The first four innings indicated this game might go down to the wire.
The Cooper Lady Jaguars (12-4 overall) led the host Ryle Lady Raiders (11-11) just 1-0 at that point in the game. Cooper senior catcher and clean-up hitter Gweny Wessling belted her third home run of the season to left field for a solo shot to open the top of the fourth.
But then the explosive inning came. The Lady Jaguars put 11 runs on the scoreboard on their way to a 12-0 five-inning run-ruling in another battle of Union.
Cooper is in the driver’s seat for the top seed in the 33rd District Tournament at 3-0 in district seed play. Conner is 3-1 with Ryle standing 1-3 and Boone County 0-3.
Senior Amber Chaney (7-1) pitched a complete game striking out five and walking none to go with four hits. Cooper made no errors behind her. Chaney also had one hit and scored once.
“It was a great pitchers duel early on,” said Rusty Scott, Cooper Head Coach. “We fight. We scratch. We try to take advantage of every opportunity we get. We were fortunate enough where it opened up an inning for us. We never take a play or pitch off.”
Cooper finished with a .448 (13 for 29) batting average in the game with four extra-base hits. Sophomore second baseman Ava Scott finished 3 for 4 with a triple, run batted in and two runs scored. Wessling also went 3 for 4 with two RBI and two runs scored.
All but one spot had at least one hit for Cooper. Senior shortstop Dylan Scott went 2 for 4 with two RBI and one run scored. Junior center fielder Ashley Chaney tripled and eighth grade outfielder Kat Furnish had a double.
“We’re good at staying with it no matter the score,” Furnish said. “It doesn’t matter to us as long as we’re fighting hard. Communication is the most important thing in the outfield. That’s what keeps a team together. If one of us messes up, the team falls apart. We just have to communicate and call the ball. It makes a difference in the game.”
Ryle sophomore pitcher Maddie Goddard (8-6) struck out four and walked two. Junior Lerin Moreland finished the game. Junior shortstop Avery Parsons led Ryle at the plate going 2 for 2 with a double.
But the tough thing for Ryle is the 10 of the 11 runs in that fifth were unearned. Cooper took full advantage of the two Ryle errors in that inning.
“With a game like this, after the game we tell the girls to forget about it,” said Jarret Goddard, Ryle Head Coach. “You just have to put that in the back of your mind and press forward. The girls played well for four innings. Then in the fifth inning, we got into our implosion inning. They gave them six or seven outs I feel like. They got stuck in the quicksand and sunk. That kind of stuff happens. We have to find a way to play through that and get outs. We didn’t do that.”
It started when junior third baseman Emily Schmeltz reached on an error and Furnish doubled her home. One out later, Ava Scott tripled in Furnish to make it 3-0 Cooper before she scored on the second Ryle error. Junior first baseman Kendall Blau singled home Dylan Scott and Wessling to give Cooper a 6-0 lead.
Eighth grader Ainsley Scroggie ran for Blau and moved to second on a wild pitch before scoring when Cooper senior Hanna Hollis singled her home. Sophomore Kailey Milburn ran for Hollis and scored on Ashley Chaney’s triple making it 8-0 Cooper. Schmeltz hit a sacrifice fly to center scoring Ashley Chaney for the second out of the inning putting Cooper up 9-0.
Furnish walked bringing up the top of the dangerous Cooper line-up. Amber Chaney and Ava Scott singled to load the bases before Dylan Scott singled to score Furnish and Amber Chaney. Wessling singled in Ava Scott to make the final score before Blau grounded out to end the inning. Amber Chaney retired the side to end the game in the bottom of the inning.
“Going out in the fifth after we scored a bunch of runs, I had a mindset it’s still a 0-0 ballgame,” Amber Chaney said. “I just remember a couple years ago, we were up 7-0 and they came back to beat us 14-7. I knew they weren’t done and we weren’t done.”
Cooper recorded a nice double play to end the bottom of the fourth. Parsons singled to lead off the frame. After Amber Chaney struck out Ryle junior third baseman Payton Godfrey, freshman catcher Laney Schuster grounded out to Chaney. Blau then fired one to second to tag out Parsons to end the inning.
“That really changed the momentum,” Rusty Scott said. “Our defense has been there all year. We’ve turned a lot of double plays between Ava and Dylan (Scott) in the middle (infield). That’s taken a lot of wind out of sails. Amber (Chaney) takes advantage of that and continues to mow batters down. She pitched a great game for us.”
Cooper travels to Notre Dame (5-4) for two games starting at 5 p.m. The Lady Jaguars and Pandas will finish a suspended game from April 8 at Notre Dame that Cooper led 3-0 after three innings before sleet forced the suspension before playing another game. Ryle plays host to Simon Kenton (10-6) on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.
Highlands 10, Newport Central Catholic 2:
The Bluebirds (12-10) took one step closer to another top seed in the 36th District Tournament with the home win over the Thoroughbreds (7-2).
Highlands led just 3-2 entering the bottom of the sixth. But the Bluebirds exploded for seven runs to make the final score. NewCath had three errors leading to four unearned Highlands runs and the Bluebirds had none. But Highlands Head Coach credited NewCath’s defense for making plays that could have opened up innings.
Eighth grade pitcher Kaitlyn Dixon (3-2) started the game pitching five innings striking out eight, walking none and allowing two hits. Junior Kennedy Baioni pitched the last two striking out three, walking none and allowing two hits and two earned runs.
“We didn’t hit as well as I would have liked for them to,” Horner said. “We just haven’t been consistent up and down the line-up, which we really need to do if we’re going to get to where we want to get to. District games have a way of being closer than you ever think they’re going to be. If you make defensive plays, you can stay in games.”
Highlands batted .406 (13 for 32) overall. Senior Hailey Parks went for 3 with a run scored. Sophomore center fielder Bailey Markus, eighth grade second baseman Morgan Pompilio, sophomore Michelle Barth and senior first baseman Eleanor Todd all went 2 for 4. Pompilio had three RBI and scored twice with Markus doubling and batting in two. Eighth grade left fielder Payton Brown batted in two with senior shortstop Anna Greenwell scoring twice.
“We took balls that were not out pitches a lot, which is what we’d been working on,” Todd said. “I think that shows hitting maturity. We’re swinging at ones that we know that we can hit.”
Highlands plays host to Boone County (8-9) on Wednesday at 5 p.m. NewCath plays host to Dayton (5-8) on Thursday at 5 p.m.
Conner 10, Bishop Brossart 3:
The Lady Cougars (7-5) won their fourth in a row with a non-region road win over the Lady ‘Stangs (7-9).
Both teams made two errors. Conner scored two unearned runs to none for Bishop Brossart.
Sophomore Molly Sharp (6-3) earned the win for Conner. She struck out 11, walking five and allowing six hits and three earned runs.
Conner batted .400 (14 for 35) in the win. Junior center fielder Keira Holeman led the way going 4 for 5 with a run scored in the lead-off spot. Eighth grade second baseman Averie Lightner went 2 for 5 with two doubles, two RBI and one run scored.
“As the lead-off hitter, I try to set a tone,” Holeman said. “I try to get on base any way I can. Overall, our team hit the ball really well.”
Conner had five players with multi-hit games. Sophomore first baseman Jalyn Cain went 2 for 3 with two walks, one RBI and two runs scored. Senior catcher Haley Kersker went 2 for 3 with two RBI and three runs scored and eighth grade third baseman Breanna Meredith went 2 for 3 with a double and three RBI.
“That was the same thing we’d been doing,” said Shawn Sproles, Conner Head Coach. “We were able to put the ball in play a lot. We had some good swings at some crucial times. We actually had another good defensive day. Molly was on a little bit early then she lost some location so there were some girls that got put on base. Our defense kept battling so it was really good for us to continue with some consistency.”
Bishop Brossart saw two players with multi-hit games. Junior third baseman Savannah Seiter went 3 for 3 with a double and two RBI. Junior center fielder Brooke Shewmaker went 2 for 3 with a double and two runs scored.
Conner plays host to St. Henry (4-9) on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. Bishop Brossart plays host to Simon Kenton (10-6) at the same time.
Campbell County 15, Villa Madonna 0 (3 innings):
The Camels (7-5) downed the visiting Vikings (9-3) in non-region action.
Junior Paige Stewart (7-3) threw a complete game striking out four, walking two and allowing just two hits. Campbell County had no errors behind her and scored one unearned run off the lone Villa Madonna error.
“You never know,” said Sandi Kitchen, Campbell County Head Coach. “Villa has the reputation in the All A going to state so we didn’t really know what we were up against. We made sure we spoke to them before that you don’t play the team in the jersey on the other team. You play the game it should be played. We played with confidence and really went after it from the beginning to end. Sometimes you get a little bit lulled when you feel that you have the upper hand on the team. I feel like we took control of it from the beginning and didn’t look back.”
Campbell County batted an impressive .625 (15 for 24) in the win. Senior center fielder Bella Bastin led the way going 2 for 3 with a home run, double, three RBI and two runs scored.
The Camels saw five players record multi-hit games. Freshman second baseman Moriah Price went 3 for 3 with three RBI and two runs scored. Senior shortstop Maddie Kramer went 2 for 2 with one run scored. Freshman catcher Breahna Tate went 2 for 2 with one RBI. Eighth grade third baseman Hope Hamilton went 2 for 3 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI. Junior Kylee Malloy had a double and two RBI.
“We knew were going to have to hit well,” Hamilton said. “You try to see the ball and hit the ball. You keep your weight back and crush the ball.”
Campbell County travels to Dixie Heights (8-4) on Wednesday at 5 p.m. Villa Madonna plays in the All A State softball tournament at Owensboro on Saturday starting with Carlisle County at 9:30 a.m. EST.
Grant County 3, Simon Kenton 2:
The Lady Pioneers (10-6) hoped to wrap up the undisputed top seed in the 32nd District Tournament.
But Grant County (8-10) scored twice in the top of the third and held on for the win. Sophomore catcher Emilie Young hit a solo home run off Grant County freshman pitcher Brianna Knochelman. Knochelman struck out 11 and walked one in the complete game.
Simon Kenton had two errors to one for Grant County. Both teams had one unearned run.
Sophomore Landrey Dance (6-4) pitched a complete game for Simon Kenton. She struck out 10, walked three and allowed two earned runs and five hits.
Simon Kenton batted .222 (6 for 27) in the loss. Senior shortstop Alexis Baker went 3 for 4 with a double to lead the way.
Simon Kenton travels to Bishop Brossart (7-9) on Wednesday. Game time is 5:30 p.m.
Baseball:
Boone County 12, Ryle 11:
The Rebels (6-12) snapped their seven-game losing streak with an exciting comeback in the top of the seventh to top the Raiders (9-10).
“We’ve had a rough couple weeks,” said Wayne Huff, Boone County Head Coach. “But we’ve been in most games. If we’re going to battle, we’re going to go down with a fight. You go out, give everything you have and see where the chips fall. It fell in our favor.”
Ryle took the lead at 11-8 in the bottom of the sixth. Senior shortstop Josh Furtado belted a three-run home run to right scoring junior right fielder Roman Furuta and senior first baseman Brayden Stewart in front of him. That marked the second home run of the year for Furtado.
But the Rebels rallied taking advantage of four walks. Senior center fielder Issac Vest started things with the first walk and took second on a passed ball. Sophomore third baseman Chris Henson then singled in Vest cutting the Ryle lead to 11-9.
Boone County then drew three straight walks in senior pitcher Jayden Wilson, senior first baseman Justin Huff and senior Jason Williams. Henson scored after the Williams walk to trim the margin to 11-10 Ryle. Boone County senior pitcher Tommy Switzer stepped to the plate and drew a hit by pitch on a 2-0 count to score Wilson to tie the game.
Ryle freshman pitcher Dylan McIntrye (2-3) did get Boone County senior right fielder Jake Barth to ground to junior third baseman Keegan Flaherty, who threw to senior catcher Brayden Vice forcing Justin Huff.
But Boone County sophomore Jack Moore stepped to the plate and delivered. On a 3-1 count, Moore smacked one to the right side off Furtado scoring Williams making the final score. McIntyre got Vest to fly out to right to end the inning.
“I just wanted to put something in play,” Moore said. “It felt good to come through for the team.”
Wilson knew he had to shut down Ryle in the bottom of the seventh to secure Boone County’s first district seed win this season. He retired the side to do so.
“I was just trying to keep my cool up there trying to throw strikes and get ready for the next day,” Wilson said. “It’s been a rough season. But we’re getting the hang of it.”
Wilson pitched the final three innings to pick up the win for the Rebels after senior Tyler Krohman pitched the first four. Wilson struck out one, walked one and allowed four hits and four earned runs. Krohman struck out two, walked three and allowed eight hits and seven earned runs. Wilson went 2 for 4 at the plate with an RBI and two runs scored.
Boone County batted .333 (13 for 36) in the win. Krohman went 3 for 5 at the plate with an RBI and run scored. Henson went 2 for 4 with a double, two RBI and two runs scored and Huff went 2 for 4 with a double, RBI and run scored. Moore went 2 for 4 with three RBI and two runs scored.
“Even with a 5-0 lead, we knew it was going to be tough,” Coach Huff said. “Ryle is tough. They’re good players. They’re not going to give in. One through nine, they’re very solid. We chipped away,” said Wayne Huff, Boone County Head Coach. “When they got the lead, we were like, ‘Aah.’ But we said one base runner at a time. One guy got on and the next guy got on. Before you know it, some things start to go our way a little bit. Luckily, it turned out with the win. But it was hard-fought and could have gone either way. We expect that whenever we play a district team.”
Boone County scored five times in the top of the first. But Ryle batted back to score one in the first, two in the second then tied it with four in the fourth. The teams scored one run each in the fifth.
Ryle batted .375 (12 for 32) in the loss. Furuta went 3 for 4 with two RBI and one run scored. Senior Ben Fox went 3 for 4 with one run scored and senior catcher Brayden Vice went 2 for 3. Senior first baseman Brayden Stewart homered driving in two, walking twice and scoring three times.
“We didn’t fight,” said Joe Aylor, Ryle Head Coach. “That’s my only quote.”
Junior TJ Schira started the game for Ryle before senior Tyler Sickmeyer took over. McIntryle finished the game taking over with one out in the top of the fifth with one out. Sickmeyer and McIntrye struck out three each.
Both teams had three errors. Boone County scored six unearned runs and Ryle scored none.
The teams meet again at Boone County on Wednesday at 5 p.m. Both can still earn the second seed in the district tournament. Ryle is 2-3 in district seed play and Boone County is 1-3.
Conner 10, Cooper 0 (6 innings):
The Cougars (20-2 overall) took a huge step closer to earning the top seed in the 33rd District Tournament in Hebron with a shutout of the host Jaguars (6-13) in Union.
Conner is 4-1 in district seed play and Cooper is 2-2. Cooper could earn a share of the top spot with wins over Conner and Boone County to finish district seed play. Conner can finish no worse than the second seed. But Cooper could finish in any of the seeds.
“Any win in our district is a big win so we’ll take it,” said Brad Arlinghaus, Conner Head Coach. “We hit the ball well. We fielded the ball well and we pitched the ball well. When we do those three things, we’re a pretty good baseball team. It was exciting to watch us do those three things well.”
Junior ace Brody Mangold (5-0) pitched a complete game for Conner. He struck out five, walked three and allowed just one Cooper hit.
The Cougars scored three in the second and four in the fourth to go up 7-0. They added two in the fifth and one in the top of the sixth to make the final score before Mangold retried two with two on to finish the game.
Conner batted .360 (9 for 25) at the plate. Senior shortstop Gage Testerman led the way going 3 for 3 with one double, two runs scored and one RBI. He walked once as teams have been pitching around him.
“We knew what we had to do,” Testerman said. “Scoring early was pretty big. We stayed focused the entire game. We really played hard the entire game.”
Junior designated hitter Brayden Stidham went 2 for 3 with two RBI and one run scored. Senior left fielder Cody Crawford and senior catcher Briggs Yeunger added doubles. Yeunger and junior center fielder Ayden Lohr had two RBI each. Teams have been pitching around Testerman lately.
“If those guys behind Gage can hit, (opponents) are going to have to pitch to Gage,” Arlinghaus said. “I just told him you might only get one (good) pitch an at-bat. So you better take advantage of that one pitch you get because they’re not giving you a whole lot to swing at. But that’s a credit to Gage and the season that he’s having. But you have to tip your hat to Cody Crawford, Briggs Yeunger and those guys hitting behind him.”
Junior Chase Gartner (1-2) and senior Justin Delph finished it striking out two taking over in the fourth. Sophomore second baseman Mark Nowak had the lone Cooper hit.
Both teams had one error. Conner scored three unearned runs.
The teams meet again in Hebron at 5 p.m. Wednesday.
Campbell County 10, Scott 2:
The Camels (12-8) improved to 2-0 in 37th District play with a win over the Eagles (5-15). This marked the first district game for Scott.
Senior Jake Napier (3-1) pitched a complete game striking out 16, walking just one and allowing two earned runs and three hits. Neither team made any errors.
“Jake was really good,” said Scott Schweitzer, Campbell County Head Coach. “He kept the ball down. He threw a lot of strikes, got ahead in the count. He worked hard and worked great at it. You can’t ask for much more.”
Campbell County struck for two in the first, five in the second and two in the third. The Eagles scored two in the fourth to avoid a potential run-ruling.
The Camels batted .346 (9 for 26) in the win. Junior Evan Clark went 2 for 3 with a solo home run in the bottom of the third.
“When I hit it, I didn’t think it was going out,” Clark said. “I looked up and started to round the bases. It was a weird feeling. I definitely think we’re starting to corner.”
Camel senior Tyler Fowler went 2 for 3 with three RBI, one double and one run scored. Senior Zack Riley went 2 for 4 with three RBI and one run scored. Junior Jake Gross doubled and scored twice with sophomore catcher Parker Schweitzer adding a double. Senior center fielder Greg Vineyard also scored twice.
“(Scott Head) Coach (Kevin) Goins does a great job,” Schweitzer said. “I know that we’ve been what I felt like better on paper the last couple years and then they’ve really stuck it to us and beat us when it counted. So to come out and put up 10 runs is huge.”
Campbell County plays at Bourbon County (11-8) on Thursday at 5:30 p.m. Scott plays host to Simon Kenton (10-8) on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.
Walton-Verona 9, Highlands 8:
The Bearcats (15-6) earned a shootout win over the Bluebirds (12-9) at Highland Park in non-region action.
The teams battled back and forth the first four innings tied 8-8. But the Bearcats took the lead for good. Senior Nick Allen scored on a fielder’s choice throw home when junior first baseman Lance Coleman grounded out to first. Coleman had a double, three RBI, three walks and scored twice. Allen walked twice and scored three times.
“It was good to jump on top 4-0 early. It obviously took some of the pressure off early going into their place,” said Clint Coleman, Walton-Verona Head Coach. “(Junior) Ed Drohan started the game. He’s not one of our normal starters. But I thought he came in and did a really good job holding those guys to what he did. We know they have pretty powerful offense.”
Walton-Verona batted .345 (10 for 29) in the win. Junior infielder Evan Kerns hit a two-run home run in the top of the first scoring twice. Junior right fielder Ethan Hager went 2 for 4 with a two-RBI single in the top of the fourth and sophomore catcher Bryce Corpus went 2 for 4. Junior designated hitter Jimmy Shields scored two runs.
“I went up to the plate thinking about putting the ball in play to at least get us an RBI,” Hager said. “I sat back on a change-up and hit it in the left center gap. It felt good coming off the bat. I was real happy with the way that I hit the ball.”
Sophomore Julian Dixon (1-0) earned the win. He took over in the second striking out two, walking one and allowing four hits and two earned runs. Junior Carter Krohman pitched a scoreless sixth and Allen finished it striking out three and walking one in the seventh.
“What I was most thrilled with our guys is we just kept hitting,” Coach Coleman said. “We had an opportunity when they tied it up 6-6 to play the woe is me card. But we stayed disciplined at the plate and eventually added that extra run. It was a good win for us.”
Highlands batted .250 (7 for 28) in the loss. Junior Brennan Kelsay went 3 for 4 two doubles, a home run, three RBI and two runs scored. Senior Jonah Hankins went 2 for 3 with a double and RBI. Senior Drew Hack and senior Camden McAtee added doubles.
Junior Elijah Hale started for the Bluebirds pitching three innings striking out three, walking five and allowing seven hits. Senior Austin Eads (0-3) pitched the final four innings striking out two, walking three and allowing three hits and one earned run.
Walton-Verona travels to St. Henry (11-7-1) on Thursday for a 5:30 p.m. game. Highlands travels to Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy (Ohio) on Wednesday. Game time is 5 p.m.
Covington Catholic 11, Holy Cross 1 (5 innings):
The Colonels (12-8) downed the Indians (6-15) in the 35th District game. Senior Colin Gastright (4-1) earned the pitching win striking out four, walking one and allowing five hits. Senior Joshua Dusing recorded the last out of the fifth inning. Gastright went 2 for 3 with two RBI and one run scored.
CovCath batted .417 (10 for 24). Senior right fielder Nick Darpel went 2 for 2 with a double, walk, RBI and two runs scored. Senior first baseman Luke Lenhof went 2 for 3 with one RBI and two runs scored.
Holy Cross had one player with a multi-hit game. Junior third baseman Jason Dorning went 2 for 3 with an RBI.
Holy Cross travels to Villa Madonna (10-10) on Wednesday at 5 p.m. CovCath faces Dixie Heights in the Bryan Stevenson Memorial Tournament on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
Other April 26 NKY Softball Scores:
Calvary Christian 18, Beechwood 16
St. Henry 14, Lloyd Memorial 8
Notre Dame 15, Williamstown 0 (3 innings)
Dayton 1, Newport 0 (forfeit)
Other April 26 NKY Baseball Scores:
Archbishop McNicholas (Ohio) 11, Bishop Brossart 3
Bellevue 2, Calvary Christian 0
Dayton 15, Covington Latin 7
Villa Madonna 6, Ludlow 0