Oldham County Outlasts Meade, 69-60, in Season Finale

Colonels Win 20 For Eleventh Season in a Row

Buckner, KY - Gary Forrest's sixteenth Oldham County team reached a landmark on Friday (2/27/04) that has almost become expected at OCHS when they won their 20th game of the season. In sixteen years, Forrest's teams have reached that milestone thirteen times, including eleven seasons straight. Fourteen of Forrest's teams have finished the year with a winning record, and eight of his first fifteen teams made the finals of 8th Region. Four times - including the last three - the Colonels have won the Region and advanced to the Kentucky Sweet 16 under Forrest's tenure.

The Colonel mentor has not only won well over 70% of his games as the OCHS head coach, he seems to be getting more successful each season. Note: Oldham County has gone 126-24 for an 84% winning percentage over the past five seasons. Included in that run were three 8th Region championships (with this year yet to be decided) and a standout 29-3 campaign in 2001-2 that ranks as the second-winningest team in OCHS history.

On Friday, however, the Meade County Green Wave was hardly prepared to make the Colonels' trip to win #20 a walk in the park. And with the emotion of senior night running high on the Colonels' sideline, the visitors took advantage early, jumping to leads of 6-2 and 13-11.

Oldham's Ryan Beaumont tied the game at 13 late in the first period to spark a mini 6-0 Oldham run. After Max Kuiper hit two free throws to give Oldham County the lead at 15-13, Beaumont scored again to make it 17-13 with a little over a minute and a half left in the first quarter.

With Kuiper scoring eight first-quarter points, OCHS led, 21-18, after one period of play.

As it turned out, Meade would never catch up, but the Green Wave pulled within a point four more times and trailed by less than ten midway through the final period. OCHS would need every second of the 32 minute game to hold Meade County at bay.

The second period was nip-and-tuck, and Oldham led just 31-30 with less than two minutes to play in the half. But Brandon Gathof hit a free throw, and Beaumont stole the ball on Meade's ensuing possession and scored on a layup to send the Colonels to the locker room with a 34-30 lead.

Oldham appeared ready to blow things open to start the third. Back-to-back baskets by Beaumont gave OCHS a 38-30 lead. Brent Hottell finally got Meade going with a three at the 5:27 mark, but a three by Oldham's 6'8 senior center, Max Kuiper, followed by another steal and layup by Beaumont, pushed the margin to double figures for the first time at 43-33 midway through the period.

Beaumont, who tied with Kuiper for game scoring honors with 20, was four-for-four during the third period and finished an impressive 10 of 14 from the floor to account for his twenty points.

Meade got new life with a 7-0 run in over a little over a minute. With 3:51 to play in the third, Nathan Fackler nailed a three to key the rally. After a technical foul was called against Oldham's John McCarthy, Roman Whelan hit one of two free throws and Hottell followed with his second three of the night to pull Meade to within 43-40.

Brandon Gathof answered with a jumper for OCHS, and Beaumont - reprising his end of the second quarter act - stole the ball and scored on a layup to give the Colonels a 47-40 lead heading into the final frame.

OCHS steadily stretched the lead over the first four minutes of the final period. With the Colonels leading, 61-50, Gathof scored on back-to-back possessions to give OC its largest lead of the night at 65-50. Hottell answered with a three for Meade. But after Gathof scored yet again for the Colonels, Whalen hit Meade's eighth three pointer of the night with 2:04 left in the game to bring the visitors back to within striking range at 67-56.

Gathof had one of his more efficient nights shooting, hitting six of seven shots en route to a thirteen point outing.

The Colonels proceeded to give Meade every chance to climb back into contention, as OCHS went to the line three times over the next 1:21 and missed five consecutive free throws. But the Oldham defense held Meade to just two points during that same time frame, and by the time Josh Jarboe hit a layup to pull the Green Wave to within 67-60, only 14.4 seconds remained.

One week after blistering the nets with an 18 of 21 performance at the free throw line in a game against Grant County, Oldham County - the state's twelfth-best team in terms of free throw accuracy (72%) - hit just 6 of 15 free throws for a meager 40%.

Kuiper wrapped up the scoring with two free throws with 4.7 seconds remaining. Oldham improves to 20-5 on the season; Meade falls to 8-17.

Oldham County 21 13 13 22 - 69

Meade County 18 12 10 20 - 60

OCHS - Beaumont 20, Kuiper 20, Gathof 13, Berry 9, Gordon 3, Phillips 2

MCHS - Orr 13, Hottell 13, Fackler 11, R. Whelan 11, Jarboe 4, Crouch 4, Benock 2, Team 2

Threes: Oldham: Berry 3, Kuiper 1, Gordon 3 Meade: R. Whelan 3, Hottell 3, Orr 1, Fackler 1