Unsettling injuries threatened to derail West Jessamine, but the Colts keep charging
Hopes had never been higher for West Jessamine girls basketball coming into this season.
Five starters returned from a team that earned the program’s first win in a region tournament. (That includes 5-foot-11 double-double machine Claire Marshall, who is just a sophomore.)
In fact, the Lady Colts won two 12th Region Tournament games last season before falling to Danville Christian in the finals. They also came a whisker away from their first 46th District Tournament championship, falling 69-68 to Mercer County, the team that has only lost one of those titles in 24 years.
Earlier last season, West Jessamine had defeated Mercer County for the first time in school history.
The Colts’ four other starters, then all sophomores, averaged between eight and 10 points around Marshall’s 17.5 points and 13 rebounds per contest.
Surely, this would be another historic season in Nicholasville.
Two months in, that already seems certain, but for reasons both expected and never fathomed.
‘There was a lot of emotion in this locker room’
Like a number of knee injuries to female basketball players in recent times, it came out of nowhere. Junior point guard Ariana McLoney stepped into a routine jump shot against Grant County during the fifth game of the season and her right knee gave way.
“Yeah, it was no contact,” McLoney said. She tore both her ACL and meniscus. “It really sucked.”
In the wake of McLoney’s injury, West Jessamine lost to No. 10 Madison Central and No. 13 Frederick Douglass over the next two weeks. But the Colts soon found their footing.
Then, after West Jessamine had just won its fifth straight game at Wayne County on Jan. 4, its second-leading scorer, Isabella Lewis, suffered life-threatening injuries in a horrific car accident that night. They included a fractured pelvis, a dislocated hip, a concussion and burst bursa sacs in each knee, which required surgery.
West Jessamine coach Matt Hilkens had barely made it home when he got the call.
“There was a lot of emotion in this locker room for days and days after, especially Isabella’s accident,” Hilkens said. “I think everybody’s used to injuries on the court, but then when something happens off the court, it’s a huge shock.”
Fortunately, Lewis has recovered well after several days in the hospital. On Friday, as her team took on Mercer County at home, she sat next to McLoney in the bleachers behind the Colts’ bench. They stood their crutches together nearby. Both aim to be back on the court this summer as soon as their recoveries allow.
“I’m feeling pretty good. I’m just glad to be here and support,” Lewis said. “I’m recovering pretty fast actually. I couldn’t be more blessed to have the support I have.”
Marshall acknowledged it wasn’t easy to refocus on basketball after Lewis’ accident.
“It was tough, you know, just seeing her in the hospital and having to go to practice after that,” Marshall said. “I felt like we had just gotten our strength back after Ana (Ariana). Then we come back and Isabella’s out. And, you know, it could have been her life that was gone. I’m just thankful that she’s being able to recover and being able to be back next year.”
‘Expectations haven’t changed’
Hilkens faced keeping his team on track without two players who played virtually every minute last season and had started since seventh grade.
“We obviously felt these losses, and we had our moments to grieve them. But then at the same time, it was back to work on the court,” Hilkens said. “I told the girls … expectations haven’t changed. We’re going to continue to work hard. We’re going to try to get better every day.
“The expectation is that you compete. You might not win every game, but you are to compete and play hard and whatever happens from there happens.”
Tuesday at home against No. 5 North Laurel, West Jessamine (15-3) definitely competed. The Colts pushed the Jaguars to overtime before falling 70-65. Freshman Novalee Smith scored a season-high 19 points in an ever-expanding role. Junior forward Kimberly Johnson notched 10 points and 10 rebounds to go with Marshall’s 20 and 18.
In a 58-37 blowout over Mercer County (5-13) on Friday, Smith scored 18 points, including five 3-pointers. Katie Mastin, one of the other returning juniors, had 15 and eighth grader Greenleigh Eldridge knocked down a pair of threes. West Jessamine led the defending district champs 21-3 after one period and 37-11 at halftime. It only needed eight points from Marshall .
“The younger girls are doing amazing. I couldn’t be more proud,” McLoney said. “They’ve stepped up in a way that I didn’t even think they could, to be honest. They’re just showing what they can do. And it’s all coming together now.”
Marshall stepping up as a leader
It’s unusual for a sophomore to be among a team’s leaders. Marshall has earned some of that with her play. She nearly averaged a double-double as a seventh grader and hasn’t fallen short of that since. Last July, she got her first college offer from Murray State. It’s likely not the last.
“Claire Marshall is just special,” Hilkens said. “You can’t teach a lot of the stuff that she has. She’s obviously a phenomenal talent on the floor, but she’s an even better person off the floor. She’s an amazing leader for us. She’s the hardest worker.”
Marshall can post up, shoot the 3 and can bring the ball up the floor if needed. But Hilkens also likes how unselfishly she plays, especially in recent weeks.
“These past couple games, she’s getting double-digit assists and been willing to trust her teammates to shoot these shots,” Hilkens said. “It’s a little different when you’re passing out to eighth graders and ninth graders compared to the juniors that we lost. And so just her willingness to trust those kids and accept them just tells you how amazing a person she is.”
Difficult schedule ahead
Hilkens wants his team tested for the postseason. In the last week, he added No. 14 Notre Dame on one of his open dates. They go to No. 9 Bethlehem on Feb. 6 and will also take on Lafayette and Anderson County on the road near the end of the season.
The 12th Region Tournament is likely to include consistent threats like Pulaski County and Southwestern, along with sleeping giant Danville Christian, the defending champion who recently returned Louisville commit Grace Mbugua from injury.
“We tried to schedule as many tough games as we can, so we can really push the girls and force them to compete at a higher level,” Hilkens said. “And I’ve liked the way that we’ve responded. We’ve really battled, even with the injuries that we have.”
Marshall also likes how her team is playing and how they’ve developed into a contender.
Everybody’s stepping up. Everybody’s doing their job. Once we get used to this lineup we’ll be really tough,” Marshall said. “It’s really special to be part of this, and it’s only my sophomore year. We still have so much left to go through and to accomplish. I’m excited.”
This story was originally published January 25, 2025 at 12:38 PM.
