HANCOCK COUNTY — On Sunday night, the sectional pairings for the 36th annual IHSAA softball state tournament were revealed.
In Class 4A, a pair of Hancock County programs will vie for a sectional championship at Mt. Vernon High School, while top-ranked New Palestine plays host to their own six-team tournament.
In Class 2A, No. 7 Eastern Hancock travels to rival Knightstown for sectional play with tournament games scheduled to begin on May 24.
At New Palestine, three state-ranked teams highlight the tournament field, including the host Dragons, who are 18-0 and ranked first in the state by both the ICGSA and Maxpreps.
The Dragons open 4A Sectional 11 against Perry Meridian (5-10), while No. 3 Roncalli (14-1) faces Southport (7-11) in the other quarterfinal game.
Warren Central (2-13) and No. 11 Franklin Central (12-5) both drew the first-round bye and will play each other in the semifinals. The winners from the quarterfinal games will collide in the semifinals.
“We expected it be something like that. It’s a shame when you got a sectional when you have three of the top programs in the state together,” New Palestine head coach Ed Marcum said. “Obviously, when you look at it, Franklin Central got exactly what they wanted. If you could draw it up, that’s exactly where you would want to be, so you could let the other ones kind of beat up on each other a little bit.”
At Mt. Vernon, No. 15 Pendleton Heights (13-5) opens Sectional 9 against Richmond (6-7) in the quarterfinals, and Greenfield-Central (11-4) faces Anderson (3-4) in the second quarterfinal contest. The winners will meet in the semifinals.
Host Mt. Vernon (12-2), ranked 16th in the state, drew the bye along with Muncie Central (1-10) and both will play in the semifinal round.
“I think it goes without saying that us, Pendleton and Mt. Vernon were all hoping for the same thing. To be the one on the other side of the bracket and not have to go through two really good teams,” Greenfield-Central head coach Jason Stewart said. “Mt. Vernon hit the lottery with their draw, so it’s like I told the girls, nothing has been easy this year, so no reason to start now. It is a good sectional and we will have to be perfect for three games, but we have the ability to do it.”
At Knightstown, the Royals (11-1) open Sectional 42 against the host Panthers (6-7) in the quarterfinal round. The winner advances to the semifinals to face Triton Central (6-7), who received one of three first-round byes.
Heritage Christian (3-7) and Indianapolis Scecina (3-8) face off in the other semifinal.
