WARRIORS ON FIRE: Southwestern takes down Anderson County for another signature victory
- Jacob Pratt
- Feb 1
- 5 min read
SOMERSET - Winning five of their last six games, including wins over the past week against Corbin and Pulaski County, the Southwestern Warriors are trending in the right direction heading into the final few weeks of the regular season. Another road block on their path came on Saturday in the form of the Anderson County Lady Bearcats, a team from the Eighth Region that was 18-4 coming into the contest. Well, add another to the loss column... for the Bearcats that is, as Southwestern road an all-around team effort to a 52-39 victory. Head coach Junior Molden stated after the game that he couldn't have asked for a better effort from his team.
"The biggest win of our season so far no question. We had to match their energy level to get this win today, I label their coach as one of the best in the state of Kentucky. We took a day off earlier in the week and I think that helped prepare us for today. We did a walkthrough earlier today and they were mentally prepared, and I do believe this is the first time season we have played for a full 32 minutes," he explained.
Early on in the ball game though, it seemed like the Bearcats were going to quickly run away with the game after a quick basket from Faith McGregor and a three-pointer from Ella Baum. However, the Warriors quickly ripped the lead from their opponents after back-to-back threes from Jessalyn Flynn and McKaila Monroe. After another basket from Baum, Flynn ripped her second triple of the period to give her team a two-point edge.
It looked like the Bearcats were going to take a decent lead into the second after another basket from McGregor and a three from Lainey Johnson, however Flynn scored another basket with a layup before the end of the period to trim the Southwestern deficit down to just one at 12-11 after the first.
Emily Jarrard had the first basket of the second quarter before Kinsley Molden nailed a pair of three-pointers to give Southwestern the lead once again at 17-14, with Anderson head coach Clay Birdwhistell calling for a timeout. Molden was able to grab an offensive rebound on their next possession and put the ball back up for two, giving the senior an 8-0 scoring spree by herself.
Johnson hit a shot from deep to bring an end to that run, although Jaelyn Dye immediately followed that up on the other end with a three of her own. McGregor was able to hit one of two from the charity stripe late in the half, but the home team was still able to take a 22-18 lead into the locker room.
The game was quickly tied up to start play in the second half after baskets from Jarrard and Baum. Flynn was able to give Southwestern the lead back, but not for long as Johnson drilled a long range shot to give Anderson County their first lead since the first period. That lead flipped once again in favor of the Warriors after four straight points from Monroe to hand Southwestern a 28-25 lead.
Johnson was able to rip the ball from the Warriors and put it in for two, trimming Anderson County's lead down to one before the Bearcats called for another timeout. However, that timeout seemingly worked against the visitors, as both Dye and Monroe scored in the final moments of the third quarter to take a 32-27 advantage into the final quarter of action on the night.
Mollie Osborne, playing extremely well off the bench, started the fourth on the floor and that immediately paid off for the home team as she was able to pull down an offensive rebound and put it back up for two. Out of a Southwestern timeout, Osborne was wide open in the corner and was able to drill it for three to push the Warrior lead to double digits at 37-27. After two free throws from Jarrard and a Bearcat timeout, Molden was able to hit yet another three to push her team's lead up to 42-29.
Another basket from Jarrard was answered on the other end by Dye, with Ellie Shouse able to hit a shot from deep soon after. After a basket inside from Flynn, Johnson, being held well-below her season average of about 23 points per game, was able to hit another three-pointer to push the Southwestern lead below double digits. As the final few minutes of the contest approached however, the lead was just too large for the visitors to overcome. Some clutch free throws from both Dye and Molden iced the game away for the Warriors as they were able to record another fantastic victory at the Wig Wam 52-39. Coach Molden had high praises for several players, including Osborne, following the game.
"Mollie's best career game, 12 rebounds, a force defensively. I told her in the fourth quarter, this is the best game you've played here you are not coming off the floor," he stated.
Molden had the game-high with 15 points. Other contributors included Flynn with 12, Dye with 11, Monroe with nine and Osborne with five. Osborne also had 12 rebounds in the game. Anderson County was led by Johnson with 14. Southwestern improves to 14-8 and will be back at home again on Monday to take on the Rockcastle County Lady Rockets.
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