By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – The euphoria, the sheer ecstasy, the ultimate joy and satisfaction that comes with winning the grand prize, will continue for weeks. Bedford North Lawrence’s official celebrations have ended for the moment, although there will be rings handed out and a banner raised in the rafters of BNL Fieldhouse to take its place alongside the predecessors. But the bells for the Class 4A state championship will continue to knell.
Ring it out, the message true and glad. For whom does it toll? Each sweet chime, each reminder of the zenith, will be for the Stars. BNL’s fifth state title will be remembered forever, mentioned reverently with the other crowns from 1983, 1991, 2013 and 2014. Right now, the sensation of success still hasn’t worn off.
“I’m still smiling ear to ear,” BNL coach Jeff Allen said. “It never gets old. This is so special, it’s so much fun. You can’t describe the memories it gives you as you carry through the rest of your life.”
Enjoy it. Cherish it. Wallow in it. Relive each glorious moment and highlight. Soon enough, as time tromps on, reality will bring BNL back down from the stratosphere. Before long, the past will give way to the harshness of the future. What can BNL do for the encore after that marvelous 27-3 season?
No question, BNL will start the 2023-24 season with pressure, with expectations, probably with the extra baggage of the No.1 ranking. Most of that is the usual weight that comes with the uniform. No question, the Stars will have holes to fill. They lose five seniors, including three starters, including one of the best-ever players on its deep roster of individual standouts.
But don’t count BNL out as it looks ahead to start preparing for the title defense. There’s quite a collection of returning talent, plus some athletes waiting in the wings to take their shot. And there’s no way to measure the impact of winning a state championship. That experience was invaluable.
“That was some great experience those kids got,” Allen said. “Those kids came off the bench and they performed. Tradition has a lot to do with it, they expect to win. These kids will step on the floor wanting to fill those positions, wanting to step in that spot, and they will expect to win. That’s a big part of success.”
Here’s the holes to fill, and they are significant. The most obvious will be the gradation of Karsyn Norman, a four-year starter and Butler recruit whose drive and will were vital to BNL’s postseason run. She averaged 15.5 points, 4.2 assists and 4.2 rebounds, she was the Mental Attitude Award winner, she’s a finalist for Miss Basketball and a certain Indiana All-Star. She was a once-in-a-generation star.
Then there’s starters Mallory Pride and Emma Brown. All Pride did was average 10.8 points and 6.8 rebounds. All Brown did was score the final four points in the state final win over Fishers, earning a place in BNL lore.
Here’s the returnees, and they are outstanding. The most attention will center on senior-to-be Chloe Spreen, an Indiana Junior All-Star, the state’s MaxPreps Player of the Year and the leading candidate for the 2024 Miss Basketball award. She averaged 19.0 points and 5.3 rebounds, and she was at her best in the biggest games. She’s another once-upon-a-time talent who is destined for a Div. I program.
How good will she be? She’s already fifth on the BNL career scoring list with 1,358 points, and could threaten the school record (Jorie Allen’s 1,920, set in 2019) will another quality campaign.
“She’s one of those kids that’s driven for continuous improvement,” Allen said. “Chloe will still continue to work hard. The area she will probably put the most emphasis on will be strength. That made a big jump in her game, her ability to finish through contact.
“When you’ve got a Miss Basketball coming back, what a great piece to build around – along with, in my opinion, Madisyn Bailey is one of the best guards in the state.”
Bailey, the quiet assassin, averaged 7.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.5 assists. But she also doubled as a defensive stopper. Her value was never more evident than the state final.
“We don’t win that game without Madisyn,” Allen said. “If you’re a basketball person, you watch that game, and she was as important as anybody. Her level of play in the tournament was outstanding.
“She will have to score more, and I think she’ll know that. She’ll be looking to do that. I hope people give her the credit that’s due, because she’s a heck of a player.”
That pair is the foundation. The building blocks? That’s where the Stars will have to have players in position to raise their games to the next level. And there are definite candidates. Trinidy Bailey was thrust into key moments as a freshman and contributed. Tori Nikirk made big plays in almost every state tournament game. Bella Jackson made an emergency start and was solid. Between those three, plus the addition of Miley Sherrill and others from a talented incoming freshman class, BNL’s going to have to find gems when the polish is finished.
“You don’t replace a Karsyn Norman,” Allen said. “Her ability, with her speed and ballhandling, to get you out of trouble, is the big thing we’ll miss.
“That being said, I do like a lot of the pieces we have. It might be multiple kids doing that. Trinidy Bailey, Tori Nikirk, Katie Godlevske, Bella Jackson – those kids can step in those roles. We can be pretty good.”
The problem is all of those athletes don’t possess a key trait – size. That’s where the development of 6-0 sophomore-to-be Ellie Tillett will be important as she looks to take over the role that departing seniors Emma Crane and Katie Baumgart filled so well.
“As Ellie continues to improve and get more experience, she will make a great impact,” Allen said. “She will give us a true post presence, and an interior defender that we lack. Summer will be important for her, for a lot of kids, what we do in June to fill those roles.
“I like the options we have. Kids will be position to step in and contribute.”
BNL will enter 2024 as the defending Hoosier Hills Conference champion and the owner of 12 consecutive sectional titles.
BNL CAREER SCORING LIST
1930 – Jorie Allen (2019)
1672 – Dominque McBryde (2015)
1658 – Marla Inman (1992)
1495 – Jenna Allen (2015)
x – 1358 – Chloe Spreen (2024)
1329 – Karsyn Norman (2023)
1208 – Chloe McKnight (2021)
1180 – Tracey Sargent (1979)
1138 – Brittani Rizzi (2014)
1035 – Kristen Pritchett (1988)
x – active
