Old scorebooks, part 5: Harrison County’s breakthrough state title

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When Harrison County and Pleasure Ridge Park met in the 1993 baseball finals, both programs were looking for their first state championship after twice being bridesmaids.

Harrison County was runner-up in 1984 and 1987; PRP was runner-up in 1982 and 1985.

The 1993 championship game would mark the beginning of state domination by the two schools. They would combine to win the next 6 state titles — Harrison County in 1993, 1997 and 1998; PRP in 1994, 1995 and 1996.

(PRP added titles in 2008 and 2013. Harrison County captured another championship in 2010. All that success has helped make their coaches the winningest in state history. PRP’s Bill Miller is first with 1,092 victories; Harrison County’s Mac Whitaker is second with 1,064.) 

Harrison County’s breakthrough win in ’93 was remarkable in that it finished its championship run with 32 consecutive shutout innings and 68 consecutive errorless innings.

Thorobreds’ second baseman Brent Hampton explained the team’s flawless fielding after the win over PRP: “Catches on, just like […]

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Old scorebooks, part 4: Franklin County’s upset for the ages

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I’ve witnessed a lot of upsets over the last 40+ years, and my memory of most of them is blurry. One upset that is still clear — and still shocking — came in baseball 23 years ago this week.

On May 25, 1993, defending state champion and No. 1-ranked Lafayette, boasting a star-studded lineup and a 33-5 record, lost to unranked Franklin County, sporting a 14-21 record, in the first round of the 11th Region baseball tournament at EKU.

Franklin County trailed 4-1 with two outs and nobody on in the bottom of the seventh inning, but then the world turned upside down and the Flyers rallied for a 5-4 victory.

“Miracle is the only word to describe it,” winning pitcher Billy Taylor said after the game.

“Yes, I guess it was a miracle,” added Franklin County Coach Ben Zimmerman.

After Lafayette scored three runs […]

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Old scorebooks, part 3: Pelphrey, Lorenzen, Smith played baseball, too

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They aren’t remembered as baseball players, but John Pelphrey, Jared Lorenzen and Derek Smith were talented multi-sport athletes in high school.

In his junior year at Paintsville, Pelphrey was a star pitcher who helped the Tigers reach the 1986 state baseball final four in Elizabethtown. The 6-foot-7 righthander had an 11-1 record before losing a 3-1 decision to eventual champion Tates Creek in the semifinals. Pelphrey pitched well against the Commodores, giving up six hits and striking out three.

Here’s Paintsville’s lineup from that game:

Pelphrey and baseball teammates Keith Adkins and Mike Minix were standout players on Paintsville’s basketball team, which made the Sweet Sixteen three years in a row (1985, ’86, ’87). Pelphrey was named Mr. Basketball as a senior.

Jared Lorenzen and Derek Smith were a multi-sport dynamic duo in their days at Highlands. They are best remembered for their accomplishments in […]

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Old scorebooks, part 2: Poynter’s hot post-season for Tates Creek in 1990

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Larry Poynter, in his first year as head baseball coach at Tates Creek, leads his alma mater  into post-season play in the 43rd District tournament Tuesday night.

In getting his players ready for the playoffs, Poynter can tell them about how he stepped up in the 1990 post-season and was a key factor in helping the Commodores reach the state finals. (They lost to Paintsville in the championship game. That’s the last time Tates Creek made it that far.)

Poynter, a catcher, not only did his job defensively behind the plate, he also swung a big bat. In nine playoff games that spring, Poynter hit .461 (12 of 26), with 10 RBI and 7 runs. He had an astounding on-base percentage of .676 (25 of 37).

Here’s the scorebook for Tates Creek’s 16-3 victory over Bryan Station in the 11th Region finals. Poynter had a solo homer and a run-scoring double. Mark Etter had 5 RBI, including a 3-run homer for […]

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Old scorebooks, part 1: Lafayette ace Curtis Whitney’s pitching prowess in 1992

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I came across my old baseball scorebooks recently, some more than 30 years old, and flipping through the pages was like stepping back in time.

Over the next few weeks I’ll share some of the most memorable individual and team post-season performances.

For example, I found the scorebook that documented Lafayette’s post-season run to the 1992 state championship. I had forgotten just how dominant Generals’ ace Curtis Whitney was in his four playoff starts that spring: 54 strikeouts in 28 innings (four complete games).

It was 24 years ago today — May 20, 1992 — that Whitney had 15 strikeouts in Lafayette’s 19-4 rout of Bryan Station in the 43rd District semifinals.

The junior right-hander followed up by throwing a no-hitter with 10 K’s and 2 walks in the Generals’ 3-0 victory over Lexington Catholic in the 11th Region finals.

In Whitney’s next outing he had 10 K’s and allowed 4 hits in a 16-8 win over Covington Catholic in the sectional semifinals.

Whitney capped off his post-season […]

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Greenup County’s pursuit of perfection is over, but not its pursuit of state title

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BY MIKE FIELDS (May 16, 2016)

Greenup County’s hopes of becoming Kentucky’s first undefeated state baseball champion in 34 years are dead, but the Musketeers’ hopes of winning the state title are still very much alive.

Greenup County suffered its first loss of the season Saturday, falling to East Jessamine 2-1 in the Fayette County Invitational Tournament. Coach Greg Logan said his players were “heartbroken” and “crushed” when their 33-game winning streak – the third longest in state history – came to an end.

“I told them that the sun will come up tomorrow and that our main goal (winning the state championship) has not changed,” Logan said. “We hit a pot hole. This is not going to train-wreck us. It’s just a minor setback. We’ll keep it on the tracks and start another winning streak.”

The Musketeers went into the FCIT ranked No. 1 in the state and No. 11 in the nation (according to […]

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