Monday Highlands Results

Two Individuals Headed to State Golf Tournament for Bluebirds

Twitter Photo. Highlands junior Ellie Rowland shot a 79 at the 8th Region Tournament to take third and qualify for state along with sophomore KJ Toole.

The Highlands Bluebirds girls golf team put together a solid outing in the 8th Region Tournament.

Highlands did not qualify for state as a team shooting a 359 to take third place. Grant County won the region tournament at AJ Jolly Golf Course in Alexandria with 344 points and Owen County took runner-up honors at 346. Unlike previous years when the region champion and runner-up made state, only the region champ qualified for state team-wise.

But the Bluebirds did see two individuals make it to the state tournament. Junior Ellie Rowland shot a 79 to finish third and sophomore KJ Toole shot an 82 to take fifth. The top seven individuals not on the region champion team go to state.

"The girls played their hearts out," said Mike Lipscomb, Highlands Head Coach. "As a team, we played the best we ever have."

Saturday Highlands Results

Bluebirds Post Convincing Region Win

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands girls soccer team beat Covington Holy Cross, 5-1 on Saturday for a second straight win.

The Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer team (11-1-5 overall) recorded another impressive 9th Region victory.

Highlands pulled away from the Covington Holy Cross Lady Indians, 5-1 at Eva G. Farris Sports Complex/John Wysong Field in Covington. Highlands moved to 7-1-1 against region opponents.

Highlands-Boyle County Sidebar

Latest Chapter of Great Highlands-Boyle County Rivalry Belongs to Rebels

Submitted Photo. Highlands graduates Jared Dougherty (10) and Lou Bunning (50) pose after the Lindsey Wilson College Blue Raiders defeated the Warner University (of Lake Whales, Florida) Royals, 73-29.

After Boyle County defeated Highlands, 30-0 at Rebel Field on Friday, Boyle County veteran Head Coach Chuck Smith said it is a good rivalry even though it marked just the seventh time the teams have met.

"We've had some great games," Smith said. "It's always intense and always a good game."

Highlands still leads the series, 4-3. The home-and-home series returns to Fort Thomas next season.

Thursday Highlands Results

Bluebirds Down Holy Cross

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands senior setter Audrey Graves had 45 assists in the win at Covington Holy Cross on Thursday.

Entering the 9th Region match-up at the Covington Holy Cross Lady Indians, the Highlands Bluebirds volleyball team had lost just eight sets all season.

During the 14-2 start, Highlands won the swept through the best-of-three or best-of-two matches in the September Slam in 13 of their 14 wins. The only game the Bluebirds won where they lost a set came on Sept. 3 in a 3-2 (25-18, 18-25, 25-18, 23-25, 15-7) win at Walton-Verona.

The All "A" State champion Lady Indians (19-4) pulled off the first set, 31-29. But the Bluebirds regrouped and won the next three by 25-18, 25-23, 25-11 scores to win the match. They have won five straight and are 8-1 against region opponents. Highlands is 2-0 against Holy Cross this year.

Highlands Girls Soccer Posts Convincing Win

Bluebirds Make Lead Stick

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands OZone student section has been coming out in full force this year.

The Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer team appears to have its swagger back.

The Bluebirds (10-1-5 overall) ventured to Dixie Heights on Wednesday and came away with a 3-0 victory. Highlands junior goalkeeper Jasmine Rehberger stopped four shots from the Lady Colonels (10-7-1) in the eighth shutout of the season for the Bluebirds.

"It was a very impressive game," said Alex Dean, Highlands Head Coach. "We started clicking from the beginning, connecting passes and doing things that we really hadn't seen this year like switching from the back, finding a center mid(fielder) and getting (the ball) to the other side. The intensity just kind of grew and then we made sure we got that shutout."

Tuesday Highlands Roundup

Highlands Volleyball Records Huge Home Win over Ryle

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands sophomore CC Shick (left) gets in position. In the back, from left, are seniors Casey Dunn, Rylee Kirschenbaum and Brooke Biltz.

Russell Bridges Gym at Highlands High School has turned into an atmosphere of excitement in recent years in the fall.

The rise of the Highlands Bluebirds volleyball team has more than been a huge reason for it. The atmosphere has especially helped Highlands record huge wins over 9th Region opponents.

Highlands (14-2 overall) and Ryle (8-7) came into the match-up Tuesday tied for third in the latest Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association 9th Region poll. They are both ranked in the Top 25 as well at 12th for Ryle and 18th for Highlands.

For years, Ryle has been at the top of the region led by veteran Head Coach Tasha Lovins. Lovins has been at that position since 2002. The Lady Raiders have won 11 district championships and have only missed the region tournament once since Lovins became head coach. But like many teams, the Lady Raiders have not been able the region wall of St. Henry and Notre Dame.

Highlands figured some things out in the first set after not starting off strong and won it 27-25. The Bluebirds then took control to win the game, 3-0 winning the next two sets 25-16, 25-17. Highlands owns wins over Dixie Heights and has beaten two top-ranked region teams in Campbell County from the 10th Region and Pulaski Southwestern from the 12th Region.

Monday Highlands Results

Highlands Girls Soccer Ties East Central

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands senior Kelsey Mathis (12) gets in position against East Central on Monday.

It was one of those games where the team scored in the first half and hoped to make it stand.

Sophomore forward Chloe Bramble put the Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer (9-1-5 overall) team up 1-0  just 12 minutes into the game. Bramble's team-high eighth goal of the season and the second assist from senior midfielder Natalie Ossege stood for a long time.

But the visiting East Central (from St. Leon, Indiana) Trojans tied the game with six minutes to go. Highlands could not answer so the teams settled for a tie.

Weekend Highlands Results

Highlands Comes Home from Indiana 0-1-1

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands boys soccer team finished 0-1-1 in the Evansville Reitz Memorial Tiger Invitational over the weekend.

The Highlands boys soccer team (9-4-3 overall) finished 0-1-1 in the Tiger Invitational at Evansville (Indiana) Reitz Memorial.

Highlands-Ryle Sidebar

Highlands Heads South for Final Non-District Game

PHOTO: Ed Harber. Highlands senior Mason Schwalbach (4) celebrates after a defensive touchdown against Ryle on Friday.

The Highlands Bluebirds football team is about to finish non-district play with one final game Friday.

The Bluebirds will head to Danville to take on the undefeated Boyle County Rebels (5-0). The Rebels have outscored opponents, 265-42. That's the most points of any team in Class 4A. They have two NCAA Division I commits in Landen Bartleson (Notre Dame) and senior wide receiver/defensive back Reese Smith (West Virginia).

Highlands Thursday Round-Up

Bluebirds Win Third Straight

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highland Bluebirds volleyball team knocked off Bishop Brossart to move to 13-2 overall on Thursday.

The Highlands Bluebirds volleyball team (13-2 overall) handled the visiting Bishop Brossart Lady Mustangs (11-8), 3-0 (25-10. 25-14, 25-13) for its third straight win.

Highlands is 4-0 against its Campbell County rivals on the season. Bishop Brossart recently won the All "A" 10th Region title and went 3-3 in the All "A" State Tournament.

Wednesday Highlands Results

The Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer team moved to 8-1-4 on the season following a tight 1-0 win over the Bishop Brossart Lady Mustangs on Wednesday at Pendery Park in Melbourne.

Tuesday Highlands Results

Highlands Boys Soccer, Volleyball Record District Victories

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands Bluebirds boys soccer team defeated Newport Central Catholic, 4-3 on Tuesday.

The main thing that mattered in the end was the 4-3 victory.

The Highlands Bluebirds boys soccer team (9-3-2 overall) ventured to Morscher Field in Silver Grove and came away with that 36th District victory over the Newport Central Catholic Thoroughbreds (9-5-1). But the Bluebirds know some things need to be ironed out with seven games left in the regular season.

Monday Highlands Golf Results

Highlands Boys Beat NC in Dual Match

Twitter Photo. Highlands girls golf Head Coach Mike Lipscomb (left) stands with the members of the team on Senior Nite.

The Highlands Bluebirds boys golf team knocked off Newport Central Catholic, 176-198 at Highland Country Club.

Saturday Highlands Results

Rough Day for Highlands Soccer Teams

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands Bluebirds boys soccer team lost on the road Saturday to Louisville Collegiate, 5-2.

The Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer team (7-1-4 overall) dropped the first game of the season to the arch-rival Notre Dame Pandas (8-1-3) in the title game of the Lexington Catholic Lady Knights Challenge Cup on Saturday.

Highlands has not won this tournament since 2006. The Bluebirds last appeared in the title game in 2016.

Thursday Highlands Results

Highlands Handles NewCath in 36th District Battle

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands senior Rylee Kirschenbaum (12) follows through on a serve in a recent game.

The Highlands Bluebirds (11-2 overall) found themselves in a challenge to play their fast-paced brand of volleyball and not down to the level of the opponent, even in the rivalry game.

Highlands senior setter Audrey Graves said the team was fired up before the game. But once the game started, the seniors made sure everyone stayed on an even keel. That propelled the Bluebirds to a sound 3-0 (25-15, 25-19, 25-15) 36th District victory. NewCath (2-5) has lost five straight.

"It's always going to be an exciting game. On the court, (it was) about looking to each and being like, 'Hey, take a deep breath. We're good. Get this pass' really grounded everybody so that they could do the jobs that we needed to do," Graves said. "We do that anyway. Whether it's hand hugs or anything like is really helpful to keep your mind right."

Highlands Girls Move on in LexCath Tournament

The Highlands Bluebirds will be playing in the championship game of the Lexington Catholic Lady Knights Challenge Cup.

Highlands (7-0-4 overall) defeated the host Lady Knights (8-2-1), 7-6 on penalty kicks in the semifinals of the winner's bracket to advance to the title game for the first time since 2016. Highlands will play Saturday at 7 p.m. for the title against either Sacred Heart, Notre Dame or Lexington Tates Creek.

Tuesday Highlands Results

Highlands Soccer Wins Again; Volleyball Loses to Region Power

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands sophomore CC Shick (right) goes up for a kill in a recent game.

The Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer team will end up playing three times in three days.

Highlands (6-0-4 overall) shut out the Beechwood Lady Tigers, 4-0 on Tuesday at Tower Park. The Bluebirds moved to 4-0-1 in 9th Region play.

"They've been trending upwards in terms of their skill," said Alex Dean, Highlands Head Coach. "They definitely have a good amount of skill and they definitely play with effort. (Beechwood Head Coach Josh Young) is in his first year, but he definitely did a good job making sure that his girls played hard."

Victories for Highlands Soccer Teams

Bluebirds Win Fourth Straight Against Colonels

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands Bluebirds trap the ball in a recent home game. Highlands edged Covington Catholic, 1-0 on Monday in Park Hills.

It may look as though the Covington Catholic Colonel boys soccer team is struggling based on the 3-6 record.

But the Highlands Bluebirds (7-2-2) did not fall for that deceptive record making a first-half goal stand in a 1-0 victory on the road. The Colonels have lost to the likes of Lexington Henry Clay, Cincinnati (Ohio) Country Day, Dayton (Ohio) Carroll, Columbus (Ohio) St. Francis de Sales and Cincinnati (Ohio) Archbishop McNicholas.

Highlands has won four straight in the series against the Colonels including a 2-1 win in the 9th Region championship in Park Hills last year. Highlands is 4-0-1 in region play.

"We've realized in these games we're going to grind it out," said Chad Niedert, Highlands Head Coach. "When we're the better team, it's a 50/50 game. When we're the lesser team, it's a 50/50 game. It really doesn't matter what kind of record you got."

Highlands had 16 shots to 10 for the Colonels with three on goal to six for CovCath. Highlands senior goalkeeper Nick Fischer had three saves.

The lone goal came 13 minutes into the game. Junior Max Farris dribbled into the box and fired off a shot. Senior Caymon Stevie put the deflection home for the score.

"When you have the team chemistry that Highland has, it takes a couple passes and maybe a couple dribbles though people," Farris said. "It just all worked out."

Highlands had to overcome some free kicks in the second half not far from the goal. But the Bluebirds cleared every one of them. Neither team had a red card. But the Colonels did receive two yellow cards.

"Our midfield plays a lot of defense and a lot of offense," said Porter Hedenberg, Highlands senior. "You have to do both jobs, which is nice. We all three work together really well and we have good chemistry with our six on defense and our six on offense."

Highlands plays host to Covington Holmes (1-5) on Thursday. Game time is 7:30 p.m.

Soccer, Girls:
Highlands 4, Louisville DuPont Manual 2:

Highlands (5-0-4 overall) overcame a 2-1 halftime deficit against the Lady Crimsons (4-3-1) to win the first game at the annual Lexington Catholic Lady Knights Challenge Cup. Highlands takes on the hosts in the next round Wednesday at 8 p.m.

"In the first half, we didn't start slow, but we didn't have the start that we wanted," said Alex Dean, Highlands Head Coach. "We were a little fatigued and we kind of told the girls you don't have to go out and play 80 minutes. Just go out and give us five or 10 minutes of good effort. We were down at halftime. We had a talk at halftime. We can play with any team in Kentucky, but we have to act like it. We just can't think that we can walk out there and get a win. That was a good thing being able to overcome a halftime deficit."

Sophomores Faith Broering and Jade Rehberger had one goal and one assist each in the game for three points. Senior Kelsey Mathis and sophomore Macy Hedenberg had one goal each with sophomore Chloe Bramble tallying two assists. Bramble has a team-high seven goals to go with five assists for a team-high 19 points.

"The upperclassmen definitely encourage us," Macy Hedenberg said. "If we do something wrong, they're all so positive and encouraging and we're all best friends."

Highlands takes on Beechwood on Tuesday at Tower Park. Game time is 7:30 p.m.

Saturday Highlands Results

Highland Soccer Teams Tie Solid Opponents

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands senior goalkeeper Nick Fischer had four saves in the 1-1 tie against Lexington Henry Clay on Saturday.

The Highlands Bluebirds boys soccer team (6-2-2 overall) hoped to finish the week with three nice wins.

The Bluebirds earned a man advantage in the second half of the game against the Lexington Henry Clay Blue Devils, a state semifinalist last season, after the Blue Devils earned a red card. But Highlands could not capitalize and the teams settled for a 1-1 tie. Henry Clay came into the game ranked third in the state in the Maher rankings.

Highlands Boys Golf Wins Bourbon County

First Tournament Win of Season for Bluebirds

Twitter Photo. The Highlands Boys Golf team won the Bourbon County Invitational on Sunday.

The Highlands Bluebirds boys golf team won its first tournament of the season Sunday.

Highlands won the Bourbon County Invitational shooting a 321 team total on the Par-72 course. Junior Justin Gabbard led the way shooting a 74 and placing third individually. Gabbard won medalist honors at the Shelby County Invitational and the Beechwood Invitational earlier in the season.

Six Wins in Three Days for Highlands Volleyball

Bluebirds Fend off Lady Warriors for Tournament Title

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands volleyball team celebrates after winning the September Slam at Scott High on Saturday. The Bluebirds are 10-1 on the season.

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. From left, Highlands sophomores CC Shick, Lauren Buemi and junior Laura Winkler set up in the front row before senior Casey Dunn sets to serve. In the back row are setter Audrey Graves (left) and senior defensive specialist Rylee Kirschenbaum (red jersey).

It came down to one last burst playing as much volleyball as the Highlands Bluebirds (10-1 overall) did over a three-day period.

Highlands found itself back in the championship game of the September Slam hosted by Scott after capping off pool play with two wins Saturday morning. The last opponent of the three-day stretch proved to be solid.

The Southwestern Lady Warriors located about two and a half hours away just outside the Pulaski County county seat of Somerset near Lake Cumberland came into the game with a sparkling 10-2 record. Southwestern's only losses came to host Lexington Lafayette and Station Camp (from the Nashville, Tennessee suburb of Gallatin) in the Bluegrass Invitational a little more than a week ago.

Southwestern has won the 12th Region a number of times over the years including last year. The Lady Warriors beat Paintsville in the state tournament before losing to Campbell County in the state quarterfinals. But Highland had beaten the Lady Warriors in each of the past two September Slam Tournaments.

The Lady Warriors came out the aggressors in the first game building a 10-1 lead. But once sophomore CC Shick landed a hard kill, the vaunted, fast-paced Highlands attack took off. Highlands rallied to win the best-of-three set, 26-24 then 24-19 to win its first September Slam title since 2008 when current Highlands assistant coach Molly Wehage-Maxwell was a senior.

Highlands-Campbell County Sidebar

Younger Highlands Players See First Friday Night Lights Action

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands Student Section known as the OZone had a Country theme in the game against Campbell County.

With the game out of hand in the second half in the first shut-out for the Highlands Bluebirds football team in two seasons, some players saw their first Friday Night action.

Sophomore wide receiver Jacob Welch made the most impressive debut with three touchdowns on four touches for the Bluebirds. Welch had two rushes for 22 yards and a touchdown and two catches for 38 yards and two touchdowns. Sophomore offensive lineman Nate Weidner took over at center in the fourth quarter.

"I was excited to get out there and play," Weidner said. "You just have to get out there, know your plays well and get after it."

The last shut-out for the Bluebirds came on Oct. 6, 2017 by a 47-0 score over Dixie Heights in Fort Thomas. The closest Highlands came to that last season was a 40-3 win at Ryle on Sept. 7. 

OZone Goes Country:

The Highlands student section known as the O-Zone has a theme for most of the football games. Against Campbell County, it was a Country theme and it was a white-out against Scott to open the season. One senior who took part in the country them was Caraline Walsh. Walsh is a member of the Chamber Choir and the National English Honors Society.

"There's nothing better," Walsh said. "Every year when we play Campbell County, this is the go-to theme. I feel like it represents our school. I'm glad to show our pride."

Honoring Lorenzen:

Highlands senior quarterback Collin Hollingsworth wore number 22 instead of the usual 10 in honor of the late Highlands and University of Kentucky great quarterback Jared Lorenzen. Highlands painted the 22-yard lines blue in Lorenzen's honor before the season.

Around Class 5A, District 5:

The Bluebirds watched part of the fourth quarter of the Covington Catholic-Lexington Catholic game on the big screen in the locker room.

Covington Catholic trailed 38-24 in the fourth quarter, but came back to beat the Knights, 39-38 and stay undefeated at 3-0. Junior quarterback Caleb Jacob snuck it in from a yard out and senior running back Daniel Felix ran over the right side for the two-point conversion to give the Colonels for the first time in the game.

CovCath held on with a fourth-down stop at its 46. On 4th-and-1, LexCath quarterback Beau Allen lined up under center with five wide receivers. He tried the quarterback sneak, but the Colonel defense snuffed it out with around 1:32 left in the game.

Allen, a University of Kentucky commit, competed 23-of-32 passes for 448 yards and five touchdowns. Jacob threw for 247 yards and a touchdown. Senior tight end Michael Mayer had six catches for 71 yards for the Colonels.

The Colonels play host to Dixie Heights on Friday at 7 p.m.

Conner moved to 2-1 with a 35-0 win at Dixie Heights. The Cougars play host to Lloyd Memorial (2-1) on Sept. 14 at 7 p.m.

Cooper and Boone County both lost for the first time this season falling to 2-1. The Jaguars lost 20-16 in the battle of Union against Ryle at home on Friday and Lloyd Memorial beat Boone County, 22-14 in Erlanger.

Next Opponent for Highlands:

The Bluebirds travel to Independence to face the Simon Kenton Pioneers on Friday at 7 p.m. in a battle of 2-1 teams. The Pioneers opened the season with a 38-27 win over Lexington Henry Clay before facing two Ohio opponents.

Simon Kenton lost to Cincinnati Anderson, 44-16. But the Pioneers bounced back to beat the Cincinnati Oak Hills Highlanders.

Volleyball:
Highlands Wins Two at September Slam:

The Bluebirds moved to 7-1 on the season with two wins in the September Slam on Friday at Woodland Middle School. Highlands bested Covington Holy Cross, 2-0 (25-15, 25-16) before taking out South Laurel from the 13th Region, 2-0 (25-9, 25-17).

"Our focus has been not only to maintain our composure, but our level of play," said Katelyn Sallee, Highlands Head Coach. "We want to control the tempo of the match regardless of who we're facing. This weekend is going to be a really big test to have five matches back-to-back-to-back. You have to stay disciplined. You have to stay on it and they did that."

In the victory over Holy Cross, Highlands had six aces, 16 kills, one block, 15 assists and 52 digs. Senior outside hitter Casey Dunn led the way with two kills, three aces and 14 digs. Senior setter Audrey Graves had 15 assists, one ace and seven digs. Sophomore middle blocker CC Shick had seven kills and assisted on a block.

Highlands junior Laura Winkler and sophomore Lauren Buemi had three kills each. Buemi also had two assisted blocks. Senior Ava Hockney had the team's lone solo block to go with an ace.

The senior defensive specialists also came up big. Senior Rylee Kirschenbaum had 12 digs and an ace with Brooke Biltz adding nine digs.

Against South Laurel, Dunn had seven kills, one assisted block and 10 digs. Graves had 18 assists, three digs, three kills and two aces and Hockney had three kills and two assisted blocks. Shick recorded four kills, one solo and one assisted block.

Winkler played some setter and had six assists and two digs. She also had two kills. Kirschenbaum had a team-high 11 digs. Buemi, Hockney and sophomore Nicole Ossege added three kills each.

"In a game of three, I feel like, 'Let's just get this over. Let's do what we can do," Ossege said. "We have to play to our level and not down to anyone else's level. We always focus on team and then we're very fast with whatever we do so I always feel that we need to maintain that speed and just try to run more things when we have the opportunity with the less-advanced teams."

Highlands continues pool play Saturday morning at Scott. The Bluebirds take on Calvary Christian (6-6) at 9 a.m. on court one and Conner (2-6) on court two at 10 a.m.

Soccer, Girls:
Highlands 1, Evansville (Indiana) Reitz Memorial 1:

Highlands (4-0-3 overall) tied the Tigers in the annual Zionsville (Indiana) Invitational on Friday. Zionsville is located northwest of Indianapolis.

Reitz Memorial (4-0-1) came into the game as the 16th-ranked team in the country in the Top Drawer Soccer Fab 50 poll. Reitz owns four state championships in school history.

"I felt that we played one of the best teams that we'll see this regular season. Going into the game, we kind of looked at what they've done so far this year," said Alex Dean, Highlands Head Coach. "We knew it was going to be tough. We wanted to make sure that we played well. If we could get a win, great. A tie is great. A one-goal loss where we're playing hard is a win for us. We were fighting hard. We gave up a goal pretty early. We made sure we didn't give up another one. Then, we had an outside back step up and hit one from about 18 (feet) out to tie the game then we kind of made sure we didn't lose the game after that. After the game. we were pretty excited. The other team was kind of upset. That was a good feeling even though it was just a tie."

Highlands senior midfielder Kelsey Mathis tied the game in the second half. That marked her first goal of the season.

"I think this team is really strong all-around and I think everyone contributes what they can," Mathis said. "I'm glad I could help the team. I think we played well considering we left school early, had to ride up a few hours and shortly warm up."

Both teams had 18 shots. Reitz had 14 on goal and Highlands had nine. Highlands junior goalkeeper Jasmine Rehberger had 13 saves.

Highlands plays Carmel (Indiana) at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday to conclude the tournament.

Thursday Highlands Results

 Highlands Volleyball Records Huge Win; Boys Soccer Defeats Holy Cross

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. The Highlands Student Section known as the O-Zone is shown here at a soccer game. The O-Zone helped the Highlands volleyball team to a victory Thursday over Dixie Heights.

The Highlands Bluebirds volleyball team had this game marked on the schedule for a big reason.

The Dixie Heights Lady Colonels (4-2 overall) beat the Bluebirds (5-1) three out of four meetings last year including the 9th Region Quarterfinals, 3-0. But Highlands won the battle of top-five 9th Region teams, 3-0 (25-20, 25-17, 25-17) in Fort Thomas to move to 2-0 in region play.

Highlands Girls Soccer Dominates NewCath

Bluebirds Have Won Seven Straight vs. NCC

Twitter Photo. The Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer team led by this score at halftime in the showdown with Newport Central Catholic on Wednesday.

The Highlands Bluebirds girls soccer team (4-0-2 overall) picked a great time to play its greatest game of the season.

Highlands ventured to Silver Grove and dominated the host 3-3 Newport Central Catholic Thoroughbreds, 8-0 in a 36th District showdown. Highlands has won the last seven meetings against NewCath.

Tuesday Highlands Results

Highlands Volleyball, Boys Soccer Teams Record Victories

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands senior Audrey Graves sets up on a serve in the game at Walton-Verona on Tuesday. Graves had 53 assists and an ace in the victory.

The Highlands Bluebirds volleyball team (4-1 overall) may have received the tough game needed before a huge game Thursday.

Highlands held off the Walton-Verona Bearcats (5-3) by a 3-2 count (25-18, 18-25, 25-18, 23-25, 15-7) for a third straight win. But Highlands missed the opportunity to end it in four games and wants to do better finishing those opportunities.

Weekend Highlands Results/Football Sidebar

Huddleston Receives Post-Game Recognition

PHOTO: G. Michael Graham, Fort Thomas Matters. Highlands senior linebacker Brycen Huddleston earned the Cumberland Falls Pigskin Classic Defensive MVP honors.

Highlands senior linebacker Brycen Huddleston earned the Defensive Most Valuable Player honors after the Cumberland Falls Pigskin Classic loss to Knoxville Catholic, 31-28 on Saturday.