Who are Kentucky’s top 25 girls’ basketball teams for 2019-20?
READ MORE
2019-20 High School Basketball Preview
The Herald-Leader/Kentucky.com is publishing season preview stories each day leading up to the start of the 2019-20 high school basketball season on Monday, Dec. 2. You can read everything we’ve published to this point by clicking on this drop-down list. All of the stories are also available in our Sunday, Dec. 1 print edition.
Expand All
If you’re going to defend your program’s first state championship, having Maddie Scherr, last season’s Gatorade Player of the Year and a favorite for Miss Basketball, is a good place to start.
Scherr, a 5-foot-11 guard who recently signed with Oregon, is one of three returning starters for the Raiders and a huge reason why Ryle is the Herald-Leader preseason No. 1, according to its annual survey of the state’s girls’ basketball coaches.
“Our defense and guard play will be our strengths this season,” said Ryle Coach Katie Haitz, who has 5-6 senior Jaiden Douthit and 5-11 junior Brie Crittendon to harass opponents once more.
But Ryle isn’t the only team with major contributors back hungry for hardware.
No. 2 Sacred Heart looks to have a healthy Erin Toller, a 5-6 senior guard committed to Kentucky who’s been away from the high school game for nearly two full years due to knee injuries. She comes in as one of three Valkyries ranked in the coaches’ preseason top 25 player rankings along with Destinee Marshall and Kristen Clemons.
“The depth and talent is as much as (Sacred Heart) had in the three years they won state in 2002, 2003 and 2004,” said Sacred Heart Coach Donna Moir. “Expectations are extremely high and positive.”
Meanwhile, No. 3 Mercy returns three starters, as well, led by 6-1 senior guard Taziah Jenks, a West Virginia commit who led the team with 18 points per game, 5-5 point guard Hope Sivori, and 6-0 forward Paige Taylor.
And the high-powered offense of Scott County comes in at No. 4 with starters Morgan DeFoor, Malea Williams and Kenady Tompkins ready to make another run.
Last year’s runner-up, Southwestern, rounded out the top five.
Preseason girls’ top 10
(Last season’s record in parenthesis)
1. Ryle (33-5): While last year’s leading scorer Lauren Schwartz is off to Rice, the cupboard remains stocked, led by Scherr, who is regarded as a five-star recruit and the 19th-best overall player in the nation, according to ESPN.com. Douthit holds the Raiders’ single-game made three-pointer record with nine. Crittendon enters her third year as a starter and averaged 11.6 points per game.
2. Sacred Heart (24-8): The Valkyries have four returning starters, and their fifth is a University of Kentucky commit. Even away from the game, Toller is regarded as the eighth-best player in the state, according to our coaches’ poll. Backcourt mate Destinee Marshall ranks 14th and Belmont volleyball commit Kristen Clemons, a 6-0 center in basketball, ranks 23rd. Triniti Ralston, a 5-6 freshman, takes over at point. Sacred Heart fell hard to Male in last year’s 7th Region Tournament.
3. Mercy (16-15): The Jaguars took their lumps during the regular season, but it paid off come tournament time until getting edged by a point to Clark County in the Sweet Sixteen. Jenks and Sivori are one of the top-scoring backcourts in the state. “Keys will be rebounding. We have to make it a priority because we do not have a 6-3 post inside, but we do have many kids that can make a big difference on any given night,” Coach Keith Baisch said.
4. Scott County (34-2): Leading scorer Maaliya Owens has moved on to Tennessee Tech, and a few players have transferred to the new Great Crossing High School, but the Cardinals have the inside-out tandem of Malea Williams and Morgan DeFoor to spearhead an offense that produced more than 82 points per game last season. Williams averaged a double-double and DeFoor’s shooting range begins at the gym door.
5. Southwestern (27-6): The Warriors have four starters back under the leadership of former assistant coach Junior Molden and are looking to make another run for the 12th Region title and beyond. Regi Cundiff, a 6-0 senior forward, led the team in scoring with 14.4 points per game, and 5-8 senior guard Kennedy Harris also averaged double figures last season.
6. South Laurel (26-8): Entering its second season under back-to-back title winning coach Chris Souder (Mercer County), South Laurel has a pair of Division I commit guards in Ally Collett (Western Kentucky) and Amerah Steele (Eastern Kentucky). Senior shooting guard Sydnie Hall has her coach’s green light and also scored in double figures as a junior.
7. Clark County (25-11): With three senior starters gone, point guard Kennedy Igo, a Northern Kentucky signee, will lead the team alongside sophomore forward Tyra Flowers. Coach Robbie Graham lauds the 5-7 Igo as a tremendous all-around player who is “tough as nails.”
8. Elizabethtown (30-5): Knocked out by Bethlehem in the 5th Region finals a year ago, the Panthers look to make a return to the Sweet Sixteen with leading scorer Whitney Hay, a 6-1 guard who has signed with Belmont, leading the charge. Also back is NKU signee Ellie Taylor, a 5-10 senior, and Sydney Clark, a 6-0 forward.
9. Franklin County (25-9): The Flyers held Scott County to nearly 40 points off its average and nearly pulled the upset in the 11th Region Tournament semifinals last year. And Franklin County has standout junior point guard Brooklynn Miles to try to end the Cards’ two-year run to the state tournament. Miles, who averaged 20 points and five assists per game last year, has double-figure scorers back in Patience Laster and Jasmine Simpson.
10. Owensboro Catholic (29-8): The Lady Aces return three starters from the team that lost to Ryle in the state semifinals, led by Murray State commit Hannah McKay, a 6-0 senior who creates matchup problems inside and out and averaged 13.9 points last season. With more than half their points graduated, Coach Michael Robertson is looking for others to step up.
The next 15
With result of final game last season.
11. Simon Kenton (21-12): Lost to Collins in the 8th Region finals.
12. Bethlehem (29-5): Lost to Owensboro Catholic in the first round of the state tournament.
13. Christian Academy-Louisville (20-11): Lost to Ballard in the 28th District semifinals.
14. Casey County (25-9): Lost to Southwestern in the 12th Region finals.
15. Male (24-8): Lost to Southwestern in the state tournament semifinals.
16. Bullitt East (24-10): Lost to Butler in the 6th Region semifinals.
17. Scott (23-11): Lost to Clark County in the 10th Region semifinals.
18. Butler (22-10): Lost to Mercy in the 6th Region finals.
19. Manual (21-10): Lost to Male in the 7th Region finals.
20. Anderson County (27-7): Lost to Simon Kenton in the 8th Region semifinals.
21. Boyd County (28-5): Lost to Male in the first round of the state tournament.
22. North Laurel (31-7): Lost to Southwestern in the state tournament quarterfinals.
23. Henderson County (18-9): Lost to North Laurel in the first round of the state tournament.
24. Webster County (29-4): Lost to Henderson County in the 2nd Region finals.
25. Notre Dame (20-13): Lost to Ryle in the 9th Region semifinals.
Methodology
Our annual survey was emailed to all 270 KHSAA girls’ basketball coaches in Kentucky, using their email registered with the KHSAA. Multiple attempts were made to encourage every school to participate. Coaches were asked to select their top 10 teams, and points were assigned based on a team’s position on the ballot (10 points for No. 1, nine points for No. 2, eight points for No. 3, etc.), and tabulated across all ballots received; some schools participated in the survey but declined to vote due to unfamiliarity with players and teams outside of their own.
A total of 72 of 270 schools (26.7 percent) voted for their top 10 teams out of the 134 coaches (49.6 percent) who responded to the Herald-Leader survey. They are recognized here: Adair County, Allen County-Scottsville, Ashland Blazer, Assumption, Ballard, Bardstown, Barren County, Bell County, Betsy Layne, Bishop Brossart, Boone County, Bourbon County, Bowling Green, Boyd County, Butler, Caldwell County, Calloway County, Christian Academy-Louisville, Christian County, Clark County, Clay County, Clinton County, Conner, Manual, East Ridge, Elizabethtown, Fern Creek, Franklin County, Glasgow, Great Crossing, Green County, Harlan County, Harrison County, Henderson County, Highlands, Hopkinsville, Jackson City, Knott County Central, Lawrence County, Leslie County, Lincoln County, Marion County, Mason County, Mercy, Muhlenberg County, Nelson County, Owensboro Catholic, Owsley County, Paducah Tilghman, Paintsville, Paris, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Pendleton County, Pleasure Ridge Park, Pulaski County, Rockcastle County, Rowan County, Ryle, Sacred Heart, Scott County, Scott, Shelby Valley, Simon Kenton, South Laurel, South Warren, Southwestern, Spencer County, Thomas Nelson, Walton-Verona, Wayne County, Whitley County and Woodford County.
This story was originally published November 29, 2019 at 8:44 AM.
