Saturday, March 24, 2001
Highlands loses in Ky. quarterfinals
By Ray Schaefer
Enquirer contributor
Tara Boothe scored 22 points.
(AP photos)
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BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - Here's a basketball basic: a team that gets the vast majority of its points from one player usually doesn't win the game.
Highlands junior center Tara Boothe's 22 points didn't save the Ladybirds against Henderson County, either. The Colonels turned a sticky defense and 21 points from senior forward Brooke Fisher into a 55-34 victory in the quarterfinals of the girls Sweet 16 state tournament Friday at Western Kentucky University.
“I think we ran into a buzzsaw on defense,” Highlands coach Luci Cecil said. “They were a better team, that's all there was to it.”
Still, Highlands turned in a strong finish. The Ladybirds (24-10) won their second straight Ninth Region title despite losing starting forward Stephanie Ripberger to a knee injury midway throught the season.
Highlands players show disappointment.
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“That's why I was crying in the locker room for 15 minutes,” Cecil said. “(Friday's loss) hasn't taken a darn thing away.”
Ripberger said her knee is fine, but her tears were just as bitter.
“Knowing I couldn't do anything didn't help,” Ripberger said.
After Boothe (8-of-14 from the field and six rebounds for the night), nobody else was close to double figures (freshman guard Abbi Gibson and junior forward Emily Hamel were second in scoring with four points each); Highlands scored just seven points in the third quarter and eight in the fourth; and Henderson County turned Highlands' 17 turnovers into 20 points.
Highlands had to answer one question in particular: could the Ladybirds handle Henderson County's quickness and full-court pressure defense to set up their halfcourt offense?
After Boothe scored on a layup 47 seconds into the game, the answer was, not exactly.
In the opening six minutes, Highlands committed four turnovers. And the Colonels took advantage - senior forward Brooke Fisher (21 points, including 5-of-8 from 3-point range), senior guard Princess Wimsatt (13 points, 9 assists) and freshman guard Kera Gibson each hit a 3-pointer for a 9-2 lead.
“We thought we could put pressure on the guards with the guards we have,” Henderson County coach Jeff Haile said.
That wasn't all that went wrong.
Abbi Gibson, who led Highlands with 19 points in Thursday's 52-48 win over Perry County Central, picked up her second foul four minutes into the game. And the Ladybirds went nearly four minutes without a point.
And in the final minute of the first quarter, Henderson County junior guard Shonte' Dixon (12 points for the night) scored the final four points. The result: Henderson County, 15-6.
Highlands had a little better second quarter. An 8-4 run led Boothe's six of 15 first half points made it 19-14 with 2:42 remaining.
The other thing Cecil feared - the Ladybirds doing things with which they weren't comfortable - helped Henderson County (26-8) to a 28-19 lead at halftime. When Abbi Gibson drew her second foul four minutes into the game, Cecil went with senior Katie Winkler at point guard, and Boothe dribbled up court on several possessions.
The most glaring mistake: a steal at halfcourt by the Colonels' Melissa Jarrett, which Wimsatt turned into an uncontested layup and a 23-14 lead with 1:57 left in the half.
Henderson County essentially put the game away in the third quarter. Dixon, Wimsatt and Fisher combined for an 11-0 run that put the Colonels ahead 37-19 with 3:49 left in the quarter.
Highlands loses only Ripberger and Winkler next year. Which made Cecil smile a little on Friday.
“I'm optimistic about next year,” Cecil said. “The season ends, but as far as the friendships, they never end.”
HIGHLANDS (34): Gibson 2-4 0-0 4, Winkler 1-5 0-0 2, Konen 0-0 0-0 0, Hamel 2-4 0-0 4, Boothe 8-14 5-7 22, Shannon Ripberger 1-1 0-0 2, Gearding 0-0 0-0 0, Ball 0-0 0-0 0, Owsley 0-0 0-0 0, Brown 0-0 0-0 0, Berling 0-0 0-0 0, Grause 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 14-28 5-7 34.
HENDERSON COUNTY (55): Gibson 1-2 2-2 5, Wimsatt 5-6 2-2 13, Dixon 6-8 0-0 12, Fisher 6-11 4-4 21, A. Buchanan 1-3 0-0 2, C. Buchanan 0-0 0-0 0, Vorbeck 0-0 0-0 0, Duncan 0-0 0-0 0, A. Farris 0-0 2-2 2, K. Farris 0-0 0-0 0, Jarrett 0-0 0-0 0, Waddell 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 19-30 10-12 55.
Highlands ....... 6 13 7 8 — 34
Henderson County ....... 15 13 17 10 — 55
Three-point goals: H 1-for-5 (Gibson 0-1, Winkler 0-2, Boothe 1-2); HC 7-for-11 (Gibson 1-1, Wimsatt 1-2, Fisher 5-8). Rebounds: H 10 (Boothe 6); HC 15 (Wimsatt 3, Dixon 3, A. Buchanan 3). Fouled out: none. Assists: H 12 (Konen 4); HC 17 (Wimsatt 9). Turnovers: H 17 (Boothe 6); HC 15 (Wimsatt 8). Blocked shots: H 2 (Boothe 2); HC 1 (Fisher). Steals: H 7 (Boothe 3); HC 8 (Wimsatt 3).Total fouls: H 15, HC 11. Records: H 24-10, HC 26-8.
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Highlands loses in Ky. quarterfinals
