Thanks to St. Elizabeth Healthcare Sports Medicine for sponsoring our girls’ high school basketball coverage this season. See all of our girls’ basketball stories here during our state tournament coverage this week from BB&T Arena on the campus of Northern Kentucky University.
By Terry Boehmker
NKy tribune sports reporter
Campbell County sophomore Mackenzie Schwarber has posted a double-double several times during her varsity basketball career, according to coach Beau Menefee. He wasn’t surprised when the 5-foot-9 forward did it again Wednesday to help the Camels get the first state tournament victory in the history of the program.
Schwarber scored 13 points and grabbed 14 rebounds during Campbell County’s 48-33 win over Trimble County in the first round of the St. Elizabeth Healthcare/KHSAA Girls Sweet 16 State Tournament at BB&T Arena.
The Camels, who had an 0-3 record in previous state tournament appearances, will play Franklin County in a quarterfinal game at noon on Friday.
“She’s a warrior,” Menefee said of Schwarber. “I coached on the boys’ side for 10 years and I’ve never had anybody as tough as her, period. I’ve never played against anybody as tough as her. I’ve never coached against anybody as tough. She is an absolute warrior.”
Trimble County had a size advantage over Campbell County, but Schwarber did such a good job on the boards that the Camels finished with a 32-31 advantage in rebounds. She also did all of her scoring in the paint, making four field goals or drawing fouls and hitting five free throws.
“Usually, it’s just kind of expected,” Schwarber said of her inside play. “I’m the one that usually has to get rebounds and stuff.”
In the final minutes of the second quarter, Campbell County went on a 12-4 run without sophomore point guard Taylor Clos, who went to the bench after picking up her second foul. Schwarber scored seven points during that spurt, including a stick-back basket that gave the Camels a 30-23 halftime lead.
Clos was back in the lineup when the third quarter started and hit a 3-point shot in the opening seconds. But Trimble County ran off six straight points to cut the margin to 33-29.
That’s when Campbell County senior guard Taylor Jolly scored off a steal and Schwarber made a field goal and free throw on consecutive possessions to extend the Camels’ lead to 38-29 going into the fourth quarter.
“When they were starting to come back, I knew that we had to step up our game and something had to happen to spark our momentum,” Jolly said. “Luckily, that’s what that steal was.”
After neither team scored in the first three minutes of the fourth quarter, Campbell County recovered a loose ball under its own basket and got it to Jolly. She was fouled as she made a field goal and completed the three-point play to put her team ahead, 41-29, with 4:45 left on the clock.
The Camels kept the lead in the double digits the rest of the way with Schwarber making a field goal and free throw in the final two minutes.
Jolly finished with a game-high 17 points. She and Schwarber ended up making nine of the 14 field goals and 11 of the 13 free throws for their team.
Trimble County’s only double-figure scorer was junior forward Shelbe Black with 12 points. But she only made one shot in the second half when her team went 5-of-21 from the field for 23.8 percent.
“It just wouldn’t go down for whatever reason,” Trimble County coach Kerrie Stewart said of her team’s poor shooting performance. “Inside or outside, wherever we were shooting from, the ball just wouldn’t go down.”
Coach Menefee said he wasn’t aware that Campbell County had never won a state tournament game before Wednesday’s victory. He also said the team wants to do more than that this week.
“We had three goals — win district, win region and win state — and we x each one out when we do it. And that’s what we plan to do here,” Menefee said.
CAMPBELL COUNTY 13 17 8 10 — 48
TRIMBLE COUNTY 11 12 6 4 — 33
CAMPBELL COUNTY (25-9): H. Schwarber 2 0 4, Kramer 2 2 6, Clos 2 2 6, M. Schwarber 4 5 13, Jolly 5 6 17, Turner 1 0 2. Totals: 16 13 48.
TRIMBLE COUNTY: (27-8): Consley 3 2 8, Black 6 0 12, Duke 1 0 2, Clifford 2 1 5, Clark 1 2 4, Gonterman 1 0 2. Totals: 14 4 33.
Three-pointers: CC — Clos 2, Jolly. TC — Clifford.
St. Elizabeth Healthcare/KHSAA Girls State Basketball Tournament
at BB&T Arena, Highland Heights, Ky.
Wednesday — Upper bracket
Mercer County 68, Leslie County 39
Franklin County 47. Shelby Valley 39
Campbell County 48, Trimble County 33
Holmes 49, Russell 35
Thursday – Lower bracket
Murray vs. Louisville Manual, 12 p.m.
Bowling Green vs. Louisville Butler, 1:30 p.m.
Elizabethtown vs. Henderson County, 6:30 p.m.
Owensboro Catholic vs. Harlan, 8 p.m.
Friday – Quarterfinals
Campbell County vs. Franklin County, 12 p.m.
Mercer County vs. Holmes, 1:30 p.m.
Lower bracket games, 6:30 and 8 p.m.
Saturday – Semifinals
Upper bracket games, 6:30 p.m.
Lower bracket games, 8 p.m.
Sunday
Championship game, 2 p.m.