It’s one of the many rivalries in the area that gets the juices flowing when you hear the two teams mentioned in the same sentence.
The first round in baseball belonged to the host Highlands Bluebirds (2-1 overall). The Bluebirds rallied to beat the Covington Catholic Colonels (2-2) by a 5-4 count at Highland Park just before heading off for Spring Break. The two meet again May 6 in Park Hills and could meet again in the 9th Region Tournament.
“I think we had great approaches most of the game,” said Jeremy Baioni, Highlands Head Coach. “Our guys never lost confidence even though we didn’t get the results. The great thing about baseball is you can’t stall. You have to get 21 outs and our guys played through 21 outs. We had a bunch of guys contribute. We had a bunch of guys get some hits. We were aggressive on the bases. We played really well defensively and we pitched well. If you do that, you can play in a lot of games against really good teams and that’s a really good team.”
Highlands never led until the final at bat. Senior catcher Mason Welsch opened the bottom of the seventh with a single off CovCath sophomore left-hander Eli Wagner. Then junior second baseman Jack Hendrix stepped to the plate and smacked one back up the middle. It deflected off Wagner and past CovCath freshman shortstop Jackson Reardon into left and Welsch hustled to third base.
“It played a big part just keeping my eyes open and clear mind,” Welsch said. “I just looked ahead to see what’s going on. Once I saw to take an extra 90 feet, that’s what I did.”
That’s when CovCath turned to sophomore Charlie Dieruf. After Hendrix took second on a defensive indifference, Dieruf committed a balk scoring Welsch and moving Hendrix to third. Dieruf struck out Highlands senior Jack Schneider before senior first baseman Ryne Wiseman singled to score Hendrix. The Highlands team rushed the field from the home dugout to celebrate the win.
“We go through that scenario in practice,” Baioni said. “We take batting practice where we’re trying to hit a sac fly. We’re trying to score a game-winning run. The important thing for guys is making sure they stick to that process and not think about how big the situation is so they try to relieve some of that pressure. It was just execution offensively – guys trying to hit the ball somewhere to win the game.”
Highlands batted .308 (8 for 26) with Welsch, Hendrix and Wiseman recording two hits each. All eight hits came after the fourth inning.
“(Coach Baioni) got us in the huddle in the bottom of the fifth inning and he got us all ready to get on,” Wiseman said. “We had a good game plan and hit the ball. Going up with a plan really is key. That’s what led to all those runs.”
Trailing 3-0 in the bottom of the fifth, junior right fielder Nathan Hartle and senior center fielder Cam McAtee led off with consecutive singles. Junior left fielder Brennan Kelsay hit a sacrifice fly to center moving Hartle to third before McAtee stole second. Hartle scored on a CovCath error when the ball skipped into the outfield on McAtee’s steal attempt. After senior shortstop Nick Robinson drew a walk and Wagner came into pitch, Welsch singled in McAtee. Then Hendrix singled in Robinson to tied the game 3-3.
CovCath took the lead back in the top of the sixth playing small ball. Sophomore third baseman Evan Pitzer doubled and moved to third with one out when Dieruf singled. That’s when Reardon stepped to the plate and laid down a squeeze bunt scoring Pitzer to put CovCath up 4-3.
CovCath went 7 for 27 for a .259 average at the plate. Junior catcher Johnathan Fitz led the Colonels going 3 for 4 with three runs batted in and one run scored. He singled to score senior right fielder Nicholas Darpel from second in the top of the first then hit a two-run home run scoring senior outfielder Ethan Myers in front of him in the top of the fifth to put the Colonels up 3-0.
“We’re a young team (with) freshmen, sophomores,” said Bill Krumpelbeck, CovCath Head Coach. “We gave that game away. I’ve never had to deal with that. I don’t have any seniors to put in key positions so we’re missing signals and we’re making a lot of mistakes. We’ll overcome it by tournament time though.”
Senior Abe Hils (1-1) pitched the final three innings to earn the win for Highlands. He struck out two, walked none and allowed four hits and two earned runs. Senior lefty Connor Schwalbach started the game for Highlands and pitched four innings. He struck out eight, walked none and allowed three hits and one earned run.
“Here what I like. Our guys came in after giving up a hit and they knew why they gave up hits,” Baioni said. “As long as we learn from that, we’ll be okay.”
Senior Will Burke pitched into the fifth inning for CovCath. He struck out four, walked three and allowed two hits and three earned runs. Wagner (0-1) took the loss striking out four, walking none and allowing five hits and two earned runs.
CovCath takes on St. Henry (4-2) at Florence Y’alls Stadium in the Mike Epplen Dirty Hat Classic on Friday at 8:15 p.m. Highlands opens play in the Cal Ripken Experience on Saturday in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The Bluebirds take on two Pennsylvania opponents in William Penn Charter at 9 a.m. and Archbishop Carroll from Radnor at Noon.
Baseball:
Conner 10, Harrison (Ohio) 0 (6 innings):
The Cougars took down their second Ohio opponent in three days staying undefeated at 6-0 with their fourth run-ruling of the season.
Conner batted .347 (8 for 23), drew seven walks and took advantage of four Wildcat errors while committing two. The Cougars had five unearned runs.
“We’re still swinging the bats well. We didn’t have the greatest two-strike approaches. We’re still have things to work on. But we’re putting the bat on the ball and making things happen,” said Brad Arlinghaus, Conner Head Coach. “I’m still very pleased with everything that’s going on.”
Senior shortstop Gage Testerman led Conner going 2 for 3 with one home run, a double, three runs scored and two RBI. Junior right fielder Jackson Bucks went 2 for 3 with two doubles, one RBI and two runs scored and senior left fielder Cody Crawford also went 2 for 3 with one RBI.
“It’s just something about this year walking on to the baseball field that makes us excited to play, which is something I feel we haven’t had at Conner for a bit,” Crawford said. “It’s great to see a group of people come together and want to win. We all have the drive and the skill to win. We all see that in each other and we all look out for each other.”
The Cougars scored in every inning except the first. They scored three in the second and fifth innings.
Junior Brody Mangold (2-0) threw a complete game with 58 strikes on 78 pitches for Conner. Mangold struck out six, walked none and allowed just one hit.
Conner takes on Campbell County (3-2) in the Mike Epplen Dirty Hat Classic on Friday at 6 p.m. at Florence Y’alls Stadium.
Campbell County 12, Bracken County 0 (5 innings):
The Camels (3-2) won the 10th Region battle in Alexandria over the Polar Bears (6-5). Campbell County is 2-0 in region play.
It started on the mound with senior Trent Sorgenfrei (1-0). He struck out seven, walked one and allowed just two hits in the complete game. He credited sophomore catcher Parker Schweitzer for his role in his performance.
“I’m a three-sport athlete. I didn’t pitch much last year because I struggled then we did not play in 2020 because of Covid,” Sorgenfrei said. “I worked a lot with Parker. Having good chemistry with him really helps. We have five guys who can throw 80-plus pitches in a game. For high school baseball, that’s huge.”
Campbell County hit .450 (9 for 20) at the plate and drew seven walks. Senior lead-off center fielder Greg Vineyard drew three walks and scored twice.
Senior Zack Riley led the way going 2 for 2 with one double and two RBI. Junior left fielder Eric Clark went 2 for 3 with a double and run scored. Junior right fielder Brayden Wells homered to drive in three and score once with Parker Schweitzer adding a double. Junior second baseman Jake Gross had two RBI and junior shortstop Aydan Hamiton scored twice.
Campbell County stole four bases and neither team committed an error. Freshman Carson Clark stole two bases with Hamilton and senior Anthony Florimonte stealing one each.
The Camels led 1-0 after two. But the exploded for 10 in the bottom of the third.
“I thought we played well,” said Scott Schweitzer, Campbell County Head Coach. “We got a couple hits, laid down a perfect bunt, a couple more hits, a couple walks. Bracken County made a pitching change. He struggled to find his command. It was the story of one inning. We capitalized and we kept going.”
Campbell County travels to Ryle (4-2) on Thursday. Game time is 5 p.m.
Beechwood 11, St. Henry 1 (5 innings):
The Tigers stayed undefeated at 4-0 with a five-inning run-ruling in their first 9th Region game of the year over the host Crusaders (4-2).
Junior pitcher Sam Stacy (2-0) pitched another compete game for the Tigers. Stacy struck out five, walked two and allowed five hits and one earned run.
Beechwood batted .384 (10 for 26) at the plate. Junior catcher Brice Estep went 3 for 3 with six RBI with junior center fielder Mitch Berger going 3 for 4 with a home run, double, three RBI and one run scored.
“We’re hitting the ball pretty well,” said Kevin Gray, Beechwood Head Coach. “(St. Henry) lost a couple balls in that wind that one inning that let us get a couple on. But we squared the ball up again. I was a little worried before the game because that was our first game on grass. You can normally expect a couple errors when you’re used to turf. But we played pretty solid defense.”
The Tigers had five extra-base hits total with four doubles. Senior first baseman Tanner Jackson, junior designated hitter Nazario Pangallo and senior third baseman Jackson Roseburrough had the other doubles.
“Most of the guys adapted (to the grass) really well,” Jackson said. “We had an error. But we cleaned it up really well. It wasn’t much of a problem. We fielded the ball well. But we had to adjust to it. I’m glad the guys did so we could make plays to help Sam out and keep the runs off the board.”
St. Henry did not have any extra-base hits. Senior Connor Albrinck took the loss for the Crusaders.
Beechwood plays host to Dixie Heights (4-0) in a key 9th Region game at 5:30 p.m. Thursday. St. Henry takes on Covington Catholic in the Mike Epplen Dirty Hat Classic at 8:15 p.m. Friday at Florence Y’alls Stadium.
Dixie Heights 8, Cooper 4:
The Colonels (4-0) ventured to Union and took down the Jaguars (1-3) in a 9th Region battle. Dixie Heights is 3-0 in region play.
Cooper outhit Dixie Heights, 8-6. But the Colonels took advantage of four Jaguar errors scoring six unearned runs. Dixie Heights had one error allowing one unearned run.
“(Cooper) was awful young last year,” said Chris Maxwell, Dixie Heights Head Coach. “They’re improving. I think (Head Coach) Scott Buckler is doing a nice job with them out there. He tried to win that game. The kid threw the ball hard. But we were able to hit him a little bit. If they don’t give up, they’re going to be a nice club.”
Senior Brandon Brooks (2-0) took over on the mound after one pitch and threw four innings. He struck out five, walked one and allowed three earned runs and six hit. Sophomore Brach Rice pitched the final three innings striking out one, walking none and allowing two hits.
Junior catcher Ethan Bosley led Dixie Heights at the plate going 2 for 4 with one double and two runs scored. Senior left fielder Brennan Staton and junior first baseman Owen Lawrence added doubles. Lawrence and senior right fielder Mark Dugan batted in two with Wilson scoring twice.
Cooper threw five different pitchers. Junior pitcher/right fielder Chase Gartner went 2 for 4 with one triple and two RBI and junior third baseman/pitcher James Crowe doubled. Senior designated hitter Corbin Fletcher went 2 for 4.
Dixie Heights trailed 4-1 after four. But the Colonels scored four times in the fifth to go up 5-4 before adding two in the sixth and one in the seventh to make the final score.
“I thought it was a great win,” said Gabe Thelen, Dixie Heights senior center fielder. “We kind of started off a little slow. It was nice to get the bats going toward the middle and end of the game.”
Both teams play region games Thursday. Dixie Heights travels to Beechwood (4-0) for a 5:30 p.m. game and Cooper plays host to Newport Central Catholic (4-0) at 5:30 p.m.
Ryle 6, Wyandotte (Michigan) Roosevelt 5 (10 innings):
The Raiders (4-2) won their fourth in a row against the visitors from south of Detroit who dropped their other three games against opponents from Boone, Kenton and Campbell Counties entering the game.
“They kept with us,” said Joe Aylor, Ryle Head Coach. “They took a 2-0 lead on us in the top of the third. We had to chip away. We tried to keep laying it on. We tried to keep some good approaches at the plate. We were off and on with that. Early in the season, that’s something you have to go through and battle. I thought we did a good job of being persistent and trying to make sure we came out on top.”
Both teams had 10 hits. Roosevelt had three errors leading to two Ryle unearned runs while scoring one unearned run off one Raider error.
Junior Keegan Flaherty had the game-winning hit with one out in the 10th. He singled to center to score senior Brayden Stewart.
“Personally, I think the team learned a lot,” Flaherty said. “I think we learned that we have to come out early and put it to teams even ones we don’t know anything about. This was one of those nights where we all had to come together and I feel that I picked the team up there at the end.”
Senior Tyler Sickmeyer (1-0) pitched five innings to record the win for Ryle. He struck out five, walked two and allowed five hits and one earned run.
Sophomore Caleb Mann started the game and pitched five innings. He struck out seven, walked one and allowed five hits and three earned runs. Mann also went 2 for 5 at the plate with one double, one triple, one RBI and one run scored.
Junior Landon Sawyer went 2 for 5 with one double and two runs scored. Stewart went 2 for 4 with one RBI, one run scored and one walk. Schira added a double.
Ryle plays host to Campbell County (3-2) on Thursday. Game time is 5 p.m.
Simon Kenton 3, Boone County 0:
The Pioneers (5-2) knocked off the host Rebels (2-5) in the second meeting of the season. Boone County won 5-2 in Independence on March 17.
The Pioneers outhit the Rebels, 4-3 and both teams committed one error. Senior Peyton Fernbach went 3 for 3 with one home run, two doubles driving in all three Pioneer runs and scoring once.
Junior Gavin Riley (1-0) pitched into the fifth to pick up the win for Simon Kenton. Riley struck out seven to go with one hit and two walks. Fernbach came in with two out in the sixth and pitched the rest of the game. Fernbach walked one and allowed two hits.
Senior Justin Huff started the game for Boone County. Senior Tyler Krohman came in with one out in the fourth inning and finished the game for the Rebels. Huff struck out four and Krohman three. Huff also walked three and allowed two hits and three earned runs and Krohman had one walk and allowed two hits.
Boone County travels to Bishop Brossart (3-4) on Friday at 5 p.m. Simon Kenton travels to South Oldham (3-6) on Saturday for a Noon battle.
Softball:
Dixie Heights 2, Grant County 1:
The Colonels stayed undefeated at 3-0 with the home win over the Lady Braves (4-4).
“I told them a win’s a win, but it was ugly. We scratched and scathed by,” said Sarah Osborne, Dixie Heights Head Coach. “It was one that we had to stay in the game. If we didn’t, it was going to let go. The defense made some really good plays. Offensively, we didn’t make adjustments where we needed to make adjustments.
Dixie Heights scored the game-winning run in the bottom of the sixth. Senior center fielder Ava Meyer singled, took second on a wild pitch, stole third then scored on a Grant County throwing error.
Senior third baseman Bri Patsel tied the game in the fourth at 1-1 after Grant County scored in the top of the first. Patsel walked and moved to third when sophomore first baseman Skylar Mitchell lined a double to center. Patsel then scored when sophomore pitcher Riley Hopkins hit a sacrifice fly to right.
Both teams recorded four hits. Hopkins (3-0) pitched another complete game striking out six, walking three and allowing one earned run.
Grant County freshman pitcher Brianna Knochelman also threw a complete game. She struck out 12, walked two and allowed one earned run.
“Our pitcher is super scrappy. She gave it all she could,” Meyer said. “She struggled a little bit. But she came back and held us in the game. Our defense picked her up. Then their pitcher. You have to give her credit. She had a nasty rise ball. She was on. We started taking advantage of not swinging at some rise balls. We got some walks and those helped tremendously.”
Dixie Heights plays host to Beechwood (2-3) on Thursday. Game time is 5:30 p.m.
Campbell County 12, Conner 4:
The Camels (3-2) ventured to Hebron and knocked off the Lady Cougars (2-4) in a non-region game.
Campbell County batted .417 (15 for 36). Senior center fielder Bella Bastin went 3 for 5 with a double, RBI and run scored. Junior first baseman Emily Nadau went 2 for 5 with a double, one RBI and one run scored. Freshman left fielder Jayci Kremer went 2 for 4 with two RBI and one run scored and freshman third baseman Breahna Tate went 2 for 4 with three runs scored an and RBI with freshman second baseman Moriah Price tripling. Price also stole a base.
Campbell County played without two eighth grade starters at shortstop in Sam Perry and third base in Hope Hamilton. But the Camels moved senior Maddie Kramer from the outfield to shortstop and seventh grader Josie Feeback started in right field. Feeback hit an inside the park home run driving in four and scoring once.
“Feeback is really fast,” said Sandi Kitchen, Campbell County Head Coach. “Those two kept the rally going. I was really pleased to see that happen with those young girls. That was a big adjustment to make. Hitting in the cold (Tuesday) and hitting in weather like at the beach (Wednesday) was a big adjustment as well. It was a little more pleasant to play. I’m really pleased with the win.”
Junior Paige Stewart picked up the win in the complete game. Stewart struck out eight, walked three and gave up four hits and four earned runs.
Conner did not have any players with multi-hit games. But junior Keira Holeman and senior shortstop Alex Cobble had triples.
Campbell County travels to Cooper (2-1) on Friday at 5 p.m. Conner travels to Boone County (2-4) on Friday for a district seed game at 5 p.m.
Ryle 17, St. Henry 2 (3 innings):
The Lady Raiders evened their record at 4-4 with another run-ruling over the Lady Crusaders (1-3).
Ryle batted .350 (7 for 11) at the plate drawing 11 walks. Freshman third baseman Laney Schuster, sophomore right fielder Madison Goddard and junior pitcher Lerin Moreland all had triples. Schuster and freshman right fielder Laci DeLauder scored three times with junior first baseman Grace Tranbarger and junior second baseman Aalaiyah Kaeske both scoring twice.
“It gets tough. I told our girls before the game started that I wanted them to get up there and get their cuts,” said Jarret Goddard, Ryle Head Coach. “It’s important for us to do that. One of the key things that we’ve been working on is getting up there and being ready to hit. So in these types of situations where maybe a pitcher is struggling a bit, it’s important for us to get up there, get our swings and be ready for that one pitch comes to us and then drive that one pitch.”
Junior shortstop Avery Parsons and junior second baseman/left fielder Emily Zmurk walked twice and drove in two for Ryle. Schuster also walked twice. Madison Goddard and Zoe Coop also drove in two.
“We go up there and we have to think about what pitches we need to hit,” Moreland said. “We have to know since the pitcher isn’t throwing a lot of strikes and there are going to be a lot of walks, we have to be really smart at the plate and know that the umpire is going to open up the zone quite a bit. We have to be ready to hit the ball, especially when we do get a strike because it will be very rare.”
Moreland (1-1) pitched the first two innings earning the win for Ryle. She struck out four and gave up two hits and one earned run. Coop pitched the third inning striking out two and allowing two hits and one earned run.
“When you have six strikeouts on the defensive side, that helps,” Coach Goddard said. “We were a little bit crisp when the put balls in play. One of the things we’ve been working on is fielding the ball cleanly and hitting our cut. Then making sure we’re communicating and getting the ball to the bases they need to get to. I was definitely pleased on balls in play we executed. This is a marathon, not a spring. This is a situation where I’m looking for progress as we move forward.”
St. Henry did not have any players record any multi-hit games. But senior third baseman Sydney Steimle doubled.
Ryle plays host to Walton-Verona (4-2) on Thursday. Game time is 5:30 p.m.
Taylor (Ohio) 2, Cooper 1:
The Lady Jaguars (2-1) dropped a tight one just across the Ohio River.
Taylor outhit Cooper, 7-5. Sophomore center fielder Ava Scott went 2 for 3 with a double and senior second baseman Amber Chaney went 2 for 3 with one run scored. Senior shortstop Dylan Scott had a double and the team’s lone RBI of the game.
Junior Kendall Blau (2-1) threw a complete game for Cooper. She struck out nine, walked one and allowed seven hits and two earned runs. Taylor scored their runs in the bottom of the fourth after Cooper scored in the first inning.
Cooper plays host to Campbell County (3-2) on Friday at 5 p.m.
Other March 30 NKY Baseball Scores:
Augusta 5, Ludlow 4
Bishop Brossart 9, Bellevue 1
Lloyd Memorial 11, Dayton 2
Nicholas County 13, Holy Cross (6 innings)
Milford (Ohio) 9, Scott 0
Other March 30 NKY Softball Scores:
Bishop Brossart 17, Paris 2 (3 innings)
Calvary Christian 14, Dayton 4
Lloyd Memorial 19, Ludlow 4 (3 innings)
Villa Madonna 1, Newport (forfeit)
Newport Central Catholic 8, Bellevue 2
Notre Dame 15, Holmes (3 innings)
Walton-Verona 21, Williamstown 4
Pendleton County 10, Highlands 0 (6 innings)