BY FRANK KIELPIKOWSKI
The regular season is now behind us, and the postseason is here. Classes 5A and 6A will have this week off to prepare for their semifinal games. Fortunately, there are still 120 games across the state of Indiana in classes 1A thru 4A to enjoy.
Here’s my final regular season top 10 poll
- Crown Point (9-0)
- Valparaiso (7-2)
- Merrillville (7-2)
- Hanover Central (9-0)
- Hobart (7-2)
- Michigan City (5-4)
- Lake Central (4-5)
- Wheeler (6-3)
- Hammond Morton (4-4)
- Boone Grove (7-2)
WEEK NINE RECAP
DUNELAND CONFERENCE
Crown Point 38, Michigan City 0: It was a total team effort for the Bulldogs who captured a second straight undefeated Duneland Athletic Conference championship. Larry Ellison scored three touchdowns for Crown Point.
LaPorte 12, Portage 0: The Slicers’ special teams’ literally won the game as Keli Hay returned both a kickoff (83 yards) and a punt (93 yards) for touchdowns as LaPorte snapped a seven-game losing streak and earn their first DAC win.
Merrillville 35, Chesterton 7: Dontae Pope (109 yards and two scores) and JQ Johnson (103 yards) each went over the 100-yard plateau rushing mark as the Pirates outscored Chesterton 21-0 in the second half to earn their fifth win in their last six contests.
Valparaiso 47, Lake Central 7: The Vikings exploded to a 30-0 halftime lead and cruised to a second-place finish in the DAC. Thomas Burda rushed for 150 yards and Justin Clark added another 126 yards on the ground for the defending Class 5A state champs.
NORTHWEST CROSSROADS CONFERENCE
Hobart 48, Highland 0: The Brickies have still never lost to Highland as they cruised to their seventh win heading into their big Class 4A sectional opener at defending state runner-up New Prairie.
Lowell 16, Andrean 14: Colton Scott rushed for 132 yards and a score, but in the end Noah Peters’ safety ended up being the difference for the Red Devils, who downed defensing Class 2A state runner-up Andrean for the third straight year.
Munster 28, Kankakee Valley 24: The Mustangs won for just the third time as they held off Kankakee Valley to earn their first NCC triumph.
GREATER SOUTH SHORE CONFERENCE
Boone Grove 47, Hammond Bishop Noll 0: The Wolves christened their new field by claiming the GSSC North Division crown.
Gary West 30, Calumet 28: The Cougars bring a lot of momentum into the post-season as they held off Calumet to earn their fifth win in their last six games.
River Forest 62, Lake Station 6: The Ingots crushed rival Lake Station to pick up their third straight win and improve to a solid 6-3 record.
Wheeler 27, Griffith 6: Winners of six straight contests, the Bearcats are one of the hottest teams in the Region. They are on a bye this week as they prepare to face Bremen or Hammond Bishop Noll in the Class 2A sectional semifinals.
NON-CONFERENCE
Benton Central 46, Bowman Academy 6: The Bison snapped a seven-game losing streak by earning just their second victory of the season, while Bowman dropped its fifth straight contest.
Hammond Morton 46, East Chicago Central 2: The Governors got back to the .500 mark with a solid victory over slumping EC Central. Holland Harris threw for 316 yards and three scores for Morton.
Hanover Central 35, Hammond Central 0: The Wildcats made it 24 straight regular season victories as they capped a second straight undefeated regular season with a shutout over Hammond Central.
Whiting 30, South Central 8: The Oilers snapped a five-game losing streak as they had little trouble with South Central in the rain.
SECTIONAL QUARTERFINAL PREVIEWS
CLASS 4A SECTIONAL 17
Hobart at New Prairie: A pair of 7-2 teams meet in a rematch of last year’s sectional championship won by the Cougars on their way to an appearance in the Class 4A state finals.
Gary West at Kankakee Valley: In their first meeting in 24 years, West Side has won five of its last six games, while the Kougars captured three of their last four contests.
East Chicago Central at Highland: It’s déjà vu for these programs who met in the first round of last year’s post-season, which was won by the Trojans, 55-0.
Culver Academy at Lowell: Another first-round rematch from a year ago in which the Red Devils won 27-14.
CLASS 3A SECTIONAL 25
Twin Lakes at Boone Grove: In the first meeting between these teams, veteran Twin Lakes boss Kevin O’Shea makes a rare appearance in the Region to take on the Wolves, who are seeking their fifth win in a row.
Calumet at Hanover Central: These two teams played each other last year when the Wildcats were still in the Greater South Shore Conference. Hanover won 42-0, and has beaten the Warriors four of the five times they’ve met.
River Forest at West Lafayette: Both teams come in at 6-3 and will meet for the first time since 1990 when the Ingots defeated West Lafayette, 22-15, in the Class 2A semistate before falling to Indianapolis Scecina (28-27) in the state finals.
Rensselaer Central at Griffith: The Bombers come in at 5-4, while Griffith looks to remain unbeaten against Rensselaer, having won both of the previous playoff meetings.
CLASS 2A SECTIONAL 33
Bremen at Hammond Bishop Noll: It’s the first meeting between these schools. In fact, it’s the first time Bremen has played a team from Hammond.
Andrean at LaVille: This is a rematch of last year’s sectional semifinal in which the Niners handed LaVille its only loss. A 28-6 victory helped Andrean on its way to a second straight trip to the state finals.
Lake Station at Whiting: The Oilers have historically dominated this series, having won 29 of the 32 previous meetings with the last one being in 2018.
CLASS 1A SECTIONAL 41
Bowman Academy at South Newton: In the first meeting between these schools, the Eagles have lost four straight games, while South Newton has dropped their last five contests.
Pioneer at North Judson: These two clubs met a week ago with the host Bluejays posting a 33-12 decision over Pioneer at Liberty Field.
Triton at North Newton: Triton will try and match last year’s seven-win campaign against the winless Spartans, who have dropped 20 consecutive games.
Culver at South Central: The Satellites are going for their second win over winless Culver in 2023, having defeated the Cavaliers, 44-22, in week two.
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