Even though her Lady Dragons won by eight at home in their first meeting of the season against Harlan County, Harlan coach Mackenzie Varner wasn’t at all pleased with their performance. She wasn’t even thrilled with a nine-point lead at halftime in the rematch Friday at Harlan County.
The second half, however, was a different story. The Lady Dragons dominated after the break in rolling to a 71-42 victory.
“We had plenty to prove today. This game is always personal, and sometimes it gets a little too personal,” said Varner, who played in the matchup with the Lady Dragons when Harlan and HC both won regional championships. “I was proud of how they fought. We took the notes from the first game, and I was proud of how they fought through and finished the game. Our first half wasn’t our best performance, offensively or defensively. The second half they turned it on.”
Seniors Kylie Noe and Aymanni Wynn were unstoppable in teaming for 57 points as Noe scored 29 on 13-of-19 shooting and Wynn added 28 on 11-of-19 shooting. The Lady Dragons improved to 17-12 while completing a regular season sweep of the Lady Bears.
“We knew going in there wasn’t going to be anyone who could guard Kylie and Aymanni down low,” Varner said. “They are too aggressive and too skilled down low. It would be very difficult for anyone to stop them.”
Eighth-grade guard Reagan Clem scored 13 points and freshman guard Kylee Runions added 10 for the 7-19 Lady Bears.
The Lady Bears continued to struggle offensively, shooting only 16 percent (eight of 50) from the field and 25 percent (six of 24) from the 3-point line.
“We played hard, and that’s all I can ask of them,” Harlan County coach Gary Greer said. “We had our chances early in the game but missed some open shots. It happens. It’s part of the game. But the effort was there.”
Harlan County plays host to Barbourville on Monday. Harlan will be at home against Corbin on Tuesday.