In her spare time, Jayden McClain, one of the youngest NCAA Division I girls basketball recruits in the country, likes to get creative with things other than her favorite sport. “She likes to make her own stuff,” said her mom, Samantha McClain. “I liked drawing a lot. She likes to do that and other things.” […]
Author Archives: Marc Hardin
Posted inBasketball
Ryle High School basketball coach celebrates career win milestone with a little help from her husband
This story originally appeared in the Jan. 12 edition of the weekly LINK Reader. To get these stories first, subscribe here. As December was about to enter its final week, girls basketball coach Katie Haitz had an inkling she was approaching career win No. 200 at Ryle High School. But Haitz didn’t know exactly how close […]
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Lloyd Memorial’s amazing Walker: Ezequias James has distinguished name, distinctive game, but you can call him E.J.
Ezequias James Walker doesn’t hear his full name that much anymore. The Lloyd Memorial High School junior never hears it unless his mom is getting on him about something, which is rare. “I might hear Ezequias every now and then when we have a substitute teacher at school,” he said. “Other than that, not very […]
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Hardin Fast — The fastest 800 words in sports: NKY news from Boone County, Cooper, CovCath, Dixie Heights, Holy Cross, Ryle, Simon Kenton, VMA, NKU and TMU
Good news happens fast in Northern Kentucky. Let’s roll. HOLY CROSS, DIXIE HIGHTS CAPTURE BOWLING CROWNS: The Holy Cross boys bowling team outlasted Ryle by a single pin to win the Region 6 team final, 206-225, 199-168, 223-210, 158-166, 200-199. In the girls final, Dixie Heights swept Boone County with scores of 176-163, 188-132, 171-117. […]
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Hotly recruited Newport sophomore Tay Kinney already one of Kentucky’s best high school basketball players
This story originally appeared in the Jan. 12 edition of the weekly LINK Reader. To get these stories first, subscribe here. It’s the second day of the new year, and coach Rod Snapp stands near the Newport High School gymnasium alongside point guard Tay Kinney. The Wildcats just wrapped up a 90-minute practice, and Snapp is […]
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Hardin Fast — The fastest 500 words in sports: NKY news from Ryle, Simon Kenton, Newport, NDA, NKU, TMU
Vroom, vroom. Let’s go. The rest of Kentucky better get ready to grapple with this. Northern Kentucky high schools boast one top-ranked wrestler, three second-ranked wrestlers, one top 10 team and four top 20 teams in the latest rankings by Kentuckywrestling.com. Simon Kenton sophomore Brayden Blevins is No. 1 at 120 pounds. A trio of […]
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State-ranked! Your boys and girls, individual and team KHSAA basketball leaders
As we reach the halfway point of the regular season schedule for Kentucky high school basketball teams, it seems like a good time to provide an update on how local individuals and teams are doing in the latest KHSAA statewide statistical rankings. Below are 24 boys and girls statistical categories charted by the KHSAA. All […]
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Oh, Snapp! Newport lineup just got bigger ahead of All “A” Classic, just as coach was hoping
Newport High School boys basketball coach Rod Snapp has always been a big believer in scheduling in-season tournaments. He scheduled six tournaments this season, matching last season’s total. Eleven of Newport’s first 15 games were played in a tournament setting, almost all of them against top-notch opponents. They compiled an 8-3 record combined at the […]
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Coach Peebles has a lot of people preparing blue-collar Pioneers for wrestling work
This story originally appeared in the Dec. 29 edition of the weekly LINK Reader. To get these stories first, subscribe here. Jarrod Peebles has been involved with aspects of the Simon Kenton High School wrestling program since he was 12 years old. He has seen how the program works from the ground up as a wrestler […]
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Local All “A” Classic girls basketball tournaments ring in new year with top small-school teams and big stars
The Holy Cross High School girls basketball team is back in the hunt for another championship at the 9th Region All “A” Classic Tournament, held Jan. 2-6 at Newport Central Catholic. The two-time defending champion Indians (8-4) begin play Jan. 3 in a 7:45 pm quarterfinal contest against the Jan. 2 Bellevue-St. Henry winner. Leading […]
