YEAR IN REVIEW: Top-5 moments of Western Boone sports for 2021-22

Jun. 30—After a hectic 2020-21 sports year, in which crowds were limited and there were COVID restrictions in place, the 2021-22 high school sports year got back to normal.

Crowds were back in full force, and there were less restrictions on coaches and athletes throughout the state.

It was also a great year for the three Boone County public high schools athletically.

There were plenty of highlights from Lebanon, Western Boone and Zionsville, and with the official IHSAA calendar done for the season, it is time to look back at some of the top moments from each school.

Today we will look at Western Boone's year. The Lebanon review ran on Tuesday and the Zionsville review on Saturday.

The lists were comprised after discussions with athletic directors and coaches, and some tough choices had to be made, but here is the list.

5. Girls Track and Field wins conference title

The Western Boone girls track and field team broke a long conference title drought this year, claiming the conference title for the first time since 2009.

The Stars had a strong meet, scoring 136 points to beat Danville by 24.

"Our girls worked hard all season," Western Boone head coach Nate Birk said. "Last year left a bad taste in our mouths, and this year our girls worked their butts off. It was a great night and we finished it off."

Western Boone's performance was highlighted by great efforts in both the running and field events. Out of their 26 individual entries, 20 placed in the top-20 and all five relays placed in the top-5.

Western Boone won four conference titles on the night, first winning the 4x800 relay. The team of KaLeigh Steimel, Sam Jone, Katheryn Rutherford and Audrey Knoper won in a time of 10:14.94, a new school record.

Knoper and Steimel added individual titles as well, with Knoper winning the 1,600 in a time of 5:35.14 and Steimel winning the 300-meter hurdles in a time of 51.55.

Emmy Roys, who went on to be a regional qualifier in the discus, won the event at conference, throwing 116-feet-06-inches.

Ki'erra Koch was a two-time conference runner-up, placing second in the 100 and the long jump.

It was the perfect highlight for what was a strong season for the Stars. Audrey Knoper placed third in the Small School State Indoor Finals in the 3,200-meter state finals.

The Stars also had two regional qualifiers, with Emmy Roys in the discus and Kennedy Kiger in the shot put.

"We have a lot of upperclassmen, but a lot of young girls who have stepped up and opened our eyes," Birk said. "All of them have gotten better as the year went on. Hats off to the seniors for leading, but also to the other girls for stepping up."

4. Softball team wins second-straight sectional title

The Western Boone softball team backed up a memorable run in the postseason a year ago with another one this year.

For the first time in nearly 25 years, the Stars won back-to-back sectionals, and fell just short of reaching the semi-state for the second-straight year.

"The girls are playing great and I am so proud of them," Western Boone head coach Mike Vanderpool said. "They have come so far this season and I am so proud of this group."

The Stars started the season 4-7, but turned it around in the second half of the year, winning nine of their final 12 regular season games, out-scoring opponents 78-23 and finishing fourth in the conference.

In the sectional, the Stars blanked Seeger 8-0, before beating Southmont 4-2 on their own field to lift the trophy.

In the regional, the Stars had an instant classic against Whitko, but ultimately fell 9-7 in 11 innings.

The Stars had five players batting .300 on the year, led by Jozzy Lewis hitting .400 with 26 runs scored and 16 RBIs.

Emily Conyer hit .393 wit 26 runs scored and 10 RBIs, with Emma Shirley hitting .362 with 27 runs scored and 18 RBIs. Alaina Ward had a .310 batting average with a team-best 28 RBIs.

Gabby Lewis stepped up to be a force in the circle, finishing with a 1.87 ERA, striking out about a batter an inning. She also hit .361 with 24 runs scored and 17 RBIs.

The Stars graduate Jozzy Lewis, but bring back everyone else.

"The girls should keep their heads up, they ended the season really well," Vanderpool said. "We lose one senior and coming back next year we should have a strong team. We return everybody but Jozzy at second base — and that is going to be tough shoes to fill because she is a great player and we hate to lose her. But we were a pretty young team and they got a lot of experience."

3. WeBo girls swimming continues to excel

The Western Boone girls swimming and diving burst onto the scene last year, winning a sectional title and having five events advance to state.

They were even better this year.

Western Boone won the Sagamore Conference title for the first time in 22 years, scoring 449 points — fourth most in conference history.

"I have never been around a team that has deserved it more," Western Boone head coach Hayley Eadie said. "This is our first conference win in 22 years, and they are honestly the best team we have had in 22 years, if not ever at Western Boone. They deserve this."

The Stars advanced all of their swims back to the 'A' final, and claimed eight conference titles.

The Stars medley relay team of Arianna Stieber, Adelaide Jones, Micaela Stieber and Ella Jones won the conference title, as did the 200-freestyle relay team of Katherine Aliff, Rashel Anderson, Ella Jones and Micaela Stieber also won.

Individually, Arianna Stieber won the IM and backstroke, Adelaide Jones won the 500 and breaststroke, Micaela Stieber won the 200-freestyle and Leelah Fettig won diving.

The group continued that success into the sectional.

The Stars won their second-straight sectional title, and set the sectional record with most points scored.

Western Boone won six events at the sectional, advancing all to the State Finals.

The medley relay team of Arianna Stieber, Adelaide Jones, Micaela Steiber and Ella Jones placed 30th.

Micaela Stieber placed 31st in the 200-freestyle, setting a school record in the process.

Arianna Stieber set the school record in placing 26th in the IM, and placed 27th in the backstroke.

The 400-yard freestyle relay team of Anderson, Adelaide Jones, Micaela Stieber and Arianna Stieber set a school record in placing 27th.

The highlight of the State Meet was Fettig.

After placing fourth at the regional to advance, Fettig had the best performance of her career at state.

She scored a 403.30, placing 11th. It was the best finish for a Lady Star in at least 25 years.

Overall, the Stars lost just one dual meet on the year, won three invitationals.

They lose a couple of pieces, but bring back a good group that will hope to continue the success.

"What I am going to remember the most about this group is just special and dominate they were," Eadie said. "Setting the sectional scoring record and everyone on the team was so positive and pulling for each other."

2. Audrey Knoper cements legacy in final XC season

During her four-year career at Western Boone, Audrey Knoper rewrote the distance running record book.

Knoper made sure her final year at WeBo was one to remember, and had a historic senior year.

She won eight races on the year, including her third-straight individual title in the Sagamore Conference. Her effort also helped the Stars secure the team title for the second-straight year.

Late in the year at the FlashRock Invite, considered one of the toughest regular-season meets of the season, she shattered her school record, placing fourth overall and running 18:36.6.

But while those accolades were nice, Knoper had her eyes set on the post-season.

She placed runner-up at the sectional, then seventh at the regional.

At the semi-state, she placed eighth, becoming the first Western Boone girls cross country runner to make the State Finals.

"It feels awesome to make it to state," Knoper said that day. "I kind of had a mental barrier coming into today, just based on my past experiences here. To overcome that today, it was everything I wanted."

At the State Finals, she placed 34th, and earned an invite to participate in the Indiana All-Star event.

She capped her prep cross country career at the Midwest Meet of Champions.

Head coach Keith Lively said Knoper inspired many future Western Boone runners.

"We had a substantial part of the team come watch and cheer for her at the meet and there were younger girls from the elementary schools that made posters for her," Lively said. "It has been great for the program and for Western Boone, for these younger girls to see that these things are possible."

1. Volleyball team finishes state runner-up

The Stars volleyball team had a season to remember last fall.

Western Boone went 27-9 and made it all the way to the state championship in Muncie, where they lost a heart breaker to Andrean in five sets.

In the process, the Stars captured the school's first regional and semi-state crowns.

"I'm so proud of our girls," Western Boone head coach Laura Bragg said. "It takes great mental toughness to play a match like this front of all these people. We always want to win, but if we are going to lose, going out in the fifth and leaving our hearts on the floor is how you want to do it. We have no regrets and did everything we could."

The Stars had a back-and-forth start to the season, starting 4-4 but facing some tough 4A programs.

They then won 15 of the next 17 matches, falling only to Noblesville and nationally ranked McCutcheon.

In the process, they won the Sagamore Conference title for the third time in the last five seasons.

They entered the post-season with momentum, and topped Sheridan and Park Tudor to win the sectional title on their home court.

The next week, they topped South Putnam and Covenant Christian, winning the regional for the first time in 12 tries.

"This is my 11th year coaching and always the regional has gotten the best of us," Bragg said. "We have had so many amazing teams and those teams helped build our tradition, and I am proud that this team broke the curse."

The Stars then traveled down to Jasper, and got the best of North Posey in four sets, earning a trip to Muncie for the first time.

At State, little separated the Stars and Andrean. Andrean won the first set 25-20, but the Stars came back to win the second 25-20 and the third 27-25.

Andrean forced a fifth set with a 27-25 win in the fourth.

Both teams had leads in the fifth set and the score was tied at 9, 10 and 12, but Andrean won the final three points to win the state title.

Maddie Hawkins was named an Indiana All-Star, finishing the season with 300 kills, 462 digs and 51 aces.

Senior Marli Ransom won the Mental Attitude Award at State, and finished the year with 486 digs.

Those are the only two the Stars graduate.

WeBo brings back some good fire power, with Kennedy Kiger (262 kills), Audrey Dunn (224 kills, 91 aces), Raegan Durbin (219 kills) and Saige Terwiske (190 kills) all back.

The Stars also return Elena Gubera (699 assists, 299 digs) and Janie Ransom (561 digs), as well as Kendal Ramey and Chloe Gillan as players who got experience in the State Finals.

"I think WeBo volleyball is on the map now," Hawkins said. "Everyone knows who we are. I think there is a confidence in our team and our community that we can get back here."

Will Willems is the Sports Editor of the Lebanon Reporter. Follow him on Twitter @Will_Willems.