By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
After ending the regular with two losses by double-digit margins, the Campbell County girls basketball team had five days to regain their confidence before facing Brossart in the 37th District championship game on Wednesday at Campbell County Middle School
The Camels didn’t waste any time showing they had recovered from those setbacks. They made five 3-pointers in the first quarter to take an early lead and went on to defeat Brossart, 60-42, to take the district title and get a first-round home game in next week’s 10th Region tournament.
“We needed this,” said Campbell County coach Dave Johnson. “Last week was the first time losing two in a row, so we needed this win to get the girls back on track. Now we get to play on our home floor one more time, which is awesome for our seniors.”
Brossart hosted the 37th District tournament and scheduled the games at the Campbell County Middle School gym.
Neither team really had a home court advantage in Wednesday’s final, but you couldn’t tell that by the way Campbell County shot the ball in the opening quarter.
The Camels’ first three field goals were 3-pointers by senior Faith Whitford. Back-to-back treys by senior Izzy Jayasuriya and sophomore Kendall Augsback sparked a 10-2 run that put their team ahead 22-14 going into the second quarter.
“We have a lot of energy and team chemistry and just always trust each other to put up shots,” Jayasuriya said. “We don’t ever want somebody to not shoot an open shot.”
In the first minute of the second quarter, junior guard Josie Feebeck hit a three that gave Campbell County a double-digit lead, 25-14, but Brossart was able to cut the margin to 31-25 by halftime.
The Camels opened the second half with a 13-3 run that included threes by senior Maddy Barbian and Whitford to open up a 44-28 lead. They kept a double-digit lead the rest of the way. Brossart was 2-of-14 from the field with two free throws in the final quarter.
“We picked a bad night to not run our (offense) right and not to shoot,” said Brossart coach Aaron Stamm. “A lot of credit goes to (Campbell County) though. They gave us looks we thought we could attack and it just didn’t work out.”
Jayasuriya took game-high scoring honors with 17 points. She was named most valuable player on the all-tournament team that included Whitford and Augsback, who both scored 12 points in the title game.
Brossart’s all-tournament nominees were senior forward Rachel Shewmaker and sophomore guard Kylie Smith, who had 13 points, six below her season average. The other double-figure scorer was junior forward Hadley Eviston with 12 points.
“It was one of the better defensive team efforts that we’ve had all year,” said coach Johnson. “We’ve gotten better at defense this year, but tonight we took it to another level that we knew we needed to do.”
The draw for the 10th Region girls tournament brackets will take place Friday. Brossart is one of three district runner-up teams that could face George Rogers Clark, the state’s top-ranked team, in a first-round game.
“We’ve lost some games this year and been able to come back,” coach Stamm said. “It’s a mature group, a group that’s been playing awhile, so I don’t think this (loss) will linger very long. They’ll be fine and hopefully the draw puts us somewhere we can compete.”
CAMPBELL COUNTY 22 9 17 12 — 60
BROSSART 14 11 11 6 — 42
CAMPBELL COUNTY (21-6): Barbian 3 0 8, Davis 3 0 6, Augsback 3 5 12, Whitford 4 0 12, Jayasuriya 6 3 17, Feebeck 2 0 5. Totals: 21 8 60.
BROSSART (25-7): Meyers 1 2 5, Smith 5 1 13, Eviston 4 4 12, Shewmaker 1 0 2, Wietholter 2 1 6, Kramer 1 1 4. Totals: 14 9 42.
Three-pointers: Cc — Whitford 4, Barbian 2, Jayasuriya 2, Feebeck, Augsback. B — Smith 2, Wietholter, Kramer, Meyers.