on their tremendous defensive efforts. Jimtown has Senior Justyce Williams Justyce Williams 5'8" | CG Jimtown | 2024 State IN (14.2p, 5.5r, 3.2a, 2.6s), and South Bend St. Joseph has Sophomore Kayla Woods (11.2p, 7.5r, 2.5a, 3.2s), but both teams will need a number of supporting players to step up and have big games as well, if either are to upset New Prairie.
Our Pick: New Prairie
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Sectional #20 – West Noble
Favorites: Fairfield, NorthWood
Contender: Wawasee
Longshots: West Noble, Lakeland
Preview: Fairfield, NorthWood, and Wawasee have taken turns beating each other this season, and it wouldn’t surprise me if any of the three won Sectional #20. Fairfield is the defending State Champion, and despite graduating quite a bit of production, they still return some talent as well. Look for Seniors Natalie Whitaker and Kaylee Dillon to lead from the backcourt, while Sophomores Eva Herbert Eva Herbert 5'10" | SF Fairfield | 2026 State IN and Mykayla Mast provide height, length, and skill. NorthWood probably poses the biggest threat to Fairfield, with Junior Claire Payne Claire Payne 6'1" | C NorthWood | 2025 State IN (10.1p, 10.8r) and Senior Joselyn Edwards (9.5p, 3.0r) presenting a nice inside-out duo with experience. Wawasee is another experienced team with a cast of Juniors ready to make their mark, most notably Mackenzie Hackleman (11.2p, 4.4r, 2.2a, 4.0s) and Olivia Horn Olivia Horn 5'10" | PF Wawasee | 2025 IN (7.6p, 4.9r).
Our Pick: Fairfield
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Sectional #21 – Garrett
Favorite: Angola, Leo
Contenders: Bishop Dwenger, Woodlan
Sleepers: Concordia Lutheran
Longshots: Garrett, Heritage
Preview: This is a tough one, as there are some competitive teams and players here. Angola and Leo were each 5-1 against the field, and they ironically ended up beating each other this season. Angola has a couple of nice Seniors in Kylie Caswell Kylie Caswell 5'4" | PG Angola | 2024 IN (10.6p, 3.0r, 2.1s) and Macy Oberlin Macy Oberlin 6'0" | PF Angola | 2024 State IN (7.4p, 2.2r, 4.5s), plus a pair of talented Juniors in Bailey Holman (7.8p, 8.1r) and Alexis Stillman Alexis Stillman 5'11" | SF Angola | 2025 State IN (6.5p, 5.2r, 2.6a). Leo is led by talented Sophomore Leah Shappell Leah Shappell 6'0" | PF Leo | 2026 State IN (10.6p, 8.8r, 2.0a, 2.2b), plus Senior Kayla Adams (8.9p, 8.6r) put together a nice year. Keep an eye on Senior Giselle Eke Giselle Eke 6'3" | C Bishop Dwenger | 2024 State IN and Freshman Isabelle Eke Isabelle Eke 6'0" | SF Bishop Dwenger | 2027 State IN at Bishop Dwenger, Senior Taylor Kneubuhler Taylor Kneubuhler 6'0" | PF Woodlan | 2024 State IN (14.4p, 6.3r, 2.0a) and Sophomore Alyssa Anderson (11.3p, 10.4r) from Woodlan, plus Sophomore Alivia Bolinger Alivia Bolinger 6'1" | PF Concordia Lutheran | 2026 State IN (13.6p, 7.3r2.2s) of Concordia Lutheran has had a nice second season for the Cadets.
Our Pick: Angola
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Sectional #22 – Twin Lakes
Favorites: Rensselaer Central, Benton Central
Contender: West Lafayette
Sleepers: Western, Twin Lakes
Longshots: North Montgomery, Frankfort
Preview: Sectional #22 is one of the most loaded Sectionals in the state, regardless of class. Rensselaer Central (22-1) has had a stellar season, but can they finish the deal? They get strong play from Junior Taylor Van Meter Taylor Van Meter 5'11" | SF Rensselaer Central | 2025 State IN (13.5p, 5.8r, 2.9a, 3.2s) and Sophomore Kamri Rowland Kamri Rowland 5'8" | SG Rensselaer Central | 2026 State IN (13.9p, 6.6r, 3.5s). The Bison of Benton Central are kind of the “been there, done that” group. They have a great deal of postseason experience and look to get one more shot at the Bombers after falling twice this year by single digits. Senior post Sarah Gick Sarah Gick 6'1" | C Benton Central | 2024 State IN , plus Senior wings Sienna Foster Sienna Foster 5'9" | SF Benton Central | 2024 IN and Rachel Tolen Rachel Tolen 5'9" | SF Benton Central | 2024 IN , provide offense and defense both for the Bison. West Lafayette will try to ride the strong play of Seniors Adrianne Tolen Adrianne Tolen 5'10" | SF West Lafayette | 2024 State IN (18.2p, 8.5r, 2.4a, 4.6s) and Sarah Werth Sarah Werth 5'9" | SF West Lafayette | 2024 IN (13.8p, 3.8r, 2.5a, 2.0s). Western has an incredibly deep Senior class with Mackenzie York Mackenzie York 5'7" | CG Western | 2024 IN (13.0p, 4.6r, 3.3a, 3.0s) and Chloe Hunt Chloe Hunt 5'7" | SG Western | 2024 IN (12.8p, 6.7r, 2.0a, 2.3s) leading the way. And Twin Lakes utilizes a nice duo of their own in Senior sharp-shooter Olivia Nickerson Olivia Nickerson 5'7" | SG Twin Lakes | 2024 State IN (20.9p, 5.3r, 2.8a, 2.3s) and Junior point guard Addison Bowsman (21.3p, 7.3r, 7.1a, 3.0s).
Our Pick: Benton Central
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Sectional #23 – Maconaquah
Favorite: Norwell
Contender: Bellmont
Longshots: Oak Hill, Maconaquah, Mississinewa, Northwestern, Peru
Preview: Most years, Norwell is alone at the top of their Sectional, but Bellmont has had a nice run over the last few seasons. Still, though, the combination of Seniors Kennedy Fuelling Kennedy Fuelling 5'7" | CG Norwell | 2024 State IN , Makenzie Fuess Makenzie Fuess 5'5" | PG Norwell | 2024 State IN , and Dekota Hubble Dekota Hubble 6'0" | C Norwell | 2024 IN , plus Sophomore Vanessa Rosswurm Vanessa Rosswurm 5'9" | SF Norwell | 2026 IN , has the Knights ready to make a deep playoff run. Bellmont is still talented enough to take out the Knights, and the Bruins won’t be afraid if and when they match up. Senior Hailey Cole Hailey Cole 5'11" | PF Bellmont | 2024 State IN , along with Juniors Emily Bleke Emily Bleke 5'8" | SG Bellmont | 2025 IN and Kamryn Jarvis will certainly be ready.
Our Pick: Norwell
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Sectional #24 – Yorktown
Favorite: Hamilton Heights
Contender: Jay County
Sleeper: Frankton
Longshots: Yorktown, Delta, New Castle, Centerville
Preview: Hamilton Heights (20-2) and Jay County (21-2) have the most impressive records in Sectional #24, however, Hamilton Heights took care of Jay County, 53-41, back in early November. Seniors Camryn Runner Camryn Runner 5'9" | CG Hamilton Heights | 2024 State IN (27.9p, 5.9r, 2.8a, 4.1s) and Ella Hickok Ella Hickok 5'6" | PG Hamilton Heights | 2024 State IN (9.6p, 3.2r, 4.5a, 2.6s), plus Junior Katie Brown (9.1p, 2.0r, 2.5s), stand out for the Huskies. Runner is an Indiana All-Star candidate. Jay County does have enough firepower to upset Heights, and it starts with Freshman Hallie Schwieterman Hallie Schwieterman 5'8" | CG Jay County | 2027 State IN (12.5p, 4.5r, 2.1a, 2.8s). She is a dynamic talent and has gotten better each game. Seniors Sophia Saxman (11.4p, 7.8r, 2.9a, 3.4s) and Molly Muhlenkamp Molly Muhlenkamp 5'11" | PF Jay County | 2024 State IN (10.3p, 5.2r, 2.0a, 2.4s) stepped up big time this season as well. Don’t forget about Frankton and their tournament success over the past few seasons. Seniors Emma Sperry Emma Sperry 6'0" | SF Frankton | 2024 State IN (18.2p, 8.9r, 3.8a, 3.3s) and Amaya Collins Amaya Collins 5'6" | SG Frankton | 2024 IN (15.1p, 3.0r, 2.6a, 2.3s) are a potent duo who have proven they can take over games.
Our Pick: Hamilton Heights