One of the biggest complaints of the girl’s game over the years has not been that the talent development is not on track to create a interest in the game, but that for years there has been very little if no parity. Well, welcome to the 5th Region Girls basketball Tournament at North Hardin High School.
That four-day event which encompassed seven games had a little bit of everything and most of all there was really no clear-cut favorite in the beginning. Bethlehem, Nelson County, Central Hardin and Elizabethtown may have grabbed all the headlines before the Tournament, but as the action progressed, it was obvious that Marion County, Hart County, LaRue County and Taylor County were not happy to be served as sacrificial lambs in a first Round Feast.
Almost immediately a theme was about to be set for every game which was staying ahead early meant nothing if you couldn’t do so in the end.
Whether it was Marion County staying close to Elizabethtown in game one on Monday or Hart County fighting tooth and nail with Nelson County, Day One was quite a way to kick off things. Then let’s consider Day Two, which featured a marvelous Game three matchup as Taylor County, which appeared to be outgunned kept the heat on Central Hardin until the Lady Bruins finally pulling away and then the surprise of round one (if it could be called that), LaRue County came out with their A game and gave the reigning Region champ Bethlehem their best Sunday punch opening with a 10-0 lead, before the Banshees punched back and then a crazy back and forth fourth quarter which featured four lead changes in the final 1:11 of the game until Carlie Thurmond’s jumper with seconds to go coming after a Tessa Miles kick-back off a deflected shot and then Thurmond poking the ball loose setting up a 00:03 seconds to remember. Ashlyn Miles makes one of two from the line before Natalie Gentry’s sixty-foot heave just bounces two inches short of the most miraculous ending the 5th Region Tournament history.
And that was just Round One.
Surely the close games and excitement couldn’t continue for the Final Four on Friday could it? Surely, the stronger teams would come out early and end the too close for comfort type endings that we saw for the past two days, right?
You couldn’t have been more wrong.
Elizabethtown overcame an early deficit to lead a scoring stampede on Nelson County in the first game of the Final Four and they didn’t stop until they were up 36-21 in the third quarter before the Lady Cardinals in general and Macy Runner in particular, had seen enough. The Junior Guard, who scored 21-points and pulled down 13-rebounds in the comeback win over Hart County turned in another outstanding performance with 20-points and 10-rebounds against the Lady Panthers. Nelson County finally retook the lead with just 00:25 remaining and didn’t flinch as they completed the comeback (57-52) in one of the biggest wins for the program in the last several seasons since coach Mike Menifee took over. By virtue of their 16-point comeback victory, Nelson County earned the right to face the winner of the Central Hardin vs. Bethlehem game.
For the Lady Bruins, knocking off the team which had ended their playoff dreams in the last three seasons could not be sweeter and both they and the Banshees knew what was at stake so neither team planned to leave anything except out on the floor. Both teams took turns taking the lead and the guard duo of Monica and Alyssa Lindsey (who scored the first nine-points for the Lady Bruins in the 1st quarter) looked sharp early, but behind balanced scoring by Kasey Spalding (8-points), Emma Filiatreau (8-points) and Carlie Thurmond (seven -points) in the first half, the Banshees took a 25-24 halftime lead. Bethlehem took command in the second half going on a 19-10 run and held on to the lead the rest of the way although the Lady Bruins did chop into deficit cutting it to 62-55 with 1:01 remaining, but Banshees converted on their free throws (at one point Thurmond was 10-for-10 in the fourth quarter) as Bethlehem would punch their ticket for their fourth straight Region Championship Game appearance.
To complete the Region Tournament, Nelson County and Bethlehem were about to make history and possibly change it.
Although KHSAA records only go back so far, it was believed that the matchup between the Banshees and the Lady Cardinals is the first time they have met in the Region Championship game and the last time two 19th district teams faced off in the Region Title match was 2005 between Washington County and Nelson County. The Lady Commanders struggled through much of the regular season with injuries with a 13-15 record and only qualified for the Region tourney because they beat Bethlehem in the semi-finals of the district but lost to Nelson County in the District final. It was the third such loss by the Lady Cards (who also swept them during the regular season. Washington County was also seeded in the toughest bracket facing Caverna, Central Hardin and finally Nelson County in the final winning them all and making it to the Elite Eight of the KHSAA State Tournament before falling to Paducah Tilghman.
The draw didn’t do Menifee or the Lady Cardinals any favors as they would have to go through two district champions to qualify for Saturday’s game. Coaches have often said that it is difficult to beat a team four times straight in a season, but that was what Bethlehem was going to have to do in order to make their own history and repeat as Region Champs.
Much like Nelson County, which struggled early losing their first six games, then winning their next six before going on another run with 12-straight wins before knocking off Bardstown in a district elimination game, Bethlehem has had it’s problems as well. First trying to find an identity after the graduation of Hodges and Thompson, the loss of another starter (meaning they were replacing three starters from last season’s Elite Eight State Team), opening day loss to Hart County which was the beginning of a 7-6 start with coach Jason Clark trying several different lineups until finishing the season on an 11-1 run.
Still, they could make up for a lot of that with a win Saturday Night and when the two teams’ took the court for introductions they were greeted by a SRO crowd as it seemed like nearly the entire population of Bardstown was in attendance for the historic occasion as the parking lot filled up early and the action was fast and furious.
Much was made of the fact that it seemed like the officials calling all seven playoff games have allowed the girls to play (so to speak) meaning there was plenty of physical play throughout and it looked like the team left standing would have to avoid a KO early. Both teams took their shots, but were unable to hit much, but Filiatreau got things started with a three ball and Ashlyn Miles followed with a couple of baskets while Shaylah Redmon and Alivia Morris cut into the lead. Leading 14-7 after one quarter, Runner finally broke through after the Lady Cards came up empty shooting from three-point land with a couple of threes in the second. The first cut the deficit to 18-14 and the second to three at 22-19, but Nelson County’s physical play was getting them in foul trouble sending Kasey Spalding to the line as she converted several trips into 5-points and then later on a couple of breakaway baskets. Bethlehem went into the locker room with a 26-19 lead and would add on to it going on a 20-8 run to make the score to lead 46-27. Carlie Thurmond, who was having a great Region Tournament and has begun feeling more comfortable using her speed to break press and trap attempts hit a three to push the lead to 32-19 and the Banshees were on another run behind baskets by Spalding and Filiatreau to push the lead to 46-27 going into the fourth.
Behind by 19-points, Nelson County looked done.
Instead, they were just getting started.
Runner got things going with a three and after a missed layup, the Lady Cards were at it again with a transition basket. Runner would finish the fourth quarter scoring 14-of-her-22-points on two three’s, three baskets and two free throws. Morris was also involved and she contributed seven points along with Redmon’s three which cut into the deficit going on a 18-2 run making the score 48-45 with 4:36 remaining.
Just like that, the Lady Cards were alive and despite trailing in all three Region games were never out of it. Maybe the Elizabethtown comeback was just a preview for their biggest achievement and just a few more points and it would be complete. However, the Nelson County fouls continued to mount and the Banshees continued to convert at the Free throw line. Still, it was 61-54, when Runner collided with Thurmond near the mid court stripe and picked up her fifth foul ending the comeback.
With 00:07 remaining, Thurmond put the finishing touches on a clinching victory with a pair of free throws completing 12-16 evening at the charity stripe. The Banshees were actually 31-of-43 at the free throw line which points out the importance of that part of the game.
The 63-59 final score may have been the perfect way to cap off a great Region Tournament. There’s no question that both teams’ made it so. Runner had played a marvelous three games and showed the area that she will be a player to watch as will the rest of the Nelson County team as Redmon, Morris, Avery Wilson, Kaia Grabbert and the rest should be battle tested coming into next season. Menifee has built this team from the ground up, rising from the ashes of a 1-24 season nearly three seasons ago to a possible Next Team Up situation.
Afterwards, the Bethlehem coaches made it a point to give words of encouragement to Runner during the handshake line. A nice gesture to a rising star.
As for the champion, the Banshees will play Bullitt East next Wednesday at Rupp Arena at 1:30. The going joke was that these girls had played at Rupp almost as much as the Wildcats over the past four seasons. Although that was far from the truth, this was a totally different team than the one which won their first Region Championship in 2019.
More importantly, there really are no stars.
True, Thurmond is a spark plug and is probably better known for her exploits on the Soccer Field, but outside of Kasey Spalding, there are three new regulars in Filiatreau, Miles and Bishop. Filiatreau was part of that twin tower experiment with Smalley and has worked hard during the offseason and her improvement has shown. Miles was moved into the lineup late in the season and has performed well under pressure situations. Bishop has become one of the BIGS along with Emma and has been a key rebounder this season. Bishop along with Spalding, the other senior starter was one of the Thunder Buddy’s (the charter members were Amelia Hodges, Ella Thompson, Spalding and Bishop), a group which played together during their younger club days. With two of them gone, the remaining two had taken it onto themselves to continue the tradition, at least for one more year and along with that was the pressure of performing and playing without fanfare.
If that’s true, then Spalding and Bishop have both upheld their end of the bargain. Spalding complied 52-points in the three region games and Bishop pulled down 21-rebounds (not to mention taking a nasty lick on her head late in the Nelson County game).
For them, it’s not about who gets the credit, but if the team gets the wins.
Ironically, the two did get to make an appearance in the Banshee’s first trip to Rupp in 2019 in the closing minute of a loss to Owensboro Catholic. Both did see action in last season’s games against Bullitt East and Marshall and should close out their high school basketball career in style playing on the Rupp Arena floor for the third time in four years.
So for the third time in four seasons, Bethlehem will bring their fans and the city of Bardstown on another road trip to Lexington and some of the loudest fans in attendance and no matter what happens this week, whether they are able to advance and play another day, one thing is for sure.
Rupp better get use to seeing Bardstown folks in their establishment during the Girls State Tournament as the 19th district is just getting started making noise.
