LEXINGTON — Owensboro Catholic advanced to semifinal action of the Mangua Beef Girls’ Basketball Sweet 16 after slipping past Bowling Green, 54-51, during Wednesday’s first round action.
Led by Karmin Riley’s 16-point, five assist effort, the Lady Aces (26-9) managed to weather the storm in the second half and pick up the three-point win.
Hailee Johnson scored 13 points for Owensboro Catholic, and finished with six rebounds while Katie Riney added eight points.
The Lady Aces finished the game hitting 17-of-39 shot attempts, including a 9-of-17 effort from 3-point range. They were also 11-of-13 from the free-throw line.
Katy Smiley led Bowling Green with 20 points, and three rebounds while Meadow Tisdale added 11 points and eight rebounds. SaniyahShelton finished with 10 points, and eight assists.
The Lady Purples (24-11) shot 18-of-42 from the floor, including going 6-of-17 from 3-point range.
Owensboro Catholic came out red-hot in the first half, taking a 13-6 lead in the first quarter behind 6-off-12 shooting from the floor.
Riley scored seven points on 3-of-4 shooting while the Lady Aces dominated the boards in the first eight minutes with eight rebounds.
Bowling Green struggled shooting, hitting in only 2-of-8 shot attempts while turning the ball over three times.
The Lady Purples raced back in the second quarter, and managed to outscore Owensboro Catholic, 13-5, to take a slim 19-18 advantage into the locker room at halftime.
Bowling Green shot 6-of-15 from the floor in the second quarter, and finished the first half hitting 8-of-23 from the floor, including a 1-of-6 effort from 3-point range.
Shelton led the Lady Purples with eight points while Bailey had six points.
The Lady Aces were able to remain close due to their 19-11 rebounding edge in the first half. They misfired on all eight shot attempts in the second quarter but hit five free throws to remain in the game.
Riley played a key part in her team being down only one point by scoring 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting from the floor.
Owensboro Catholic managed to fight back in the third quarter, and claim a 35-30 lead midway through the period before taking a 37-35 advantage into the fourth quarter.
The Lady Aces turned in a 6-of-10 effort from the floor during the period while hitting in four consecutive shots at one point. The Lady Purples were 4-of-8 from the floor, and closed the quarter out with a 5-2 run to cut their deficit to two points.
The game remained nip and tuck throughout the fourth quarter. Owensboro Catholic held a slim 47-46 advantage before a 3-pointer by Keelin with 2:19 remaining in regulation gave the Lady Aces a 50-46 advantage.
Bowling Green had opportunities to tie or take the lead on two separate occasions in the final minute but misfired on free throw attempts, and a 3-point attempt.
Owensboro Catholic’s Aubrey Randolph sealed the win with two free throws at the 12.5 second mark of the fourth quarter.
