GLASGOW – It was hard-fought, back-and-forth and went down to the wire – exactly what one could expect in a game between two top teams.
Meeting for the first time this season, Friday’s collision between Barren County and Allen County-Scottsville – two of District 15 and Region 4’s top girls’ basketball teams – played out to be what most anticipated. The two sides participated in an all-out battle, and Barren was able to escape with a 47-38 win at Trojan Gym.
The Trojanettes – now 7-0 overall and 2-0 in District 15 play this year – went head-to-head from the start. Barren County held a tight 10-8 lead after the opening quarter and later took a 13-12 advantage into the locker room at halftime. Although each team scored just six points in the third, BCHS outscored ACS 18-12 in the fourth to hold on for the victory.
“It feels great to finally come out of this one with a win,” Barren County head coach Piper Lindsey said. “I thought the girls held their composure the entire game. When they cut it to three, I thought we did a good job of gathering ourselves, regrouping and coming away with it.”
Elizabeth Bertram led the way for the Trojanettes with 18 points, while Jaylyn Bush finished with nine on 4-of-8 shooting from the field. The Pedgio twins – Bailey (8) and Mallory (7) – combined for 15 points to round out the scoring category of the stat sheet.
Defensively, Barren County forced 14 turnovers – scoring 16 points off those takeaways – and held Allen County-Scottsville to just 14-of-49 (28.6 percent) shooting on the night.
Mason Towery led the Lady Patriots (4-3, 0-1) with 14 points and seven rebounds, while Sarah Sutton registered a double-double of 11 points and 16 rebounds.
The two sides played a back-and-forth opening half.
While Barren County opened the game with a three-pointer from Bertram, Allen County-Scottsville quickly responded with a 4-0 run to take its first lead of 4-3 at the 5:47 mark of the first quarter. The Trojanettes and Lady Patriots continued to exchange baskets throughout the first, and BCHS held a tight 10-8 advantage after one.
Barren County was the aggressor in the ensuing quarter, but the scoreboard remained close. Bertram’s layup at the 3:33 mark of the second put the Trojanettes up 19-14, but the Lady Patriots answered with back-to-back buckets to get within 19-18 at the 1:26 mark.
McKenzie England’s basket with under a minute remaining in the half helped Barren County take a 23-20 lead into the break.
Bertram was already up to 11 points after two complete periods, while Towery was pacing Allen County-Scottsville with seven. The Trojanettes forced six turnovers in the first half and limited ACS to just 7-of-26 shooting.
Punches continued to be exchanged throughout the second half.
While Barren County opened the third quarter with a pair of scores to build a 27-20 lead, Allen County-Scottsville battled back – scoring six points compared to the Trojanettes’ two – to only trail by three at 29-26 entering the final eight minutes.
The Trojanettes opened the fourth with much energy and worked fast to increase its lead and inherit much of the momentum.
“I thought the second half was much better defensively,” Lindsey said. “I thought Bailey did a heck of a job on Mason and Mallory did a heck of a job on Sarah. We were in the help and where we were supposed to be. I think in the first half we didn’t trust as much and that was kind of a wake-up call.
“I’m just proud of the girls for persevering in that second half.”
Leading by just three before the period began, Barren County scored eight straight points to push its lead to double digits at 37-26 at the 6:16 mark. However, Allen County-Scottsville wasn’t going away.
Back-to-back baskets by Kaylee Bullington and Sutton – her first field goal of the contest — helped the Lady Patriots cut Barren’s advantage to 37-30 with just under five minutes remaining. A couple minutes later, Sutton completed an and-one to bring ACS within 41-37 with 2:42 left.
Barren County was able to knock down crucial free throws late and hold off Allen County-Scottsville for a big district victory.
The Lady Patriots will try and bounce back Saturday when they host Franklin-Simpson at 6 p.m. The Trojanettes will return to action Dec. 20 in the KSA Events Holiday Tournament in Orlando, Fla.
ACSHS – 8 12 6 12 –38
BCHS – 10 13 6 18 – 47
ACS – Mason Towery 14, Sarah Sutton 11, Taylor Carter 8, Kaylee Bullington 3, Grace Tuttle 2.
BC – Elizabeth Bertram 18, Jaylyn Bush 9, Mallory Pedigo 8, Bailey Pedigo 7, Eve Jackson 3, McKenzie England 2.
