By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Beechwood deserves to be ranked among the state’s top 10 volleyball teams after posting victories against No. 6 St. Henry and No. 7 Lexington Catholic last week.
The Tigers were ranked No. 13 in the latest Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association state poll. Their 2-1 victory over St. Henry came in the championship match of the 9th Region All “A” Classic tournament on Thursday.
They will return to the small-school state tournament later this month as the defending champions.
On Saturday, Beechwood swept Lexington Catholic, 3-0, to push its record to 8-1. The only loss came against top-ranked Louisville Assumption, 2-0, during an early season tournament in Tennessee.
In the win over St. Henry, senior Isabel O’Brien had 12 kills, two service aces and 21 defensive digs for the Tigers to earn most valuable player honors. The Bellarmine University recruit had team-high season totals of 73 kills, 54 digs and 20 service aces after that match.
The other Beechwood players named to the 9th Region All “A” Classic all-tournament team were senior setter Skylr Estep, senior outside hitter Rachel Lewandowski and senior middle hitter Macy Armstrong, who had 13 kills and a .294 attack percentage in the title match.
Last year, Beechwood won a regular season match against St.Henry, 3-1. They met again in the semifinals of the 9th Region post-season tournament and St. Henry came away with a 3-1 victory.
The All “A” Classic state volleyball tournament will be played Sept. 18-19 at Bluegrass Fieldhouse in Owensboro. The first day will be pool play to decide berths in the championship and consolation brackets.
Last year, Beechwood won all six of its state tournament matches by 2-0 scores and Armstrong was named most valuable player on the all-tournament team that included Lewandowski and Estep.
Rebels football team could go 3-0 for first time since 2011
The last time Boone County’s football team opened the season with three straight wins was 2011. That was before many of the players on this year’s roster were born, but the Rebels will finally go 3-0 once again if they outscore Newport Central Catholic on Friday.
Boone County was in the same position last year. After winning the first two games, NewCath rolled to a 40-0 win to sidetrack the Rebels’ fast start.
But NewCath scored only one touchdown in losses to Lloyd and Paintsville over the last two weeks while Boone County’s offense was putting up big numbers in wins over Holmes and St. Henry.
The Rebels’ offensive standout has been senior running back Steven “Malik” Johnson. His two-game rushing totals are 36 carries, 395 yards and four touchdowns.
Senior quarterback Asa LeGrand, who missed most of last season due to injury, has made an impressive return. He has completed 12 of 18 passes for 237 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 69 yards and one TD.
The winning touchdown in last week’s game was reportedly a long pass from LeGrand to junior wide receiver Amere Newberry late in the fourth quarter.
Ryle cross country teams open with strong performances
Ryle girls and boys cross country teams that opened the season with strong performances will host their own invitational meet Saturday on the school campus.
Two weeks ago, the Ryle girls placed second and the boys placed fourth at the Louisville St. Xavier Tiger Run that drew numerous teams from several states.
Floyd Central of Indiana won the girls team title with 60 points, followed by Ryle with 70 and Louisville Sacred Heart with 91. There were 221 finishers and Ryle junior Stella Carpenter came in eighth. In the boys race, Conner junior Ethan Mann placed seventh and Ryle sophomore Will Zeinner placed 16th in a field of 277 runners.
The schedule posted for the Ryle Invitational has the girls varsity race starting at 8 a.m. followed by the boys varsity race. The boys field includes two-time defending Class 2A champion Covington Catholic. A statewide realignment moved CovCath up to Class 3A this year and St. Henry joined Class 2A after winning multiple boys and girls state titles in Class 1A.