POLL: Who Should Be MVP In Class 3A??
In this article:
With the IHSAA Girls' Basketball State Finals taking place this weekend, I wanted to ponder the question...who should be the MVP for the entirety of the 2025-2026 season (not just the State Finals or State Tournament) in each of the four classifications?? In this article, I have identified four young ladies in Class 3A who I thought would be front-runners. They do NOT have to be Seniors, they can come from any graduating class, and I tried to make sure to add at least one from each of Saturday's participants in the State Finals, if I felt like they would be close to the Top 4 (or in the Top 4) in Class 3A. Sometimes a huge Saturday can push them over the top!! I have also posted a poll on our "X" account, @PGHIndiana, if you are interested in placing a vote!! Votes will be accepted for 24 hours from the time this article and the poll post online. Thanks for your participation!!
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Leading into these State Finals, I've spoken quite a bit about Elliot's importance to the Lady Royals. She scores twice as many points per game as her next closest teammate, she is tough, she plays hard, and she has a nice understanding of the game. Through nearly 3 seasons, she has already scored 1315 points and pulled in 420 rebounds as a guard. This season she is helping the Royals in the way of 18.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 2.1 steals per game, while helping them advance to their first State Finals since 1986. I would expect her to have a big game later this evening.
Highlights
Mollie had a fantastic Senior season, and in addition to setting a career single season best in points scored, she also set personal bests in rebounding and assists. For the 2025-2026 season, Mollie averaged 24.0 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game. Additionally, she helped lead the Lady Panthers to a 20-7 record, in addition to big postseason over Class 3A powers like Greensburg, Silver Creek, and Washington to reach the Final Four. She is signed to attend the University of Kansas next season, and her ability to handle, shoot, and defend should help her fit in well there.
Highlights
Throughout her career, the Lady Bears won 75 games, 3 Sectional titles, and a Regional title, after winning just 4 total Sectionals in the history of the program before her arrival at Central. Additionally, this season she missed 4 games due to injury, and the Bears went 0-4 during that stretch. She is as skilled and fundamental of a front-liner as there has been in a while in the state, and she could instantly affect the University of Southern Indiana's success next season. Maddy finished the season averaging 23.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 2.2 blocked shots per game.
Highlights
Ironically, like Ernstes (above), Brooklynn is another University of Kansas commit from Indiana's 2026 class. She has also had an outstanding career, and this season was her best to date. On the year, she averaged 21.1 points, 11.5 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game. She is a talented athlete with great length and a fluid athleticism, plus she's bouncy. She does a really nice job of playing inside or out, being able to defend bigger guards and wings, or getting inside to use her height against forwards and posts. She also made 28 3-pointers this year at a 37% rate.
