The Associated Press (AP) released its first state rankings for the IHSA girls basketball season on Wednesday.
Princeton (12-0) represents the Three Rivers Athletic Conference (TRAC) in the 2A poll at No. 7. Three other TRAC teams received votes in the poll, but didn’t crack the top 10 in their respective classes – Mercer County and Riverdale in 2A and Newman in 1A.
Elsewhere locally, Abingdon-Avon is No. 10 in 1A.
WRMJ will post the polls each week. WRMJ’s Ty Taylor is an AP voter. His ballot will accompany the AP poll throughout the year.
*The number in parentheses represents how many number-one overall votes a team received.
IHSA 1A Girls Basketball AP Poll – Jan. 7, 2026
| Rank | Team | Record | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brownstown-St. Elmo (3) | 17-1 | 45 |
| 2 | Cissna Park (1) | 11-1 | 39 |
| 3 | Illini Bluffs | 15-2 | 27 |
| 4 | Brown County | 14-2 | 25 |
| 5 | Mt. Pulaski | 15-0 | 21 |
| T6 | Liberty | 14-2 | 18 |
| T6 | Heyworth | 14-2 | 18 |
| 8 | Deer Creek-Mackinaw | 15-1 | 17 |
| 9 | Salt Fork | 14-2 | 13 |
| 10 | Abingdon-Avon | 12-3 | 10 |
Receiving votes: 11, Hope Academy 10. 12, Havana 6. 13, Newman 5. 14, Rockford Christian Life 5. 15, Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley 4. 16, LeRoy 3. 17, St. Bede 2. 18, Eastland 2. 19, Carrollton 2. 20, Midland 1. 21, Okawville 1.
IHSA 2A Girls Basketball AP Poll – Jan. 7, 2026
| Rank | Team | Record | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Teutopolis (2) | 13-2 | 57 |
| 2 | Breese Central (3) | 13-1 | 53 |
| 3 | Nashville (2) | 15-2 | 15-2 |
| 4 | Effingham | 14-2 | 35 |
| 5 | Byron | 13-2 | 26 |
| 6 | Paris | 13-2 | 23 |
| 7 | Princeton | 13-0 | 22 |
| 8 | Pleasant Plains | 11-0 | 16 |
| 9 | Manteno | 15-1 | 16 |
| 10 | West Hancock | 14-1 | 11 |
Receiving votes: 11, Pinckneyville 9. 12, Breese Mater Dei 8. 13, Harrisburg 8. 14, Johnsburg 8. 15, Watseka 8. 16, St. Joseph-Ogden 7. 17, Clinton 5. 18, Winnebago 5. 19, Rockford Christian 4. 20, Riverdale 4. 21, Tri-Valley 3. 22, Carmi White County 3. 23, Mercer County 2. 24, Benton 2. 25, Carlyle 1. 26, Illinois Valley Central 1.
IHSA 3A Girls Basketball AP Poll – Jan. 7, 2026
| Rank | Team | Record | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington (4) | 16-0 | 45 |
| 2 | Galesburg (1) | 16-1 | 41 |
| 3 | Morton | 12-3 | 34 |
| 4 | Glenwood | 12-2 | 27 |
| 5 | Dixon | 14-2 | 21 |
| 6 | Providence Catholic | 17-2 | 19 |
| 7 | Quincy Notre Dame | 12-2 | 18 |
| 8 | Sterling | 13-3 | 17 |
| 9 | Marion | 12-1 | 17 |
| T10 | Civic Memorial | 12-4 | 9 |
| T10 | Freeport | 15-2 | 9 |
Receiving votes: 11, Kankakee 8. 12, Peoria Notre Dame 7. 13, Mattoon 2. 14, Metamora 1. 15, Carbondale 1.
IHSA 4A Girls Basketball AP Poll – Jan. 7, 2026
| Rank | Team | Record | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Benet (6) | 13-1 | 69 |
| 2 | Waubonsie Valley (1) | 16-0 | 62 |
| 3 | Loyola | 15-2 | 56 |
| 4 | DePaul Prep | 15-1 | 36 |
| 5 | Naperville Central | 13-3 | 35 |
| T6 | Nazareth | 12-3 | 23 |
| T6 | Glenbard West | 17-1 | 23 |
| 8 | Fremd | 14-3 | 22 |
| 9 | Maine South | 14-3 | 15 |
| 10 | Lyons | 13-4 | 12 |
Receiving votes: 11, Kenwood 10. 12, Alton 9. 13, Belleville East 7. 14, Mother McAuley 4. 15, Marist 2.
Ty’s 1A Ballot
- Brownstown-St. Elmo
- Deer Creek-Mackinaw
- Brown County
- Illini Bluffs
- Cissna Park
- Liberty
- Havana
- Heyworth
- Carrollton
- Abingdon-Avon
Ty’s 2A Ballot
- Teutopolis
- Nashville
- Breese Central
- Effingham
- Paris
- Manteno
- Byron
- Pleasant Plains
- Johnsburg
- Winnebago
Ty’s 3A Ballot
- Washington
- Morton
- Providence Catholic
- Glenwood
- Galesburg
- Dixon
- Peoria Notre Dame
- Freeport
- Marion
- Sterling
Ty’s 4A Ballot
- Benet
- Loyola
- DePaul Prep
- Waubonsie Valley
- Glenbard West
- Fremd
- Maine South
- Naperville Central
- Belleville East
- Alton