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Lady Aces roll past Trinity

Dec. 14—Hailee Johnson scored 15 points, and Karmin Riley added 11 points as the Owensboro Catholic girls basketball team opened 3rd Region All 'A' Classic play with a 62-30 victory over Whitesville Trinity on Tuesday at the St. Mary of the Woods Horn Community Center in Whitesville.

It took a little while for the Lady Aces (7-0) to find a rhythm, coach Michael Robertson said, but forcing 30 turnovers throughout the game helped Catholic get out in transition — though OCHS didn't always take advantage.

"I thought we were lethargic at the very beginning," he said. "Our warm-ups were lethargic, our energy was not there. It took us a while to get going. We started hitting some shots there in the second quarter that got us going.

"We're getting the turnovers, now we got to start finishing. We're struggling finishing. We're trying to be too fancy or trying to do it ourselves or not getting our heads up or trying to make the impossible pass. We need to make the easy pass, the smart pass, and attack the basket and finish strong."

Catholic scored the first eight points of the contest to establish an early lead before pulling ahead for a 13-4 advantage at the end of the first quarter. Johnson and Riley combined for 21 first-half points — Johnson with 10 and Riley with nine on three made 3-pointers — to push Catholic ahead 31-7 at intermission.

"She's starting to play a little bit better," Robertson said of Johnson, who entered averaging 11.8 points per game. "Her and Karmin are starting to find their range from the outside, and that opens up other avenues for us. They both played well."

Catholic continued to pull away in the second half, with the Lady Aces forcing a KHSAA-mandated running clock with a 52-16 advantage with 47 seconds left in the third period.

"I liked the way we started the second half," Robertson said. "We came out with a lot more energy and looked a lot more focused."

Eleven players finished in the scoring column for the Lady Aces, who turned the ball over 12 times.

"It's good, just giving them confidence to believe in themselves," Robertson said of playing so many reserves. "We ran a lot of plays there at the end and we were able to execute. We got everybody in the scorebook, that's always nice to do."

Josie Aull scored a game-best 19 points with five 3-pointers to pace the Lady Raiders (0-7), who return to action Saturday at home against Oldham County.

"Fabulous shooter," Robertson said of Aull. "We kept losing her on the backside. I wasn't too happy about that, but she's a good player."

Catholic will next play in the regional All 'A' Classic in early January against Hancock County but will first meet Daviess County for a 9th District tilt Friday at the Owensboro Sportscenter.

"We've got Daviess County on Friday, that's who we're worried about right now," Robertson said. "Then we'll go play in Queen of the Commonwealth and see what we can do up there. Right now, we've got a big district game on Friday against Daviess County. We need to have a couple good days of practice, be focused and get ready to go."

OWENSBORO CATHOLIC 13 18 21 10 — 62

WHITESVILLE TRINITY 4 3 11 12 — 30

Owensboro Catholic (62) — Johnson 15, Riley 11, Davis 6, Grant 6, Krampe 6, Le. Keelin 4, Randolph 4, Marston 4, Hayden 2, La. Keelin 2, Riney 2.

Whitesville Trinity (30) — Aull 19, McDowell 7, Payne 4.