Maybe if it was easy anyone could do it and in the universe of girls high school basketball where there isn’t the parity like in the boys game, it probably should.
Things change though.
Take the Elizabethtown Girls Basketball team for example. Since 1997, they have won nine Region Titles meaning they have qualified for the state tournament nine times and sometimes they are so talented they make it look easy. Still, ask coach Donnie Swiney if it is. Since taking over for the legendary Tim Mudd, the winning during the regular season seems easy because they always seem to have lots of height and great shooters, plus they play great team ball. Getting to the State Tournament is another point entirely.
After losing to Nelson County in the 2016-2017 5th Region final, they returned and beat a very good Bardstown team in 2017-2018, but then in 2018-2019 with a team which may have been one of the most talented in the past three seasons, they ran into the new challenger on the block, the Bethlehem Banshees and lost. Several of the Lady Panthers played badly in the defeat and it was something the team in general and Whitney Hay in particular didn’t forget.
Coming into the 2019-2020 season, things would be different and with Swiney coaching a fast and tall squad with lots of senior experience, they were ready. The one thing that no one could have predicted was just how difficult the regular season would be as it slowly unfolded. Injuries helped cripple this team as several players were lost for the season and key players like Hay, Sydney Clark and Ellie Taylor would miss large parts of the schedule. The lack of star quality at times showed as several games involving District opponents would become struggles late and even though Elizabethtown’s depth showed out in the end, it was far from pretty. It eventually turned out to be a blessing as Swiney was able to develop a bench as Rickeia Cormier, Xaviara Smalley, Kenzie Franklin, Olivia Yurcisin and Leah Macy found more playing time.
By the start of the playoffs, Clark and recovered from a knee cap injury and Taylor was also back as the lady Panthers won the District championship and moved past both Hart County and Bardstown in the Region first and second round to face, you guessed it, the Bethlehem Banshees.
This time around, it was Bethlehem who was the red hot team coming into the Region tourney and had convincing wins over Central Hardin and Green County in their first two games leading up to the Final. For the Banshees and coach Jason Clark, it was a opportunity to make it two straight trips to State, while Elizabethtown dearly wanted to exorcise some bad memeories from last season.
The Final Score was Elizabethtown 66 Bethlehem 55 and the game looked like a carbon copy of last year’s debacle except the teams changed uniforms. The Lady Panthers shot their way to an early lead and although Bethlehem created some tense moments for the Elizabethtown faithful, they never caught up.
The Lady Panthers took a quick 7-0 lead to open the game and then extended it to 9-4 when the Banshees finally answered to cut it to 18-8. Although, Elizabethtown started hot with Hay an Taylor hitting early, the Banshees were ice cold from outside as they were getting the open three’s, but missing. The Bethlehem struggled going just 2-17 from three-point land, compared to 6-17 last season and it showed.
Meanwhile, although the Lady Panthers cooled off considerable after their hot start, were able to control the game and Sydney Clark, who was having the continuation of an awesome two game stretch pulled down 18 of her team’s 38-rebounds and as a result Elizabethtown controlled the boards.
Although Swiney’s team held a 27-20 halftime lead, the game began to settle down into what resembled a wrestling match at certain points of the game. There was rough physical play on both sides of the ball and like last season’s Final, the officials were allowing it. Bethelehem coach Clark had Mikiah Livers-Bryant on Hay much of the game and until she left with an injury late in the game was able to control her at times and although the senior guard led the way with 16-points, she still had to take a lot of shots to get them.
Perhaps the real difference in this game and last year’s was Ellie Taylor. The senior guard, who had transferred over from Bethlehem to begin the 2018 season, struggled in last season’s Region Final. After hitting the first shot of the game, she finished with just five points. This time, she shot the ball with confidence and helped lead the team to victory. Taylor finished with 16-points, hitting two threes and the Lady Panthers needed every one of them as the Banshees provided the defensive pressure and foul trouble became a problem.
Hay picked up two quick fouls (her third and fourth within a minute) with a little less than six minute left in the third quarter. Then with Elizabethtown leading 33-22, Clark picked up her third and 2:13 left. The Lady Panthers carried a 35-26 lead into the fourth quarter, but the Banshees, despite playing as bad an offensive game as possible came back with two quick baskets to cut the lead to just four at 42-39 with 4:02 remaining. Swiney called a timeout and the Lady Panthers went on a 6-0 run and when Ameila Hodges cut it to 50-42 with 1:07 left, Elizabethtown hit their free throws to end the game and get the win.
Elizabethtown had learned from last season’s disaster and won a physical game. Stat wise, the game was very similar to the last one between the two teams, except for two important differences: Last season’s final, Bethlehem shot 6-17 from the three-point line. This time around, they were just 2-17. ET was 6-25 last time around and was 6-17. Defense wins. Bethelehem outrebounded them in their win in 2019 (37-20), but ET won the rebounding war this time (38-31).
Afterwards, there were several Lady Panther players that felt like celebrating. One was Taylor, who like Hay felt the dark cloud of the last seasons loss. Her 16-points came at the most crucial moments and as a result she was voted Tournament MVP. Clark, who finished a monster playoff run, pulled down 41-rebounds in her last two games and was a factor fighting foul trouble. Hay scored 16-points and was a key factor while fighting foul trouble as well. Cormier played a pivotal role as she scored 10-points and pulled down 8-rebounds. Kayla Freeman ran the offense and kept the Banshees off balance with her defense and Leah Macy hit an important three.
Perhaps the most relieved afterwards was Swiney, who had the unineviable task of following Mudd after the Erin Boley years. This Region Crown, gave Elizabethtown ten and considering all the injuries and lineup changes this might have been his toughest and best coaching job leading to a defensive struggle in the end to win.
After so many seasons as an assistant under Mudd, Swiney knows the problems involved with building a winner even when they are as talented as this one.
I vaguely remember a conversation I had with him during the season when I told him that his team would probably be favored to win it all this season just like last.
His response was “That didn’t do help us last season did it.”
Somehow, it probably didn’t this season as well, but the lessons learned did. Thanks to Ellie Taylor’s 16, Whitney’s 16, Clark’s 18-rebounds and Cormiers 10-points, it didn’t have to.
The value of players responding is irreplaceable. Isn’t it Coach.
And that’s why the Elizabethtown Lady Panthers won their tenth 5th Region Championship.
