This story originally appeared in the Aug. 23 issue of the LINK Weekly Reader. To get these stories first, subscribe here.

The fall sports season is one of the busiest times of the year, and if you blink, you’ll most likely miss some of the action.

While Friday night highlights and football dominate the scene at the end of the week, the action Monday through Thursday and Saturday can’t be ignored. Don’t worry, football fans, you’ve already seen plenty from us in our online previews and in our August 16 print edition. Now it’s time to focus on the other fall sports.

When you think of fall sports programs in Northern Kentucky, quality comes to mind. Whether it’s the volleyball court, soccer field, golf course or cross country track, schools in Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties are typically among the best in the state.

Last season alone, there were three team state champions in cross country, one runner-up in volleyball and two semifinalists in soccer. Now it’s time to look forward to the 2024 season, and below are some of the stories from fall sports.

volleyball

11th state title for Notre Dame?

With all but one player returning from a second-place finish at the state championship, it’s hard to imagine Notre Dame not being able to capture its 11th state title and third since 2020. The Pandas finished the 2023 season 33-6, winning 15-0 against 9th Region opponents while losing just two sets – both to St. Henry, whose team produced six graduates.

While Region 9 features some of the best volleyball players in the state, the Pandas enter as the clear favorites. Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association First Team All-State member Ava Tilden returns. Julia Grace made the second team. Ella Goetz, Riley McCloskey and Lacy Hostetler return as key rotation players, and additional reinforcements include Lauren Ott, Audrey Dyas, Hannah Dannenberg, Grace Portwood and Lizzy Larkins.

“We have a lot of experience in all areas, with some girls playing their fourth year on the varsity team,” said Pandas assistant coach Leslie Litmer. “We have a lot of leadership and experience in all of our positions. We don’t necessarily have to rely on any particular people and we can spread it out a little bit and build on last year’s success.”

The usual suspects will provide the most resistance to the Pandas, with St. Henry bringing in Corinne Blackburn after she sat out most of 2023 due to transfer difficulties. Beechwood returns all but two players from a 25-13 season, while Ryle, Holy Cross and Highlands are also in the mix.

“It’s great to see how competitive it has become across the region,” Litmer said. “A lot of coaches are helping out in club soccer and bringing that to their schools. No game or match is going to be easy. There are so many skills and challenges. It helps us stay honest and focused on our goals throughout the season.”

In the 10th Region, Scott should be the preseason favorite, with nearly all of the players returning from last season’s runner-up to Campbell County. A 37th District school, which includes four NKY schools in Campbell County, Scott, Bishop Brossart and Calvary Christian, has won all but one regional title since 2012, when the current regional alignment began.

Simon Kenton came within sets of its first Region 8 title when it lost the championship game to South Oldham. Returning several key members of last year’s core, it is seeking its first state tournament appearance since 1999 and its first Region 8 regional championship.

Cross country

Will NKY’s dominance continue?

There’s no doubt about it: The high quality of distance running in the state comes from Northern Kentucky. At the 2023 Class A boys state meet, NKY schools took the top three spots. Bishop Brossart claimed the championship title, while the Class A girls took five of the top nine spots and Beechwood took the crown. Covington Catholic took the 2A boys title, while Cooper and Conner finished in the top five at the 3A boys meet and four of the top nine 3A girls teams came from NKY.

“Northern Kentucky is the place to run right now,” St. Henry’s Jeff Stewart said after the state meet last season. “All of the schools in Northern Kentucky are full; they’re going to be full for a long time. That goes for all grades.”

Don’t expect much of a difference this year, as the programs have produced solid results every year. The best competition for the teams in NKY often comes at competitions in their own backyards on their high school campus or at a local park with an obstacle course.

football

Are the girls of Notre Dame and the boys of Ryle still teams to beat?

The Notre Dame girls and Ryle boys made it to the state championship semifinals before their 2023 seasons ended. While the Notre Dame girls return many players from the state championship semifinalist team, Ryle coach Stephen Collins spoke of a rebuilding season for the Raiders with good reason, as some star talent is gone and 10 seniors are leaving the team.

What does this mean for the rest of the region? First of all, a level playing field.

“The region is pretty open,” Collins said. “There could probably be six or seven teams there by the end of the year. There is no team that is head and shoulders above the others.”

Covington Catholic is the only state champion in boys soccer from NKY, winning it all in 2015. Since 1972, when the KHSAA began keeping records for boys soccer, the Colonels are the only state champion from NKY. Others have come close, including CovCath in 2016 and 2021, Highlands in 2008 and 2018, and Ryle in 2006 and 2011 with runner-up finishes.

“Region 9 is super tough, competitive and physically demanding,” Collins said. “It wears you down. I consider Region 9 to be on par with any other region out there. There are a lot of rivalries, the distances between schools are small and everything is super competitive. Even if you’re the favorite from the start, no one is going to make it easy for you. When you play regionals here, it’s a fierce battle every night.”

NKY’s girls have been much more successful at the state level, with seven state titles since 2004. Notre Dame owns four of those, Highlands two and St. Henry the other. Speaking of Notre Dame, they defeated Highlands in the 9th Region semifinals in 2023, ending the Bluebirds’ streak of four region titles in the last five seasons. Highlands lost many to departures, but Notre Dame is bringing back many of its core players, making them the undisputed favorite for the 2024 season.

golf

Highlands goes for five

The Highlands boys golf team has won the Region 8 title four years in a row and appears poised to once again climb to the top of the region with five of their top seven golfers returning, including two-time regional champion Hank Shick.

“Every year for the last five or six years we’ve tried to peak at the right time,” said Bluebirds coach Bert Richey. “We play in a lot of tournaments; 80 percent of our schedule is tournaments. That prepares us for the regional tournament and it’s worked well.”

The NKY National Team golfers were nearly eliminated from the state tournament last season. Caleb Eaglin of Newport Central Catholic was the only one who qualified for the tournament and now plays golf at Northern Kentucky University.

“Last year was an anomaly. The backside of the Kenton County Golf Course is really tough, that got on the nerves of the players, and they started to push a little bit, which affected the overall performance,” Richey said. “Don’t expect that to happen again. Our substate is one of the toughest in the state and we just didn’t play well overall.”

The NKY girls had solid performances thanks to the Cooper team. Four of the top five Lady Jags have now graduated. Is it still the team to beat, or can Ryle or Notre Dame end the Jags’ run? Ryle has all but one player back from last year’s 7th Region runner-up team, while Notre Dame is expected to have its entire team back.

In the boys’ 7th Region, Ryle is the reigning champion and returns five of its top seven players, while St. Henry is expected to compete well with its top five golfers from last season and a third-place finish in the regional tournament.

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