28-03-2025
From county floods, to under the bright lights of Rupp Arena
BREATHITT COUNTY, Ky. (FOX 56) — The Breathitt County community is not taking for granted a drive down the court or highway 15.
'I don't think there is a soul in Breathitt County right now. I think about the whole town came up and supported us,' senior guard Austin Sperry said.
The community has faced several floods in recent years, with the most recent one being last month, but the Bobcats did not let this stop them from fulfilling an achievement. The team was in the hunt for a Kentucky High School Athletics Association (KHSAA) Boys' Sweet 16 State Championship.
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'We had three major disasters in the last five years, so any opportunity we have to kind of look the other direction, to kind of take our minds off things that are going on, we're still rebuilding; we're still creating housing for our community; we're still looking for opportunities to go back to where we were,' Stephen Bowling, lifelong Breathitt County resident, said.
This team has excelled during the floods that have impacted so much of Jackson and Breathitt County, even the high school, but after all they have been through, this game was just the bright spot many needed.
Preston Turner made the trip to support his classmates and especially one who has proven he is built for the moment.
'Everybody's just get out here, just taken their mind off things, and just watching this ball. Austin Sperry show out here,' Turner said.
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Sperry and the team gave the crowd a game to remember.
However, the school lost a heartbreaker to North Laurel, 54-53.
In the midst of holding back tears, the boys said they are thankful the community has rallied behind them, even when people have issues to be worried about.
'Everyone from Breathitt really just supports us, and it's amazing how they come out. Like, people we don't know, like personally, just come up to us and congratulate us and talk to us about who we are,' senior forward Canaan Gross said.
Bowling had a message for the team and his county.
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'To come to Rupp Arena, to play in the state tournament, to win your region—very few teams ever have the chance to do that, so it's a very important opportunity for us to be proud of our community, our boys, our school system,' Bowling said.
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