Henderson Pulls Away With Lethal 3rd Quarter at Christian County

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In the midst of its most difficult stretch of the regular season, the Christian County High School girls’ basketball team fell victim to a near-perfect third quarter by the opposition during a 69-39 home loss Saturday evening.

After jumping out to a 9-0 lead and trailing by just eight points at halftime to the region’s top team, the Lady Colonels were abruptly surpassed by a hot-shooting Henderson County squad in the third period, as HCHS outscored CCHS 30-6 in the frame to create ample breathing room.

Sadie Wurth scored 13 of her game-high 20 points in the third quarter, leading her team to its fifth straight win. Wurth drilled four of Henderson’s 10 3-pointers in the victory, as the Colonels (10-6) from the north outscored Christian 30-6 from behind the arc.

Emilee Hope, who missed her first three attempts from the field, was true on her final five shots and finished with 17 points. The favorite to be named 2nd Region Player of the Year also had six rebounds and three assists.

Graci Risley knocked down a trio of treys – all from the corner – and was the third Henderson player in double figures with 13 points. She, Wurth and Hope combined for 50 of the Colonels’ 69 points.

CCHS (5-11) went 0-for-12 from the free throw line and dropped its third straight decision. Head coach Kiki Radford and the southern Colonels are playing seven games in 11 days. Saturday’s regional tilt was the third during the intense swing.

Less than 24 hours after falling at home to crosstown rival Hopkinsville, Christian County answered the emotional bell by racing out to a fast lead at Lyle Dunbar Gymnasium. Lamontavia Forte, averaging less than three points per game, scored the first four of Saturday’s affair to set the tone.

CCHS dominated the boards during the first four minutes and even went up by nine points on a 3-pointer by Destinee Catlett-Watkins midway through the first quarter. Henderson answered with a 13-5 run, but a Lydashe Bell bomb at the buzzer kept Christian ahead 14-13 at the end of the opening period.

The visiting Colonels turned up the full-court defensive pressure in the second quarter, leading to six turnovers by Christian, and managed to take control on a pair of buckets from Kaytlan Kemp late in the half.

It was all Henderson County in the third quarter, though, as Wurth went on a personal 7-0 run to start the second half, helping HCHS score 20 points in four minutes. On Jan. 17, those same Colonels scored 41 points during a six-minute stretch against Union County.

Jeff Haile, who picked up career win No. 737 as the Henderson County head coach, pulled his starters early in the fourth quarter. Eight different players reached the scoring column in the road win for Hendo, which will take on Hopkinsville on Tuesday.

Amari Brown and Eniya McGee each had eight points to lead Christian County in scoring. Catlett-Watkins added seven points, while Forte and Reni Shemwell chipped in four apiece.

Radford and the Lady Colonels will take the floor again at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at University Heights Academy. CCHS then hosts Fort Campbell on Thursday, hosts Murray on Friday and travels to Owensboro to take on Apollo on Saturday.

— Chris Jung

 

SCORE BY QUARTER
1Q 2Q 3Q 4Q
HCHS (10-6) 13 15 30 7 – 69
CCHS (5-11) 14 10 6 6 – 36

INDIVIDUAL SCORING
HCHS: Jarie Thomas 4, Savannah Lacer 2, Sadie Wurth 20, Kaytlan Kemp 8, Graci Risley 13, Lauren Hubbard 3, M’Kyra Dixon 2, Emilee Hope 17; CCHS: Destinee Catlett-Watkins 7, Mikayah Killebrew 2, Amari Brown 8, Eniya McGee 8, Lamontavia Forte 4, Lydashe Bell 3, Reni Shemwell 4

3-POINTERS
HCHS: 10 (Wurth 4, Risley 3, Hope 3); CCHS: 2 (Catlett-Watkins, Bell)

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