By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
With three starters returning from last year’s 9th Region championship team, the Holmes Bulldogs were voted No. 1 in a pre-season poll of Northern Kentucky girls’ basketball coaches conducted by the NKyTribune.
Holmes received six first-place votes and 120 points in the balloting. Simon Kenton was voted No. 2, followed by Highlands, Conner and Ryle to round out the top five.
The Bulldogs’ returning starters are senior point guard Jaynice Stovall, junior shooting guard Laila Johnson and junior forward Tyrah Englemon. They hope to lead the team to another regional title and a return trip to the state tournament to be played at Northern Kentucky University’s BB&T Arena.
Simon Kenton was upset in the 8th Region final last March and did not make it to the state tournament. The Pioneers are considered the top contender for that regional title once again because they have nearly everyone returning, including all-state junior guard Ally Niece, who averaged 20.9 points and 5.8 rebounds.
Highlands landing the No. 3 spot was no surprise after coaches learned that transfer student Jenna Martin had been added to the Bluebirds’ roster. The senior guard averaged 14.8 points and 2.5 3-point goals per game for Notre Dame last season.
Conner and Ryle are district rivals that made it to the 9th Region tournament last year. Both teams lost senior team leaders to graduation, but they have some talented underclassmen returning. Ryle freshman point guard Maddie Scherr was named to the regional all-tournament team last year and she is already drawing attention from college recruiters.
High school basketball season begins Nov. 28. Here are the complete results of the ’ pre-season girls’ coaches poll with first-place votes in parentheses:
1. Holmes (6) 120
2. Simon Kenton (6) 112
3. Highlands 85
4. Conner 84
5. Ryle 66
6. Holy Cross 64
7. Campbell County 61
8. Scott (1) 48
9. Newport Central Catholic 23
10. Cooper 18
Others receiving voting points: Notre Dame 16, Dixie Heights 12, Beechwood 6.
Cooper senior broke pass receiving records during final season
Cooper senior wide receiver Dante Hendrix finished his high school football career last Friday with some record-setting numbers.
In three varsity seasons, Hendrix caught 169 passes for 3,097 yards to set Northern Kentucky career records in both categories. He also caught 40 touchdown passes, which puts him second behind Brett Hamblen of Highlands, who had 47 TD receptions.
Cooper had three different starting quarterbacks during Hendrix’s career. This season, he caught 169 passes for 1,396 yards and 20 TDs with Jarod Lonaker at quarterback. Last year, he had 53 catches for 1,150 yards and 15 TDs with Nathan Brown behind center.
Hendrix, an Indiana State University recruit, also played defensive back for Cooper the last two seasons. He was selected to play that position in the Best of the Bluegrass all-star football game on Sunday, Dec. 11 at Louisville St. Xavier High School.
CovCath basketball coach taking team to New Jersey tournament
Covington Catholic boys’ basketball coach Scott Ruthsatz will be in familiar surroundings when he takes his team to the Skyline Classic in New Jersey during last week of December.
The tournament is hosted by St. Anthony High School in Jersey City where Ruthsatz spent three seasons as an assistant under legendary coach Bob Hurley Sr. While he was on the St. Anthony coaching staff, the Friars compiled an 84-8 record over three seasons and captured the USA Today 2011 national high school championship.
Rutsatz has a 136-36 record in five seasons as head coach at CovCath. The Colonels won the Kentucky state championship in 2014 and made it to the semifinals of the 2015 state tournament. This year’s team was voted No. 1 in a pre-season poll of Northern Kentucky coaches.
“Going back to New Jersey is going to be a special experience for our team – great competition and great exposure for our kids,” Ruthsatz said.
Boys’ basketball scrimmages feature top local teams
Six of the top 10 teams in the Northern Kentucky boys’ basketball pre-season coaches poll will be playing scrimmage games on Saturday at Simon Kenton High School to raise money for the Kelsey Sorrell Scholarship Fund.
The schedule of games includes: St. Henry vs. Maysville St Patrick, 9 a.m.; Covington Catholic vs. Dixie Heights, 10:30 a.m.; Simon Kenton vs. South Laurel, noon; and Cooper vs. Cincinnati Oak Hills, 1:30 p.m.; Scott vs. Cincinnati Taylor, 3 p.m. and Conner vs. Cincinnati Country Day, 4:30 p.m
CovCath was voted No. 1 in the Northern Kentucky coaches poll. The other ranked teams on the scrimmage games schedule are No. 2 Cooper, No. 4 Dixie Heights, No. 6 Conner, No. 7 Simon Kenton and No. 9 Scott.
Wrestler makes college commitment before junior season
Walton-Verona junior wrestler Mason Smith has made a verbal commitment with the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, according to a post on the high school wrestling team’s Facebook page.
Smith placed third in the 145-pound weight class at last year’s Kentucky high school wrestling championships and finished the season with a 44-4 record. He has won more than 100 matches during his high school career.
Wrestling season begins next week. Walton-Verona is ranked among the top teams in the state with seven returning state qualifiers on head coach John Roth’s roster.