By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Cutting down a net and draping it over a championship trophy is something Cooper girls basketball teams never did during the program’s first 13 seasons, but lately it’s become an annual activity for the Jaguars.
On Saturday, Cooper claimed its second consecutive 9th Region championship with a hard-fought 48-42 win over nearby rival Ryle in the title game at Northern Kentucky University’s Truist Arena.
Justin Holthaus said when he became Cooper’s head coach three years ago, the players told him they wanted to leave a legacy for the program and they’ve done it by sweeping district and region titles the last two years. The Jaguars defeated very good Ryle teams in every one of those championship games.
Their next goal is winning a state championship. They made it to the state semifinals last year and will renew their quest for the title at 6 p.m. Thursday when they play Louisville Mercy (24-9) in a first-round game at Rupp Arena.
“It’s crazy to see where we’ve come from,” said Cooper junior forward Liz Freihofer. “When I played (varsity) in eighth-grade, we didn’t even get double-digit wins and now we’re 29-3, which is crazy to think about.”
Freihofer was named the region tournament’s most valuable player after scoring seven of her team-high 18 points during a frantic final quarter in the title game.
In the final 56 seconds, she made one free throw that give the Jaguars a 43-40 lead and another one that put them ahead, 46-42. A pair of free throws by Cooper junior Logan Palmer with 0:04 on the clock clinched the 48-42 win.
“We just had to keep our composure,” Freihofer said of the game’s final minute. “We knew that time was on our side. We just needed to calm down and play our basketball and we knew we had it.”
There were seven lead changes in the first half that ended with Cooper holding a slim 25-21 advantage. A basket by Palmer put the Jaguars ahead, 32-24, late in the third quarter, but Ryle trimmed it to 34-30 going into the final period.
A 3-point goal by junior guard Maleah Alexander and layup by Freihofer in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter gave Cooper a 39-30 lead. Ryle rallied once again and made it a two-point game, 42-40, on a pair of free throws by senior guard Abby Holtman with 1:42 remaining on the clock.
But the Raiders made only one field goal on their final four possessions and finished the season with a 24-9 record that included three losses to Cooper. In the final state media rankings, Cooper was No. 3 and Ryle was No. 8.
“If we’d of hit a couple more shots that we had when we were open it might have been a different outcome,” said Ryle coach Katie Haitz. “I’m proud of the way my girls played though. They played hard, kept their heads up and paid attention. We just weren’t hitting from the outside.”
Ryle shot 42 percent (16 of 38) from the field and missed all eight of its 3-point attempts. Cooper shot 40 percent (17 of 42) overall and hit 5 of 15 treys with two coming in the fourth quarter.
“We just knew in that fourth quarter we had to lock in and do everything that we could to pull out a win,” said coach Holthaus.
Cooper’s other double-figure scorer was Freihofer’s older sister, Kay, who got eight of her 10 points in the first half. Ryle’s team leaders were senior Austin Johnson with 16 points and junior Quinn Eubank with 10.
Eubank also had three assists and seven rebounds for the Raiders, who won the battle on the boards by a 28-23 margin. They committed 14 turnovers that Cooper converted into 14 points.
“We definitely rely on transition (scoring) a lot and they did a great job taking that away from us,” Liz Freihofer said. “We knew since it would be a half-court game we just had to gut it out, be more tough, be more aggressive. And we were able to do that.”
The Raiders will face a familiar opponent in the first round of the state tournament. They defeated Louisville Mercy, 67-64, in a regular season game on Jan. 17 behind a 31-point effort by Lind.
COOPER 13 12 9 14 — 48
RYLE 13 8 9 12 — 42
COOPER (29-3): Lind 3 0 7, Palmer 3 2 8, Alexander 2 0 5, K. Freihofer 3 2 10, L. Freihofer 5 4 15, Noel 1 1 3. Totals: 17 9 48.
RYLE (24-9): Eubank 5 0 10, Jones 0 2 2, Baker 2 2 6, Holtman 3 2 8, Johnson 6 4 16. Totals: 16 10 42.
3-point goals: C — K. Freihofer 2, L. Freihofer, Lind, Alexander.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Cooper — Liz Freihofer (MVP), Kay Freihofer, Whitney Lind. Ryle — Quinn Eubank, Austin Johnson. Holy Cross — Leah Arlinghaus, Miyah Wimzie. Notre Dame — Sophia Gibson, Georgi Kirtley. Highlands — Marissa Green. Dixie Heights — Ella Steczynski. St. Henry — Kayla Unkraut. NewCath — Caroline Eaglin.