Three’s company, not a crowd.
But it’s definitely making the trophy case in Fort Thomas a bit more packed.
In a thrilling girls 36th District Championship showdown on Cowens Family Court at Newport Central Catholic High School, Highlands clinched their third consecutive district title, defeating the host 59-50.
Since their heartbreaking loss to Newport Central Catholic in the 2022 championship, the Bluebirds have made it a priority to reclaim their dominance.
“It takes a lot of hardwork and dedication from our players,” Highlands coach Jaime Richey said. “We had a really hard year four years ago, when NCC beat us in the finals and most of these girls were eighth graders and freshmen. They stayed within our system and kept working. It’s been paying off each year.”
From that day on, the Bluebirds have also had no issues against their district rivals, winning the last previous four meetings by an average of 23.3 points a game, including a 62-43 win in the regular season (Jan. 17).
This time, however, the Thoroughbreds proved they weren’t going down without a fight.
“First off, credit to Highlands—they’re a really, really good team,” NewCath head coach Trevor Steiner said. “But I am extremely proud of the commitment and buy-in from our players, starting with our seniors and extending all the way down to our middle schoolers. What we saw in this game was a lot of hard work coming to fruition on one of the largest stages.”
Two standout names took center stage—Highlands’ Marissa Green and Newport Central Catholic’s Caroline Eaglin, both Division I commits and All-Region First Team selections.
Green surpassed 1,000 career rebounds while coming just shy of a triple-double, finishing with 20 points, 16 rebounds, and nine blocks.
“It means a lot,” Green said. “It could be one of our last so it’s definitely a great milestone to reach. I felt like I was well-rounded. Getting stops and converting that on the offensive end.”
Eaglin delivered a stellar performance herself, scoring 24 points while surpassing 2,500 career points.
“We knew we had to make things difficult for her,” Richey said. “She’s an elite scorer that can do it at all three phases. We knew all her shots had to be hard. I thought Marissa did an outstanding job in the paint making her shots harder than they usually are.”
The focus started on the defensive end, and while it seemed to succeed at first starting the game off on a 9-0 run for Highlands, foul trouble started to hinder the Bluebirds and the ‘Breds tied it up at 13 after one.
A combined 11 points in the second quarter from Highlands’ top two scorers Marissa Green and Kaylee Mills—who finished with 12—gave the Bluebirds a 26-23 lead at halftime.
Maren Orme came alive in the second half, scoring all nine of her points in that stretch, helping Highlands maintain a 43-38 advantage heading into the fourth.
A 10-5 run put Highlands up 53-43 with around four minutes, seemingly putting the game out of reach, but Newport Central Catholic responded with a quick 7-0 surge, putting them in position to tie. However, the Bluebirds held their composure and sealed the win at the free-throw line.
Green was named the MVP of the tournament, while her teammates Katie Bucher and Kaylee Mills earned spots on the All-Tournament Team.
Caroline Eaglin and Jaylee Brannen were named to the All-Tournament Team for the Thoroughbreds.
Highlands will enter Sunday at Truist Arena for the Ninth Region tournament as one of the four No. 1 seeds, alongside Cooper, Dixie Heights and Notre Dame.
NewCath will join St. Henry, Holy Cross and Ryle as the No. 2 seeds.
BLUEBIRDS 59, THOROUGHBREDS 50
HIGHLANDS — 13-13-17-16 — 59
NEWPORT CENTRAL CATHOLIC — 13-10-15-12 — 50
Scoring
Highlands (59) — Green 20, Mills 12, Orme 9, Berry 5, Barber 4, Bucher 4, Barrett 3, Richey 2
Newport Central Catholic (50) — Eaglin 24, Cole 8, McFarland 7, K. Brannen 6, Giesler 3, J. Brannen 2
Game Stats
3-Pointers: Highlands 3, NewCath 8
Free Throws: Highlands 12/27, NewCath 6/8
Fouls: Highlands 16, NewCath 18
Records: Highlands 21-8, NewCath 16-16