Weekend Warriors

Rob Hunt, The Herald Bulletin, Anderson, Ind.
·6 min read

Jun. 2—INDIANAPOLIS — Friday begins a weekend of high expectations for high school sports in the area.

From as far south as Bedford to Warsaw in the north, state championships are on the line as well as the hopes for advancement to the state finals, the possibility of an added chapter to a Cinderella story and the first round of the final IHSAA tournament of the 2021-22 athletic calendar.

In more or less chronological order, here is a glance at the athletes and teams in tournament competition over the coming days:

GIRLS TRACK & FIELD

In just her second year of competition, Anderson senior Malena Higgins has the most experience of the three ladies representing the area in the state finals at the Robert C. Haugh Track and Field Complex on the campus of Indiana University on Friday.

Already with a sectional and regional championship under her belt, her throw of 42-foot-2.75 met the state standard and has Higgins seeded fifth in the shot put. Her competition begins at 3:30 p.m.

Also a senior but in her first year running track, Alexandria's Jada Stansberry won sectional titles in the 200- and 400-meter dashes and is seeded 15th in the latter with a qualifying time of 58.44. Stansberry's race is scheduled to be run at 7:05 p.m.

Pendleton Heights freshman Ava Jarrell also qualified for cross country semistate in the fall and will compete in the 800-meter run at 7:45 p.m. Jarrell will look to defy her seeding (26th) much as she has done at sectional and regional.

GIRLS TENNIS

Anderson senior Jamison Geoffreys returns to the Kokomo High School tennis courts Saturday morning seeking the singles regional championship that eluded her a year ago.

Geoffreys (18-1) will face Molli Runestad (17-2) of Leo in one semifinal while Maria Oliveira (23-0) from Eastern will play Hanna Burkhart (25-0) of Sullivan in the other. The winners will meet at 2 p.m. with the champion advancing to the state quarterfinals at Park Tudor next weekend.

CLASS 4A SOFTBALL

Pendleton Heights (25-6) is ranked fifth in Class 4A and is making its first semistate appearance since 2013. The Arabians will play the first semifinal in Bedford at 11 a.m. against top-ranked Roncalli (30-0) and its star junior Keagan Rothrock.

Rothrock has 14 home runs at the plate while being one of the most dominant pitchers in the state with a 0.75 ERA and 346 strikeouts in 149 1/3 innings. During a 10-6 Roncalli win in early April, PH senior Hailee Brunnemer hit two homers and Kieli Ryan went deep once as the Arabians scored five earned runs against the future Florida Gator.

Caroline DeRolf leads PH with a .484 batting average while Khloee Gregory paces the squad with nine home runs and 33 RBI. Junior pitcher Eliza Findlay boasts an 18-4 record with a 2.05 ERA over 130 innings and is coming off a regional shutout of North Central.

The second semifinal pits Bedford-North Lawrence (28-2) vs. Shelbyville (23-5) at 1 p.m. with the winners to meet at 7 p.m. in the championship game.

CLASS 4A BASEBALL

Anderson (17-12) won its first sectional since 2012 and will meet Cathedral (15-10-2) at 11 a.m. in the first semifinal Saturday at New Palestine as it seeks its first regional championship since 1995.

The Indians are led at the plate (.463, 11 2B, 28 RBI) and on the mound (3.80, 55 1/3 IP, 70 K) by senior Jacob Lee. Fellow seniors Linkin Talley (.418) and Conner Stephenson (.354, 2 HR) continued their hot hitting while junior Kairo Parks delivered a clutch relief appearance in the regional championship win over Mount Vernon.

The second semifinal at 2 p.m. features the host Dragons (23-6) and Brownsburg (21-7) with the winners set to meet in the 8 p.m. regional final.

CLASS 2A SOFTBALL

Madison-Grant (24-5) dethroned Frankton at Tuesday's regional and will challenge Eastside (26-1) in the second semifinal Saturday at Warsaw. Natalie Lower (15-1, 1.71) is the Eastside ace that will have her hands full with the Argylls and their .383 team batting average.

Chelsea Bowland (.449, 34 RBI) was the offensive hero at regional and leads a group of six Argylls with batting averages at .400 or better. Carlie Holliday (6 HR), Anzlee Thomas (37 RBI) and Chelsea Parker (33 RBI) are the leading run producers for M-G. In their 29 games, the Argylls have struck out just 75 times. Katie Duncan (7-1, 2.35) has been the workhorse in the circle, but Elizabeth Lee (8-2, 2.73) is ready if needed.

The 11 a.m. semifinal features upstart Whitko (10-12) against North Newton (17-3) with the winners meeting at 7 p.m. for a chance to head to Purdue and the 2A state finals.

BOYS TRACK & FIELD

Two area underclassmen are making their state finals debut Saturday as sophomore Tremayne Brown of Anderson qualified in the high jump and 110-meter hurdles and Madison-Grant junior Tanner Brooks will race in the 200-meter dash.

Brown is seeded 25th in the hurdles after his third-place finish at regional and seeded 15th in the high jump. He was a sectional champion in the high jump after clearing the state standard of 6-5. His high jump competition begins at 3:30 p.m. and the 110-meter high hurdles trials begin at 5:15 p.m. with the finals set for 6:15 p.m.

Shortly after Brown runs his hurdles trials, Brooks will hit the track for his 200-meter dash preliminaries race, slated for 5:40 p.m. Brooks is seeded 12th, and if he qualifies for the finals, he will run again at 8:05 p.m.

GOLF SECTIONAL

While Madison-Grant will play Friday in the Norwell sectional at Timber Ridge, the bulk of the area teams will head to Monday sites.

Jordan Zody was a 2021 regional qualifier for Shenandoah, and this year the entire Raiders team has hopes of advancing to Thursday's Muncie Central Regional at The Players Club. Ryan Craig, Cohen Shores and Landon Harter round out a talented Raiders team at the Greenfield-Central sectional at 9 a.m. at Hawk's Tail.

Lapel's Corbin Renihan joined Zody at regional a year ago and will look to emerge again from the Noblesville sectional at 8 a.m. at Harbour Trees. Sam Denny also leads a strong Pendleton Heights team that will look to compete with the strong field of Hamilton County teams. Alexandria, Anderson, Daleville, Elwood and Frankton will also play at Noblesville.

Contact Rob Hunt at rob.hunt@heraldbulletin.com or 765-640-4886.