With less than 20 seconds remaining, Daviess County head coach Natalie Payne subbed out her starters so they could receive a standing ovation from the rambunctious Lady Panthers’ fanbase. When the final buzzer sounded Sunday afternoon, the DC players mobbed each other in celebration as Post Malone’s “Congratulations” blasted over the loudspeakers following the team’s 61-46 win over Owensboro Catholic to secure the program’s first-ever 3rd Region tournament title.
“I knew going in that we weren’t going to play scared because we had been playing our best basketball at the right time,” Payne said. “I have seen it in practices leading up to the game — the laser focus. Even our coaching staff had been complimenting how focused we were on everything we wanted to do defensively and our rotations. The kids were just dialed in to take care of business.”
The Lady Aces took a 15-13 lead into the second quarter, thanks to six points from senior Aubrey Randolph and a combined three 3-pointers from Layla Martin and Taylor Mannahan. Daviess County’s Zoey Beehn got to work early, scoring eight points in the first quarter.
Tied 13-13 with 10 seconds left in the opening frame, Randolph drove to the hoop through multiple defenders to beat the buzzer.
In the second quarter, Kennedy Lane came alive for Daviess County, scoring seven points, while Lily Hoagland added five.
Allie Martson, Mannahan, and Randolph combined for all 14 of the Lady Aces’ second-quarter points to take a 29-28 lead into halftime. Out of the half, the Lady Panthers made multiple adjustments that allowed them to take over the rest of the game.
“We made a couple of switches on defense because we were in foul trouble,” Payne said. “We put Molly Hancock on Randolph and Kennedy on Mannahan. I’m not saying that was the difference in the game, but we weren’t going to be denied once we got a few stops. We started gaining momentum a little at a time and continuing to focus on defense and rebounding.”
With Beehn as a focal point in the paint, the Lady Panthers’ defense held Owensboro Catholic to four points in the third quarter.
“In the third quarter was when we were determined,” Lane said. “We had it in our minds that we could go to Rupp, so we were determined to come out and fight.”
Lane took her game to another level in the third quarter, consistently attacking and finding herself at the free-throw line. Shooting 7-7 at the line, she finished the quarter with 12 of her game-high 26 points. Seconds before the quarter ended, she sidestepped a defender and hit an impressive buzzer-beating three to push the lead to 47-33.
After being held scoreless through the first three quarters, Lady Aces’ senior Karmin Riley hit two threes in the fourth.
As a team, Catholic shot 14-25 from the line, compared to Daviess County’s 27-34.
“I have been telling them the last two weeks, free throws could cost us a game when it mattered,” Owensboro Catholic head coach Michael Robertson said. “We had been struggling in that department.”
Lily Hoagland was second on Daviess County in scoring with 18 points, while Beehn recorded another double-double.
Randolph led Owensboro Catholic in scoring with 12 points, while Martson (11) and Mannahan (10) also finished in double figures.
While it wasn’t the ending the Lady Aces preferred, Robertson was overall pleased with how the year played out.
“The season was a success with this young group,” Robertson said. “Expectations outside of the locker room were not as high as past years, and I think we succeeded in getting back to the championship game. I hate losing, but the girls played hard.”
A relatively young team, Owensboro Catholic is losing seniors Karmin Riley and Randolph to graduation. The two were instrumental in the Lady Aces winning four straight 9th District Championships and a 3rd Region Championship in 2023.
“Words cannot express how much Aubrey and Karmin meant to this program,” Robertson said. “They will be truly missed, but I am pretty sure their careers aren’t over. They will be successful at the next level and look for big things out of the two of them.”
The Lady Panthers took the rest of Sunday to celebrate their accomplishment but are back to practice today as they prepare for the first round of the state tournament. Their first game is Thursday at 8:30 p.m. ET against 12th Region Champion Danville Christian.
“I think we have to keep doing the little things that you do come tournament time,” Payne said. “You have to get three stops in a row as many times as you can. You have to take care of the basketball, know the time to score, and believe in the game plan. We’ve always detailed scouting reports, and the kids are buying into that and watching film. There is a lot more that goes into it than us just coming out here and trying to win ball games.”
