KHSAA Girls State Basketball Tournament
The DREAM Season comes to an END!
” I can’t say enough about this senior class. They are the first (Nelson County Lady Cardinal)
team to win 30-games in a season. They are the first team to get back to the state tournament in 27 years!”
The words by head coach Jacqueline Coleman couldn’t ring any more special as she and Shyla Calbert, Le Le Linton and Kira Harmon took the podium in the interview room of BB&T Arena in Northern Kentucky University. The Nelson County Lady Cardinals had just played their first State Tournament basketball game since 1990 and came away losers to Murray high school, 71-30. It capped a dream season for the Lady Cardinals, who won their first Region Championship in 26-years, but were rudely awaken by the Lady Tigers in a game which turned into a running clock situation early in the second half.
Murray, a team which last season made a run in the state tournament until they were upended by eventual champion Butler in the semi-finals proved that experience really pays off as they quickly took Nelson County out of their game plan early and kept pouring it on. The Lady Tigers, who would eventually lose to eventual state champ Mercer County in the Final Four averaged 60-points in the state tournament and took no time to set the tone by building a 12-2 lead until the Lady Cardinals got their second basket of the game with just 2:12 left in the first quarter. In fact, Nelson County missed their first seven shots and made only 3-of-12 in the first eight minutes. 
Things got worse for Nelson County as they would score just five more points in the second quarter and with both junior Marley Walls (2) and senior Kira Harmon (3) in foul trouble early, the offense continued to struggle as the game went on. Part of the offensive inconsistency was nerves as the Lady Cardinals overshot, undershot and played tentative for much of the half. Shots that they were making during the Region Tournament and much of the season seemed to be rolling off the rim. Part of it was the taller Murray defenders, who harassed them much of the game. 
Murray’s head coach Rechelle Turner had said after the game that the key to controlling the Lady Cardinals was controlling Walls and Calbert while not allowing Harmon to take over the boards. They did both and meanwhile were scoring at will. After a slow start, Murray would hit 15-of-34 shots in the first half and five-3’s while pulling down 24-rebounds. 
Nelson County was also shackled with two starters sidelined and Madison Walls fighting the flu and things wouldn’t get much better in the second half. Trailing 41-11 at the half, the Lady Cardinals showed some signs of life as they managed to score 14-points in the third quarter Walls got a three-point play and after a tip in by Harmon scored again after a steal. After hitting one of two free throws, Walls scored again on a jumper. With the score 56-21, Harman hit two free throws and then Calbert scored on a layup.
Unfortunately, the joy was short lived as Nelson County would score just five more points in the fourth quarter and a running clock finished out the game. Walls finished the game as the Lady Cardinals leading scorer with 16-points and 8-rebounds. The 41-point loss should not be the way that this team will be remembered. After all, only one team wins it all in the end and everyone else plays for second place or worse. 
Nelson County may have lost the game, but they won a Region Championship during one of the strangest basketball season’s ever and the seniors who were a part of it will surely remember the journey that took them from a Region Tournament loss last season at Hart County to a celebration to end all at Marion County just four days before their first trip to the State Tournament.
The first Nelson County Girls Basketball team to win 30-games.
The first to go undefeated in their Region.
The first trip to the state tournament in 27 years.
The Lady Cardinals and their returning players, also might want to pay close attention to Murray, who at one time was a First-Timer like Jacqueline Coleman’s team and how they learned from their mistakes to get one step closer each time. After all, we all have to learn from someone.
