GCA’s Dani Simon shoots a 3-pointer in a game earlier this season against Indian Creek.
Daily Journal file photo
Ellie Bigelow might not know the specific directions to Southwestern High School without looking at her phone, but odds are she’d be close.
The same is true for Chloe Grider, Dory O’Dell and Kiersten Carlson.
On Saturday, these Greenwood Christian seniors participate in a Class A girls basketball regional at Southwestern for a fourth consecutive year. The feat positions coach Alan Weems’ program in rarefied air in Johnson County, joining Center Grove’s run of nine consecutive sectional titles (1989-97) and Franklin’s four straight (1998-2001).
Some perceived this as a program in transition after GCA graduated three starters — and 78% of its scoring and 73% of its rebounding — from last season’s semistate qualifier.
Think again.
“Most of our team has been together the past two or three years,” said Bigelow, a 5-foot-8 guard who eclipsed the 1,000-point barrier in Saturday night’s 57-33 victory over host Indianapolis Lutheran in the sectional championship game.
“I definitely felt we (could win sectional) with a bunch of practice to get better. I never lost faith in any of our girls, and it is special to be going to regional again.”
By no means did the Cougars quickly round into postseason form.
Greenwood Christian played decent basketball most the season, as evidenced by an 11-9 record prior to its Jan. 25 game at Indianapolis Chatard, a 3A school.
The host Trojans blasted GCA, 58-28, and an alarm was sounded.
“We were trailing, 22-15, at halftime, and in the second half they just blitzed us,” Weems said. “After that game, I could see it turn around. We saw a big difference in the players trusting each other, getting the ball to each other and believing the other players could get the job done.
“We’ve been fun to watch the last part of the season.”
Two more reasons the Cougars face Bethesda Christian in Saturday’s 10 a.m. regional semifinal are seniors Dani Simon and Kayla Chapman.
The 5-foot-8 Simon began her high school career at Indian Creek, transferred to Franklin as a sophomore and enrolled at Greenwood Christian midway through the 2020-21 school year. She managed to play in the final five games last season, enough of a sample size for Weems to gauge her potential.
Simon has delivered this season, averaging a team-high 14.3 points; the 5-7 Chapman, a move-in from Florida who had previously been homeschooled, benefits GCA with her perimeter shooting.
Meanwhile, Bigelow averages 11.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.1 steals. Sophomore Sydney Waldron (8 ppg, 5.5 rpg) is another reason for the Cougars’ success, as are the 5-10 O’Dell (6.8 ppg, 7.5 rpg) and Grider, a starting guard.
On paper and on the court, this Greenwood Christian squad might not be as imposing as the last three. At the same time, there’s something to be said for playing your best basketball when it counts most — and Weems’ team is.
“We all thought we could do it,” Simon said of the program’s fourth straight sectional title. “We thought that it was possible, and we made it happen. A few games ago, we started having really good ball movement, and if we can keep that going, we can maybe get past regional and get back to semistate.
“We don’t want it to end, for each other and for coach Weems.”
Now in his 10th season at GCA, Weems, who enters regional with a 145-104 record (.582), knows it will end soon enough —whether at Southwestern or at some stop further down the tournament trail.
Top-ranked Waldron, a team the Cougars could potentially face in Saturday’s regional championship game, is the prohibitive favorite to be part of the southern semistate.
“Part of it is we’re playing with house money, so let’s have fun with it,” Weems said. “Enjoy the game. Have fun. Because you’re getting to do something most kids never get a chance to do.”
