State Titles on the Line This Weekend

October has been a month to remember for Central Indiana high school athletics.

On Oct. 3, the Martinsville girls golf team set the tone as the Artesians captured the program’s 11th team title in one of the closest finishes in IHSAA state finals history. Central Indiana went on to sweep the top spots during the 37th annual event with Noblesville’s Meghan Potee taking home the individual crown.

A few weeks later, the Park Tudor boys tennis team continued Central Indiana’s run of state titles by winning the program’s seventh team state championship and second in four years.

Last weekend, Brebeuf Jesuit singles player Dougie Barnard and the Zionsville doubles tandem of Joe Hammond and Nick Laconi were crowned state champions in the IHSAA individual tennis state finals.

For Barnard, the title was his first and the program’s first singles state championship. Hammond and Laconi became the tournament’s first repeat doubles champions since Pike’s Steve Behrman and David Brents in 1969-70.

This Saturday, a host of Central Indiana contenders vie to keep the fall sports season trend alive with individual and team cross country state titles on the line in Terre Haute and both boys and girls team soccer crowns to be decided at Kuntz Stadium in Indianapolis.

At the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course in Terre Haute, nearly 200 competitors will gather at the 5,000 meter course with the boys race beginning at 1 p.m. The girls race is scheduled to start at 1:45 p.m.

Among the state's top runners is North Central’s Futsum Zeinasellassie, who finished runner-up as a freshman in 2008. This postseason, the sophomore has won each of his three postseason races by more than 20 seconds and appears to be the front-runner for the individual state title.

Carmel, the defending state champions, enter the girls race with confidence after seizing a state-best 13th semistate team title. The squad eyes a potential repeat led by sophomore Sarah Bennett, who won the Carmel Semistate last weekend, and teammate Renee Wellman, a third-place finisher at semistate.

In Indianapolis, the fourth-ranked Zionsville Eagles (18-3-2) return to the boys soccer state finals where they were narrowly denied the title last year, losing in a dramatic penalty kick shootout during the championship match. The Eagles are seeking their first state soccer title and will face No. 7 Lake Central (21-1-1) in the semifinal at 10 a.m. at Kuntz Stadium.

Zionsville has defeated three top 20 teams this postseason, including No. 1 Pike in the regional and No. 5 Avon at semistate. Lake Central handed Zionsville one of their three losses during the regular season, topping the Eagles 2-1 in late September.

For a second time in three seasons, the Cathedral Fighting Irish will compete for the girls soccer state title. The No. 9 Irish (17-4-2) will face No. 4 South Bend St. Joseph’s (21-1-1) in the semifinals at noon.

Cathedral has not surrendered a goal in the state tournament this year and defeated No. 7 Zionsville for the semistate championship last weekend.

The boys soccer championship match is set to begin at 6 p.m. The girls match is scheduled to commence at 8 p.m.

Photos courtesy of William Hicks and David Dixon