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Indianapolis Star
4 days ago
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
First IHSAA boys finals a showcase: 'The whole state has just blown up in volleyball'
WEST LAFAYETTE – If there was any question if the movie 'Hoosiers' still holds relevance almost 40 years after it premiered — or if the underdog story could translate to another sport — look no further than Mackey Arena on Saturday. Lake Central boys volleyball coach Naveed Nizam, looking for a little inspiration for his longshot team, had players measure the volleyball net at Mackey Arena. The height: Seven feet, 11 ½ inches. 'I think you'll find that's the exact same measurements as our gym back at Lake Central.' OK, Nizam did not say that exactly. But you get the idea. It was a day of new traditions with a nod to the old at Purdue University, where the Indiana High School Athletic Association hosted the first sanctioned boys volleyball state finals. Roncalli (30-3) took home the first state IHSAA championship by defeating Cathedral 25-14, 25-22, 25-23 in a three-set sweep Saturday night. It was Roncalli's fourth consecutive state championship with the previous three coming under the banner of the Indiana Boys Volleyball Coaches Association. 'You look how far we've come in the past couple years and now we're getting these boys who have bought into the program,' Roncalli coach Nick Jennings said. 'We used to get a basketball player, a football player — maybe it was their secondary sport. But now these boys are fully committing to us, and it really elevates the whole gym. The whole state has just blown up in volleyball.' Many of the 133 teams in the inaugural state tournament, like Lake Central, are in the still early growth stages. The Indians advanced to the state finals as a third-year team that started out as an intramural program. Lake Central (30-7) was ranked No. 12 in the state but with all but two of its players graduating, should be on the cusp of some better days ahead. 'Where we've gone this far and what we've accomplished, I think, is a miracle in such a short amount of time,' said Nizam, who had his team stay to watch the championship match after losing 25-11, 25-10, 25-15 to Cathedral in the first semifinal. Where Lake Central hopes to go was represented by the team across the net, Cathedral, and the squads that followed on Saturday in the second semifinal: Roncalli and Fishers. Those teams, ranked No. 1 (Roncalli), No. 2 (Cathedral) and No. 3 (Fishers), put a powerful show in the inaugural event. After Cathedral defeated Lake Central in the first semifinal, Roncalli was pushed to the brink twice, trailing Fishers 14-12 in the fifth and decisive set before rallying for a 22-25, 25-14, 25-21, 17-25, 16-14 victory. The intense back-and-forth showdown, filled with laser-sharp kills, timely blocks and a dramatic finish, could be packaged and sent out by the IHSAA as a showcase video for boys volleyball, which has previously been played as a club sport before it gained emerging status from the IHSAA three years ago. 'It gets the nerves going,' said Roncalli senior setter Matthew Dial. 'I came running over after the game to my family and my hands were shaking because I was so excited. There was so much energy that it can really bring people into the sport when they see this. It's just cool to see.' Though the sport is new to the IHSAA, it is a bit of a misnomer to call programs like Roncalli and Cathedral newcomers. Cathedral has had a boys volleyball program for 32 years and Roncalli has developed into a dynasty in recent seasons. Saturday's championship match was a rematch of Roncalli's five-set state title victory over the Irish at Hinkle Fieldhouse. 'Just knowing it's the first chance for an IHSAA state title was something nice,' Cathedral senior middle hitter Ryan Peterson said. 'We've thought about that along the journey.' Cathedral senior setter Nick Whitley said he started playing volleyball when he was 10 years old and 'kind of fell in love with the sport from there.' Even then, it was more of a side venture for Whitley, who said he fell in love with volleyball the more he played. Peterson, who is 6-8, played basketball until eighth grade. 'I did a lot of sports,' Peterson said. 'Football, baseball, basketball, swimming. But after eighth grade, I realized I loved volleyball a lot more.' Peterson and Whitley said as soon as they walked into Mackey Arena on Saturday, the energy was different. 'We played in Hinkle Fieldhouse last year and it was a massive step up from freshman and sophomore year playing in regular high school gyms (at state),' Whitley said. 'Playing in an arena like this is super awesome and really exciting.' Cathedral coach Tyler McClure, in his fifth year as coach at Cathedral, played for the Irish and was an assistant prior to his role as head coach. He has watched first-hand at Cathedral how the players who once had volleyball as a secondary sport 'now come in ready to play.' 'Kids come in as freshman ready to go,' McClure said. 'You aren't starting from zero. You are starting with a little bit of a base.' Roncalli had to survive thrilling semifinal matchup against Fishers just to make it to the championship game. Fishers (31-5), looking to close out Roncalli for the second time this season in five sets, took control of the fifth set to take a 14-12 lead. But the Royals would not be denied, taking the final four points. 'That game was so fun,' said Roncalli senior outside hitter Eli Berger, who led the Royals with 13 kills in the title match. 'You go out there, work your butt off and it just comes down to who works harder, who is there for the ball and who is ready to win. Last time we played them, we played like we didn't want to win. This time, we came out and threw some punches.' That down-to-the-wire cliffhanger of a semifinal showed where boys volleyball can go. 'It went from 'oh my god, oh my god, oh my god,' to 'yes, yes, yes,'' Roncalli's Jennings said. 'You live and die with every point. I think (the game) will really grow. I think next year, people will hopefully see this and say, 'I want to be a part of that. That was a lot of fun.''
Chicago Tribune
6 days ago
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Virginia Tech commit Tegan Tripp has been ‘trying to get to this point.' Lake Central is glad she made it.
The trip has been worth the wait for Lake Central's Tegan Tripp. The junior first baseman is a Division I recruit, having announced her commitment to Virginia Tech in December. But this is Tripp's first full varsity season in a tradition-rich program that has made no secret about its aspirations to win a state title. 'I worked really hard to get here, trying to get to this point, and now I'm trying to do everything I can to stay here and finish it off this year with the team,' she said. 'Just really keep working. Control what I can control. Not letting anybody get in my way. Working as a team with everybody, pushing through. Working as hard as I can all year.' Tripp has been making the most of her opportunity, including in the Class 4A Crown Point Sectional semifinals on Thursday, when she went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a triple and four RBIs in Lake Central's 9-4 win against Munster. Tripp struck out in her first at-bat, but she tripled in the fourth inning ahead of senior shortstop Taylor Schafer's tying two-run homer, hit a two-run double in the fifth for a 5-2 lead and hit a two-run double in the seventh to make it 8-3. 'After my first at-bat, I was really just trying to get the ball where I know I could score runners because each time runners were in scoring position,' Tripp said. 'It was strategically how I could get them in, however I could. Anything for the team.' In a marquee matchup between Duneland Athletic Conference champion Lake Central (27-3), which is ranked No. 1 in the state coaches poll, and Northwest Crossroads Conference champion Munster (26-6), which is ranked No. 6, Tripp's approach didn't surprise Schafer. After all, Tripp is hitting .397 with a team-high six homers, 30 RBIs and 27 runs scored for the Indians, who ran their winning streak against Munster to 11 games dating to 2017 and advanced to play No. 4 Crown Point (26-4) in the sectional championship game on Friday. 'Great teammate,' Schafer said. 'She really does anything for the team, and it showed.' Last season, Tripp hit .348 with a homer and four RBIs in 23 at-bats for the varsity team and hit .592 with four homers and 34 RBIs in 71 at-bats for the junior varsity team. As a freshman, she hit .508 with eight homers and 43 RBIs on JV and went 2-for-2 on varsity. 'She's been fantastic,' Lake Central coach Yvette Tovar said. 'She's a super strong kid, mentally and physically. When she's up to bat and she hits the ball, if it's a ground ball, if it's a liner, if she hits it out, she's a very strong kid. 'She's one that we've really had to tell to keep things simple and get out of her head. She's so strong, she's usually wanting to hit it out, and it's like, 'You're strong enough, trust me. If you just hit the ball, you'll probably hit it out.' Just little by little. She's a very good kid. I'm glad she's only a junior. She's growing very well.' Tripp wants to continue to contribute this season. 'We've had a great season so far,' she said. 'We've kept going because our ultimate goal is we want to win state. That's just what we've been working toward all year. Everything we do is for that.'
Indianapolis Star
27-05-2025
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
Five storylines to watch entering 2025 IHSAA baseball state tournament
The road to Victory Field for the IHSAA baseball state championship begins Wednesday. Here are five storylines to watch for once postseason play begins. You could make an argument that every team in Sectional 8 (Hamilton Southeastern, Fishers, Zionsville, Noblesville, Westfield and Carmel) has a legitimate shot at playing for a Class 4A title. Unfortunately, two title contenders won't make it out of the first day of the tournament. I'm not from Indiana. Maybe baseball fans prefer the current tournament format. My first job covering high school sports was in Massachusetts. Massachusetts uses power rankings that weighs average margin of victory, opponent ratings, team's overall rating (avg. margin + opponent rating) and the team's rating are adjusted for forfeits. The results are entered into a formula, and a power ranking is produced, allowing each team in a division to be seeded. I think it would be great for the regular season to have added meaning. Yes, baseball can be very random. A hot pitcher or a hot team can string together wins and get all the way to the state championship game. But I think rewarding teams with tough schedules, and teams with great regular seasons would be great too. Lake Central won a thrilling Class 4A state title over Mooresville in the longest championship game ever last season. Lake Central entered the season as the team to beat, and the Indians once again appear poised for a deep title run. Kentucky commit Joshua Flores is one of the top pitchers in the state. The righty is 7-0 with a 1.69 ERA and 57 strikeouts over 29 innings. Sophomore shortstop Parker Robinson is a top-120 prospect nationally per Prep Baseball Report. The 6-foot-4, 200-pound righty is batting .338 with 15 RBI, 10 doubles and seven stolen bases. Senior Drew Kosteba leads Lake Central with a .407 batting average, 36 RBIs, eight doubles, three triples and three home runs. Five of Lake Central's top seven batters are seniors. LC has three senior pitchers with ERAs under 2.20. The reigning champs are as deep as ever and the road to the 4A championship will likely go through the Indians. Cathedral won its first baseball state championship in 2001 playing in Class 3A. The Fighting Irish won state titles in 2007 and 2017 in Class 4A. Now the Irish are back in Class 3A and have a great chance at making a deep tournament run. Cathedral enters the tournament 17-9, but its daunting schedule should have the squad ready for the postseason. Cathedral has quality wins over Franklin, Mooresville and Carmel. The Irish lost by one to 4A title contender Center Grove and led reigning 4A champion Lake Central 2-0. Shortstop Army commit Eli Sinsabaugh is an elite table setter at the top of the lineup. IU commit Eli Bennett is a smooth-swinging lefty slugger. Senior Bo Cooper is a plus defender behind the plate, and Landon Hughes and Ethan Dorsey combine for a strong 1-2 punch on the mound. A dominant pitcher can carry a team through the postseason. These pitchers may be on teams without great records, but when they take the mound, their teams can hang with anyone in the state. The junior is 1-3 with 4.08 ERA and 63 strikeouts over 46⅓ innings. Carnes notched double-digits strikeouts twice, striking out 10 against Connersville and 11 against Warren Central. The DePauw commit has a 1-2 record with a 2.62 ERA and 48 strikeouts over 21⅓ innings. The South Florida commit has a 4-2 record with a 2.57 ERA and 53 strikeouts over 30 innings. The Dayton commit is 1-1 with a 3.43 ERA and 48 strikeouts over 32⅔ innings. The Mississippi State commit has a 3-2 record with a 1.56 ERA and 63 strikeouts over 31⅓ innings. The Kentucky commit has a 5-1 record with 51 strikeouts over 37⅔ innings. There may not be a hotter hitter in the state than Mooresville junior Tyler Denny. Over his last 10 games, Denny is 17-for-32 (.531) with 15 runs scored, 13 RBIs, seven doubles, one triple, three home runs and three stolen bases. He has six multi-hit games, a two-home run game against Plainfield, two five-RBI games and two games with three hits over that span.
Indianapolis Star
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
Hudson DeVaughan wiped away anger from state final loss. His slider wipes away opponents
MOORESVILLE — Hudson DeVaughan was the losing pitcher for Mooresville in the longest IHSAA baseball state championship game ever last season. He walked three straight including the winning run, giving Lake Central the 2-1 win. The loss was controversial. Mooresville supporters were not happy with the strike zone the entire game and DeVaughan's final walk was the culmination of several missed calls. To his credit, DeVaughan hasn't dwelled on the performance. The 54th-ranked prospect in the 2026 class, per Baseball America, quickly shook off the loss and used it to fuel a breakout summer playing for Canes Midwest. "Disbelief and anger," DeVaughan said of his emotions walking off the mound at Victory Field. "For me, I basically wiped it away immediately. I got back to work, worked even harder, and hopefully we can get another (championship appearance)." These Pioneers (13-8) are a lot younger than the group that reached the Class 4A state final. Junior Tyler Denny (five HRs, 23 RBIs) and sophomore Liam Delap (16 RBIs) lead the offense. In DeVaughan, Mooresville has an ace capable of getting a win every time he takes the mound. This season, the Alabama commit has a 4-0 record with a 1.85 ERA and 60 strikeouts over 34 innings. He's reached double-digit strikeouts in four of six starts. His arsenal was on display May 7 against Greenwood — even with a technical glitch. In fifth inning, after four scoreless frames, DeVaughan was having a problem with his PitchCom, a device used to relay signals from the pitching coach to his catcher to him via an earpiece in his hat. After a lead-off walk, DeVaughan's father, Derek, the Mooresville pitching coach, came out to talk to his son on the mound. Hudson wasn't, looking for words of advice. "PitchCom was messing up. It was glitching on our catcher and it was hard to get the calls in," Hudson said. "We used the mound visit to fix it, and I told (Derek) to get outta there, because I knew what needed to be done." What DeVaughan needed to do was what had been working for him the entire game — rely on his devastating slider to strike out Woodmen. DeVaughan has prototypical starting pitcher size at 6-4, 195 pounds. His fastball has touched 97 mph. Against the Woodmen he was sitting around 92 mph, allowing the visitors to better time it up. Without a dominant fastball, DeVaughan turned to his secondary pitches to take control of the game. "(The slider) has always been my put-away pitch," DeVaughan said. "Just years of throwing it. Just going out there and practicing and getting it down. It's my go-to pitch, I can throw it for a strike 95% of the time." He used a high fastball to get out of a bases loaded jam in the fifth. Mooresville added six runs in the bottom half of the inning and DeVaughan closed the door. He used a slider with heavy run away from the right-handed hitter for his sixth strikeout of the game. He fooled the next hitter with a front-door slider for strikeout No. 7. He showed off his command with a well-placed inside fastball to a left-handed hitter for his eighth and final strikeout, helping the Pioneers clinch a 10-2 victory. "He had a three or four-pitch mix going..." Mooresville coach Eric McGaha said. "You're cheating to the fastball because it's mid-to-upper 90s and if the slider is around the plate, you don't have a chance."
Indianapolis Star
26-04-2025
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
Insider: Carmel Invite is one of IHSAA softball's premier events. It didn't disappoint
CARMEL— Despite Mother Nature's best efforts, and thanks to some savvy schedule maneuvering by Carmel athletic director Jim Inskeep, the Carmel Invite happened Friday and Saturday at Cherry Tree Elementary. And folks, the rain-forced finagling of the schedule was well worth it. From an upset of the No. 1 team in Class 4A to a walk-off winner in a game that started Friday but didn't end until Saturday, here's what to know from this year's Carmel Invite. These Millers, man… Deke Bullard likes to joke he has "a bunch of scrappy fighters" on his team. And after watching them against powerhouse Penn and top-ranked Lake Central, that's a perfect way to describe the 10th-ranked Millers. They trailed 7-2 entering the seventh against Penn on Friday. It was cold and wet, and Noblesville fought to extend everyone's misery (said quasi-jokingly), scoring four runs and loading the bases as the clock neared 11 p.m. That rally fell a run short, but Bullard's bunch bounced back a little over 12 hours later, erasing a 3-2 deficit with a five-run fifth that featured five two-out hits, including a pair of home runs, the first a three-run shot by Izzy Zapp and the second by Maggie Kern scored two more. Those bombs were the first of Zapp and Kern's high school career, and all seven of Noblesville's earned runs came against Lake Central ace Maddie Such, who entered the weekend with a 1.50 ERA and had yet to allow more than two earned runs in an appearance this season. "They won't quit. They won't fold their tents up and go home. They will fight to the end and that's what we love about them," Bullard said following the 7-4 triumph, just the second of his career vs. LC. "When you're willing to do that, you can stay in a lot of games." Noblesville's response to Friday's loss was not unexpected or abnormal, Bullard said, crediting it to the culture they've created over the past 10 years. They're willing to get into a fight and with how they schedule, they know how to respond to adversity. Speaking of the schedule — which has already taken Noblesville (9-1) through Avon, Fishers, West Lafayette Harrison, defending 3A champ Western, Penn and Lake Central — it continues to have exactly zero chill moving forward. New Palestine on Monday, Westfield on Tuesday, then Cathedral on Wednesday. Noblesville quick hits ∎ Emme Yee was solid against Lake Central, allowing only two earned runs on nine hits with four walks and five strikeouts over seven innings. The defense behind her was excellent and she did a very good job of avoiding major damage. She allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits with nine strikeouts and zero walks in a 12-3 win over Western, then did not allow a run pitching in relief against Penn on Friday. "I've just been going in, trusting myself and trusting my spin," Yee said following the Lake Central game. "I know I'll get behind sometimes, but I want to keep getting back and just honestly letting my defense get outs and work behind me." ∎ After facing three outside pitches, Zapp was looking inside on her home run. "It went inside and I (got a hold of it)," she smiled. The sophomore outfielder also made some key plays defensively in the seventh to help preserve the lead. "We knew this was going to be a tough game and we came out strong," Zapp said. "We had each other's dives and Brookelyn Grayson's dive (for the third out) sealed the win." ∎ Kern on her home run: "I was just looking to attack early in the count. I swung at the first pitch earlier and it didn't end up well for me, but I'm going to attack what I like. I saw that pitch down and I swung it." Bulldogs, Knights complete two-day marathon Brownsburg and Castle managed to fit in six outs before torrential downpours forced the suspension of their game Friday evening. Action resumed Saturday afternoon with the teams engaging in a scoreless stalemate that dragged into the bottom of the seventh. Ashley Sylvia reached on a one-out bunt, then came around to score on a walk-off triple by Bailey Paddock five pitches later (one of which clipped Paddock as she attempted a bunt). Sylvia said they discussed reading the defense and formulating a gameplan from there. The infield moved in for her first at-bat, but was playing behind the bases when she came up again in the seventh, so she laid down the bunt. "So that bunt? I wasn't actually supposed to do that. I missed a call there," Paddock laughed. "I was supposed to swing away right away, but nobody knew that and it worked in my favor, so that's OK." Paddock said Castle was pitching away against her, so she looked to take it to right field. The walk-off win over a high-quality 4A opponent was critical for the Bulldogs, who had lost three straight and five of their past six. The most recent setback, a 3-2 decision at Mooresville, was particularly painful. "We were down on ourselves mentally (after Mooresville), so we really used our couple losses to come back together as a team, to work as a team and I think we saw that today with the back-to-back hits," Sylvia said. "This was a game we needed," Paddock added. Cathedral precedes daunting stretch with 'team talk'; opens it with small ball The Irish had "a team talk" Friday to discuss things like energy, players' roles on the team, leading and staying positive. The timing may seem peculiar for a team that entered the weekend 11-0 with a 141-20 run differential, but it was very intentional. Saturday's 4-0 win over 4A power Castle launched Cathedral into the meat of its schedule, with games upcoming against Noblesville, Roncalli, Carmel, Zionsville, Yorktown, Shelbyville and (probably) Bishop Chatard at the City tournament. That stretch should have the 3rd-ranked team in 3A ready to roll come sectionals, but they wanted to make sure everyone was in the right headspace heading in. The response? "It was awesome. It was chilling," said junior Sidney Feczko, who spun a one-hit shutout vs. Castle with 10 strikeouts. "Yeah, everyone was really receptive to those conversations and it really worked out," added junior outfielder Amya Gary, who went 2-for-3 with two runs scored. "I hope it keeps up." In addition to her two hits, Gary also initiated a seventh-inning rally, reaching on an error to lead things off. She advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt, then came in to score on a misplayed bunt to third. (Gary dodged the tag but missed home plate initially, but recovered and tapped the plate amid the confusion as everyone awaited the umpire's call.) Gary said once she reached they looked to continue applying pressure on the Castle defense by bunting. "Small ball can definitely change the pace of the game." "We've been practicing bunting a lot recently," Feczko added. "We can't hit until we bunt. We have to get three down, then we can hit and if you're bunting the entire time, you're bunting the entire time. It's definitely translating into gameplay." Cathedral (12-0) has games this week vs. Lawrence North, Noblesville and Avon ahead of the City tournament on Saturday. Wrestling x Softball: The Peyton Dwigans Story Though both probably looked worse in-person than on video, Penn catcher Peyton Dwigans took the hit to make the play on a couple occasions in Friday's wild 7-6 win over Noblesville. On the first, Dwigans fielded a wild pitch that bounced off the backstop and dove toward home plate, blocking off the runner as she came barreling in. She held on and got the out, keeping the score at 2-2 entering the bottom of the fifth. The second play came with significantly higher stakes: A precarious two-run lead with no outs in the top of the seventh. Haley Schatko roped a liner off the wall in center. Izabella Hanna hit the relay throw to shortstop Shannon Rudge, who executed a perfect throw from the edge of the infield to the third-base side of home plate, where Dwigans was able to gain control and absorb contact as the runner tried to evade the tag. "They weren't bad, honestly. I wrestled this year, so I've had a lot worse," Dwigans said. " I like them. I like plays like that." "She put her body on the line for us," senior Ava Zachary added. "She played her heart out tonight and we really appreciate everything she did behind the plate. We couldn't have won the game without her effort behind there." Sadie Winsett working her way back for Castle Castle is in the process of bringing back a major piece to its team with senior Sadie Winsett returning to the circle earlier this week. The Lee University-bound righty had been sidelined with a UCL injury suffered during the travel season. She said it "took her out for a little bit" and got worse at the beginning of the preps campaign. Winsett went 14-2 last season with a 2.29 ERA and 73 strikeouts over 94.2 innings pitched. She has been able to bat this season, clocking a .326 average with 15 hits (one homer), nine runs and seven RBIs. "My arm's doing well," said Winsett, who allowed two unearned runs on four hits with a walk and a strikeout over three innings against Cathedral. "I'm glad to be back — slowly but surely. I just love helping my team out." Winsett was limited to 46 pitches Saturday (she did not pitch against Brownsburg). They plan to bump up 10-20 pitches next week and continue to evaluate from there. "I'm itching to get more every time," she laughed, "but (coach Pat Lockyear) keeps me in place." Uni watch Noblesville-Lake Central provided the best uniform combo with the black with gold pinstripes paired against blue with white pinstripes, but Penn had the best uniforms of the event with the grey/black combo that featured script "Kingsmen" across the chest. A very clean look. "We took them back," Zachary said. "They were our JV's last year and we wanted them. Maybe they're our good luck charm and might be our signature color."
