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Friday Night Football Report: CovCath, Ryle win district titles behind strong offensive performances


By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter

In the final week of the regular season, Covington Catholic edged Ryle, 10-3, in a game where both teams finished with less than 200 yards in total offense.

Moving the ball wasn’t a problem for either of those teams Friday when Covington Catholic defeated Conner, 35-14, and Ryle knocked off Dixie Heights, 36-7, in the district finals of the post-season playoffs.

CovCath running back Reid Hummel rushed for 131 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Conner. (File photo by Dale Dawn)

CovCath had a net total of 414 yards (297 rushing, 117 passing) in the win over its Class 5A rival. All four of the Colonels’ touchdowns came on rushing plays with senior quarterback Preston Agee and senior running back Reid Hummel getting two each.

Hummel was the game’s leading rusher with 131 yards on 8 carries. He scored on runs of 50 and 39 yards. Agee had 127 yards on 20 carries, including a 37-yard TD run. He also completed 6 of 11 passes for 117 yards in his fourth game since returning to the starting quarterback position.

Late in the first quarter, Conner took a 7-6 lead when senior quarterback Alex Castrucci scored on a 3-yard run and Nick Keller kicked the extra point.

But CovCath ran off 21 unanswered points to open up a 27-7 lead before the Cougars scored again on a 76-yard catch-and-run by Alijah Thompson.

On the first play of the fourth quarter, Hummel broke free on a 39-yard scoring run for the game’s final touchdown and Agee ran in the two-point conversion.

Conner finished with 208 total yards (150 passing, 58 rushing). There were no turnovers in the game, but  CovCath’s defense had seven tackles for a loss and made a stop on one fourth-down play.

The Colonels (9-3) will visit Woodford County (12-0) in a Class 5A regional playoff game next week.

Ryle’s offense scored 27 unanswered points in the second half of its Class 6A district final against Dixie Heights and the Raiders ended up with a 385-119 advantage in total yards.

Four players scored rushing touchdowns during Ryle’s second-half surge. Lukas Colemire got it started with his second scoring run of the game. The longest one was a 39-yard run by Nathan Yowan that came after a pass interception by the Raiders’ defense.

Ryle (9-3) will be the home team once again in next week’s regional playoff game against Louisville Trinity (5-7), the two-time defending Class 6A state champions. Trinity got off to a tough start this season under a new head coach, but the Shamrocks have won five of their last six games and shut out their first two playoff opponents.

Beechwood 48, Holy Cross 0

Beechwood scored 42 points in the first half of the Class 2A district final and finished with a 343-142 advantage in total yards to post its sixth shutout in 12 victories.

Cameron Hergott

Senior quarterback Cameron Hergott passed for 164 yards and four touchdowns in the first half. He also picked up 35 of the Tigers’ 78 rushing yards and scored a touchdown before coming out of the game.

Hergott, who was named Mr. Kentucky Football last year, now has 1,326 yards rushing with 21 touchdowns and 2,154 yards passing with 29 TDs in 12 games this season.

Beechwood’s defensive unit limited Holy Cross to four first downs, intercepted two passes and recovered a fumble. The Tigers have held their 12 opponents to 717 total yards for a 59.7 per game average.

Walton-Verona (9-3) will visit Beechwood in a regional playoff game next week.

Scott 43, Harrison County 7

Scott senior quarterback Gus Howlett broke a long-standing team record while leading the Eagles to their second Class 4A district title in the last three years under coach Eric Turner.

Howlett passed for 161 yards to eclipse the previous team record of 5,008 career passing yards set by 1996 graduate Andy Powers. He threw three touchdown passes to Nolan Hunter and one to Cameron Patterson during the game. Howlett also scored on a 65-yard interception return while playing defense.

The Eagles, who played only six games last season due to pandemic precautions, will take an 8-4 record into a regional playoff game at Boyle County (11-1) next week.

Walton-Verona 27, Carroll County 7

Sophomore running back Tyson Beach scored all four touchdowns for Walton-Verona and the defense stopped Carroll County on four fourth-down plays during the Class 2A district final.

Beach rushed for 158 yards and three touchdowns, including breakaway runs of 50 and 51 yards to the end zone. He also caught an 11-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Max Montgomery that gave the Bearcats a 20-0 halftime lead.

Walton-Verona (9-3) will visit Beechwood (12-0) in a regional playoff game next week.

Brossart 36, Nicholas County 0

Brossart scored on all six of its offensive possessions in the first half, including a 99-yard drive in the final minutes, and went on to win its first-ever Class 1A district title.

The team leader was quarterback Jacob Leicht with 220 yards on 13 carries and one touchdown. Running back Jed Martin scored three times and picked up 118 yards on 14 carries.

Next week, the undefeated Mustangs (12-0) will play a regional playoff game at Raceland (11-1), the team that ended their season in the first round of the 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 playoffs.

High school football playoff scores

CLASS 1A
Newport Central Catholic 54, Dayton 6
Brossart 36, Nicholas County 0
CLASS 2A
Beechwood 48, Holy Cross 0
Walton-Verona 27, Carroll County 7
CLASS 4A
Scott 43, Harrison County 7
CLASS 5A
Covington Catholic 35, Conner 14
CLASS 6A
Ryle 36, Dixie Heights 7

Next week’s regional playoff games

CLASS 1A
Newport Central Catholic (9-3) at Russellville (10-1)
Brossart (12-0) at Raceland (11-1)
CLASS 2A
Walton-Verona (9-3) at Beechwood (12-0)
CLASS 4A
Scott (8-4) at Boyle County (11-1)
CLASS 5A
Covington Catholic (9-3) at Woodford County (12-0)
CLASS 6A
Louisville Trinity (5-7) at Ryle (9-3)


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