Friday, March 23, 2001
Ky. girls Sweet Sixteen roundup
Henderson County next for Highlands
The Associated Press
BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Princess Wimsatt scored 20 points, including the game-clinching free throws with less than a minute to play, as Henderson County beat Lincoln County 56-48 in the first round of the girls state basketball tournament Thursday night.
Wimsatt hit 4-of-6 3-pointers and made eight free throws over the final 1:20 as the Region 2 champion Lady Colonels (25-8) advanced to take on Highlands in today's quarterfinals.
Brooke Fisher added 11 points for Henderson County, which won its 16th straight game.
Katie Farris' 3-point play put Henderson County up 43-40 with five minutes remaining. A Jerran Wilkinson putback and Cassandra Peek's long 3-pointer thrust Lincoln County into the lead, 45-43 with 3:56 to play.
Farris' inside basket tied the game at 45 with 3:35 remaining, and the Lady Colonels made 9-of-10 free throws down the stretch to preserve the victory.
“When you have a point guard as cool as her, you just give her the ball,” Henderson County coach Jeff Haile said of Wimsatt. “She carried us in the first half, and then some people stepped up to help her out in the second half.”
Peek had 14 points and Rebecca May 13 for Region 12 champion Lincoln County (27-6), which played in its first-ever state tournament.
Jackson County entered the tournament as the overwhelming favorite. But the Lady Generals nearly went home early at the hands of a scrappy Presentation squad eager to show it could play with the state's best.
It took a layup and a pair of free throws in the final minute to seal the game as the Region 13 champion Lady Generals (34-1) held off the Toppers 54-51 in first-round action Thursday.
Jackson County advanced to take on Region 11 champion Lexington Catholic (29-4), a 53-34 winner over Marshall County, in one of today's quarterfinal games.
Tiffany Roaden scored 18 points, hitting 10-of-10 from the foul line, and grabbed 10 rebounds as Jackson County survived the scare. Andy Whitehead added 13 points and Leah Moore and Sarah Elliott eight each.
Jackson County outshot Presentation 40 percent to 36 percent, but committed 21 turnovers and got outrebounded 15-10 at the offensive end.
The Lady Generals also dug themselves an early hole, missing 13 of their first 16 shots and turning the ball over six times in the first quarter as the Region 6 champion Toppers (25-7) jumped out to a 15-8 lead.
“At least our worst game is out of the way,” Jackson County coach Greg Parrett said. “To be totally honest, the way the regional draw fell, it's been a couple weeks since we played a team of that caliber.”
Sarah Nash scored 15 points, Phillips had 12 and Hall added 11 off the bench for Presentation, which had its six-game winning streak snapped.
Chelsea Chowning scored 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds as Lexington Catholic beat Region 1 champion Marshall County 53-34. Katie Mendenhall added 11 points for the Lady Knights, the 1999 state champions.
Lexington Catholic held Marshall County to a tepid 25 percent shooting (14-of-54) and scored 17 points on 13 turnovers.
Lexington Catholic, up 29-24 at halftime, scored the first nine points of the second half and never was challenged the rest of the way.
“We've been finishing games strong late in the season,” Lexington Catholic coach Greg Todd said. “These girls are just very competitive and like to make adjustments.”
Kristen Reeves scored 12 points and pulled down 11 rebounds to lead Marshall County (25-6), which lost in the first round for the second straight season.
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Ky. girls Sweet Sixteen roundup