01/16/25 – Board of Control Approves Final Changes to Region 6 Alignment, Adopts Postseason Format for Lacrosse

January 16, 2025 2024-2025 News Releases

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: JAN. 16, 2025

The KHSAA Board of Control conducted its fourth regularly scheduled meeting of the 2024-25 academic year on Thursday in Lexington, approving final changes to the alignment of sports determined by basketball in Region 6 and adopting a slight revision in the postseason format for the sport of lacrosse that was originally approved last November.

Thursday’s meeting signaled a move for Evangel Christian from District 23 to District 24 in Region 6, subsequently moving Bullitt East from District 24 to District 23. The switch will be effective in the sports of basketball, baseball, softball, soccer and girls’ volleyball starting with the 2025-26 school year.

These latest moves in Region 6 and 7 are in conjunction with last November’s Board meeting that saw W.E.B. DuBois move to District 24 from District 26 in Region 7 and Portland Christian move within Region 7 to District 28 from District 25. These changes were deemed necessary due to the geographical relocation of multiple schools across Regions 6 and 7, following more than a year of review by local school representatives and the Association staff and Board.

After lacrosse was approved for an eight-region alignment last November, Thursday’s meeting revised postseason qualifying for boys and girls to include the winner, as well as the runner-up, in each region in state tournament play. The bracketing plan will not change from November’s approved action that included two region pairings matching the winners from one region against the runner-up from another in the state first round with those winners within those pairings playing in the second round.

These region pairings will rotate each year, mirroring the format in boys’ volleyball. The semifinal and final rounds of both the boys’ and girls’ lacrosse state tournaments will take place at Shelby County and Collins on May 19-21.

“We are appreciative of the passionate and thoughtful nature in which the Board considers all sides of so many issues and are glad to get to more of a finite answer for the lengthy Region 6 and 7 review, as well as the first lacrosse state tournaments,” said Commissioner Julian Tackett. “This meeting comes at a challenging time for our Board members and their work in their own districts, especially with all of the recent weather issues, and they represent our schools in a great way.”

The Board also approved the following items:

• The confirmation of both Holmes and Thomas Nelson withdrawing from football district play for the 2025 and 2026 seasons;
• A long-term date commitment from the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington for the wrestling state event to remain inside Alltech Arena;
• A revision in the the soccer postseason schedule to conduct the state semifinal and final matches during NFHS Week 18 to help ease the scheduling pressures of the region and state first-round matches; and
• A final review of state first-round site criteria for golf, soccer, volleyball, wrestling and swimming & diving.

Additionally, the Board reviewed and accepted the following reports:

• Status reports in each of the ongoing sports and sport-activities, as well as those others completed after the November meeting;
• The status of the 2025 Hall of Fame selection process, which is set to complete balloting by the committee members on Jan. 31;
• The status of Bowling Green in compliance with the June 2022 agreed order; and
• An officials division update.

 

– KHSAA –

About the Kentucky High School Athletic Association

The Kentucky High School Athletic Association was organized in 1917 and is the agency designated by the Kentucky Department of Education to manage high school athletics in the Commonwealth. The Association is a voluntary nonprofit 501(c)3 organization made up of 290 member schools, both public and non-public. The KHSAA awards 229 state championships to 59 teams and 178 individuals in 13 sports and six sport-activities, funds catastrophic insurance coverage for its more than 109,000 rostered member school student-athletes, provides coaching education and sports safety programs for more than 12,000 coaches and licenses and facilitates the distribution of training material for over 4,000 contest officials.

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