As we bid adieu to 2022, it’s time to take a look back at what proved to be a banner year locally. Center Grove crowned team and individual state champions, while three other county schools had teams reach state title games before coming up one victory short.
The top 10 stories in Johnson County sports for 2022:
1. Another one
Having graduated a trailer load of Division I talent, Center Grove was no longer considered a prohibitive favorite to win the Class 6A state football championship — but the Trojans did it anyway. Despite tasting regular-season defeat for the first time since 2019, Eric Moore’s squad peaked in November like it usually does and steamrolled Fort Wayne Carroll, 35-9, at Lucas Oil Stadium to become the first team to ever pull off a three-peat in 6A. Running back Micah Coyle was named a Mr. Football finalist after rushing for 2,072 yards and 22 touchdowns.
2. Diamond flush
Indiana hasn’t always been known as a baseball and softball hotbed, especially compared with such warm-weather states as California and Florida. But for the time being, Johnson County can claim to be home to the best that the country has to offer on the diamond. Roncalli pitcher Keagan Rothrock, a Whiteland native, was chosen as Gatorade’s national player of the year in softball, while Franklin outfielder Max Clark is widely projected to be the first high school player — and perhaps the first player, period — selected in the 2023 Major League Baseball draft. (As an added bonus, we get one more season to watch both of them play nearby.)
3. Just seconds away
Whiteland had never reached a state championship game in any team sport, so when the football team marched all the way to the Class 5A state title game this fall, the entire community went along for the ride. Though coach Darrin Fisher’s club wound up allowing a last-minute touchdown to fall to Valparaiso, the Warriors still won a school-record 12 games and captured the Mid-State Conference title outright.
4. Downtown game
One year after a feel-good semistate run, Franklin girls basketball embraced high expectations and marched to the Class 4A state championship game, where it fell short against Noblesville and UConn recruit Ashlynn Shade. Grizzly Cub senior Ashlyn Traylor was named an Indiana All-Star, while classmate Kuryn Brunson earned the IHSAA’s Mental Attitude Award.
5. Shining bright
Last winter was a fruitful one for Center Grove athletes, with four Trojans finishing the season as individual state champions. Mia Prusiecki, the runner-up in 1-meter diving as a freshman, earned the title in her second go-around; on the wrestling mat, seniors Hayden Watson and Drake Buchanan also went from second to first in February, while Anna Krejsa took top honors at the girls state finals a month earlier.
6. Shock treatment
After posting a 5-7-3 record in the regular season, Greenwood Christian boys soccer wasn’t expected to make a deep state tournament run. The Cougars, though, found their groove at the right time and reeled off six straight postseason wins, including a 1-0 semistate upset of Forest Park, to make a Cinderella run to the Class A title match — the first-ever state final appearance by any GCA team.
7. Flying solo
The Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference jettisoned charter members Center Grove and Carmel in December 2021 after the two schools had openly flirted with the Hoosier Crossroads Conference. In January, the Trojans were subsequently denied entry by HCC; they have operated as an independent since the spring season and appear poised to do so for the foreseeable future.
8. Green pastures
Despite having just one senior in the starting lineup, Center Grove girls golf enjoyed a historic season that ended with a runner-up finish at the state finals in September. Senior Sage Parsetich paced the Trojans with a 10th-place individual finish. Franklin freshman Lexi Ray also made her mark, tying for sixth as an individual.
9. Movin’ on up
Months after moving to its new campus, Greenwood Christian made a splash in May when it announced the launch of a football program under coach Andre Dobson. The Cougars went 2-2 in varsity games this fall, including a win at Edinburgh. In September, GCA also announced a $1 million contribution from the Ray Skillman Auto Group to fund gymnasium upgrades and the addition of soccer, baseball and softball fields.
10. Change of scenery
Longtime Greenwood football coach Mike Campbell stepped down after 17 seasons to take over as the school’s athletic director, a position he assumed in August following the late summer departure of previous AD Rob Irwin. Center Grove also welcomed a new athletic director this year, with Joe Bronkella filling the void left by predecessor Scott Knapp.
