2025-26 Season Preview: Class 1A, Sectional 52

<!-- 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 #52. 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 #52 at Fremont</font></strong><br>Fremont (20-7), SAG 118, SOS 224<br>Lakewood Park Christian (16-7), SAG 160, SOS 262<br>Blackhawk Christian (14-12), SAG 218, SOS 278<br>Lakeland Christian (11-13), SAG 306, SOS 347<br>Bethany Christian (4-18), SAG 317, SOS 282<br>Hamilton Community (3-15), SAG 380, SOS 369<br>FW Canterbury (2-18), SAG 382, SOS 350</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Fremont Eagles will be seeking their third consecutive Sectional title in 2025-2026. With their top two scorers and three of their top four players returning, they should begin the year as the Sectional #52 favorites. Leading the way are now-Juniors <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='751063' first='Grace' last='Scharlach']</strong> (<em>14.9p, 4.4r, 2.6a, 2.8s</em>) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='751110' first='Mya' last='Turner']</strong> (<em>12.1p, 5.1r, 1.6a, 2.7s</em>). Scharlach is a dynamic 5-5 combo guard who plays with a great deal of speed, quickness, and competitive spirit. She can create offense for teammates, she can pour in 30 points herself on any given night, plus she is a feisty defender. Turner is a 5-8 wing who had a really nice Spring. She looks stronger and more confident, plus she has continued to build her skillset. Depth could certainly be a problem for the Eagles, but Senior guard <strong>Hailey Heller</strong> (<em>4.5p, 2.4r, 2.0a, 1.1s</em>) has starting experience and should see an even bigger role this season, while 5-8 Junior wing <strong>Mallorie Hufnagle</strong> (<em>2.1p, 1.3r, 1.1a</em>) saw critical rotation minutes a year ago and could be relied upon to be a starter now. Beyond those four, all options are on the table. Scharlach and Turner should be enough on most nights, but to beat the best, they'll need help from others.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For the second consecutive year, Lakewood Park Christian Academy has graduated a big-time performer, so despite being one of the deeper teams in Sectional #52, they'll have to replace their best player. The Panthers could lean more heavily on 5-11 Junior post <strong>Gracelyn Martin</strong> (<em>8.1p, 5.6r, 1.7a, 1.3s</em>), who significantly improved last year. Another prospect to step into a leadership role is 5-3 Sophomore point guard <strong>Luca Bontrager</strong> (<em>4.7p, 3.0r, 2.1a, 2.8s</em>). While she immediately proved her worth as a ball-hawking defender, she'll be needed to score a lot more in year-2. She has the potential to make a huge jump, though. 5-6 Junior wing <strong>Riah Johnson</strong> (<em>3.9p, 5.8r, 2.0a, 1.3s</em>) plus 5-11 Senior post <strong>Luci Young</strong> (<em>2.3p, 1.9r</em>) should be able to help Martin control the boards and defend the interior. The remainder of the roster could be rounded out by a host of younger players or possibly a transfer or two. Still, I expect the Panthers to be a team contending with Fremont for Sectional #52 at the end of the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Fort Wayne's Blackhawk Christian had an interesting mix of a solid and big Senior group, plus a host of contributing youngsters, last season. Those younger players should now be experienced and be able to keep the Lady Braves in the hunt for a Sectional title. 5-9 Senior forward <strong>Marnie Davis</strong> and 5-5 Senior guard <strong>Quinn Mann</strong> bring quality experience to the lineup, while 5-0 point guard <strong>Desi Pope</strong> and 5-11 post <strong>JaeLynn Pickett</strong> also offer help. Both are Sophomores who saw quite a bit of opportunity last year as rookies. 5-6 Junior guard <strong>Avery Wampole</strong> could help round out the lineup for a Lady Braves program who has had a nice run of success recently. Winning 15+ games could be a struggle for Blackhawk Christian, however, they have enough skillful and talented pieces to contend for a Sectional #52 title.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Additional Players to Keep an Eye On:</strong> Bethany Christian: 5-6 Senior point guard <strong>Ellie Morris</strong> (<em>5.5p, 2.0r, 3.6a, 2.2s</em>) and Sophomore wing <strong>Amari Yoder-Lind</strong> (<em>4.2p, 5.8r</em>); Fort Wayne Canterbury: 5-3 Senior guard <strong>Grace Challie</strong> and 5-6 Senior forward <strong>Kate Laurie</strong>; Hamilton Community: 5-4 Senior guard <strong>TeigAnn Freed</strong> and 5-7 Senior forward <strong>Tristen Creager</strong>; Lakeland Christian: Sophomore post <strong>Olivia Hawks</strong> (<em>10.5p, 10.1r, 1.1a, 1.2s</em>) and Sophomore guard <strong>Allie Calizo</strong> (<em>2.3p, 3.3r, 2.5a, 1.6s</em>)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->