Getting ramped up for the start of the high school football season.  First game covered with be TVS vs. Dixie.  Both teams will have similar spread offenses.  Dixie returns experience at the skill positions.  Jordan will be back at running back and they will have a 4 year starter at quarterback. Luke Bowling has done a great job at the helm and this year should be no exception. On defense, Matt Isaacs, who earned post season honors as linebacker, will be on the hunt.  First year coach Sam Watson will be leading the team this season.

South will have a first year starter, Wes Cole a sophomore running their offense. Senior Mike Burke will be back at linebacker and wide reciever. They also return an experienced line. Lance Englaka will be back for his second year at head coach. The game should be a good one with both teams ready to air the ball.

Sunsite Racers and Fans, (Radio Controlled Race Boats)
  June 24, 2012 was a great day for racing, although it was very HOT the wind was calm and we had zero rain. Our newest competitor is Andy Denka. Andy took 1st place in his very first heat of racing! Good job Andy and crew member Alex.  Mike Stuchell has a real neat gadget for maintaining proper carb jetting by attaching to the carb fuel inlet and reading the airflow and air density with a gage mounted on the flow box. Kevin Dowty won the main event in F hydro. Kevin lost his cowling in the first heat in the deepest part of the pond, he then resorted to using duct tape to close off the engine bay. I had a good day racing by taking 1st in both heats of all three classes that I raced in, SK, F, and  K, but when it came to the finals things just went sour for me. In SK I couldn't get my boat started because it was flooded, in F hydro a large stick lodged in my rudder and slowed the Miss Bardahl down to a crawl then swamped the engine from water spray.

Daily results--

SK heat one-- 16- 1st, 45-2nd, 777-dnf

SK heat two---16-1st, 777-2nd, 45-3rd

SK main------45-1st, 777-2nd, 16-dns

 

E heat one--44-1st, 1-2nd, 48, 41, 45---dns

E heat two---41-1st, 1-2nd, 45-dnf, 44, 48-dns

E main-------41-1st, 1- 2nd, 48-3rd, 44-dnf, 45-dns

 

K heat one--50-1st, 1-2nd, 32-3rd

K heat two--50-1st, 1-2nd, 32-3rd,

K main------32-1st, 50-2nd, 1-dnf

 

F heat one---40-1st, 1-2nd, 710-3rd, 45-dnf

F heat two---40-1st, 45-2nd, 1-3rd, 710-dns

F main--------710-1st, 45-2nd, 40, 1--dnf

 

Season point standings--

1080--SK-45--Miss Blossom-- Margaret

1035--SK-16--Old yeller--Jon

790---SK-777--Jumpin Jack Flash- Phil

190---SK-1--Miss Joselyn--Matt

 

945--E-41--High Winder--Phil

845--E-1---Shamrock---John

720--E-45--Bluemoon II--Margaret

605--E-48--Stooch--Mike

370--E-31--------------Matt

235--E-71------Mark

190--E-44-----Andy

 

970--K-32---Hoof Hearted--John Jenkins

795--K-1---Hopper---Margaret

730--K-50--Coldfire--Jon

 

1040--F-45--Sunshine Baby--Margaret

930---F-1---King Bee--Phil

895--F-40--Miss Bardahl--Jon

800--F-710----------Kevin

335--F-15-----------John

80----F-32-------Matt

           That's where it stands in season points after today's race. Thanks to Andy and crew for the donuts, fruit tray and hotdogs. Thanks again to Grace for operating the starting clock and keeping score. Our next race is July 15. There will be a water ski competition on the main lake both saturday and sunday. Margaret and Julia will be competing in the slalom event both days, fortunately the ski competition is over by 11:00am, that should not keep Margaret from racing on sunday. I will be camping back in the pit area on saturday night on the 14th.

Baseball Post Season Results

The school year is drawing to an end and the post season for baseball and fastpitch is upon us.  South’s boys team lost a close game 3-1 against NorthEastern.  TCN boys lost a close game against Troy Christian 2-0. Dixie’s fastpitch team lost their first round game 10-0 in a rain delayed game against Miami East.

Dixie’s baseball team lost a heartbreaker in their opening round game. 

Dixie went up 1-0  in the top of the fifth inning and Blanchester tied the game in the bottom of the sixth.  Dixie scored a run in their half of the last running to go up again.  But in the last at bat for home team Blanchester, a muffed play by Dixie at first got a runner on base, then a batter reached on a walk.  Finally a deep fly ball scored both baserunners to seal the win for Blanchester.  This gave the Greyhounds a 12-14 overall record. Coach Johnson noted that the team is only losing one senior, “so expectations will be high for the 2013 season. The only question to be answered is how much work they do in the summer and the rest of the offseason to get better to be prepared to win league and go deeper in the tournament next season.”

Luke Bowling was 2-2; Josh VanBuhren was 2-4; while Travis Wright and Seth Angel each had a hit. Seth Angel was the starting pitcher and had 6 strikeouts. 

TVS fastpitch ended their regular season on  a down note being on the receiving end of back to back shutouts.   But in the three games the team played this week the offense erupted.  TVS blanked Franklin Monroe in their first round state tournament game 9-0.  Emily Froment was 2-4 with a triple that hit the fence. Katie Strazheim was 2-2 as was Kayla Hartley.  Shelby Spaeth has been unable to play catcher, so it is up to Leanne Johnson to finish the season behind the plate. “ I am so pleased with the job that LeAnne Johnson is doing behind the plate.  Since taking over for Shelby Spaeth, she's looking like she's been back there her whole career.  Having Shelby out in right field now, gives us some increased speed and experience in the outfield.  Shelby is a good leader, no matter where she's playing on the field.” Stated coach Robinson.

She continued, “Good solid win to start tournament play.  Emily was one walk away from a perfect game.  I think she's come close 4 times now this year.  Still it was a no-hit, no-error game, so I was really pleased with our defense.  Offensively, I was happy to see both Emily and Katie Straszheim hit so well.  They've both been in a bit of a slump here lately.” Froment ended the game with 15 strikeouts.

 

Catholic Central was the second round game for TVS.  Again it was a shutout win for the Panthers 11-0 as they continued to dominate in the early rounds of the state tournament.  And it was a memorable game for Emily Froment who recorded her 1000^th career strikeout on the next to the last batter.  Shelby Spaeth was 4-4 with 2 singles, 2 doubles and 2 RBI’s – one of her best days of the season.  Katie Strazheim was 3-4 with 2 RBI’s. 

Coach Robinson on the game, “We hit the ball really well tonight, finally adjusting to the slower pitcher.  This was probably the slowest pitcher we've seen all season, so I was pleased that we were able to score in every inning.  Shelby Spaeth had a really good night at the plate.  She's been struggling for consistency lately, so I was glad to see her have a break-out game.  Katie Straszheim has hit well all season, hovering around the .500 mark all year long.”

Finally TVS had a makeup  game against Arcanum.  They won this game 7-1 to avenge a loss to Arcanum earlier in the season and completed a perfect week.  Coach Robinson was positive after the win, “Tonight was a test to see how much we've improved from the beginning of the season.  Arcanum beat us 3-0 in the first week of the season, and we only managed 3 hits off of their pitcher, while committing 3 errors.  Today, we had 12 hits and no errors.  Our bunt defense has improved tremendously over the course of the season, and we've got a much more balanced hitting attack.  Six of our 9 starters are hitting above .300.  Emily is throwing as hard as she has all year, and LeAnne Johnson is doing an amazing job behind the plate.  It just seems like all of the pieces are coming together just at the right time.  We're building confidence with every game too.”

South will play in the sectional finals on Tuesday against Southeastern at Brookville highschool at 5pm. Preble Shawnee fastpitch has also advanced in the state tournament with wins against familiar foes National Trail (6-3) and TCN (3-0).  They play Miami East in their sectional final. 

Dixie Track Hungry for District Meet

Both Dixie Track teams have been successful this season and are hoping to finish

 strong in the league and district meets.  Coach Via is in charge of the girls team

 which is young, but athletic. Case in point is pole vaulter Jesselyn Shade who

 is a freshman but has regularly been vaulting over 9’ this season and won league.

 And despite this being only the second time that she ran 400 meters, freshman

 Chelsea Evans won the league in this event. Kristin Hauser is just coming back

 from injury but still managed to be league champ in the 100m hurdles. 

“The freshmen being athletic has really helped us a lot,” stated coach Via,

 “Evans is close to a school record in the 400m dash and last Friday was the

 first time she ran that race. She is real competitive and hates to lose. Junior

 Kristin Hauser is close to record, but then she got injured. And sophomore 

Kylie Hundley has had some success in the long jump, hopefully she can finish 

strong for us. And they pull together as a team, we lost our senior high jumper 

and we had a couple of girls step up to become high jumpers - Sheri Myers has 

done well for us.”  The Dixie girls track would make a good showing in the SWBL 

league meet finishing third.

The Dixie boys track team has been hauling in the hardware this season, winning 

several invitationals this spring. TVS’s Fred Durkle, Preble Shawnee Invitational,

Northridge Invitational, and Dean Schultz Invitational to name a few. “We have won

 every major invitational that we have been in this spring,” stated coach Hughes,

”the team has been real strong this year. Mike Smiley has been our main thrower. 

He threw 45’ today which won the shotput, and that is his best this year. And in 

the disc he is throwing over 140’. 

He continued, “John Isaacs has gone over 6’5” this year. Our long jumper, Ryan 

Jordan, has been over 21’ this year. John Noonan in the pole vault broke the 

school record this year. He went 12’ 10.5” at the Northridge Invitational to 

get the school record, then went 12’11” at the next meet. He’s a junior so 

he has another year to keep breaking it. Ryan Jordan in the 100m got the 

school record, he ran 11.12 at Shawnee; at Northridge he beat it again with 

a 11:07. So he’s been moving.”

Also, “Doogie Hauser, Andrew Barnet, Ryan Jordan, and John Isaacs have 

been getting real close to our school record in the 4X100m relay. That 

team has not been beat all year long. Our 2 miler, William Stapleton, is 

looking real strong. His personal best this year is better than his regional 

time from last year. Dustin Funkhauser,a freshman, has ran in the 53’s this year 

in the 400m, so we are real happy with that. One of the fastest times I have 

ever seen for a freshman. The 4X200m team beat the school record. We were 

district runners up last year, so our goal this year is to win districts and 

to win league. Then you never know what is going to happen at regionals.”

The Dixie boys would be runners up at the league meet. Losing to Milton Union by just one point. Next week the team will be participating in the district meet at Welcome stadium on May 17^th and 19^th. 

South's Emily Froment gets 1000th career strikeout this week.

Preble Shawnee won this years Preble County fastpitch tournament. But it was not easy for the team as their first game was against Twin Valley South. It was a classic pitchers duel as the game featured the two best pitchers in the county, Hannah Belvo of Preble Shawnee and Emily Froment of Twin Valley South. Both pitchers are seniors and have had great careers at their respective schools.

Both pitchers were interviewed before the game. And both pitchers are planning to play at the next level “I am going to Anderson,” stated Belvo, “they were league champs this year, so I am excited to be going to play for them. I did look at Muskingum because they both had nursing programs.” “But its been awesome here at Shawnee, she added, I've been blessed. Coach Lynch this year has been great, he has really pushed us this year.”

Next up was Emily Froment who commented on the season, “Its been good overall, but it has been kind of up and down,” she said, “however over the last few weeks we have come along strong.” About Belvo, “She's a really nice pitcher, we have met many times in high school and in summer select teams.” When asked about her overall record against her, she thought that she had the overall advantage. Belvo has a fellow senior, Katie Woodward, as a catcher while Froment is pitching to a freshman. “It was tough at first, but Shelby has really come on – we have adjusted to each other.” Like Belvo, she looked at other schools but the University of Dayton seemed like the best fit. “I liked their coaches a lot, plus my pitching coach was over at UD. And it is close enough that my parents can come watch me play.”

But back to the game, it was scoreless until late in the game when Shawnee got a batter on first, who stole second, got to third and scored on a pass ball. South able to get runners on first and second in their last at bat, but a double play sealed the 1-0 win for Shawnee.

That put Shawnee into the championship game against National Trail who had run ruled Eaton earlier in the afternoon 14-0 to earn their chance at the title. Again the game was a close one. Shawnee scored a run first, but Trail rallied and scored a couple of runs to go up. Belvo had started the game, but went to first base to rest her arm. A teammate took over the mound for a couple of innings, but after the runs were scored, Belvo returned to finish out the game. Not long after she returned, she was able to record a record setting strikeout – number 198 that gave her the most career strikeouts at Shawnee. A school record that had stood for 20 years. Behind her the team scored 3 more runs and earned the title with a 4-2 victory. Belvo helped her cause with a double; Courtney Lakes was 3-3 at the plate.

“Emily Froment is such a great pitcher.”, stated Shawnee's Coach Lynch afterward, “Probably the best pitcher we face this year. You have to scratch and claw and do everything you have to do to get a run in. We were fortunate to come away with that win.” Against Trail, “Our enthusiasm went from skyhigh against South, to rock bottom against Trail. Plus we didn't hit the ball very well. We were lucky to eek out a 4-2 win. On the season, “It has been phenomenal, we had one loss to Madison. But like I told the girls we played a 100 plus perfect innings, and one bad inning – how can you gripe about that. And it wasn't really that bad of an inning, just a couple of fluke things.”

“What a great fastpitch softball game,” stated South's coach Robinson about their game against Shawnee,”  2 great pitchers going at it.  We continue to chase balls that are not strikes.  It's easy to do though, against a pitcher like Belvo who hits her spots so well.  As much as I hated to lose that game, I thought we played them much stronger this game than when we saw them early in the season.  They did get a couple of hits off of bunts, but other than that, we fielded their short game really well.  I give Shawnee credit:  their defense was perfect behind Belvo's pitching.  There's a reason that they've only lost one game this year.”

It was a tough day for South bats as Tri-County North won the consolation game 4-0 over TVS. The team did not cross the plate all day. “Definitely not the game we were hoping to play after the great Shawnee game.  It's hard to know that we out-hit them 7-4, but they out-scored us 4-0, especially knowing that we didn't have any errors.  We just couldn't string any hits together to produce runs.” spoke Coach Robinson afterwards.

Dixie Readies for Post Season

Both Dixie baseball and fastpitch are wrapping up their regular season this week and readying themselves for state tournament play. Dixie fastpitch dropped a game against Monroe 4-2 and then lost a game against Oakwood 6-5. Against Monroe, Dixie spotted the visitors a lead and tried a late 7^th inning rally that fell short. Courtney Hawk was 2 for 4; Abbey Owens and Stacy Rader had singles. In the Oakwood game which was senior night, the damage was done in the 5^th inning when Oakwood jumped ahead with a 3 run inning. This game was cut short by rain. Katie Honeywell had a double and an RBI for Dixie. Still the team won 8 regular season games this season a huge improvement after winning only one game last year.

“We played really well, but had just a few errors,” declared Coach Perry after the Monroe game, “This season we have done a great job at working hard and have improved greatly. We won 8 games this year as opposed to 1 game last year. The seniors did a great job leading this team. Courtney Hawk is true leader that lead this team for the past two years. She will be continuing her career at Lake Erie College. She is always pushing the girls. Madison Buxton has done a great job for us behind the plate. Stacey Rader has played a great center field for us. She made multiple diving catches this season.” In the tournament, Dixie plays Miami East, “We know they are a number 4 seed. We think that if we play our best like we did against Madison and Waynesville last week, that we should have a chance to beat them.”

Although Dixie graduates the middle of their defense: catcher, short stop and centerfield – they will have back their sophomore pitcher and most of their team. So that will give them a solid core to build upon. Dixie plays their first round game Monday, May 7^th at Miami East.

Dixie baseball kicked off their week with a resounding win over Franklin Monroe. They dominated the game from the first inning on – scoring 7 runs on route to a 14-2 victory. The pitchers mound was a bit of merry go round for the Greyhounds. Seth Angel, Luke Bowling, and Josh VonBehren all shared pitchers duties.

Greg Leonard, Josh VonBehren, Travis Wright, and Anthony Schaffer all had two hits. Christian Evans had 3 RBI's to go along with his home run. Christian Evans had 2 stolen bases. Defensively Greg Leonard had 4 putouts.

Dixie split a double header against Milton Union. In the first game Milton prevailed 5-2; Jacob Campbell was 3 for 4 in this game. Dixie turned the tables on Milton in the second game winning decisively 9-1. Seth Angel was the winning pictcher. Christian Evans was 3 for 3; Jacob Campbell's bat was hot in this game too as he was 2 for 3. Josh VonBehren was 2 for 3 as well.

Dixie vanquished Newton 14-4. Josh VonBehren was the pitcher of record. Anthony Schaffer was 2 for 2 on day. This win put Dixie's record at 12-13, a hair under .500 for the season. Dixie will be playing at Blanchester on May 7 in the state tournament. If they win the opening round, they will play a familiar foe – Middletown Madison.

Strike Out Cancer a Success

Strike Out Cancer a Success

The 'Strike Out Cancer' game hosted by TVS was a huge success. The game was well attended and the crowd was enthusiastic. The game raised about $1400 for the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Coach Robinson wanted to thank all who helped make this is a success: “Thanks to the fans of both teams for donating so generously.  I'd also like to thank my players' parents for putting together some of the most awesome theme baskets that we've ever raffled off.  Finally, I'd like to thank Joe Ferriell, of Power Play Productions, for providing his announcing and DJ skills, as well as all of his equipment at no cost.  His generosity allowed us to be able to reach and exceed our donation goals.”

Oh yeah, and there was a game too! South got back in the win column against rival TCN with a 6-1 win. After losing 3 games in a row last week, South was determined to get this week off to a strong start. South was able to dominate offensively and defensively. They got some big hits early to get the lead and didn't look back. Although South had a couple of errors, they did not cause much damage. North's strategy was to use the bunt to get on base, but the South infield did a good job of scooping up the ball and making plays.

Pitcher Emily Froment recorded the win and helped her cause with a home run. Kaelee Rivers also touched all the bases when she went yard. Cayla Hartley put the game out of reach with a 2 run double in the 6^th inning. Coach Robinson commented afterwards that, “The adjustments we've made with our hitting seems to have helped us cut down on our team's strikeouts.” That sure seems to be true as the team was definitely putting the ball into play.

Coach Robinson had plenty of kudo's afterwards, “It sure is nice getting back to winning!  We had a couple of errors on defense, but luckily they didn't cost us the game, as they did last week.  Outside of those 2 errors, I thought we played a great game.  Our outfield play was much better, and I thought we defended the bunt well too.  I thought Emily pitched a really strong game, especially having to pitch against such a strong wind.  I actually think it caused her breaking pitches to break even more dramatically.  Shelby did a really nice job behind the plate, catching her.”

South's next game was against a quality opponent – Versailles. This would prove to be a tough game for South and they did not help themselves as the team would cough up 5 errors. Making the mountain even tougher to climb. Froment did an admirable job on the mound. She struck out 17 batters and pitched her way out of the 3^rd inning where the bases were loaded – but did not allow a run to cross the plate.

Offensively the team was able to maintain its trend of scoring early. Shelby Spaeth was hit by a pitch and Katie Strazheim hit a sacrifice fly to score her. Midway thru the game South had a big 3^rd inning - Froment walked, then Strazheim doubled and Kaelee Rivers successfully bunted. Leanne Johnson stepped up with a big double to score two runs. This rattled the Versailles pitcher, and next Ali Robertson was hit by a pitch. The next batter grounded out, but advanced the runners. Alyssa Kube hit a single to score 2 more runs. The last South run was scored by Ashley Robertson who hit a single then scored off of a Kaelee Rivers double.

Although South had 5 errors, they only gave up 4 runs - giving South their second victory of the week. Coach Robinson commented after the game, “This game reminded me of the opening line to A Tale of Two Cities: 'It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.'  The best of times was Emily Froment striking out 17 batters, our offense scoring 6 runs against a good Versailles defense, and holding Versailles scoreless in the 3rd inning with one out and bases loaded.  The worst of times involved 3 unearned runs while committing 5 errors.  I'm proud of our team, that they didn't totally shut down after having the bad inning in the 5th that allowed two runs to score.  We also had some players come through with solid hits with runners in scoring position.  Emily had her best outing of the season tonight on the mound.  As I've said before, she's getting stronger and stronger with each outing...hopefully right in time for tournament play.”

Dixie Fastpitch Scores Big Against Ponitz

After splitting a doubleheader with Bethel (3-9; 13- 6) last weekend, Dixie wanted to get some momentum after their win in the second game. In the first game Dixie's Stacy Rader was 2 for 3 with a triple, and Jordan Buxton was 2 for 2. In the second game Courtney Hawk was 4 for 4 - scoring twice and stealing 2 bases. Abby Bertke was 4 for 4, scoring twice and driving in 2 runs. Both Shelby Shope and Julia Wilson were 2 for 4. Tori Bargo and Cassidy Shell split pitching duties in the win. Shelby Shope also had an impressive 7 putouts.

But they lost their first game of the week against Milton Union 7-2. Errors were a problem for the team, although Shelby Shope lead the way defensively with 5 putouts. Tori Bargo took the loss – although she only gave up a single earned run. Madison Buxton was half of the Dixie offense, hitting a single, stealing a base and finally crossing the plate. Julia Wilson scored the other Dixie run, reaching base on a double before scoring. Courtney Hawk was 2 for 2 from the plate. Julia Wilson had a double as did Katie Honeywell.

Dixie had a much bigger mountain to climb in their next game. Undefeated Preble Shawnee was the next matchup. They are undefeated thanks in part to their pitching ace - Hannah Belvo. But they are a balanced team – the hitting and defense are spot on as well. The Hounds were shut out and it was a no hitter to boot. They had a total of 10 strikeouts at the plate. Shawnee on the other hand were on the bases early and often – run ruling Dixie in a 15-0 thrashing. Errors were again a problem for Dixie with 8 miscues. Madison Buxton did get 5 put outs to lead the way on defense. Tori Bargo pitched almost the whole game with 2 earned runs. Stacy Rader completed the game allowing a single earned run.

Last game of the week was against Ponitz Career Technology Center. Having been frustrated all week, it was time for Dixie to dish it out instead of take it. Dixie took charge of the game early and decisively racking up some big innings to leap out to a huge lead. With the game being so lopsided, the Dixie bench got to see time on the field. Coach Perry saw that 18 players were able to make a varsity plate appearance. So it wasn't like the team kept the first squad in and ran up the score. The game was run ruled and was a much needed 23-5 victory for the Hounds.

Kelly Speak was a perfect 3 for 3 from the plate with a double. Ashley Rader was 2 for 4 including a triple. Judy Cronenwelt was 2 for 3 with a double. Marissa Overholtz was 2 for 3 as was Madison Buxton. The errors for Dixie were few and were made mostly in the last part of game with the bench. Ashley Rader had 5 put outs for the night. Tori Bargo pitched the first 3 innings to get the win – allowing only a single earned run. Stacy Radar got the other 2 innings on the mound and allowed 2 runs.

Dixie Baseball Back on Winning Track

The Dixie baseball team got back on the winning track this week against Milton Union. They allowed the Bulldogs 2 runs in the first inning, but went on from there to run rule for a victory. Scoring a total of 14 runs. Seth Angel dominated on the mound allowing a single earned run and recording 8 strikeouts. Josh VonBehren was an impressive 3 for 3 from the plate – one of those hits was double and he recorded 4 RBI's for his efforts. Luke Bowling and Greg Leonard were 3 for 4. Leonard had 2 doubles and a triple with 3 RBI's. Brody Queen and Dustin Bartrum were 2 for 3. Christian Evans was 2 for 4. From the field both Brody Queen and Greg Leonard had 6 put outs. The team only had a single error recorded in an excellent defensive showing.

The Greyhounds had to work a little harder and the ending a bit more dramatic when they next played Preble Shawnee. It was a scoreless ball game until the late innings as both teams played hard nosed defense. Shawnee was finally able to score a run in the 6^th inning to break the deadlock. That set up the last inning for the Greyhounds who were now down 0-1.

It was their last at bat and the first batter struck out, but the next hitter, Brody Queen, was able to reach base on an error. But with the tying run on first, the next batter struck out. Could Dixie do a 2 out rally and comeback for the win? Luke Bowling was hit by a pitch and reached first. With 2 runners on base Josh VanBehren made contact and reached base on a single. This loaded the bases for Greg Leonard; behind on the count at one ball and 2 strikes, he connected on the next pitch for a walk off double that scored two runs for Dixie – winning the game in exciting fashion.

Josh VanBehren lead the hitting going 3 for 3. Greg Leonard was 2 for 4, including the game winning double, he also lead the team defensively with 3 put outs. Seth Angel pitched 5 scoreless innings with 9 strikeouts. Luke Bowling finished the game on the mound and recorded the win, allowing 2 hits and a run.

Dixie closed out their week against Belmont. It was a 2-0 game at the end of the first inning, but after that the Greyhounds padded their baseball card stats by racking up 17 more unanswered runs. It was another run rule victory for Dixie. Seth Angel was 3 for 3 with 2 RBI's. Josh VanBehren was 2 for 2;

Jacob Campbell and Brody Queen were 2 for 2. Campbell also had 6 RBI's. Luke Bowling was 2 for 2 and had a 3 run home run. This hit was one for the record books as it was the first home run hit at the new Belmont Bison ball park.

Dexter Poole recorded the shutout win, only allowing a single hit. Aaron King had a good day defensively with 3 put outs. Dixie is now 5-6, but the two league wins this week will help them in the SWBL. Next week is a busy week and the schedule isn't any easier as they take on Waynesville, Franklin, Milton Union, and TVS.

TVS Fastpitch 2-0

Twin Valley South fastpitch got their season started on the right foot with a pair of wins to start the season.  But South was a little anxious as their pitching ace, Emily Froment, was recovering from a hip injury. Their first game was a rainout, giving her additional time to heal.  The team has done well with her on the mound.  And she has drawn the notice of the University of Dayton – who has given her a scholarship.  But they did not know how she would perform in the first few games – would it be a nagging injury that would keep her on the bench?  And South has limited numbers this season, so they can ill afford any injuries.

   

The 4 year starter was able to take the mound against Dixie, but only pitched the first 3 innings.  Dixie had a rough time making contact with the ball, and could not generate much offense against Froment.  She would get 7 strikeouts in her brief mound appearance.   South placed battery mate Katie Strazheim on the mound next.  She would pitch the next 4 innings and earn the win.  Strazheim had 6 strikeouts and only allowed one walk. 

South on the other hand, was able to get runners on base, but couldn’t cross the plate. At the end of 5 innings it was a 0-0 tie.  Dixie threatened in the top of the sixth, but good defensive play by South kept the runners from crossing the plate.  Now it was time for South to pick up their bats. Froment reached base first, then Strazheim also hit  a single.  South finally got on the board when Cayla Hartley cleared the bases with a double.  South went on to  load the bases and scored some insurance runs to break the game open.  South finished out strong and earned a 5-0 win.

Coach Robinson commented after the game, “I was a little frustrated with our hitting early on in the game.  We weren't making the adjustments that were necessary to get solid hits.  Finally in the 6th inning, we started keeping our weight back and waiting on the pitch to get to the plate, then exploded through the ball.  Of course, hitting is contagious, so once our first batters started being successful, everyone else started coming to the plate with more confidence.  That's when we were able to string together the hits necessary to score the runs.”

On Hartley, “Cayla had an exceptionally good game.  She turned a double play on a bunt attempt, by throwing the runner out going to third.  She also made a couple of tough tag plays on batters, one time preventing a run from scoring.  She also was the batter who drove in our first two runs of the 6th inning with a double.  She's been a great leader so far this year.”

Next up for South was the Brookville BlueDevils.  In this game, a healthy Froment pitched the distance – accumulating 14 strikeouts.  But as they did in their first game, South was slow to get their motor running on offense.  Brookville was able to bunt effectively and were able to score.  So South was playing from behind.   Strazheim did crush the ball with a solo home run shot in the second inning to put South on the board.  

But South had their best inning in the 5^th when Strazheim(who would be 3 for 3 at the plate) reached first on a single.  Then Leanne Johnson hit a double to score her.  The next batter, Angela Nushawg walked and a sacrifice fly by Kaylee Rivers scored Johnson while a single by Ali Robertson scored Nushawg. This inning was the difference in the game as South was able to earn a 6-4 victory.

Coach Robinson, “This was a great come-from-behind victory for us.  We've had some issues in our scrimmages with wanting to shut down when things weren't going well.  Tonight, we proved that we are capable of fighting through adversity and doing what it takes to win.  We started out slow tonight in every aspect of the game.  Mentally, we weren't sharp, and we were being impatient at the plate.  Once we settled in, we played with a lot more confidence and poise.  Brookville was a very good hitting team; they bunted well and forced us to come up with some good defensive plays.  I thought our girls responded well to the pressure.”

New Football Coach Takes Helm at Dixie

Coach Tarpley elected to step down as coach of Dixie football.  During his tenure, he has returned Dixie football to a measure of respectability.  Before 2010, Dixie had not had a winning football season since 1983. That changed with a 7-3 record that earned Tarpley coach of the year honors in Division 5. Implementing a spread offense and an aggressive defense, Dixie football improved under his watch.  Being the smallest school in the SWBL Buckeye division, the Hounds are a potential underdog in every league game.

So Dixie had some big shoes to fill in the off season.   This past week Sam Watson was selected to be the next head football coach at Dixie.  He is very familiar with the Miami Valley area having played his high school under Jay Niswonger at Valley View. He is very familiar with Dixie as he was assistant coach before moving up to head coach.  After graduation, he attended college at Otterbein where he was a 3 year starter. Returning from college, he went to Valley View this time as an assistant coach. 

A side note: Dixie is not the only local school filling an open head coach position.  Three time state Champion, Jay Niswonger is stepping down as football coach at Valley View.  He will be an offensive coordinator at Wilmington College.  I have heard that a replacement has been selected, but is waiting upon confirmation by the school board.

Coach Watson then left Valley View and went to Dixie where he was an assistant for coach Tarpley. So having been an assistant at Dixie he will have a good feel for the program and already knows the players.  That will give him a big head start as he prepares for his first year as head coach at Dixie. He is also on staff at Dixie so that gives him contact with the players on daily basis.

Having both played and coached under the spread offense I asked coach Watson what his plans were, “I am going to gear the offense towards the capabilities that our players have, the spread is certainly an option – but not the only one.  The same with the defense, we are going to gear that towards the strengths of our players. We will be aggressive, our defenses have always done that. ”

 About being the smallest school in the league, “Our kids know that, it’s nothing new and they are ready to accept that challenge.”

Coach Watson has already taken over the weight and conditioning program in December, “I’ve had good attendance. Every kid that is not in a winter or spring sport has been attending the weight room.  Then we have also had great attendance from kids who are doing another sport.  The activity level is high and they are all working hard in the weight room.”

Assistant Coaches, “We had one coach leave and go to West Carrollton, which is great for him.  And of course my slot is open – so we are looking to fill two positions.  We are evaluating the whole staff to see how we can optimize their abilities.”  

So look for some changes in Dixie football this coming fall. It will be advantage to have a coach that is already familiar with the league, the school, and the kids.  There will be some changes in philosophy and structure of the offense and defense.  But the amount of turmoil will be much less than if a totally new person was brought in from outside, so once the staff is set, it will be easier to for Coach Watson to introduce his brand of football to the Dixie Greyhounds.  Good Luck next fall!

Congrats to Tri Village girls on their state tournament run. For a number of years Miami East simply dominated the CCC. Their first few years in the league, they didn't lose a game.  But the Patriots responded to the upgrade in competition and have excelled. Linkous, a transfer from Arcanum, was key in their success.  But it takes a team to get to the state semi-finals. Coach Grey has done a good job in assembling and coaching a team to reach the highest levels of high school competition.  Congrats to him and the players for carrying the CCC banner deep into the playoffs.

Charlie Coles had a good run at Miami University. In his heyday he had a knack for finding that one blue chip recruit and building a team around him.  Ron Harper and  Wally Szcerbiak spring to mind.  He was almost always in the top half of the MAC. He had a good run. As of late he couldn't seem to land those top recruits and the program slipped. Hats off to a guy who made it to the sweet 16 - lots of college coaches have never sniffed that level of basketball. He will be remembered fondly by Miami Un. fans.


Watched UD play Iowa tonight. I don't think that the Flyers heart was really in the game.  Iowa played a 2-3 zone and UD gave up on the inside game and just chucked up 3 pointers.  Iowa seemed to play with intensity and desire, UD seemed to be just mailing it in.  The Iowa post player - can't remember his name, seemed to score and rebound at will.  Can't give up on the inside game and rely on the outside game. For the most part teams that control the paint will win the game.

Dixie’s season came to an end this weekend at the sectional final game in University of Dayton arena.  It capped off a 3 game tournament run with wins against NorthEastern and a game last Tuesday against Carlisle.  But Versailles, a perennial basketball powerhouse, overwhelmed Dixie on Friday night.  Still it was a successful season for the Greyhounds especially when you consider the adversity that the team had to overcome.

But first lets recap this past week.  Dixie played game two of the of state tournament on Tuesday against Carlisle.  It was the third matchup between the two league foes.  The first two games were split between the two teams, so this would be the rubber match for bragging rights for the season.  Dixie had lost their season opener against Carlisle, but rebounded for a win late in the season.

Carlisle used a full court man to man defense against Dixie.  But it was generally ineffective. Dixie got the lead and kept it for the game. They did run into some foul trouble as John Issacs and Mike Smiley had to go to the bench in the first half. But despite this, Dixie maintained the lead -  Carlisle was down by 5 at the half.

With Carlisle only down by 2 possessions,  Dixie needed some breathing room.  Mike Smiley and then Andrew Barnett quickly sunk three point shots coming out of the locker room and suddenly Dixie was on a roll. Carlisle took a time out to cool down the hot shooting of the Greyhounds, but they just kept the pressure on.   Carlisle did finish out the third quarter strong, but were still down by 10 entering the 4^th quarter.   About midway thru the last quarter Dixie took a time out and set up their end game strategy.  They executed a slowdown to perfection and went home with the victory.

Friday night the team played against battle tested Versailles.  When you don’t play in UD arena that often it can be intimidating.  You are playing on a college size floor in a huge arena, a lot different from the close confines of a high school gymnasium.   That was a factor and Versailles is just a physical, dominating team.  Dixie missed some inside shots early and then never did seem to get into much of a rhythm.  The team just seemed overwhelmed with it all and never did get into a rhythm on offense.

Dixie took some early timeouts to try and right the ship, but they couldn’t make much headway. Defensively they tried their trapping half court zone, but Versailles move the ball too well for Dixie to pull in many turnovers.  When the buzzer sounded for the last time, Dixie had an uncharacteristic double digit loss 63-36.  Still it was a good season overall for Dixie, despite losing one of their better players early in the season they overcame adversity and got to play in the sectional final.

“We’ve had the most success this year against teams that we were physically better than them, “stated coach Creamer after the game, “and we’ve struggled against teams that could match our athleticism.  Not only could they match us athletically, they took it to another level.  We don’t feel that it was our best effort, but we got beat by a much better team.”

On the season, “We were second place outright in the Buckeye Division, we were the only league school to knock [division champ] Waynesville off.  We won two tournament games for the first time in a number of years.  We have lots of things to be proud of. We would have liked to have finished better, but we can’t dwell on that.  We need to get back to the drawing board for next year so that advancing to the sectional final is the rule, not the exception.”

The seniors, “Having completed my second year at Dixie, this year’s seniors have had me for two years.  We have gone through a great maturing process together and they have shown the way for the young kids. They bought in to what we are trying to do. Their efforts are greatly appreciated.  We had times this season when we could have packed it in and our seniors did not let that happen.  We had issues internally and our seniors didn’t let things go South. I feel badly for them, you don’t want their last high school game to end the way that this one ended.  But they did a lot of great things to get us here.”

Dixie 16 versailles 39 halftime

fenwick 65 waynesville 51 ch 7 at game

dixie 27 carlisle 22 at half

Dixie Advances Over NorthEastern

Dixie Advances Over NorthEastern

Dixie and NorthEastern played a heated first round game in the state tournament.  It was a physical contest – by the end of the game both NorthEastern and Dixie had players fouling out.  The tone was set early on when Andrew Barnett caught an elbow to the face and went to the bench briefly in the first quarter.  Then later on in the first quarter Matt Isaacs was called for a technical foul for smacking the backboard.   The early accumulation of fouls would put Isaacs on the bench and change the makeup of the Dixie lineup.

NorthEastern played a man to man defense and would jump into a full court press at times to pressure the Dixie guards.  In the first half, seniors Andrew Barnett and John Isaacs lead the way for the Greyhounds.  Barnett had 10 first half points and Isaacs had 11.  Although Dixie was able to maintain a lead, they were not able to shake the Jets from their heels.  Dixie did do some half court trapping – but for most of the game they played in their familiar man to man defense.

Dixie took a 7 point lead (39-32) into the locker room.  At halftime NorthEastern made some adjustments and slowed down the pace of scoring for Barnett and Isaacs.  Dixie needed some points from somewhere.  Mike Smiley and 6^th man Landon Hicks provided the offensive energy that Dixie needed.  Hicks would score 9, and Smiley 8 critical second half points. 

Despite some poor ball handling in the 3^rd quarter Dixie maintained a 7 point lead – 50 to 43.  Both teams were playing stout - in your face defense and both teams were piling on the fouls.  John Isaacs got his 4^th foul as did Luke Bowling.  Then with 2 minutes left John Isaacs fouled  out.  But Dixie was ready for a guard heavy lineup anyway as they went into a slow down with a 10 point lead.   

But despite having their best ball handlers in the game, they gave the ball away to the NorthEastern press.  With less than a minute it was a 2 possession game – Dixie was only up by 6.  And the NorthEastern stands were re-energized, the fans for both teams were vocal as the Jets took a timeout to set up their final game plan.  But the double bonus was in effect – and Dixie hit some clutch free throws by Moore and Bowling to put the game away for a 70-62 win.

“I am glad that one is over”, stated coach Creamer afterwards, “Never did we talk about the significance of who we were playing and my history with NorthEastern[former head coach for 8 years] – this was about Dixie vs Northeastern,  not about me versus NorthEastern.  My kids found a way to gut one out – the name of game this time of year is survival, and we survived.”

He continued, “The beautiful thing about our personnel this year is that you just never know who is going to be the one to step up and be that offensive leader or that defensive leader. We can be very difficult to scout at times because we don’t have a ‘go to’ guy. All we have is a lot of guys with ‘want-to’”

Dixie will play Carlisle on Tuesday night, Feb. 28^th 8pm at Tecumseh High School. 

South Defeated by Indians

South Defeated by Indians

This season Twin Valley South has had difficulty finishing close games.  They have played toe to toe with some very good teams only to falter down the stretch.  Last weekend’s game against Carlisle was another close game against a good team. The Indians finished in 3^rd place of the SWBL Buckeye division in the regular season and were a 9th seed team playing against 8^th seed team Twin Valley South.  Record wise the two teams were evenly matched.  And that was the way the game was played  - a closely contested game by two tough teams.

Carlisle went on a 9-0 run to start the game and South took a 1^st quarter time out to sort things out.  Carlisle was playing a pressing man to man to defense that they would use the entire game.  After the time out, Troy Innis took matters into his own hands and went on a run of his own – scoring 8 points on his own.  Then Baker hit a shot to pull South ahead. But Carlisle would bounce back – finishing the first quarter up 15-11.

Carlisle’s aggressive style of defense was causing them to foul.  This sent South shooters to the line where they made their shots.  At half time South had the advantage 26-19.  This lead melted away quickly in the opening minutes of the 3^rd quarter.  South had been using a type of zone defense in the first half.  Now Carlisle had adjusted and was using the dribble drive to penetrate and score.   At the 5 minute mark South took a time out and went to man to man themselves.

This defensive change seemed to throw the Indians off guard, South now opened their lead again – actually leading by 9 points at one point.  But the Indians finished strong and it was a 38-35 game going into the last quarter.  South shooters  were cold at the beginning of the quarter and Carlisle wasn’t shooting the lights out, but they hit well enough to close the gap and pull ahead.  About midway through the quarter Carlisle was up by 5.

Both teams were playing aggressive man to man defense and both teams were in bonus by this time.  So a foul sent a shooter to the line. South went on a run and then briefly had the lead at about the 45 second mark, but a foul sent a Carlisle shooter to the line where he tied the game.   At this point, the wheels fell off the cart for South, two costly turnovers on back to back possessions were converted into points by Carlisle and they ran out of clock before they could mount one last comeback.  A frustrating end to an otherwise well played game by the Panthers.   Carlisle would advance to the next round 50-45.

But the team can look back on this season with pride and say that South is back.  The previous two seasons had been subpar and it was great to see South back in the top half of the CCC conference where the team has been traditionally.  And the future looks bright as well.  At times during this game, there were no seniors on the court for South – all underclassmen.  And two of those underclassmen were freshman.  So as this group grows and matures look for bigger and better things from Twin Valley South.

Coach Augspurger reflected on the season and was asked about the loss of Myers down the stretch and he noted that the team lost one of the best conference players in rebounds and in scoring,  “There is no doubt in my mind that with Myers our finishing record would have better and that we would be playing in the next round of the tournament. But you can’t look back, you can only go forward.”

 He was asked about the future, “We had two seasons with losing records and this team can look back and say that they changed that. With the loss of Myers our younger players had to play more, and this was an advantage for next year.  They got additional experience that they otherwise may not have gotten.  But the sophomores and freshmen have to continue to develop and get better – it showed down the stretch that they can play well but aren’t quite there yet.”

The seniors, “We have talked about Myers quite a bit, he has got to be the number one or number two player in the conference. Cole Cottingim had a good season, and I would have liked to have seen him play with better confidence. Michael Boggs came in as first year senior. When we talked in the preseason, I told that based on past experience that it never really worked out.  But he could stay on the roster. Well Michael Boggs proved me wrong, he had a great season coming off the bench – I wish that he was a junior, so that he could have developed even more.  Nick Gehring was good role player for us. He came off the bench and gave us good minutes every time we asked.”