Ashland Blazer staves off comeback, McCracken County rolls in 1st round of Girls' Sweet 16

Day two of the 2023 Mingua Beef Jerky Girls’ Sweet 16 is already halfway complete after Ashland Blazer and McCracken County kicked off Thursday’s session with a pair of victories. Ashland Blazer needed a late push down the stretch to fend off Knott County Central’s comeback attempt while McCracken County had no issue taking care of Bethlehem from start to finish.

As a result, the Kittens and Lady Patriots have secured their spots in Friday’s quarterfinals. Six of the eight second-round spots have already been locked in, with two more teams fighting for the chance to advance on Thursday night. Check out KSR’s full recaps of Thursday’s first two games from Rupp Arena below.

*This article was submitted by freelance writer Alyx White, who has extensive knowledge in covering KY high school girls’ basketball. She is also one of two hosts for KSR’s women’s basketball podcast, the Know Her Name Podcast, which covers Kentucky women’s hoops. Alyx will assist in KSR’s coverage of the KHSAA Girls’ Sweet 16 Tournament this week. You can follow her on Twitter: @alyxwhite_*

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Ashland Blazer Withstands Lady Patriots’ Late Surge

The Kittens grabbed four straight offensive rebounds on their first possession of the game and that truly set the tone for the remainder of the game. On top of their dominance on the boards, Ashland Blazer was also playing some smothering defense. In fact, they held Knott County Central to three total points in the first 15 minutes of play. 

With 30 seconds remaining in the opening half, Lady Patriots’ junior Kylie Gayheart knocked down a deep three, the only outside shot made by either team in the first half, but the remainder of her team’s points came from the free throw line.

For Ashland Blazer, everyone was contributing early. Junior Ella Sellars and sophomore Kenleigh Woods were the scoring leaders at the half with eight points each, while junior Jaidyn Gulley grabbed seven boards.

In the second half, things got more interesting. Back-to-back baskets by junior Kaylee Gibson cut the Kittens’ lead to 12 on two different occasions throughout the 3rd quarter. After sophomore Akasia Bentley nailed a three-pointer at the buzzer, the Kittens’ lead was as small as it had been all game at 11 points. 

It looked like the Lady Patriots were about to cut the lead to 10 on a Gayheart layup, but an offensive foul was called on sophomore Faith Pollard instead for holding off a defender on the drive. Pollard fouled out on that play, so Knott County Central was down a starter and it looked like Ashland was going to run away once again. However, back-to-back 3s by Gayheart and Gibson once again cut the lead to seven, the closest the Lady Patriots had been since four minutes into the game. 

Woods responded with a basket of her own for Ashland Blazer and the Kittens sailed from there, ultimately winning 46-34. 

Woods led the way for Ashland with 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting, while Sellars also finished in double figures with 12 points. Gulley remained the leader on the boards, grabbing 11 rebounds to go along with her six points. The Lady Patriots did not have any player in double figures, but Gibson did have nine points off the bench. 

McCracken County Dominates From Start to Finish

In the opening minutes, McCracken County made it clear that they came to win, jumping out to an early 11-2 lead. After a Bethlehem timeout, Emma Filiatreau responded with a basket to cut that lead down to seven and it looked like the Banshees might have some hope. However, the Lady Mustangs were able to take a 12-point lead by the end of the first quarter after shooting 66.7% overall and 60% from three.

As if their hot shooting in the opening period wasn’t enough, McCracken County stepped on the gas to open up the second, extending the Lady Mustangs’ lead to 21 by halftime. 

Senior Destiny Thomas and junior Claire Johnson both were in double figures at the break with 14 and 11 points, respectively, for McCracken County. Bethlehem’s Carlie Thurmond was doing all she could to keep her team in the game, scoring a team-best nine first-half points. 

Coming out of the half, the Lady Mustangs picked up where they left off as junior Mikee Buchanan knocked down a shot from deep to open the third frame. However, the Banshees came out with a much stronger start than in the previous half, connecting on their first three field goal attempts to cut the deficit to 17 points. 

Unfortunately for Bethlehem, the shots stopped falling and the turnovers kept coming. McCracken County regained a 22-point lead by the end of the third quarter and it only got worse from there. 

The Lady Mustangs ultimately defeated the Banshees 71-41. Thomas was all over the stat sheet with 27 points, seven rebounds, four assists, and two blocks. McCracken County’s floor general, Johnson, added 23 points, four assists, four steals, and a rebound. 

Thurmond and Filiatreau were the leaders for the Banshees. Thurmond had a team-high 17 points while Filiatreau finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds. 

Ashland Blazer and McCracken County will face off in the semifinals on Friday, March 10th at 6 PM inside Rupp Arena.

Updated Girls’ Sweet 16 Bracket

Wednesday Recaps

• Owensboro Catholic sneaks out win, Sacred Heart dominates in Girls’ Sweet 16 openers
• Byars sisters lead GRC, North Laurel hits last-second shot in Girls’ Sweet 16 1st round