2025-26 Season Preview: Class 1A, Sectional 51

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I've always enjoyed offering preseason coverage of each of the 64 Sectionals in Indiana high school basketball, and last year I felt like I got a little behind and didn't finish with the previews until after Thanksgiving. With that said, as we come up on September, I wanted to get out in front of it this year and offer you a glimpse at what the 2025-26 season could hold with a preview of each of the state's 64 Sectionals once again. During the Spring of 2024, the IHSAA moved to a traditional enrollment-based format, realigning all classes with hard enrollment cutoff lines per class instead of taking nearly 400 schools and simply dividing them into four equal classes. With that said, each class has been more competitive, but the bigger classes have fewer teams than the smaller classes. This article serves as one of many previewing each Sectional in the state. In this specific article, I will take a look at Class 1A, Sectional #51. Below is a look at the teams in that Sectional, along with some general comments and analysis.<br><small>(<em>SAG = Final 2024-2025 Multiclass Sagarin Rating (398 teams); SOS = Final 2024-2025 Strength of Schedule</em>)</small></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><font color="#FFFFFF">.</font></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><font size="+2">Sectional #51 at Oregon-Davis</font></strong><br>Elkhart Christian (21-6), SAG 121, SOS 318<br>North Judson-San Pierre (20-5), SAG 180, SOS 275<br>Culver Community (15-9), SAG 201, SOS 289<br>Oregon-Davis (12-10), SAG 258, SOS 292<br>Argos Community (7-16), SAG 290, SOS 277<br>Triton (3-21), SAG 292, SOS 225<br>South Central (Union Mills) (8-15), SAG 300, SOS 283<br>SB Trinity Greenlawn (5-16), SAG 354, SOS 322</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Elkhart Christian made quite the noise a season ago, winning their first Sectional and Regional in school history, and they did so behind a roster of mostly 2026s and 2028s. With six of their top seven players returning, including three double-digit scorers, look for the Eagles to be a top Class 1A team in all of Northern Indiana. 5-7 Senior guard <strong>Ivy Clapsaddle</strong> (<em>12.9p, 3.8r, 1.7a, 2.4s</em>), 5-3 Sophomore guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1203491' first='Lily' last='Maxwell']</strong> (<em>12.5p, 3.3r, 1.4a, 3.4s</em>), and 5-5 Sophomore point guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1225067' first='Kyla' last='Yordy']</strong> (<em>10.5p, 5.0r, 4.3a, 4.2s</em>) form a tough-to-beat backcourt that can all handle the ball, score it from all over the court, and even find time to get after you defensively. Clapsaddle is the steady veteran, while I'd expect Maxwell and Yordy to grow their game a bit this time around, following stellar rookie seasons. 5-6 Senior forward <strong>Sydni Haviland</strong> (<em>5.7p, 7.7r, 1.4s</em>) and 5-5 Senior wing <strong>Justine Yordy</strong> (<em>4.0p, 3.3r, 1.2a, 2.5s</em>) aren't very big themselves, but they do provide an element of rebounding and defense for the Eagles. If Elkhart Christian can add any depth and figure out how to defend size, watch out!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another team who should remain near the top of Sectional #51 is North Judson-San Pierre. The Bluejays won 20 games a year ago, but they did graduate a double-figure scorer. Still, though, 5-6 Junior guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='875136' first='Cailyn' last='Tunis']</strong> (<em>14.2p, 3.3r, 1.1a, 1.7s</em>) has proven to be one of the better shooting guards in Class 1A in the state, and I'd look to her to approach 20 points per game in her third year. 5-7 lefty <strong>Shiloh DeBoard</strong> (<em>8.6p, 5.2r, 2.7a, 2.6s</em>), now a Senior, transferred in last season and gave them backcourt stability plus another quality ball-handler. Look for her to also step up her scoring in her final season. 5-7 Junior point guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='875131' first='Avaree' last='Johnston']</strong> (<em>7.7p, 2.7r, 2.5a, 2.1s</em>) is another good guard capable of spreading it around to open teammates. She's also an effective defender. As seems to be the case throughout Sectional #51, 5-8 Senior forward <strong>Grace Craig</strong> (<em>4.4p, 4.0r, 1.0s</em>) brings the "size" in an otherwise shorter lineup for the Bluejays. She'll provide a lot of rebounding and interior defense. Also, like Elkhart Christian, if North Judson-San Pierre can figure out how to handle size and build some depth, they could again approach that 20-win threshold.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It had been since the 2019-2020 season that the Oregon-Davis Bobcats had a winning season, but this year's group looks to improve upon last season's success by regaining Sectional prominence. With nearly all of their production returning, there looks to be a strong likelihood of that happening. 5-9 Senior forward <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1219771' first='Sarah' last='Thompson']</strong> (<em>13.6p, 10.8r, 1.5s, 1.1b</em>) is a well-rounded athlete who does a lot for this Bobcats squad. She can play around the basket and perform bigger than she is, but she also has skill facing the basket, plus she plays with an outstanding motor. 5-6 Senior guard <strong>Gabriella Krause</strong> (<em>11.6p, 6.6r, 6.1a, 3.5s</em>) had to step into a major role last season, and now that she's more experienced, look for her to be even more efficient as their de facto point guard. 5-6 Senior guard <strong>Jayla Patrick</strong> (<em>8.1p, 3.1r, 1.3a, 1.7s</em>) is yet another member of the backcourt with plenty of crucial court time to lean on. From there, a pair of Sophomores in <strong>Trinity Vaszari</strong> (<em>6.2p, 1.8r</em>) and <strong>Eryn MacMilan</strong> (<em>6.0p, 3.6r, 1.0a</em>) performed admirably as rookies and look to make a much bigger impact this time.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Additional Players to Keep an Eye On:</strong> Argos Community: Senior forward <strong>Ellie Bollenbacher</strong> (<em>10.1p, 7.6r, 1.3s</em>) and Sophomore guard <strong>Leah Pizzuto</strong> (<em>2.9p, 3.6r, 1.6a, 1.7s</em>); Culver Community: 5-8 Senior forward <strong>Brianna Schlemmer</strong>; South Central: 5-8 Senior wing <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='832674' first='Samantha' last='Marks']</strong> (<em>10.8p, 5.1r, 1.9a, 2.4s</em>) and Senior wing <strong>Makenna Welsh</strong> (<em>8.1p, 4.7r, 1.3a, 1.3s</em>); SB Trinity Greenlawn: 5-4 Junior guard <strong>Peyton Hawkins</strong>; Triton: 5-10 Senior forward <strong>Avery Viers</strong> (<em>6.1p, 5.5r, 1.7b</em>), 5-2 Sophomore guard <strong>Gracie Riffle</strong> (<em>6.0p, 2.5r</em>)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->