High school girls basketball rankings: Defending Texas state champion Panhandle headlines Preseason Small Town Top 25

After winning 38 games and a Texas state championship last season, Panhandle has its sights set on another title. This time, the Panthers will begin the season with a national No. 1 ranking.

Panhandle earns pole position in the Preseason Small Town Top 25 high school girls basketball rankings for 2026-27 behind Riley Segura and Allie Ashley.

Tishomingo County (Iuka, Miss.), Wall (Texas), Cherokee (N.C.) and Frewsburg (N.Y.) round out the top five. Oostburg (Wis.), which finished 30-0 and No. 1 in the Small Town Top 25 in 2025-26, drops to No. 7 following the graduation of several key players.

The Preseason Small Town Top 25 is determined by last season's results, state playoff performance and returning talent. Schools must have fewer than 1,000 students and be located in towns with populations under 10,000 to be eligible for inclusion.

Preseason Small Town Top 25

1. Panhandle (Texas), 38-1, No. 3 in final Small Town Top 25
Head coach Rob Schmucker and the reigning Conference 2A Division 1 state champions return Small Town All-American Riley Segura (12.4 points per game) and all-state selection Allie Ashley. In addition to the 2026 title, the Panthers won state crowns in 1992 and 2016.

2. Tishomingo County (Iuka, Miss.), 28-2, No. 5
The defending Class 4A state champions return Small Town All-American Meg Moore, who averaged 23.3 points per game as a sophomore.

3. Wall (Texas), 37-3, No. 6
Winners of the Conference 3A Division 2 state crown, the Hawks return all-state selection Jewels Johnson (14.0 points per game) and all-tournament selection McKenzie Lopez.

4. Cherokee (N.C.), 29-1, No. 8
All-state selections Madison Rogers (15.8 points per game) and Joscelyn Stamper (10.0) are back for the defending Class 2A state champions.

5. Frewsburg (N.Y.), 22-4, No. 12
Head coach Sierra Beaver returns Small Town All-American Jadyn Trocki, who averaged 21.2 points and 5.5 assists per game. The Bears have recorded three consecutive 20-win seasons, establishing themselves among New York's strongest small school programs.

6. Berlin Brothersvalley (Pa.), 26-5, No. 17
Small Town All-American Coral Prosser is back after piling up 20.7 points, 10.1 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game.

7. Oostburg (Wis.), 30-0
Defending Small Town national champions won their second straight Division state championship under head coach Isaiah Ketterhagen. The Flying Dutchmen return Kinsley Ketterhagen (16.7 points per game) but graduate Small Town All-American Ady Ketterhagen.

8. Plainview (Rainsville, Ala.), 34-3
All-state pick Sawyer Kate Hulgan is one of the all-time leading scorers in Alabama history as she begins her senior year with 3,472 points and 659 career 3-pointers.
 
9. Williston (Fla.), 22-2, No. 4
After winning the Rural state championship last season, the Red Devils return nearly their entire lineup including sophomore Janiyah Span (11.2 points per game), Kierce Solomon (9.9) and Tiona Wilkinson (9.9).

10. Brock (Texas), 31-6, No. 9
The Eagles return Laney Hudson, a sophomore who earned all-tournament honors a year ago.

11. Strafford (Mo.), 29-3, No. 15
12. Poyen (Ark.), 36-1
Small Town All-American Kenady Barrett is back after averaging 29.6 points and 10.3 rebounds per game as a sophomore. The Indians have won 66 games over the past two years.

13. Martins Mill (Ben Wheeler, Texas), 32-6
All-tournament selections McKenna Wise and Kara Nixon are back for head coach Jay Bruce, who has led the Mustangs to seven state championships.

14. Denton/Stanford/Geyser/Geraldine (Denton, Mont.), 21-0, No. 11
The Montana powerhouse begins the season with a 21-game win streak. All-state players BriElla Baker, Ella Smith and Emma Smith all return.

15. Nashville (Ill.), 31-3, No. 13
The Hornettes return a pair of all-state players in twin sisters Summer and Samantha Brinkmann.

16. Lennox (S.D.), 22-3, No. 14
17. Russia (Ohio), 25-4
All-state honorees Hazel Francis, Celeste Borchers and Aryana Cordonnier are back for the Raiders, who fell short to Strasburg-Franklin in the Division VII state championship game a year ago.

18. Washington (Okla.), 32-1, No. 7
Sophomore Bentli Brantley is the top returner for the defending Class 3A state champions.

19. Wilcox County (Rochelle, Ga.), 29-1
The Patriots take a 21-game winning streak into this season and they return state Class A Division II Player of the Year Tyliah Benjamin and all-state selection Shamauri Martin.

20. Milford (Neb.), 28-1
MaxPreps Nebraska Player of the Year Shayla Rautenberg returns for her junior year at Milford. Joining her from last year's Class C1 state championship team are all-state selections Abby Crabtree and Ashlynn Miller.

21. Silver Lake (Kan.), 27-1
All-state volleyball players Jaylie Whitehead and Karys Deiter are expected to lead the charge in 2026-27 for Silver Lake.

22. Sugar-Salem (Sugar City, Idaho), 25-1
Andee Petterson, Kalena Dayley and Sorelle Clark earned all-tournament honors in Sugar-Salem's championship run last season.

23. Ottawa-Glandorf (Ottawa, Ohio), 28-1, No. 16
All-Ohio selection Madison McKee (12.6 points per game) has big shoes to fill at Ottawa-Glandorf after the graduation of Division V Player of the Year Karsyn Erford and Alivia Grothause.

24. Newell-Fonda (Newell, Iowa), 25-2
Sisters Ellie (15.6 points per game) and Quinn Sievers (11.7) return after earning all-state honors a year ago on a team that won the Class 1A state championship.

25. Lipan (Texas), 35-5
Lipan returns freshman championship MVP Sydni Gaylor and junior all-tournament selection Kynzi Callaway from a team that won the Conference 2A Division 2 title. Head coach Amber Branson also led the program to championships in 2016, 2021 and 2023.