By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Ryle junior guard Lauren Schwartz said she felt “on top of the world” after her team’s 69-41 win over Holmes in the championship game of the 9th Region girls basketball tournament on Sunday at BB&T Arena.
The Raiders had never won a regional title before, so it was a first-time thrill for Schwartz and her teammates as they cut down the nets and posed for photos after beating the two-time defending champion.
“That’s what makes it a lot better to win,” Schwartz said. “We just made school history. It’s awesome.”
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Ryle (28-6) will make its debut in the St. Elizabeth Healthcare/KHSAA “Sweet 16” girls state tournament against a familiar opponent. The Raiders will take on 8th Region champion Simon Kenton (20-10) in a first-round game at 8 p.m. Thursday at BB&T Arena.
The Raiders opened the season with a 71-54 win over Simon Kenton. When the two local teams met again during a Christmas holiday tournament, Ryle posted a 58-53 win.
In the regional championship game, Ryle scored on 10 of its first 15 offensive possessions to take a 24-9 lead and maintained a double-digit margin the rest of the way. All five starters had at least one field goal during the early run and three of them ended up with double-figure point totals.
“It was awesome to have everybody pitching in, getting rebounds and being in the scoring,” said Ryle sophomore guard Maddie Scherr. “It was a good stat line overall.”
The Raiders also dominated the boards, finishing with a 34-22 rebounding advantage. The team leader was Schwartz with a season-high 18 rebounds to go along with 16 points and three assists.
“I wasn’t hitting my shots at first and I knew I needed to do something for my team, so I decided to rebound and we won,” said Schwartz, who was named the tournament’s most valuable player.
Both teams prefer an up-tempo style of play, but Ryle hit more shots than Holmes. The Bulldogs shot just 22 percent (13 of 58) from the field to Ryle’s 34 percent (21 of 62).
“Our defense was huge today,” said Ryle coach Katie Haitz. “We didn’t let them get two or three chances off the backboard like we did the last two games. You have to have it at both sides of the floor, and we did that today.”
The only double-figure scorer for Holmes was senior forward Tyrah Engelmon, who had 13 points and 14 rebounds. The team leaders for Ryle were junior guard Juliet McGregor with 17 points, followed by Schwartz and Scherr with 16 each.
“That’s the way we like to play and it worked out,” Haitz said of her team’s run-and-gun offense. “That’s what makes us hard to guard. You can’t leave one person open because they’re going to take advantage of it. We say, ‘If you have an open shot, take it, and we’ll be in there to rebound for you.'”
Two years ago, Holmes edged Ryle, 45-42, in the regional final. Scherr and Schwartz played in that heartbreaking loss, but they provided the consistent scoring and leadership the Raiders needed to take this year’s title. That’s why coach Haitz selected both of them for the regional all-tournament team, along with McGregor.
“They do so much for us and they allow our other girls to be scoring threats because (opponents) have to worry about those two,” Haitz said. “They’re great players and they deserve everything they get.”
HOLMES 9 10 9 13 — 41
RYLE 24 8 14 23 — 69
HOLMES (21-7): Engelmon 3 7 13, Keith 2 0 4, Stowers 2 3 7, Beckett 1 0 3, Lovell 1 0 3, Johnson 2 1 6, Graham 2 0 5. Totals: 13 11 41.
RYLE (28-6): Crittendon 2 3 7, Scherr 5 5 16, Douthitt 3 1 9, McGregor 7 3 17, Schwartz 4 7 16, Johnson 0 3 3. Totals: 21 22 69.
3-pointers: H — Beckett, Lovell, Johnson, Graham. R — Douthitt 2, Crittendon, Scherr, Schwartz.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Ryle — Lauren Schwartz, Maddie Scherr, Juliet McGregor. Holmes — Tyrah Engelmon, Laila Johnson. Conner — Maddie Burcham, Courtney Hurst. Dixie Heights — Grace Perry, Caroline Buddenberg. NewCath — Ryann Kramer. Holy Cross — Bailee Harney. Highlands — Zoie Barth. St. Henry — Chisom Iloegbunam.