State Tourney Preview: Class 1A South

The IHSAA State Tournament begins this evening, weather pending, for many schools across the Hoosier state. With that in mind, I wanted to offer a brief preview of each Sectional in the South for Class 1A, which incorporates Sectionals #57 through #64. Below is a look at the teams in each of those Sectionals, along with some general comments and analysis. I will continue previewing the IHSAA State Tournament throughout the course of the day, with eight articles posting in total.   (SAG = Current 2018-2019 Multiclass Sagarin Rating; SOS = Current 2018-2019 Strength of Schedule)   Sectional #57 at Bloomfield Bloomfield (12-10) SAG 176; SOS 205 North Central-Farmersburg (14-8) SAG 201; SOS 230 White River Valley (9-13) SAG 220; SOS 224 Shakamak (7-15) SAG 323; SOS 271 Clay City (5-18) SAG 335; SOS 247 Eminence (3-18) SAG 394; SOS 380 Sectional #57 looks like it could be pretty competitive at the top, with Bloomfield, North Central, and White River Valley all contending for the title. While Bloomfield gets the advantage of playing at home, North Central did beat them 50-43 in early December. I still think Bloomfield’s inside-out duo of Malea Toon (2019) and Kylee Shelton (2021) will be tough to beat at home, even for the young and talented North Central backcourt of Averi Davidson (2021) and Courtney Williams (2021). White River Valley’s Addison Graves (2019) is another nice prospect to watch. Championship Game Prediction: Bloomfield over North Central in a nail-biter   Sectional #58 at Bethesda Christian University (19-2) SAG 59; SOS 330 Bethesda Christian (12-9) SAG 253; SOS 370 Indiana School for the Deaf (14-8) SAG 310; SOS 384 International (5-11) SAG 384; SOS 383 Metropolitan (4-17) SAG 396; SOS 392 Traders Point Christian (2-18) SAG 399; SOS 390 Indiana Math & Science (2-14) SAG 403; SOS 403 University pretty much controls its own destiny here, and I don’t really see anyone upsetting them unless they basically miss every shot and turn it over 40 times. The lineup of Lindsey Syrek (2020), Brooke Andrus (2019), Jhordan McGuire (2019), Jenna Blakley (2019), and Lily Snyder (2019) is just too potent for most teams to match up against. Bethesda does boast high-scoring guard Maddi Fulks (2020), and the Deaf Hoosiers have a pair of double-double machines in Hannah Puent (2020) and Anya Pothorski (2019), but in the end it is everyone else trying to figure out how to slow down University. Championship Game Prediction: University over Indiana Deaf   Sectional #59 at Greenwood Christian Greenwood Christian (13-10) SAG 224; SOS 285 Tindley (14-8) SAG 273; SOS 385 Indianapolis Lutheran (5-17) SAG 312; SOS 290 Providence Cristo Rey (11-11) SAG 379; SOS 396 Cristel House Academy (9-11) SAG 392; SOS 401 Central Christian (5-15) SAG 398; SOS 388 Indianapolis Lighthouse South (2-13) SAG 401; SOS 399 Sectional #59 isn’t terribly deep itself, and it looks like Greenwood Christian is a favorite, with Tindley and possibly Lutheran causing problems for them along the way. Greenwood Christian’s trio of Isabella Reed (2021), Alexis Mead (2020), and Savannah Frye (2021) will cause problems for other Sectional opponents. Tindley will use its speed and athleticism, and Aniya Washington (2020) has had a nice season for them. Also watch Rylee Morris (2019) for Lutheran; she’s a talented wing prospect. Championship Game Prediction: Greenwood Christian over Tindley in a close one   Sectional #60 at Waldron Jac-Cen-Del (18-5) SAG 132; SOS 202 Waldron (15-6) SAG 159; SOS 242 Oldenburg Academy (14-7) SAG 183; SOS 261 Morristown (16-7) SAG 185; SOS 236 Southwestern-Shelbyville (14-8) SAG 198; SOS 244 Hauser (5-17) SAG 298; SOS 200 Rising Sun (4-17) SAG 327; SOS 257 This is looking like it will be a very competitive Sectional, with any one of five teams walking away with the crown. Jac-Cen-Del has a great deal of history and tournament success on their side, plus the combination of Mariah Day (2019) and Paige Ledford (2021) can cause a lot of problems. Waldron has the advantage of hosting Sectional #60, and they have experience, with Morgan Wood (2019), Victoria Shaw (2019), and Hannah Sullivan (2019) leading the way. The Twisters of Oldenburg turn to Katie Kinker (2019) to lead them, Morristown has a solid Senior foursome in Cambie Poole, Kenzie Logan, Brooklyn Langkabel, and Raegan Butcher, while Southwestern leans on Lexi Wilkins (2021) and Madison Van gorden (2019). Championship Game Prediction: Jac-Cen-Del over Waldron in overtime   Sectional #61 at South Central Lanesville (16-6) SAG 214; SOS 363 New Washington (11-11) SAG 223; SOS 284 South Central-Elizabeth (4-17) SAG 339; SOS 228 Borden (7-15) SAG 356; SOS 373 Rock Creek Academy (4-18) SAG 377; SOS 344 Christian Academy (2-17) SAG 381; SOS 329 It looks like Sectional #61 could very well be a two-horse race. Lanesville began a youth movement last year, and they really grew and developed throughout this season. Of their top seven contributors, five are Sophomores and two are Freshmen, so they will be a handful for a couple of years at least. Sophomore wing Gracie Adams is the best of the bunch. New Washington is led by Makynsie Barger (2020), but also keep an eye on Rock Creek’s Abbey Guidry (2019), who has put up big numbers this season. Championship Game Prediction: Lanesville over Borden   Sectional #62 at Edinburgh Trinity Lutheran (15-9) SAG 204; SOS 258 West Washington (14-9) SAG 209; SOS 307 Edinburgh (8-15) SAG 258; SOS 283 Crothersville (12-11) SAG 276; SOS 355 Shawe Memorial (5-17) SAG 358; SOS 318 Medora (0-18) SAG 400; SOS 391 Sectional #62 is split into three tiers of two teams each. Trinity Lutheran and West Washington are the likely favorites, while Edinburgh and Crothersville hope to play spoiler throughout the week. Oddly enough, Shawe Memorial and Medora each got the byes. Trinity Lutheran has had its stumbles, but they are capable of beating anyone in Class 1A on a given night, and a lot of that centers around the play of Sydney Jaynes (2021), Savannah Harweger (2019), and Hannah Sabotin (2020). All three are double-digit scorers this season. West Washington turns to Maddie Bowsman (2019), Rian Russell (2020), Hattie Griffitts (2019), and Kassidy Keltner (2020) for experience and leadership. Championship Game Prediction: Trinity Lutheran over West Washington in a close one   Sectional #63 at Loogootee Vincennes Rivet (23-0) SAG 38; SOS 141 Loogootee (19-3) SAG 119; SOS 255 Orleans (15-8) SAG 219; SOS 321 Barr-Reeve (7-13) SAG 231; SOS 225 Shoals (3-18) SAG 82/370; SOS 295 Washington Catholic (1-19) SAG 385; SOS 366 Sectional #63 is home to last year’s State Runner-Up, Vincennes Rivet, and they’ve looked like they’re on a mission this year to grab the State Title. Grace Waggoner (2019), Tia Tolbert (2020), and Meredith Weiss (2022) form an imposing frontline for a Class 1A school, but they also offer versatility. Loogootee will be the stiffest competition here, especially at home, and the Lions fell to Rivet by just a 51-49 margin back on January 10th. That could shape up to be a tight Championship Game. Tyanna Graber (2019) leads Loogootee into battle. Orleans and Barr-Reeve are two schools with a solid basketball history, and both look to pull upsets as they contend for the title as well. Championship Game Prediction: Vincennes Rivet over Loogootee on a last second shot   Sectional #64 at Springs Valley Tecumseh (16-5) SAG 163; SOS 249 Springs Valley (15-7) SAG 206; SOS 309 Wood Memorial (13-10) SAG 216; SOS 250 Northeast Dubois (5-17) SAG 311; SOS 213 Cannelton (6-17) SAG 376; SOS 387 Sectional #64 has three teams eyeing a Championship this season. Tecumseh started out of the gates strong, winning their first 11 games and 15 of their first 16. But a 1-4 finish likely makes this Sectional much more competitive, especially with Springs Valley hosting. Wood Memorial is only a couple of years removed from their trip to Indianapolis, and that experience could help them in the moment of a close game. Top players in this Sectional include Kaybree Oxley (2022) and Chloe Holder (2020) of Tecumseh, Jewel McCormick (2020) and Stevie McNew (2019) of Springs Valley, Chloe Mowery (2019) and Madison Frederick (2021) of Wood Memorial, and double-double machine Caressa Sloss (2019) of Cannelton. Championship Game Prediction: Springs Valley over Tecumseh in an upset   Header photo of Vincennes Rivet vs. Marquette Catholic in the 2018 Class 1A State Championship Game; photo courtesy of indystar.com.