Spencer, Ia (Northwest Iowa Now) – The Newell-Fonda Mustangs rode a 22-5 record with a 11-0 Twin Lakes Conference mark to a league Championship and a State Runner-Up finish in Class 1A. The Mustangs do graduate Kinzee Hinders, who led Newell-Fonda in scoring a season ago, but bring back the rest of their roster as they continue to do what Newell-Fonda Girls Basketball has done for decades, which is reload.

It won’t be a walk through the Twin Lakes Conference though this year for Newell-Fonda. 4 teams from the league grace the preseason rankings from the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union.

One of those teams is Emmetsburg, who brings back all of their production from a 3rd place team in the TLC last year after going 14-10 overall and 10-1 in Conference play. Coach Annie Fienie says the E-Hawks are eyeing a Twin Lakes Championship in 2025-2026.

Sioux Central was placed as the #5 ranked team in class 2A in the IGHSAU preseason poll. The Rebels are also bringing back a ton of production after a down season to their standards, going 18-6 overall and 8-3 in the Twin Lakes. Kasey Krager, head coach of the Rebels, talks about the production coming back for Sioux Central.

GTRA had two freshman and a sophomore as their 3 leading scorers in 2024-2025. Underclassmen continue to make up much of the Titans roster this year after going 11-13 last season and 5-6 in the Twin Lakes. GTRA could be a sleeper in the TLC race, and coach Lucos Hough says their defense and pace of play is what will lead them to success this year.

You can follow along with the Twin Lakes Conference through Northwest Iowa Now all season long. Full interviews with coaches are available on the podcasts page of northwestiowanow.com.