Harrodsburg Herald Sports Blog

Shope Heads to Boyle After Titans State Run

harrodsburgheraldsports — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 18:24:02 +0000

After 13 years of being in the Mercer County dugout, with his first regional championship and postseason run that ended one game shy of a state championship, it seems coach Jeremy Shope has finally decided to move on from Mercer for good.
Shope and the Boyle County athletic department made the news official Monday night via their twitter account.
“Coach Shope has demonstrated that he has the ability to continue the strong baseball tradition at Boyle County High School,” said school athletic director Chris LeMonds. “I am very excited to work with Coach Shope as he works to complete his staff and to see what plans he has in store for Boyle County baseball.”
While Coach Shope said he was approached by Boyle County Principal Will Begley shortly after the state tournament in late June, he said he hadn’t officially made up his mind until late Monday night.
“It was a long long process and very hard decision that I had to make not only for myself but my family as well,” said Shope. “It’s been a true honor to be the coach at Mercer County for as long as I have and at the end of the year I had no plans of coaching anywhere else next year. But after Will (Begley) contacted me about replacing coach (David) Camic, doing some of my own investigating, I just felt like it was too good of an opportunity for me and my family to pass up on.”
“We are extremely excited to add Mr. Shope to our Boyle County High School family. We are elated that he will be bringing his enthusiasm and compassion to his classroom and to his baseball field,” said Begley on the addition of Shope.
While Shope admits it was a difficult decision to leave Mercer, he feels very comfortable in the shape he has left the Titans baseball organization.
“It should be any new coaches goal when they first get a head coaching job at any level to improve their team and to one day leave it in better condition than before you got there,” said Shope. “After the season we had and all the support and thanks I got from the administration, team, parents and community I feel I can honestly say I’ve done that, and I want to thank every one of them for their support.”
The job of replacing Coach Shope who has led his team to 20 plus win seasons the past five years falls on Mercer County Athletic Director Jaziel Guerra. “We are proud of our baseball program and all its accomplishments in the past years. We wish Coach Shope well and while this may seem as a set back we will use this opportunity to search for a coach that will be able to continue to lead the baseball program in its excellence, but also bring a new vision to the program,” said Guerra.

Lady Titans Achieve a Program First at State

harrodsburgheraldsports — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 17:10:42 +0000

After winning their fourth consecutive 12th Region tournament, the Lady Titans achieved another first for the womens tennis program as both of Mercer’s doubles teams advanced to the second round of the state tournament last week.
In the first round of play, Mercer’s Savanna Barnett lost to the tournaments three seed, Madie Cook, from Notre Dame Academy in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0.
In doubles play, 12th Region doubles champions Alli Grant and Caitlin Baer defeated Morgan County’s Allie Gregory and Monika McCowan in three sets, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.
12th Region doubles runners up, Lee Baxter and Lauren Yates followed their teammates lead as they defeated Annie Talley and Maggie Wetzel, from Caldwell County in straight sets, 6-3, 6-1.
In the second round of doubles play, Mercer faced much stiffer competition as they faced the tournaments eight and four seed.
Baxter and Yates took on the tournaments eight seed in Alex Billups and Leslie Stringer out of Rose Hill. Billups and Stringer took the first set by a score of 6-2. Yates and Baxter showed they weren’t about to let their high school carriers end without a fight as they managed four points in the second set before being eliminated from the tournament, losing 6-4.
Grant and Baer also faced tough competition in the second round as they faced Kelsey Hensley and Adrea Wise, the tournaments four seeded doubles team, out of Russell County.
Baer and Grant showed fight in the opening set as they fought off the four seeded doubles team through 10 games before dropping the first set 6-4. Keeping pace with Wise and Hensley in the first round seemed to catch up with Mercer in the second set as they fell behind quickly and never managed to recover as Russell went on to win the second set and match, 6-1.
“It has been a great honor and privilege to coach this group of girls,” said Mercer head coach Diane Beauchamp. “We had a remarkable season winning our fourth straight regional title and continued to have success in the state tournament.”
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Lady Titans Fall In Opening Round of Region

harrodsburgheraldsports — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 16:24:40 +0000

Southwestern
The Lady Titans took on the 48th District Champion Lady Warriors of Southwestern Monday night in the opening round of the 12th Region tournament.
Despite being in their first regional tournament in school history against an experienced Lady Warriors team, Mercer showed heart as they pushed Southwestern to the limit, lasting all seven innings before being eliminated in the opening round, 5-4.
The Lady Titans ended the 2011 season with a record of 22-13, a school record.
East Jessamine
It was a bittersweet feeling for the Lady Titans Friday in their 3-0 loss against the Lady Jaguars of East Jessamine in the 46th District championship. The sweet came in the knowledge of knowing the had accomplished something never before done in school history, advancing to the 12th Region tournament.
The bitter came in the inability to score a single run after a regular season which they averaged 6.2 runs in their 32 regular season games.

For the rest of this story cpick up a copy of this weeks Harrodsburg Herald.
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Bulldogs Get Win Over Frankfort Panthers

harrodsburgheraldsports — Thu, 19 May 2011 18:16:59 +0000

Frankfort
The Bulldogs finished out their regular season Tuesday night by destroying the Frankfort Panthers in six innings, 14-4.
It was a close game early with the score tied at 1-1 through the first two innings of play before the Bulldogs unloaded with 12 runs in the top of the third inning to take a 13-1 lead. Frankfort responded with two runs in the bottom of the inning followed by a run in the fourth to cut Burgins lead to nine runs, 13-4.
The Bulldogs added a run in the top of the sixth inning to make the score 14-4 and after no response from Frankfort offensively in the bottom of the inning. The game was called after six innings. Burgin will be back in action Monday, May 23 when they play Mercer at at 8 p.m. in the opening round of the 46th District tournament held at West Jessamine.
Lincoln County
The Burgin Bulldogs hosted the 10-17 Patriots of Lincoln County Monday night in Burgins’ senior night. The Patriots entered the game winning five of their last 10 games.
Both teams struggled at the plate as the game remained scoreless through the opening inning. Lincoln County’s Dylan King put the games first run in the top of the second making it a 1-0 game heading into the bottom of the second inning. Burgin Pitcher Devan Lay managed to keep the Patriots in check for the next three inning. Lay got little help from his offense and Burgin continued to trail going into the top of the sixth inning down 1-0. Lincoln County made it a 3-0 game after a two run homerun by Ryne Otto in the top of the sixth inning. Burgin’s offense was unable to produce a run as Lincon held on to win, 3-0.

Lady Bulldogs Fall to Lincoln

harrodsburgheraldsports — Thu, 19 May 2011 18:14:37 +0000

The Lady Bulldogs took on the 6-11 Lady Patriots of Lincoln County Thursday night.
Halee Jackson took to the mound for the Lady Bulldogs to start the game, and struggled to find the zone early on as the Lady Patriots took a 2-0 lead heading into the second inning. Jackson gave up two more runs in the top of the second inning and loaded the bases before being relieved by Abbey Worley.
Worley earned just one out while giving up five more runs off of one hit, two walks and two hit batters as Burgin fell behind, 9-0. Liz Marcinek, the Lady Bulldogs third pitcher of the inning managed to get Burgin out of the inning, but not before giving up two more runs to make it an 11-0 game heading into the bottom of the second inning.
The Lady Bulldogs looked to do damage in the bottom of the second as they loaded the bases with one out, but despite the plethora of base runners, they were unable to drive in a run and continued to trail by 11 heading into the third inning. Lincoln County added four more runs in the top of the third before closing out the game with three straight outs in the bottom of the third to get the win, 15-0.
The Lady Bulldog will be back in action Saturday, May 21 when they host Casey County and Owen County in double header starting at 10 a.m.

Lady Titans Win Fourth Straight 12th Region Title

harrodsburgheraldsports — Thu, 19 May 2011 18:13:53 +0000

Lady Titans

Mercer’s Caitlin Baer and Alli Grant returned to the 12th Region finals Tuesday, after beating the tournament’s two seeds in doubles Charissa Burkett and Shelbie Phelps in the semifinals the day before. Grant and Baer weren’t the only ones returning to the finals at tournament one seeds and two time defending champions Lee Baxter and Lauren Yates looked to three-peat after defeating Casey County’s Haley Owens and Allie Tinsley 6-4, 6-4.
It looked like Yates and Baxter would cruse to their third consecutive title as they took the opening set, 6-4. Baer and Grant showed their desire to add a first place piece of hardware to their trophy case as they won the second set 7-6. With momentum on their side Grant and Baer never looked back as they won their first individual regional championship, 6-4.
In singles play, tournament eight seed Christy Ingram of Mercer County lost in the quarterfinals to the number three seed from Casey County, Brooke Curry, 6-1,6-4.
After defeating Boyle County’s Malin Rydergan, 6-1, 6-1, in the semifinals, Mercer’s Savanna Barnett faced tournament one seed Casi Clark out of Wayne County in the finals. Clark proved to be too much for Barnett as she took the match in straight sets, 6-1, 6-0.
With strong performances all the way around, the Lady Titans proved they were the top team in the region as they won their fourth straight 12th Region championship.

Titans Get Comeback Win Over Woodford

harrodsburgheraldsports — Thu, 19 May 2011 18:11:11 +0000

The Titans rallied from four down in the bottom of the seventh Wednesday to beat the (19-6) Yellow Jackets of Woodford County, 9-8, on Mercer’s senior night.
Woodford wasted no time as they jumped out to a 3-0 lead before Mercer starting pitcher Brooks Meredith could record an out. The Yellow Jackets made it a 4-0 game by the end of the inning and held the lead through the first two innings of play. Woodford county added two more runs in the top of the third inning as they extended their lead to six runs, 6-0.
Colin Buckner gave Mercer just their second hit of the game in the bottom of the third with a leadoff double off the center field wall. Buckner was driven in by Mercer’s next batter, Addam Gooch with a single to left field. Mercer added one more run in the inning off a double by Clay Cinnamon, as they started to fight their way back into the game, down 6-2.
The game turned into a pitcher duel in the fourth and fifth innings as only one runner from each team reach based. It looked to be another short inning for the Titans, opening the bottom of the sixth with back to back outs before Matthew Honchel went five hour energy drink for Mercer. With one quick shot, Honchel blasted a homerun over the right field wall. Honchel’s homerun seemed to give Mercer’s offense what it needed to close out the game in their favor. Mercer added one more run in the inning off a single by Seth Heath to make it a 6-4 game.

For the rest if the story, pick up a copy of this weeks Harrodsburg Herald.

Titans Extend Winning Streak to Four

harrodsburgheraldsports — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 16:34:29 +0000

Pulaski

The 8-1 Maroons of Pulaski County entered the game against Mercer Thursday night red hot, winning eight straight.
The Titans jumped out to a one run lead in the top of the first before Pulaski answered with two runs of their own in the bottom of the inning, giving the Maroons a 2-1 lead early into the second inning. After a scoreless second inning, Mercer managed to tie the game at 2-2 with another one run inning in the third.
Pulaski earned two more runs off of Mercer starting pitcher, Honchel, as they reclaimed the lead, 4-2, heading into the top of the sixth inning. After the games third scoreless inning in the sixth, the Titans backs were against the wall as they faced a two run deficit with three outs to spare. With time running out, Mercer finally broke out of their offensive slump as they put up four runs in the top of the seventh to get the win, 6-4.
Honchel went all seven innings giving up four runs on eight hits and two walks while earning eight strikeouts. He also lead the Titans at the plate with three doubles, Heath also recorded a double for the Titans. Mercer scored six runs off of 11 hits and committed no errors in the field.
“This was a great game against a very good ball club,” Shope said. “This game gave our guys a lot of experience and the way we were able to comeback gives us a lot of confidence moving forward.”

South Laurel

After suffering their second loss of the season last Tuesday to Taylor County, the Titans were back in action Thursday as they took on the 3-3 Cardinals of South Laurel.
After a scoreless opening inning, Mercer’s bats came to life putting up two runs in back to back innings to take a 4-0 lead heading into the fourth.
The Cardinals responded with two runs of their own in the fourth to cut the Titans lead to two runs. But, Mercer waisted no time rebuilding their four point lead with their third two run inning of the game to take a 6-2 lead after the top of the fifth. South Laurel stayed within striking distance as they added another run in the bottom of the sixth making it 6-3. Any hope of a Cardinal’s comeback was crushed in the seventh inning as Mercer tacked on five more runs to give the game it’s final score 11-3.
Mercer sophomore Dakota Halcomb picked up his first win as a starting pitcher and was relieved by Brooks Meredith in the fourth inning.
“Our offense did a good job of taking some of the pressure off of Dakota (Halcomb) by scoring early,” said Shope. “But give him a lot of credit, he did an excellent job throwing strikes and our defense did a good job supporting him by only committing one error.”
Mercer as a team had 14 hits and were led by Clay Cinnamon who had two doubles. Tyler Devine and Anthony Patterson each recorded a double for Mercer.

For the full story pick up a copy of the April 14 edition of The Harrodsburg Herald.

Lady Titans Stay Perfect With Win Over Garrard

harrodsburgheraldsports — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 16:32:27 +0000

Despite rainy conditions, the Lady Titans hosted the Lady Golden Lions of Garrard County Tuesday as they looked to improve on their 3-0 start.
In singles play, the Lady Titans dominated taking three of the six games without losing a single game. Mercer’s two seed Christy Ingram, three seed Erin Pigman and sixth seed Catheryne Claunch each beat their Garrard counter seeds by a score of 8-0. Mercer one seed Savannah Barnett gave up an early game to Lady Lions Emily Major making it a 2-1 match. But, Barnett responded by winning three of the next four points before winning the match 8-2. “We are playing pretty well as a team for it to be so early in the season. We came in here today looking to stay undefeated because we know every match will affect the seeding of the regional tournament,” said Barnett.
Lady Titan Anne Wilson also took her match against Garrard’s Maria Moss by a score of 8-2.
The most competitive match of the day was during the four seed singles match as Mercer’s Alyssa Butler took on Garrard’s Devin Napier. Both players managed to hold serve through the first four games, but Butler managed to break Napier’s serve to take a 4-3 lead, and she never looked back as she went on to win the match 8-6 as the Lady Titans swept Garrard County in singles play 6-0.

For the full story pick up a copy of the April 14 edition of The Harrodsburg Herald.

Wildcat Josh Harrellson Comes to Harrodsburg

harrodsburgheraldsports — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 16:29:55 +0000

Just weeks after helping lead the Kentucky Wildcats to the teams first Final Four appearance since the 1998 season, big man Josh Harrellson, a.k.a. Jorts, was in Harrodsburg meeting fans and signing autographs.
Harrellson’s trip through Harrodsburg started at Mercer County Elementary where he met with students, took pictures and signed autographs.
“It’s nice to come out and meet the fans of The Big Blue Nation. Our fans did a great job of cheering us on this season and it’s nice to be able to show them how much we appreciated it,” said Harrellson.
While Harrellson was disappointed with the way the season ended, he was still able to appreciate both the individual and team success he experienced this year.
“To finish my career at Kentucky the way I did means everything. They say it’s not how you start but how you finish and we were able to finish the season strong,” Harrellson said. “It means even more now that the season is over and I’ve gotten a chance to see how much the fans really appreciate all the hard work we’ve put in all season.”

For the full story pick up a copy of the April 14 edition of The Harrodsburg Herald.