From Lake Central sophomore Lexi Iwema’s perspective, it’s time for another state championship.
In 1964, her grandfather Dan Iwema, a gymnast, won the state title in the parallel bars while helping Concord win the team title.
In 1994, her mother, Leslie (Rossa) Iwema, was part of Lake Central girls basketball’s only state championship team.
Another 30 years later, Lexi Iwema and her teammates are headed to Indianapolis to play for the program’s second state title.
“It’s really cool,” she said. “I guess 30 is the magic number.”
Lexi Iwema will find out for sure when the No. 15 Indians (26-4) play top-ranked Lawrence Central (29-1), which suffered its only loss to a team from Kentucky, in the Class 4A state championship game at Gainbridge Fieldhouse at 7:15 p.m. Saturday.
As the 5-foot-10 forward, who also plays softball and volleyball, prepares for the highest-profile game of her young career, there’s no person more qualified to offer her words of wisdom than her mother. Leslie Iwema, Indiana’s Miss Softball in 1995, starred in the same three sports and won state titles in two of them.
“She helps me with the basketball side of stuff, getting open and just playing,” Lexi Iwema said. “But she’s also helped with the mental side because she’s been through all of the struggles and all of the mental toughness you need to be an athlete. She helps me get through.
“She doesn’t put pressure on me. She doesn’t tell a lot of people about what she’s done. She doesn’t like to brag.”
If anyone could brag, Leslie Iwema certainly could. She’s in both the Indiana Softball Hall of Fame and the Lake Central Athletic Hall of Fame. Before she won a state title in basketball, she pitched Lake Central’s softball team to the state title as a freshman in 1992. As a senior in 1995, she reached the state semifinals in both basketball and softball. Then she played basketball at Butler.
In fact, Leslie Iwema has been involved in each of Lake Central’s four team state titles in girls sports. She was an assistant on the softball teams that won in 2002 and 2004.
Leslie Iwema also coached Lake Central’s girls basketball team from 2007 to 2012. In 2011, she led the Indians to their first sectional title since 1998, the year they last reached the state championship game.
“What’s the chances of something like this happening?” Leslie Iwema said. “It’s surreal. If you would’ve told me 30 years ago that I would be back at my alma mater watching my daughter compete for a state championship, I would’ve told you you’re crazy. At that point in my life, I didn’t want kids. I was 16, 17 years old, and at that time, I couldn’t imagine myself having a child. So to watch my daughter play with her teammates and be on this big stage, it’s absolutely surreal.”
Lexi Iwema’s father, Todd Iwema, pitched in the Milwaukee Brewers’ minor league system and coached Lake Central’s baseball team for 11 seasons through 2009. Both of her parents are teachers at the school.
“My dad’s the only one in the family who doesn’t have a ring, so I get to tease him about that now,” Lexi Iwema said with a laugh.
Lexi Iwema, whose primary position in softball is shortstop, has been adding to her family’s legacy. As a freshman last year, she hit .333 with 11 RBIs and went 5-1 with a 1.49 ERA in 42.1 innings in the circle.
“Softball’s the one I’m probably the best at, but I love all three, or else I wouldn’t be doing this because it’s not easy to do all three,” she said.
Lake Central girls basketball coach Joe Huppental wholeheartedly agrees. He said Lexi Iwema, who averages 3.2 points and 2.2 rebounds off the bench, has consistently improved over the course of her two seasons on his team. He appreciates what she has been doing across the board.
“Here’s the thing about Lexi,” Huppenthal said. “She’s a three-sport athlete, and in this day and age, that’s just absolutely unheard of. She’s phenomenal at softball, she’s phenomenal at volleyball and what she does for us is a really big part of why we’re here.
“The kid is just one of the toughest kids in our program — mentally, physically. She’s a kid who’s not going to back down from anybody. That’s her mantra, which makes her who she is. I’d take 12 of her any day of the week.”
Huppenthal noted Lexi Iwema missed Lake Central’s regular-season loss to South Bend Washington and was happy to have her for the rematch in the regional, given her ability to “put a body on” Washington standout Kira Reynolds.
“She’s just a great kid,” Huppenthal said. “She never says anything. She just does her job. To do this in three sports in this day and age, again, kudos to her. She’s going to be successful in whatever she decides to do. When you sit and think about it, it’s almost mind-boggling what she does.”
Huppenthal also has a connection to Leslie Iwema. His six seasons as East Chicago Central’s girls basketball coach from 1990 to 1996 wrapped around the entirety of her Lake Central playing career.
The 1995 season was particularly meaningful. The Cardinals were ranked No. 1 in the nation and won a regular-season game at home against defending state champion Lake Central. But in a regional final at West Side, Lake Central turned the tables on its way to the state semifinals.
“I’ll tell you, that feeling didn’t go away for years,” Huppenthal said.
Huppenthal, whose brother Chris coached the Hamilton Southeastern girls basketball team to the 4A state title in 2019, has been relishing this ride, which included meetings in Indianapolis on Tuesday.
“It’s amazing,” Huppenthal said. “If you’ve never experienced it, the governor was there — you were 2 feet from the governor — the IHSAA, the Fever, the Pacers. They roll out the red carpet. It’s something I wish all of my coaching colleagues could enjoy one day. I’m just fortunate.
“Someone has to be the captain of the ship, and it’s just me by name. It’s about them, the kids, and our coaches and our program. I’m just blessed and lucky I got this opportunity. It’ll be exciting.”
But Huppenthal has impressed upon his team to not be satisfied, and the players have responded. The Indians lost 51-38 to Lawrence Central in the Limestone Classic at Bedford North Lawrence on Dec. 22 but believe they can take the ultimate step after losing in a regional final two seasons ago and in a semistate final last season.
“This is great that it happened,” Huppenthal said. “But we’re just not done. We’re going for this thing. I’m trying to keep everybody grounded. We can celebrate this thing afterward. But the carrot’s there for the taking. You have to go get it. You don’t get these opportunities very often. You have to seize the moment.
“We want to make sure we’ve left no stone unturned and we have no regrets about what happens. Then we can exit peacefully. Is it great we won the semistate? Absolutely. But it’s unfinished business.”
Senior guard Riley Milausnic understands that concept. Her father, Dave Milausnic, was Lake Central’s boys basketball coach for 19 seasons before stepping down last year. He took the Indians to the 4A state championship game in 2014, when they lost to Indianapolis Tech.
Riley Milausnic, a 5-7 Purdue Northwest recruit who averages 8.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists in her third season as a full-time starter, has fond memories of that 2014 run. She has a ball signed by all the players on the team and recalls going to dinner with her family to Texas Roadhouse before each round of the playoffs.
“It’s like a core memory going down there,” Riley Milausnic said. “I was really young, but I remember I had my boots on, I had an Indian costume on. I remember being in the front row and my voice was gone the next day. It was crazy.
“It’s like a full-circle moment. Going to state with my dad was a good experience, and this has been a good experience. I’m just really excited. It’s so surreal. It hasn’t really set in yet. When we get there, I’m guessing it will. I’m just thinking, ‘Let’s go out with a bang.’”
Leslie Iwema remembers the excitement of state championship events and shared advice for Lexi.
“There’s a lot of things that are going to be overwhelming,” Leslie Iwema said. “The media, especially when you’re not used to it. The Jumbotron. The crowds. Being on a different court. Knowing it’s your last game of the season. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the big moments. But just don’t take for granted the moments that you get the chance to be out on the court to play, the chance you have to cheer on your teammates.
“And go there to win it. Don’t just be happy to be there. Go there and leave it all out there. You don’t want to look back and regret you didn’t give 100% for whatever amount of time you’re out there, for whatever role you’re in. I’d tell that to any of the kids. Enjoy the little moments. Enjoy being out there with your friends and showing what you have and being a part of this big community of Indiana basketball because there’s nothing better.”
