IHSAA softball Fab 15: Center Grove, Cathedral move up in top-5; Westfield cracks rankings

Indianapolis Star

06-05-2025

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We're nearing the back-stretch of the Indiana high school softball regular season. Here's how the Indianapolis area's top teams stack up.
1. New Palestine (13-1)
Last week: 1
The Dragons continue to look the part of one of the state's best, padding their record with wins over Noblesville (6-3), Center Grove (4-3) and Shelbyville (9-3). They continue firing on all cylinders with timely hitting (seven-plus hits in all three games this week) and really solid pitching (total of eight earned runs allowed this week; home run allowed vs. Shelbyville was first of the season). Now the big test: vs. Roncalli on Wednesday. The Dragons, who will likely encounter the Royals again in the state tournament, have lost five straight in the series.
2. Zionsville (12-2)
LW: 2
The Eagles led Fishers, 7-2, entering the bottom of the fourth. Fishers tied the score in the bottom of the seventh. Zionsville answered with 10 runs in the eighth en route to the (probably pretty rare) 17-7 extra-innings win. Hadley Bray, Leah Helton, Sylvia Mudis and Olivia Kohler all had three-plus hits with Bray, Helton and Mudis all homering and driving in three-plus RBIs. Zionsville-Center Grove on Thursday.
3. Cathedral (16-0)
LW: 4
The Irish host Roncalli on Monday, another quality test following wins over Lawrence North (9-4), Noblesville (7-5), Avon (15-10) and Cardinal Ritter (17-0) last week. The triumph over the Millers was headlined by Angie Valentine, who homered twice and drove in five RBIs. Ellis Land, the freshman, stole a base and Jordyn Hazelwood, Lola Scarsi, Anna Moore, Ellis Land and Maddie Liter all scored runs.
4. Center Grove (10-3)
LW: 5
The Trojans grinded out a 5-4 win over Cascade, then dropped a narrow 4-3 decision vs. New Pal. CG took a 3-2 lead into the sixth, but the Dragons scored twice in the home half to pull out the win. Addison Wolff picked up two hits, Madisyn Tharpe drove in two runs (Brynn Meyer drove in the other) and Riley Fuhr allowed two runs on four hits over four innings in the circle. A trio of CG pitchers scored only one strikeout, but the defense went 26-for-27 behind them.
5. Hamilton Southeastern (11-5)
LW: 7
The Royals bounced back from that 4-2 loss to Whiteland with shutouts of Fishers (6-0) and Pendleton Heights (5-0). Grace Swedarsky spun a two-hit shutout with 17 strikeouts against the Tigers, then spun a one-hit shutout with 13 strikeouts against Pendleton Heights. HSE hosts Lapel in between games at Noblesville and Brownsburg this week.
t-6. Roncalli (14-2)
LW: 6
The Royals went 4-2 on the week, beating Avon, Martinsville, Oak Forest (Ill.) and Benet Academy (Ill.) and falling to Franklin Central and Minooka (Ill.). This is an important stretch of games upcoming for Roncalli with Cathedral, New Palestine and Westfield this week, and Shelbyville and Noblesville lurking next week.
t-6. Noblesville (11-5)
LW: 3
The Millers' schedule is brutal. They went 2-4 this week, but those losses were against New Palestine (6-3), Westfield (7-6), Cathedral (7-5) and Plainfield (5-0). Each setback was competitive (a noteworthy development considering the level of competition. It's another busy, difficult stretch ahead with four games, highlighted by Hamilton Southeastern and Center Grove.
8. Plainfield (17-1)
LW: 8
The Quakers scored a high-quality win Saturday, taking down host Noblesville, 5-0, at the Miller Invite. Kylie Fish and Kenzi Arnett both had multiple hits, while Fish and Maci Hanlin both homered and collected multiple RBIs. Kami Arnett and Sidney Parks combined for a no-hitter with six strikeouts and two walks.
9. Cascade (11-5)
LW: 9
The Cadets played Center Grove tough on Monday, then swept the rest of the week, collecting wins over Greenwood, Hamilton Heights, Franklin, Franklin Central and McCutcheon. Grace Parks pitched a scoreless inning and collected three hits (one double) and two RBIs in a 6-4 win over the 4A Flashes. Cascade travels to Indian Creek on Tuesday.
10. Brownsburg (10-6)
LW: 10
The Bulldogs rallied from a 4-0 deficit vs. Avon with a three-run fifth, but their rally fell short in a 5-3 loss. Izzy Neal had a couple hits and Ashley Sylvia had a couple RBIs, while freshman Etta Schroering allowed one unearned run on eight hits over 5.2 innings. Brownsburg bounced back with wins over Ben Davis and McCutcheon, and will continue its season with notable games upcoming against Plainfield and HSE.
11. Lapel (14-4)
LW: 11
The Bulldogs split a Saturday doubleheader, falling to Triton Central and rolling past Greencastle. They finished the week 3-2 overall with additional wins over Mt. Vernon and New Castle and a 7-1 loss to Hagerstown. Lapel's week is loaded with Madison-Grant, Hamilton Southeastern and Eastern Hancock lined up.
12. Fishers (11-6)
LW: 12
Wild week for the Tigers, who bounced back from the loss to HSE with a win over Mt. Vernon and that wild game against Zionsville. Kendall Jordan, Brooke Clayton, Cate Summerfield, Kate Murray, Adrianne Cook and Hailey Kinder all had two hits (12 of the team's 14, for those keeping count at home). Six of the Tigers' seven runs against ace Leah Helton were earned and they generated 10 hits.
13. Shelbyville (12-7)
LW: 13
The Golden Bears offset a loss to New Palestine with a 10-run win over Greensburg and a 12-5 triumph over Triton Central. That win over the Tigers saw them jump out to a 10-2 lead after three innings, and featured seven total RBIs from Destiney Johnson (4) and Reagan Dillon (3). Anna Shearer had three hits; Gracie Crafton and Sydney Brown handled pitching duties.
14. Lutheran (10-5)
LW: 14
The Saints dropped a 3-0 decision to Triton Central, then rolled to blowout wins over Warren Central and Scecina. They host Southport ahead of the Marion County tournament, which begins against Perry Meridian on Friday. Frankton on May 12 will be an interesting test for Lutheran.
15. Westfield (8-5)
LW: NR
The Rocks went 2-1, securing wins over Noblesville and Bishop Chatard, and dropping a five-run decision to Yorktown. Ava Kainrath clocked four hits and Sofia Easterhaus added three more against the Millers, while Chloe Tanner drove in three RBIs. Easterhaus, Kainrath and Makayla Watson all stole bases; Tanner allowed two earned runs on seven hits over 4.1 innings. Westfield has a brutal week ahead: Hamilton Heights, Zionsville, Roncalli and Mt. Vernon.