By Blake Lehmann
NKyTribune sports reporter
Beechwood senior Tanner Jackson continued his reign of terror over opposing pitching in the 9th Region baseball championship game Sunday with three hits and two RBI in a 12-4 win over St. Henry at Thomas More Stadium.
Jackson’s performance at the plate during the tournament earned him most valuable player honors, just weeks after undergoing knee surgery.
Beechwood senior Jackson Roseburrough stomps on home plate after hitting a three-run homer in the 9th Region championship game. (Photo by Bob Jackson)
“Putting the work in is paying off,” Jackson said. “I’m comfortable in the box and I’m seeing the ball well, everything looks like a beach ball up there. Every pitch up there looks good and I’m putting great swings on the ball.”
Jackson wasn’t the only star of the show Sunday. With the Tigers down 3-1 in the top of the fourth, senior Jackson Roseburrough belted a three-run homer off the left field foul pole to give his team a lead they would not relinquish.
The win marks Beechwood’s third consecutive 9th Region title, a milestone that coach Kevin Gray said is no easy feat to accomplish.
“It’s a hard region to win for just one year,” Gray said. “For us to win it three years in a row is just incredible. It’s a testament to our kids and how hard they work from the first day we get into the weight room to the time we play in the districts and the regionals.”
Playing in its first region final, St. Henry took a 3-0 lead in bottom of the first inning. A double by junior Luke Keipert drove in the first two runs. After the next batter struck out, Eli Meiman hit a double to bring in Keipert.
Winning pitcher Sam Cottengim also had three hits for Beechwood in the region final. (Photo by Bob Jackson)
After giving up the double to Meiman, Beechwood starting pitcher Sam Cottengim found his groove and retired 10 of the next 11 hitters he faced, striking out four in the process.
In the fifth inning, Cottengim was replaced by Sam Stacy. The Crusaders scored on a ground rule double by Carter Scheben, but they only managed to get two hits off Stacy after that.
Beechwood took a 7-4 lead in the sixth inning when Jackson and Cottengim had back-to-back RBI singles. The Tigers followed that up with five runs in the seventh inning, including a two-run homer by Brett Holladay, run-scoring doubles from Ben Meier and Jackson and an RBI triple from Cottengim.
The Tigers return to the state tournament and are slated to face 3rd Region champion Owensboro Catholic at 8:30 p.m. Thursday at the University of Kentucky. In the final state coaches poll, Beechwood was ranked No. 6 and Owensboro Catholic was No. 5.
BEECHWOOD 001 312 5 — 12
ST. HENRY 300 010 0 — 4
WP – Cottengim (6 Ks). LP – Eilerman. HITTING LEADERS: BEE – Roseburrough 2-4, HR, 3 RBI; Holladay HR, 2 RBI; Jackson 3-5, 2B, 2 RBI; Cottengim 3-5, 3B, 2B, 2 RBI. SH — Kiepert 2B, 2 RBI; Scheben 2B, Meiman 2B, Martin 3B. RECORDS: Beechwood 28-6, St. Henry 18-14-1.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Beechwood – Tanner Jackson (MVP), Brett Holladay, Sam Cottengim, Mitchell Berger. St. Henry – Owen Neilerman, Carter Scheben, Matt Miller. NewCath – Dominic Drury, Conner Seiter. Highlands – Abe Hils, Jack Hendrix. Conner – Ayden Lohr. Ryle – Brayden Stewart. Dixie Heights – Logan Wilson. CovCath – Nick Darpel.
