From the farm-fueled towns of the heartland to the bustling concrete canyons on the coast, high school girls basketball is a cultural touchstone.
Basketball engages nearly 400,000 girls to join high school teams per year, according to 2021-22 data from the National Federation of State High School Associations. With almost 18,000 high schools maintaining girls teams, basketball is the most widely offered girls high school sport, beating out track and field and volleyball. Such data paints a clear picture of the sport's cultural impact.
And girls basketball dates back over a century. Iowa, for instance, traces its girls state championship history to 1920. That timeline doesn't lag far behind boys' basketball: Illinois' boys state championship began just 13 years before Iowa's girls event. However, girls across the country weren't given equal representation and support in the sport until the passage of the gender equality act known as Title IX in 1972. Since the arrival of that legislation, girls participation in basketball—and sports as a whole—exploded. Now, girls play basketball in high school gyms across all 50 states.
To dig into competition data behind the ever-growing sport of high school girls basketball, Stacker compiled statewide rankings in Missouri using MaxPreps. MaxPreps' rankings factor in win-loss record, win quality, and strength of schedule. Keep reading to find out which schools top the girls basketball charts in Missouri.
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1 / 61. Meadville: 31-0 (7-0 in District), 21.1 rating, 31 straight wins
2. Platte Valley co-op [South Nodaway/Jefferson] (Barnard): 15-4 (3-0 in Highway 275), 18.1 rating
3. South Iron (Annapolis): 19-3 (3-0 in Black River), 17.7 rating
4. Leeton: 19-5 (0-0 in Mid-State), 16.1 rating, 2 straight losses
5. Chadwick: 14-6 (2-1 in Mark Twain), 14.6 rating
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2 / 61. Tipton: 31-1 (9-0 in Kaysinger), 25.0 rating, 14 straight wins
2. Bishop LeBlond (St. Joseph): 28-4 (5-2 in Midland Empire), 23.0 rating
3. Northeast (Cairo): 16-3 (4-0 in Central), 17.6 rating
4. Schuyler County (Lancaster): 23-6 (8-0 in Lewis & Clark), 14.3 rating
5. Miller: 25-5 (8-0 in Southwest), 14.2 rating
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3 / 61. Fair Grove: 28-4 (3-1 in Mid-Lakes), 25.5 rating, 11 straight wins
2. El Dorado Springs: 24-5 (6-0 in Ozark Highlands), 21.5 rating
3. Skyline (Urbana): 24-7 (4-0 in Mid-Lakes), 20.6 rating
4. Strafford: 20-9 (2-2 in Mid-Lakes), 19.2 rating
5. South Shelby (Shelbina): 25-5 (7-0 in Clarence Cannon), 18.9 rating
6. Mansfield: 16-5 (4-0 in Summit), 16.5 rating
7. East Buchanan (Gower): 16-5 (3-0 in KCI), 14.8 rating
8. Montgomery County (Montgomery City): 18-6 (10-0 in Eastern Missouri), 14.4 rating, 2 straight losses
9. Licking: 20-5 (8-0 in Frisco), 14.4 rating
10. St. Pius X (Festus): 12-2 (3-1 in District), 14.1 rating
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4 / 61. Vashon (St. Louis): 23-5 (4-0 in Public), 28.6 rating, 9 straight wins
2. Benton (St. Joseph): 26-3 (8-0 in Midland Empire), 25.7 rating
3. California: 21-6 (6-1 in District), 21.2 rating
4. Southern Boone (Ashland): 21-9 (7-0 in District), 19.2 rating, 2 straight losses
5. Ava: 19-5 (3-0 in South Central), 18.8 rating
6. Westminster Christian (St. Louis): 8-4 (1-2 in Metro St. Louis), 18.8 rating, 3 straight wins
7. Fatima (Westphalia): 23-8 (7-0 in ShowMe), 18.8 rating
8. Centralia: 25-4 (5-2 in Clarence Cannon), 18.6 rating
9. Central (Park Hills): 19-3 (4-1 in Mineral Area - Large), 18.5 rating
10. St. James: 20-8 (5-2 in Four Rivers), 18.4 rating
11. Chillicothe: 23-5 (5-2 in Midland Empire), 17.8 rating
12. Cardinal Ritter College Prep (St. Louis): 8-9 (5-0 in AAA), 17.2 rating, 3 straight losses
13. Nevada: 20-6 (8-1 in Big 8), 17.1 rating
14. Moberly: 20-8 (10-0 in District), 16.8 rating
15. Owensville: 18-9 (5-3 in Four Rivers), 16.5 rating
16. Doniphan: 25-3 (5-0 in Ozark Foothills), 16.1 rating
17. Notre Dame de Sion (Kansas City): 17-9, 13.7 rating
18. Winfield: 9-3 (1-1 in Gateway - North), 12.6 rating, 2 straight wins
19. Eldon: 19-10 (5-3 in District), 12.6 rating
20. Clinton: 12-4 (2-0 in District), 11.8 rating
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5 / 61. Carl Junction: 29-1 (9-0 in Central Ozarks), 28.3 rating
2. Burroughs (St. Louis): 23-4 (5-0 in Metro St. Louis), 26.1 rating, 2 straight losses
3. Helias (Jefferson City): 19-7, 24.4 rating
4. Jefferson City: 21-8, 23.8 rating
5. West Plains: 23-7 (12-0 in Ozarks), 23.3 rating
6. Rolla: 23-6 (7-3 in Ozarks), 22.2 rating
7. Notre Dame (Cape Girardeau): 14-5 (5-0 in Southeast Missouri), 20.7 rating
8. Marshfield: 22-5 (8-0 in Big 8), 18.4 rating
9. Lutheran (St. Peters): 8-5 (3-1 in AAA), 17.9 rating, 4 straight wins
10. Union: 8-3 (5-0 in Four Rivers), 17.6 rating
11. Lutheran South (St. Louis): 7-3 (1-2 in Metro St. Louis), 16.0 rating, 2 straight losses
12. Farmington: 12-5 (4-2 in Mineral Area - Large), 15.5 rating, 3 straight wins
13. Lincoln College Prep (Kansas City): 11-8 (1-0 in Interscholastic), 15.3 rating
14. Webb City: 12-8 (3-3 in Central Ozarks), 13.8 rating, 4 straight losses
15. St. Teresa's Academy (Kansas City): 12-9, 13.2 rating, 7 straight wins
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6 / 61. Incarnate Word Academy (St. Louis): 31-0 (6-0 in MWAA), 37.9 rating, 32 straight wins, #6 national rank
2. Raytown: 24-3 (5-1 in Suburban - White), 28.8 rating
3. Republic: 23-4 (6-1 in Central Ozarks), 28.1 rating
4. Park Hill South (Riverside): 25-4 (10-0 in Suburban - Silver), 27.0 rating
5. Rock Bridge (Columbia): 23-7, 26.6 rating
6. Nixa: 20-6 (5-2 in Central Ozarks), 26.5 rating, 4 straight wins
7. Hickman (Columbia): 19-6, 26.5 rating, 2 straight losses
8. Truman (Independence): 23-2 (7-1 in Suburban - Red), 25.5 rating
9. Grain Valley: 23-5 (7-1 in Suburban - White), 25.0 rating
10. Pattonville (Maryland Heights): 9-6, 21.6 rating, 2 straight wins
11. Kickapoo (Springfield): 21-6 (9-1 in Ozarks), 21.4 rating, 5 straight wins
12. Battle (Columbia): 20-7 (1-0 in Central Missouri), 19.2 rating
13. St. Joseph's Academy (St. Louis): 5-6 (0-2 in MWAA), 18.6 rating, 2 straight losses
14. Staley (Kansas City): 18-10 (3-3 in Suburban - Red), 18.5 rating
15. Liberty North (Liberty): 13-8 (6-3 in Suburban - Gold), 17.5 rating
16. Lee's Summit West (Lee's Summit): 13-13 (5-2 in Suburban - Gold), 17.3 rating
17. Central (St. Joseph): 10-5 (1-2 in Suburban - Red), 16.6 rating, 2 straight wins
18. Glendale (Springfield): 13-7 (7-4 in Ozarks), 16.3 rating, 2 straight wins
19. Raytown South (Raytown): 18-4 (6-0 in Suburban - Blue), 15.8 rating
20. Ozark: 4-9 (0-3 in Central Ozarks), 15.6 rating, 3 straight losses
