Monticello — The Wayne County Lady Cards wrapped-up their regular season schedule

last Friday night at Cardinal Gym, with a date with 24th ranked Lexington

Catholic. Wayne County entered with an 8-16 mark and was coming off a 53-42

loss, at East Jessamine in their last outing. The Lady Knights entered on

three-game winning streak and owned a 13-13 record, which included a 50-43

win over #4 Elizabethtown earlier in the week. The teams last met on

February 20th in 2009, with the Lady Cards claiming a 45-41 upset road win.

Lexington Catholic used a 20-8 third quarter run, to put the game out of

reach and cruised to a 56-40 win. Alex Botkin led a balanced attack with 12

points and 6 rebounds. The sophomore forward finished 5 of 11 from the field

and 2 of 2 from the free throw line, in 27 minutes of action.

³We didn¹t have a very good shooting night, but I thought we we¹re very

much in the game, until about the middle of the third quarter. Once again we

tried to play in a frantic pace and just had too many turnovers, plus our

shot selection was poor. Lexington Catholic has played a very difficult

schedule and while their record may not be their usual 20 something wins,

they will be a major factor in the 11th Region just like they were last

year,² said Lady Cards head coach Tim Pyles.

Sophomore center Liz Walton connected on 5 of 8 field goal attempts to

post 11 points with 4 rebounds, while talented freshman Octavia Wilson added

9 points, as eight different Lady Knights etched the scoring column.

³Catholic might be young, but they are an extremely talented basketball

team. I just wish we could¹ve put together four quarters,² said Pyles.

Wayne County, which lost their third straight game, was plauged by 28

turnovers and 22 percent shooting from the field. Freshman Jessica Hardin

led the hosts with game highs of 16 points and 7 rebounds, in 26 minutes of

play. Hardin shot 6 of 18 from the floor and 2 of 4 from the charity-stripe,

plus converted on 2 3-pointers.

³We have to take better care of the basketball and make better decisions

with the basketball. Offensively we¹re forcing bad shots, making bad passes

and just not executing very well,² said Pyles.

Kayla Bowlin tallied on 6 of 8 free throws, to offset a 1 of 13 shooting

night from the field, to net 8 points with 4 assists. Tashea Pyles

contributed 5 points with 7 boards, while Hallie Gillespie and Bri Steele

scored 3 points each. Samantha Sexton and Monica Hopper tallied 2 points

each, while Jamie Roberts rounded-out the eight Lady Cards in the scoring

margin with 1 point.

Wayne County opened the game with a 4-0 spurt to grab their only lead of

the contest, before the Lady Knights responded with an 8-0 spurt of their

own, to take an 8-4 advantage.

Octavia Wilson netted 7 points in the second period, to offset the 7

points of Jessica Hardin, as Lexington Catholic used a 20-14 scoring edge,

to claim a 28-18 halftime advantage. The Lady Cards were just 4 of 21 from

the field in the half, but managed to stay close with an 8 of 13 effort from

the free throw line.

The Lady Knights used five different scorers in the third frame to spark

a 20-8 run, to roll to a 48-26 lead. The hosts were just 3 of 13 from the

field in the stanza, led by the 4 points of Jessica Hardin.

³We allowed them to take control in the third quarter, with our

mistakes,² said Pyles.

Reserves dominated the final 8-minutes as the Lady Cards ended the game

with a 14-8 tilt, to leave the final score 56-40.

Lexington Catholic finished 22 of 66 from the field for 33 percent and

connected on 3 of 12 3-pointers for 25 percent. The squad made 9 of 11 free

throws for 82 percent and totaled 22 turnovers, while enjoying a 41-33

rebound advantage.

Wayne County shot 11 of 50 overall for 22 percent and marked on 3 of 17

3-pointers for 18 percent. The hosts made 15 of 21 free throws for 71

percent and totaled 6 steals with 5 assists, against 28 turnovers.

The Lady Cards finished the regular season 8-17, but earned the

district¹s number two seed with a 4-2 mark. The squad meets 48th District

host Southwestern on Tuesday night, at 6:15 p.m. ³We played pretty well

earlier in the month, but certainly didn¹t finish the regular season like we

hoped. Southwestern is always a battle and I really believe rebounding along

with our ability to defend without fouling will be big keys. If we put them

on the line over 20 times, it could be a long night, plus we have to defend

Danay Fothergill better than last time we met,² said Pyles.

Wayne County does own two wins over the Lady Warriors the past month, a

52-49 road win on January 25th and a thrilling 72-66 overtime decision on

February 5th, at Cardinal Gym.

³Both teams know each other very well, so at this point I don¹t think

we¹ll see a lot of surprises. It will come down to the team that executes

the best and matches the other team¹s intensity,² said Pyles.

Details on all the 48th District action will be in next week¹s Outlook.