Story and photos by Joseph Barkoff:
​The Edmonson County Lady Cats knew it was going to be a tight match in the Championship game against visiting Marshall County Lady Marshals in the finals of the Rafferty’s/Double Dogs Caveland Classic Saturday, December 28th in Brownsville.
 
If the route Edmonson County has taken against opponents this season was read about them in a hiking guide, there would be a user warning saying only advanced hikers should attempt to challenge themselves with the path down the 2024-25 season.
 
An example of the Lady Cats' hike, had them face a team that had to leave the state to lose, in the opponent Marshall County.
 
According to the scuttlebutt around the court, coaches, players and fans have all said something to the effect, Marshall County is a top 25 team in Kentucky.
 
Marshall has only lost twice so far in the season, once in Kansas and once in Arkansas, but no teams in Kentucky have found the secret path to victory against them.
 
The first half ended with junior power forward Cariann Williams stealing the ball and heaving a prayer from Marshall’s 3-point line, but only down 4 points, 25-21.
 
“Yeah, I can’t say anything except just how proud of our girls and it stinks losing, but when you lose to a team like that and you got a chance at the end,” Edmonson County head coach Jodi Booth said after the game on the Edmonson Voice Live Post Game Show.
 
There were times when Marshall would go on a run and Edmonson could have easily folded and given up, Booth said.
 
“And we didn’t do that,” he said. 

​On the last play of the game, down three with 1.3 seconds left, sophomore point guard Shelby Sowders was on the line with two free throws. After making the first, she intentionally missed the second in an attempt for a fellow Lady Cat to snag the rebound and put it up for a tie and overtime.
 
The kind of play teams only talk about when they need one. 
 
There was Williams and senior power forward Julie Norris talking about how they would get the rebound and what to do while near the sideline, Booth said.

They were able to grab the offensive rebound off the purposely-missed free throw from Sowders but the last second shot would not fall for the Lady Cats.
 
Despite losing 50-48, Edmonson County, traveling through their difficult season, earned Runner-Up in the Caveland Classic Tournament.
 
“I just loved every little part about this game,” Booth said. “It’s good for us.”
 
Overall, on the Tournament, he would give himself and his team and A-, he said.
 
“We took care of business and made it to the Championship,” Booth said. “We did little things a lot better. We got better every game. And we played tougher teams every game.
 
“I feel great about it,” Sowders said about the loss after the game. “They’re a really, really good team. Some say they are 25 in the state, and for us to stay with them for that long and to only lose by 2, I think it was a great loss.”
 
Her favorite thing from the Tournament was the teamwork and battling each game she said.

​Booth sees the games before the New Year, as part one, and after is part two. He feels teams who maybe had it easy in the first part may not work as hard because their confidence is high.
 
“We are gonna continue to lift,” Booth said. “We’re gonna continue to work on our conditioning. We are gonna continue to get better on the court and do the little things we gotta do, and then, the second part of our season we are gonna have some more momentum going our way and that’s gonna carry us into the post season.”
 
They are going to use the first part of the season and roll into January ready for more, he said.
 
“We are using every game as practice,” Booth said. “Until we get to February.”
 
The teams that Edmonson County has lost to so far this year, are winning 76 precent of their games, according to stats Booth has run, he said.
 
“The Caveland Classic, it’s a historic tournament,” Booth said. “It has been going on since I was a little kid.”
 
His favorite thing from the Tournament was the use of vocal leadership between his players, sticking together and competing, he said.
 
There are things they can still fix, he said. But the Caveland Classic experience was positive.
 
Some stats on the evening had Williams scoring 18 points with 9 rebounds, senior shooting guard Kennadi Swihart had 11 points with 3 rebounds, Sowders had 7 points with 2 rebounds, senior shooting guard Jenna Cook had 7 points, senior power forward Maggie Cassidy had 3 points with a rebound and Norris scored 2 while hauling in 3 rebounds.
 
Edmonson County (4-7) opens the New Year and second part of their season on the road at 4:30 p.m. January 2 against Hancock County (5-5) in Lewisport.

Story and photos by Joseph Barkoff:
​Edmonson County Wildcat junior shooting guard Blayne Deweese was almost everywhere while working on a double-double in the final game of the Rafferty’s/Double Dog Tournament against Trigg County Saturday, December 28th in Brownsville in the battle of the Wildcats.
 
Despite being only up by two points at the half, the home Wildcats outscored the visiting ones 65-52 when it was all said and done.
 
In the first half we did some silly stuff, Edmonson County head coach Brad Meredith said.
 
By the end of the first half, it appeared as if Trigg County was running out of gas. 
 
The Wildcats looked like they had plenty in their tanks, but after some lazy passes they allowed Trigg, not only back in the game, but to take the lead with less than a minute to go in the first half.
 
After a 3-pointer from the manual-drive senior shooting guard Kollin Doyle, the Wildcats would take a 2 point lead into half time, ahead 34-32.
 
“I had a little heart to heart with them at half time,” Meredith said. “You know it kinda fired ‘em up a little bit and they played better in the second half.”
 
The second half was a different game indeed.

​“Our coaches talked to us at half time,” Edmonson County senior shooting guard Carter Swihart said after the game. “Sayin’, if we wanna win, we can’t play like the other team, we have to play like we play. And I think everyone could see that we played different in the second half and that’s what got us that win.”
 
Overall, on the tournament Meredith would grade the team’s performance as a “B plus,” he said.
 
“That was a good tournament for us,” Meredith said.
 
Over break we had the Apollo Tournament and this Tournament, Meredith said. We went 3-0 in the Appollo and 2-1 in the Caveland.
 
“The boys are really buying in and doing what we ask them to do,” Meredith said. “They’re playing good together.”
 
“It’s awesome,” Meredith said. “It’s awesome to be able to host a tournament like this at home. Having 16 teams. People we won’t see again for the rest of the season, that’s what I like about it.”
 
He acknowledged playing different teams with different styles, “really helps us improve,” he said.
 
Having been in situations before, end of the game, where some clutch play was needed, like against John Hardin the previous night, and having not handled before “the late game situations the right way, the way the boys handled it the previous night was his favorite thing from the Tournament, he said.
 
“I feel like we are becoming better as a team and we are gonna keep getting better throughout the season,” Deweese said after the game. 

​Deweese earned a double-double on the evening with 22 points and 12 rebounds.
 
“I feel like we could have won our first game,” Deweese said after the game about the Tournament as a whole. “But other than that I feel like we did pretty good.”
 
Edmonson out rebounded Trigg 48-25, according to the curator of unofficial stats from the Edmonson Voice Live broadcaster Darren Doyle.
 
“Beginning of the year, we were a horrible rebounding team,” Meredith said about the team’s rebounding after the game on the Edmonson Voice Live After Game Show. “But we have improved on that a whole lot.”
 
With the way the team has seemed to have “bought in” to Meredith’s coaching style has been shown through their obvious improvements on the season. When he told the boys, it was not a rebuilding year, his sincerity and commitment seem to have been reciprocated from the players. The season is still young and there is room to grow.
 
“I feel great,” Swihart said about the win after the game. “You know, it was a disappointing first loss to Allen County (Scottsville), but I think we picked it up the next two games and you could see it.”
 
Some other stats on the evening included senior Doyle with 17 points with 5 rebounds, sophomore point guard Brayden Wright had 6 points with 11 rebounds and Edmonson County held Trigg’s leading scorer to only 10 points.
 
Edmonson County was also 12-15 from the free throw line.
 
Of note in the previous night’s game against John Hardin, Doyle was 8 for 8 from the free throw line and sunk two with less than :05 seconds like putting donuts into coffee and the Edmonson was able to hold on for a 68-65 win.
 
With the next week off during the rest of the school’s break, and a little time to heal from the impacted schedule, the team looks forward to getting back to playing, Meredith said.
 
The Wildcats take to the hardwood next year 7:30 p.m. January 6 at home in Brownsville against Owensboro Knights Christian.

Edmonson Voice Sports:
The Rafferty's/Double Dogs Caveland Classic is scheduled for this week at Edmonson County High School for it's 18th consecutive year, with games beginning on Thursday, December 26th and finishing on Saturday, December 28th.

This year's event will feature eight girls' teams and eight boys' teams involved in this year’s tournament format, which will be a double elimination tournament.

ECHS Athletic Director Kyle Pierce says fans should expect very competitive games.

“We wanted these games to be good tests for every team," he said. "The girls' teams are very similar and have a good mix of speed and style of play. The boys' side involves teams where games should be toss-ups. They are all very similar with talent and all will play an exciting style of basketball.”

As title sponsor, Rafferty’s & Double Dogs restaurants will once again play the key role in bringing the Classic back to Edmonson County. He said the event couldn't happen without the help of Edmonson County’s own Scott Lindsey, who serves as Rafferty's senior vice president.

“Without Scott, there would not be a Caveland Classic. He not only helps us out financially, but he has provided meals for all the teams, which requires a considerable amount of food. Our girls' and boys' boosters have also stepped up and helped with feeding the teams as well. The teams and coaches that come here are always impressed. The officials are always excited to come here also because they know we treat them well too. This three-day event allows our high school teams, parents, and our fans to stay here at home for a premier Christmastime tournament. We are very fortunate to have Scott Lindsey and the people at Rafferty’s & Double Dogs to help us put on this great event. We encourage you to come early and watch some great basketball.”

There will be eight games each day with four games being played at the High School and four games being played at the Middle School. You may buy a three day tournament pass for $25 (all 24 games) or single day tickets (8 games) are $10 for the entire day. There is no additional cost to ECHS season tickets holders as their cards will be honored throughout the tournament.

Photos by Joseph Barkoff.

The Edmonson County Wildcats fell to district rival Grayson County Cougars 77-45 Friday Dec. 13 in Leitchfield.

Some unofficial stats from the evening included senior shooting guard Kollin Doyle had 13 points with 3 rebounds, senior power forward Braxtin Lindsey had 3 points with 2 rebounds and a block, senior shooting guard Ben Sanders had 8 points with 2 rebounds and junior shooting guard Blayne Deweese had 9 points with 3 rebounds.

Edmonson County head coach Brad Meredith feels the Cougars are the favorite to win the Region, he said after the game.

​"It's stuff I think we can control and I think we can improve on," Meredith said.

Next, Edmonson County faces Nelson County at 7:15 p.m. Monday Dec. 16 in Brownsville.

Photos and story by Joseph Barkoff:
​When the Edmonson County Lady Cats (0-5) took to the hard wood against division rival Grayson County Lady Cougars (2-2) Friday December 13 in Leitchfield, their cumulative record since 1998 was 21-44. The Lady Cats were looking to make it fifty percent.

Despite the four loss start, the Lady Cats under head coach Jody Booth chose to make their way toward the end of the season through one of the most difficult schedules they have faced in years.

In the first half, Grayson would score first with a three but after a couple minutes of tough defense and some unlucky tips, senior shooting guard Jenna Cook made a brilliant steal in the Lady Cougars’ paint and ran the ball up court.

After a couple of passes, shots and rebounds, an offensive rebound and put-back for sophomore point guard Shelby Sowders saw the Lady Cats get on the board. With 5:46 left in the first quarter it was only 2-3 in favor of the home team.

In their next offensive possession Sowders would fire and swish a three-pointer to go up 5-3 against the Lady Cougars.

After three more lead changes, Edmonson County would go on a run and double up Grayson County 14-7 at the end of the first quarter.

No one would score in the second quarter for almost three minutes until Sowders again drained a three-pointer to go up double digits to 17-7 for the Wildcats with 5:05 left in the first half.

At half time Edmonson County lead over Grayson County 23-15.

​Sowders had 15 points with 3 rebounds and junior power forward Cariann Williams had 10 rebounds with 2 points, according to the Edmonson Voice Live Broadcast unofficial stats. Senior shooting guards Jenna Cook and Kennadi Swihart had 5 points, 2 rebounds with 2 steals and 1 point, 2 rebounds with 1 steal, respectively.

Then, the second half happened. There was no definitive action to cause the Lady Cats to lose. There were adjustments made by all three teams on the floor and they were apparent when they came out for the second half, Edmonson County, Grayson County and the team of referees, all.

Weird calls in some cases, like Williams slamming to the floor and bouncing gets called for a travel. In NBA games when a player slides with the ball on the deck, it is sometimes called a travel, but not in every circumstance.

With 4:43 left in the thrird quarter Cook earned her fourth foul and Booth pulled her out to preserve her for the end game.

There was quite a bit of contact it seemed, and the Live Broadcast even commented no blood, no foul at one point.

Both teams played intense defense that could be described as white on rice in the way each team defended against the other.

With under 2 minutes left in the third quarter, Grayson started to inch their way closer and with 1:00 left the score was 29-25, and Grayson County with the ball is able to score again, though unable to convert an “and one” three-point-play, Edmonson was now only ahead by 2 points.

The scoreboard read :0.5 when Williams released a shot from low in the paint for 2 points as the buzzer sounded to end the third quarter with the score still in favor of the underdog Lady Cats 31-27.

At 5:57 left in the game, sophomore shooting guard Tayla Wilhite, in to play for Cook, earned her third foul, and Cook would return to play.

After two clutch free throws from Grayson County, Edmonson County’s lead was now only 2 points, 33-31. Almost a minute later, Grayson County sank a 3-pointer that would be considered a long three in a professional game and they would take the lead for the first time since the first quarter, ahead by 1 point, 33-34.

In the following offensive possession for Edmonson County, Sowders would shoot while being hacked at like a cherry tree in George Washington’s yard, but there was no call.

Grayson County took control of the ball and while moving it up their court, Cook earned her fifth and final foul of the evening with 5:05 left in the game still to play.

After another minute passed, the Lady Cats turned the ball over again, this time unforced, in their offensive zone, down 4 points with just over four minutes left.

Swihart sank a contested bucket that would have made cherry trees all over the world shudder, but there was no call, bringing the Lady Cats back within 2, but on the next Grayson County possession, Williams earned her third foul, and the lead was back to 4 for Grayson County.

Sowders couldn’t catch a break trying to move the ball back up court after being fouled, but a whistle only blew after multiple contacts had been allowed to progress until athletes are falling over at midcourt.
The clock had only 3:10 left in the game when Williams earned her fourth foul during an offensive possession and Edmonson County was now in the Bonus, so all remaining fouls committed would end in free throws for the Lady Cougars.

After two shots, Lady Cougars extended their lead to the largest of the game for them with five more points than the Lady Cats.

Then just under a minute later, the Lady Cougars would also earn themselves the Bonus and the Lady Cats would also shoot two free throws for every foul against them.

And after two shots from Williams, Grayson County’s lead was only three points, 37-40.

The last two minutes of play saw the lead then grow to eight points before reined back in to seven, and Grayson County running in circles with the ball content not to shoot as the seconds wound down.

“It’s hard to play a game when you don’t have a fair chance,” Booth said on the Edmonson Live broadcast Post Game Show.

Booth may file a grievance with the KHSAA as a result of the officials While it is difficult to be an official, sometimes coaches get frustrated when their players don’t get what is called mutual protection.

“Grayson County has good kids, they have good coaches,” he said. “I don’t want to take anything away from them.”

They adjusted in the second half adding a second player on Sowders when she got the ball, after her explosive first half, Booth said.

Booth does not care what the team’s record is this season, he said. His sights are set further down the road at Regionals and is happy to have the top tiered teams making his team better every day, as they look ahead.

On the night, Williams had 16 points with 17 rebounds, Cook had 5 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals and fouled out, Swihart had 3 points with 2 rebounds and a steal and Sowders had 17 points with 4 rebounds, according to the unofficial stats in the 48-41 defeat.

The Lady Cats play again the following day, today at home against Owensboro Saturday Dec. 14 in Brownsville.

Photos by Joseph Barkoff.

Story and photos by Joseph Barkoff:
Edmonson County Wildcat basketball took to the home court hard wood for the first time in the 2024-25 season against the visiting Fort Knox Eagles Friday, December 6th in Brownsville.

In the Wildcats’ second game of the season, with a new coach, minus three transfers and a couple graduating seniors, the squad of some new and old faces came together for a pretty resounding win against the visiting Eagles.

The game opened with a 9-0 run by the Wildcats and saw the halftime score with a 24-point lead, 54-30 in the home team’s favor.

“If you’ve seen that first half, that’s how we want to play,” Edmonson County first year head coach Brad Meredith said on the Edmonson Voice Post Game Show.

​Edmonson County had some trouble in the third quarter when Fort Knox came out and used a 2-2-1 full court defense.

The team has only worked on dealing with the 2-2-1 press during one practice, Meredith admitted.

“We gotta work on our press offense,” Meredith said was one key thing they need to work on.

There is so much to catch up on for the team, he added.

“It’s an experience, and we’ll get better from it,” Meredith said of the game.

​Asked about how he felt about the win after the game, Edmonson County sophomore point guard Brayden Wright said, “Good.”
 
“I feel great,” Edmonson County senior shooting guard Ben Sanders said after the game. “I think we played great as a team. We are just trying to figure out the new offense and come together as a team.”
 
Sanders feels one thing they need to work on going forward is keeping their heads and not making easy turnovers.
 
Edmonson turned the ball over 13 times alone in the third quarter, according to the unofficial stats from Edmonson Voice Live Broadcast Darren Doyle.
 
Edmonson did outrebound Fort Knox 43-25 and shot 30 of 60 from the field for 50 percent.
 
Wildcats senior shooting guard Kollin Doyle lead the team with 23 points and 6 rebounds. Senior shooting guard Ben Sanders had 14 points with 7 rebounds, junior shooting forward Owen Ruth scored 14 with 7 rebounds, sophomore point guard Brayden Wright scored 9 with 3 rebounds, junior shooting guard Blayne Deweese had 8 points and 5 rebounds, senior Carter Swihart had 5 points and 3 rebounds off the bench and senior power forward Braxtin Lindsey scored 4 and hauled in 9 rebounds.
 
Next, Edmonson County travels to face Cumberland County, today, at 4;30 p.m. Saturday Dec. 7 in Burkesville.

The Edmonson County Lady Cats fell 68-51 in their season home opener against Breckinridge County Tuesday, December 3, 2024.

The Lady Cats were led in scoring by Shelby Sowders with 18, Jenna Cook had 17 and 11 rebounds, Cariann Williams had 14 points and 11 rebounds, Kennadi Swihart added 2 points and 5 rebounds.

Story and photos by Joseph Barkoff:
​Edmonson County Lady Cat basketball opened the 2024-25 season on the road against an opponent they lost to by almost 30 last season Monday, December 2nd in Tompkinsville.
 
This year, despite the same Lady Cats on the floor against the same Lady Falcons of Monroe County, the result was much different. Still a loss, but only by 5 points after leading for most of the game.
 
Edmonson County Lady Cat center Cariann Williams took the opening tip off, but they were unable to convert on their first possession, giving first blood to the Lady Falcons with a quick 2-points.
 
It didn’t last long when Lady Cats senior, coming off a season ending injury last year, shooting guard Kennadi Swihart answered with a 3-pointer.
 
The Lady Falcons did not convert on their next possession, but Swihart sank another three and in less than a minute-and-a-half, the Lady Cats were up 6-2.
 
It was a battle between the two teams with more lead changes than there were accidents on the way home after the snow, which is saying a lot because there were a few.
 
“I’m proud of our girls,” Edmonson County Lady Cats head coach Jodi Booth said after the game on the Edmonson Live broadcast Post Game Show. “They played hard in their first game.”
 
It is always tough to play on the road, he added.

​Williams has not lost a step, and as one might expect with a growing young woman, and growing basketball player, she continues to show improvement as her game experience increases. As a junior, there is nothing but the stars for her.
 
Returning Edmonson County seniors Swihart and shooting guard Jenna Cook both exude the kind of levelheaded leadership through example coaches can only hope for from their seniors.
 
Two sophomores, who once might have seemed timid on the floor, are no longer. Point guard Shelby Sowders and shooting guard Tayla Willhite both act like the belong on the floor the whole game.
 
Last year both were thrown into the deep end, with Sowders often starting and being the main ball carrier up the floor with Willhite coming in off the bench. 
 
Sowders did not trust her own ball handling and would sometimes have trouble moving the ball. This year, not only does she have the presence to use her center but there is also no fear left in her eyes when she flies in to pull up on a dime for a jumper.
 
Willhite was afraid last year. Except for when she wasn’t. When she forgot the kids were older, bigger and stronger around her and just played her game, she was lights out. This year, in the first game, off the bench she does not seem concerned any longer about the people she plays against. They are her opponents, and she will play her game.
 
Lady Cat senior power forward Julie Norris is back, and with her, her levelheaded paint play and three-point prowess when the team needs a deep bucket from the corner, and senior Maggie Cassady will serve in a number of roles for the team this season.
 
The new season should be pretty good.

It was a loss. Everything wasn’t perfect. But there is room still to grow. More room to grow than to say something nice about every player.
 
“Little things we can fix,” Booth said. “At least its not things we can’t fix.”
 
Transition defense was lacking and they were unable to keep their lead after going on runs, he said.
 
“I am disappointed we lost,” Swihart said after the game. “But coming from we lost by 30 when we played them the second time(in the season), and they’re a really really tough team in the 4th District, I think we played good.”
 
“We had a good battle,” Swihart said. “We wanted to win and I’m not upset with anybody on our team, I am proud of how we played.”
 
They shot the ball really well, Swihart said, and she thinks they look “100 times better than last year,” already too.
 
Williams earned a double-double with 21 points and 18 rebounds, and Sowders brought in 21 points with 3 rebounds on the night.
​
“I thought for a first game we had a really good showing and we got little things we gotta work on, but we’ll be fine,” Booth said.

Also scoring for the Lady Cats was Cook with 13 points and 4 rebounds, Swihart with 6 points and 6 rebounds, and Willhite rounded out the scoring with 4.
 
The Lady Cats host their home opener later tonight, 7 p.m. Tuesday Dec. 3 against Breckinridge County in Brownsville. The boys will travel to Owensboro to take on Owensboro Knights Christian at 7:30PM.