Kentucky High School Athletic Association

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NOV. 29, 2023

The 2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine Football State Finals will kick off this weekend with all six championship games at Kroger Field on the University of Kentucky campus in Lexington.

Action gets underway on Friday, Dec. 1, with the Class 1A final at noon ET, featuring Raceland (11-3) vs. back-to-back reigning champion Pikeville (11-2) in a rematch of last year’s state championship game.

Friday’s competition continues with the Class 2A final at 4 p.m., featuring undefeated Owensboro Catholic (14-0) vs. 2022 state runner-up Mayfield (12-1).

Friday night will conclude with the Class 4A final at 8 p.m., featuring Covington Catholic (14-0) vs. three-time reigning champion Boyle County (14-0) in a clash of undefeated titans that have combined for 19 state titles overall.

On Saturday, Dec. 2, the Class 3A final will commence at noon with reigning champion Christian Academy-Louisville (13-1) vs. Bell County (13-1).

On Saturday at 4 p.m., […]

11/28/23 – UK Healthcare Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine Seeks Nominations for Kentucky Comeback Athlete of the Year Award

For the eighth year, UK Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, through its partnership with the KHSAA, seeks nominations for the Kentucky Comeback Athlete of the Year, meeting the following criteria:

The nominee must have overcome illness or injury that affected their ability to participate in KHSAA-sanctioned sports.
The nominee must have returned to their sport(s) and demonstrated excellence and achievement beyond expectations.
The student-athlete must consistently demonstrate good sportsmanship and ethical behavior on and off the playing field.
The nominee must be in verified good academic standing with their school.
The student must have participated and been a member of an athletic team during the 2022-23 academic year.
Nominations should be submitted by January 31, 2024, to the KHSAA via form GE36 at http://khsaa.org/ge36-uk-healthcare-comeback-athlete-of-the-year/.
Nominees will then be sent to UK Orthopedics and Sports Medicine for review and selection.

Nominees will be automatically forwarded to UK HealthCare and the Sports Medicine Staff for […]

11/27/23 – Competitive Cheer & Dance Workers Instructions

Cheer Working

Thank you for agreeing to work the 2023-24 State Competitive Cheer & Dance Championships. These instructions highlight your duties and report times for the event and please feel free to send any questions you may have.

EVENT DETAILS

December 8-9-10
George Rogers Clark High School
2745 Boonesboro Rd, Winchester

CHECK-IN/PARKING/MEALS

Worker check-in is at the front entrance of the school.
Parking – No parking pass is needed, please look for the KHSAA signs for worker parking.
A boxed lunch will be provided on Friday night (after), once on Saturday (lunch), and once on Sunday.

WORKERS ASSIGNMENTS

MEDIA/WORKER/TEAM CHECK-IN
- Marsha Day, Donna Bumps
- Marsha will be checking in media/workers/pass gate. Donna will assist Jeanie & Jeremy (KHSAA) with team check-in and counting squads.
- Arrival time, Friday – 3:15 PM
- Arrival time, Saturday – 7:00 AM
- Arrival time, Sunday – 11:15 AM

2023 UK HealthCare Sports Medicine State Football Finals Award Winners

Football Working

UK HealthCare Sports Medicine Class 1A Final

Mingua Beef Jerky Most Valuable Player – Brenden Anthony, Pikeville
Runner-up – Raceland
Champion – Pikeville

UK HealthCare Sports Medicine Class 2A Final

Mingua Beef Jerky Most Valuable Player – Jutoriaus Starks, Mayfield
Runner-up – Owensboro Catholic
Champion – Mayfield

UK HealthCare Sports Medicine Class 4A Final

Mingua Beef Jerky Most Valuable Player – Montavin Quisenberry, Boyle County
Runner-up – Covington Catholic
Champion – Boyle County

UK HealthCare Sports Medicine Class 3A Final

Mingua Beef Jerky Most Valuable Player – Cole Hodge, Christian Academy-Louisville
Runner-up – Bell County
Champion – Christian Academy-Louisville

UK HealthCare Sports Medicine Class 6A Final

Mingua Beef Jerky Most Valuable Player – Clinton Sansbury, Trinity (Louisville)
Runner-up – Bryan Station
Champion – Trinity (Louisville)

UK HealthCare Sports Medicine Class 5A Final

Mingua Beef Jerky Most Valuable Player – Deuce Bailey, Bowling Green
Runner-up […]
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11/21/2023 – KHSAA Winter Esports State Championship Presented by UK HealthCare Field Is Set

https://app.playvs.com/app/explore/leagues/kentucky-khsaa-mario-kart/standings

The field is set for the 2023 KHSAA Esports Winter Championships Presented by UK HealthCare following the conclusion of the regular season last week. This week is a break week for teams to allow them to ready themselves for the upcoming State Championship rounds.

As a reminder, the Semifinal and Final rounds for all titles will be held in person once again on Tuesday, December 12 at the UKFCU Esports Lounge located in the Cornerstone Facility on the Campus of the University of Kentucky.

Below is a breakdown of the opening-round postseason schedule for all five KHSAA-sanctioned game titles.

Mario Kart™ 8 Deluxe

The state opening round of 16 kicks off on Monday, December 4, followed by the quarterfinal found on Wednesday, December 6

Complete standings including the State Championship Bracket can be found at the following link:

Super Smash Bros.™ Ultimate

The state opening round of 32 kicks off on Wednesday, […]

11/21/23 – State Competitive Cheer Time Schedules & Instructions Now Available

Congratulations to all participants and coaches who have qualified for the 2023 KHSAA State Competitive Cheer Championships presented by UK HealthCare. First and foremost, we would like to thank the regional host schools for all of their hard work and the success of the regional competitions. There are several items for your review on the Competitive Cheer page of the KHSAA website, including the state instructions, time schedules, order of appearance, maps, and more.

TIME SCHEDULES

PARTICIPATING TEAMS CONFERENCE CALL

Participating Teams are also invited to join the KHSAA in a conference call that will take place on Monday, December 4 at 1:30 PM (ET). Details about joining the call will be sent to participating coaches. State Championship details including parking, check-in procedures, ticketing, and other pertinent details related to attending the event will be discussed.

STATE INSTRUCTIONS

State Championship […]

11/21/23 – State Dance Time Schedules & Instructions Now Available

Congratulations to all participants and coaches who have qualified for the 2023-24 KHSAA State Dance Championships presented by UK HealthCare. First and foremost, we would like to thank the regional host schools for all of their hard work and the success of the regional competitions. There are several items for your review on the Dance page of the KHSAA website, including the state instructions, time schedules, order of appearance, maps, and more.

TIME SCHEDULES

PARTICIPATING TEAMS CONFERENCE CALL

Participating Teams are also invited to join the KHSAA in a conference call that will take place on Monday, December 4 at 3:00 PM (ET). Details about joining the call will be sent to participating coaches. State Championship details including parking, check-in procedures, ticketing, and other pertinent details related to attending the event will be discussed.

STATE INSTRUCTIONS

State Championship […]

11/21/23 – Volleyball Official of the Year Announced

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NOV. 21, 2023

Each year, the Kentucky High School Athletic Association honors the top officials for the 10 sports in which it licenses officials. Finalists in each sport are selected through a combination of not only on-field performance but local association activity and leadership, training efforts and the mentoring of newer officials.

One official in each sport is named “Outstanding Official of the Year” for their sport in appreciation of their dedication and service to schools and student-athletes across the state. Winners are selected following consultation with local assigning secretaries, veteran officials’ observers, coaches throughout the state and additional staff review.

The Outstanding Official of the Year for the 2023-24 volleyball season is Danny Woosley of Glasgow. Each finalist will receive a commemorative watch and certificate courtesy of the Officials Trust Fund, with the Official of the Year receiving an additional recognition award.

With officiating numbers declining at the national level, the […]

11/21/23 – Soccer Official of the Year Announced

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NOV. 21, 2023

The Outstanding Official of the Year for the 2023-24 soccer season is Nick Adkins of Lexington. Each finalist will receive a commemorative watch and certificate courtesy of the Officials Trust Fund, with the Official of the Year receiving an additional recognition award.

With officiating numbers declining at the national level, the […]

2023 Team Benches, Lockers, Seating

Football Blog Updates

2023 Football Championship Timetable

Football Blog Updates

11/17/23- Vacancy Announcement for Office Manager (Regular, Full-time) – Search Extended

The Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA), a private, non-profit entity designated by the Kentucky Board of Education to manage high school sports and sport-activities in the Commonwealth, has an immediate need to fill the position of Office Manager and Administrative Assistant to the Commissioner. This opening is created by the promotion of a current employee to another position within the organization and the prior search has been extended.

This opening will be filled as soon as possible and is a regular, full-time position with a work week of at least 37.5 hours, twelve months a year. This position does not offer regular remote work options due to the nature of the business and operational needs.

The KHSAA operates regular business hours at its offices in Lexington from 7:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time, and this position will normally operate within that schedule. Current employees at the KHSAA operate on a memorandum of agreement […]

11/16/23 – KHSAA Inaugural Indoor Track & Field Meet

As previously approved, the inaugural KHSAA indoor Track and Field state championships will take place on March 2-3 at the Norton Healthcare Indoor Track Complex in Louisville. Norton’s facility has 8 lanes for the 60M races and 6 lanes for all others.

STATE ENTRIES AND QUALIFYING

Due to the lack of indoor facilities across the state of Kentucky to conduct regional qualifying meets, the KHSAA will utilize documented regular-season indoor performances to be considered for state qualifiers as follows:
- The best 24 times/performances (while representing a KHSAA member school) including ties per class to be considered qualifiers for the dashes and runs, and
- The best 24 times/performances (while representing a KHSAA member school) plus ties to be considered qualifiers for the field events.
To accomplish this task, the following steps were approved:
- The KHSAA will continue to utilize Milesplit as the exclusive, official source of entry/qualifying.
- Coaches and designated representatives […]
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11/16/23 – Swimming Postseason Updates

At its most recent meeting, the KHSAA Board of Control approved changes to the Swimming State Championship format.

First and perhaps most importantly, they approved an increase of the total number of qualifiers advancing from the swimming region meets to the State First Round to 48 per event statewide, including approval of the format structure for those three first-round events.

DIVING

At this point, the intent is to run the diving portion of the state championships very much like 2023 due to participation levels.
It is hoped that if efforts to get more kids out for diving, the diving events can be similar to the new swimming meet formula soon.
At this point, statewide participation in diving is down from past years, despite more opportunities being created for diving these past few years.
We can all work together to try and attract more students to this event.
To be eligible to participate in the […]
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11/16/23 – Field Hockey Official of the Year Announced

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NOV. 16, 2023

The Outstanding Official of the Year for the 2023-24 field hockey season is Sara Aschbacher of Louisville. Each finalist will receive a commemorative watch and certificate courtesy of the Officials Trust Fund, with the Official of the Year receiving an additional recognition award.

With officiating numbers declining at the national level, […]

11/15/23 – Tentative Swimming & Diving Region Host Dates/Sites

Swimming Blog Updates

Swimming Region School Host Site Date Region 1 Hopkinsville Hopkinsville Feb 9-10 Region 2 Bowling Green Bowling Green Feb 2-3 Region 3 Elizabethtown TK Stone Elementary Feb 2-3 Region 4 St. Xavier University Of Louisville Feb 3, Feb 4 Region 5 Trinity University Of Louisville Feb 2, Feb 4 Region 6 Collins @ Shelbyville Clear Creek Family Activity Center Feb 9-10 Region 7 Simon Kenton Scott Feb 2-3 Region 8 Lafayette Union College Feb 2-3 Region 9 Model/Madison Central Eastern Kentucky University Feb 2-3 Diving Regions School Host Site Date Region 1, 3, 6, 8, 9 TBD University of Louisville Feb 5: Boys Warm-up 8 AM, Dive 9 -12. Girls Warm-up 4:30. Dive 5:30 – 9 Region 2, 4, 5, 7 TBD University of Louisville Feb 6: Boys Warm-up 8 AM, Dive 9 -12. Girls Warm-up 4:30. Dive 5:30 – 9

11/15/23 – Board of Control Adopts Changes to State Formats For Swimming, Indoor Track & Field, Girls’ Wrestling; Sets State Archery Site, Accepts Results of Bylaw 9 Amendment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NOV. 15, 2023

The KHSAA Board of Control conducted its third regularly scheduled meeting of the 2023-24 academic year on Wednesday in Lexington, approving changes to the Swimming State Championship format and event implementation plans for the inaugural Indoor Track & Field and Girls’ Wrestling State Championships.

The Board approved the selection of Russell County High School (Regions 1-3), the University of Louisville (Regions 4-6) and Scott High School (Regions 7-9) as 2024 State First Round sites for Swimming and approved revisions to relay card procedures for the regional and state meet rounds to help address facility deck and crowd capacity concerns.

The Board also approved the increase of the total number of qualifiers advancing from the swimming & diving region meets to the State First Round to 48 per event statewide, including approval of the format structure for those three first-round events. This will result in a total of a total […]

11/15/23 – Girls’ Wrestling Weight Classes and Season Implementation

Today, the Board of Control took action on a recommendation from staff regarding weight classes for girls’ wrestling.

Our office received considerable feedback following the results of the survey conducted earlier this fall, which was directed to the designated representative of each school as required by KHSAA Bylaws, regarding weight classes for girls’ wrestling. The survey resulted in membership preference for the use of 12 weight classes for girls’ competition while utilizing the boys’ weight classes.

After reviewing the concerns that were relayed to our office, we began working to find a solution that would address those concerns and, as much as possible, honor the results of the survey. Last week, following our request, the NFHS accepted an experimental “12 + 1” proposal from our office that will allow us to conduct the girls’ competition with the Federation’s 12 girls’ weight classes while adding an experimental 285-lb. class on the girls’ side for the 2023-24 […]

11/15/2023 – Esports Spring 2024 Enrollment Is Now Open

https://help.playvs.com/en/articles/4919261-high-school-enrollment-steps

On the heels of yesterday’s exciting announcement that beginning with the Spring, 2024 season PlayVS has removed their competition fees, Spring 2024 Esports enrollment is now open!

For detailed enrollment steps, please refer to the link below:

Here are important dates for the Spring season:

Spring ’24 Enrollment is open as of 11/14/23
The enrollment deadline for all state leagues is 2/16/2024
Preseason: Weeks of 2/5/24 & 2/12/24
Regular Season: Weeks of 2/19/24 – 4/8/24
Playoffs: Weeks of 4/15/24 – 4/26/24
Spring Championships: Currently slated for the week of April 22 in Kentucky

Titles offered for the Spring include:

Hearthstone
League of Legends
Madden 24 (PS4 version – which can be played on the PS5)
Mario Kart™ 8 Deluxe
NBA 2K24 – (PS4 version – which can be played on the PS5)
Rocket League
Splatoon™ 3
More

11/13/2023 – Starting Spring 24, PlayVS and KHSAA Announce That Esports Will be Free To Participate

At both PlayVS and the KHSAA, our goal is to continue to make esports even more accessible, equitable, and inclusive. We want as many students as interested to be able to experience the benefits of esports. With this school year being a mandatory Title IX Student Interest Survey year for the KHSAA, we fully expect that we will see interest numbers increase exponentially – especially after this morning’s announcement.

It is with much excitement that we, along with our official esports partner PlayVS announce that, beginning with the upcoming Spring 2024 season, PlayVS will be free to participate – yes, free. This should eliminate an obstacle that several schools have faced: the previous $80 per player per game cost to participate.

Both PlayVS and the KHSAA realize that for a number of our participating schools, monies budgeted for esports, along with monies raised through team fundraising efforts have had to have been allocated to cover […]

11/14/23 – Basketball Roster/Schedule Entry/Prime Date Reminder

This reminder to Athletic Directors and Basketball Coaches to have your rosters and schedules entered through the school login page of the KHSAA website.

With regard to girls’ schedules, schools are reminded of the KHSAA Prime Date Board Policy that was revised significantly for the 2023-2024 school year as detailed in the rules clinic and communication with member schools.

To meet the Association requirements, at least 40% percent of your games are required to be played on a prime date. This can be accomplished in one of two methods.

Method 1 – Play at least forty (40) percent of its girls’ home basketball games on a prime date, defined as Friday night, Saturday or Sunday, wherein tournaments shall only count as one game played toward this requirement; or
Method 2 – Play at least forty (40) percent of its girls’ basketball schedule (all games) on a prime date, defined as Friday night, Saturday, Sunday, […]
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2023-2024 Competitive Cheer Detailed Station Appearance and Time Schedule

Cheer Working

2023-2024 Dance Detailed Order of Appearance

2023 KHSAA Football Third-Round Playoff Pairings Released

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NOV. 11, 2023

Matchups for all six classes have been set for the third round of the 2023 KHSAA Football Playoffs, which concluded the opening two rounds of regionally based play last Friday.

Third-round matchups, formatted within a re-bracketed field of remaining teams based on the final KHSAA RPI rankings of the regular season, can be found on the KHSAA website: https://khsaa.org/2023-football-third-round-football-pairings/

Kickoff times will be announced on Monday.

– 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 […]

2023 UK Orthopaedics State Football Finals Worker Reminders, Assignments and Information

Football Working

THANK YOU FOR GIVING OF YOUR TIME AND TALENTS!

PLEASE CONTACT JENNY OR KARA BY TUESDAY MORNING IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO WORK ONE OR MORE GAMES OF THE STATE FOOTBALL FINALS.

Thanks to all of you who we have talked with throughout the fall about working! If you have issues contact Jenny Elder (jelder@khsaa.org or 859-221-1203), Kara Howard (khoward@khsaa.org or 502-682-7564) Julian Tackett (jtackett@khsaa.org or 859-229-3916) or Butch Cope (bcope@khsaa.org or 859-351-1833).

Please let us know by Tuesday, November 21 if you are unable to work by contacting Jenny or Kara. We appreciate that as we would need as much time as possible to move things around if someone is unavailable. If you would, you can simply send a text to Jenny confirming that you are working or if you have issues if that works quicker for you. It is important if at all possible that you be available for […]

11/08/23 – Online Roster Maintenance Reminders Concerning Expanded Sport/Activities Offerings & Former Coed Only Teams

As was mentioned in this past fall’s regional meetings, in a detailed post for ADs on October 12 (https://ly.khsaa.org/dqmq) and more recently, at our two Title IX Webinars), the KHSAA Online Roster system has received extensive updates that will require you to set aside brief time now that fall sports are nearly complete to perform some maintenance.

We will have a webinar right after the conclusion of our Cheer/Dance Championships where we can walk through any screens or help demonstrate any of this information to you. In the interim, if you would rather have your questions answered on a one-on-one basis, contact IT Director Rob Catron (rcatron@khsaa.org) at the KHSAA.

The four focus areas of this notice are detailed below.

1. Roster System and Control Panel Changes for 2023-2024

The roster system alterations were done for several reasons as detailed in that October 12 post (https://ly.khsaa.org/dqmq), including:

The addition of […]

2023-24 Region 1 (BK Regions 1-4) Dance Results

2023-24 Region 2 (BK Regions 5-8) Dance Results

2023-24 Region 3 (BK Regions 9-12) Dance Results

2023-24 Region 4 (BK Regions 13-16) Dance Results

11/07/23 – KHSAA Announces RefReps Partnership to Address Officials Shortage

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: NOV. 7, 2023

As part of a collective effort to address the shortage of licensed officials in Kentucky, the Kentucky High School Athletic Association has partnered with an officiating education company called RefReps, as announced on Tuesday.

RefReps provides a comprehensive sports officiating education curriculum for more than a dozen sports to provide a viable opportunity for schools to offer sports officiating education to students during their curricular day as an elective course.

“The KHSAA is excited to partner with RefReps as a strategy to help promote our mission to address the shortage of licensed officials across Kentucky,” said KHSAA Commissioner Julian Tackett. “As they have proven in other states and demonstrated throughout this adoption process, they will be invaluable. I am happy with the work that Associate Commissioner Butch Cope has done to help us work toward a shared goal of providing education content to help recruit new […]

11/6/23- 5 Tips for Creating a Culture of Caring in Our High Schools

By Dr. Karissa Niehoff, Chief Executive Officer of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS), and Julian Tackett, Commissioner of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association

Participants in high school sports and performing arts are under tremendous pressure these days – from parents, teachers, coaches and peers. Their days are consumed with school, sports and activities. They are trying to figure out who they are and who they want to be – all while having to compare themselves to everyone else on social media. It’s easy to see why high school students have a lot on their plates … and their minds.

It is time for all of us to turn our attention to these students, including the activity participants at schools in Kentucky. Empathy is so important. No matter who you are—a parent, teacher, coach, athletic administrator, performing arts director or anyone else who interacts with teens—we can all play a part […]

2023-2024 Competitive Cheer Order of Appearance

Current Licensed Officials Listings

Current Lacrosse – Girls Officials

All Reports Processed through Arbitersports.com superuser account 104219

Current Lacrosse – Boys Officials

Current Licensed Officials Listings

All Reports Processed through Arbitersports.com superuser account 104219

2023-24 Region 1 (BK Regions 1/2) Competitive Cheer Results

2023-24 Region 2 (BK Regions 3/4) Competitive Cheer Results

2023-24 Region 3 (BK Regions 5/6) Competitive Cheer Results

2023-24 Region 4 (BK Regions 7/8) Competitive Cheer Results

2023-24 Region 5 (BK Regions 9/10) Competitive Cheer Results

2023-24 Region 6 (BK Regions 11/12) Competitive Cheer Results

2023-24 Region 7 (BK Regions 13/14) Competitive Cheer Results

2023-24 Region 8 (BK Regions 15/16) Competitive Cheer Results

2023 Football Championship Timetable

Football Blog Updates

2023-2024 Dance Order of Appearance

2023-2024 State Dance Time Schedule

2023-2024 Competitive Cheer State Timetable

11/02/23 – Dance State Qualifiers Numbers Released

The number of state qualifiers from each region and each division of Dance is released in this notice. Statewide declarations supported advancers to be pro-rated by region so as not to penalize larger regions. After reviewing the declarations/withdrawals, this chart illustrates the updated number of squads per division and per region that will qualify for state competition.

Jazz Hip Hop Pom Game Day Region Teams Entered Total Advancing to State Teams Entered Total Advancing to State Teams Entered Total Advancing to State Teams Entered Total Advancing to State 1 7 4 10 5 10 5 3 2 2 2 2 10 5 10 5 10 5 3 4 2 14 7 13 7 7 3 4 3 2 9 5 4 2 7 3 Totals 16 10 43 22 37 19 27 13

A reminder to participating teams that all regional information, schedules, and instructions were released earlier this month. Please double-check the time […]

11/01/23 – Competitive Cheer State Qualifiers Numbers Released