By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
There’s nothing flashy about the Simon Kenton girls basketball team. The Pioneers grind out wins with good defense and balanced scoring like they did in a 48-31 victory over Grant County in the 8th Region championship game on Saturday at Henry County.
Simon Kenton (26-4) will take a 12-game winning streak into next week’s state tournament and faces 11th Region champion Frederick Douglass (25-7) in a first-round game 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at Rupp Arena in Lexington.
During the 8th Region tournament, Simon Kenton won three games by double-digit margins, but it took a strong fourth quarter to get past Grant County. The Pioneers had a slim 24-20 lead early in the final period before going on a 15-5 run that clinched the win.
Simon Kenton sophomore point guard Brynli Pernell and freshman shooting guard Bella Ober both scored eight points in the fourth quarter. Junior forward Anna Kelch also hit a pair of 3-point goals.
Grant County’s 31 points was the most allowed by the Pioneers in their four district and region tournament games. They will enter the state tournament with a 38.4 defensive average.
SIMON KENTON 9 10 5 24 — 48
GRANT COUNTY 6 5 6 20 — 31
SIMON KENTON (26-4): Pernell 5 2 13, Ober 3 4 11, Blevins 1 0 2, Kelch 3 1 10, Webb 5 1 11. Totals: 17 8 48.
GRANT COUNTY (18-13): Manning 1 0 2, Barnes 2 4 8, Menefee 2 0 4, Ginn 1 2 5, Utter 2 0 4, Cummings 3 2 8. Totals: 11 8 31.
Three-point goals: SK — Kelch 3, Pernell, Ober, Blevins. GC — Ginn.
George Rogers Clark 71, Brossart 36
Brossart joined the list of girls basketball teams that buckled under the relentless defensive pressure applied by George Rogers Clark, ranked No. 2 in the final statewide media poll.
In the 10th Region championship game on Saturday, GRC’s aggressive defense forced more than 20 turnovers during a 71-36 win over Brossart at Campbell County Middle School. It was the most lopsided loss of the season for the Mustangs (26-8).
“There’s really not a way that you can do that in practice,” Brossart coach Stephen Brown said of simulating the Cardinals’ intense pressure. “The amount of athletes that they have and just the fact that they come at you in waves.”
The only double-figure scorer for the Mustangs was freshman guard Kylie Smith with 15 points. She got seven points in the third quarter that ended with GRC (25-7) holding a 49-29 lead.
“It was a 20-point game starting the fourth quarter,” Brown said. “If we get a couple shots to go down we still maybe have a chance to get that (lead) squeezed down and then we missed shots. They just wear you down and we had nothing really left once we got into the fourth quarter.”
The Cardinals had three double-figure scorers led by senior center Ciara Byars with 14 points. She’s a University of Michigan recruit who has played on four consecutive 10th Region championship teams at GRC.
BROSSART 6 8 15 7 — 36
GEORGE ROGERS CLARK 13 18 18 22 — 71
BROSSART (26-8): L. Meyers 0 3 3, Eviston 2 2 6, Woosley 2 1 5, Smith 4 6 15, Z. Meyer 0 2 2, Shewmaker 0 1 1, Kramer 2 0 4. Totals: 10 15 36.
GEORGE ROGERS CLARK (25-7): Stamper 3 4 12, Chestnut 2 0 4, Yeast 2 4 8, Byars 6 1 14, Green 5 2 12, Goodwin 1 0 2, Jones 2 0 4, Stakelin 1 2 5, Maxwell 1 0 2, Strade 3 0 6. Totals: 27 13 71.
Three-point goals: B — Smith. GRC — Stamper 2, Byars, Stakelin.