Nelson County held off a comeback-minded Bardstown squad Tuesday when the Cardinals’ Caitlin Hagan dropped in a pair of free throws with 11 seconds left to seal a 52-48 win and go undefeated in 19th District games.

Peter W. Zubaty

Bardstown’s Nettie Finn (15) battles with Nelson County’s Ashley Wimsett (32) and A.J. Lewis (behind Finn) for a rebound in Tuesday’s 52-48 Cardinal win. Nelson County went 6-0 against 19th District rivals during the regular season. The Cardinals will be the top seed in the 19th District tournament, which starts Feb. 22.

The Cardinals improved to 12-11 overall and 6-0 in district play. Nelson County clinched the top seed in the 19th District tournament Sunday with a win over Washington County.

Bardstown fell to 10-11 overall and 3-3 in district games, and has lost four straight since a Jan. 24 win over North Hardin.

A short-handed Bardstown squad — senior starters Dana Phillips and Daizah Kimberland suffered season-ending injuries during the past month — got off to a hot start on the Cardinals and led 14-4 after the first quarter.

Nelson County rallied back, however, closing out the first half with a 16-3 run to go into the locker room up 30-23. The Cardinal lead swelled to double digits in the third quarter, but the Tigers got their pressure defense going late in the third and engineered a furious rally, eventually tying it at 46-46 with four minutes left when Keonna Stone got a stickback off an offensive rebound. Stone tied the score again at the 1:39 mark with a free throw, and the Tigers had several chances in the game’s final minutes to regain the lead, but the Cardinals’ Shelby Maupin hit two free throws at the 1:23 mark to put Nelson up for good at 50-48.

Hagan, an eighth-grader, led all scorers with 16 points, while teammate Cierra Drake added 13. For the Tigers, Stone led the way with 11, while Ciera Allen and Abbie Parrish had 10 apiece.

Bardstown visits Central Hardin tonight and hosts Collins Saturday. Nelson County hosts Green County tonight at 8 p.m. and faces Bullitt East at 6 p.m. Saturday in the Valentine’s Day Shootout at John Hardin.

Courtesy of Peter W. Zubaty, Kentucky Standard