IBCA Releases 2026 Girls Supreme 15 Senior and Underclass All-State Lists

Overview and the headline takeaway Fifteen seniors and 15 underclass players were named the IBCA’s 2026 "Supreme 15" — the association’s top individual honor — as the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association released its girls’ All‑State rosters March 5. The announcement is part of a broader recognition that honored 280 players in all, and it sends a clear signal about who defined the 2025-26 season statewide.

The senior Supreme 15, in full The IBCA listed these 15 seniors as the Senior Supreme 15: Lilli Barnes (Valparaiso), Joslyn Bricker (Warsaw), Elise Coleman (Floyd Central), Laniah Davis (Marquette Catholic), Myah Epps (Homestead), Mollie Ernstes (Jennings County), Gracyn Gilliard (Center Grove), Gabby Helsom (Homestead), Kennedy Holman (Hamilton Southeastern), Lola Lampley (Lawrence Central), Brooklynn Renn (Silver Creek), Vanessa Rosswurm (Norwell), Maddy Shirley (Evansville Central), Laniah Wills (Lapel), and Brooke Zartman (Warsaw). This list, released by the IBCA and reproduced in press copies, represents the top seniors statewide and is the highest All‑State distinction.

What "Supreme 15" means, in plain terms "The 'Supreme 15' is the top honor awarded, and players were voted to that group without regard to school size." That is the IBCA’s language, and it matters because Supreme recognition is about statewide elite status, not class dominance. Players named to the Supreme 15 are removed from consideration for Large School or Small School All‑State teams, which clarifies why you will not see Supreme names duplicated on those rosters.

Underclass Supreme 15: confirmed names and the missing pieces The IBCA release identifies the Underclass Supreme 15 as the top underclass group, but the publicly circulated excerpts are truncated. The underclass names explicitly cited in local coverage include Janaya Cooper (Snider) and Delaney Noll (Homestead), but the full alphabetized underclass roster was not reproduced in the material available through secondary outlets. The IBCA press copy indicates a complete underclass list exists; obtaining that release fills the gap for the remaining names.

How the selection process works Nomination begins with IBCA-member head coaches who may place players on the ballot. A 22-coach voting panel determines the All‑State squads: 16 regional representatives plus six at‑large appointees, described as two at‑large representatives from each of IHSAA Districts 1, 2 and 3. Doug Springer, coach at Northridge, served as the committee chairman and one of the 22 voters. That compact committee—rather than a mass voting body—keeps selections concentrated among active coaches.

Nominations, math and the statewide sweep The IBCA received 646 nominations: 233 seniors and 413 underclass players from 286 schools. From that pool, 280 players were honored: 140 seniors and 140 underclass players. The senior breakdown is straightforward: 15 Senior Supreme + 15 Senior Large + 15 Senior Small + 95 senior honorable mentions = 140. The underclass side follows the same arithmetic. The numbers are explicit in the IBCA‑reproduced press copy and help explain how selective a Supreme nod is.

How Large School and Small School All‑State categories are defined Large School All‑State teams draw from Class 3A and 4A programs; Small School All‑State teams come from Class A and 2A programs. That classification matters because, after the Supreme 15 are chosen without regard to school size, separate Large and Small rosters allow outstanding performers from every enrollment tier to receive recognition in a context relative to their competition.

Representative Large/Small examples from coverage Local reporting reproduced examples from those Class‑based rosters: Carley Moellering (Homestead) and Macie Saalfrank (Norwell) were cited as Senior Large School All‑State honorees. On the Small School side, Konley Ault (Bluffton) and Reese Stonebraker (Whitko) were highlighted. These names illustrate how the IBCA splits honors so both power-conference standouts and small‑school stars receive All‑State attention.

Underclass Large and Small School examples Outsidethehuddle and local outlets noted several underclass honorees by class: Mary Bleke (Bellmont), Hallie Schwieterman (Jay County) and Kendall VanderWal (Angola) on the Large School underclass lists; and Taylor Mack (Eastside), Grace Scharlach (Fremont), Jayma Stonebraker (Whitko) and Mya Turner (Fremont) among Small School underclass honorees. These cited names are examples from the partial lists published locally while the full IBCA rosters were being circulated.

Honorable mentions: breadth and named examples "In addition, 95 more seniors and 95 more underclass players were selected honorable mention all‑state." That press‑release language explains the 190 honorable mentions. Local calls singled out specific players: Lighthouse Christian Academy’s Ellie Mae Winders earned underclass honorable mention recognition; Stateline and other outlets congratulated Ava Burkle, Addi Gorbett and Mallory O’Brien as honorable mentions. Outsidethehuddle published a number of local senior honorable mentions including Whitney Ankenbruck (Homestead) and Alexis Neely (Warsaw).

Northeast Indiana’s footprint on the Supreme squads Regional pride was tangible in the Fox55/WFFT coverage: seven of the 30 Supreme athletes overall represent Northeast Indiana schools, with three from Homestead and two from Warsaw. WFFT photographed five Senior Supreme players from Northeast Indiana and identified them left to right as Brooke Zartman, Vanessa Rosswurm, Myah Epps, Joslyn Bricker and Gabby Helsom. That cluster is notable because concentrated representation from a single area signals depth of talent and program health.

How media and social outlets amplified the release The official IBCA release circulated through outlets like Golcalions and was picked up by local media including WFFT (story by Drew Frey), 95.3 WIKI (Travis Thayer) and Outsidethehuddle. Stateline Sports Network amplified the list via social media, congratulating Brooklynn Renn by her handle and tagging other honorees. Those social posts are already serving as public recognition for athletes and programs and documenting the honors in real time.

What these honors mean beyond a trophy Supreme 15 status is prestige with practical effects: it concentrates attention for recruiting, All‑Star invitations and postseason narratives because the designation marks a player as one of the state’s elite. Teams and coaches will use the distinction in updates to college contacts and in year‑end awards packages. The IBCA structure, which isolates Supreme picks from class-based teams, forces coaches to weigh statewide impact against class dominance when they vote.

Gaps in public reporting and where to find the complete rosters While the Senior Supreme roster was fully reproduced in press copies, the full Underclass Supreme 15 and the complete 15-player rosters for each Large and Small category were truncated in the public excerpts circulated by local outlets. The IBCA press release, credited in those excerpts and listing Pat McKee as the contact, contains the full lists and is the definitive source for the missing names and the complete honorable‑mention rosters.

Practical notes for follow‑up reporting Local outlets have already pulled region‑specific lists and photos; for statewide completeness, reporters and fans should consult the IBCA release or contact Pat McKee, IBCA Director of Special Projects, for the full text and any quotes the association supplied. Golcalions reproduced the nomination totals and arithmetic, making it the easiest public document for verifying counts while awaiting the full underclass list.

Final takeaway The 2026 IBCA girls’ All‑State slate is a mathematical and symbolic statement: 646 nominations, 280 honorees, and 30 Supreme players who defined the season across Indiana’s classifications. The Senior Supreme 15 list alone reads like a who’s who of the season, while the underclass honors and the broad honorable‑mention lists map the next wave of talent. For programs and recruiters, those names are both validation and a guide for where the state’s elite talent resides.