Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

The Matchups

No. 1 Ballard (23-1) vs. Gilbert (16-8)

A pair of Raccoon Conference rivals meet for the third time in 2025 in the state quarterfinals.

Ballard swept the regular season meetings downing Gilbert 78-66 in Huxley on January 2 and 82-46 at Gilbert on February 3.

Ballard is making its third consecutive state tournament appearance after falling to the eventual state champion in the 3A quarterfinals each of the past two seasons.

The Bombers lost to MOC-Floyd Valley 55-51 in quarterfinals last year after falling to eventual champ Davenport Assumption 84-73 in quarterfinal in 2024.

Ballard ranks third in 3A in scoring averaging 73.2 points per game and leads 3A in point differential at 29.9 per game.

The Bombers have won nine in a row since their only loss of the season, a 62-57 setback at ADM on January 30.

Ballard is 5-1 against 3A state qualifiers this season.

Five players average at least 7.1 points per game for Ballard led by junior Evan Abbott with 19.2 points per game.

Senior point guard Jude Gibson averages 16.5 points and 4.8 assists per game and junior Parker Miller averages 12.1 points and 5.5 rebounds per game.

Gilbert is making its second ever appearance at the state tournament and first since 1995.

The lost three games in a row in early February but have won five straight, including a 73-62 win over North Polk in the 3A, Substate 2 title game.

Gilbert ranks fourth in Class 3A with 63.7 points per game and is led by senior Preston Stensland with 16 points per contest.

Sophomore Matthew Ochalla averages 15.5 points and 5.1 rebounds per game while senior Matt Six of the eight losses for Gilbert this season have come to state qualifying teams including two to top-ranked Ballard.

No. 4 Pella (21-4) vs. No. 6 Carroll (20-5)

Pella returns to the state tournament for the 19^th time in program history and the second time in the past three seasons.

The Dutch defeated Keokuk 60-47 in the Substate 5 title game to secure their spot at state.

Two of the four losses for Pella this season came to Class 4A competition and the Dutch posted a road win over 3A qualifier Gilbert in December.

Pella has four players averaging better than eight points per game led by the senior duo of Jack McGuire and Austin Schulte.

McGuire averages a team-high 17.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game while Schulte averages 16.8 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.

Senior Harrison Mullens averages 8.4 points and junior Griffin Simpson averages 8.2 points per game.

Carroll returns to the state tournament for the first time since 2022 following a 58-55 win over Sioux Center in the substate title game.

All five losses for Carroll this season have come to Class 3A state qualifiers including two losses to top-seeded Ballard.

The Tigers also have losses to 3A qualifiers ADM, Storm Lake and Gilbert.

Four different players average at least 9.7 points per game for the Tigers led by senior Jared Mohr who averages 15 points and 8.4 rebounds per game.

Senior Trey Tassell averages 11.5 points and 3.4 rebounds per game while senior Mac Collison averages 11.5 points and 3.7 assists per game.

Senior Lual Tharjilah adds 9.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3 blocked shots per game.

No. 2 ADM (22-2) vs. Cedar Rapids Xavier (15-8)

One of the most intriguing of the Class 3A quarterfinals matches second-ranked ADM against perennial 3A power Cedar Rapids Xavier.

ADM is making its fourth ever trip to the state tournament and second in a row after falling to Clear Lake 66-57 in the semifinals last season.

The Tigers bring an 11-game winning streak into the state tournament that includes wins over 3A qualifiers Ballard and Gilbert and a 73-43 win over Nevada in the substate title game.

ADDM ranks fourth in Class 3A in scoring at 70.7 points per game and are led by senior Hudson Lorensen who averages 22.4 points per contest.

Senior Trey Bryte averages 14.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and 7.9 assists per game and senior Hudson Schull averages 10.4 points per game.

The only losses for ADM this season came to 3A qualifiers Carroll and Ballard the Tigers have wins over both of those teams and are 4-2 against 3A qualifiers.

A state semifinalist last season, Cedar Rapids Xavier returned to the state tournament for the second consecutive season with a 66-53 win at seventh-ranked Dubuque Wahlert in the substate title game.

The Saints enter battled tested with seven losses to 4A competition including three to state qualifiers West Des Moines Dowling, Dubuque Senior and Cedar Rapids Prairie.

Senior Zander Murray leads the Saints with 20.8 points per game while 6-foot-9 James Madison recruit AJ Evans averages 12.2 points and leads Cedar Rapids Xavier with 8.4 rebounds and 1.7 blocked shots per game.

Senior Lorenzo Pino averages 9.4 points and 2.8 assists per game.

No. 3 Storm Lake (23-2) vs. No. 8 Solon (23-2)

Solon is making its first state tournament appearance since 2016 and is seeking its first even win as a Class 3A qualifier.

The last state tournament win for the Spartans came over IKM-Manning in the Class 2A semifinals in 2010.

Solon has won six in a row, including a 49-44 win over over No. 10 Central DeWitt in substate final.

Junior guard Tate McCollum leads Solon in scoring at 19.2 points per game while shooting 40 percent from 3-point range.

Junior Maddox Kelley averages 10.6 points and leads the Spartans with 4.9 rebounds, 3.5 assists and four steals per game.

Junior Grant Gordon averages 8.4 points and 4.6 rebounds per game and junior Simon Einwalter averages 6.6 points per game.

Solon has been one of the top defensive teams in Class 3A this season rankings fifth in 3A in points allowed at 46.6 per game.

The Spartan defense will be put to the test against a Storm Lake team that leads 3A in scoring at 78.5 points per game.

The Tornadoes are making their second consecutive state tournament appearance after falling to ADM 59-53 in the quarterfinals last season.

Storm Lake ranks second in 3A in point differential at 29.4 and third in 3A in rebounding with 37.1 rebounds per game.

The Tornadoes have won 10 in a row and their only in-state loss this season is to Class 2A top-ranked Carroll Kuemper.

Senior Jaidyn Coon, a Creighton recruit, leads Storm Lake with 21.4 points and 8.7 rebounds per game while senior Cameron Boyd averages 20.6 points, 5 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.

Senior Garbieno Weno averages 10.6 points and 7.8 rebounds and junior Trey Boettcher averages 10.4 points while shooting 41 percent from 3-point range.

The Players

Ballard: Jude Gibson, 6-0, Sr. – A first-team all-state pick last season, the senior point guard has been even better this year raising his scoring (16.5), rebounding (4.3), assist (4.8) and steal (3.6) averages along with his field goal percentage (52%) and 3-pointer percentage (43%) while leading the Bombers back to state.

Gilbert: Preston Stensland, 6-3, Sr. – A third team all-state pick a season ago, Stensland is averaging 16 points, 4 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.2 steals per game but has been at his best in the postseason up those averages to 20.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game in three substate wins.

Pella: Jack McGuire, 6-5, Sr. – McGuire earned second-team all-state honors a year ago and has been even more impressive this season leading the Dutch in points (17.3), rebounds (6.8) assists (2.3) and blocked shots (1.5) per game while shooting 65 percent from the floor and 77 percent from the free throw line.

Carroll: Jared Mohr, 6-5, Sr. – A skilled forward, Mohr leads the Tigers in scoring (15), rebounding (8.4) and assists (4.3) per game and ranks second on the team in steals (1.9) while shooting 50 percent from the floor.

ADM: Hudson Lorensen, 6-1, Sr. – One of the top scorers in the state, Lorensen ranks sixth in 3A in scoring at 22.4 points per game and has shot 53 percent from the floor including 46 percent from 3-point range while making a team-high 71 3-pointers.

Storm Lake: Jaidyn Coon, 6-7, Sr. – A Creighton recruit, Coon is a returning first team all-state pick that ranks seventh in 3A in scoring with 21.4 points per game to go with 8.7 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.8 steals per game.

Cedar Rapids Xavier: Zander Murray, 6-1, Sr. – A unanimous first-team all-Mississippi Valley Conference all-division pick, Murray leads the Saints with 20.5 points per game while shooting 53 percent from the field and has been red-hot of late scoring 20 or more points in nine consecutive games while averaging 25 points per game during that stretch.

Solon: Tate McCollum, 5-10, Sr. – McCollum has flourished in his first season in the Solon lineup leading the Spartans with 19.2 points per game while ranking second in Class 3A with 98 made 3-pointers and shooting 40 percent from beyond the 3-point arc. s

The Storylines

The Favorite

Ballard is top-ranked, top-seeded and making its third consecutive state tournament appearance which makes the Bombers the favorites entering what should be a wide open and exciting 3A tournament.

The lone loss for Ballard this season was a five-point setback at ADM after the Bombers won the first meeting with the second-ranked Tigers by 21 points in December.

The loss to ADM and a 57-51 win at Norwalk in the season opener are the only games for Ballard this season decided by single digits.

The Underdog

If the record, ranking and experience make Ballard the favorite the same ingredients make Gilbert the underdog in the 3A field.

Unranked Gilbert is tied with Cedar Rapids Xavier for the most losses among 3A qualifiers and the Tigers are making just their second state tournament and first since 1995.

Gilbert may be an underdog but they are not to be taken lightly.

The Tigers have a dynamic scorer in senior all-state Preston Stensland, have played six games against 3A qualifiers so they know they level of play they need to match and have seen Ballard twice this season so they are familiar with the Bombers.

The Darkhorse

Much of the focus this season has been at the teams at the top of the 3A rankings and rightfylly so.

ADM, Ballard, Storm Lake and Pella have all put up impressive offensive numbers during stellar seasons that will end at the state tournament.

If defense does indeed win championships, don’t count out Solon which ranks fifth in 3A in points allowed this season giving up 46.6 points per game.

The Spartans aren’t the biggest or most athletic team in the 3A field but they defend exceptionally well and enter the state tournament red-hot having shot 50 percent from the floor, including 41 percent from 3-point range while averaging 64.7 points per game during three substate wins.

The Focus

There will be a new champ in Class 3A with 2025 champion MOC-Floyd Valley falling in the substate semifinals.

The question is will there be a 10^th different 3A champion in the last 10 seasons.

A year ago MOC-Floyd Valley became the ninth different team to win the 3A title in the past nine seasons.

Those past champs include Davenport Assumption, Bondurant-Farrar, Dallas Center-Grimes, Pella, Norwalk, Oskaloosa, Glenwood and Cedar Rapids Xavier.

If Carroll, Ballard, Gilbert, ADM, Storm Lake or Solon hoist the 3A trophy it will be a decade full of different champions in Class 3A.

The Numbers

Five Fast Facts

* – Nine different teams have won the last nine Class 3A state titles. No other class has had more than six different champions in that same span.

* – Solon junior Maddox Kelley leads Class 3A and ranks seventh in the state with 4 steals per game.

* – 6-foot-6 Carroll senior Lual Tharjilah has more blocked shots (75) than five teams (Xavier, Storm Lake, Ballard, Solon and ADM) in the Class 3A field and helped the Tigers rank fourth in 3A with 102 blocks this season.

* – ADM senior guard Trey Bryte leads the state with 7.9 assists per game and is the only player in the state averaging at least 14 points, nine rebounds and seven assists per game.

* – Storm Lake has scored 80 or more points nine times this season and been held under 70 points just four times in 25 games.

The Schedule

Monday’s Quarterfinals

Ballard (23-1) vs. Gilbert (16-8), 10:30 a.m.

Pella (21-4) vs. Carroll (20-5), 12:15 p.m.

ADM (22-2) vs. Cedar Rapids Xavier (15-8), 2 p.m.

Storm Lake (23-2) vs. Solon (23-2), 3:45 p.m.

Wednesday’s Semifinals

Ballard/Gilbert winner vs. Pella/Carroll winner, 5:30 p.m.

ADM/Cedar Rapids Xavier winner vs. Storm Lake/Solon winner, 7:15 p.m.

Friday’s Championship

Semifinal winners, 1 p.m.

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