Guess just a notch away; Maroons unravel Rocket girls

MADISONVILLE, Ky. – Crittenden County (14-5) was physically pushed around by Madisonville well before three Lady Rocket starters were out of the game. Shorthanded down the stretch and deep into its young bench, CCHS was virtually defenseless against the host Lady Maroons (15-5), who kept the pressure on and the accelerator mashed en route to posting a 73-50 victory Thursday.

Both teams came into the game ranked among the top four of KHSAA’s Second Region power rankings. The Lady Rockets had led the region in RPI until a recent skid that has seen them lose three of the last five games.

Somewhere in the exhaust of Madisonville’s statement win was Taylor Guess’s move into second place on the Lady Rockets’ all-time scoring list. She dropped 27 at Madisonville, surpassing 1970's era Lady Rocket Jeannie Hinchee on the girls’ scoring ledger. Hinchee is now No. 3 with 1,628 points. Guess, just a junior, has scored 1,650 in her career, and she is 175 points behind the school's top scorer in history, Cassidy Moss, who had 1,825 in a career that ended in 2017.

Barring any significant setback, Guess has a good shot at getting to the school's scoring summit this season. The Lady Rockets have nine regular-season games and the playoffs remaining and Guess averages 21 points per game. Had last season not been cut short due to the pandemic, she might already have broken the scoring record.

CCHS junior Natalie Boone had 15 points, including four three-pointers; otherwise, the Lady Rocket supporting cast was a bit overmatched and provided just eight points at Madisonville.

Crittenden was unable to equal Madisonville’s physicality, allowing the Maroons to score at will through the lane. Quickness was also a factor as the Lady Maroons were able to beat the CCHS defense down the floor for some easy baskets. Still, the Lady Rockets managed to stay within striking distance until midway through the third period when foul trouble started to whittle away at the lineup.

CCHS trailed by eight at the half, but eighth-grade starter Anna Boone did not return to the court in after the break because of illness – which contributed to Crittenden’s unraveling. With three minutes left in the third quarter, the Lady Rockets were still within seven points, but two starters – Natalie Boone and Addie Hatfield – drew back to back fourth fouls and were replaced with subs for a time. By the end of the period, Madisonville led by 16, and it didn't get any better for CCHS in the fourth quarter. Boone and Hatfield eventually fouled out.

It was the first meeting between CCHS and MHS since March 2, 2020, when the Lady Maroons beat Crittenden in the Second Region Tournament.

Crittenden 6 19 32 50
Madisonville 15 27 48 73
CRITTENDEN – Guess 27, N.Boone 15, Evans 2, Driskill 4, McDaniel 2, Federico, A.Boone, Holeman.FG: 15. 3-pointers 4 (Boone 4) FT: 16-26
MADISONVILLE – Johnson 2, Noffsinger 10, Barber 2, LaGrange 21, McGowan 3, Whitsell 16, Lovan 19 FG: 24. 3-pointers 1 (LaGrange). FT: 8-15.