Claire Payne continues family winning tradition with NorthWood girls basketball

NAPPANNEE — The Payne family is running out of room to display all its hardware.

The third child in the family, Claire, added a girls basketball regional title to her résumé last week, bringing her total to seven postseason championships in three years at NorthWood. She’s already tied her older brother JJ in total titles and passed her older sister Maddy (5), but she’s still seeking the one they both won: a state championship.

Claire can take the next step toward that should the Panthers (20-6) win an IHSAA Class 3A semistate championship Saturday at Huntington North. They’ll play Bremen (15-11) in a semifinal game at approximately noon, with the winner playing the other semifinal winner between Hamilton Heights (24-2) and Norwell (21-4) at 8 p.m.

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“Last year, we joked about after the boys won state that the sister’s won a state championship, now brother’s won a state championship,” NorthWood coach Taylor Burkhart said. “What could be for Claire? Is she the lucky charm or is the Payne family really lucky?”

Both Maddy and JJ ended their basketball careers with state titles. Maddy led the Black Swish to a 3A crown in 2020, while JJ was a key reserve player for the Panthers’ 3A boys title a season ago.

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Claire is only a junior, meaning she has one more year to match her siblings in the state title department. She’s also closer to one than either Maddy or JJ were in their first three years of high school, giving her a leg up in that regard.

Maddy, now a Bethel University volleyball standout, was on hand for both the sectional and regional championship wins for Claire the last two weeks. NorthWood beat defending state champion Fairfield, 34-32, in the sectional final before grinding out a 54-41 win over New Prairie in the regional.

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Claire credited Maddy for the advice she gave to her before the postseason began.

“Obviously, we’ve been very successful in volleyball, but I’ve never been here from a basketball standpoint,” said Claire, referencing the three sectional and two regional titles she’s won in volleyball. “I really just asked them, ‘How did you know you could go out there and perform well?’ My sister especially calmed my nerves with that.”

Both older Payne’s were great citizens off the court as well. Maddy was named the Mental Attitude Award winner for 3A girls basketball in 2020, while JJ was a finalist for the Indianapolis Colts Man of the Year award in 2022, given to a senior football player in the state.

“We have a lot of great families in this community that instill good values and hard work,” Burkhart said. “… (Claire) is a huge player for our team, and that whole family is great supporters and competitors. Happy to have the opportunity to coach her and have her on the team.”

Claire Payne leads NorthWood in points (10.3), rebounds (10.8) and blocks (1.3) per game this season. It’s a Panthers team that has overcome adversity to reach semistate, as its second leading scorer, senior Joselyn Edwards, tore her ACL in the final week of the regular season.

Only one senior, Callie Johnson, has played all 26 games so far, meaning it’s a youthful team gaining valuable experience throughout the postseason. They hope it lasts one more weekend and includes a trip to Gainbridge Fieldhouse Feb. 24.

“I really think it shows how much we care as a team,” said Payne of the team’s run to semistate. “We’ve all done a really good job of rallying together, especially around Joselyn and helping her through her injury. It really shows that we’ve been playing not for the trophy, but playing to keep playing together.”

IHSAA girls basketball semistate pairings

NORTH

All time Eastern

Class 4A at LaPorte

11 a.m. | Homestead (23-4) vs. Lake Central (24-4)

1 p.m. | Noblesville (17-8) vs. Valparaiso (19-7)

8:30 p.m.  | Championship

Class 3A at Huntington North

10 a.m. | Hamilton Heights (24-2) vs. Norwell (21-4)

Noon | Bremen (15-11) vs. NorthWood (20-6)

8 p.m. | Championship

Class 2A at Logansport

10 a.m. | Fort Wayne Bishop Luers (17-6) vs. Lapel (23-4)

Noon | Andrean (13-14) vs. Lewis Cass (22-3)

8 p.m. | Championship

Class 1A at Frankfort

10 a.m. | Union City (14-12) vs. Clinton Central (24-1)

Noon | Caston (22-3) vs. Marquette Catholic (22-4)

7:30 p.m. | Championship

SOUTH

Class 4A at Southport

10 a.m. | Lawrence Central (27-1) vs. Plainfield (18-7)

Noon | Center Grove (26-1) vs. Franklin Community (24-3)

8 p.m. | Championship

Class 3A at Jasper

10 a.m. | Indianapolis Bishop Chatard (19-8) vs. Danville (23-3)

Noon | Scottsburg (22-4) vs. Gibson Southern (23-4)

8 p.m. | Championship

Class 2A at Shelbyville

10 a.m. | Brownstown Central (18-9) vs. Linton-Stockton (20-6)

Noon | Eastern Hancock (24-1) vs. Sheridan (20-5)

8 p.m. | Championship

Class 1A at New Albany

10 a.m. | Jac-Cen-Del (21-5) vs. Lanesville (26-1)

Noon | North Central (Farmersburg) (18-10) vs. Wood Memorial (16-10)

8 p.m. | Championship

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Claire Payne continues family winning tradition with NorthWood girls basketball