Sacred Heart cruises past Cooper in 50-29 Sweet 16 semifinal victory

For the second year in a row, Sacred Heart will appear in the Girls’ KHSAA Sweet Sixteen championship.

On Saturday afternoon, the Sacred Heart Valkyries (35-3) handily defeated the Cooper Lady Jaguars (25-10) 50-29 in the semifinals of the state tournament. The bright lights are nothing new to the Valkyries, who won the 2021 Girls’ KHSAA Sweet Sixteen.

FINAL:

Sacred Heart 50, Cooper 29

Sacred Heart will have a chance to repeat as Sweet 16 champions. ZaKiyah Johnson led the Valkyries with 21 points on 9-13 shooting.

— Grant Grubbs (@grant_grubbs_) March 12, 2022

Although Sacred Heart is saturated by hardened veterans, they were led by freshman ZaKiyah Johnson, who ESPN considers to be one of the top freshmen in the country. The 5-foot-11 wing was unstoppable, dropping 21 points and three rebounds. Moreover, Johnson was extremely efficient. In the contest, Johnson shot 9-13 from the field and 3-4 from the free-throw line.

For legendary Sacred Heart coach Donna Moir, defense was what won the Valkyries the game.

“Today, our defense was outstanding,” Moir said during the postgame press conference. “We really worked on our defense and switching and I thought we did a really good job taking them out offensively of what they wanted to do.”

Sacred Heart’s defense instantly was a thorn in the Lady Jaguars’ side. The Valkyries’ relentless 2-2-1 press caused five Cooper turnovers in the first period. Moreover, when Cooper finally found a shot, they struggled to convert. The Jaguars shot 2-6 from the field in the first eight minutes of the contest.

Meanwhile, Sacred Heart forward Johnson found buckets at will. The standout rookie had six points in the frame while shooting 2-3 from the field and 2-2 from the charity stripe. Nonetheless, Cooper’s patient offense prevented the Valkyries from running up the score. Sacred Heart went into the second period ahead 10-7.

Sacred Heart’s lead only grew in the second frame. The Valkyries began the quarter on a 6-0 run. In fairness, Cooper responded with a 4-0 run of their own. However, the Jaguars would not score again the rest of the half. The Valkyries closed the second period on a 10-0 run.

The impressive stretch was a team effort. Not only did Johnson score another eight points, but Valkyrie players Triniti Ralson, Josie Gilvin and Claire Russell contributed, as well. Further, Sacred Heart’s tenacious defense didn’t let up. By halftime, the Valkyries had 12 points off the Lady Jaguars’ turnovers. Heating up, Sacred Heart skipped into the break with a 26-11 lead.

HALFTIME:

Sacred Heart 26, Cooper 11@ZJohnson_06 is up to 14 points for the Valkyries. Plays like these are powering her impressive performance.@CooperHSGirlsBB @ValkyriesBBall pic.twitter.com/ENpLUt6Agn

— Grant Grubbs (@grant_grubbs_) March 12, 2022

Johnson discussed her perspective of her wild performance and jaw-dropping freshman campaign.

“I’ve been talking to a lot of people and they have been describing it as the best freshman year anybody could ask for,” Johnson said. “It’s just been crazy. It was good though.”

To the Lady Jaguars’ credit, they refused to quietly slip into defeat. The team admirably battled in the third period, only losing the frame 10-8. Unfortunately for the Jaguars, they couldn’t find a hot hand. At the end of the third quarter, Cooper didn’t have a single player with double-digit points. As a result, Sacred Heart held a commanding 36-19 lead going into the final frame.

Instead of letting off the gas in the fourth period, the Valkyries put the pedal to the metal. Sacred Heart outscored the Lady Jaguars 14-10 in the fourth quarter — many of these points came in the paint. The Valkyries had an astounding 38 points in the paint compared to Cooper’s mere 10. While Cooper couldn’t score in the paint, they made the most of their opportunities from the stripe, shooting a perfect 12-12 from the free-throw line for the game.

When the dust settled, Sacred Heart walked away with a 50-29 victory. The team’s triumph was no thanks to their 3-point shooting. The Valkyries were 0-6 from beyond the arc against the Lady Jaguars. Luckily for Sacred Heart, Cooper didn’t shoot much better. The Lady Jags shot a poor 1-14 from downtown in their loss.

Liz Freihofer was the only Jaguar to score double figures. The Cooper sophomore had 14 points, eight of which came in the final period. On the other hand, Sacred Heart had no shortage of offense. Following Johnson’s lead, Ralston had 10 points in 28 minutes of play.

Sacred Heart will only have a few hours to rest before they compete for a second straight title of the Girls’ KHSAA Sweet Sixteen. At 7 p.m., Sacred Heart will face off against Bullitt East in the state championship. The finals won’t be the first meeting between these two teams. The Valkyries are 2-1 against Bullitt East this season.

Following the semifinals win, Moir gave her thoughts on their impending opponent.

“Of any team in the state, we match up to them very well and they’re going to have to match up with us,” Moir said. “We’re really excited. You know, I think we got the best two teams out there in the finals.”