Indiana
Lake County, Indiana couple battles State Farm for months over roof repairs for hail damage
ST. JOHN, Ind. (WLS) — A couple in Lake County, Indiana, was locked in a months-long battle with State Farm insurance over roof damage. They said the damage came from a hail storm in the spring, but the couple said the insurance company insisted the storm never happened.
Irma and Alan Johnsen said the ordeal started on March 26, when much of the Chicago area, including Northwest Indiana, saw hail. They said their roof was damaged in the storm, but State Farm told them there was no hail that day and they would not be covering their roof repairs.
“There was hail, and it was one inch sized hail,” Alan Johnsen said. “It looked like it had been a half inch to an inch snow storm.”
The hail was even tracked on our air by ABC7 meteorologist Greg Dutra.
“A lot of hail. Pea sized to dime size. But there were some pennies and quarters reported,” he said.
As the hail came down, the Johnsens said all they could think about was their roof.
“I thought that we should get it checked and make sure it’s not problems or anything,” Alan said.
But there were problems. So, the couple said, a contractor came out and identified hail strikes; shingles that were lifting and cracking. They were advised to get the roof replaced to avoid leaks, at a cost of more than $19,000.
The couple said they contacted their insurance company, State Farm.
“When the adjuster was here, after doing the inspection he said there was damage and they would have to get an estimate together. And that adjuster disappeared,” Alan said.
The couple said State Farm sent out another adjuster, who had a much different take on their roof.
“He said basically you have wear and tear,” Alan recalled. “The damage was about $500 and your deductible is more than that so we’re not going to give you anything. He said, there hasn’t been hail in St. John since 2022.”
According to the National Weather Service, there were several reports of hail in Northwest Indiana on March 26, including 1 inch size hail in St. John.
“Who are we dealing with? This is a company we expect to be reputable, responsible,” said Irma Johnsen. “They have worn us out.”
The Johnsens said despite the hail reports, they were still denied by state farm.
The I-Team reached out to the insurance company and a spokesperson responded in part, “With any claim, State Farm seeks to provide our customer all benefits to which they are entitled within the terms of the insurance policy. We continue to actively work with our customer on their claim to understand the facts of the loss, identify the damages and applicable coverage, and ultimately resolve their claim.”
Alan Johnsen said within a couple days of the I-Team reaching out to State Farm, they were told a new adjuster was going to come out. They said he examined the roof and agreed to cover the cost. They said he wrote them a check on the spot for $17,908.67.
State Farm said they take pride in their customer service and are committed to paying what they owe promptly, courteously and efficiently.
If you find yourself in the Johnsens’ situation you should take as many picture and video documentation as you can once the storm has passed through and get an estimate of the damage from a trusted contractor.
If you feel your insurance company is lowballing you, you can report it to your state’s Department of Insurance.
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Game 2 of the NBA Finals tips off tonight in Oklahoma City. Back here Indiana, the Pacers are hosting a watch party at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Official watch party tickets sold out within 30 minutes of being released. But you can still attend the watch party according to Ticketmaster, verified resale tickets are available for resale.
Gates for the watch party open at 7 p.m., with the game tipping off at 8 p.m.
Concessions are open and the jumbotron is lowered. Inside the arena, fans will also be able to check out the massive Larry O’Brien trophy.
This evening will also feature in game giveaways, the Pacers Entertainment Team and Concourse Entertainment.
“I think the Pacers will be ready to go. Rick will have it ready to go. But here, it’s a watch party again. I’m looking forward to it,” play-by-play announcer for the Pacers Chris Denari said. “I’ve helped host two of them. I was in Oklahoma City for Game 1, but I’ll be right here tonight with all the great Pacers fans at the Fieldhouse.”
With Game 2 tipping off this evening, we asked Denari about the keys to the Pacers winning and going up 2-0.
“Well they’ll hopefully get off to a little bit better start than they did in Game 1. We know this team is capable of a comeback — but get off to a better start, take care of the ball,” he said. “… Don’t get behind so early, but if they do, don’t go away. Because you’ll never want to go away from this Pacers team.”
Denari says he can feel the energy from all of Indianapolis and the state.
“It’s something special to go around town seeing people with their Pacers gear on. You go in the neighborhoods, people are flying Pacers flags. This is just a chance to bring people together, right?” Denari said.
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Nicole Cardaño-Hillary checked a lot of boxes regarding what Indiana women’s basketball coach Teri Moren likes to have from her guards.
Cardaño-Hillary could see the floor well.
Cardaño-Hillary could defend and was opportunistic.
Cardaño-Hillary could shoot well enough to keep an opposing defense off-balance.
Cardaño-Hillary did more than just complement the star players; she could go on a star turn herself.
Those traits are one reason why Indiana’s upward trajectory continued with Cardaño-Hillary in the program from 2020-22. She was a major part of Indiana teams that advanced to the Elite Eight in 2021 and the Sweet 16 in 2022.
Cardaño-Hillary, a 6-foot guard, came to Indiana as a polished player. She played at George Mason from 2017-20. She averaged 18.8 points for George Mason, and she was the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year in 2019 after she averaged 20.4 points.
With stars Grace Berger, Mackenzie Holmes, Ali Patberg, Jaelynn Penn and Aleksa Gulbe in the starting lineup, Cardaño-Hillary wasn’t called upon to do as much scoring for the Hoosiers. She came off the bench in 2021 until January when Penn got hurt. Penn left the team in February, and Cardaño-Hillary was inserted into the starting five for good.
It was the only starting lineup switch Moren made all season, and it paid off. With Cardaño-Hillary in the starting lineup, Indiana was 16-2 in 2021, including the 3-1 run in the NCAA Tournament.
Cardaño-Hillary had a season-high 17 points in a game against Iowa in February, but her most impactful game was in the NCAA Tournament against North Carolina State. Though she was 5 of 15 from the field, Cardaño-Hillary scored 14 points and had four steals as the Hoosiers bested the Wolf Pack 73-70 to advance to the Elite Eight.
Steals were part of Cardaño-Hillary’s stock-and-trade. At George Mason, she led the Atlantic 10 in thefts in each of her three seasons. She averaged 1.8 steals in her two seasons at Indiana.
Established as a starter for the 2022 season, Cardaño-Hillary averaged 11.6 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.3 steals. She improved her 3-point shooting by eight percentage points to 35.7%.
She had 29 points in the season opener against Butler. She was very good in the Big Ten Tournament as Indiana advanced to the championship game. She scored 16 points and had 11 rebounds in a 70-62 semifinal win over Ohio State, and she scored 19 points with seven rebounds in the championship game loss to Iowa.
After her eligibility was exhausted, Cardaño-Hillary played for IDK Euskotren in Spain, her home country.
Cardaño-Hillary is the first of the core group of starters who played more than one season for Indiana to enter the top 16. From her spot on up to No. 1, all of the Hoosiers had careers that lifted Indiana into a position as one of the best teams in the Big Ten in the 2020s.
Previous women’s basketball top 16 players of the 2020s
No. 10 – Brenna Wise
No. 11 – Shay Ciezki
No. 12 – Jaelynn Penn
No. 13 – Karoline Striplin
No. 14 – LIlly Meister
No. 15 – Kiandra Browne
No. 16 – Julianna LaMendola
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana point guard Xavier Johnson is ranked 11th in our countdown of the best Indiana players of the 2020s so far. But if you take the production out of it, Johnson might be at the top of the list of players who embody what Indiana basketball has been all about in the 2020s.
Why? Sometimes Johnson was great. Sometimes Johnson was not so great.
Johnson was on the court for quite a bit of it. He had three event-filled seasons with the Hoosiers from 2021-24. He featured prominently in one NCAA Tournament season, was hurt for another, and then was part of the reason the Hoosiers fell short of expectations in the 2024 season.
Johnson arrived at Indiana as a seasoned veteran. He had played three seasons at Pittsburgh and started all but two games of his 84 with the Panthers. What Mike Woodson wanted was an experienced point guard to run his offense and to provide a dynamic presence on the floor.
At times, that’s exactly what Woodson got. Asked to be more of a distributor than a scorer as he was at Pitt, Johnson’s scoring average declined from 14.2 points in his final season at Pitt to 12.1 in his first season with the Hoosiers.
Johnson’s assist average also dropped from 5.7 to 5.1 per game, but he seemed to get better as he went along in his first Indiana season. That was born out in his hot streak to end the 2022 campaign.
In the final five games of the regular season and in three Big Ten Tournament games, Johnson averaged 18.1 points, 6.8 assists and made 45.2% of his 3-point shots.
Johnson fell off to 10.5 points per game in the NCAA Tournament games against Wyoming and Saint Mary’s, but excitement was high that Johnson could replicate that kind of production in the 2022-23 season and lead Indiana to the top of the Big Ten.
That’s not how it played out for either Johnson or the Hoosiers.
Indiana started 7-0 and reached a high-water mark of a No. 10 ranking before it all started to unravel.
When Indiana faced top-level competition, it struggled. Indiana lost 89-75 against No. 10 Arizona in Las Vegas and one week later at Kansas, it fell apart for both Indiana and Johnson.
Indiana lost 84-62 at Allen Fieldhouse, but Johnson came out of it the worst. He broke his right foot when it was stepped on it in a scramble for a loose ball, and he did not play again that season.
Indiana made the tournament without Johnson, but Woodson had built much of the team identity based on Johnson’s skill set, so the Hoosiers fell short of expectations as far as Big Ten contention was concerned.
Johnson got a waiver from the NCAA to play another season, but 2023 was also a star-crossed, injury-plagued season. Johnson missed seven games in December with another foot injury and six more in February with an elbow injury.
Johnson never got into rhythm. He had his worst Indiana season as he averaged 7.6 points and 2.8 assists. Indiana was depending on Johnson to lead the way for a team that was inexperienced elsewhere on the floor, but that was not to be. Indiana finished 19-14, and it was the beginning of the end for Woodson as head coach.
Johnson continues to pursue his basketball dream. He played for three G League teams in the 2024-25 season. In 25 total games, he averaged 2.6 points.
Johnson did better at Indiana, but in many ways, his ups and downs were symbolic of what Indiana went through as a program for much of the 2020s.
Previous men’s basketball top 16 players of the 2020s
No. 12 – Justin Smith
No. 13 – Rob Phinisee
No. 14 – Luke Goode
No. 15 – Devonte Green
No. 16 – Anthony Leal
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