Owensboro Catholic’s strong season came to a close in the Elite Eight on Friday morning, as they couldn’t slow down Sacred Heart in the second half—nullifying a strong first half defensively en route to a 67-45 loss. And while the result might not be what they wanted, the Lady Aces leave Rupp Arena proud of what they accomplished and excited for the future of the program.
Owensboro Catholic got the contest started, as senior Maddie Hayden got a left-handed layup in transition to get on the board first. But after a pair of free throws got the Valkyries on the board, a corner three from Senior Triniti Ralston and an offensive rebound and bucket from junior Angelina Pelayo gave them a 9-0 run and a 9-2 lead with 3:30 to go in the first quarter.
Sophomore Aubrey Randolph went on to break the drought with a layup shortly after to end the run, but this gave Sacred Heart enough momentum to take a 12-7 lead into the second quarter.
The Lady Aces kept trying to chip away at the lead in the second though, making it a one-possession game at 16-14 with a three from sophomore Karmin Riley. However, three offensive rebounds and a pair of free throws for Pelayo kickstarted a 6-0 run that made it a 22-14 Valkyries lead with 1:45 to go in the first half.
Owensboro Catholic went on to hit just one more three in the quarter, while Pelayo started another 6-0 run with a pair from the charity stripe to send Sacred Heart into halftime up 28-17. Head Coach Michael Robertson was pleased with the way his team defended in the first half, keeping the Valkyries from getting out in the open floor.
“We really wanted to stop them in transition and make them hit jumpshots,” Robertson said. “Ralston hit a couple I believe early and twelve hit a couple. But we didn’t want their big two, Johnson and Bender, getting hot so our focus was on them.”
But the Lady Aces struggled from the field coming out of the locker room, as Sacred Heart opened up the second half with a 10-0 run capped off by a three from Ralston to make it a 38-19 game with 3:30 to go in the third quarter. Owensboro Catholic went on to grab nine points after a three from Riley, but Sacred Heart still headed into the fourth leading 47-26.
And that was all the momentum the Valkyries needed, as sophomore ZaKiyah Johnson (10) and junior Reagan Bender (eight) combined for 18 points in the fourth and handed the Lady Aces a 67-45 loss to close their season in the Elite Eight. Robertson said after the game that he was pleased with the way his team battled, but that it just seemed like there was a lid on the basket today against a talented Sacred Heart team.
“We fought, I thought,” Robertson said. “We just couldn’t hit any shots today. We struggled shooting the ball. I guess we left it all out there on Wednesday. That’s a good team over there. They’re very difficult to guard. People we were wanting to take shots, took shots and hit shots. So credit to them.”
Johnson and Riley were the only ones to finish in double figures with 12 and 11 respectively, while Randolph followed close behind with nine. It was very emotional on the bench as the season came to a close in Rupp Arena for the Lady Aces, as seniors Katie Riney, Maddie Hayden and Lexi and Lauren Keelin are set to graduate this spring.
One of the team’s main goals coming into the season was to get back to the state tournament, as this senior class had never gotten to play there after their game was canceled during their freshman season because of COVID. Johnson and company are thrilled to have done so, but are sad to have their journey together come to an end.
“It’s just so devastating to see the seniors leave,” Johnson said. “We’re such good friends. Just really sad to see them go.”
While he’s sad it has come to an end as well, Robertson said that he had a blast this season with this group and is happy to have gotten to coach such an enjoyable team.
“We had a lot of fun together as a team,” Robertson said. “This group who grew [so much]… They’re a fun group to be around. They’re very caring. As great of basketball players that they are, they’re even better people. They’d do anything for you. So I’m really happy to say I coached this group and that I still get to coach some of them.”
Robertson went on, saying that there’s no one word that could describe his team and that he loves them all to death. Owning a 9th District Championship, 3rd Region Championship and 26-10 overall record at the end of the year, Robertson is proud of the year they had and is excited to see what the future holds for the Lady Aces.
“This group I would say about a month ago, not a lot of people would’ve given us a chance even to get up here,” Robertson said. “We were on a four-game losing streak and we weren’t connected. We joked as a staff that we were too nice, that the girls liked each other too much. They didn’t have that fight. That meanness. They brought it out this last three weeks and we really started to fight. Hopefully we teach that to the younger group that’s coming up and I like what we’ve got. The nucleus we got back.”
