Trinity is impressive. Even their pre-game infield practice routine is impressive. Beechwood missed a couple opportunities and then made some uncharacteristic mistakes. When it was 4-0 in the 4th, it felt like Beechwood had more hard hit balls than Trinity but had hit them right at people. The Tigers missed on a bases loaded opportunity and didn't score. Against a great team like Trinity, you can't overcome mistakes and missed opportunities. Every one of those mistakes is 2 more runs for Trinity. 

I was really impressed by Trinity's catcher. He has a cannon for an arm. 

Great season for Beechwood! They lost to a great team.

6 hours ago, Voice of Reason said:

Trinity is impressive. Even their pre-game infield practice routine is impressive. Beechwood missed a couple opportunities and then made some uncharacteristic mistakes. When it was 4-0 in the 4th, it felt like Beechwood had more hard hit balls than Trinity but had hit them right at people. The Tigers missed on a bases loaded opportunity and didn't score. Against a great team like Trinity, you can't overcome mistakes and missed opportunities. Every one of those mistakes is 2 more runs for Trinity. 

I was really impressed by Trinity's catcher. He has a cannon for an arm. 

Great season for Beechwood! They lost to a great team.

The catcher is Harper Haywood, son of former Trinity standout athlete Allen Haywood, '96. He is heading to Lincoln Memorial to continue his academics and sharpen his baseball skills.

Fun fact: if you're from the Louisville area and old enough to remember, they are part of THEE Haywood Dairy family. I actually delivered milk for them for a year between jobs. Phenomenal bloodline.

Semifinals
Jun 12    McCracken County vs. Boyd County (10:00 AM)    
Jun 12    Apollo vs. Trinity (1:30 PM)    

Trinity is a Powerhouse, good as they are advertised.  
 

From those that know KY High School Baseball much better than I ever will, how does the Trinity team this year stack up to any past State Championship teams over last 25 years?

On 6/7/2026 at 4:07 PM, The_Bull44 said:

Trinity is a Powerhouse, good as they are advertised.  
 

From those that know KY High School Baseball much better than I ever will, how does the Trinity team this year stack up to any past State Championship teams over last 25 years?

I am not the expert here but this Shamrock team feels like another level beyond past Trinity teams.  

A few football teams had the same feel.

Anyone?

14 hours ago, theguru said:

I am not the expert here but this Shamrock team feels like another level beyond past Trinity teams.  

A few football teams had the same feel.

Anyone?

FWIW - Understand that a comment  made by a recent opposing Coach, was that in all of his Years of Coaching he had never seen HS pitching at such a level.

Maybe someone more savy can post the rankings. I am thinking 2 wins away from a National Championship.

MaxPreps National Baseball (Spring 2026) Rankings.
https://www.maxpreps.com/baseball/rankings/1/

1	Trinity	KY	39-3-0	+1
2	Tomball	TX	44-1-0	+2
3	Stoneman Douglas	FL	28-6-0	+2
4	South Walton	FL	30-4-0	+2
5	Catholic	LA	37-5-0	+2
6	St. John Bosco	CA	27-6-0	-3
7	Pleasant Grove	TX	39-4-0	+7
8	Aledo	TX	43-5-0	+15
9	Keller	TX	43-4-2	+9
10	Norco	CA	28-5-0	-1
11	Harvard-Westlake	CA	26-6-0	-1
12	Orange Lutheran	CA	25-6-0	-1
13	Venice	FL	32-2-0	-1
14	Magnolia Heights	MS	36-4-1	-1
15	Calallen	TX	38-3-0	-14
16	Jesuit	FL	28-6-0	-1
17	IMG Academy	FL	22-3-0	-1
18	Etowah	GA	33-7-0	-1
19	Trinity Christian Academy	FL	27-8-0	--
20	St. Thomas Aquinas	FL	28-6-0	--
21	St. Johns Country Day	FL	26-8-0	--
22	Valley View	AR	30-2-0	--
23	Lovejoy	TX	34-6-1	+1
24	Loganville	GA	36-5-0	+1
25	Center Grove	IN	26-1-0	+13

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: JUNE 11, 2026

The semifinals of the KHSAA Baseball State Tournament presented by UK HealthCare hit the diamond at Kentucky Proud Park on Friday in Lexington. Play begins at 10:00 AM with the gates opening to the public at 9:00 AM.  For the second game, which starts at 1:30 PM, the gates open at 12:30 PM. Each game is a separate ticket, and the stadium is cleared after each event.

McCracken County, Boyd County, Trinity (Louisville), and Apollo, the four baseball semifinalists, have made it a habit of getting to this point of the season. The four schools still in the hunt for the 2026 baseball championship have combined for 59 regional championships, 34 semifinal appearances, 7 runners-up, and 3 state titles (Trinity in 2021 and 2025, and Boyd County in 2001).

The action begins at 10:00 AM and features McCracken County (33-8) versus Boyd County (28-7) in the first semifinal.

McCracken County, which has captured every 1st region crown since 2014, is no stranger to the third round of the state tournament, making its 9th visit since 2016.  The Mustangs have advanced this far in the following years: 2016-19, 2021-22, 2024-2026. McCracken County has won 15 of its last 16 outings, with that lone loss coming to Trinity (Louisville) on June 9. The Mustangs are led at the plate by senior Briar Hall, who is batting .375 with Lucas Gagnon, Caden Kern, and William Fox between .355-.360. Kern, a senior, is the ace of the staff with a 10-0 record and a minuscule 0.84 earned run average. McCracken County was outstanding in the first two rounds, beating Bowling Green (6-0) and Sayre (6-1). The Mustangs have been state runners-up three times in 2019, 2021, and 2024.   

Boyd County has more regional championships, 19, than any team in the semifinal field. The Lions represent the eastern portion of the Commonwealth in the semifinals for the 8th time. The Lions, winners of nine straight, defeated Wolfe County (5-1) and University Heights (9-3) on their way to the semifinal on Friday. Grant Slater leads the Lions at the plate with a .452 batting average, but Boyd County has a balanced pitching staff with Jace Nunning, Brayden Nunley, and Slater combining for a 15-1 record with three saves and an ERA of 1.69. Boyd County is a baseball tradition in Ashland, and this weekend will mark the 25th anniversary of the school’s lone baseball state title in 2001.  

The second semifinal, scheduled to start at 1:30 PM, spotlights the reigning state champion Trinity (Louisville) Shamrocks (39-3) and Apollo (23-12).

Trinity dominated the majority of the schedule on its way to the school’s 16th region title and entered the semifinals with 20 shutouts to their credit. The Rocks are looking to achieve two goals this weekend, and both would link Trinity with Harrison County. With a victory Friday, Trinity would become the first team to win 40 games since Harrison County achieved that feat in 1997. Rick Arnold’s club also seeks to become the first to repeat as baseball champions since Harrison County did it in 1997-98.  Trinity has won 49 consecutive games against Kentucky competition. The Rocks’ last loss to an in-state opponent was back on April 23, 2025, a 6-2 setback to arch-rival St. Xavier. Last week, Grayson Willoughby was named Mr. Baseball by the Kentucky High School Baseball Coaches Association after compiling a .465 batting average with an 11-0 record on the mound with a 0.73 ERA. He has struck out 89 batters in just 57.1 innings. Trinity has power at the plate with Nolan Hosking, with seven home runs and a team-best 39 RBI. Cade Partin is batting .434 with six dingers and 38 RBI. Trinity captured state championships in 2021 and 2025 and was a runner-up in 1983 and 2002.

Apollo advanced to Kentucky Proud Park and the semifinals after taking out #1-ranked Whitley County 5-3 in the first round and then outlasting Campbell County 14-10 in the quarterfinals. The 24 runs scored in that game were the most since the 2021 semifinals when McCracken County defeated Danville 15-10. The numbers do not tell the story for Apollo, who is batting .307 on the season, but in the first two games at Legends Field, the Eagles sported a .375 batting average with seven extra base hits. Ryleigh Logan and Ty Lillpop lead the Eagles at the plate, batting .376 and .353, respectively. Gunnar Hendricks leads all batters in the semifinals with eight home runs. Apollo has won 12 region championships and reached the semifinals for the 6th time, the first since 2023.

2026 KHSAA Baseball State Tournament presented by UK HealthCare

Purchase State Baseball Tickets (all electronic, no cash sales on site)

State Semifinals, Finals Schedule of Events

UK Athletics Clear Bag Policy

Directions to Kentucky Proud Park

UK Baseball Parking Diagram

khsaa.tv

khsaa.net

Live Stats

KHSAA/Riherds Scoreboard

Tournament Bracket

Tournament Program

In what poll was Whitley County number one?

5 minutes ago, fatsnbul said:

In what poll was Whitley County number one?

From the same place McCracken County "lost to Trinity" two days ago.  It is the KHSAA, I no longer consider them an entity you can count on. ☹️

1 hour ago, fatsnbul said:

In what poll was Whitley County number one?

1 hour ago, theguru said:

From the same place McCracken County "lost to Trinity" two days ago.  It is the KHSAA, I no longer consider them an entity you can count on. ☹️

It is RPI.

Boyd County 6 McCracken County 2

Final.

The color commentator just said Trinity has seven D1 players.