The respect shown in the postgame handshake between Silverdale Baptist Academy junior Kinsley Owen and Notre Dame sophomore MiMi Lee was easy to see.
The two supremely talented point guards had just finished putting on a show in what was a back-and-forth battle for three quarters in TSSAA Division II-A’s District 2 championship showdown Friday night at Notre Dame.
Lee drained four 3-pointers as the district tournament MVP scored a game-high 21 points to surpass 1,000 in her prep career, and she also had six steals in the 52-45 title triumph for the Lady Fighting Irish.
Perhaps the biggest impact Lee made was with the attention she drew offensively, as she was able to get Owen to foul out just three seconds into the fourth quarter after stealing the pass on in-bounds attempt. Lee also drew shooting fouls on Owen to end the second and third quarters.
Owen checked out of the game for good with 20 points — many of them the hard-earned variety from strong drives to the basket — and the Lady Seahawks were ahead 38-37.