By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
After his record-setting senior season, Ryle running back Jake Chisholm was voted first-team all-state in a poll of Kentucky high school football coaches conducted by the Courier-Journal newspaper and he plans to announce what college he will attend after the Christmas holidays.
“Since the all-state thing came out I haven’t really talked to any more colleges than I did before,” Chisholm said. “It’s really been the same ones and Dayton has probably been the one that’s recruiting me the hardest. I went on a visit there a few weeks ago and really loved the school.”
Chisholm said Butler University in Indiana also offered him a scholarship and the University of Cincinnati is recruiting him as a preferred walk-on. The other college teams that showed an interest in him were Eastern Kentucky, Indianapolis and Wofford in South Carolina.
The impressive statistics Chisholm posted last season attracted college recruiters. The 5-foot-9, 180-pound senior rushed for a school record 2,315 yards and 33 touchdowns while also catching 16 passes for 219 yards and two TDs. He set a Northern Kentucky single-game rushing record by picking up 449 yards on 42 carries against Simon Kenton. That yardage total ranks seventh in the state record books.
Ryle coach Mike Engler also pointed out that Chisholm fumbled only once during his varsity career when he carried the ball 582 times for 4,763 yards and scored 75 touchdowns.
“One thing that stands out is the fire and enthusiasm he has for the game,” Engler stated in Chisholm’s player profile. “Jake is one of the hardest working student athletes I’ve ever seen in all my years of coaching.”
The other local players voted first-team all-state in the statewide coaches poll were senior quarterback A.J. Mayer and senior linebacker Kameron Butler of Covington Catholic. They were both captains on the team that won the Class 5A state championship and finished with a perfect 15-0 record.
Ryle junior place kicker Mason Molique was voted third-team all-state. There were also 15 local players on the all-state honorable mention list in offensive and defensive positions.
Cooper wins rematch with CovCath in King of the Bluegrass
Cooper held off a late rally and defeated Covington Catholic, 62-59, in the consolation bracket final of the King of the Bluegrass on Saturday at Fairdale High School in Louisville.
CovCath, the top-ranked team in the Northern Kentucky preseason coaches poll, trailed by 12 points (50-38) going into the fourth quarter and trimmed the margin to three in the final seconds. But Cooper held on to come away with the victory and establish itself as the top team in Northern Kentucky once again.
Last March, Cooper defeated CovCath in the 9th Region championship game and brought home the runner-up trophy from the state tournament. Even though both teams had three returning starters, local coaches voted CovCath No. 1 and Cooper No. 2 in the preseason poll, but the Jaguars proved to be the better team in Saturday’s rematch.
Cooper outscored CovCath, 15-9, from behind the 3-point arc and finished with a 23-17 rebounding advantage. Officials called 41 fouls on the two teams. The Jaguars made 21 of 27 free throws while CovCath was 20-of-25 at the line.
The leading scorers for CovCath were senior guard C.J. Fredrick with 27 points and senior guard Aiden Ruthsatz with 17. Cooper senior guard Adam Kunkel finished with 23 points and junior guard Blaine Walters netted 20.
The all-tournament team selections included Fredrick, Ruthsatz, Kunkel, Cooper forward Braydon Runion and Walton-Verona guard Zach Clinkenbeard. After losing in the opening round, Walton-Verona won three games in the tournament’s consolation bracket.
In three weeks, Cooper and CovCath will face each other again during the Bluegrass-Buckeye Charity Classic on Jan. 12 at Northern Kentucky University’s BB&T Arena. Advance tickets for the game will be available at both schools after the holidays.
Highlands baseball player signs letter of intent with Tennessee
Highlands baseball player Hunter Dreves has signed a letter of intent with the University of Tennessee, according to a press release from the high school.
Last season, the right-handed pitcher had a 3-3 record for the Bluebirds, who won the 9th Region championship and made it to the quarterfinals of the state tournament. One of his wins came in a regular season game against Cincinnati Moeller, a perennial contender for the Ohio Division I state title.
Dreves plays summer baseball for the Midland Baseball Program, which annually produces some of the top college prospects in the country.