Girls State Champions Are Crowned During Week-17 of the IBCA/Franciscan Health Player of the Week Awards

Girls State Champions Are Crowned During Week-17 of the IBCA/Franciscan Health Player of the Week Awards

With the girls’ basketball season concluding Saturday night, we want to offer congratulations to Pioneer (1A), Linton-Stockton (2A), Silver Creek (3A), and Crown Point (4A) for their 2020-2021 State Championships. Additionally, each of our boys’ selections topped the 50-point mark last week. In total, six players have been chosen as the Week-17 IBCA/Franciscan Health Players of the Week.

Crown Point Junior Jessica Carrothers, Brownsburg Senior Ally Becki, Linton-Stockton Senior Haley Rose, Lowell Senior Christopher Mantis, Marion Senior Jalen Blackmon, and Mooresville Senior Miles McGowen are the recipients for Feb. 22-Feb. 27 in the recognition program coordinated by the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association. Carrothers is the girls’ recipient, and Mantis is the boys’ recipient in District-1. Becki is the girls’ winner, and Blackmon is the boys’ winner in District-2. Rose and McGowen are the girls’ and boys’ honorees, respectively, in District-3.

Jessica Carrothers capped off a spectacular Junior season by hoisting the Class 4A State Championship trophy Saturday night, following Crown Point’s 44-34 win over the Brownsburg Bulldogs at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. The 5-7 Junior guard was steady and consistent throughout the game, finishing with 25 points on 11-21 shooting. She knocked down a 3-pointer and a pair of free throws in the effort. Carrothers also contributed seven rebounds, an assist, and five steals in the huge program win.

Lowell Senior Christopher Mantis has consistently posted good numbers throughout his career, and last week he capped off his regular season with a trio of outstanding performances. Tuesday night, in an 87-68 win at Rensselaer Central, the 6-7 wing scored a career-high and school record 53 points. Mantis was 19-30 from the field, a hot 8-11 from 3-point range, plus he made all seven of his free throw attempts. He added eight rebounds, three assists, and three steals for the Red Devils.

Lowell had a tough turnaround, hosting Merrillville Wednesday evening, and the Red Devils fell 68-55 to the Pirates. Mantis was still solid, posting a double-double of 21 points and 14 rebounds. The Appalachian State University commit added two assists and a blocked shot in defeat. Two nights later, Friday, the Red Devils got back on track with a big 68-65 win at Crown Point. Mantis was again stellar, scoring 33 points, grabbing seven rebounds, and handing out four assists in victory. Lowell finished the regular season with a 13-9 record, guaranteeing them their first winning season in four years.

Brownsburg’s Ally Becki finds herself among the winners for the second consecutive week, following a solid performance in the State Finals, and a gutsy effort throughout the entire IHSAA State Tournament. Despite falling 44-34 to Crown Point, the 5-8 Senior point guard still managed a team-high 19 points, plus she contributed seven rebounds, a pair of steals, and she was 3-5 from downtown. The Ball State University commit had an opening quarter in which she was a perfect 6-6 from the field.

As if becoming Marion’s all-time leading scorer wasn’t enough, passing his own father, mind you, Senior Jalen Blackmon appears to be saving the best for last. In each of his games last week, he set new single-game career highs in scoring. Wednesday, the Giants hosted Hamilton Southeastern, and even though they narrowly fell to the Royals, 87-84, Blackmon was electric. The 6-1 guard was 16-24 from the field, 6-11 from long range, and 10-12 from the charity stripe, scoring 48 points in total. He added a pair of rebounds and a pair of assists in the loss.

Friday night, the Giants travelled to Fort Wayne Snider, again falling by the slimmest of margins, 98-96. This time Blackmon topped himself, scoring 52 points on 19-31 shooting, 4-11 from deep, and this time 10-13 from the free throw line. The Grand Canyon University signee also contributed seven rebounds, four assists, and a pair of steals, but it just wasn’t enough to knock off the Panthers. The youngest Blackmon now sits at more than 2200 points in his career.

Linton-Stockton Senior Haley Rose had herself quite the evening Friday night, helping the Miners to their second consecutive Class 2A State Championship with a 63-25 win over the Tipton Blue Devils. The 6-0 forward scored 24 total points in the contest, but she had an impressive nine-point scoring run of her own in the third quarter. On the night, the Indiana Wesleyan University commit was 10-16 from the field, plus she knocked down a 3-pointer and three free throws. Additionally, Rose added six rebounds, four assists, four steals, and two blocked shots. Rose was also awarded the prestigious Patricia L. Roy Mental Attitude Award for Class 2A girls’ basketball.

Last week, Miles McGowen put together a pair of nice outings to help his Mooresville Pioneers conclude their regular season with a couple of road wins. Tuesday night, the Pioneers travelled to Tri-West, defeating the host Bruins, 57-46. McGowen posted a double-double in the effort, with 19 points and 11 rebounds. He also contributed four assists, three steals, and three blocked shots in the triumph.

The very next night, Wednesday, Mooresville travelled to Victory College Prep, where they beat the Firehawks pretty comfortably, 84-44. It was in this game that the 6-7 forward joined the 50-point club, as he was near perfect shooting it. The Senior made 20-24 shots from the field, plus he was a perfect 10-10 from the free throw line, on his way to exactly 50 points. McGowen added four rebounds, two assists, and three steals in the win.

This is the 13^th season for the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association Player of the Week program, but the first season it is presented by Franciscan Health, a corporate sponsor of the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association.

Player of the Week winners are chosen each week from each of the IHSAA’s three districts. This is the last week girls’ winners will be chosen this season. Boys winners will be chosen through the Monday following the IHSAA Boys State Finals.

Other Top Nominees for Week-17 (2020-21)

District-1 Boys: Brayden Bontrager, Lakeland; Richard Brooks, Mishawaka Marian; Zane Burke, Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian; Austin Cripe, West Noble; Keaton Dukes, Wawasee; Karson Jenkins, Fort Wayne Snider; J.R. Konieczny, South Bend St. Joseph; Jackson Paul, Churubusco; Carson Rich, Southwood; Will Shank, Fort Wayne Canterbury.

District-1 Girls: Ashlynn Brooke, Pioneer; Olivia Brooke, Pioneer; Hailey Cripe, Pioneer; RaShunda Jones, South Bend Washington; Mila Reynolds, South Bend Washington; Alyna Santiago, Crown Point; Lilly Stoddard, Crown Point.

District-2 Boys: Jayden Brewer, Ben Davis; Jake Chapman, Tri-Central; Gus Etchison, Hamilton Heights; Jesse Hall, Crawfordsville; Elijah Mattingly, Central Christian; Braden Smith, Westfield; Jackson Ullom, Monroe Central; Drew Valentine, Speedway; Cael Vanderbush, Plainfield; Evan Whitesell, Wes-Del.

District-2 Girls: Novalee Glass, Brownsburg; Ashlee Schram, Tipton; Ella Wolfe, Tipton.

District-3 Boys: Owen Dease, Evansville F.J. Reitz; Josiah Dunham, Evansville Christian; Noah Gordon, Mount Vernon (Posey); Drew Howard, Forest Park; Trey Kaufman, Silver Creek; Lane Lauderbaugh, South Decatur; Tyler Myers, Evansville Day; Jaden Peetz, South Ripley; Logan Rohrbacher, East Central; Blake Sisley, Heritage Hills.

District-3 Girls: Aubrey Burgess, Linton-Stockton; Marissa Gasaway, Silver Creek; Brooklynn Jones, Loogootee; Vanessa Shafford, Linton-Stockton; Alana Striverson, Silver Creek; Kynidi Striverson, Silver Creek; Kylie VanHoy, Loogootee.

2020-21 Weekly Winners

Nov. 2-Nov. 7: District-1 girls: Courtney Blakely, Hammond Bishop Noll. District-2 girls: Olivia Nickerson, Twin Lakes. District–3 girls: Hope Fox, East Central.

Nov. 9-Nov. 14: District-1 girls: Mariah Wyatt, Wabash. District-2 girls: Tyra Ford, Anderson, and McKenna Layden, Northwestern. District-3 girls: Rebekah Gordon, Heritage Hills.

Nov. 16-Nov. 21: District-1 girls: De’Mour Watson, Elkhart. District-2 girls: Erikka Hill, Shenandoah. District-3 girls: Gracie Adams, Lanesville.

Nov. 23-Nov. 28: District-1 boys: Cole Wireman, Kouts. District-1 girls: Jessica Carrothers, Crown Point. District-2 boys: Brooks Barnhizer, Lafayette Jefferson, and Gus Etchison, Hamilton Heights. District-2 girls: Jayla Smith, Lawrence North. District-3 boys: Kooper Jacobi, Silver Creek. District-3 girls: Sydney Jaynes, Trinity Lutheran.

Nov. 30-Dec. 5: District-1 boys: J.R. Konieczny, South Bend St. Joseph. District-1 girls: Olivia Smith, Fort Wayne South Side. District-2 boys: Ian Scott, Plainfield. District-2 girls: Skylie Lutz, Union City. District-3 boys: Julian Norris, Evansville Bosse. District-3 girls: Kylee Edwards, Shelbyville.

Dec. 7-Dec. 12: District-1 boys: Caleb Furst, Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian. District-1 girls: Ellia Foster, Bremen. District-2 boys: Brody Whitaker, Greencastle. District-2 girls: Ariana Wiggins, Heritage Christian. District-3 boys: Logan Rohrbacher, East Central. District-3 girls: Abby Fleetwood, Brown County.

Dec. 14-Dec. 19: District-1 boys: Christopher Mantis, Lowell. District-1 girls: Courtney Blakely, Hammond Bishop Noll. District-2 boys: Luke Brown, Blackford. District-2 girls: Alli Harness, Carroll (Flora). District-3 boys: Lane Sparks, Greensburg. District-3 girls: Isabella Reed, Greenwood Christian.

Dec. 21-Dec. 26: District-1 boys: Luke Goode, Homestead. District-1 girls: Jessica Carrothers, Crown Point. District-2 boys: Brooks Barnhizer, Lafayette Jefferson. District-2 girls: Katie Burton, Fishers. District-3 boys: Curt Hopf, Barr-Reeve. District-3 girls: Juliann Woodard, Jennings County.

Dec. 28-Jan. 2: District-1 boys: Fletcher Loyer, Homestead. District-1 girls: Courtney Blakely, Hammond Bishop Noll. District-2 boys: Trey Flatt, Covenant Christian (Indianapolis). District-2 girls: Ashlynn Shade, Noblesville. District-3 boys: Stephen Atkinson, Owen Valley. District-3 girls: Ali Saunders, North Harrison.

Jan. 4-Jan. 9: District-1 boys: Jackson Paul, Churubusco. District-1 girls: Lilliann Frasure, North Judson-San Pierre. District-2 boys: Gus Etchison, Hamilton Heights. District-2 girls: McKenna Layden, Northwestern. District-3 boys: Trey Kaufman, Silver Creek. District-3 girls: Vanessa Shafford, Linton-Stockton.

Jan. 11-Jan. 16: District-1 boys: Connor Essegian, Central Noble. District-1 girls: Jessica Carrothers, Crown Point. District-2 boys: Kobe Ward, Danville. District-2 girls: Zakia Rasheed, Bishop Chatard. District-3 boys: Owen Dease, Evansville Reitz. District-3 girls: Koryn Greiwe, Columbus East.

Jan. 18-Jan. 23: District-1 boys: Cole Wireman, Kouts. District-1 girls: Lilliann Frasure, North Judson-San Pierre. District-2 boys: Brody Whitaker, Greencastle. District-2 girls: Ashlynn Shade, Noblesville. District-3 boys: Lincoln Hale, Linton-Stockton. District-3 girls: Diana Burgher, North Harrison.

Jan. 25-Jan. 30: District-1 boys: Jalen Jackson, Carroll (Fort Wayne). District-1 girls: Ayanna Patterson, Homestead. District-2 boys: Luke Brown, Blackford. District-2 girls: Madelyn Bischoff, Roncalli. District-3 boys: Lane Lauderbaugh, South Decatur. District-3 girls: Gracie Adams, Lanesville.

Feb. 1-Feb. 6: District-1 boys: Joshua Fleming, Rensselaer Central. District-1 girls: Bailey Hartsough, Lakeland. District-2 boys: Leyton McGovern, McCutcheon. District-2 girls: Ashlynn Shade, Noblesville. District-3 boys: Lane Lauderbaugh, South Decatur. District-3 girls: Katherine Benter, Brownstown Central.

Feb. 8-Feb. 13: District-1 boys: J.R. Konieczny, South Bend St. Joseph. District-1 girls: Lilliann Frasure, North Judson-San Pierre. District-2 boys: Jesse Hall, Crawfordsville. District-2 girls: Kenna Kirby, Tri-West. District-3 boys: Chandler Moore, Evansville North. District-3 girls: Isabella Reed, Greenwood Christian.

Feb. 15-Feb. 20: District-1 boys: Caleb Furst, Fort Wayne Blackhawk Christian. District-1 girls: Olivia Brooke, Pioneer. District-2 boys: Braden Smith, Westfield. District-2 girls: Ally Becki, Brownsburg. District-3 boys: Trey Kaufman, Silver Creek. District-3 girls: Kynidi Striverson, Silver Creek.

Feb. 22-Feb. 27: District-1 boys: Christopher Mantis, Lowell. District-1 girls: Jessica Carrothers, Crown Point. District-2 boys: Jalen Blackmon, Marion. District-2 girls: Ally Becki, Brownsburg. District-3 boys: Miles McGowen, Mooresville. District-3 girls: Haley Rose, Linton-Stockton.