Saying that Keaton Lawson is thrilled to be on the basketball court might be an understatement.

The Columbus East senior missed the second half of football season due to a broken collarbone. Now that he’s back to being healthy, he’s already made an impact on the court and looks to carry the momentum in the last two months of the regular season.

In September during football practice, Lawson landed wrong. After tests confirmed it was a broken collarbone, Lawson knew at that moment his career as an Olympian football player was over.

“I was a little sad, but I couldn’t stop working. I had to move on to basketball season. Knowing that basketball season was coming up, I would have to grind and work to be better,” Lawson said. “It feels perfectly fine. It works great. I went to physical therapy and didn’t skip one (session). It helped me get back to where I used to be.”

Keaton Lawson

While Lawson enjoyed playing football, basketball is more in his blood. He got to watch his older siblings Kaden and Kylah playing when he was younger and playing with them, and occasionally against them, in the driveway.

Kylah eventually become a standout basketball player at Columbus North and currently is a senior basketball player at UIndy. She spent the first two seasons at Division III Hanover before transferring to the Division II Greyhounds.

“They were playing when I was born, and that was where my competitive nature came from,” Keaton Lawson said of his siblings.

After surgery, Lawson was told his recovery time was going to be two months, which would be just in time for the beginning of the hoops season. He wasn’t afraid to admit was he was nervous through rehab and had to battle through those tough roads along the way, but most importantly, it was about trusting himself and the process.

“I was a little scared to come back, but I knew I had to fight through it and trust myself that I won’t get hurt again,” Lawson said. “I was a little scared, but it feels fine now.”

Lawson was a two-way football player for East, playing wide receiver and safety. In five games before the collarbone injury, he finished with 17 receptions for 402 yards and six touchdowns. Last spring, he competed in track and was a regional qualifier in the long jump, high jump and as part of the Olympians’ 4×100-meter relay team.

Lawson was an All-Hoosier Hills Conference selection last year for both football and basketball as a junior. He led East to a sectional runner-up finish in basketball, averaging team-highs of 18.8 points, 8.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 3.0 steals per game.

Lawson’s 6-foot, 5, 190-pound stature is a gift and a big advantage for his team during any rebound or jump ball situation on the court. What makes Lawson stand out more is his ability to make his teammates better and get everyone on the floor involved.

The Olympians have played in only three games this season due to the winter storms in December that postponed a couple contests. Nevertheless, Lawson leads the team with 16.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, 7.0 assists, 3.5 steals and 2.5 blocks per game.

“The thing that people don’t understand about Keaton, is he’s making every single one of our guys better,” East coach Perry Nash said.” He has really taken a back seat. He knows for us to advance is he’s got to get these young guys experience, good reps and good experience. He has done an amazing job. One of these times, he’s going to drop 40, 50 points, we all know it’s coming, but right now, he is getting guys better.”

Lawson made his commitment last month to play basketball at Indiana Wesleyan. Before he arrives though, Lawson hopes to bring the Olympians a sectional title, which they haven’t won since 1996.

“Being with my brothers, I’ve been playing with them since kindergarten, third grade, all the way through high school,” Lawson said. “Being able to play with them and play my senior year and winning games with them is a really good feeling, playing with my friends because I know I’ve got to do it for them and not just myself. My family, they’ve been supporting me the whole time, so that’s who I’ll do it for.”

TRAFALGAR — Columbus East qualified seven girls wrestlers, and Columbus North advanced one from Friday’s Indian Creek Sectional to the Jan. 10 Bloomington South Regional.

The Olympians finished fourth in the sectional with 137.5 points, while the Bull Dogs were ninth with 45 points. Whiteland won with 295 to 177.5 for Franklin and 151.5 for Bloomington South.

Gloria Cloud

East had three runner-up finishes with Tienica Dits at 105 pounds, Gloria Cloud at 120 and Annie Redman at 170. Izzy Wakefield (155) and Kyleigh Traylor (190) each placed third, and Abby Morales (100) and Kaydence Spradlin (235) each took fourth to join them in qualifying for regional.

Annie Redman

North’s Zahlynn Williams advanced with a fourth-place finish at 170. Nitya Hurli (100) and Aubreigh Campbell (155) each were fifth.

Brown County finished 12th with 16 points. Annie Stowers took fifth at 135.

4 Panthers qualify

FLOYDS KNOBS — Jennings County had two champions and two other regional qualifiers and finished fifth as a team in the Floyd Central Sectional.

Floyd Central won the team title with 204.5 points and were followed by Jeffersonville (154.5), Madison (139), South Dearborn (119) and Jennings (113.5).

Violeta Gomez-Hilerio (130) and Gabrella Hernandez (170) won their respective weight classes for the Panthers. Sofia Lazcano (115) took third, and Chloe Franks (125) was fourth and will join them in the Bloomington South Regional.

With Columbus Christian set to host the Southern Roads Conference Tournament in a week, the Crusaders wanted to make a good showing this weekend in girls-boys basketball doubleheaders against Bloomington Lighthouse Christian and Cannelton.

Friday night, the Crusader girls picked up a 67-51 victory against Lighthouse before the Lighthouse boys handed Columbus Christian a 66-42 defeat. The Lions are in their final year in the SRC.

The Crusader girls (9-2, 2-0) improved to 5-1 against IHSAA schools.

“We’re having a pretty decent season against IHSAA schools,” Columbus Christian girls coach Matt Bond said. “We have another one (Saturday afternoon) against Cannelton, so we just have to keep plugging away.”

The Crusaders led 15-11 midway through the second quarter when they used a 9-0 run to open some breathing room.

“Once we got some shots going, it just boosted our confidence and then we could hit more,” said senior Olivia Wise, who led Columbus Christian with 21 points and nine rebounds. “So that was really helpful for us as a team. When our confidence goes up, we can hit more, and we just work better as a team. In the beginning, if we started off really well. If we don’t start off well, then it doesn’t look great for the rest of the game. Staring off strong really helped.”

Emma Murray

Emma Murray finished with 16 points and eight rebounds, and Katie Bond had 15 points and nine rebounds for the Crusaders.

Katie Bond

“We just had to keep on trying to hit shots, just keep throwing them up there and not get disappointed in ourselves,” Katie Bond said.

“I think we could have rebounded better, but we worked well as a team tonight,” Murray said. “I think a mostly a younger team, it’s really encouraging to take wins like this and to have a pretty big season so far.”

Kaeli Clawson added nine points for Columbus Christian, which forced 24 Lighthouse turnovers.

“For the most part, I thought we played pretty well,” Matt Bond said. “Defense was pretty stout there. We could have boxed out and rebounded a little better. I felt like offensively, we kind of struggled to get things going at first, but we adjusted a little bit and started making things click for us, so it got better.”

In the boys game, the Crusaders held the Lions without a field goal the first six minutes and led 4-1. But Lighthouse scored the final 10 points of the first quarter and built the lead to 30-15 at halftime.

Elijah Fields led Columbus Christian with eight points and six rebounds. Hunter Goddard also grabbed six rebounds.

“Those guys played a lot harder than we did,” Columbus Christian boys coach Kevin Roth said. “We can’t give a team several opportunities. We went through things six hours ago that we thought that we were going to face and then we can’t come out and execute. I thought the ball stuck on the perimeter too much. We didn’t pass-fake and move the ball into the high post and get it down to our big guys. I told them I don’t know what button to push.”

GIRLS: Columbus Christian 67, Lighthouse Christian 51

Lighthouse Christian;4;11;17;19;—;51

Columbus Christian;13;12;24;18;—;67

Lighthouse Christian (5-5, 1-1): Tara Taylor 1 0-0 2, Jane Holdeman 1 1-1 3, Audrey Eason 0 0-0 0, Naomi Connell 3 0-0 6, Aleah Winders 4 3-6 12, Ellie Mae Winders 7 8-13 22, Linnea Connell 1 0-0 2, Jade Best 1 2-2 4, Elyzabeth Schuetz 0 0-0 0. Totals: 18 14-22 51.

Columbus Christian (9-2, 2-0): Kaeli Clawson 4 0-0 9, Katie Bond 7 0-1 15, Olivia Wise 7 7-13 21, Macimae Brown 0 0-2 0, Emma Rice 3 0-0 6, Jaryn Shuler 0 0-0 0, Emma Murray 5 6-10 16. Totals: 25 15-26 67.

3-point goals: Lighthouse Christian 1 (A. Winders). Columbus Christian 2 (Clawson, Bond).

BOYS: Lighthouse Christian 66, Columbus Christian 42

Lighthouse Christian;11;19;14;22;—;66

Columbus Christian;4;11;9;18;—;42

Lighthouse Christian (4-5, 1-1): Joshua Wang 9 0-0 18, Nathan Biggs 2 0-0 4, Aiden Jones 5 3-5 13, Tim Lautzenbach 6 0-0 12, Paul Johnson 3 2-2 9, Landon Darty 0 0-0 0, Anthony Lautzenbach 0 0-0 0, Jonathan Josefy 3 0-0 6, Caden Stewart 1 0-2 2, Mathias Gonzalez 1 0-0 2. Totals: 30 5-9 66.

Columbus Christian (4-8, 1-1): Adam Haines 1 2-2 5, Krew Flickinger 0 0-0 0, Ayden Vanderbur 0 0-0 0, Lee Andre Gunn 1 2-2 5, Anderson Glasser 0 0-0 0, Zach Jenner 0 0-0 0, Ben Carter 0 1-2 1, Hunter Goddard 3 0-0 6, Elijah Fields 3 2-2 8, Judan Carlson 3 0-1 6, Heath Harrison 0 0-0 0, Eli Wright 3 1-4 7, Myles Romero 2 0-1 4. Totals: 16 8-14 42.

3-point goals: Lighthouse Christian 1 (Johnson). Columbus Christian 2 (Haines, Gunn).

FISHERS — Columbus North boys basketball took a pair of losses on the opening day of the Fishers Tournament, falling to Evansville Bosse 67-55 and Lawrence Central 80-44 Friday.

Austin Perry led the Bull Dogs with 23 points against Bosse. Jack Whaley scored 11, Ben Kriesant had seven and Ibar Baker added six.

Caleb Ferguson led North with 20 points against Lawrence Central. Anderson Horn added six.

The Bull Dogs (5-4) will play Fort Wayne Wayne in the seventh-place game at around 2 p.m. Saturday.

PORT HURON, Mich. — The Indiana Sentinels fell in overtime for the second straight outing, with Port Huron coming away with a 4-3 victory Friday.

The Sentinels led 3-1 going into the final period, but the Prowlers scored twice in the third to tie it, then won it 1 minute, 45 second into overtime.

Dalton Anderson netted two goals, and Jonas Leas scored one for Indiana. Denver Craig had two assists, and Marian Pazitka added one.

Port Huron outshot the Sentinels 50-21. Chris Curr recorded 46 saves.

The two teams plan again Saturday at Port Huron. Indiana then returns home to host the Columbus (Georgia) River Dragons at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 16 and 17.

BATESVILLE — Class 3A No. 7 Jennings County jumped out to a 23-13 halftime lead Friday and went on to post a 52-37 girls basketball win at Batesville.

Mollie Ernstes led the Panthers (12-3) with 25 points. Etta Young added 15.

Brent Harmon and Melissa Middleton have purchased the historic Salem Speedway from Nick Bohanon, who had owned the speedway since January of 2023.

Harmon is affiliated with the Salem Motorsports Park dragstrip located adjacent to Salem Speedway.

“I’m really excited with the opportunity to purchase Salem Speedway,” Harmon said. “The track has so much history and so many great drivers have raced here, what an amazing and historic facility. Nick and Maegun Bohanon did a lot of great things with Salem Speedway the past three years, I plan to continue to make improvements to the facility to improve not only the racing but amenities to help create a great experience for the fans attending the events and the racers putting on the show each event.

“My plan is for the track to continue it’s great racing tradition, but I also plan to utilize the facility for a lot of non-racing events, including car shows, monthly cars and coffee, several concerts, heavy equipment auctions and collector car auctions just to name a few.”

Salem Speedway opened in 1947, providing fans with exciting fast-paced racing on the .555-mile oval that features imposing 33-degree banked turns that were built strictly for speed.

Salem is a track steeped in history with many of the giants in auto racing having competed on the treacherous “hills” at some point in their careers, names such as Ruttman, Carter, Sweikert, O’Connor, Jones, Foyt, Unser, Andretti, Vogler, Allison, Parsons, Waltrip, Schrader, Gordon and Stewart are just a few names from the past that grace the list of past winners.

Current NASCAR drivers Chase Elliott, Christopher Bell, Erik Jones and Indiana’s own Chase Briscoe have also competed on the High Banks.

The facility will be available for lease on off weekends of racing. Testing on the track will also be available. Some of the improvements planned include a shower house for the camping area, VIP RV Parking and some black topping on the access roads, just to name a few.

Lucas Oil Series 2026 plans announced

After three seasons using a playoff-style points system, the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing is returning to a traditional season-long points system for 2026, while adding more than a quarter-million dollar lucrative late-season bonus program.

Teams will once again compete for dirt late model racing’s highest points fund of $1.2 million that will be divvied up after the 2026 champion is crowned at the season-ending Dirt Track World Championship at West Virginia Motor Speedway in Mineral Wells, West Virginia.

With the unwavering dedication of Big River Steel and ARP, the national tour will also put up an additional $275,000 for the Big River Steel Bonus Program presented by ARP, awarding drivers following Aug. 29’s Rumble by the River finale at Port Royal (Pennsylvania) Speedway in a separate miniseries encompassing the season’s final five Saturdays.

“Over the past three years, we’ve elevated our program to be the most lucrative in dirt late model racing,” series director Rick Schwallie said. “FloSports remains dedicated to upholding the stature of our series and continues to grow with the support of our valued marketing partners. We are excited to revert to a traditional points structure, which will be complemented by the late-season bonus program to sustain the end of the year excitement.”

In the Big River Steel Bonus Program presented by ARP, the top 15 drivers in the championship standings will compete in a miniseries following Aug. 29’s Rumble by the River finale at Port Royal (Pa.) Speedway, encompassing the final five crown jewel events of the season.

The highest finishing driver of the top 15 in championship standings in each of those final five crown jewel events of the season will receive an additional $5,000.

The top five drivers in the championship standings will compete in a miniseries, earning points in those final five crown jewel events of the season. The highest points earner of the five drivers will take home an additional $100,000. Second-through-fifth will be awarded $40,000, $30,000, $20,000 and $10,000, respectively

For drivers sixth-through-15th, a separate bonus program encompassing those same five crown jewel events of the season will pay $25,000 to the top point earner, $15,000 to second and $10,000 to third.

While a dozen series races are scheduled after Port Royal, only the five consecutive scheduled Saturday events at Knoxville (Iowa) Raceway ($75,000-to-win on Sept. 19), Brownstown Speedway ($50,000-to-win on Sept. 26), Pittsburgh Motor Speedway in Imperial, Pennsylvaina ($50,000-to-win on Oct. 3), Eldora Speedway in Rossburg, Ohio ($50,000-to-win on Oct. 10) and WVMS will award points in the Big River Steel Bonus Program presented by ARP, which pays out $275,000 in all.

For the latest news, results, championship standings and more about the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series presented by FloRacing, please visit lucasdirt.com

James Essex writes a motorsports notebook for The Republic. Send comments to sports@therepublic.com

COMING UP

Indiana Sentinels hockey

Today at Port Huron, 7:05 p.m.

Friday vs. Columbus (Ga.), 7:30 p.m.

Jan. 10 vs. Columbus (Ga.), 7:30 p.m.

IU Columbus men’s basketball

Today vs. Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, 3 p.m.

Tuesday vs. Brescia, 6 p.m.

Jan. 10 vs. Shawnee State, 3 p.m.

IU Columbus women’s basketball

Today vs. Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, 1 p.m.

Tuesday at Brescia, 7 p.m.

Jan. 10 vs. Shawnee State, 1 p.m.

Indianapolis Colts

Sunday at Texans, 1 p.m. (CBS)

Indiana Pacers

Sunday at Magic, 3 p.m.

Tuesday vs. Cavs, 7 p.m.

Thursday at Hornets, 7 p.m.

Indiana University football

Friday vs. Oregon in CFP semifinals at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m. (ESPN)

Indiana University men’s basketball

Sunday vs. Washington, 8 p.m. (BTN)

Wednesday at Maryland, 6:30 p.m. (BTN)

Jan. 10 vs. Nebraska, noon (BTN)

Purdue men’s basketball

Today at Wisconsin, 8 p.m. (FOX)

Wednesday vs. Washington, 8:30 p.m. (BTN)

Jan. 10 vs. Penn State, 2 p.m. (BTN)

Indiana University women’s basketball

Sunday at Maryland, 6 p.m. (BTN)

Thursday at Nebraska, 8 p.m. (B1G+)

Jan. 11 vs. Iowa, 5 p.m. (BTN)

HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS TODAY

Boys basketball

Columbus East at Greenwood in Greenwood Tournament, 9 a.m.

Columbus East vs. Yorktown in Greenwood Tournament, 1 p.m.

Columbus North vs. Fort Wayne Wayne in Fishers Tournament seventh-place game, 2 p.m.

Cannelton at Columbus Christian, 2:30 p.m.

Knightstown at Edinburgh, 7:30 p.m.

Girls basketball

Cannelton at Columbus Christian, 1 p.m.

South Decatur at Knightstown, 1:30 p.m.

North Harrison at Trinity Lutheran, 1:30 p.m.

South Decatur at Henryville, 7:30 p.m.

Shelbyville at Columbus East, 7:30 p.m.

Swimming

Salem, Henryville, Charlestown at Jennings County, 10 a.m.

Boys wrestling

Columbus East at Mishawaka Al Smith Tournament, 9 a.m.

Brown County Invitational, 9 a.m.

SPORTS ON TV TODAY

Men’s college basketball

Virginia at NC State, 11 a.m. (ESPN2)

Virginia Tech at Wake Forest, noon (ACC)

Northeastern at Campbell, noon (CBSSN)

Clemson at Pittsburgh, noon (CW)

Kentucky at Alabama, noon (ESPN)

UTSA at Temple, noon (ESPNU)

Providence vs. St. John’s, at New York, noon (FOX)

Villanova at Butler, noon (TNT/TRU)

VCU at Duquesne, noon (USA)

Oklahoma State at Texas Tech, 1 p.m. (ESPN2)

Auburn at Georgia, 1 p.m. (SEC)

BYU at Kansas State, 1:30 p.m. (CBS)

Boston College at Georgia Tech, 2 p.m. (ACC)

Dayton at Loyola of Chicago, 2 p.m. (CBSSN)

Vanderbilt at South Carolina, 2 p.m. (ESPNU)

Xavier at DePaul, 2 p.m. (FS1)

Kansas at UCF, 2 p.m. (Peacock)

Houston at Cincinnati, 2 p.m. (FOX)

Baylor at TCU, 2 p.m. (TNT/TRU)

La Salle at George Washington, 2 p.m. (USA)

North Carolina at SMU, 2:15 p.m. (CW)

Tennessee at Arkansas, 3 p.m. (ESPN2)

Mississippi at Oklahoma, 3:30 p.m. (SEC)

Duke at Florida State, 3:45 p.m. (CBS)

Oral Roberts at North Dakota State, 4 p.m. (CBSSN)

LSU at Texas A&M, 4 p.m. (ESPNU)

Arizona at UTA, 4 p.m. (Peacock)

Rhode Island at George Mason, 4 p.m. (USA)

Minnesota at Northwestern, 5 p.m. (BTN)

Colorado at Arizona State, 5 p.m. (ESPN2)

Davidson at Saint Joseph’s, 6 p.m. (CBSSN)

Wichita State at Charlotte, 6 p.m. (ESPNU)

UCLA at Iowa, 6 p.m. (Peacock)

Mississippi State at Texas, 6 p.m. (SEC)

Illinois vs. Penn State, at Philadelphia, 7 p.m. (BTN)

Wyoming at New Mexico, 8 p.m. (CBSSN)

Purdue at Wisconsin, 8 p.m. (FOX)

Florida at Missouri, 8:30 p.m. (SEC)

Boise State at San Diego State, 10 p.m. (CBSSN)

Women’s college basketball

Seton Hall at UConn, noon (FS1)

Southern Cal at UCLA, 8 p.m. (Peacock)

Horse racing

NYRA: America’s Day at the Races, 2:30 p.m. (FS2) and 4 p.m. (FS1)

Men’s lacrosse

NLL: Calgary at San Diego, 10 p.m. (ESPNU)

NBA

Timberwolves at Heat, 5 p.m. (NBA)

76ers at Knicks, 7:30 p.m. (NBA)

Celtics at Clippers, 10:30 p.m. (NBA)

NFL

Panthers at Bucs, 4:30 p.m. (ABC/ESPN)

Seahawks at 49ers, 8 p.m. (ABC/ESPN)

Seahawks at 49ers (NFL on ESPN with Peyton and Eli), 8 p.m. (ESPN2)

NHL

Penguins at Red Wings, noon (ABC)

Maple Leafs at Islanders, 7 p.m. (NHL)

Men’s soccer

Scottish Premier League: Rangers at Celtic, 7:25 a.m. (CBSSN)

English Premier League: Nottingham Forest at Aston Villa, 7:30 a.m. (USA)

Scottish Premier League: Dundee at Dundee United, 9:55 a.m. (CBSSN)

English Premier League: Burnley at Brighton & Hove Albion, 10 a.m. (USA)

Saudi Pro League: Al Taawoun at Al Ittihad, 12:15 p.m. (FS2)

English Premier League: Arsenal at AFC Bournemouth, 12:30 p.m. (NBC)

MASL: Empire at San Diego, 10 p.m. (FS2)

Speed skating

ISU: 2026 U.S. Winter Olympic Trials, 4 p.m. (NBC)

Tennis

United Cup – Day 2 Group Stage: USA v. ARG & AUS v. NOR, 6 a.m. (Tennis)

United Cup – Day 3 Group Stage; Brisbane – ATP/WTA Early Rounds, 6:30 p.m. today and 6 a.m. Sunday (Tennis)