9th Region soccer pairings set

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

The 9th Region boys and girls soccer tournaments were drawn Sunday.

Both the Highlands and Newport Central Catholic teams are considered to be region contenders. The girls semifinals and title game will take place at Dixie Heights and the boys semifinals and title game will take place at Ryle. The region let district winners host the quarterfinal round this year.

On the girls’ side, Highlands (6-7-5) plays host to Beechwood (10-8-4) at 7:30 p.m. Monday at Tower Park. The Bluebirds tied the Lady Tigers, 0-0 on Sept. 12. Highlands finished 3-2-3 against the rest of the region. The only team they did not face is Boone County. The last region title for Highlands came in 2010. The Bluebirds won back-to-back state championships in 2005 and 2006 and finished state runner-up in 2008.

Newport Central Catholic travels to Boone County for a 7 p.m. contest Monday. The Lady Breds (12-3-4) are 2-3-2 against the rest of the field and have also not faced Boone County. Their last region crown came in 2001. NewCath owns Ashland Invitational and All “A” State championships but has struggled at 0-2-2 since the calendar turned to October.

The semifinals take place Wednesday and the title game is Saturday at 1:30 p.m. Highlands will face either St. Henry or Ryle with a win and NewCath would face either Notre Dame or Dixie Heights.

The boys quarterfinals are Tuesday. Highlands returns to Ryle for a 7 p.m. contest after dropping a 1-0 decision in Union on Oct. 10 to close the regular season.

The Bluebirds are 13-7-1 overall, but just 2-5 against the 9th Region field. They did not face Dixie Heights. Highlands last won a region crown in 2010 and finished state runner-up in 2008.

Newport Central Catholic (12-4-1) plays host to defending region champion Boone County at 7 p.m. at Tower Park. The Rebels beat the Thoroughbreds, 2-0 in last year’s region title game. NewCath downed Boone County, 2-1 on Sept. 7 in Florence.

NewCath finished 5-2 against the field and did not play Ryle or Dixie Heights. The Thoroughbreds won their last region crown in 2011.