Lady Cols beat McCracken, fall to North Bullitt
The Lady Colonels basketball team picked up a home victory in their season-opening game behind strong performances from their sophomore post players and steady senior leadership as they defeated the McCracken County Lady Mustangs, 62-49.
Henderson struggled with its shooting, going just 2-for-11 (18%) from three and 10-for-22 (46%) at the free throw line. They fared much better inside the three point line, shooting 23-for-41 (56%), with most of those shots coming in the paint.
Leading the way for the Lady Cols was sophomore Nevaeh Dixon who scored 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field, to go with four rebounds. Senior A’Tylia Green also posted 14 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Sophomore Callie Burnett added 11 points and five rebounds.
Playing on consecutive days, the Lady Cols dropped their next game to the North Bullitt Lady Eagles, 42-35, in the Breckinridge County High School Tip Off Classic. Henderson again struggled from deep, hitting only one three-pointer in 12 attempts. They also committed 21 turnovers. They did improve their free throw shooting, going 8-for-13 (62%).
Burnett turned in another solid game leading the team with 11 points and eight boards. Senior Addy Gish contributed seven points and six rebounds in the loss. Burnett was named player of the game in the tip off classic.
The Lady Cols (1-1) will be back in action on Monday evening with a home game against Evansville Memorial at 7 p.m. They will play again on Thursday at Evansville Central and wrap up the week at the Holiday Hoopla Classic against O’Fallon Township (Ill.) in Paducah.
Boys team opens with a win over Castle, falls the next day against Missouri team
Junior point guard Xavion Johnson erupted for a career-high 24 points, carrying Henderson County to a 43-35 season-opening road victory over Castle on Friday night.
The Colonels jumped ahead 13-11 after the first quarter and took control with a 12-6 second period, carrying a 25-17 lead into halftime. They pushed the advantage to 35-20 through three quarters before holding off a late Castle push in a low-scoring defensive battle.
Remarkably, no other Henderson starter scored more than one point, while Johnson accounted for over half the team’s offense. Off the bench, senior center Braden Williams added 6 points, Malaikye Taylor chipped in 5, Jahmarion Isabel had 4, Mikey Woolfork 3, and Zayden Martin 1.
Less than 12 hours later, the Colonels were back on the floor Saturday at 10:30 a.m., falling 49-40 to McCluer North (Mo.) at Paducah Tilghman High School. Junior Jarren Byrum led Henderson with 14 points, while Johnson managed 7 before fouling out. Williams and Isabel each finished with 5.
After playing two games in fewer than 24 hours, Henderson County opens the 2025-26 campaign at 1-1.
