The REPORTER
They did it before. Can they do it again?
The Noblesville soccer teams would like to answer “yes” to that question – the question of, can the Millers sweep the Class 3A boys and girls soccer state championships for the second consecutive year?
Noblesville will get that opportunity on Saturday at IUPUI’s Michael Carroll Stadium. The boys will go first, trying for a third straight state title at 4 p.m. when they take on Cathedral. After that, the Millers girls will take on Bloomington South at 6:30 p.m. in a chance to win the team’s fourth state title in the past five years.
Boys game
Noblesville’s top-ranked boys will take on a No. 11-ranked Cathedral team that is 17-4-2 for the season. The Irish began their tournament run at the Warren Central sectional, where they beat Lawrence Central 5-1 in the first round, Warren Central 9-0 in the semifinals and Southport 2-0 in the championship.
Cathedral hosted East Central in a regional semifinal and won 2-1. That sent the Irish to the regional final at Carmel, and Cathedral beat the No. 2 Greyhounds 2-1. The Irish then won the Columbus East semi-state, defeating No. 10 Columbus North 2-1 and sending Cathedral to its first appearance at state since 2010, and its third overall.
The Irish have several capable scorers, led by junior forward Calvin Kurzawa. He has put in 27 goals for the season and made 20 assists. Another forward, senior Fynn Lahrsen, has 24 goals and 10 assists, while senior midfielder Ian Jackson has compiled 14 goals and 13 assists. Junior goalkeeper Jett Wallmeier has a 1.04 goals against average with seven shutouts.
The Millers will enter the state championship game with a 17-0-5 record. Noblesville hosted its own sectional this year, and beat Muncie Central 2-0 in the first round, Pendleton Heights 7-0 in the semifinals and No. 6 Fishers 2-1 in the championship game.
Since then, the Millers have become the penalty kick kings. Noblesville made a huge comeback in the regional semifinal at No. 19 Warsaw, scoring with time running down to force overtime, then beating the Tigers in PKs. At the Kokomo regional championship, the Millers found themselves in PKs with No. 14 Fort Wayne Carroll, but won that game as well. Returning to Kokomo last Saturday for the semi-state, Noblesville needed another round of penalty kicks to get past No. 9 Lake Central, and the Millers triumphed once more to return to state.
Senior goalkeeper Cole Thompson made two key saves in the PK round against Lake Central. For the season, Thompson has made 59 saves with a 0.658 GAA and has collected nine shutouts. Senior forward Sam Holland leads the offense with 17 goals and seven assists, with freshman forward Ben Hewitt adding 13 goals and two assists. Senior forward Ashton Craig has eight goals and five assists.
Noblesville’s boys are making their third straight appearance in the IHSAA state finals and their fourth overall. The Millers’ first time at state was back in 1999. The Irish first qualified in 2004, then made state in the last one-class year of 2010, where Cathedral beat Warsaw 2-0 in the semis before falling 2-0 to Lake Central in the championship.
Girls game
Noblesville’s No. 3-ranked girls team will take on an 18-2-1 Bloomington South team that is ranked No. 11 in the state.
The Panthers hosted their own sectional, taking care of Center Grove 3-1 in the semifinals and Terre Haute North 3-0 in the championship. South then traveled north to Franklin Central for a regional semifinal, where it defeated the Flashes 2-1.
That gave the Panthers a chance to play for a regional title on their own field. Bloomington South delivered, beating No. 4 Castle 3-1. The Panthers took on No. 6 Cathedral at the Columbus East semi-state and won that game 1-0 to punch a ticket to South’s first state finals appearance in 20 years.
The Panthers’ offense is led by senior forward Katharine Lacy, who has 23 goals and three assists to her credit. Sophomore forward/midfielder Valerie Bunde is next with 18 goals and six assists, while sophomore forward Helena Cutshall has put in 12 goals and made eight assists. Freshman goalkeeper Paloma Martinez Lebathe has made 73 saves with a 0.800 GAA and 10 shutouts.
Noblesville is 16-1-3 for the season. The Millers began their march to state by winning the Hamilton Southeastern sectional, beating Muncie Central 9-0 in the first round, the No. 2 Royals 2-1 in the semifinals and Fishers 5-0 in the championship. Noblesville played the regional semifinal at Fort Wayne Northrop, cruising in that game to a 7-2 victory.
In the Kokomo regional final, the Millers were taken to penalty kicks by No. 7 Fort Wayne Carroll, but got the victory. That sent Noblesville back to Kokomo for the semi-state, where it recovered from a 1-0 halftime deficit to beat No. 9 Crown Point 3-1, scoring all three goals in a sudden flurry early in the second half.
Junior forward Meredith Tippner has dominated the offense, scoring 22 goals and handing out five assists. Junior midfielders Atley Pittman and Lily Ault each have seven assists, with Pittman scoring seven goals and Ault putting in five. Sophomore forward Caylee Cunningham has eight goals. Junior goalkeeper Bella Wyatt has made 58 saves, with a 0.750 GAA and three shutouts.
The Millers are making their sixth appearance in an IHSAA state finals, including state titles in 2019, 2021 and 2022. Noblesville also won a pre-IHSAA state title in 1991 and was state runner-up in 1990. Bloomington South was the 2002 state runner-up, and also qualified for state in 2003.