The Scribe
03-23-2007, 02:08 AM
Sixth Region Baseball Preview
Pleasure Ridge Park is the odds-on favorite to repeat as Sixth Region champion after ending a four-year drought.
The Panthers (36-6) advanced to the state semifinals before falling to Ninth Region champion Beechwood.
With six starters returning, head coach Bill Miller’s Panthers again assume the favorite’s role and have earned a #2 preseason ranking by the state’s coaches.
Former Valley Station all-star Zach Osborne is beginning to dominate the high school landscape the same way he did in little league after batting .481 with 47 runs scored.
Junior Zack Cox (.413) had a nice first season at PRP after transferring in from Taylor County. He smacked 15 doubles and showed patience at the plate by drawing 28 walks.
Infielders Josh Vincent (.293) and Luke Bainer (.468) also return to set the plate for the Panther offense, while Chris Dowdle (4-1, 0.46 ERA), Cox (5-1, 1.67 ERA), and Wes Walden should see plenty of time on the mound.
DeSales (16-17) is another team with an abundance of young talent including all-everything Cory Crowdis and All-District performer Jordan Hines.
Butler (19-10) was the only other team in the region with as many as 19 wins, but the Bears lost to DeSales 2-1 in the first round of the region tournament.
Head coach Michael Bryant must replace several key players from last year’s team, although he should have enough to win the 23rd District again.
Doss (15-10) won the 22nd Region and advanced to the region title game before losing to PRP.
D’Juan Johnson and Josh Pile return to lead the Dragon offense for head coach Greg Lauder.
Johnson hit .535 last year in 101 at bats, to go with 48 RBIs.
Holy Cross (15-22) won the Sixth Region All-A title and advanced to the semifinals of the Sixth Region tourney before falling to Doss.
Mike Reese stepped down after five seasons, and Erik Phelps is the new head coach of the Cougars.
Seniors Brad Vance, Chris O'Bryan, Troy Pelle, and Cory Tackett were named to the all-district team last year and should solidify the Cougar offense this season.
Brian Wise inherits a North Bullitt team that was 18-14 last year but lost to Southern in the first round of the district tournament. After the season, coach Brent Childress left to take the Nelson County job.
Wise is hoping for another big season from Nathan Kulmer who hit .400 at the plate and won five games on the mound.
Junior Jesse Curry also returns to the mound after winning three games, and NBHS got a lift when shortstop Kyle Brown transferred from Doss and 6-foot-5 lefty Matt Terorde came to Kentucky from Minnesota. Wise expects both Brown and Terorde to add depth to the pitching staff that could also include senior Tony Vittitow.
Wise, an assistant coach at North Bullitt for 12 years, is not only excited about the players returning but also an upgrade in facilities that includes a new indoor hitting facility and new scoreboard.
Western (5-11) has a new coach in Jeff Norman, who is looking to turn around the baseball fortunes at the school.
“We have done lots of work on our facilities and worked hard to improve on the attitude that Western has towards its baseball program,” he said.
Josh Coates and Alejandro Valladarez return to the mound, while Daniel Hano and Ruben Sambrano return on the offensive side.
Sixth Region Rankings
1. Pleasure Ridge Park
2. DeSales
3. Butler
4. Doss
5. Holy Cross
6. North Bullitt
7. Western
8. Bullitt East
9. Southern
10. Fairdale
11. Bullitt Central
12. Central
13. Iroquois
14. Valley
15. Beth Haven
16. Portland Christian
17. Shawnee
18. Evangel Christian
Pleasure Ridge Park is the odds-on favorite to repeat as Sixth Region champion after ending a four-year drought.
The Panthers (36-6) advanced to the state semifinals before falling to Ninth Region champion Beechwood.
With six starters returning, head coach Bill Miller’s Panthers again assume the favorite’s role and have earned a #2 preseason ranking by the state’s coaches.
Former Valley Station all-star Zach Osborne is beginning to dominate the high school landscape the same way he did in little league after batting .481 with 47 runs scored.
Junior Zack Cox (.413) had a nice first season at PRP after transferring in from Taylor County. He smacked 15 doubles and showed patience at the plate by drawing 28 walks.
Infielders Josh Vincent (.293) and Luke Bainer (.468) also return to set the plate for the Panther offense, while Chris Dowdle (4-1, 0.46 ERA), Cox (5-1, 1.67 ERA), and Wes Walden should see plenty of time on the mound.
DeSales (16-17) is another team with an abundance of young talent including all-everything Cory Crowdis and All-District performer Jordan Hines.
Butler (19-10) was the only other team in the region with as many as 19 wins, but the Bears lost to DeSales 2-1 in the first round of the region tournament.
Head coach Michael Bryant must replace several key players from last year’s team, although he should have enough to win the 23rd District again.
Doss (15-10) won the 22nd Region and advanced to the region title game before losing to PRP.
D’Juan Johnson and Josh Pile return to lead the Dragon offense for head coach Greg Lauder.
Johnson hit .535 last year in 101 at bats, to go with 48 RBIs.
Holy Cross (15-22) won the Sixth Region All-A title and advanced to the semifinals of the Sixth Region tourney before falling to Doss.
Mike Reese stepped down after five seasons, and Erik Phelps is the new head coach of the Cougars.
Seniors Brad Vance, Chris O'Bryan, Troy Pelle, and Cory Tackett were named to the all-district team last year and should solidify the Cougar offense this season.
Brian Wise inherits a North Bullitt team that was 18-14 last year but lost to Southern in the first round of the district tournament. After the season, coach Brent Childress left to take the Nelson County job.
Wise is hoping for another big season from Nathan Kulmer who hit .400 at the plate and won five games on the mound.
Junior Jesse Curry also returns to the mound after winning three games, and NBHS got a lift when shortstop Kyle Brown transferred from Doss and 6-foot-5 lefty Matt Terorde came to Kentucky from Minnesota. Wise expects both Brown and Terorde to add depth to the pitching staff that could also include senior Tony Vittitow.
Wise, an assistant coach at North Bullitt for 12 years, is not only excited about the players returning but also an upgrade in facilities that includes a new indoor hitting facility and new scoreboard.
Western (5-11) has a new coach in Jeff Norman, who is looking to turn around the baseball fortunes at the school.
“We have done lots of work on our facilities and worked hard to improve on the attitude that Western has towards its baseball program,” he said.
Josh Coates and Alejandro Valladarez return to the mound, while Daniel Hano and Ruben Sambrano return on the offensive side.
Sixth Region Rankings
1. Pleasure Ridge Park
2. DeSales
3. Butler
4. Doss
5. Holy Cross
6. North Bullitt
7. Western
8. Bullitt East
9. Southern
10. Fairdale
11. Bullitt Central
12. Central
13. Iroquois
14. Valley
15. Beth Haven
16. Portland Christian
17. Shawnee
18. Evangel Christian