Whitley County

WILLIAMSBURG - Lincoln County withstood a furious second-half rally by Whitley County and held off the host Lady Colonels 58-55 Monday night in a matchup of two state-ranked girls' basketball teams. Lincoln, tied at No. 20 with Whitley in Dave Cantrall's Rating the State rankings, came ready to go, jumping out to a 15-5 lead in the first quarter and posting an 11-point lead at the half. In the second half, though, Whitley battled back, using a 15-4 run to negate the Lady Pat lead.

The Lincoln County girls rallies from a three-point deficit to start the fourth quarter to come back and beat visiting Whitley County 65-63 on Monday. Emily Fox led four Lincoln County players in double figures with 16 points, while Sydney Harris had 13 and Ciara Saylor and Kourtney Belcher had 12 points apiece. Lincoln (11-5)¿actually led 37-28 at the half, but Whitley (10-6) used a 19-7 scoring edge in the third to take a 47-44 lead going to the fourth quarter. Boys Game Madison Central 60,¿Mercer County 38 - At Harrodsburg, No. 5 Madison Central moved to 15-0 on the season with a blowout win over the host Titans (5-12)

Keith Price had 20 points and nine blocks and Will Johnson added 16 points Saturday as Casey County beat visiting Whitley County 72-53. Casey trailed 9-8 after the first quarter, but used a 23-9 scoring edge to take a 31-18 halftime lead. The Rebels increased that margin to 50-31 after three quarters. Casey finished the game 25-for-57 from the field (44 percent), hitting six of 16 3-pointers. The Rebels also were 16 of 25 from the foul line and had 12 assists to 15 turnovers.

WILLIAMSBURG - A little defensive intensity turned out to be all Casey County needed Tuesday. Casey and Whitley County were tied 44-all at the half, but the Rebels shot 56 percent in the second half to outscore Whitely by 32 points in a 97-65 road victory. "We shot 18-for-32 in first half and were tied. We really didn't play good defense, we didn't pick them up in transition, and they shot the eyes out of it, too," Casey coach Perry Walters said. "I told them we were playing well off, but we're not stopping them.

The Boyle County girls lost by 33 strokes to Whitley County in their season-opening match Tuesday. Kelsey Joslen shot 41 and Carolann Buchanan followed with a 42 for Boyle, which had a four-person score of 194. BOYLE COUNTY (194) - Kelsey Joslyn 41, Carolann Buchanan 42, Courtney True 53, Kristin Carter 58, Erica Mills 60. WHITLEY COUNTY (161) - Amy Hart 33, Ashley Inman 42, Courtney Bishop 43, Amanda Allen 43, Kayla Peace 45

Clay Carter and Matthew Horn each shot 38s to lead Boyle County's boys golf team to a 33-stroke win Tuesday over Garrard County at Old Bridge Golf Course. Matt Hume led Garrard with a 44. GIRLS Lincoln County 194, Whitley County 199 - At Stanford, Kandis Noe shot a 47 to lead Lincoln to the five-stroke win. BOYS BOYLE COUNTY (162) - Carter 38, Horn 38, Hardin 41, Waters 45. GARRARD COUNTY (195) - Hume 44, Cantrell 47, Himes 51, Estridge 53. GIRLS At Dix River C.C., Stanford LINCOLN COUNTY (194)

TUESDAY, JAN. 24 Men's college basketball Kentucky at Auburn, 7 p.m. (WRNZ-FM 105.1) Thomas More at Centre, 7:30 p.m. Boys high school basketball East Jessamine at Boyle County, 7:30 p.m. Tates Creek at Lincoln County, 7:30 p.m. Casey County at Pulaski County, 7:30 p.m. Garrard County at Whitley County, 7:30 p.m. 12th Region All "A" Classic: First round, Monticello at Burgin, 7 p.m. ...

Thursday Consolation Round Washington County 49, Kilsyth, Australia 26 Whitley County 60, Garrard County 49 Fern Creek 62, Harrison County 49 Prestonsburg 63, Caverna 40 Quarterfinals Clay County 67, Lincoln County 49 Anderson County 55, Mason County 52 Rockcastle County 53, Raceland 42 Bullitt Central 69, Boyle County 62, OT Friday Consolation Round Kilsyth, Australia vs....

(Sun photo by Keith Taylor) George Rogers Clark High School defensive back Jarran Thomas (20) looks for running room after picking off a pass during the Cardinals' scrimmage against Whitley County on Friday night at Cardinal Stadium. The Cardinals and Colonels played a controlled scrimmage and no score was kept. Clark opens the season at 8 p.m. on Aug. 25 against Montgomery County in the annual Recreation Bowl in Mount Sterling.

Kyle Hundley and Will Davis each shot below par, but Davis' Mercer County boys prevailed over Hundley's Casey County team in a match Wednesday at Harrodsburg. Hundley had the low score in the match at Bright Leaf Golf Course with a 2-under-par 34, while Davis shot 35 for Mercer, which edged Casey 157-162. CASEY COUNTY (162) - Kyle Hundley 34, Derek Murphy 38, Jake Brewer 39, Corey Dial 41, Kyle Terry 41, Doug Streeval 42, Trevor Harrison 47. MERCER COUNTY (157) - Davis 35, Killian 39, Yeast 40, Moore 43, Ward 47, McQuerry 47. Marion County 172, Garrard County 189 - At Lebanon, Zack Estridge shot 45 to post the low score for Garrard in a loss to Marion at Lebanon Country Club.

WILLIAMSBURG - Lincoln County withstood a furious second-half rally by Whitley County and held off the host Lady Colonels 58-55 Monday night in a matchup of two state-ranked girls' basketball teams. Lincoln, tied at No. 20 with Whitley in Dave Cantrall's Rating the State rankings, came ready to go, jumping out to a 15-5 lead in the first quarter and posting an 11-point lead at the half. In the second half, though, Whitley battled back, using a 15-4 run to negate the Lady Pat lead.

WILLIAMSBURG - Boyle County is as ready as it's going to get. The Rebels have been building a head of steam on the way to the postseason, and they shoveled more coal into the engine Friday night in a 38-7 victory over Whitley County at Colonel Stadium. They took control of the game early and kept crippled Whitley from doing much about it as they rolled into the playoffs with their third straight blowout win. “These last three games we've really started to peak, all cylinders clicking,” Boyle quarterback Casey Whittle said.

Even in the final week of the regular season, Boyle County has a lot to play for. The Rebels travel to Whitley County on Friday before hosting Clay County in the first round of the Class AAAA playoffs. But Boyle coach Larry French doesn't want his team to look ahead to Clay and lose any momentum they've built up at the end of the year. “We've been on a roll the last two or three games,”¿French said. “Offensively, we've been clicking on all cylinders and defensively we've been improving, and we need to continue to improve defensively if we want to have a run at this.

The Lincoln County girls rallies from a three-point deficit to start the fourth quarter to come back and beat visiting Whitley County 65-63 on Monday. Emily Fox led four Lincoln County players in double figures with 16 points, while Sydney Harris had 13 and Ciara Saylor and Kourtney Belcher had 12 points apiece. Lincoln (11-5)¿actually led 37-28 at the half, but Whitley (10-6) used a 19-7 scoring edge in the third to take a 47-44 lead going to the fourth quarter. Boys Game Madison Central 60,¿Mercer County 38 - At Harrodsburg, No. 5 Madison Central moved to 15-0 on the season with a blowout win over the host Titans (5-12)

What happened in the heat of summer was still fresh in the Boyle County seniors' minds on a cold October night. They remembered the promise they made some three months ago during the team's preseason camp at Jabez, the same promise that groups of Boyle seniors have been making for years. And they did their best to deliver on that promise Friday in their final regular-season game at Rebel Stadium, where they dismanted Whitley County 49-10. “It was Jabez, the senior tradition,” said running back-linebacker Jesse Mattingly, one of the Rebels' seniors.

Boyle County won't know who it will play in the first round of the Class AAAA playoffs until Friday night. So coach Larry French will just concern himself with how the Rebels play Friday in their regular-season finale against Whitley County. “We've just go to go and score and everything, and hopefully we can go out there and do what we need to do win,” said French, who doesn't want any slacking off against Whitley with the Rebels' playoff position set. “I think you've got to keep the momentum going in order to keep the intensity up and try to keep doing the things you do best, and hopefully we can do that come away with a win.” Boyle (6-3)

James E. Owens, 78, of Winchester, husband of Kathryn Owens for 53 years, passed away Thursday at Central Baptist Hospital.   A native of Whitley County, he was born April 5, 1933, to the late Lewis and Zelma Lay Owens. He was a retired cable splicer for Bell South, a United States Air Force veteran, a member of Calvary Christian Church and a member of the men's Cigars, Pipes and the Holy Spirit Bible Study Group.   In addition to his wife, he is survived by two daughters and sons-in-law, Denise (John)

The Courier-Journal released its preseason football polls on Monday with the East Jessamine Jaguars sitting at No. 10. East went 8-4 last fall and moved from 4A to 5A during the offseason. The Jags will open the 2011 season on Friday in the VisitNich.com Bowl against Tates Creek at 6:35 p.m. at East High. 1. Bowling Green (11) 9-3 2. John Hardin (7) 13-1 3. Christian County 12-3 4. Harlan County 11-3 5. Warren Central 10-3 6. Anderson County 9-4 7. Pulaski Southwestern 6-5 8. Pulaski County 11-2 9. Whitley County 6-6 10. East Jessamine 8-4 First place votes are in parentheses.

The Lady Jaguars were leading 49-47 with 90 seconds to go at home Tuesday night against Whitley County but failed to hang on for the win, falling 52-49. Whitley made a two-point basket with 1:26 remaining to tie the game at 49. A three-pointer from the left side with 23 seconds was the dagger that gave the Colonels the win. The Jags had several chances to break the 49-49 tie but turned the ball over numerous times and missed several shots down the stretch. “We missed, I think, six wide-open layups, and those are mental mistakes, and it’s the sign of a young team again,” East coach Jacqueline Coleman said.

The Lincoln County girls won their final home match of the season Thursday, beating Whitley County by 18 strokes in Stanford. Korey Coleman shot 40 in her final match at Dix River to lead the Lady Patriots, who had a team score of 186. Kayla Upchurch shot 44, while seniors Shilah Todd and Andrea Leese each shot 53. Boys Shelby County 182, Mercer County 202 — At Shelbyville, Shelby dealt Mercer a 20-stroke loss at Weissinger Hills....