Indiana High School Athletic Association

9150 North Meridian Street, Box 40650, Indianapolis, Indiana 46240-0650

Phone: 317-846-6601 Fax: 317-575-4244 Website: www.ihsaa.org

Blake Ress, Commissioner

____________________________________________________________________________

MEDIA ADVISORY February 18, 2003

Contact: Jerry Baker, Sports Information Director

E-Mail: jbaker@ihsaa.org

IHSAA WRESTLING INDIVIDUAL STATE FINALS THIS WEEKEND

Twenty-four wrestlers sporting unbeaten records will lead the field into the 65^th Annual IHSAA Individual Wrestling Tournament at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Friday and Saturday, February 21-22. Leading the way is a quartet of wrestlers with perfect records in 50 or more matches. That group is headed up by Alex Tsirtsis (135-lb) at 58-0. Angel Escobedo of Griffith (125-lb) and Andrae Hernandez of Griffith (130-lb) are both sporting records of 57-0. Matt Jaggers of New Castle (125-lb) checks in at 53-0.

Champions returning this year include Angel Escobedo of Griffith in the 125-lb bracket. He was a winner at 112-lb in 2002. His teammate, Alex Tsirtsis, took home the top honor at 130-lb one year ago and has moved up to 135-lb. Alex was also the title holder in 2001 at 119-lb. Evansville Mater Dei’s Blake Maurer, the 145-lb champ last season, is back at 171-lb for this year’s action. He is looking to make it three in a row following his win at 130-lb in 2001. And, Jake O’Brien from Franklin Central also goes for the tri-fecta as he returns to defend his 215-lb crown.

Craig Weinzapfel of Evansville Mater Dei captured the 112-lb title in 2001 and returns this time at 145-lb.

For a look at the complete state finals pairings, log on to 2003 Individual Wrestling Pairings. A year-by-year list of previous winners is also available at Individual Wrestling Champions.

UNDEFEATED STATE FINALISTS:

Weight	Name	School	Yr	Record	Opponent	School	Yr	Record
112	Nick May	Peru	12	46-0	Zach Helms	Twin Lakes	12	36-6
119	Garlan Early	F.W. North	12	32-0	Scott Kelly	Carmel	10	35-9
119	Sean Schmaltz	Franklin	12	43-0	Steve Chico	Hammond Noll	12	45-8
125	Angel Escobedo	Griffith	10	57-0	Tony Pope	Bloomington South	11	38-7
125	Matt Jaggers	New Castle	12	53-0	Ryan Lineberry	F.W. Snider	12	43-6
130	Matt Coughlin	Ev. Mater Dei	10	38-0	Kyle Meinika	Columbia City	11	36-3
130	Andrae Hernandez	Griffith	11	57-0	Doug Thornton	Lawrence Central	11	39-9
135	Alex Tsirtsis	Griffith	11	58-0	Adam Hogue	Franklin	12	37-7
140	Ryan Pribble	Turkey Run	12	44-0	Michael Burnison	Valparaiso	12	34-9
140	Darren Elkins	Portage	11	44-0	Thomas Johnson	Lawrence North	10	34-12
140	Justin May	DeKalb	12	36-0	Brandon Davis	Martinsville	12	34-5
145	Craig Weinzapfel	Ev. Mater Dei	12	37-0	Brian Jennings	New Palestine	11	37-9
145	Ben Milius	Yorktown	12	41-0	Ryan Bonek	Penn	12	35-12
152	Austin Torres	Lake Central	12	41-0	Neil Westendorf	Manchester	11	36-5
152	Brad Milius	Yorktown	12	40-0	Matt Read	Plymouth	12	26-8
160	Jim Schultz	Mishawaka	12	39-0	Alexander Blythe	Evansville Reitz	11	42-11
171	Alex Dollly	Mishawaka	12	43-0	Ian Strass	Huntington North	12	34-4
189	Chase Thompson	Frankfort	12	36-0	David Schlueter	Harrison (W.L.)	11	37-6
189	Heath VanDeventer	Bloom. North	11	43-0	Josh Staton	Manchester	12	39-4
189	Trevor Moe	Garrett	12	36-0	Orrin Kleinhenz	Columbus North	10	34-11
215	Jake O’Brien	Franklin Cntl	12	40-0	Robert Duke	Kokomo	12	26-7
215	Cortlan Bookeer	W. Lafayette	12	42-0	Zach Tatlock	Seymour	12	37-5
275	Kyle Daily	Columbus N.	12	26-0	Brandon Somerville	Crawfordsville	11	20-6
275	Johnathan Sandberg	North White	12	43-0	Ted Pappert	New Haven	12	38-6

2003 IHSAA INDIVIDUAL WRESTLING STATE FINALS

Schedule: Friday Weigh-In 4:30—5:30 p.m.

Friday Session 1 6:00 p.m.

Saturday Weigh-In 8:30—9:00 a.m.

Saturday Session II 9:30 a.m.

Saturday Session III 5:00 p.m.

Saturday Finals 7:30 p.m.

Pairings: 2003 Individual Wrestling State Finals Pairings

Admission: Session Ticket $7.00, Season Ticket $15.00

Location: Conseco Fieldhouse, 125 South Pennsylvania Street, Indianapolis.

For directions, log on to Conseco Fieldhouse.

FIELD SET FOR TEAM WRESTLING STATE FINALS

The final-eight teams have been determined for the 8^th Annual IHSAA Team Wrestling Tournament to be conducted Saturday, March 1, 2002 at Center Grove High School in Greenwood.

Evansville Mater Dei, ranked number-one in the final poll, is again the strong favorite as the Wildcats go in search of yet another crown. Since the IHSAA began conducting separate team and individual tournaments in 1995-96, Mater Dei has finished up in the winners’ circle each year under head coach Mike Goebel.

Mater Dei, a 76-6 winner over Jasper in the semi-state, will meet Perry Meridian in Match #4, with that victor advancing to meet the winner of the Bellmont-Bloomington South confrontation.

2003 IHSAA TEAM WRESTLING STATE FINALS

Date: Saturday, March 1, 2003

Time: 10:00 a.m. EST

Location: Center Grove High School, 2717 S. Morgantown Road, Greenwood

Admission: $7.00

QUARTERFINALS

10:00 a.m. EST

Match 1

Lawrence North (#6) vs. Fort Wayne Snider (#17)

Match 2

Mishawaka (#9) vs. Griffith (#3)

Match 3

Bellmont (#2) vs. Bloomington South (#11)

Match 4

Perry Meridian (#8) vs. Evansville Mater Dei (#1)

SEMIFINALS

30 minutes following the conclusion of the quarterfinals at approximately 12:00 p.m. EST

Match 5

Winner of Match 1 vs. Winner of Match 2.

Match 6

Winner of Match 3 vs. Winner of Match 4.

CHAMPIONSHIP

30 minutes following the conclusion of the semifinals at approximately 2:30 p.m. EST

Match 7

Winner of Match 5 vs. Winner of Match 6

WRESTLING MEDIA CREDENTIALS

The 2002-03 IHSAA State Finals Media Credential will serve as admission to the individual and team state finals competition at Conseco Fieldhouse and Center Grove High School. If you have not applied for such credential, please fax your request, on company letterhead, to Jerry Baker, Sports Information Director, (317) 575-4244.

Credentials for the Individual Finals will be held at Media Will Call on the Delaware Street side of Conseco Fieldhouse. The Will Call entrance will open one hour prior to the days’ action and close at 7:00 p.m. All media should enter through this gate.

ONCE AGAIN, CARMEL CAPTURES GIRLS SWIMMING TITLE

Carmel made it 17 in a row in the 29^th Annual IHSAA Girls Swimming & Diving State Finals, Friday and Saturday, February 14-15, 2003 at the Indiana University Natatorium in Indianapolis. The Greyhounds, coached by Ken Stopkotte for its last three titles, finished with 277 points followed by North Central with 259, the fourth year in a row the Panthers finished in the two spot. Munster finished third with 207 points, Columbus North was fourth with 199 and Hamilton Southeastern was fifth at 177.

Two records fell during the meet, including the oldest mark on the chart. North Central (Indpls.) senior Julie Broms scored 477.00 points in winning the one meter diving competition and bettered the long-standing mark of 473.30 set by Dana Wiegand of Franklin back in 1982. South Dearborn senior Katie Robinson set the other record in the 100 butterfly. Robinson touched in a time of :54.64 bettering her own mark of last year by .03 of a second. It was the third straight year she had won the event and set the record at the same time. Robinson also was named winner of the 2003 IHSAA Girls Swimming Mental Attitude Award.

ICGSA ACADEMIC ALL-STATE TEAMS

The Indiana Coaches of Girls Sports Association has announced its selections for the 2002-03 Girls Swimming and Basketball Academic All-State Teams. That information is available on the IHSAA web site at 2002-03 Girls Swimming Academic All-State and 2002-03 Girls Basketball Academic All-State.

BOYS SWIMMING TOURNAMENT STARTS THURSDAY

The 66^th Annual IHSAA Boys Swimming Tournament Series takes to pools across the state beginning Thursday, February 20. For a list of schools and their sectional sites, go to 2003 Boys Swimming Tournament Alignment.

Munster holds the state record for total sectionals won with 32, including the last 17 in a row. Columbus North has won 25 sectionals, with Kokomo (24), South Bend Riley (23) and Valparaiso (23) next in line. A list of former sectional champs is available at IHSAA Boys Swimming Sectional Champions.

Two-time defending state champ Carmel has taken home a total of 18 sectional trophies on their way to nine state titles, best in the history of boys’ swimming in Hoosierland.

2003 IHSAA BOYS SWIMMING SECTIONALS

Schedule: Thursday 5:30 p.m. Swimming Preliminaries

Saturday 9:00 a.m. Diving Preliminaries and Semifinals

2:00 p.m. Consolation & Finals in all events

Admission: Session Ticket $4.00, Season Ticket $6.00

(Times are prevailing times of center schools. Host schools may adjust the start time for the consolations and finals provided all participating schools agree.)

IHSSCA BOYS FINAL POLL 2/16/03

No.	Team	Sect. Site	No.	Team	Sect. Site
1	Carmel	Carmel	10	Penn	S.B. Riley
2	South Bend Riley	S.B. Riley	12	Northridge	Concord
3	Hamilton Southeastern	Hamilton SE	13	Delta	Hamilton SE
4	Harrison (W. Laf.)	West Lafayette	13	Homestead	F.W. South Side
5	Lawrence North	Carmel	15	Kokomo	Noblesville
6	Center Grove	Center Grove	16	Columbus North	Columbus North
7	Yorktown	Hamilton SE	17	Western	Noblesville
8	Chesterton	LaPorte	18	Jeffersonville	Columbus North
9	Wawasee	Wawasee	18	Lafayette Jefferson	West Lafayette
10	North Central (Indpls.)	Carmel	18	Westfield	Noblesville

The 2002-03 IHSAA State Finals Media Credential will serve as admission to the state finals at the Indiana University Natatorium. If you have not applied for such credential, please fax your request, on company letterhead, to Jerry Baker, Sports Information Director, (317) 575-4244. For other rounds of the tournament, media should contact the host school for credentials.

For more swimming information from the Indiana High School Swimming Coaches Association, log on to IHSSCA.

GIRLS BASKETBALL REGIONALS SATURDAY

The girls’ state basketball tourney moves to the regional round at 16 locales this Saturday. Ben Davis, Scottsburg and Valparaiso are the all-time leaders in regional titles, with 10 each. Bedford North Lawrence, Kokomo and NorthWood are next in line with nine.

Not all of last year’s state champions made it out of the sectional. The 4A winner, Terre Haute South, was ousted in the title game of the Plainfield Sectional by Mooresville, 81-71. In 3A, Fort Wayne Bishop Luers lost to Fort Wayne Elmhurst, 44-35, at Elmhurst.

Southwestern (Hanover), winner in 2A a year ago, is scheduled to meet South Ripley in the sectional championship game on the Rebels’ home court this evening. And, in Class A, the 2002 champ, North Vermillion, will also have to wait until tonight to see if they advance as they play Turkey Run in the final game of the North Vermillion Sectional.

2003 IHSAA GIRLS BASKETBALL REGIONALS

Schedule: Saturday, February 22, 2003

Games times 10:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., 8:00 p.m.

Admission: Session Ticket $6.00, Season Ticket $9.00

Pairings: Available at 2003 Girls Basketball Regional Pairings

ICGSA GIRLS BASKETBALL FINAL POLL REGIONAL OPPONENTS

No.	Class 4A	Regional Opponent	No.	Class 3A	Regional Opponent
1	Kokomo	Carroll (Ft. Wayne)	1	Alexandria	-----
2	E. Chicago Central	-----	2	Beech Grove	Tipton Winner
3	Pike	-----	3	North Harrison	(vs. Madison—Sect.)
4	Mooresville	Col. East winner	4	Angola	F.W. Elmhurst
5	Warsaw	-----	5	Gibson Southern	-----
6	Bloomington North	(vs. Bloom. S.—Sect.)	6	Highland	Frankfort winner
7	Huntington North	-----	7	Delta	-----
8	Ben Davis	Perry Meridian	8	Northwestern	(vs. Benton Cntl.—Sect.)
9	Perry Meridian	Ben Davis	9	Brebeuf Jesuit	-----
10	Jeffersonville	(vs. Seymour—Sect.)	10	Tippecanoe Valley	Calumet
No.	Class 2A	Regional Opponent	No.	Class A	Regional Opponent
1	Heritage Christian	North Putnam	1	North Vermillion	(vs. Turkey Run—Sect.)
2	North Putnam	Heritage Christian	2	Tri-Central	North White winner
3	Indian Creek	-----	3	New Harmony	-----
4	Rochester	Fremont	4	Union City	(vs. Union Modoc—Sect.)
5	Shenandoah	(vs. Hagerstown—Sect.)	5	Borden	(vs Henryville—Sect.)
6	North Newton	(vs. Boone Grove—Sect.)	6	Oregon-Davis	Ft. Wayne Christian
7	North Knox	-----	7	Culver Community	(vs. Southwood—Sect.)
8	Southwestern (Hanover)	(vs. S. Ripley—Sect.)	8	Washington Catholic	-----
9	Westview	-----	9	North Cntl. (Farm.)	-----
10	Wabash	-----	10	White River Valley	Morristown

To apply for media credentials for the girls basketball tourney state finals at Conseco Fieldhouse March 8, 2003, log on to 2003 Girls Basketball Credential Request Form.

CHESTERTON MAINTAINS TOP SPOT IN GYMNASTICS POLL

Defending state champion Chesterton maintained possession of first place in this week’s IHSGC poll. Among the top-five, Fort Wayne Dwenger and Valparaiso remained second and third, with Merrillville moving up a notch to number-four and Fort Wayne Northrop dropping to fifth.

IHSGC POLL 2/12/03

No.	School	No.	School
1	Chesterton	11	Columbus East
1	F.W. Dwenger	12	LaPorte
3	Valparaiso	13	Hobart
4	Merrillville	14	Richmond
5	F.W. Northrop	15	Plainfield
6	Center Grove	16	F.W. Snider
7	New Castle	17	Columbus North
8	Homestead	18	Lawrence Central
9	Roncalli	18	New Palestine
10	Carroll (F.W.)	20	Portage

For the latest gymnastics information, log on to the Indiana High School Coaches Gymnastics web site at IHSCG.

BOYS BASKETBALL TOURNEY DRAW MONDAY

Pairings for the 93^rd Annual Boys Basketball Tournament Series will be drawn Monday, February 24, 2003 and unveiled at 6:00 p.m. in a telecast by WHMB-TV, channel 40. The pairings will then be placed on the IHSAA web site under Boys Basketball Tournament Pairings.

A.P. BOYS BASKETBALL POLL

All four leaders remained the same in the weekly Associated Press Poll for the week ending February 15, 2003. Pike (18-0) is still number-one in class 4A Gary Roosevelt (17-1) tops 3A again this trip. Cass (17-0) remains the leader in 3A. And, in Class A, Argos (18-1) is still in the top spot.

A.P. BOYS BASKETBALL POLL 2/17/03

No.	Class 4A	No.	Class 3A	No.	Class 2A	No.	Class A
1	Pike	1	Gary Roosevelt	1	Cass	1	Argos
2	Lawrence North	2	Indianapolis Chatard	2	Bluffton	2	Loogootee
3	Bloomington North	3	Tippecanoe Valley	3	North Knox	3	Orleans
4	DeKalb	4	Gibson Southern	4	Eastern (Bloomfield)	4	South Central (Elizabeth)
5	Munster	5	Yorktown	5	Muncie Burris	5	Clay City
6	Columbia City	6	Griffith	6	Wheeler	6	Kouts
7	Perry Meridian	7	Washington	7	Winchester	7	Bloomfield
8	North Cntl (Indpls)	8	Lebanon	8	Forest Park	8	Southwestern (Shelbyville)
9	Evansville Harrison	9	Scottsburg	9	Evansville Mater Dei	9	White River Valley
10	Lafayette Jefferson	10	Heritage Hills	10	Garrett	10	Laf. Cntl. Catholic

IBCA BOYS BASKETBALL POLL 2/16/03

No.	School	No.	School
1	Pike	11	North Central (Indpls.)
2	DeKalb	12	Cass
3	Bloomington North	13	Evansville Harrison
4	Gary Roosevelt	14	Lafayette Jefferson
5	Lawrence North	15	Bluffton
6	Munster	16	Indianapolis Cathedral
7	Perry Meridian	17	Muncie South
8	Columbia City	18	Hamilton Southeastern
9	Indianapolis Chatard	19	Elkhart Central
10	South Bend Riley	20	Evansville Reitz

MILESTONES

Corey Johnson of Highland moved past the 1,000-point barrier on Feb. 8 against Shenandoah.

Adam Central’s Natalie Young reached the 1,000-point mark on Feb. 8 in a game with Northeastern.

Mike Griffin, head coach of the Brownsburg girls’ basketball team, picked up his 300^th career win in a victory over Indianapolis Arsenal Technical in sectional tourney play on Feb. 14.

Northeastern’s Cory Ross scored his 1,000^th career point against Union County Feb. 13.

North Harrison’s boys’ basketball squad set a school record for points scored (118) and 3-point field-goals-made (16) in their 118-64 win over Charlestown on Feb. 13.

Junior Julie DeMuth of Highland joined the career 1,000-point club on Feb. 11 in a sectional tourney game against Hammond Gavit. Her sister, Jenny, is also a member of that club for the Trojans.

Madison-Grant’s Andy Miller reached 1,000 points in his career on Feb. 13 in a win over Blackford.

Ronnie Ragains became West Washington’s all-time leading scorer Feb. 15 in a game against Perry Central. With his 12 points in the win, Ragains’ total reached 1,230, surpassing the previous mark held by Neil Coyle.

IHSAA OVERTIME

On Friday, February 28, at halftime of the Huntington North vs. Manchester boys' basketball game the Huntington North Athletic Department will be inducting five individuals into its hall of fame. The inductees include: James "Doc" Hildebrand - trainer and coach at Huntington North from 1967 to 1995; Oscar Naab - coached football and track for over forty years in the Huntington County Schools from 1931 until his retirement in 1972; George Frye - longtime sports editor for the Huntington Herald Press who covered the Vikings from 1941 to 1977; Dean Stephan - official boys basketball scorekeeper for the Vikings from 1954 to present (49 consecutive years) and a player on 1945 Final Four Huntington team; Paul Buzzard - coached tennis, baseball, football and basketball for the Vikings from 1956 to 1991. Was the assistant basketball coach to

Bob Straight for many years including 1964 IHSAA State - Runner up basketball team.

Hobart has approved Wally McCormack as its new head football coach. He succeeds Charles Boston, who coached the Brickies the last four seasons.

At the monthly meeting of the North Central Conference on February 12, Lafayette Jefferson officials announced that they would be leaving the NCC and have accepted an invitation to become a member of the newly formed Hoosier Crossroads Conference. The North Central Conference will begin the process of accepting letters of interest from prospective schools. All interested schools should respond in writing to Dr. Terry Sargent, Principal, Logansport High School, by February 28, 2003. It is the intent of the NCC to be in the position to extend an invitation to a new member by May 14, 2003.

Dave Shondell, the longtime coach at Muncie Central High School, was introduced Feb. 17 as the new head volleyball coach at Purdue University. Over the past 13 years, Shondell had led the Bearcats to four state titles, including the 2002 championship, and a 428-52 record (.891), the second-best winning percentage in Indiana high school volleyball history.

IHSAA ----- LOOKING AHEAD

Thursday, February 20	Boys Swimming Sectionals
Friday, February 21	Wrestling State Finals (Indv.)
Saturday, February 22	Wrestling State Finals (Indv.)
Saturday, February 22	Boys Swimming Sectionals
Saturday, February 22	Girls Basketball Regionals
Monday, February 24	Boys Basketball Tournament Draw (6:00 p.m.)
Monday, February 24	Softball First Practice
Tuesday, February 25	Boys Diving Regionals
Friday, February 28	Boys Swimming Finals
Saturday, March 1	Boys Swimming Finals
Saturday, March 1	Girls Basketball Semi-States
Saturday, March 1	Wrestling State Finals (Team)
Monday, March 3	Baseball First Practice
Monday, March 3	1^st Contest Boys & Girls Track
Tuesday, March 4	Boys Basketball Sectionals

IHSAA 02-03/25