By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
It was an unusual victory for the Simon Kenton girls basketball team. After holding most of their opponents to 45 points or less this season, the Pioneers won a high-scoring battle against perennial state power Louisville Sacred Heart, 75-70, in overtime on Friday in Independence.
The outcome stunned the state. Sacred Heart won the last four girls state tournaments and had a 92-game winning streak against in-state opponents over the last three years. This season, the Valkyries were ranked No. 1 in the state with an average margin of victory of 26.2 points, but the young Simon Kenton team was up to the challenge.
Two key statistics showed how the Pioneers pulled off the upset. They had a 36-15 scoring advantage from behind the 3-point line and limited the Valkyries to eight second-chance points following offensive rebounds.
Simon Kenton’s scoring leaders were sophomore point guard Brynli Pernell and freshman shooting guard Bella Ober with 22 and 21 points.
Ober, a first-year starter, entered the game with an 8.1 scoring average and ended up with her highest point total of the season.
Two juniors also had good games for the Pioneers, who were ranked No. 11 in last week’s state media poll. Anna Kelsch made four treys for 12 points to go along with five assists and five rebounds. Haylie Webb nearly had a double-double with 13 points and nine rebounds.
Simon Kenton pushed its record to 21-4 with two games remaining on its regular season schedule. Sacred Heart returned to form with an 84-49 win over Holy Cross on Saturday.
The Valkyries (23-3) have a 6-1 record against Northern Kentucky teams this season. They will face another one in their final home game on Thursday against Notre Dame (19-5).
Teammates will defend girls wrestling state titles
Two state champions on the Walton-Verona girls wrestling team last year won Region 3 weight class titles Saturday to qualify for the state tournament again.
Walton-Verona junior Emma Moore will defend her title in the 100-pound bracket at the girls state tournament Feb. 26 at Kentucky Horse Park. Her senior teammate, Sophia Anderson, earned a berth in the 132-pound bracket after winning last year’s 138-pound state title.
Other Region 3 weight class winners included Conner senior Rose Thomas (126) and Highlands sophomore Emma Hood (152). There were also 10 wrestlers from Northern Kentucky who qualified for the state tournament by placing second, third or fourth in Region 3 weight classes.
Hood remained undefeated with a pin win over Simon Kenton sophomore Devon Banks in the 152 region final. Ryle wrestlers Peyton Brinkman and Preslee Steiber placed second in the 100 and 138 brackets. Here’s a list of local state qualifiers with their weight classes:
Walton-Verona – Emma Moore (100), Emily Stephenson (114), Sophie Anderson (132), Jaelynn Holcomb (152). Ryle – Peyton Brinkman (100), Reagan McNerney (132), Preslee Steiber (138).
Simon Kenton – Devon Banks (152), Alayna Banks (165), Destany Tapp (235). Campbell County – Leah Boggs (107), Mariah Koch (138). Highlands – Emma Hood (152). Conner – Rose Thomas (126).
NewCath senior has clinched scoring title again
Newport Central Catholic senior guard Caroline Eaglin will finish the regular season as the leading scorer in Northern Kentucky girls basketball for the third consecutive year.
Eaglin enters the final week of the regular season with a 21.0 average that ranks 12th in statewide statistics. She broke the NewCath career school record earlier this season and her total now stands at 2,422 points.
The local players with the next highest scoring averages this season are Ludlow junior Addy Garrett (19.0) and Ryle junior Jaelyn Jones (18.8).
Jones did not play in at least three of the last five games for the Raiders. The team has lost 10 in a row despite the strong defensive play of 6-foot-6 eighth-grader Jayden McClain, who has already set a school record with 108 blocked shots this season.