By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Tim Viox, a former head football coach at three Ohio high schools, is the new man in charge of the Newport Wildcats program.
Viox started his head coaching career at Maderia in 1997 and compiled a 37-24 record in six seasons. He was also head football coach at Northwest (2003-05) and Fairfield (2006-07). For the last six years, he has been the freshman football coach at Fairfield.
“We had some decent candidates, but he definitely stood out among all of them,” said Newport athletic director Tim Mosley. “He was the right choice for the position we’re in.”
Viox was hired to replace Matthew Schmitz, who was head coach of the Newport Wildcats the last two seasons. School officials did not renew Schmitz’s teaching contact after he was arrested in May for marijuana possession, public intoxication and resisting arrest.
Last year, Newport won two Class 2A playoff games and finished with an 8-5 record. Several starters on that team graduated last spring, including quarterback Paul Price, running back Dominic Joseph, wide receiver Brian Burton and linebacker Gage Jones. The new coaching staff has four weeks to install a new lineup before the Wildcats’ season opener against Ludlow on Aug. 21.
Newport is one of four Northern Kentucky high school football teams that will have a new head coach this season. Coaching changes were also made at Boone County (Marty Steele), Covington Catholic (Eddie Eviston) and Bellevue (Woody McMillen)
A few weeks after she finished her freshman year in high school, Lexi Held was offered a scholarship for college.
The 15-year-old Cooper High School girls’ basketball player said she received a scholarship offer from Northern Kentucky University after she attended a summer camp on the NKU campus. She and her parents were invited back to take a campus tour and that’s when NKU women’s head coach Dawn Plitxuweit asked Held to join the NCAA Division I program after she graduates from high school in 2018.
“It was pretty surprising,” Held said. “(Plitzuweit) was telling me how she likes the way I play defense and how I play all around, and then she asked me.”
Held averaged a team-high 15 points as a starting freshman guard for Cooper last season. She started playing in national tournaments with the Legacy Elite 16-under select team after the high school season. She said several women’s college teams have sent her letters after watching her play in select tournaments and elite summer camps, but NKU is the first one to make a bona fide scholarship offer.
“It was pretty flattering,” Held said. “It just feels really good to know that everything is starting to pay off.”
High school players can make a verbal committment to a college whenever they want, but they can’t sign an official letter of intent until the summer after their junior season. Held plans to keep her options open until then. If she has any questions during the recruiting process, she can turn to Cooper coach Nicole Levandusky, who was highly recruited when she was in high school.
“When I told her (about the NKU offer) she said she really wasn’t surprised just because of how hard I work,” Held said of Levandusky. “But she was really proud of me and she said there’s more to come.”
A Northern Kentucky Volleyball Club (NKYVC) team comprised of players from six area high schools placed second in the National Division of the girls’ 17-under age group at the USA Girls Junior National Championships in New Orleans.
There were 48 teams from across the country in the National Division, the second highest level in USA Volleyball. The NKYVC Tsunami team won all eight of its pool play matches to advance to the single-elimination bracket. After winning two matches to make it to the championship final, Tsunami lost to a team from North Carolina, 18-25, 25-18, 15-12.
Three Tsunami players from Notre Dame Academy — outside hitter/defensive specialist Morgan Hentz, middle hitter Madison Salkowski and setter Hannah Talkers — were named to the all-tournament team for the National Division.
The other players on Tsunami coach Taylor Tanner’s roster were Shannon and Christa Saelinger of Notre Dame, Jessica Tapp of Scott, Chase Barber of Ryle, Spenser Parks of Lakota East, Celia Powers of McAuley and Molly Coughlan of Walnut Hills.
The NKYVC Tsunami 15-under team coached by Jill Hunt placed fifth in the National Division of their age group and Lainey Stephenson of Notre Dame was named to the all-tournament team.