Semi-State Preview: Class 1A

<!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"small"} --> <p class="has-small-font-size"><em>The featured image is of [player_tooltip player_id='324077' first='Gracie' last='Little'] (2025) of Washington Township High School.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Following an exciting round of Regional games Saturday afternoon and evening, the Semi-State fields are now set. This season, the IHSAA decided to make the Regional a one-game affair to win a title, with two Regional championship games at the same host site, similar to past Semi-States. Therefore, there were two Regional winners at each site. The Semi-States are now four-team, three-game events tomorrow, where teams in each class must win twice to advance to the State Finals. Below is a look at the two Semi-State locations in Class 1A, one taking place in the North, and one taking place in the South.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><font color="#FFFFFF">.</font></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><font size="+2">Frankfort Semi-State:</font></strong><br>Game-1: Tri (25-1) vs. Tri-Central (12-13), 10:00 a.m. ET<br>Game-2: Bethany Christian (22-3) vs. Washington Township (20-6), 12:00 p.m. ET<br>Game-3: Winner Game-1 vs. Winner Game-2, 8:00 p.m. ET</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Game-1:</strong> If not for Bethany Christian getting in the way, we could have had Tri, Tri-Central, and Tri-County all in the same Semi-State, but I digress. On paper, Tri looks to have a major advantage over Tri-Central tomorrow. The Lady Titans have size, strength, and experience, they have nearly made it this far undefeated, and they are on a mission right now. Senior post [player_tooltip player_id='178241' first='Bailey' last='Parham'] will be very difficult for the Lady Trojans to defend. If they figure out a away, then they will still have to deal with the combination of Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='570375' first='Kenley' last='Cornelius'], Junior <strong>Rylee Boyd</strong>, plus Seniors <strong>Abi Clarke</strong> and <strong>Amber Rich</strong>. Give Tri-Central credit, though. They are incredibly scrappy and figure out ways to compete with just about everyone. I think they will give Tri trouble for about the first quarter and a half, then the Titans will start to separate a little. I think Tri wins this one, but Tri-Central will put up a strong effort. I'll take Tri over Tri-Central, 44-33.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Game-2:</strong> This second game at Frankfort could be a lot of fun. Bethany Christian and Washington Township are both very guard-oriented, they each like to rip it from beyond the arc, and there could be some stretches offensively that are exciting to watch. For Bethany Christian, they lean heavily on the Junior backcourt duo of [player_tooltip player_id='338899' first='Zoe' last='Willems'] and [player_tooltip player_id='326492' first='Mariah' last='Stoltzfus']. Willems is a tough-nosed, strong, physical wing guard who can score it at all levels. Stoltzfus is a feisty, tough-nosed, quick little point guard who can knock down shots with range or create opportunities for others. The Lady Bruins will go as those two go. For Washington Township, they can hit you from three different directions. Sophomore guards [player_tooltip player_id='331817' first='Clair' last='Klinger'] and [player_tooltip player_id='324077' first='Gracie' last='Little'] can fill it up outside or create offense for others, while Senior wing <strong>Addison Graf</strong> has put together a tremendous Senior season as well. The Lady Senators tend to live and die by the 3-pointer, so you'll see several of them fly. I think both of these backcourts will get after each other, but that third scorer for Washington Township really stands out to me. I think I will lean the way of the Senators, but by a narrow 41-40 margin.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to Watch:</strong><br>Bethany - [player_tooltip player_id='338899' first='Zoe' last='Willems'], 2024 - 17.2p, 8.2r, 2.7a, 3.7s<br>Bethany - [player_tooltip player_id='326492' first='Mariah' last='Stoltzfus'], 2024 - 10.0p, 3.4r, 4.2a, 4.5s<br>Bethany - <strong>Kiersten Todd</strong>, 2023 - 6.4p, 3.9r<br>Bethany - <strong>Julia Moser</strong>, 2023 - 5.7p<br>Tri - [player_tooltip player_id='178241' first='Bailey' last='Parham'], 2023 - 21.0p, 10.5r, 3.9a, 4.2s, 3.7b<br>Tri - [player_tooltip player_id='570375' first='Kenley' last='Cornelius'], 2025 - 10.5p, 4.2r, 2.4a, 3.8s<br>Tri - <strong>Rylee Boyd</strong>, 2024 - 8.4p, 2.7r, 2.5a<br>Tri - <strong>Abi Clarke</strong>, 2023 - 8.0p, 5.2r<br>Tri - <strong>Amber Rich</strong>, 2023 - 7.5p<br>Tri-Central - <strong>Megan Conner</strong>, 2023 - 8.5p, 3.6r, 2.2s<br>Tri-Central - <strong>Karley Leininger</strong>, 2023 - 6.9p, 4.0r, 2.5a, 2.6s<br>Tri-Central - <strong>Abby Hoback</strong>, 2023 - 5.9p<br>Tri-Central - <strong>Gracie Grimes</strong>, 2023 - 5.4p, 5.0r, 3.6a, 2.6s<br>Washington Twp. - [player_tooltip player_id='331817' first='Clair' last='Klinger'], 2025 - 15.0p, 5.3r, 4.5a, 3.1s<br>Washington Twp. - <strong>Addison Graf</strong>, 2023 - 15.0p, 4.7r, 2.7a, 2.6s<br>Washington Twp. - [player_tooltip player_id='324077' first='Gracie' last='Little'], 2025 - 14.8p, 3.8r, 3.3a, 4.0s<br>Washington Twp. - <strong>Jaycee Jackson</strong>, 2025 - 4.5p, 2.0r</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><font color="#FFFFFF">.</font></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><font size="+2">New Albany Semi-State:</font></strong><br>Game-1: Bloomfield (14-14) vs. Jac-Cen-Del (16-11), 10:00 a.m. ET<br>Game-2: Lanesville (25-2) vs. Trinity Lutheran (22-6), 12:00 p.m. ET<br>Game-3: Winner Game-1 vs. Winner Game-2, 8:00 p.m. ET</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Game-1:</strong> With each team entering this game with double-digit losses, this could be about as even as a game gets. Bloomfield entered postseason play just 10-14, so a win tomorrow morning would guarantee them at least a .500 record for the year. They have seen graduation hit them pretty hard the last couple of seasons, so to be where they are is exciting. They also won their first Regional title in 18 years last Saturday. The Cardinals use good size and strength for a Class 1A team, they control tempo, and they play sound, physical defense. Junior guard <strong>Jacenyia Godoy</strong> will handle the ball quite a bit, while Seniors <strong>Delaney Richardson</strong> and <strong>Ruby Myers</strong> do a lot of work around the lane. Jac-Cen-Del is quite the opposite, having won four Regional titles, a Semi-State title, and a State title (2016) in the last 12 years. They too have worked through some turnover each of the last couple of seasons, but they have three double-figure scorers in Junior forward [player_tooltip player_id='572809' first='Julia' last='Meyer'], Junior guard <strong>Reagan Hughes</strong>, and Senior wing <strong>Olivia Neal</strong>. The Lady Eagles are also a defensive-minded team, so this game could be a low-scoring, physical contest with a lot of free throws being shot. I think it will be close throughout, but I like Jac-Cen-Del to take this one, 43-36.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Game-2:</strong> Per Sagarin Ratings, these are the #1 and #4 teams in Class 1A, though Lanesville won a January 10th matchup, 59-30. Lanesville is extremely deep for a Class 1A team, actually for a team in any classification. Senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='59789' first='Linzie' last='Wernert'] and Sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='295760' first='Hadley' last='Crosier'] do stand out to a degree, but this is a total team effort, as they tend to play as many as nine or 10 kids each game, so you won't necessarily see anyone score 30 points, but the above two are capable. The Lady Eagles beat you with precision, discipline, and execution, and they don't fall off much at all when they go to their bench. They simply wear opponents out. Trinity Lutheran is not nearly as deep, but they put a really nice starting group on the floor each game. Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='59779' first='Bailey' last='Tabeling'] is a legitimate threat, and she can explode for 40+ points if given any breathing room. She's athletic, skilled, and will defend as well. Sophomore <strong>Madison Keith</strong> does a lot of work inside for the Lady Cougars, while Junior wing <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='326481' first='Liza' last='Froedge']</strong> and Sophomore guard <strong>Jordan Brewer</strong> surround Tabeling in the backcourt. As evidenced by their win earlier this year, I think Lanesville has a decided matchup advantage over Trinity Lutheran. I don't think the score will be as lopsided as it was previously, but I think the Eagles knock off the Cougars, 54-40.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to Watch:</strong><br>Bloomfield - <strong>Delaney Richardson</strong>, 2023<br>Bloomfield - <strong>Ruby Myers</strong>, 2023<br>Bloomfield - <strong>Jacenyia Godoy</strong>, 2024<br>Bloomfield - <strong>Jaeden Mietus</strong>, 2024<br>Jac-Cen-Del - [player_tooltip player_id='572809' first='Julia' last='Meyer'], 2024 - 13.1p, 6.6r, 3.7a, 2.3s<br>Jac-Cen-Del - <strong>Reagan Hughes</strong>, 2024 - 12.9p, 2.9r, 2.5s<br>Jac-Cen-Del - <strong>Olivia Neal</strong>, 2023 - 10.9p, 5.8r<br>Jac-Cen-Del - <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1122667' first='Kelsey' last='Borgman']</strong>, 2025 - 7.1p, 2.9r, 2.4a<br>Lanesville - [player_tooltip player_id='59789' first='Linzie' last='Wernert'], 2023 - 13.7p, 7.2r, 2.3a, 2.8s<br>Lanesville - [player_tooltip player_id='295760' first='Hadley' last='Crosier'], 2025 - 9.7p, 3.2r, 3.4a, 3.7s<br>Lanesville - <strong>Morgan Sonner</strong>, 2023 - 7.4p, 5.4r<br>Lanesville - <strong>Ava Kerr</strong>, 2024 - 7.3p, 2.3r, 2.0a, 2.4s<br>Lanesville - <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='880516' first='Shelby' last='Allen']</strong>, 2025 - 7.0p, 5.5r<br>Trinity - [player_tooltip player_id='59779' first='Bailey' last='Tabeling'], 2023 - 22.7p, 8.1r, 4.6a, 2.8s, 2.4b<br>Trinity - <strong>Madison Keith</strong>, 2025 - 11.3p, 8.9r, 2.1s<br>Trinity - [player_tooltip player_id='326481' first='Liza' last='Froedge'], 2024 - 10.2p, 3.8r<br>Trinity - <strong>Jordan Brewer</strong>, 2025 - 9.6p, 2.7r</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->