The Walton-Verona and Holy Cross girls basketball teams soundly knocked off their opponents in the first round of the All “A” State Tournament at The Corbin Arena. Here is how they happened:
Walton-Verona 45, Mayfield 30
The Bearcats used their size and depth to their advantage defensively to beat the Cardinals.
Walton-Verona shot 37% from the field and held Mayfield to just 18% shooting. Elin Logue made five 3-pointers on her way to 17 points and Cam Christy scored 11.
“We got into what we like to do – get the ball out in transition, play some inside-out basketball. We played well,” Walton-Verona head coach Rianna Gayheart said. “They tried to turn us over quite a bit. We were able to handle the ball for the most part. I think their downfall is they just didn’t have a lot of options coming off the bench to help give them a breather. They probably couldn’t pressure as much as they like to because they mainly play five kids.”
Braylin Terrell once again controlled the paint grabbing 10 rebounds to go with seven points and three blocked shots. Ava Kendall chipped in six points and six rebounds.
“That was the biggest thing – getting the nerves out,” Kendall said. “We had to focus on playing our game. Now that we’ve played one game here, it shouldn’t be as bad the next game.”
Walton-Verona (12-7) battles Nicholas County on Friday at 10 a.m. in the All “A” State Quarterfinals back in Corbin.
Holy Cross 68, Whitefield Academy 30
The Indians used their size and quickness to steal the ball 16 times, leading to 16 assists and a 50% shooting day from the field on the way to the convincing win.
“The pressure really got to them,” Holy Cross head coach Ted Arlinghaus said. “Even when they were getting shots off, they were all contested. We were just trying to run them off the three-point line. That’s what they like to do. We just didn’t want them to get a clear look at it as best as we could.”
Holy Cross won the rebounding battle, 28-19. Aaliyah Hayes grabbed 10 rebounds to go with nine points for Holy Cross. Julia Hunt led the Indians with 17 points and six rebounds.
The Indians saw seven players score. Jayda Hill made three 3-pointers on her way to nine points in reserve action. Aumani Nelson, Miyah Wimzie and Aniyah Carter scored eight each.
“Our defense is really strong, which helps us,” Wimzie said. “It’s the thing that gets us going. We’re a quick team so anybody can throw anything at us and we can change up our defense. We know how to change the tempo of other teams.”
Holy Cross (16-5) takes on Owsley County on Friday at 8:30 a.m. in the All “A” State Quarterfinals back in Corbin.
St. Henry 34, Boone County 29
St. Henry survived a defensive battle with Boone County on Wednesday night in Florence.
Jayne Knollman led the way with 11 points, Sydney Bollman and Kayla Unkraut with eight points apiece.
The Crusaders (9-8) won their second straight and got over .500 in the process. They’ll host Conner on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
Boone County (3-14) lost their 10th straight, seven of those losses coming by five points or less.
Other Girls Basketball Score
Grant County 71, Ludlow 44