John Hodge, sports editor of the New Castle Courier-Times since 1988, will be honored Friday in New Castle as the 2000-01 recipient of the IHSAA Distinguished Media Service Award for District IV. The veteran journalist will be saluted during pre-game ceremonies of the Muncie Central-New Castle boys basketball game at Chrysler Fieldhouse.

Hodge joined the staff of the Courier-Times in 1987 and was named to his current post a year later. Prior to coming to New Castle he worked at the Palladium-Item of Richmond, the Times Advocate of West Salem (Ill.) and The Paper of Wabash County. Under his direction, the Courier-Times has distinguished itself for coverage of high school sports in Henry County.

A 1967 graduate of Richmond High School, Hodge went on to earn bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree from Ball State University. He was a high school teacher before switching his career to newspapering.

He considers his career highlights as following the Knightstown football team to the IHSAA state finals in 1997, chronicling the journey of New Castle’s wrestling team to the IHSAA team state finals on three occasions, and the ongoing coverage of activities at the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame headquartered in New Castle.

Hodge is past president of the New Castle Kiwanis Club and is an avid golfer and baseball fan.

This is the 17th year the IHSAA has recognized an outstanding member of the Indiana media from each of the five IHSAA legislative districts for excellence in the coverage of high school sports. Hodge is the final honoree for 2000-01, joining Mike Montgomery of WSAL/WLHM of Logansport (District I), Paul Beitler of the Bluffton News-Banner (District II), Jerry Baker of the IHSAA Network (District III), and Ted Throckmorton of WAVG, Jeffersonville (District V).

Previous award recipients from District IV were:

Sam Simmermaker, WCSI Radio, Columbus, 1984-85

Bob Barnet, Muncie Star, 1985-86

Bob Powers, Connersville News-Examiner, 1986-87

Graham Taylor, Madison Courier, 1987-88

Phil Stigleman, WKBV Radio, Richmond, 1988-89

Morry Mannies, WLBC Radio, Muncie, 1989-90

Bill Hanna, North Vernon Plain Dealer-Sun, 1990-91

Ron Lemasters, Muncie Star, 1991-92

John Hartnett Sr., WSVL Radio, Shelbyville, 1992-93

Jeff Weller, WLBC Radio, Muncie, 1993-94

Jim Buchberger, Dearborn County Register, 1994-95

Jan Clark, Richmond Palladium-Item, 1995-96

Ed Hamilton, Elwood Call-Leader, 1996-97

Rod Brooks, WXXP Radio, Anderson, 1997-98

Ron Corfman, Ripley Publishing, Versailles, 1998-99

Joe Ammerman, WNVI, North Vernon, 1999-00

With six weeks remaining in the regular season, the list of unbeaten teams across the state has dwindled to six teams. The list includes Bloomington South (10-0), which continues to be ranked No. 1 this week in the Indiana Basketball Coaches Association poll (all classes) and the Associated Press Class 4A poll.

The list of six will be trimmed by at least one more team by the end of regular season as Bellmont (10-0) is scheduled to play host to DeKalb (11-0) on Feb. 9.

One of this week’s top games has Bloomington South visiting Pike (13-1) Friday in a Conference Indiana showdown. Both teams are 4-0 in league play.

During the last 10 regular-season campaigns, only nine teams have escaped with perfect records. During 1999-00, Bloomington North became the first team in five years to compile a perfect regular season on its way to a Class 4A runner-up state finish.

Last year, three teams – Ben Davis, Northeast Dubois and White River Valley -- finished the regular season unscathed at 20-0. Ben Davis went on to win the Class 4A state championship.

Through games of January 20

Records as compiled by the Bloomington Herald-Times

*Includes forfeit victory.

Seth Colclasure, a 6-2 junior at Bellmont, has moved into first place in the state scoring race. Colclasure scored a season-high 37 points last Saturday as the Braves moved to 10-0 with a 73-72 Northeast Hoosier Conference victory over visiting Homestead.

Colclasure bumped his season average to 28.9 and moved past junior Ty Crone of Eminence at 28.2. Crone had sat atop the scoring race since early December. Senior Brandon McKnight of South Bend LaSalle is third at 27.7.

A complete list of the state’s top scorers is available at:

Ten teams sport unblemished records as the 2000-01 girls basketball regular season hits the home stretch. Three weeks remain in the campaign before IHSAA tournament action begins Feb. 13 with sectional play across the state. The 26^th Annual IHSAA Girls Basketball State Finals will be Feb. 24 at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

Pairings for the 26^th IHSAA Girls Basketball Tournament Series will be conducted at noon on Monday, Feb. 5 at the IHSAA office. The pairings will be posted by 2 p.m. on the IHSAA website under Girls Basketball/2001 Tournament Pairings.

Leading the way among the unbeaten teams is two-time defending Class 2A state champion Fort Wayne Luers. The Knights stand 17-0 going into tonight’s (Jan. 23) game with visiting Huntington North (14-2). The Vikings gave Fort Wayne Luers its only loss last season, a 56-52 overtime setback on Jan. 29. Luers won its last two regular-season games and six tournament tests to close the year. The Knights’ overall winning streak stands at a state-best 25 games.

Elsewhere tonight, Triton Central (16-0) visits county rival Shelbyville (13-2) in a battle of ranked teams. Triton Central is No. 4 in the Class 2A coaches poll, while Shelbyville is No. 7 in Class 3A.

At Wawasee, the 17-0 Warriors play host to Tippecanoe Valley. State scoring leader Shanna Zolman of Wawasee needs 23 points to become the 16^th girl in state history to score 2,000 career points. She would be the first to accomplish the feat in her junior year. By comparison, Seeger’s Stephanie White scored 1,983 points through her junior season in 1993-94 on her way to a state-best career total of 2,869 points. The only Indiana boys to reach 2,000 points in their junior season were Damon Bailey of Bedford North Lawrence (2,162) and Marion Pierce of Lewisville (2,047). Bailey (3,134) and Pierce (3,019) rank 1-2 on the state’s career scoring list for boys.

Through games of January 20

Records as submitted to the Indiana Coaches of Girls Sports Association poll

A complete list of the state’s top scorers is available at:

The 2001 IHSAA Individual Wrestling Tournament Series begins with sectional competition Saturday (Jan. 27) at 64 sites.

Seeds for the sectional round were determined at the sectional seeding meetings conducted Monday (Jan. 22) at the host school of each sectional.

Sectional team scores will be posted on the IHSAA website under Wrestling/2001 Sectional Results.

Key dates for the 2001 tournament series are:

Jan. 26 – Individual/team sectionals.

Jan. 31 – Team regionals.

Feb. 3 – Individual regionals.

Feb. 7 – Team semi-states.

Feb. 10 – Individual semi-states.

Feb. 16-17 – Individual state finals.

Feb. 24 – Team state finals.

The 27^th annual IHSAA Girls Swimming and Diving Tournament series begins Feb. 1 with sectional competition at 20 sites.

Key dates for the 2001 tournament series are:

Feb. 1 and 3 – Sectionals.

Feb. 6 – Diving regionals.

Feb. 9-10 – State finals.

Super Bowl XXXV, set for Sunday in Tampa, Fla., will have an Indiana high school flavor. Four former Indiana high school stars will be on the field when the New York Giants square off against the Baltimore Ravens,

Corey Harris of Indianapolis and Rod Woodson of Fort Wayne are on the Baltimore roster, while Brad Maynard of Sheridan and Mike Rosenthal of Mishawaka are with the Giants. Woodson is the starting free safety for Baltimore, while Harris is a backup at free safety and strong safety and also handles kickoff returns. Maynard is the punter for New York and Rosenthal is a backup offensive lineman.

Woodson, who also played for Pittsburgh and San Francisco in a 14-year career that has included all-pro honors five times, was a three-sport standout at Fort Wayne Snider in the early 1980s. Woodson was a junior running back and defensive back on Fort Wayne Snider’s Class 4A state runner-up football team in 1981. He gained 70 yards on 15 carries as the Panthers fell to Carmel 27-0 in the championship game. In track and field, he was a four-time state champion hurdler. Woodson doubled in the high and low hurdles in 1982 and again in 1983. His winning time of 36.04 in the 300 low hurdles in 1983 was a state meet record. Woodson also finished fourth in the 200 meters in 1983. Woodson played collegiately at Purdue University, earning all-America honors as a cornerback.

Harris was a member of the first Ben Davis football state championship team, starring at running back for the 12-2 Giants in 1987. In their 14-7 Class 5A championship game victory over Highland, Harris gained 142 yards on 19 carries and scored both Ben Davis touchdowns. He also caught one pass for 51 yards that set up the winning score. Harris went on to star at Vanderbilt University and has played for Houston, Green Bay, Seattle, Miami and Baltimore in nine NFL seasons. This is his third season with the Ravens. During the 2000 season, he has been credited with 46 solo tackles.

Maynard played at Sheridan, earning all-state honors and selection to the Indiana Football Coaches Association North-South All-Star game in 1993. At Ball State University, he earned all-America honors in 1995 and 1996. His 44.22-yard average ranks third in Division I-A history and his total distance of 10,702 punting yards is a school record. Maynard has played four years in the NFL, all with the Giants. His gross average was 40.6 this season with a 32.9 percent of his punts finishing inside the 20. In 1997, he set the team record and a NFL rookie record with 111 punts.

Rosenthal was an all-state performer for Penn in 1994 before going on to an outstanding collegiate career at Notre Dame. Drafted by the Giants in 1999, he has been a part-time starter the past two seasons with action at guard and tackle. On New York’s Super Bowl depth chart he is listed as the backup at right tackle behind Luke Petitgout.