Raceland reigns again

By ROCKY STANLEY — The Independent

LLOYD February 29, 2008 12:55 am

— After going 32 years without a district championship, Raceland’s girls basketball team is on a roll.
The Lady Rams celebrated their second consecutive 63rd District title Thursday night by defeating Russell 50-37 at Greenup County High School.
This one was no less special for coach Bob Trimble and his players.
Raceland graduated several key performers and had to battle injuries this season from beginning to end.
“I didn’t know if we could pull it all together,’’ Trimble said. “We’ve only had our whole team out there for probably six or seven games because of injuries. Conditioning and the little practice time together have been issues. Tonight was a gut check, and the girls really came through.’’
Sophomores Brooke Keeton and Kasey Lewis provided a strong inside presence and junior standout Rachael Vanderhoof again served as a catalyst off the bench.
Except for Vanderhoof, the rest of Raceland’s squad played support roles on last year’s history-making team.
Keeton and Lewis combined for 21 points and 15 rebounds to help pave the way for Raceland’s district repeat.
“It’s amazing,’’ said the 6-foot-1 Keeton, who missed the first eight games after having a screw inserted in her broken foot. “It can never feel better than to beat your rival school. I’m glad we could all play together. It hasn’t happened hardly at all.’’
Keeton finished with 13 points, six of them coming in an 8-0 run that extended the Lady Rams’ lead to 14 points with just under five minutes left in the third quarter.
Russell (17-10) shot only 26 percent from the field against a sagging Raceland defense.
“Raceland is a well-coached team and their post players had good games,’’ said Russell coach Merle Kidwell. “There’s no shame in losing to Raceland anymore. They have had a good run of girls.’’
Lewis, a 5-11 forward, had 10 rebounds to go with her eight points.
“We knew we had to play well to beat Russell,’’ Lewis said. “We rebounded it pretty well and the defense did a good job.’’
Russell connected on only 13-of-50 attempts, while Raceland was 16-for-35. Russell managed only two 3-pointers in 15 tries.
“Normally, we don’t shoot 15 more shots than our opponent,’’ Kidwell said. “But when you only hit 26 percent, that’s hard to overcome.’’
Russell scored the first four points, but Raceland outscored the Lady Devils 10-2 to end the first quarter for a five-point lead. Vanderhoof, coming back from a strained ACL, hit two NBA-range 3-pointers in the second quarter as the Lady Rams opened a 10-point margin with two minutes remaining in the half.
“Those were some bombs,’’ Trimble said. “There’s no doubt Rachael is the best shooter in our region. She garners a lot of attention from the other team and makes everybody on the floor a little better.’’
Vanderhoof finished with 11 points and seven rebounds.
“We’re just trying to play her in spurts,’’ Trimble said. “She’s a warrior.’’
Russell, a 45-33 winner over Raceland back on Dec. 20, trailed by 14 points after three quarters. The Lady Devils made a big comeback in the first round against Lewis County but couldn’t get closer than eight down the stretch in the title game.
Raceland (18-12) put the game away at the foul line. Breanna Cumpton, the Lady Rams’ only senior, made three of four free throws after Russell pulled to within 43-35.
All-Tournament Team
Brooke Keeton (Raceland), Samantha Sparks (Russell), Jessi Marth (Lewis County), Kasey Lewis (Russell), Kayla Parsley (Russell), Ashley Grizzle (Greenup County), Brooke Wilson (Raceland), Kelsey Simpson (Russell), Rachael Vanderhoof (Raceland).

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