HANCOCK COUNTY — The wait is over.
On Sunday night, the sectional pairings for the 46th annual IHSAA girls basketball state tournament were officially announced.
Sectional contests are scheduled to start on Tuesday, Feb. 2 and conclude on Saturday, Feb. 6 with each champion advancing to the regional tournament round on Saturday, Feb. 13.
Semistate games will be conducted on Saturday, Feb. 20 with four state champions crowned during the State Finals at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Saturday, Feb. 27.
The Class 4A Mt. Vernon Marauders, New Palestine Dragons and Greenfield-Central Cougars will compete in the seven-team Sectional 9 tournament at Muncie Central Fieldhouse.
Class 2A Eastern Hancock travels to Triton Central for the Sectional 42 tournament in Fairland.
The defending sectional champion Dragons (12-8) captured their sixth title overall since 1990 and second in three years last postseason. They will open the 2020-21 state tournament on Wednesday, Feb. 3 against Anderson (12-9) at 6 p.m in the sectional quarterfinals.
Richmond (8-4) received a first-round bye and will play the winner between Pendleton Heights (11-8) and Mt. Vernon (13-5) in the semifinals on Friday, Feb. 5 at 6 p.m.
The Marauders’ quarterfinal game against the Hoosier Heritage Conference rival Arabians will take place Tuesday, Feb. 2 at 7 p.m. Mt. Vernon defeated Pendleton Heights 49-38 on Jan. 2 during their regular-season meeting.
The Cougars (5-11) face host Muncie Central (6-10) on Wednesday, Feb. 3 in the quarterfinals at approximately 8 p.m. The winner will move into the semifinal round and play either New Palestine or Anderson on Friday, Feb. 5 at 8 p.m.
The sectional championship game is set for Saturday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m.
Anderson is led by senior guard Tyra Ford, who is averaging 25.6 points per game, which ranks her fourth-best, regardless of classification, in the state, according to Maxpreps.
Through 17 games played, Mt. Vernon senior Lexi Shelton is averaging 14.1 points per game to lead the county among all girls competitors.
New Palestine sophomore Isabella Gizzi isn’t too far behind, averaging 13.4 ppg through 20 contests, while posting 20 or more points in four consecutive games, including a career-high 27 points against Cathedral on Saturday.
The Eastern Hancock Royals (11-8) will open the four-team Sectional 42 tournament against 2A No. 5 Triton Central (16-3) on Friday, Feb. 5 at 8 p.m.
Triton Central is pursuing it’s 13th sectional all time and fourth consecutive. The Tigers have won 12 titles since 1998, including seven in the last nine years.
Eastern Hancock lost 69-43 against Triton Central during the regular season on Nov. 14. The Royals won their last sectional title in 2017 after upsetting Triton Central in the championship game, 57-50.
Irvington Prep Academy (1-10) and Indianapolis Scecina (6-13) play in the first semifinal game on Friday, Feb. 5 at 6 p.m.
The sectional championship game is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 6 at 7:30 p.m.
The Royals are paced by sophomore Grace Stapleton (12.0 ppg) and freshman Sammie Bolding (9.2 ppg), followed by junior Caroline Stapleton (8.3 ppg).
Triton Central carries nearly three triple-digit threats in senior Taylor Heath (15.0 ppg), sophomore Lizzie Graham (13.3 ppg) and senior Bailey Stamper (9.9 ppg).
