LEXINGTON, Ky. — Maddie Scherr endured a sore hamstring for the second straight game and still helped lead Ryle to the Kentucky Girls Sweet 16 championship on Sunday.
Scherr, a junior, had nine points, 13 rebounds, four assists and four steals as Ryle romped to a 63-48 victory over Southwestern in the final.
Scherr was 1 for 12 from the field and scored only three points in Saturday’s semifinal, but her body of work in the four games earned her the tournament MVP award.
Scherr averaged 12 points, nine rebounds, four steals and three assists.
Ryle became just the second Northern Kentucky team to win the Girls Sweet 16 after Holy Cross in 2015.
“Winning state was definitely one of our end-of-the-season goals and doing it with my best friends is one of the most amazing feelings ever,” said Scherr.
Ryle (33-5) won its four Sweet 16 games by an average margin of 16.7 points and never less than 12 points.
The Raiders came on strong last year, winning their first regional championship before losing in the Sweet 16 quarterfinals.
“This isn’t just a one-year thing,” Ryle coach Katie Heitz said. “This has been going for a while, and I’m ecstatic for them. It’s truly paid off, the hard work right here.”
Brie Crittendon scored a game-high 21 points, Jaiden Douthit had 17 and Lauren Schwartz added 14 on Sunday. Crittendon and Schwartz were named to the all-tournament team.
Ryle raced to a 15-2 lead and led by 22 in the third quarter. The Raiders shot 55 percent and made 8 of 14 from behind the arc (57 percent).
Regi Cundiff scored 16 points for Southwestern (27-6).
