dallaslaredo

Overlooked last week...Pandas win 3-1 *at* Sacred Heart, currently #2 in the State. For everyone counting NDA down or maybe out this year, this is your wake-up call. With upcoming matches against Mercy (home) and later, Henry Clay (away) NDA could very well be the undisputed #2 team in the State behind Assumption.

interesting - Highlands def NCC in Bluegrass Games just a few weeks ago

Completely disagree. Knees get torn up just as much in softball and volleyball. Playing three sports is not how you get better in the one sport you like/are great at. I'm so tired of the "when I grew up..." observations. Times are different now and athletes have way more opportunities to specialize if they so choose. It's better to be great in one sport than good in three if you want to play in college.

Same here - no problem with article or the way it was written. You absolutely did your job. Just curious that the coach would bring it up. I can't think of a preseason preview in any sport that I've read where a coach would talk about another team, and if they did they were usually heaping massive praise on them. "ND is in Highlands coaching heads already or should I say continuously" is a pretty accurate comment by frankdracman23.

It what has provided an annual laugh, here's the KVCA pre-season state poll. I think they have the top 5 teams correct, although not sure about the order. How Beechwood can be 6th in the State poll but 4th in it's own Region in the same poll is mind-numbing (I believe the latter is more accurate) Both polls at the link below. Assumption is simply loaded with talent this year. 1 Assumption (21) 2 Sacred Heart (1) 3 Mercy Academy 4 Henry Clay 5 Notre Dame 6 Beechwood 7 North Oldham 8 Greenwood 9 St. Henry District 10 Oldham County 11 Paul Laurence Dunbar 12 McCracken County 13 Male 14 Presentation 15 DuPont Manual 16 Cooper 17 Ryle 18 Tates Creek 19 Apollo 20 Christian Academy-Louisville 21 Eastern 22 Central Hardin 23 West Jessamine 24 Holy Cross (Louisville) 25 Butler Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association

I think it's...well, curious... that in a soft-hitting season preview by the hometown sports blogger that a coach would take the time to mention other teams, other players, and parents... all in a slightly negative light.

Like I said...congrats to Beechwood. A sign of depth in the 9th? And I'll buy the Camels as the main contender to Scott in the 10th.

The Varsity pools have been posted BGSG volleyball is always a surprise since it's so early in the season...always tough to pick a winner. Since none of the top teams in the state participate, the field is a little more wide open that other tournaments. I like the usual suspects - Ryle, Cooper, NCC, or Tates Creek to take it all. But I'd take it with a grain of salt - it's early and overall the competition level isn't that great - especially in opening pool play.

1. What does Highlands need to do to improve in 2017? win more games, go deeper into playoffs 2. What do they need to keep doing to be successful? see #1 It's all about De-fense. Need to be able to make timely stops and get the D off the field. Didn't happen much last season.

(KHSAA State Softball Tournament Round 1) Down 3-1, Pandas erupt for 7 in T6, only to see Boyle get 4 in B6 to make it 8-7 Pandas heading to 7th, where NDA plates 8 in T7 for the blowout win in an error filled game. Pandas go from playing late Thurs to early Fri in winners bracket.

I could just type Notre Dame and stop...but First the history..Notre Dame currently owns the 9th region. 9 out of the last 10, including the last 6 in a row. It's very easy to say NDA again in 2017. Why not? But I do think NDA will see a real challenge from a talented St. Henry team. and possibly Cooper. I'd put NCC 4th. I'm sure NCC will have a good team, but NDA's & St. Henry's seasons would both have to implode for them to have a shot. For everyone else in the 9th, measuring success is all relative. Maybe it's winning 15 games, or maybe it's making it out of Districts. I don't know where your bar is set. The separation between NDA & St. Henry, and the rest of the region, is great. Of course, just like in previous years, injuries and depth always seem to be a factor as well. So in summary... NDA wins Region Wouldn't be surprised if St. Henry did Cooper is a longshot. A lot would have to happen for anyone else to have a shot. Tobergte (St. Henry) is POY

NDA 2-0 vs Dixie this year, but 1st meeting was a million days ago, and last meeting went to extras. What's the old saying about beating a team 3 times in a season? Well, I don't believe in sayings...I do believe in momentum...Pandas advance.

a few 2019's already! Bridget Bessler (St. Henry) to Morehead State Maria Tobergte (St. Henry) to Cincinnati Bearcats I will say NKY HS Volleyball is crushing the other girl's sports in number of D1 athletes it's turning out.

Yes, and in a 'classic' error, they won the All-A Trophy in the video. It's not like there wasn't an actual KHSAA State Championship trophy available in the building to hold up!

So what's the bottom line here? Is the Sweet 16, boys or girls, supposed to drive revenue or crown a State Champ? The model has changed because society has changed. We are more fragmented because there are more sports, both High School and Club, and more entertainment options, especially digitally. Movie attendance is down. College football attendance was down for the 6th straight year. NFL is down. Remember when NASCAR was a hot ticket? Now they race in front of empty stands. It's happening across all of sports, why would High School be any different? The Sweet 16 attendance is going to keep going down no matter where it's played. All you can do is have a great sponsor and a great venue and put on a great Championship. Planning around the UK schedule or March Madness schedule seems like a waste of effort. If they played the Girl's Sweet 16 at the end of April, would more people go because college hoops was over? Of course not. Have your Championship, don't worry about attendance, and look for other ways to grow revenue. Want to grow attendance and build a fan base? Let every grade school player in for free for the whole tournament.

Good post, sums it all up. The Sweet 16 also gets the bad timing award with NKU getting their first ever big dance invite, plus UC, Xavier, UK, Dayton, Lville all in Conf tourneys. I wouldn't expect an abundance of local interest - or crowds.

Why do we need to take the pressure off of the KHSAA?

Yes. What's stopping you? Works great in volleyball. It's why volleyball is taking over.

It's called the All-A Classic. They are the All-A Classic tournament Champions. Nothing more.

Have you checked the volleyball state champ list? All private. All big. Same 4 schools. Volleyball needs it more than Girls BB, which at least has a different winner every year.

No we don't. The All-A is a private tournament run by its organizers and sponsors. The winner of the All-A is not the "State Champ". They are the "Champion of the All-A tournament" Big difference.

This is a pretty good case study on why more and more girls are leaving basketball for volleyball. Who wants to get beat-up in the low post all night?

*With rare exceptions, you must play club volleyball to be recruited. You want to play for the highest level club, the highest profile club, that you can. Even if that means sitting on the bench. Even if that means being on the 2nd or 3rd team. It may sound backwards, but you are better off being on the bench on the first team at the highest club, or starting on the 2nd team at the highest club vs starting for the 1st team for a medium or lower level club. How do you tell the difference? Look at who's playing in the Open division, look at who's playing in National Qualifiers where literally hundreds of coaches will see you, look at the club's track record on recruiting. Why? Because the coaching at a higher club is better and the players around your daughter at a higher club will be better, which will in turn make her better. It's not about playing time, it's about getting better. It's also not all about winning, but playing a tough schedule against national competition to make you better. Stick with that plan and the college looks will come, even with limited playing time.

You are missing the point, the game WAS decided on the field. This was not a missed call. The game had ended. It was over. Then officials wrongly tacked on another play. This was not a typical judgment call scenario.

Maybe read the specifics of this case before you comment. This was not a judgment call situation. The game had finished.