2020DMRG15

2005 Houchens Industries/KHSAA Sweet 16® Girls State Basketball Tournament

E.A. Diddle Arena Western Kentucky University

Bowling Green, KY

March 26, 2005

Clinton County (32-5) vs. Lexington Catholic (35-1) (Championship)

Clinton County coach Ronnie Guffey started the following lineup: 5-8 Sr. Brittany Abbott, 5-6 Jr. Jessica Cummings, 5-10 Sr. Dorothy Papineau, 5-8 Sr. Paige Guffey, and 5-7 Sr. Amber Guffey.  Lexington Catholic coach Greg Todd countered with 5-8 Sr. Adaeze Azubuike, 6-0 Jr. Anaris Sickles, 6-0 Sr. Shannon Novosel, 5-6 So. Keyla Snowden, and 5-8 Jr. Nikki Davis.

The third time proved to be a charm for the Lexington Catholic Lady Knights as they claimed the title with a 59-54 victory over Clinton County after two straight runner-up finishes to Sacred Heart.  This proved to be a classic as Lexington Catholic finally took the lead for good with 56 seconds left in the game.  The Lady Knights led 57-54 late in the game and Amber Guffey missed a three pointer for the tie with less than six seconds remaining in the game.  Shannon Novosel grabbed the rebound, was fouled and hit two free throws to close out the scoring.

Clinton County took control early and led 22-13 with 3:46 remaining in the first half.  Lexington Catholic rallied to pull within two, 24-22 at the half.  The game remained close in the third quarter with Clinton County clinging to a 42-41 lead at the end of three quarters.  The game remained close until Lexington Catholic finally gained the late advantage.  There were seven lead changes and three ties late in the game.

Lexington Catholic shot 51.1% from the field, connected on nine of 10 free throws, and pulled down 15 rebounds.  The Lady Knights scored 23 points off 18 Clinton County turnovers, and held a 19-1 advantage in bench scoring.  Clinton County shot 54.3% from the field including a sizzling 11 of 23 from beyond the arc.  The Lady Bulldogs connected on five of six free throws, and grabbed 23 rebounds.

Anaris Sickles and 5-7 Fr. Briana Green led Lexington Catholic with 16 and 11 points respectively.  Amber Guffey led Clinton County with 20 points, six rebounds, and four assists.  Paige Guffey added 14 points and six rebounds and Brittany Abbott chipped in with 10 points.

Clinton County,13,11,18,12,54

Lexington Catholic,7,15,19,18,59

Clinton County (54) – Abbott 10, Cummings 9, Papineau 0, P. Guffey 14, A. Guffey 20, Deforrest 1.

Lexington Catholic (59) – Azubuike 5, Sickles 16, S. Novosel 6, Snowden 8, Davis 5, Green 11, N. Novosel 8.

All Tournament Team – Courtney Danis (Montgomery County), Suzie Owens (Scott County), Brittany Edelen (Washington County), Laquisha Wharton (Iroquois), Amber Neace (South Laurel), Taran Johnson (South Laurel), Aseer Itiavkase (Paducah Tilghman), Pam Bell (Paducah Tilghman), Paige Guffey (Clinton County), Amber Guffey (Clinton County), Brittany Abbott (Clinton County), Keyla Snowden (Lexington Catholic), Natalie Novosel (Lexington Catholic), and Anaris Sickles (Lexington Catholic), (MVP).

A special thanks to WL Stats and the KHSAA for providing the statistics and updates for this event.