IHSAA GIRLS STATE TOURNAMENT PREVIEW!!!!

GIRLS TOURNAMENT PREVIEW

Discus

Top performer: Carly VonDielingen, Whiteland, 153’0

Top returner: Gwen Howard, Whitko, 5th last year

Athlete to watch: Sophia Scott, Silver Creek

Outlook: Whiteland junior Carly VonDielingen is probably the favorite with her 153’ toss just before the start of the tournament putting her in the top 25 performances of all-time. There are five or more other girls capable of winning this event, though. In terms of the team title race, this is very unlikely to move the needle, though Carmel has a couple of girls who should make the state meet and could sneak a point or two.

Shot Put

Top performer: Gwen Howard, Whitko, 48’4.5

Top returner: Gwen Howard, Whitko, 4th last year

Athlete to watch: Macey Miller, Fishers

Outlook: Whitko junior Gwen Howard is a more clear favorite in this event than VonDielingen is in the disc, though both are capable of pulling the double. Howard’s 48’8.75 from indoors ranks tenth all-time, and she’s more than four feet ahead of the field here while being the best on a week-to-week basis through the season. Fishers senior Macey Miller is the only other returning medalist and has shown a knack for performing her best at the meets of highest importance.

Long Jump

Top performer: Emily Norris, Carmel, 19’3

Top returner: Kya Crooke, Heritage Christian, 3rd last year (won in 2023)

Athlete to watch: Za’Nariae White, Terre Haute North

Outlook: Based on previous performance–she was the state champion as a sophomore and third last year–Heritage Christian senior Kya Crooke is the favorite. She’s not a lock, however, despite being a state champion and seventh all-time in the event while eclipsing 19 feet this year. In addition to Crooke, Carmel senior Emily Norris and Terre Haute North freshman Za’Nariae White have also leaped farther than 19 feet. Those aren’t the only three contenders either as eight other athletes are within a foot of Norris’ state-leading 19’3 in a pretty volatile event. 

High Jump

Top performer: Kya Crooke, Heritage Christian, 6’2

Top returner: Kya Crooke, Heritage Christian, won last year

Athlete to watch: Kira Smith, Warren Central

Outlook: Crooke is probably the closest to a lock in any event, defending her state title and clearing the second-highest bar ever this season. The only factor that could shake this up is fatigue on Crooke’s part if she tries four events. In that case, perhaps Warren Central junior Kira Smith could pull an upset. She cleared 5’10 indoors, a top 25 all-time performance, and finished third last year as a freshman. Fort Wayne Carroll would love to get some points here from sophomore Katelynn Peters, who has cleared the standard this season, or junior Bailey Sinish, who has scored at state in the past.

Pole vault

Top performer: Amelia Smith, Guerin Catholic, 12’6

Top returner: Ann Elise Sloan, Evansville Christian, 4th last year

Athlete to watch: Alexandra Hamilton, Westfield

Outlook: Guerin sophomore Amelia Smith has the best clearance and has probably been the consistently best vaulter all spring. Her 13’3 clearance indoors is sixth all-time, coming at the HSR Finals in March. That isn’t to say she’s a lock with a deep field of experienced and accomplished vaulters that include five returning medalists from 2024. None of the three team contenders is likely to have an athlete advance to state in this event.

100

Top performer: Nadia Ford, FW Carroll, 11.71 (under 12 three times already)

Top returner: Kennedi Bradley, Chesterton, 4th last year (Ford was 5th)

Athlete to watch: Za’Nariae White, Terre Haute North

Outlook: Carroll star sophomore Nadia Ford has a big time gap on the field here with her 11.71 nearly a quarter-second ahead of Chesterton junior Kennedi Bradley. Ford is certainly the favorite, though not a lock. Carroll’s team state championship hopes, and our committee (of one) projects them behind the top two teams, revolve around a big day from Ford. Bradley is the top returner and should factor into this race. Three total athletes have run under 12.00 and another six are under 12.10. Carmel had decisions to make as Norris has big-point potential in four individual events but plays a pivotal role in the Greyhounds’ relays so Norris is not entered here.

200

Top performer: Nadia Ford, FW Carroll, 24.15

Top returner: De’Janay Lane, Evansville North, won last year (Ahniyah Bennet, Connersville, won in 2023, 2nd last year)

Athlete to watch: Emmerson Williams, North Central

Outlook: Ford is the favorite here as well, though her hold on this event is not quite as strong as the 200. The fatigue factor is huge for the field as well in a race that happens toward the end of the meets. In total, 12 athletes have gone under 25 seconds already, led by Ford’s 24.15 which ranks 22nd all-time. Carroll needs two wins from Ford to stay in the mix for the title, and Carmel is hoping to get Norris into the final in this event where she has scored the last two years.

400

Top performer: Anissa Lammie, HSE, 55.09

Top returner: Omema Anyanwu, Zionsville, won last year

Athlete to watch: Norah Reagor, Hamilton Heights

Outlook: This will almost certainly come down to Hamilton Southeastern sophomore Anissa Lammie and Zionsville senior Omema Anyanwu, the defending champion. Lammie defeated Anyanwu at the HCC meet last week with their times ranking as the top two performances this spring. Assuming Bloomington South junior Ellie Barada elects for the 800, Lammie and Anyanwu are more than a second clear of the field. While Hamilton Southeastern has athletes capable of scoring in this 400, they will likely elect for other events while Carmel has three under the standard and is hoping for an infusion of points in this event.

100 hurdles

Top performer: Jada Harper, New Albany, 13.97

Top returner: Isabella Sotelo, Eastern Hancock, 3rd last year

Athlete to watch: Jada Harper, New Albany

South Bend Washington junior Adriana Swanson and New Albany freshman Jada Harper both rank in the top 25 all-time, though this is a deep year in the hurdles with seven athletes under 14.50 so far. Harper looks poised for a big tournament with Franklin senior Aubrey Runyon and Eastern Hancock sophomore Isabella Sotelo returning from top-five finishes last season. For the team race, HSE senior Elia Blackmore getting into the final and then finishing high up on the podium would be massive for the Royals. Carroll senior Alyssa Davis has the 14th best time and could score points for the Chargers.

300 hurdles

Top performer: Jada Harper, New Albany, 42.57

Top returner: Aubrey Runyon, Franklin, 5th last year

Athlete to watch: Chloe Senefeld, Hamilton Southeastern

Outlook: Harper is a much bigger favorite here than the shorter race. Her 42.57 ranks seventh all-time, and she’s a second and a half ahead of the next closest competitor this season. The only athlete who could conceivably challenge Harper is Heritage Christian senior Kya Crooke who holds the 14th best performance of all-time but has not competed in this event since the state meet of her sophomore year. Both HSE and Carroll have two girls ranking in the top ten this season, making this perhaps the most pivotal event on the track.

4x1

Top performer: Brownsburg 47.07

Last year: Carroll won, returns three of four

Team to watch: New Albany

Outlook: Carroll and Brownsburg are a half-second ahead of the field, though that type of gap can erase quickly with handoffs. Carmel and HSE have groups capable of scoring. Assuming each team makes it to the state finals, this race could serve as a big turning point, but advancement in the first two rounds is certainly not a given.

4x4

Top performer: North Central 3:51.07

Last year: Carmel won, returns all four

Team to watch: Hamilton Southeastern

Outlook: This was an incredibly close race between Carmel, HSE and North Central last year with Carmel taking the victory in the homestretch after HSE was forced to make a late substitution. Expect something very similar this year with those three schools posting the best times this outdoor season. Fatigue will be a real factor as potentially all four relay members for each school will have raced once or twice (or more!) already in the meet. With a tight team score projected, the winner of Carmel and HSE in this event could determine the team title.

4x8

Top performer: Carmel, 9:12.89

Last year: Concordia won, returns two of four

Team to watch: Bloomington South

Outlook: It’s hard to gauge an event like this with many teams not putting together their best four until the sectional (or later). Bloomington South figures to be the favorite, and Carmel could certainly push them as the Greyhounds did at the HSR Finals when both teams obliterated the previous indoor record (held by a Concordia team that decimated the record prior to that). There is uncertainty whether Concordia will run a loaded lineup, though if they do then the Cadets certainly have a chance to defend their title with Mallory and Daphne Weller currently holding the second and third best performances this season in the open 800. Any team that could contend to win has judgement calls to make, though none more impactful than Carmel and HSE who could stack this relay with stars but would then mortgage their chances in subsequent individual events.

1600

Top performer: Mallory Weller, FW Concordia, 4:46.55

Top returner: Savana Miller, Franklin Central, 6th last year

Athlete to watch: Sadie Foley, Carmel

Outlook: Weller is the favorite here certainly, especially if she is fresh. Carmel junior Sadie Foley has experience after qualifying in this event the past two years, and her 4:46.83 is just a fraction off Weller’s time and ranks ninth in state history. Pendleton Heights senior Ava Jarrell is one spot ahead of Foley in the all-time rankings and could find an opportunity here after winning the 3200 last spring.  Being the first open distance event, this could really be impacted by how Bloomington South, Concordia, Carmel and HSE approach the 4x8. 

800

Top performer: Ellie Barada, Bloomington South, 2:06.24

Top returner: Ellie Barada, Bloomington South, 2nd last year

Athlete to watch: Larkin Taylor, Carmel

Outlook: A dream match-up of Weller and Bloomington South junior Ellie Barada won’t materialize between girls who rank fourth and fifth all-time in this event. Barada could break the state meet record this year, and the real question is who will finish second. Lake Central sophomore Macey Thompson might be the top contender for that, if she were to do this event fresh. Carmel sophomore Larkin Taylor and Hamilton Southeastern senior Ciara Kepner should factor into the team scoring, though both could be doubling back from relay duty.

3200

Top performer: Mallory Weller, FW Concordia, 10:17.32

Top returner: Ava Jarrell, Pendleton Heights, won last year

Outlook: Weller is the favorite to pull off the 1600/3200 double, a feat that hasn’t been accomplished since 2017. It seems likely that some athletes could lie in waiting to race against a tired Weller after the 1600. Jarrell won this event last year and has shown progress outdoors compared to her indoor campaign. Indian Creek junior Libby Dowty missed extensive time earlier from an injury sustained during wrestling season, but she has returned well just in the past couple of weeks; Dowty was second last year and could see a big performance jump over the next three weeks. Chatard junior Julia Score, Columbia City sophomore Kenya Leitch and Carmel sophomore Annabel Pollert finished very close to each other in windy conditions at the Carmel Showcase in late April. Perhaps any of those three could challenge Weller, though each of them may have relay duty earlier in the meet. 

TEAM RACE

Favorite: Carmel

Likely points: 200, 800, 4x4, 4x8

Potential points: 400, 1600, 3200, long jump

Unlikely but not impossible: Discus

Contender: HSE

Likely points: 400, 100 hurdles, 300 hurdles, 4x4

Potential points: 800, 1600, 3200, 4x1, 4x8

Lloyd Christmas: Carroll

Likely points: 100, 200, 4x1, 300 hurdles

Potential points: 100 hurdles, shot put, high jump

Unlikely but not impossible: 4x4

Outlook: Carmel has looked like the best team since March. While that hasn’t changed in the last couple of weeks, Hamilton Southeastern’s performances show a group more than capable of outscoring Carmel at state. The two schools are separated by 11 miles and share a district border; they will match up in each round of the tournament. The attrition of the tournament will certainly affect each team’s chances at state. If both schools advance all their potential point scorers to the state finals, they could each eclipse fifty points. Carmel is stronger in the distance events, where there is more security in advancing through the rounds but less ability to do multiple races at the state finals. Hamilton Southeastern is stronger in the hurdles and sprints where a team can get more production from a star but there is much less margin of error in advancing each week.

This is not the first time these schools have looked destined for a collision course all spring, and our committee (of one) refers to these county rivals (along with Warren Central and North Central) as “the usual suspects.” Carmel has not grabbed a state title in this century after winning in 1998 and 1999, and the Greyhounds’ best showing since the cancelled Covid season was a third-place finish in 2023 with 33 points after entering the meet as favorites. Southeastern has won once in school history, a somewhat recent victory in 2018 when a well-balanced Royal squad dominated with 62 points. Like Carmel, HSE’s best finish since Covid was also third, which happened last year when the Royals amassed 29 points.

A Hamilton County sweep of the top-two spots is not a guarantee with Fort Wayne Carroll lurking. The Chargers have a transcendent superstar in sprinter Nadia Ford, the most important part of any team title contender. If Ford sweeps the 100 and 200 plus guides Carroll to another state championship in the 4x1, the Chargers could keep pace with the two favorites. That alone won’t be enough to earn a trophy, but Carroll has potential points in the hurdles and field that could get the Chargers over forty points.