Looking back at 2014
Lead Summary
By
Stephen Forsha-sforsha@gmail.com
The 2014 calendar year was a productive 12 months for Highland County athletics. There were moments where athletes competed on the state stage, while other teams went on historic tournament runs that will be remembered for years to come.
School milestones were set by athletes and coaches, and many teams in various sports brought home hardware to add to their respective trophy cases. We also said goodbye to some of the best athletes the county has ever produced and celebrated the many successes of those currently on the field of play.
As we are about to begin 2015, let's remember all that occurred in '14 for those involved with Highland County athletics.
Maybe the biggest moment for any Highland County athlete was the OHSAA Division II State Wrestling Championships in March with Hillsboro's Kordell Ford wrestling in the state final match at 152 pounds.
Ford finished as the state runner-up but wrestled all three rounds, leaving everything he had on the mat in what was the final match of his high school career. Ford ended '14 with a 34-4 record and was the second wrestler in HHS history to be a state runner-up.
Also for Hillsboro, Ryan Kelley wrestled at the state championships, as he took part in the 120-pound tournament in Division II. Kelley went 3-3 at state, placing sixth overall. Kelley finished with a 39-6 record in '14.
Then in June at the Division III State Track & Field Championships, Highland County gained another state runner-up with Fairfield senior Michael Mangus placing as a state runner-up in the 3200-meter run with a time of 9:27.17. This was the second consecutive year Mangus raced in the event.
Later in the year, Mangus signed to run cross-country and track at Division I Northern Kentucky University, where this season he was all-conference for the Norse as a freshman.
Others who competed at the state level in track were McClain's Tara Karnes and Kaylee Hurley. Hurley was another state runner-up in the 400-meter state wheelchair race, finishing with a time of 1:17.20.
Karnes was ninth in the shot put event in Division II, as her best throw was 37-6.5.
[[In-content Ad]]In November, the Fairfield Lions boys cross-country team reached the 2014 OHSAA Division III State Cross-Country championships, being the youngest team in any division to compete in the race. That team was third at regionals but won district and SHAC (Southern Hills Athletic Conference) championships this past season.
There were also plenty of athletes from Highland County who earned All-Ohio honors in various sports the past 12 months. In football, Hillsboro senior Toby Warrington was Div. III special mention.
For basketball, Fairfield's Gage Montgomery and Lynchburg-Clay's Ryan Inman each were All-Ohio selections in March for their play during the 2013-14 season. A fun fact about those two is they now play on the same team in Highland County. Both are members of this season's Southern State Patriots men's basketball team.
In girls basketball, Tara Karnes and Shania Massie were selected to the Division III All-Ohio team, and in Division IV, it was Heather Cox who earned the state honor.
Now for Cox and Massie. Cox with the Lady Lions of Fairfield wrapped up her senior season by not only earning 1,000 career points (in a game at Eastern Brown), but she ended up becoming the girls basketball all-time leading scorer in the history of FHS. Cox ended her career with 1,199 points and 982 career rebounds.
Massie, a senior this season, surpassed the 1,000-point scoring mark in a game on Dec. 6 against Wilmington at MHS, becoming just the fifth player in the girls basketball program to do so. During her junior season in 2013-14, Massie was the coaches District 14 Player of the Year for Div. III.
Highland County had two softball players in Shelby Smithson of Fairfield and Kiley Sosby of Whiteoak (as she was the District 14 softball POY) named to All-Ohio teams. In baseball, it was Whiteoak's Tyler Williams with the honor.
This season in soccer, there were a total of five players named to their respective All-Ohio teams. In boys soccer, it was Lynchburg-Clay's Noah Scott, and for the girls from LC, it was Sydney Cromer (who was also the Div. III Dist. 14 POY) and Keanna Oaks. Hillsboro had Trista Rhodes named All-Ohio, and Fairfield's Kaitlin Evans was also selected All-Ohio.
Now, back to Sosby and her accomplishments on the softball diamond in '14. Sosby officially signed with Bowling Green State University to play Division I softball starting in the fall of 2015, plus in what was her high school junior season, she had a 20-strikeout game, taking second place in the state record books.
Speaking of Division I signings, Hillsboro's Austin Bagshaw signed to play Division I golf at Eastern Kentucky University. Bagshaw also played in the Junior World Golf Championships and was the boys individual South Central Ohio League champion.
There were more individual successes in '14, including Fairfield's Arica Melson pitching her second career no-hitter, and Lynchburg-Clay's Hannah Binkley also tossing a no-hitter. Also with Binkley, she reached the state record books with 10 stolen bases on April 22, tying for the state record. In that same game, teammate Madysyn Creighton had nine steals for fourth on the state record list. Binkley also became the state leader with 13 RBIs in that same game.
We didn't forget about the team successes of 2014, either.
The McClain girls basketball team and the Fairfield boys basketball teams each won district championships, playing in the Sweet 16. FHS also won the SHAC championship (Div. II).
In baseball and softball, the Lynchburg-Clay won SHAC championships (Div. I), and in softball, the Fairfield Lady Lions were SHAC champions (Div. II) and the FHS baseball team also won a conference title for Div. II in the SHAC.
The Hillsboro Indians boys golf team won the SCOL championship, and the Indians were also the boys cross-country SCOL champions. De-Andre Steward was the individual SCOL champion for the Indians.
Both the Lynchburg-Clay boys and girls soccer teams coached by Dennis West were SHAC champions, with the LC girls going undefeated in the conference for the second consecutive season.
The LC girls soccer team also won a district championship and were regional runners-up in Division III.
LC ended the season with an overall record of 18-2-1, winning the SE District championship and finishing as one of the Top 8 teams in the state for Division III soccer. In the postseason, LC outscored their opponents, 15-4, holding their opponents scoreless until the regional final loss.
Wins for the LC girls soccer team in the postseason came by the following results: Bishop Rosecrans (2-0), West Muskingum (2-0), North Adams (4-0) and Peebles (7-0). The postseason loss was against Hamilton Badin, 4-0.
Hillsboro's girls soccer team also was a district champion, and like LC were regional runners-up, with HHS accomplishing the feat in Division II.
This was the second consecutive year the Lady Indians finished in the Elite 8 and third straight season of playing in the regional round of the postseason. They finished with an overall record of 15-7-0. During their tournament run, the Lady Indians defeated Westfall (10-0), Circleville (3-0), Jackson (4-1), Chillicothe (1-0) and John Glenn (2-1). The postseason loss was against the Granville Blue Aces, 5-3.
The HHS girls soccer team outscored their postseason opponents, 23-7.
The Whiteoak girls cross-country team qualified for the regional tournament for the second straight season, and the LC girls bowling team reached their district tournament, as did the Hillsboro bowling team.
As we talk about district honors, the Hillsboro Indians and McClain Tigers had a total of eight wrestlers compete in district tournaments. For wrestling in the SCOL, McClain's Dylan Trefz, Dillon Hunick and Jake Badgley and Hillsboro's Ford and Kelley each were league champions in their individual weight classes.
As for a coaching accomplishment, Whiteoak baseball coach Chris Veidt won his 300th game as a varsity head coach at WHS. In youth baseball and softball, 7-year-old Allie Flowers had an unassisted triple play, and Leesburg Babe Ruth pitcher Hunter Dixon pitched two no-hitters.
For Hillsboro Post 129 baseball this summer, Wyatt Crothers pitched a no-hitter.
We also saw McClain football coach Randy Closson step down after 11 seasons as the Tigers' head coach.
Highland County also said goodbye to two of the greatest athletes to ever compete in Highland County with the passing of Hillsboro graduate T.J. Turner, who was an All-Ohio football player for the Indians, along with playing collegiate football for Michigan State and in the NFL with the New England Patriots. Turner passed away at 35 years old, succumbing to cancer.
We also said goodbye to McClain High School legend Don Grate. Grate, who passed away at the age of 91, played collegiate sports at The Ohio State University. Grate played MLB for the Philadelphia Phillies and in the NBA with the now-defunct Sheboygan Redskins.
This past calendar year was one fans of Highland County athletics should be talking about for years to come. The Highland County Press thanks everyone who read the print and online sports pages, giving us record numbers on the online sports page.
We covered hundreds of games and wrote even more articles about games that we didn't attend. Not all moments made this list for 2014 (we did our best in researching), but the best things about sports are our own memories we make as fans, players and coaches.
Here's one last congratulations to all the student-athletes and coaches of 2014, and let's all toast the upcoming 2015 sports year, as there will be plenty to watch and talk about for the next 12 months.
School milestones were set by athletes and coaches, and many teams in various sports brought home hardware to add to their respective trophy cases. We also said goodbye to some of the best athletes the county has ever produced and celebrated the many successes of those currently on the field of play.
As we are about to begin 2015, let's remember all that occurred in '14 for those involved with Highland County athletics.
Maybe the biggest moment for any Highland County athlete was the OHSAA Division II State Wrestling Championships in March with Hillsboro's Kordell Ford wrestling in the state final match at 152 pounds.
Ford finished as the state runner-up but wrestled all three rounds, leaving everything he had on the mat in what was the final match of his high school career. Ford ended '14 with a 34-4 record and was the second wrestler in HHS history to be a state runner-up.
Also for Hillsboro, Ryan Kelley wrestled at the state championships, as he took part in the 120-pound tournament in Division II. Kelley went 3-3 at state, placing sixth overall. Kelley finished with a 39-6 record in '14.
Then in June at the Division III State Track & Field Championships, Highland County gained another state runner-up with Fairfield senior Michael Mangus placing as a state runner-up in the 3200-meter run with a time of 9:27.17. This was the second consecutive year Mangus raced in the event.
Later in the year, Mangus signed to run cross-country and track at Division I Northern Kentucky University, where this season he was all-conference for the Norse as a freshman.
Others who competed at the state level in track were McClain's Tara Karnes and Kaylee Hurley. Hurley was another state runner-up in the 400-meter state wheelchair race, finishing with a time of 1:17.20.
Karnes was ninth in the shot put event in Division II, as her best throw was 37-6.5.
[[In-content Ad]]In November, the Fairfield Lions boys cross-country team reached the 2014 OHSAA Division III State Cross-Country championships, being the youngest team in any division to compete in the race. That team was third at regionals but won district and SHAC (Southern Hills Athletic Conference) championships this past season.
There were also plenty of athletes from Highland County who earned All-Ohio honors in various sports the past 12 months. In football, Hillsboro senior Toby Warrington was Div. III special mention.
For basketball, Fairfield's Gage Montgomery and Lynchburg-Clay's Ryan Inman each were All-Ohio selections in March for their play during the 2013-14 season. A fun fact about those two is they now play on the same team in Highland County. Both are members of this season's Southern State Patriots men's basketball team.
In girls basketball, Tara Karnes and Shania Massie were selected to the Division III All-Ohio team, and in Division IV, it was Heather Cox who earned the state honor.
Now for Cox and Massie. Cox with the Lady Lions of Fairfield wrapped up her senior season by not only earning 1,000 career points (in a game at Eastern Brown), but she ended up becoming the girls basketball all-time leading scorer in the history of FHS. Cox ended her career with 1,199 points and 982 career rebounds.
Massie, a senior this season, surpassed the 1,000-point scoring mark in a game on Dec. 6 against Wilmington at MHS, becoming just the fifth player in the girls basketball program to do so. During her junior season in 2013-14, Massie was the coaches District 14 Player of the Year for Div. III.
Highland County had two softball players in Shelby Smithson of Fairfield and Kiley Sosby of Whiteoak (as she was the District 14 softball POY) named to All-Ohio teams. In baseball, it was Whiteoak's Tyler Williams with the honor.
This season in soccer, there were a total of five players named to their respective All-Ohio teams. In boys soccer, it was Lynchburg-Clay's Noah Scott, and for the girls from LC, it was Sydney Cromer (who was also the Div. III Dist. 14 POY) and Keanna Oaks. Hillsboro had Trista Rhodes named All-Ohio, and Fairfield's Kaitlin Evans was also selected All-Ohio.
Now, back to Sosby and her accomplishments on the softball diamond in '14. Sosby officially signed with Bowling Green State University to play Division I softball starting in the fall of 2015, plus in what was her high school junior season, she had a 20-strikeout game, taking second place in the state record books.
Speaking of Division I signings, Hillsboro's Austin Bagshaw signed to play Division I golf at Eastern Kentucky University. Bagshaw also played in the Junior World Golf Championships and was the boys individual South Central Ohio League champion.
There were more individual successes in '14, including Fairfield's Arica Melson pitching her second career no-hitter, and Lynchburg-Clay's Hannah Binkley also tossing a no-hitter. Also with Binkley, she reached the state record books with 10 stolen bases on April 22, tying for the state record. In that same game, teammate Madysyn Creighton had nine steals for fourth on the state record list. Binkley also became the state leader with 13 RBIs in that same game.
We didn't forget about the team successes of 2014, either.
The McClain girls basketball team and the Fairfield boys basketball teams each won district championships, playing in the Sweet 16. FHS also won the SHAC championship (Div. II).
In baseball and softball, the Lynchburg-Clay won SHAC championships (Div. I), and in softball, the Fairfield Lady Lions were SHAC champions (Div. II) and the FHS baseball team also won a conference title for Div. II in the SHAC.
The Hillsboro Indians boys golf team won the SCOL championship, and the Indians were also the boys cross-country SCOL champions. De-Andre Steward was the individual SCOL champion for the Indians.
Both the Lynchburg-Clay boys and girls soccer teams coached by Dennis West were SHAC champions, with the LC girls going undefeated in the conference for the second consecutive season.
The LC girls soccer team also won a district championship and were regional runners-up in Division III.
LC ended the season with an overall record of 18-2-1, winning the SE District championship and finishing as one of the Top 8 teams in the state for Division III soccer. In the postseason, LC outscored their opponents, 15-4, holding their opponents scoreless until the regional final loss.
Wins for the LC girls soccer team in the postseason came by the following results: Bishop Rosecrans (2-0), West Muskingum (2-0), North Adams (4-0) and Peebles (7-0). The postseason loss was against Hamilton Badin, 4-0.
Hillsboro's girls soccer team also was a district champion, and like LC were regional runners-up, with HHS accomplishing the feat in Division II.
This was the second consecutive year the Lady Indians finished in the Elite 8 and third straight season of playing in the regional round of the postseason. They finished with an overall record of 15-7-0. During their tournament run, the Lady Indians defeated Westfall (10-0), Circleville (3-0), Jackson (4-1), Chillicothe (1-0) and John Glenn (2-1). The postseason loss was against the Granville Blue Aces, 5-3.
The HHS girls soccer team outscored their postseason opponents, 23-7.
The Whiteoak girls cross-country team qualified for the regional tournament for the second straight season, and the LC girls bowling team reached their district tournament, as did the Hillsboro bowling team.
As we talk about district honors, the Hillsboro Indians and McClain Tigers had a total of eight wrestlers compete in district tournaments. For wrestling in the SCOL, McClain's Dylan Trefz, Dillon Hunick and Jake Badgley and Hillsboro's Ford and Kelley each were league champions in their individual weight classes.
As for a coaching accomplishment, Whiteoak baseball coach Chris Veidt won his 300th game as a varsity head coach at WHS. In youth baseball and softball, 7-year-old Allie Flowers had an unassisted triple play, and Leesburg Babe Ruth pitcher Hunter Dixon pitched two no-hitters.
For Hillsboro Post 129 baseball this summer, Wyatt Crothers pitched a no-hitter.
We also saw McClain football coach Randy Closson step down after 11 seasons as the Tigers' head coach.
Highland County also said goodbye to two of the greatest athletes to ever compete in Highland County with the passing of Hillsboro graduate T.J. Turner, who was an All-Ohio football player for the Indians, along with playing collegiate football for Michigan State and in the NFL with the New England Patriots. Turner passed away at 35 years old, succumbing to cancer.
We also said goodbye to McClain High School legend Don Grate. Grate, who passed away at the age of 91, played collegiate sports at The Ohio State University. Grate played MLB for the Philadelphia Phillies and in the NBA with the now-defunct Sheboygan Redskins.
This past calendar year was one fans of Highland County athletics should be talking about for years to come. The Highland County Press thanks everyone who read the print and online sports pages, giving us record numbers on the online sports page.
We covered hundreds of games and wrote even more articles about games that we didn't attend. Not all moments made this list for 2014 (we did our best in researching), but the best things about sports are our own memories we make as fans, players and coaches.
Here's one last congratulations to all the student-athletes and coaches of 2014, and let's all toast the upcoming 2015 sports year, as there will be plenty to watch and talk about for the next 12 months.