Bloomington South girls repeat as sectional champs, beat Terre Haute South 62-49

A 27-point second quarter put Bloomington South in control and carried the Panthers to a 62-49 win over Terre Haute South at Terre Haute North, giving Bloomington South back-to-back Class 4A Sectional 13 titles. The surge in the second stanza - a period the Panthers used to build separation - proved decisive as the visitors turned a tight game into a comfortable margin.

Terre Haute South started strong, outscoring Bloomington South in the first quarter 15-13, but the Panthers answered with a 27-point second quarter while holding Terre Haute South to six. Quarter lines read Terre Haute South (16-8) 15 | 6 | 17 | 11, 49 and Bloomington South (19-5) 13 | 27 | 11 | 11, 62. Bloomington South’s offensive balance in that second quarter reflected the depth coach and players have emphasized all season.

Bench scoring and perimeter shooting supplied much of Bloomington South’s punch. Violet Hall came off the bench to lead the Panthers with 13 points, and Tatum DeVries added 12 while Avery Schwartzman chipped in 11. Annika Smith finished with seven points and a team-high 10 rebounds along with what the box noted as “a nice handful of assists and steals.” The Bloomington South box read: “Arnold f 0-3 0-0 0, DeVries g 4-12 2-2 12, Schwartzman g 4-9 0-0 11, Smith g 1-4 4-4 7, Craft g 0-4 1-2 1, Hall 4-5 4-6 13, Prall 2-3 0-0 6, Maki 2-3 2-2 8, Fife 1-2 2-2 4, Marshall 0-0 0-0 0, Johnson 0-0 0-0 0, Montano 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-45 15-18 62.”

Bloomington South shot 18-of-45 from the field and an impressive 11-of-27 from three, while converting 15-of-18 free throws and making their first 14 attempts at the line. Terre Haute South connected on 6-of-16 from long range and out-rebounded the Panthers 29-28, with Toomey grabbing nine boards for Terre Haute South.

Injuries and roster continuity framed the win as much as the box score. Senior Violet Hall, who rolled her ankle late in the season, called the repeat “a big thing for us, especially with the seniors we have this year,” adding, “‘Oh, look, they didn't graduate anyone and it's the same team basically as last year.’” Teammate Craft acknowledged the season’s adversity: “Losing (Lashley) late in the year was a setback,” Craft said. “But we all lean on each other when we need to. Violet rolled her ankle late. I was hurt late. We've done it before. Julia is a great fantastic player and she's a fantastic coach. We adapt our roles when we need to and we do a great job supporting each other.” The coverage noted that Lashley “longs to be out there, but is along for the ride to help in any way she can.”

Beyond the scoreboard, the win reinforces Bloomington South’s culture of role players contributing in defined ways - shooters like Schwartzman and DeVries, a rebounding and playmaking presence in Smith, and timely scoring from Hall and others. For local fans and the program’s boosters, the repeat sectional crown underlines both talent retention and the kind of depth that keeps a high school program competitive year to year. With a 19-5 mark now on the ledger, the Panthers have momentum to carry into the next phase of the postseason while Terre Haute South, at 16-8, can take positives from a team that kept fighting through defensive stops and three-point shooting.