Jennifer Jones Photo. Highlands junior Alex Veneman rounds third and heads for home in Thursday's 36th District championship win over Bellevue. The Bluebirds take on the Beechwood Tigers in Monday's 9th Region Tournament quarterfinals at University of Cincinnati Medical Center Stadium at 4 p.m.
By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter
It has been
a process.
The
Highlands Bluebirds baseball team won just six games and did not qualify for
the 9th Region Tournament just three years ago. They’ve since won three
straight 36th District championships and own their first two region wins since
2002.
PADUCAH –
It does not matter if their schedule takes them to the Jackson Purchase or the
deep, dark hills of eastern Kentucky.
Few teams
in the country, let alone the Bluegrass State, win as consistently as the
Highlands Bluebirds football team. The Bluebirds may not have dominated like
usual. But they did put away the pesky host Paducah Tilghman Blue Tornado in the
fourth quarter, 42-25 on Saturday.
“It was great to see the offense, defense and special
teams come through when we needed them,”
said Dale Mueller, Highlands Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator. “Paducah Tilghman played a great game and
is going to be a real force in the playoffs. Winning is important to our guys.”
Highlands stayed
undefeated at 5-0 and improved to 92-3 since 2007 with the win and 847-225-26
in school history since the program began back in 1915. On the other side, the
Blue Tornado (1-4) dropped their fourth in a row since opening the year with a
24-23 win on Aug. 24 at newly-formed county rival McCracken County.
“We don’t buy into moral victories,” said Randy Wyatt, Tilghman Head Coach. “But I’m extremely proud of how we fought
against a team like Highlands rated the second-best team in the state in all
six classes. They’re just a classic program. They answered every time. That’s
the sign of a champion. They did everything right.”
Highlands
played its second of three consecutive Saturday games. But the Bluebirds did
not secure the game at John Hardin a week ago until senior Zach Harris
recovered an onside kick with 43 seconds left.
Highlands
elected to rest Harris. But the Bluebirds once again put up huge offensive
numbers outgaining the Blue Tornado, 375-314. Highlands had 17 first downs to
10 for Tilghman.
But fellow
senior Jaylen Hayes picked up the slack for Highlands rushing the ball 20 times
for 154 yards and two touchdowns. Hayes scored once on a shotgun zone read play
and the second one taking a direct snap in the Highlands full-house backfield.
Highlands
senior quarterback Drew Houliston once again came through completing 16-of-26
passes for 266 yards and three touchdowns. Junior Jensen Feggins led the
Bluebirds with six catches for 108 yards and two touchdowns.
The
Bluebirds had to make some adjustments against the Tilghman defense. The Blue
Tornado recorded six sacks in the game. Houliston had been sacked just three
times all season entering the contest.
“They were running delayed blitzes,” said Bryan Saunders, Highlands offensive lineman. “It’s hard to cover everyone.”
Tre Coleman
led the Blue Tornado with 113 yards on 10 carries. He broke free for an 80-yard
touchdown in the second quarter. But the Bluebirds made some adjustments on him
after that.
“We made some linebacker adjustments,” said Joey Cochran, Highlands senior linebacker. “We put in some more aggressive guys and
made sure that didn’t happen anymore. We clogged up the hole.”
Tilghman
threw a lot of short passes with sophomore quarterback Jesse Dunigan. He
completed 20-of-27 passes for 136 yards. Senior Mikey Davis led the Blue
Tornado with seven catches for 56 yards.
Both teams
lost one fumble. Jackson Bardo recovered a Tilghman fumble in the fourth
quarter and Highlands lost one in the first quarter.
The
Bluebirds did not score in the first quarter for the third time this season.
They trailed 6-0 after the first quarter after two Logan Besaw field goals from
26 and 42 yards out.
Highlands
took the lead for good at 7-6 when Houliston scored around the left side from
six yards out and Jared Dougherty made his first of six extra-point attempts.
Highlands wide receiver Ryan Greene returned a kickoff back to the Highlands 49 to start the drive.
The
Bluebirds drove deep into Blue Tornado territory on their next possession. But
the Blue Tornado blocked the field-goal attempt.
But
Highlands scored on its next possession. Houliston rolled left and found
Feggins open for an 8-yard score.
The
Bluebirds then responded to Coleman’s quick score. On 4th-and-5 from the
Tilghman 7 with 53 seconds left in the half, Houliston found Jake Whitford in
the back of the end zone for the touchdown. The Bluebirds led 21-12 at
halftime.
“It was a big play,” Whitford said. “It got us going
at halftime. After that, Drew (Houliston) just took over. They couldn’t stop us
after that. Once we get in a rhythm, we’re hard to beat.”
Tilghman
ate up a lot of the clock on a long drive to start the third quarter. Instead
of throwing the short sideline routes, they threw 10-15 yards down the field to
keep the Bluebird defense guessing. Dunigan scored on a 1-yard run to cut the
margin to 21-19 with just more than three minutes left in the third.
“We played off (the Tilghman receivers) because they’re
good athletes,” said Alex Shadle,
Highlands senior defensive back. “That
left things open for the out routes and comebacks.”
The
Bluebirds then scored with about 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter. Hayes
scored from eight yards out after Houliston completed a 26-yard pass to Alex
Veneman.
But the
Blue Tornado marched back down the field. Out of the Power-I formation, Dunigan
faked a handoff then found Jordan Tyler for a 22-yard touchdown reception. The
two-point pass failed as Highlands still led 28-25.
“When you have a team like that down, you have to
close the door,” Wyatt said. “A tough team like that is going to fight
back. They’re conditioned to win close ballgames. We just need to get that way.”
The
Bluebirds then put the game away with two touchdowns. Houliston found Feggins
for a 9-yard score. That came after Tilghman sacked Houliston on third down,
but the Blue Tornado committed a defensive holding penalty giving the Bluebirds
another chance. Hayes then scored his second touchdown on a 41-yard scamper.
Highlands
concludes its three-game Saturday road swing this week at Covington Catholic
(3-1). Game time is 1 p.m. in Park Hills.
G. Michael Graham Photo. Highlands senior Jake Lester (14) waits on a pitch while Newport Central Catholic catcher Kevin Hoffstedder waits. The Bluebirds beat the Thoroughbreds, 3-0 to win their second straight 36th District championship.
By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM
Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter
HIGHLAND
HEIGHTS – This one did not have the extra-inning drama that the regular-season
did.
It took
just a few key hits and the same solid pitching and defense that helped the
Highlands Bluebirds all season in a 3-0 District 36 Championship win over the
Newport Central Catholic Thoroughbreds on Thursday at Morscher Field. This
marked the second straight district crown for the Blue and White.
The
regular-season contest on April 25 at Highland Park went 13 innings before
Highlands won 4-3. That gave the Bluebirds the top seed for the tournament.
Highlands
pitchers Joey Cochran (5-2) and Mitch Jones outdueled Connor Bartels (5-3) and
Michael Bueter in the low-scoring contest. Cochran pitched into the seventh
before Jones came on and struck out three Thoroughbreds. Cochran struck out two
and the defense played error-free behind him.
“We have a couple guys we can run (to the mound) on a
daily basis,” said Jeremy Baioni,
Highlands Head Coach. “Joey is going to
go out there and challenge them. He has that linebacker mentality.”
The Bluebirds
managed just four hits off Bartels and Bueter. But they came from the same
hitters as Jake Whitford and Todd Ramey both went 2-for-3 batting second and
third respectively. Whitford scored twice and had a run batted in and Ramey
batted in two. Whitford homered and doubled and Ramey recorded two singles.
Ramey also stole two bases.
Bartels and
Bueter combined to strike out three Bluebirds (19-17). Bartels retired
Highlands in order in the first three innings and the fifth.
Whitford’s
home run came in the bottom of the fourth after Bartels retired the first 10
Highlands batters. He belted a home run to right field for the only run the Bluebirds
needed to win the game.
“I was looking for the fastball,” Whitford said. “Right
when it left the bat, I knew it was gone. We kept the momentum going.”
Ramey then
singled, took second on a wild pitch before stealing third and scoring on the
only error of the game to put Highlands up 2-0. That NewCath error also allowed
Quentin Murray to reach on a ground ball.
“Connor made a mistake and (Whitford) made him pay for
it,” said Jeff Schulkens, NewCath
Head Coach. “He left a fastball up and
(Whitford) punished it.”
The
Bluebirds added an insurance run in the sixth. Whitford doubled and scored when
Ramey singled to right.
The Thoroughbreds
(20-13) outhit the Bluebirds percentage-wise .240 (6-of-25) to .182 (4-of-22).
But all the NewCath hits were singles and only two came in the same inning in
the seventh. The Thoroughbreds did not see anyone record a multi-hit game nor
have any runners advance past second base.
NewCath put
runners on first and second in the second inning with two outs. But the Murray
threw a perfect strike to Ramey at first to pick off Nick Seibert.
“I just force ground balls and my defense does it for
me,” Cochran said. “I can’t take much credit for this game.
They do it all. That’s the most important aspect of our game. We proved that.”
Murray made
another defensive gem in the next inning. Bueter tried to bunt Colin DuPont over
after DuPont singled. Murray caught the ball with his bare hand before it hit
the ground and threw to Ramey to double off DuPont.
“We’ve got into a one to two-week defensive skid,” Baioni said. “Besides
that, we’ve played good defense all year. Quentin Murray is one of the best
catchers in the region because of plays like that.”
The
Thoroughbreds also put runners on first and second with two outs in the seventh
after Seibert singled and Bartels moved to second. But Jones struck out DuPont
to end the game.
NewCath
leadoff hitter Alex Grau left the game in the first inning. He fouled a 2-2
pitch off and the ball hit just below his right eye. The ambulance later came
and took him to the hospital.
“Our emotions drained after the first inning,” Schulkens said. “That
takes a lot out of you. But we’ll bounce back and be ready to go Monday.”
The 9th
Region Tournament will be at the home of the Florence Freedom starting Monday
with the draw taking place Saturday. Highlands faces St. Henry, Ryle or
Beechwood. The two-time defending region champion Thoroughbreds battle Dixie
Heights, Boone County or Covington Catholic.
36th District Softball Championship:
Newport Central Catholic 2, Highlands 1:
The
second-seeded Thoroughbreds (15-13) edged the Bluebirds (17-11) at Northern
Kentucky University on Thursday to capture their second straight district
crown. The teams received seeds this year.
NewCath
sophomore Sarah Neace and Highlands freshman Bailey Spencer locked up in a
pitchers dual. Neace struck out four and allowed just two hits, two walks and
hit one batter. Spencer struck out seven and allowed three walks and two earned
runs.
Both teams
had scoring chances in the first. But neither team scored until the sixth
inning. Kristin Schreiber doubled to center field and Taylor Burkart bunted her
to third before she scored when Morgan Martini singled. Molly Mertel then
doubled in Martini to put NewCath up 2-0.
The
Bluebirds came back and scored their lone run in the bottom of the inning.
Haley Coffey tripled to center and scored on an NewCath error with two outs.
The 9th
Region Tournament takes place at Conner starting Monday.
The
Highlands Bluebirds defense wanted to contain Lexington Catholic wide receiver
David Bouvier in Friday’s state semifinal contest.
The
Bluebirds accomplished the feat in the 61-28 victory. Bouvier had just three
catches for 41 yards. His longest catch went for 18 yards.
“They (Highlands defenders) just hung in there all
game long and kept playing (hard),”
said Dale Mueller, Highlands Co-Head Coach. “I felt like we played great. We had a lot of diversity.”
Bouvier
came into the game with 83 catches for 1,240 yards and six touchdowns. Bouvier
had eight catches for 130 yards in LexCath’s 27-16 semifinal win over Boyle
County.
That has
been a major trademark of the Highlands Bluebirds throughout the years. It has
Highlands on the verge of another district title. There is one opponent left in
the way of that.
“The guys have been well-coached at a young age,” said Dale Mueller, Highlands Co-Head Coach. “It means a lot to them. They just try so
hard every play. We are looking to do everything we’re doing the best we can.
The more we do everything the best we can, then we got 11 guys on the field
every play doing everything they can the best they can. That’s what makes a
team difficult to beat.”
The Class
4A top-ranked, undefeated Bluebirds (7-0 overall, 3-0 District 7) hope to wrap
up another outright district championship with a win over the improved
Covington Holmes Bulldogs. Highlands has outscored district opponents, 174-31.
.JPG)
