Sectional Preview: 6
The coming high school season is almost upon us. With that, we are taking a look at each Sectional in the state. Starting with 64 and ending with 1. Today, we are previewing Sectional 6.
Columbia City (13-14) – Lost Sectional Finals
For Columbia City, they move into a new era where they will play 4A teams. Leaving 3A will really hurt but they come into a usually strong Sectional in a down year. Homestead is usually the class of the Sectional but they are rebuilding a bit with some talented young. However, Columbia City is doing the same as they will be relying on Mitchell Wilson, Garrett Roehling, and others to step up after graduating Jordan Bechtold, Parker Hazen, and others. This is a new group with a relatively new head coach. Their guard play should be solid but size will be tough and this Sectional has plenty of size in it. Could be a bit of a struggle this season for Columbia City as they develop their talent.
Fort Wayne South (5-14) – Lost 1st Rd. Sectional
Fort Wayne South is under a new head coach but they have plenty of talent coming back. They bring back all their big guns with Cortney Shorter, Trejean Didier, Mikale Stevenson, and also bring in transfer Asher Blum from Warsaw. Blum gives them a player hitting his stride and with some true size in the post. This could be one of the biggest turnaround for a team as they only won 5 games last year. They could be closer to 15 this season with an outside shot of competing for a Sectional Championship.
Fort Wayne Wayne (11-12) – Lost 1st Rd. Sectional
Fort Wayne Wayne was decent last season but they are really set up to be even better this year. They have some really good players coming back with Craig Young and Demarea Dial. Both have really gotten better in the last year and now that this Sectional is a bit easier than a year ago, at least more balanced, Wayne should have a shot to be a 15+ win team and a Sectional contender. They have size, athleticism, and can really rebound the ball. The last time Wayne was able to win a Sectional Championship was 1993 and this could be the best group they have had since then.
Homestead (23-4) – Lost Regional Semifinals
Homestead has been as good as you could possibly hope for in this Sectional. Just the last four years, they have 4 Sectional Championships, 1 State Title, and more than 20 wins in each season. However, they are considerably down relative to those years as most of their talent is younger. They lose their senior trio in Parker Manges, Jack Ferguson, and Brandon Durnell. Seniors Grant Raber, Logan Pauly, and Onye Ezeakudo are all solid but they will need guys like Jake Archbold, Preston Barker, and others to step up quickly. Should still be really good but other teams will have a better shot this year than the past four.
Huntington North (17-8) – Lost 1st Rd. Sectional
Huntington North lost quite a bit this past year as Chazz Bruce and Hunter Hollowell are both gone. However, they have some size and skill coming back in Sawyer Stoltz and Hank Pulver who both can shoot the ball pretty well. Give them some time as they are just juniors, but they could be a really good combination. They need to lock down their perimeter players but if they can, this is a team that should vie for a Sectional Title this year. Good time that will put up some offense and good shooting numbers.
Jay County (13-10) – Lost 1st Rd. Sectional
It was 2010 the last time Jay County won a Sectional Championship and this year might be difficult as well. They only lost two seniors but Jay Houck and Jason Schlosser were Jay County’s only double-digit scorers from last year. They now will have quite a few players back with some experience but they are all going to have to step up into bigger roles. Last season, this team only scored 50.0ppg and that is very low for a 4A program. They need to replace their two top scorers and improve their offense at the same time. Tough task to take on but they should be respectable this year, either way.
Muncie Central (10-15) – Lost Sectional Final
Last season was a lucky one for Muncie Central that didn’t play all that well through the season but were able to make it to the Sectional Championship before losing. They might have an even tougher time this season as they have a brand new head coach and a team that has lost a ton from last year. They lose a lot of key contributors in Trenton Hatfield, Jajuan Wells, Tyrek Vicks, and Jamel Barnes. Now, they do bring back Christian Wells, and Victor Young so you have some scoring ability and some size with Wells. Still, it is going to take some time to build this talent back up but Victor Young is a good core talent that is only a sophomore.
Contenders For 2017-18: Fort Wayne Wayne, Homestead, Huntington North
Prediction: Homestead
Player to Watch: Sawyer Stoltz (Huntington North)