Lady Rockets headed to regional championship

HOPKINSVILLE, Ky. – On a stage that should’ve, could’ve, would’ve belonged to Christian County, Lady Rocket junior Anna Boone and her posse scorched the Lady Colonels 63-49 in Friday’s Second Region semifinal at Lyle Dunbar Gym in Hopkinsville.

Anna Boone scored 19 of her 24 in the 1st half.

Christian, looking for its first championship game berth since Crittenden County beat the Lady Colonels for the regional title in 2011, was taken to the woodshed by the Lady Rockets, who built as much as a 30-point lead in the second half en route to securing their second regional championship appearance in three years.

Crittenden, which has won a record 10 All A Classic regional crowns, has won only one KHSAA regional title in history. That was in 2011. The Lady Rockets will on Saturday play in their fourth regional championship in school history. The first was in 1978.

Boone dominated the first half, displaying wizardry off the bounce and from downtown. She was unstoppable, stymieing the homesteading Lady Colonels, who are typically as territorial as a pit bull on their own floor.

“I knew I had to get in there and score my points,” said Boone, who has averaged just under 15 points per game this season and scored 24 against Christian. “Once we started scoring, our defense just clicked.”

While Boone was lighting it up, the rims were mighty unforgiving to Christian County, which misfired like an AK-47 with a 30-round clip full of blanks – shot after shot, but none hitting the target. The Lady Colonels collected rebound after rebound, but seldom found the net.

Center Bristyn Rushing and Coach
Shannon Hodge.

Meanwhile, Boone was raking. She scored 19 in the first half to lift Crittenden to a 37-19 lead at the break. Crittenden had fallen behind 7-2 early but outscored Christian 17-4 the rest of the first quarter.

Even when Crittenden’s offense cooled slightly in the third period, Christian kept losing ground while its offense was as unsuccessful as a lottery ticket. The Lady Rockets convincingly frustrated their hosts, forcing rushed shots, off-balance prayers, and frequent misses around the basket on attempts the Lady Colonels typically make.

Although Crittenden stuck to a six-player rotation before unloading the bench late, it was clear that Coach Shannon Hodge’s team had met the physical challenge she posed to them heading into the contest against a team known for its ruggedness.

“We knew it was going to be a war inside for rebounds,” Hodge said. “We knew that if we could just challenge their shots, then they wouldn’t be as comfortable on those first shots. They got a lot of offensive rebounds, but we got enough, especially early, to keep them from scoring a lot of points in that first half.”

Crittenden (23-7), ranked No. 2 in the region’s power rankings, will tip off at 6 p.m. Saturday against Henderson County (26-5), the top-ranked team in the region.

“They have two good post players, so we have to keep the ball from going into them and keep them off the boards,” Boone said of Henderson. “And they have really quick guards, so we have to keep a hand in their face.”

Henderson, a six-time defending Second Region champion, beat Hopkins Central 60-37 in Friday’s other semifinal game. Crittenden lost by 10 to Henderson in a regular-season matchup in February at Rocket Arena.

Crittenden County 19 37 57 63

Christian County 11 19 31 49

CRITTENDEN – Boone 24, Evans 2, Hodge 12, Federico 9, Rushing 12, Stewart 4, Holeman, Berry, Champion, Hunt. 3-pointers 4 (Boone 3, Hodge). FT 16-26.

CHRISTIAN – Northington 4, Bagwell 14, Day 10, Hobson 4, McGee 3, Daniel 9, Bell 2, Bradley 3. 3-pointers 2 (Daniel, Bagwell). FT 11-21.