Young Lexington Christian team claims third straight girls All ‘A’ region title
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- Lexington Christian won a third straight 11th Region All 'A' title, 53-34.
- Seniors Graham, Bertram and Buckler lead a roster packed with middle-school players.
- Eagles advance to the statewide All 'A' Classic in Owensboro; meet Hazard in round one.
With three seniors leading a squad of mostly middle schoolers, Lexington Christian captured its third straight 11th Region All “A” Classic championship with a 53-34 win over Sayre at home as tournament host on Saturday.
The Eagles graduated four key players at the heart of their last two runs to the statewide All “A” Classic tournament for Kentucky’s smallest schools. This year’s team started a seventh grader and an eighth grader against the Spartans.
In fact, of LCA’s 17 rostered players, there are five seventh graders, five eighth graders, two freshmen and two sophomores to go with seniors Piper Graham, Jentry Bertram and Payton Buckler.
“A lot of people, they’re like, ‘They’re so much younger than you, like, it must be weird,’ But honestly, some days it feels like there’s no age gap. We’re all just having fun together. We mesh really well together,” said Graham, who scored a game-high 18 points on the way to tournament MVP honors.
LCA coach Tim Bradshaw credited his seniors for the growth of this year’s team. The Eagles (14-4) rolled through the All “A” Classic region field with blowout wins over Model, Berea and Sayre.
“You can’t have performances like we’ve had without their leadership,” Bradshaw said. “We’re trying to have an identity, especially for these young kids — playing fearless no matter who’s standing across from you.”
Bertram, a two-sport standout committed to Liberty to play soccer, recently took over as LCA’s all-time leading rebounder, surpassing a mark held by the program’s 2010 Miss Basketball Sarah Beth Barnett. Bertram is averaging 10.6 rebounds per game this season and through Saturday has 1,103 rebounds for her career.
She grabbed 12 rebounds to go with eight points against Sayre.
“It’s honestly a blast,” she said of her younger teammates. “These girls, though they’re young, they’re ready to work really hard on the court.”
LCA took control of Saturday’s game with a second quarter run that turned a 15-14 edge early in the period into a 30-17 lead at the half. Graham started the run with a 3-pointer and both she and Bertram dished out assists on back-to-back fast-break layups by Buckler.
Buckler finished with eight points, as did LCA eighth grader Somer Du Toit off the bench. Sayre (7-7) was led by Kathryn Kinder with 15 points and Karter Scott with 10.
Graham joined the Eagles last season after spending the early part of her career playing for the Bluegrass United homeschool team. She leads LCA in scoring with 19.3 points per game.
“I loved my time there, but here, it’s a different aspect than Bluegrass United,” Graham said. “We’re together at least 10 hours a day from school to practice, and then even more, after practice, just hanging out. It’s truly like a family. I mean, I see these kids more than I see my own family. It’s meant so much, and I love them all.”
Graham’s contributions go beyond her achievements on the court, Bradshaw said.
“I wish people could see her in every setting, because she makes people feel special,” he said. “She communicates with the young kids like she does older kids. She’s a great leader. … She cares about this, and she’s coachable. You can coach her hard and she doesn’t bat an eye.”
LCA’s will travel to the statewide All “A” Classic tournament at the Owensboro Sportscenter this week, where they will face 14th Region champion Hazard at 5 p.m. Wednesday in the first round. LCA won its first round game last season before being ousted in the quarterfinals.
First, however, the Eagles had to take on 43rd District nemesis Lafayette on Monday in one of their two regular season matchups. The Generals topped LCA 49-33 in last season’s district finals and already had a 4-1 record in the district compared to the Eagles’ 1-1 mark.
“They’re a tough matchup,” Bradshaw said Saturday of Lafayette. “I think we’re made of the right stuff. Over the last several years, we’ve started to knock some (streaks) down, and Lafayette is a team we haven’t, yet, in the district. ... Every time you play anybody in the district, it’s tough.”
The Eagles held a 13-4 lead after one quarter Monday night, but Lafayette erased the deficit quickly and pulled away to a 45-37 victory.
Girls All “A” Classic
What: Small-school state tournament
When: Wednesday through Sunday.
Where: Owensboro Sportscenter, Owensboro.
Pay-per view stream: Go.PrepSpin.com.
Wednesday’s first round
- Owensboro Catholic vs. Pineville, 8:30 a.m.
- Morgan County vs. Owen County, 10 a.m.
- Bishop Brossart vs. Green County, 11:30 a.m.
- Pikeville vs. Danville Christian, 1 p.m.
- Lexington Christian vs. Hazard, 5 p.m.
- Monroe County vs. Holy Cross (Louisville), 6:30 p.m.
- Carlisle County vs. Lyon County, 8 p.m.
- Holy Cross (Covington) vs. Kentucky Country Day, 9:30 p.m.
This story was originally published January 17, 2026 at 10:41 PM.
