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Jul. 25—Aside from area Female Athlete of the Year Addison Lucht, Sports Editor Matt Daniels highlights 10 other area female athletes who stood out during the 2025-26 school year:
If Brown lined up in the starting blocks for the 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash, chances are she would win. Which she did in those events at the Big 12 Conference Meet before capping her career with a fourth-place finish in the 100 and a sixth-place finish in the 200 at the Class 3A state meet. Her spring efforts came after a superb girls' flag football season, too.
The Rockets' volleyball program doesn't win their first Class 2A regional plaque since 2019 if it wasn't for Schlittler. She'll soon continue her volleyball career in college at Parkland, but she delivered 247 assists, 226 kills and 203 digs last year. Then, she ended her high school career with a second-place finish in the long jump at the Class 2A state meet.
She'll try to keep lowering her times in the 400-meter dash in college once she starts competing at Ball State in the upcoming school year. But Marx left quite a legacy during her time with the Bulldogs. A three-time Class 2A state champion in the 400, Marx also placed third in the 200 and helped M-S to a second-place finish in the 1,600 relay at the state meet.
Houpt will take her tennis racket and her skill just down Interstate 74 when she starts her college career later this year at Illinois State. Her final season with the Vikings produced a 31-7 record, a Big 12 singles championship, a Class 1A sectional title and a top-eight finish at the 1A state tournament before she chipped in on the basketball court in the winter.
The area standard for distance runners the last four years, Foltz kept on delivering wearing the black and gold. Including during her final go-around with the Warriors. She posted the best local finish at the state cross-country meet, placing fifth in Class 1A before the future Illini finished fifth in the 3,200 and 12th in the 1,600 at the 1A state track and field meet.
A constant with the successful Bulldogs' girls' soccer program since her freshman season, Welge put it all together during her senior season. The News-Gazette's All-Area Player of the Year in 2026 starts her college career next month at Central Michigan. The versatile striker who could also play defense, Welge delivered 25 goals and seven assists this past spring.
O'Donnell helped the Bulldogs make history in the pool last November with M-S winning its first girls' swimming and diving sectional title. She won two individual races at the sectional meet and also swam on two winning relay teams. At the IHSA state meet, the future Buffalo swimmer was the only area athlete to make the finals, placing ninth in the 100-yard freestyle.
A two-sport athlete for the Panthers, Carr delivered. She topped 1,000 career kills midway through the volleyball season as LeRoy finished with a 27-9 record and won its fourth consecutive Class 1A regional title. The future Parkland softball player was a key cog for LeRoy softball as the Panthers went 37-2 and won a fifth straight 1A regional championship.
Big Ten volleyball fans can keep track of the standout middle blocker when Bosworth suits up for Purdue starting with the 2026 season. She'll get the chance with the Boilermakers after the Bulldogs went a combined 134-17 during her high school career. That included a 32-5 showing in 2025, with Bosworth supplying 302 kills and 65 blocks.
Parkerson never took a season off for the Trojans. And all three teams she played on at A-P — volleyball, basketball and softball — were better because of her contributions. The future Danville Area volleyball player surpassed 1,000 career digs this past season in volleyball, was a reliable scorer for the girls' basketball team and hit better than .400 with the softball team.
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If Brown lined up in the starting blocks for the 100-meter dash and 200-meter dash, chances are she would win. Which she did in those events at the Big 12 Conference Meet before capping her career with a fourth-place finish in the 100 and a sixth-place finish in the 200 at the Class 3A state meet. Her spring efforts came after a superb girls' flag football season, too.
The Rockets' volleyball program doesn't win their first Class 2A regional plaque since 2019 if it wasn't for Schlittler. She'll soon continue her volleyball career in college at Parkland, but she delivered 247 assists, 226 kills and 203 digs last year. Then, she ended her high school career with a second-place finish in the long jump at the Class 2A state meet.
She'll try to keep lowering her times in the 400-meter dash in college once she starts competing at Ball State in the upcoming school year. But Marx left quite a legacy during her time with the Bulldogs. A three-time Class 2A state champion in the 400, Marx also placed third in the 200 and helped M-S to a second-place finish in the 1,600 relay at the state meet.
Houpt will take her tennis racket and her skill just down Interstate 74 when she starts her college career later this year at Illinois State. Her final season with the Vikings produced a 31-7 record, a Big 12 singles championship, a Class 1A sectional title and a top-eight finish at the 1A state tournament before she chipped in on the basketball court in the winter.
The area standard for distance runners the last four years, Foltz kept on delivering wearing the black and gold. Including during her final go-around with the Warriors. She posted the best local finish at the state cross-country meet, placing fifth in Class 1A before the future Illini finished fifth in the 3,200 and 12th in the 1,600 at the 1A state track and field meet.
A constant with the successful Bulldogs' girls' soccer program since her freshman season, Welge put it all together during her senior season. The News-Gazette's All-Area Player of the Year in 2026 starts her college career next month at Central Michigan. The versatile striker who could also play defense, Welge delivered 25 goals and seven assists this past spring.
O'Donnell helped the Bulldogs make history in the pool last November with M-S winning its first girls' swimming and diving sectional title. She won two individual races at the sectional meet and also swam on two winning relay teams. At the IHSA state meet, the future Buffalo swimmer was the only area athlete to make the finals, placing ninth in the 100-yard freestyle.
A two-sport athlete for the Panthers, Carr delivered. She topped 1,000 career kills midway through the volleyball season as LeRoy finished with a 27-9 record and won its fourth consecutive Class 1A regional title. The future Parkland softball player was a key cog for LeRoy softball as the Panthers went 37-2 and won a fifth straight 1A regional championship.
Big Ten volleyball fans can keep track of the standout middle blocker when Bosworth suits up for Purdue starting with the 2026 season. She'll get the chance with the Boilermakers after the Bulldogs went a combined 134-17 during her high school career. That included a 32-5 showing in 2025, with Bosworth supplying 302 kills and 65 blocks.
Parkerson never took a season off for the Trojans. And all three teams she played on at A-P — volleyball, basketball and softball — were better because of her contributions. The future Danville Area volleyball player surpassed 1,000 career digs this past season in volleyball, was a reliable scorer for the girls' basketball team and hit better than .400 with the softball team.
Continue reading...
