Previewing Local 3A Sectionals Part 2 (3A 21)

As we continue on this vast path in the 3A State Tournament, I take a look at the balanced and unpredictable 3A Sectional 21 hosted by Garrett.

3A 21 @ Garrett

Sectional Titles

Garrett 15 (2023)

Concordia 11 (2018)

Bishop Dwenger 9 (1999)

Heritage 9 (1994)

Leo 8 (2009)

Woodlan 2 (1990)

Autocorrection mistakenly gave Alivia’s last name with 2 L’s instead of 1. My apologies in advance.
The 2 Eke girls are far too similar to not include both, so they’re both mentioned.

Sectional Analysis

With a record of 67-85, this sectional does not get a lot of love across the state of Indiana. But a lot of it is due in part of the 3 “weaker teams” statistically posting a combined total of just 17 wins. When you look at the field’s most competitive teams, this is a very good sectional with up to 5 teams believing they have a legitimate shot of winning this sectional.

All of these teams have something in common. They have one area that they’re excellent or they thrive in, but they don’t stand out that much from the rest. For instance, with the NECC’s Angola Hornets (13-9), they have two things going for them. 1. They’re red hot posting wins in 10 of their last 13 games. No one enters this sectional hotter than Angola.

The other part is an experienced defense that is big, athletic, and can create turnovers to jumpstart their offense. In a lot of ways, they have returned to what has made Angola such a powerful program in girls basketball, and that’s their speed and stingy defense. Ok, yes the defensive numbers don’t look very Angola-like, but when you factor in the schedule and their streak, it makes a lot of sense. Since the turn of the calendar year, Angola has only allowed more than 45 points 3 times in a 10-game span.

Led by Kylie Caswell averaging over 11 points and a balanced offense centering around Macy Oberlin, Bailey Holman, and Lexi Stillman, Angola is averaging 52.4 points per game in their last 10 games. However, the draw did Angola zero favors as they’ll take on Leo tonight at Garrett.

The caveat with Angola is their depth, so that means fouls and staying disciplined are going to be mammoth in that game. Rebounding is going to decide this game as this Leo team (12-8) under Carrie Shappell has a few things that will challenge Angola and that’s their size and their experienced depth. They’re an interesting team as they don’t have the big flashy names or the stats that standout, but they are the hardest working team in this sectional and they play strong team basketball.

I mean I would consider the coach’s daughter Leah Shappell and then senior forward Kayla Adams, who’s a very good power forward, to be Leo’s “most talented players”. But what helps Leo is that Senior depth that they can go to when they have to battle through adversity. I’m talking about the Malina Lape’s, the Emily Cogdell’s, the Izzy Collins’. These role players can be the key to Leo’s run in this sectional. But that’s also going to be the biggest challenge.

Can Leo execute well enough on the offensive side of the basketball to reach that potential? That’s the downside with Leo because they don’t yet have that big-time offensive playmaker that can take over games, which they don’t necessarily have to have, but that’s something a lot of these teams do have. So Leo will need to defend the rim well and limit the turnovers.

Waiting either team is Concordia Lutheran (9-13) who has dealt with a season of being a Jekyll and Hyde basketball team. Talent wise, this team is more than capable of competing in this sectional. Alivia Bolinger averages 13.6 points, 7.3 boards, and 2.2 steals per game. When she finds her groove on offense, she’s so hard to slow down. She’s a gamer.

I also have liked the progression of Lauren Goodman who averages 4.2 assists to go with her steady 6.7 points. Her numbers don’t jump the screen but she’s most certainly their best ball handler on a team that honestly really struggles to take care of the basketball committing just under 19 turnovers per game.

On paper, Concordia has a new mix of size (29.7 boards per game) and solid perimeter shooting (32% from 3) that the Cadets can contend in this sectional. But Concordia has to come up defensive stops on a consistent basis and taking better care of the basketball.

On the other half of the bracket, the matchup between Woodlan and Dwenger presents intrigue. Woodlan (15-8) is a team filled with an explosive offense and some size to compliment that under Dave Randall. The complimentary guard play of the Kneubuhler sisters: Taylor and Brooke gives Woodlan 2 de facto playmakers on this team.

Taylor is the most explosive of the two as a senior combo guard averaging 14.4 points per game and a recent 1000-point scorer. Taylor is a hard worker as she has led this team over the course of the past two seasons, although they had Avah Smith last season to go along with Taylor’s scoring abilities. Brooke is more of the floor general on this team but does have capabilities to be a game changer on both ends, especially on defense as she averages 2 steals per game.

Woodlan is big, athletic, and simply a tough team to play against that bodes well with their basketball talents. Which leads to the frustration with this team. They have all kinds of potential to end that 34-year drought, but yet have struggled to put a string of consistent execution to what they’re capable of.

An example of this is Woodlan’s interior presence averaging 33 boards and shooting 40% from 2. Sophomore Alyssa Anderson has filled a massive void that going into the season was seen as a challenge with the graduation of the talented Avah Smith (who’s now at Indiana Tech with a basketball scholarship). Having said that, with Anderson’s pace of 11.3 points, and 10.4 boards on 58% shooting, it feels like there’s still untapped potential for Anderson that has not been fully realized just yet.

Woodlan also can be a team that can make shots when they’re moving the ball consistently well, which has seen its good and bad. When you look at Woodlan Girls’ Basketball, other than perhaps a more inexperienced bench, this team does not present a lot of weaknesses. But can they showcase that potential through 3 rounds of hoops? It starts with tonight’s game with Dwenger.

Dwenger (10-14) is a team that you never know what to expect before sectionals, but you always know this team always plays hard. Again, they’re kind of like Leo in a way that they don’t have the big flashy names, aside from the Eke sisters. And freshman Izzie and senior Giselle (Saint Francis (PA) Commit) Eke are a massive part to Dwenger’s postseason success. If they’re able to get both players involved around the rim and being able to get the most out of the roster through their talents, Dwenger can be a Cinderella team in this sectional.

Again, none of these teams stand out that much. So this is a very wide open sectional field with teams that can win this sectional.

Final Thoughts

What happens in tonight’s games will go a very, very long way in the direction of where this sectional might lead into. That Angola-Leo game is a major tossup game that could change all of the projections of this sectional.

You also cannot rule out either Dwenger or Concordia in this instance, but I do like the talent and size of Woodlan enough that if they can play a clean enough game and defend pretty well, I do see Woodlan playing for a sectional title once again, which I know they’ve been waiting for a year for a moment to get back to this stage.

From there, I have no idea. I guess I’m learning towards Angola just because they’ve been on a tear as of late. But again, everyone’s projections of this sectional will be different.