MCHS will face Murray or
Community Christian in
district tourney first round

By Justin McGill
Tribune-Courier Managing Editor
jmcgill@tribunecourier.com

DRAFFENVILLE – When opportunity presents itself late in a close game, execution becomes critical for a basketball team. Friday, the Lady Marshals had opportunities but could not capitalize in a 51-40 loss to 4th District foe Calloway County.

“We didn’t execute,” MCHS head coach Howard Beth said. “There was a lot going on tonight, but we didn’t execute in the last few minutes like we needed to. We were trying to get the ball down the court and score without execution, and we can’t do that.”

After a slow start that saw the Lady Marshals fall behind by five points, increased defensive pressure sparked an 11-0 run for Marshall County that changed a deficit to a 22-16 lead late in the second quarter.

Calloway trimmed that gap to three before halftime and took a one-point lead two minutes into the third quarter. With MCHS leading 26-24 midway through the frame, the Lady Lakers turned up their defensive intensity, caused Lady Marshal turnovers and scored off of those miscues, using an 11-0 run of their own to take a 35-26 lead a minute into the fourth quarter.

MCHS didn’t quit, scrapping its way to a 14-5 run over the next five minutes to tie the score at 40-40. However, Calloway’s defense again caused turnovers and kept the Lady Marshals from finding any offensive opportunities.

“We turned the ball over four straight times without getting a shot,” Beth said. “We are young out there, but we’re not so young that we shouldn’t have more players under control.”

In the end, with his team committing 20 turnovers and having a dismal night at the free throw line (7-for-16), Beth said it was the gap in intensity and effort between MCHS and Calloway that made the difference.

“Calloway can make you do things that you don’t want to do,” Beth said. “Give them all the credit. They wanted it more than we did.”

MCHS had trouble establishing a rhythm with scoring leader Jessica Holder, who finished with a team-high 14 points but had to fight for every point against Calloway’s three 6-footers – Kayla Cunningham, Rachel Adams and Avree Fields.

“In the games we’ve had, when teams got physical with Jess, she’s had trouble,” Beth said. “Calloway’s got three kids that can switch off and do that or double-team her. We’re not very physical, so we don’t match up well with three big kids.”

While a rubber match in the 4th District Tournament is quite possible, Beth said his team has work to do before thinking about another game against the Lady Lakers.

Said Beth: “We both have to win that first round game before we could play each other again, so we’ll take it one game at a time.”

After Monday’s win at Heath (see below), the Lady Marshals were set for a few days off before playing at 7:30 p.m. Friday in the Louisville Invitational Tournament.

Calloway County 51,
Marshall County 40
Friday @ Draffenville

Marshall County 7 15 4 14
Calloway County 12 7 13 19

TEAM STATS
Shooting
Overall: MC 35.7% (15/42)
CC 39% (16/41)
3-pointers: MC 23.1% (3/13) CC 25% (1/4)
Free throws: MC 43.8% (7/16)
CC 78.3% (18/23)

Turnovers MC 20
CC 12
Rebounds: MC 32 (Holder 10)
CC 27 (Adams 10)
Assists: MC 8 (Smith 5)
CC 6
Blocks: MC 2
CC 5
Steals: MC 7 (Smith 3)
CC 7 (Butts 3)
Fouls: MC 17
CC 15
Fouled out: MC - Ellis
CC - none

INDIVIDUAL STATS
MC: Fisk 3-7 (1-3) 1-1 8; Ellis 3-4 6; Holder 5-14 (0-2) 4-11 14; Bohannon 4-10 (2-3) 2-4 12

CC: Cunningham 2-10 4-6 8; Adams 5-12 6-7 16; Webb 1-2 (1-2) 2-2 5; Butts 2-5 1-2 5; Jones 1-4 2-2 4; Fields 5-6 3-4 13