Cardinal Classic: Thursday Standouts (Part One)

For starters, why has there not been a WBB scholastic live period in June until now?!? I love this opportunity for athletes to show college coaches their skills in such a unique way since most of the time these coaches are watching these players with their AAU teams rather than their high school team. GRC put on an awesome event called the Cardinal Classic and it drew in an excellent slate of college coaches across all levels. There were a ton of talented teams competing, including some of the top teams in the surrounding states. I placed a focus on catching as many Kentucky teams I could in the 2 day period. I actually did something a little different for this article, typing out the notes exactly how I wrote them as I was there, so my apologies for the lack of sentence structure at times. However, here are some of my standouts from Thursday.   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Holy Cross Covington 40 Central 23</h2>   [player_tooltip player_id='398022' first='Julia' last='Hunt'] (Holy Cross Covington)   Long and impressive down low. Already committed to play D1 volleyball at the next level but all of those skills can definitely be seen on the basketball court. Her ability to elevate and time her jumps allows her to secure a lot of rebounds and block shots. Excellent variety of finishes around the rim with both hands. Handles and passes exceptionally well for a post/center. [player_tooltip player_id='310827' first='Aniyah' last='Carter'] (Holy Cross Covington)   Small but really quick guard. Shifty handles. Pushed the tempo. Kept head up. Easily got past defenders on drives. Plays fearless. Isabella Lehmkuhl (Holy Cross Covington)   Solid skillset overall. Made great passes. Knocked down shots. Aggressive. Moves feet well defensively. Strong handles and keeps her head up ready to make a play. Leads teammates to correct spots on passes. Smart player overall. [player_tooltip player_id='329461' first='Miyah' last='Wimzie'] (Holy Cross Covington)   Great cuts to get open. Not afraid of contact. Hustles. Moves to the ball. Solid PG skills. Aggressive drives to the basket. A lot of ways to score - layups, floaters, pull-ups, etc. [player_tooltip player_id='913410' first='Alyssa' last='Arlinghaus'] (Holy Cross Covington)   Great shooting form. Catches ready to pull. Relocates around the perimeter; moves well without the ball.   #12 (Central) *DID NOT HAVE CENTRAL'S ROSTER*   Can play inside or out. Made great moves around the basket. Rebounds hard. Good use of both hands. #2 (Central) *DID NOT HAVE CENTRAL'S ROSTER*   Small but great change of speeds with the ball in her hands. Makes things really difficult defensively because she applies a ton of pressure. Doesn't give up on plays. Runs the floor.   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Madison Central 54 Simon Kenton 45</h2>   [player_tooltip player_id='329436' first='Brittany' last='Campbell'] (Madison Central)   Can contribute in many ways. Makes great passes. Good handles. Changes speeds. True floor general. Scores inside and out. Always looking to create for her teammates. [player_tooltip player_id='470574' first='Brooke' last='Campbell'] (Madison Central)   Looked really solid. Made good decisions. Strong finishes around the basket. Knocked down outside shots. Played great defense. Just keeps improving.   *I got to see Madison Central play twice, so I am saving these write ups for another article, but I want to note here that Ridderikhoff and Strader were also players that stood out to me for the Indians.   [player_tooltip player_id='739708' first='Brynli' last='Pernell'] (Simon Kenton)   Court vision is next level. Makes great passes and can do so much to make the offense go. Creates, can score in multiple ways, good outside shot. Active defender.   [player_tooltip player_id='724178' first='Haylie' last='Webb'] (Simon Kenton)   Really solid in the post. Long and active on both ends of the court. Great at locating and making good passes to shooters. Good movement without the ball. Great, strong seals to post up. [player_tooltip player_id='410501' first='Ava' last='Slusser'] (Simon Kenton)   Good strength. Excellent outside shot. Quick release. Rebounds well. Good player all-around. [player_tooltip player_id='859859' first='Anna' last='Kelch'] (Simon Kenton)   Long. Good shooter. Outside and pull-up jumpers. Quick release. Made good passes.   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Montgomery County 41 Owensboro Catholic 36 </h2>   I'll include Montgomery County standouts below and Owensboro Catholic standouts in part two of this series, but I also want to note that I got to see both of these teams play on Friday as well, so this is not the full list of players that stood out to me and I may repeat some of these names in another article.   [player_tooltip player_id='158176' first='Hayden' last='Barrier'] (Montgomery County)   Excellent long range shooter. Impressive strong drives to the hoop. Not afraid of taking contact and can finish through contact. Finished in every way possible - layups, floaters, pull-up jumpers, 3's. High level player. [player_tooltip player_id='502282' first='Savannah' last='Simpson'] (Montgomery County)   Great moves around the basket. Strong. Good defense and had some really solid blocks. Finished with contact. Good passes when help defense stepped over. Versatile athlete.

For starters, why has there not been a WBB scholastic live period in June until now?!? I love this opportunity for athletes to show college coaches their skills in such a unique way since most of the time these coaches are watching these players with their AAU teams rather than their high school team. GRC put on an awesome event called the Cardinal Classic and it drew in an excellent slate of college coaches across all levels. There were a ton of talented teams competing, including some of the top teams in the surrounding states. I placed a focus on catching as many Kentucky teams I could in the 2 day period. I actually did something a little different for this article, typing out the notes exactly how I wrote them as I was there, so my apologies for the lack of sentence structure at times. However, here are some of my standouts from Thursday.