It didn’t matter that Owensboro Catholic started the game on a six-minute scoring drought or finished 13-12 from the free throw line. The Lady Aces found a way to grind out one of their most gritty wins of the season against Breckinridge County 46-34.
“Defensively I thought we were pretty good tonight,” Owensboro Catholic head coach Michael Robertson said. “Offensively we struggled. Whether it was from the free throw line, two-point line or three-point line, there was a lid on the basket and probably the same for them. It was good defense by both teams. I was happy with us defensively, our pressure, and our ability to get on them, but I wasn’t happy with our execution on the offensive end.”
In a potential regional tournament matchup, offense was nonexistent between the two in the first quarter, with the Lady Tigers taking an 8-6 lead into the second quarter. After scoring four of her teams six points to start the game, the Lady Aces Taylor Mannahan added five more points in the second. Katie Hagan also found her shooting stroke, scoring all six of her points.
Owensboro Catholic head coach Michael Robertson attributed his team’s second quarter offensive onslaught to being able to finish in transition and score off of their defense.
The Lady Aces took a 24-19 lead into halftime, but were unable to replicate the offensive success they found in the second quarter. The third quarter was similar to the first – neither team was able to find any consistency on the offensive end and both defenses held the other in check.
Owensboro Catholic started to pull away in the fourth quarter, but shot 8-14 at the line – allowing the Lady Tigers to hang around. Robertson acknowledged after the game that his team will need to clean up their free-throw shooting if they want to go far in the playoffs.
Mannahan finished with a team-high 15 points, two rebounds, and one steal, while Sophia Newby added eight points and five rebounds. Aubrey Randolph recorded seven points, eight rebounds, one assist, one steal, and one block.
Securing the first seed in the district, Owensboro Catholic will play Apollo in the first round on Monday at 6 pm. Both the 9th district and 3rd region for both the boys and girls is being held at the Owensboro Sports Center.
Aces overcome eight-point deficit
Jumping out to a quick 8-2 lead the Aces were poised to run away with it early, but a 6-0 response by University Heights stalled all momentum. With leading scorer Luke Beickman sidelined, Owensboro Catholic’s offense lacked their usual crispness – instead seeming impatient.
Owensboro Catholic head coach Tim Riley stated they settled for jump shots and lacked aggressiveness. Yet, after trailing 31-23 halfway through the second quarter, the Aces pulled themselves out of their slump – dominating the Blazers in the second half to win 67-52.
“In the first half we stood around, didn’t move the ball, and didn’t compete,” Riley said. “It was humbling. We came back in the second half and outscored them by 15 points.”
So, what changed? They started to attack the rim, shot 13-21 from the floor, and locked in defensively. Riley and his coaching staff challenged their players at the half to step up and they responded in kind. Davyn Randolph hit two of his three threes in the third quarter, while Waryn Ebelhar and Solly Smith combined for 24 second-half points.
Defensively, the Aces held University Heights two leading scorers Tylin George and Elijah Walton under their season averages of 31.8 and 19.6.
“We did a good job on those two,” Riley said. “We held them under their averages. They average over 50 points so to hold them under that was good defense.”
Smith finished with a team-high 26 points, while Ebelhar added 12 points. Dre’Mail Carothers was third on the team in scoring with 10 points and Randolph recorded nine points.
The Aces return to action next week when they play Apollo in the first round of the 9th district tournament.
