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Girls LIT roundup
Posted on January 29, 2012 by Jody Demling

The 40th girls’ Louisville Invitational Tournament concluded on Saturday night at Bellarmine when Manual downed Marion County 47-40 in the title game.

The game featured a ton of Division I talent and the state’s two top teams. Marion County won two weeks ago in Lebanon and Manual won this time.

The only way the two would meet again is in the Sweet 16 final.

The photo (right) is of Manual senior Kara Wright, who was named MVP of the tournament.

Here’s a look at the final two days of the LIT and some highlights:

• Kara Wright led Manual in the title game with 8 of 12 from the field for 20 points and also had six rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots. The Southeast Missouri State signee finished the tournament with 59 points and 22 rebounds. She was third among all players in the tournament in both points and rebounds.

• Purdue signee April Wilson only had five points in the final but finished the tournament with 58 points. She had 29 points and five steals in a win over Perry County Central in the semifinals. Kara Wright and LeAsia Wright had 16 apiece in the semifinals, while Tabitha Mitchell came up with four huge baskets in the title game.

• Louisville signee Makayla Epps led Marion County in the final game with 20 points but had only one rebound and no assists. She was second in the tournament in points with 63 and hit 10 of 22 three-point field goals in the three games.

• Epps also had 20 in the semifinal win over Mercy, while Dayton signee Bre Elder had 15 and Louisville commitment Kyvin Goodin-Rogers added 12 points and nine rebounds. Elder had 10 points, five rebounds and five assists in the final, but Goodin-Rogers was only 1 of 10 and had two points and seven rebounds.

• Marion County junior Patrice Tonge was named Most Outstanding Defensive Player after slowing April Wilson and Mercy’s Whitney Hartlage. Wilson was 1 of 5 from the field, while Hartlage was 1 of 8. Tonge was hawking them both.

• Christine Roush led Mercy in the tournament with 43 points, while Courtney Roush had 35, including 12 in the semifinals. Both are headed to Northern Kentucky and really showed a lot of versatility in the LIT.

• Perry County Central was impressive in beating Sacred Heart 78-77 on a buzz-beater on Friday and then losing 70-61 to Manual in the semifinals. Kendall Noble had 28 points, six steals, five assists and five rebounds in the win over SHA and then had 11 points, 10 assists, six rebounds, three steals and three blocks against Manual. Kayla Rankins was in some foul trouble but had 18 on Friday and 17 against Manual. Rankins hit a putback in the final couple of seconds to beat Sacred Heart.

• Christian Academy junior China Dow led the tournament in scoring with 77 points in three games for the Lady Centurions.

• Sacred Heart’s Jade Tubb scored 30 in the loss to Perry Central on Friday, while Kristin Matula was 11-for-11 in two tournament games.

• Jeffersontown eighth-grader Krystaline McCune led the tournament in blocks with 13, while Manual’s Kayla Styles led in rebounds with 33.