Dayton Daily News Athlete of the Week: Abbi Mader, Tippecanoe

There are too many favorite memories for Abbi Mader to single out just one from her 2025-26 season.

As for herself, she easily was a standout in her final game of the year.

Mader is a sophomore basketball player at Tippecanoe. In a Division III tournament game against Chaminade Julienne on March 3, she scored a game-high 27 points, shot 11-for-15 from the floor and 3 of 7 from three, and grabbed four rebounds.

For her efforts, Mader was named the Dayton Daily News Athlete of the Week for March 2 through March 8, earning the honor through reader voting at DaytonDailyNews.com.

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“It was cool that people thought of me to nominate me,” she said. “It’s a pretty cool accomplishment, especially reading through the people who were nominated as there’s some very talented athletes.”

Mader did everything she could to keep her team in the game against the eventual state finalists. She didn’t miss a single two-point shot and continually found ways to get close looks at the basket to keep the score close.

“Honestly, I prayed before the game and I was like, ‘Lord, this is in your hands.’ I felt like He kind of just made his way throughout the whole game. And shots were going in. Playing when I’m feeling it, I kinda just like lock in and don’t think and just let my game and trusting the work that I’ve put in ultimately just goes out and shows.”

Tipp’s season ended despite her heroics, but the Red Devils won a Miami Valley League title for the first time since 2020-21, ended an eight-year drought of qualifying for regionals, and also became the third program in the state to reach 1,000 all-time wins.

“Being a part of that is a big honor,” Mader said. “Doing it with the team that we’ve had this year was just great.”

Mader led the MVL in scoring at 19.2 points per game, as well as field goal percentage (48.7) and total made shots (150). She was a first-team All-MVL performer and All-Southwest District honoree this season. She also set a school record with 22 consecutive free throws made across seven games.

Even with some similar scoring numbers as a freshman, she credited an increase in confidence coming into her sophomore campaign as something she can continue to lean on in future seasons.

“Just working hard to take my game to the next level each year. That’s kind of my goal, obviously, is just to continue to get better and better.”

Mader will have two more seasons to show what she can do on a basketball court. If her first two years are a sign of what’s to come, she may have many more great performances.

“Just using the gifts and talents that the Lord has given me to just use them to glorify Him is my biggest thing and is what motivates me every single time I step onto the court,” she said.