Edmonson Voice Report:
Edmonson County High School 8th grader Brayden Johnson has advanced to the Region 3 Tennis Semi finals after defeating Owensboro Catholic’s Matthew Hyland: 6-1, 6-0.

He has qualified to be one of the top four competitors in the region, which qualifies him for state competition.

Edmonson Voice Report:
Nine members of the Edmonson County Wildcat and Lady Cat tennis team competed in the region tournament last night, two of which have advanced to the quarter finals, 8th grader Brayden Johnson and junior Kaylee Lindsey.

Johnson defeated Apollo's Maddox Tucker with a 6-0, 6-0 win. Lindsey defeated Ohio County's Skyla Ross with a 6-2, 6-2 win. Both students earned a bye in the first round of their matches, and they will both play in the quarter finals of the 3rd region tournament tonight in Owensboro.

"I am very proud of Cooper, Ethan, Madison Atkins, Madison Bullock, Sierra, Chaney, and Sydney. They played their last match of the season at region tonight," said Head Coach Jodi Johnson. "Congratulations to Brayden and Kaylee for their big wins tonight and for making it to the quarter finals."

Edmonson Voice Sports:
The Edmonson County Wildcat and Lady Cat Tennis Team is preparing for Monday's regional tournament at Moreland Park in Owensboro.

Edmonson County 8th grader Brayden Johnson, earned the overall boys' 3 seed in the upcoming tournament.

In addition, several others players qualified to compete at the regional level, which include the following:

• Kaylee Lindsey & Madison Bullock will participate in girls' singles.
• Madison Atkins/Sierra Decker in girls' doubles.
• Chaney Browning/Sydney Hennion in girls' doubles.
• Cooper Clark/Ethan Edwards in boys' doubles.

Darren Doyle, story and photo:
The Edmonson County Wildcats are the District 12 Champions for the second year in a row after shutting out the Whitesville-Trinity Raiders tonight 9-0 at Wildcat Field.

The Cats were led by senior Gavyn Minyard, who not only dominated on the mound, but was also 3-3 at the plate with 3 RBIs, along with a homerun and two doubles. Minyard pitched the complete game shutout, giving up no runs, no walks, while he struck out 7. Head Coach Michael Meredith discussed Minyard's performance.

"Gavyn was absolutely dominant on the mound tonight," he said. "When he's pitching like that and allowing only a few base runners the whole night, we know we're going to be in a good position to win."

It was early offense again tonight as Minyard doubled in the first inning. After a flyout, junior Andrew Talley blasted his second homerun in as many games and the Cats were on the board, 2-0.

Other than one hit batsman, Minyard cruised throughout the night. The Raiders committed 7 errors and the Cats made them pay. Edmonson County put up 11 hits for the second night in a row.

"This was a total team effort from all our players," Coach Meredith said. "We had kids diving for balls, bunting, taking pitches, whatever was needed to get this win. All the credit goes to these kids for the work they've put in. We lost 9 seniors from last year and we knew we'd have to rebuild. But our kids have played their hearts out. They've bought in to what we as coaches wanted to do. Our assistant coaches are guys with excellent baseball knowledge and they've done a phenomenal job. They're not just 'yes-men,' they challenge me at times when they see something I don't. I know people probably were down on us when we lost the first couple games of the season, but I knew we could compete. When we beat Hancock County in the middle of the season, I knew we could compete with good teams."

Talley was 2-4 on the night along with Hunter Wilson. Michael Mills went 2-3, Cole Saling was 1-3, and Daren Alexander went 1-4.

"Our kids played a lot of small-ball this year, too," said Coach Meredith. "Sometimes it's not very exciting to bunt or steal, but our kids have done what we've asked them to do all year. They've worked their behinds off, that's for sure."

Meredith also credited the boosters for their hard work.

"They've worked and worked to raise money to get us new uniforms, we've been able to make some field improvements, and I can't say enough about them. They've been great."

Minyard has been amongst the top hitters in the state throughout the season, being number one for a short amount of time. He is currently number 4 on the state list for batting average, at .597.

"I knew he was always in the top 4 or 5 it seemed like, but I know I wouldn't trade him for any other batter in the state," said Meredith. "He's put the work in all year long. He's the one you see putting an extra 30 minutes in the cage or working at it on his own time."

Edmonson County is now 17-12 on the season and will play in the upcoming region tournament with a schedule to be announced.

Edmonson County's Lady Cat softball team fell 3-1 at Butler County tonight in the first round of the district tournament. They end their season with a record of 11-16.

Darren Doyle, story:
The Wildcat offense showed up early in the first game of the District 12 Tournament, against the Grayson County Cougars in a 12-2, run-ruled win, hosted at Wildcat Field. Edmonson County set the tone early, as they put up 5 runs in the first inning, fueled by a three-run bomb by junior Andrew Talley.

In addition to Talley, senior Cole Saling started with a lead off single, followed by an off-the-wall double by senior Gavyn Minyard. The offense continued with a single by junior Daren Alexander, a double by sophomore John Michael Meredith, a single by senior Clay Clemmons, and another single in the same inning by Saling. The Wildcats brought 11 batters to the plate in the first.

"We came out really focused," said Head Coach Michael Meredith. "When you come out like we did last night, it makes a difference. We were as focused as we've been all year."

On the mound for the Cats, eighth-grader Hunter Wilson gave up only two runs on 7 hits while striking out 5 and walking none.

"Hunter controlled the game from the mound," said Coach Meredith. "Yes, he gave up 7 hits, but he didn't walk anybody and he stayed in control. We had some errors, but I guess you could say they came at good times because they didn't seem to hurt us."

Meredith said last night was the real pressure game, not necessarily the championship game tonight, where the Cats have a chance to win back-to-back district titles. They will face Whitesville-Trinity, who upset Butler County last night, 8-5.

"Winning last night lets a little pressure off. Not because tonight will be easy, but winning last night allows us to go to the region. We know we still have more baseball to play. We're going to try to go out there tonight with nothing to lose. We've got some guys that have experience in these big-game situations, and if we can be as focused as we were last night, we can compete. Trinity always plays well in the district tournament. Them beating Butler County last night was no fluke. They're a tough out and they'll be ready to play. We have to show up focused and ready to beat them."

Edmonson County has defeated Trinity 15-1 and 8-4 in their two previous match ups this season.

Talley led the Cats on the offense, going 4-4 with 7 RBIs. Meredith was 2-3, Sailing was 2-4, while Minyard was 1-2, Alexander went 1-3, and Clemmons was 1-4.

Edmonson County will face Trinity tonight at home for the 2022 District 12 Championship at 6PM.

The Lady Cat softball team will play in the first round tonight against Butler County in the girls' district tournament, which will be hosted at Butler County.

Madison Doyle, story and photo:
Former Wildcat Baseball Head Coach Bo West was honored before tonight's game against Caverna at Wildcat Field. He was gifted a special bat by the Wildcat Boosters as he was recognized for his years of hard work as a coach for the baseball program.

West started his coaching career at Edmonson County in 2009 as an assistant, but took on the role of head coach in 2010 where he remained until 2021. Coach West had a record of 162 wins and 159 losses during his career, securing two district runner-up titles, and also the first district title (2021) for the Wildcat since 1988.

Wildcat Baseball Booster President Stewart Lich said "Coach Bo poured hundreds of hours of work into the Wildcat Baseball program over the years. It was an easy decision to honor his legacy at the last regular game this season. We all want to thank him and his wife Meredith for everything they have done on and off the field over the years."

Coach West expressed his gratitude for the players, their parents, and the community. "I truly miss all those past and present kids, and I appreciate their hard work," he said. "I have so many relationships I have made here over the years that will last a lifetime, and I am eternally grateful for that. Thank you to all my former players, current players, and their parents for treating me so well over the years. I love you all."

Madison Doyle, story and photos:
Four seniors were honored tonight after the Lady Cat softball team defeated Caverna at home 10-0, which were Hallie Cassady, Taylor Minyard, Alexa Henderson, and Skylar Hawks.

The Lady Cats are scheduled to take on Glasgow tomorrow at home at 5:30 pm.

Madison Doyle story and photos:
Last night three Wildcat baseball seniors were honored before last their match-up against Hart County, which were Clay Clemmons, Cole Saling, and Gavyn Minyard.

The Wildcats fell to the Raiders, 18-14.

Edmonson County is now 13-10 on the season and is scheduled to take on Caverna on Monday night for the final home game of the year at Wildcat Field.

Darren Doyle, story and photos:
Two Edmonson County athletes are among the best in the state, one of which sits atop the list for batting average.

Senior Gavyn Minyard, a pitcher and infielder for the Edmonson County Wildcats is currently the state leader for batting average in the 2022 season with an astounding .619.

In addition, he is also on the list for number of hits this season, ranked #18 with a total of 39 base hits with 69 at-bats.

Minyard also leads the Wildcats in several team categories in addition to average, with 9 total extra-base hits, (3 HR, 2 triples, 4 doubles), RBIs (28) and stolen bases (14).

Lady Cat senior Alexa Henderson is currently #11 in the state for season homeruns with 9. She surpassed Paige Carnes' record of 12 career homeruns (2014) earlier this season and is currently the school leader with a total number of 18 for her high school career. It's also important to note that she has accomplished this in only a season-and-a-half.

With one more HR, she will also hold the record for most homeruns in a single season, exclusively. She is currently tied with Carnes who hit 9 in 2013, according to available school records.

She is only the third Lady Cat in school history to hit two homeruns in the same game, and has achieved this multiple times. In addition, she is also one of five players in team history to achieve a grand slam.

Yes, you read that correctly--the Wildcats defeated Caverna last night 26-0 in three innings.

The Colonels were simply out-matched by the Cats last night as Caverna struggled on both offense and defense. The Wildcats put up 14 hits and only one error while Caverna managed only 2 hits while committing 3 errors.

Caverna's pitcher earned 6 hit batsmen, 7 multiple wild pitches, and 10 walks. When he was throwing strikes, the Wildcats made him pay.

Edmonson County put up 7 extra base hits, including triples from Hunter Wilson and Gavyn Minyard, and doubles from also Wilson, Minyard, and Andrew Talley, Cole Baxter, and John Michael Meredith.

Edmonson County is 13-9 on the season and is scheduled to take on Hart County on Thursday, which will be senior night for the Wildcats.

Lady Cats 1, Metcalfe 4

The Lady Cats fell to Metcalfe County last night as Edmonson County failed to get the bats going, accomplishing only 3 base hits for the game.

Julie Norris pitched the complete game, giving up 3 earned runs on 9 hits. She struck out 6 and walked 3.

The Lady Cats are now 8-13 on the season and are scheduled to take on Hart County at home on Friday. The WildcatsLive crew has planned to stream the game live on the Edmonson Voice.

Darren Doyle, story and photos:
Edmonson County won their third district game of the season last night at James "Woody" Woodcock Field at ECHS against the Grayson County Lady Cougars, 6-3.

Freshman pitcher Julie Norris pitched a complete game for the Lady Cats, giving up 3 earned runs on 5 hits, 5 strikeouts, and no walks.

Senior Alexa Henderson, who went 3-4 with a double and two singles, knocked in a couple of runs to get numbers on the board first for the Lady Cats as they led 2-0 after one.

Three singles by the Lady Cats in the second inning helped their cause, along with a Grayson County error, and they were able to take a 5-0 lead going into the third.

After a Lady Cougar was hit by a pitch, she scored on a double two batters later. Grayson County was able to put a couple more up on the board in the 5th but it wasn't enough as the Lady Cats held on for the win.

In addition to Henderson's offense, senior Hallie Cassady went 2-3, and Annie Kiper, Taylor Minyard, Makayla Hogg, Skylar Hawks, and Rayleigh Moon each notched singles against the Lady Cougars.

Edmonson County is now 8-12 on the season and 3-3 in district play. They are scheduled to take on Metcalfe County tonight at 5:30 at home.