By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Three local high school volleyball players who play for NKYVC club teams during the summer were selected for training sessions with the USA National Team Development Program later this month in California.
St. Henry senior middle hitter Taylor Preston was selected in the 17-year-old division. She was ranked among the nation’s top college prospects in class of 2022 and made a commitment with the University of Oklahoma last fall.
Taylor Preston
The other local players selected were Holy Cross sophomore middle hitter Julia Hunt in the 15-year-old division and Notre Dame freshman middle blocker Riley McCloskey in the 14-year-old division.
High school volleyball statistics posted on the khsaa.org website for last season had Preston ranked among the state’s top 10 hitters with 233 kills in 48 sets for a 4.85 average. She was named first-team all-state by the Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association.
Hunt received all-state honorable mention after finishing among the state leaders with averages of 4.02 kills and 1.36 blocks per set. Her team won the 9th Region All “A” Classic made it to the semifinals of the 9th Region post-season tournament.
McCloskey averaged 2.74 kills was an eighth-grade starter for Newport Central Catholic last season, but she enrolled at Notre Dame for her freshman year. Last November, Notre Dame became the first local team to win the state volleyball tournament since 1994.
Teams can begin practicing for the 2021 Kentucky high school volleyball season on July 15. Matches are scheduled to begin on Aug. 16.
Muller takes one-stroke lead into final round of Ky Junior Amateur
Luke Muller, a recent graduate of Highlands High School, shot 6-under-par 66 in the opening round of the Kentucky Junior Amateur boys golf tournament on Tuesday at Nevel Meade Golf Club near Louisville.
Luke Muller
Muller, who had five birdies on the back nine, enters Wednesday’s final round with a one-stroke lead over Jackson Hill. Clay Pendergrass was tied for second place with six holes to go when rain halted the first round.
Pendergass is one of the golfers who will complete the first round Wednesday morning and begin the second round in the afternoon.
Rylan Wotherspoon, a senior at Cooper High School, did finish the first round. He is four strokes behind the leader after carding a 2-under 70.
During his senior year, Muller was a member of two championship teams at Highlands. He played on the boys golf team that won the Region 8 title and the boys basketball team that won the 9th Region and state tournaments.
Muller was the second leading scorer on the Highlands basketball team with a 16.9 average and he was named to the state all-tournament team. But he accepted a scholarship from Northern Kentucky University to play golf before his senior season in basketball began.
Pre-season practice sessions for high school football begin Saturday
The first stage of pre-season practice for Kentucky high school football teams begins Saturday when they are allowed to conduct workouts in helmets only. Practice sessions in full gear will begin on Aug. 2 and the season is set to open on Aug. 20.
Some things that took place in Northern Kentucky during the off-season come to mind as teams prepare for the 2021 campaign.
Beechwood senior quarterback Cameron Hergott announced he will return for another season by taking advantage of a state bill that granted another year of eligibility to high school student-athletes who decide to attend high school for another year due to disruptions caused by the pandemic.
The natural grass fields at Boone County, Cooper and Conner high schools were replaced with synthetic turf playing surfaces and Ryle upgraded its previous turf as part of a multi-million dollar renovation project approved by the Boone County Board of Education.
Two schools hired new head coaches. Bob Sphire took charge of the Highlands program. He replaced Brian Weinrich, who will continue his coaching career at Newport.
McNeil will return for final season with West Virginia basketball team
Cooper graduate Sean McNeil has withdrawn from the NBA draft and will return for his final season with the West Virginia men’s basketball team.
“The NBA draft process and the feedback I received was extremely helpful,” McNeil said in a Twitter post. “I feel like I’ve grown more as a player and as a man. After analyzing the feedback and weighing my options, I have decided to return to West Virginia for one more season.”
McNeil was the Mountaineers’ fourth-leading scorer last season with 12.2 points per game, but the team’s top two scorers have entered the NBA draft. The 6-foot-3 guard made a team-high 69 3-pointers, while shooting nearly 39 percent beyond the arc. He also made 89 percent of his free throw attempts.
McNeil joined the West Virginia program in 2019 as a junior college transfer. He commanded the attention of several major college programs by averaging 29.7 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists for Sinclair Community College in Ohio.
