It had been a decade since Daviess County beat Henderson County, going 0-6 over that span, and early on in last night’s match between the two, it seemed the losing streak would continue. Halfway through the second quarter, the Lady Panthers found themselves trailing by double-digits, partly due to struggles on the boards.
With the game slipping away, a flip switched, and the Lady Panthers tenacity stood out. Riley Hayden began to take over down the stretch, scoring seven of her 15 points in the second quarter – helping cut the halftime deficit to two. After scoring only six points in the first half, Kennedy Lane exploded for 14 points in the second half – powering Daviess County past Henderson County 54-50.
“I’m proud of the way we were able to adjust throughout the game,” Daviess County Head Coach Natalie Payne said. “I don’t know if it was our zone defense or lack of rebounding, because I think they scored eight points off of offensive rebounds in the first quarter, and that hurt. But our kids didn’t hang their heads and go into the mode of feeling sorry for themselves.”
After only scoring six points in the first half, Lane consistently found herself getting downhill and finishing in the paint, scoring eight of her 20 points in the third quarter.
“Kennedy is really growing in a lot of ways, as far as not letting a quarter or half affect her,” Payne said. “I have said it before, but she knows that if she needs to carry us and step up and do that and take on the offensive load, she will. She has a knack for getting to the rim.”
The Lady Panthers went ahead 35-30, but the Lady Colonels refused to go away, responding with a 6-0 run. Hayden responded with a three-pointer to put Daviess County back up 38-36, and they never trailed again for the rest of the night.
Daviess County led by 10 with under two minutes to go, but once again, Henderson County began to claw back, cutting the lead to three. Briley Henry hit a pair of three throws in the closing seconds to ice the game.
Henry finished with 12 points on 3/5 shooting and three rebounds, and Hayden was a perfect 3/3 from deep.
The Lady Panthers return to action Friday when they travel to Owensboro and then play Graves County on Saturday.
Owensboro Catholic cruises past Madisonville-North Hopkins
Claudia Munsey found her shot early, hitting five threes and finishing with 24 points to lead the Lady Aces past Madisonville-North Hopkins 81-50. Katie Hagan recorded a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds, and Layla Martin finished with 10 points, four steals, three rebounds, three assists, and one block.
