Ladybirds, Thoroughbreds run away from 36th Semifinal opponents

 

G. Michael Graham Photos. Above: Highlands' Izzy Schultz (13) sets up for a free throw in the second half of Tuesday's 36th District semifinal win over Dayton. Bottom: Newport Central Catholic senior Nikki Kiernan (24) contests a shot by Newport's Kylie Orr (23). Kiernan had seven blocks and 14 points in the Thoroughbred win. Highlands and NewCath face off for the district title on Thursday at 7 p.m. on The Hill.

 

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

NEWPORT – They may have entered the 36th Girls Basketball District Tournament eagerly anticipating a rematch with each other.

But the first order of business for the Highlands Ladybirds and host Newport Central Catholic Thoroughbreds was to take care of their semifinal opponents and nab a spot in next week’s 9th Region Tournament at the Bank of Kentucky Center. That did not turn out to be a problem as the Highlands cruised past the Dayton Lady Devils, 70-27 and NewCath ran away from the Newport Lady Wildcats, 63-39 on Tuesday.

Highlands and NewCath play for the district championship on Thursday at 7 p.m. The Ladybirds won the crown last year and eliminated the Thoroughbreds in the semifinals. The teams received seeds this year.

In the first game, Highlands jumped out to a huge lead and never looked back. The Ladybirds led 28-8 after the first quarter and 51-13 at halftime to enforce the running clock to start the second half. The starters rested in the second half.

“We told the girls, ‘Let’s just worry about ourselves,” said Jaime Walz-Richey, Highlands Head Coach. “Don’t look at the scoreboard. We had to defend well and convert on steals and we did that for the most part.”

Highlands (22-6) saw four players reach double figures. McKenzie Leigh led the way with 13 points, three blocks and five rebounds. Haley Coffey and Zoie Barth followed with 11 each and Brianna Adler scored 10. Barth made all four free-throw attempts.

“We came out focused,” Coffey said. “Winning is good, but we’re here to get better. It’s about how we play. If we’re expected to win, Jaime will say we need to execute our plays, play right and do the best we can.”

The Ladybirds once again made many trips to the free-throw line. They hit 22-of-38 attempts for 58 percent compared to 6-of-9 for 67 percent for the Lady Devils (7-19).

Highlands made 21-of-45 shots for 47 percent, including 3-of-7 three-point attempts for 43 percent. Dayton hit 10-of-37 shots for 27 percent, including 1-of-11 three-point tries for nine percent.

The Lady Devils did not see anyone reach double-figures. Their leading scorer was Sadie Boles with eight points.

The second game saw NewCath (25-4) use its patented pressure defense to pull away. Nikki Kiernan led the way with 14 points and seven blocked shots. Ansley Davenport and Sarah Neace followed with nine each.

“Our defense got to them a bit,” said George Stoll, NewCath Head Coach. “We had a decent amount of turnovers. That’s what we want to do. They’re not a bad basketball team.”

Neace played a huge role in opening things up in the paint for NewCath. Newport collapsed on Kiernan down low. But Neace made two three-pointers to force the Lady Wildcats out of that strategy.

NewCath made nine three-pointers to two for Newport. Neace made three and MiKayla Seibert followed with two for the Thoroughbreds.

Sophomore Kylie Orr led Newport (19-9) with 16 points. She made both Lady Wildcat triples.

Newport scored most of its points driving to the rim. NewCath limited that in the second half.

“We tried to get out in the passing lanes,” said Loren Zimmerman, NewCath junior. “If they can’t pass the ball, then it’s harder to drive. We’re very good at speeding teams up and getting them out of their comfort zone.”

NewCath shot better at the free-throw line making 6-of-9 for 67 percent. Newport hit just 5-of-14 attempts for 36 percent.

Prior to last season, NewCath had won four straight district titles. The Thoroughbreds own three 9th Region crowns since 2003.