The talk in the preseason and all throughout the regular season has been about the defending Ninth Region champs and the team that has been the region’s standard for the last seven-plus seasons.
They both happen to be located in the same town five miles from each other in Union. During the regular season and in district tournament action, the Cooper Jaguars (26-3) and Ryle Raiders (22-8) have gone a combined 16-0 against the rest of the 9th Region.
Both have lived up to expectations for the most part leading into the start of the Ninth Region Tournament on Sunday. Cooper has gone 9-0 against the seven opponents in the region tournament with only Ryle coming within single digits of the Jaguars in a 63-58 defeat at Cooper on Jan. 13. The Thursday rematch for the 33rd District championship back at Cooper was not as close with Cooper winning 61-48.
After losing to defending state champion Sacred Heart and an Ohio defending state champion in Cincinnati Purcell Marian, the Jaguars caught fire winning 15 in a row that state contender DuPont Manual stopped with a 53-42 victory on Jan. 28 in the Louisville Invitational Tournament. Cooper has won nine overall since then and 24 of it last 25 games.
Cooper has hung its hat on its potent man-to-man defense all season, limiting opponents to an average of just below 38 points per game. Then on offense, the Jaguars have a number of players that can shoot all over the court. Senior 6-foot-2-inch versatile forward Whitney Lind leads the way averaging 16.8 points per game and junior guard Liz Freihofer is second at 10 points per game. Lind is especially tough in transition.
The two have had a lot of help around them, forcing teams to defend them one-on-one. That includes senior guard Kay Freihofer, junior forward Logan Palmer, junior forward Bella Deere, junior guard Maleah Alexander and eighth grade guard Haylee Noel.
“We really rely on our leadership from our seniors with Kay, Whitney and Yami Rondon with what they’ve done for our program throughout their careers and our underclassmen as well,” said Justin Holthaus, Cooper head coach. “But our juniors and seniors continue to answer the call and play for each other. It’s a tight-knit group. They’re good friends on and off the court so that makes it special. There’s just that deeper bond. It’s been a good season so far. But now you get to the region tournament and everybody is ready to go. We’re excited to go.”
Cooper drew 36th District runner-up Newport Central Catholic (17-10) in the first game Sunday at Truist Arena on the Northern Kentucky University campus at 1 p.m. The Jaguars just beat the Thoroughbreds, 72-53 on the Hill on Feb. 11.
Newport Central Catholic has been a region contender in the past and has taken steps back toward that in recent years. Sophomore guard Caroline Eaglin has picked up the scoring Rylee Turner displayed last year before taking her talents to Thomas More University averaging 25.2 points per game.
“They’re talented. They’re experienced and they’re a top team in the state for a reason,” NewCath head coach Ralph Meyer said of Cooper. “We have to go out and compete for 32 minutes just the same way Cooper will have to. I have a lot of respect for Justin and his program.”
The Thoroughbreds have seen success when others help create lanes for her. Junior guard Delaney Green and sophomore forward Jaylee Brannen have provided complentary scoring to Eaglin, averaging 7.4 and 6.9 points per game.
The second game of the afternoon session at 2:30 p.m. pits the 35th District champion Notre Dame Pandas (18-10) against the 34th District runner-up St. Henry Crusaders (18-12). Notre Dame won 51-40 at St. Henry on Feb. 11.
Notre Dame comes in confident with their fifth straight 35th District championships despite having one senior in forward Noelle Hubert, who averages 16.9 per game. Standing 6-4, sophomore center Sophia Gibson has given the Pandas a nice weapon inside with other players such as sophomore guard Maya Lawrie and junior forward Kendra Collins among others complementing them.
“We have been improving I’d say the last week and a half,” said Kes Murphy, Notre Dame head coach. “Even after the (George Rogers Clark) game, we had a good half. We’ve had some good practices. We went into Ryle and didn’t shoot the ball well, but we played better. I think our kids are starting to figure things out and a gaining a whole lot more confidence. There is less thinking and more reacting and just playing. At the same time on the defensive end, we’ve been a lot more disciplined and finishing plays by boxing out. When shots are going in, that’s a big deal so I feel we’re gaining some momentum. We’re growing up a bit.”
St. Henry is back in the region tournament for the first time since 2018. Junior guard Kayla Unkraut has again put up another nice season averaging 14.2 points per game. Senior forward/guard Chilota Iloegbunam and junior center/forward Taylor Hill have given the Crusaders some balance. The winner of the afternoon sessions plays at 6:30 p.m. on Friday in the semifinals back at Truist Arena.
“We put a schedule together this year based on what we felt we were going to get toward the Ninth Region,” said Todd Smart, St. Henry head coach. “When you play the Cooper’s, Notre Dame’s and the Ryle’s in the regular season, those are pretty much the ones that are going to be there in the end. We feel pretty good about this draw. We’re looking forward to the challenge.”
The team that wins two games in the bottom bracket will survive two brutal battles. The Ninth Region championship game is Saturday at 7 p.m., semifinals Friday at 6:30 and 8 p.m.
Ryle is back in the region tournament for the seventh time in eight seasons out of the rugged 33rd District since Katie Haitz took over the program in 2015. The Raiders have gone a region-best 14-3 over that time with three straight region titles between 2018-20 and a state championship in 2019 to go with two region runner-up finishes in 2016 and ’21. Ryle won five district championships in Haitz’s first six seasons before Cooper won it for the first time in school history last year.
The Raiders drew the 36th District champion Highlands Bluebirds (23-8) in the 8 p.m. game Sunday. It will feature a huge battle in the paint between two of the best centers in the region. Ryle junior Sarah Baker and Highlands sophomore Marissa Green stand 6-foot-2. Green averages 17.7 and 9.1 rebounds per game and Baker averages 11.2 giving the Raiders good inside-outside balance.
Scoring balance has again been a key to the Ryle success starting with defensive stops. Senior guard Abby Holtman leads the way averaging 15.5 points per game and junior forward Quinn Eubank is next at 14.2 per game. The two can shoot all over the court along with senior guard Austin Johnson. Freshman small forward Jaelyn Jones has consistently improved throughout the season with senior guard Emerson Fong and junior guard Gracie Carrigan giving the Raiders nice minutes off the bench. Senior Meredith Snider has also been back in action recently.
“We’ve been in the arena and things like that,” Haitz said. “The experience is definitely going to help with the first game. (The Blubirds) are very disciplined. They move the ball well. We just have to make sure we do the little things correctly and hopefully, we can work together as a team to get ourselves to have a successful game.”
Highlands has returned to its successful standards after a down year last year recording its 10th season of 20 or more wins in 11 seasons. Head coach Jaime Walz-Richey pointed to the leadership of senior point guard Alyssa Harris for a big part of that success. Harris averages 8.1 points per game.
The growth of the younger players has been noted as Highlands has hit just below 31% from outside creating driving lanes and one-on-one opportunities for Green. The likes of sophomore Adrienne Harris, freshmen Saylor Macke, Kaylee Mills and Avery Barber among others have had big games for the Bluebirds this year.
“That’s something we said before the district championship (Thursday),” Richey said. “It’s just another game of basketball. It really is. You put your shoes on. We’re going out there to have fun doing the things we’ve done all season. We’ll see what happens.”
Mills, freshmen Katie Bucher and Natalie Hinegardner know about postseason success. They played on the Highlands girls soccer team that won the 9th Region for the fourth time in five years this past fall.
Ryle rallied to beat Highlands, 65-59 on Jan. 3 in Fort Thomas for its sixth straight win in the series and eighth in the last nine meetings. The Bluebirds led for a good bit of the game including a 47-39 advantage with 6:40 to go. But Jones gave the Raiders the lead for good with a three at 52-51 with 3:56 remaining after Highlands committed two turnovers dribbling off their own feet in two possessions. The Raiders made their free throws down the stretch to pull off the win.
The first game of the evening session at 6:30 p.m. puts the nine-time 34th District champion Dixie Heights Colonels (25-7) against 35th District runner-up and All “A” State champion Holy Cross Indians (25-7). Host Dixie Heights won the Dec. 6 meeting between the two, 61-54.
Dixie Heights has put together another solid season led by its two senior guards in Sammy Berman and Ella Steczynski averaging 14.8 and 12.9 points per game. Their three region losses have come to Ryle, Cooper and another 33rd District opponent in Conner. Berman and others create mismatches often driving, drawing help and kicking it out to Steczynski among others for wide-open three-pointers.
The Colonels have seen a number of others step forward to help overcome injuries throughout the course of the season. That includes the likes of freshman guards Coralee Pelfrey and Aubrey Elkins, junior forward Abby Thelen, junior guard Jalynn Brooks and sophomore guard Bella Crawford.
“It’s going to have to start on defense and our defense will carry us into our offense,” said Joel Steczynski, Dixie Heights head coach. “If we can get down and play defense like we have been, we’ll be in the position that we want to be. Holy Cross is a nicely-balanced team. We like where we’re at. We’re finally healthy and we’re finally clicking on both offense and defense. It should be a fun tournament.”
Holy Cross has put together a nice season behind the dynamic duo of junior 6-2 center Julia Hunt and senior post Nejai Lewis, who average 13.8 and 10.4 points per game. They give Holy Cross the height advantage in this game.
Defense, outside shooting and free throws have been a key to the success of the Indians. Holy Cross entered the postseason shooting 29% from 3-point range and 65% from the free-throw line. A number of others have helped out Lewis and Hunt including senior guards Aleah Arlinghaus, Sarah Bottom and Elizabeth McCoy. The winners of the evening session play at 8 p.m. Friday in the semifinals.
“We’re battle-tested. We went through the All “A” Region and All “A” State,” said Ted Arlinghaus, Holy Cross head coach. “We’ve played on a college floor (at Eastern Kentucky University) for four games. It’s a different setting when you play on a college floor. It’s a bigger floor so we’re used to that. We’ve gone through a gauntlet schedule. We’ll be ready for them.”
Dixie Heights owns the second-most number of region tournament wins since 2015 with eight is tied for second with Holmes. The Colonels also have the region’s second-longest current run of region tournament appearances at 12 in a row.
Three teams overall have been to the region tournament at least 10 years in row. Highlands leads that list at 13 straight. Dixie Heights is second with 12 straight and Holy Cross is third with 10 straight.