By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports activities reporter
The first day of preseason practice for Kentucky highschool basketball is Wednesday and the Cooper teams that gained girls and boys 9th Region championships last season can have new head coaches operating the present after they take the courtroom.
After the 2024-25 season ended, Cooper college officers didn’t renew boys head coach Tim Sullivan’s contract and put ladies head coach Justin Holthaus answerable for that program. A couple of weeks later, former school assistant coach Christian Prohaska was employed to switch Holthaus, who compiled a 128-30 file, gained 4 consecutive 9th Region championships and made it to the state match semifinals twice.
Prohaska has 4 returning starters on the Cooper ladies staff, together with level guard Addyson Brissey and swing participant Haylee Noel, who had team-high averages of 16.4 factors and seven.5 rebounds last season. In March, Noel was named to the state all-tournament staff after scoring 34 factors in a semifinal loss to Louisville Sacred Heart. It was the fourth highest level complete recorded by a 9th Region participant within the ladies state match.
The Cooper boys staff had 4 seniors in last season’s lineup who graduated. The different starter was Roman Combs, who transferred to Lakota West. That means Holthaus will probably be constructing his first staff round gamers with restricted varsity expertise.
Sullivan, who spent 17 years constructing the Cooper boys basketball program, will proceed his head teaching profession at St. Henry. He was employed to switch Dave Faust, who retired after setting a 9th Region file with 428 profession wins in 33 years with the Crusaders.
The different boys head coaches employed by native teams through the off-season are Tommy Sorrell at Bellevue and Dan Sullivan at Ludlow. Sorrell was head coach of the Bellevue ladies staff the last 17 seasons. Dan Sullivan was Ludlow’s head coach from 2018 to 2022 and ran the boys packages at Campbell County and Walton-Verona earlier in his profession.
The different new head coaches of ladies teams are Aaron Stamm at Brossart, George Stoll at Notre Dame, Justin Wade at Ludlow and Trevor Gould at Bellevue.
Stamm is essentially the most skilled head coach in that group. He spent the last three seasons because the boys head coach at Ludlow. Before that, he was ladies head coach at Ludlow from 2004-2010, ladies head coach at Conner from 2010-2019 and returned to Ludlow as the ladies head coach from 2019-2022.
Stoll is returning to 9th Region teaching after a seven-year absence. He was ladies head coach at Newport Central Catholic from 2012 to 2018 when his teams gained the 2014 9th Region championship and three 9th Region All “A” Classic titles in 2013, 2014 and 2016.
Brossart boys soccer staff returns to tenth Region title match
Brossart will play within the championship closing of the tenth Region boys soccer match for the fourth consecutive 12 months after defeating Mason County, 5-0, in a semifinal match on Tuesday at Montgomery County High School.
Max Runge scored twice for the Mustangs (15-7-1) and teammates Luke Neltner, Austen Combs and Jorge DelCastillo every had one purpose. Neltner additionally has two assists within the victory whereas goalkeeper Luke DAlessandro was credited with 12 saves within the shutout.
Montgomery County (13-6-2) knocked off defending area champion Campbell County, 1-0, in Tuesday’s different semifinal. The winner of the Brossart vs. Montgomery County title match at 6:30 p.m. Thursday will advance to the state match.
Brossart defeated Montgomery County, 5-0, in an everyday season match on Oct. 2. Three years in the past, Montgomery County defeated Brossart, 5-0, within the 2022 area closing. The Mustangs gained the 2023 area match and misplaced to Campbell County in last 12 months’s closing.
The semifinal matchups within the 9th Region ladies soccer match will probably be Notre Dame vs. Conner at 5:30 p.m. and Dixie Heights vs. Highlands at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at St. Henry High School.
In Tuesday’s first-round matches, Conner received previous Newport Central Catholic, 2-1, in time beyond regulation, Notre Dame smoked St. Henry, 7-0, and Highlands defeated Cooper, 2-0, with Gabby Simons and Araiana Harms getting targets for the Bluebirds.
9th REGION BOYS AT HOLMES
Wednesday
Newport Central Catholic vs. Covington Catholic, 5:30 p.m.
Highlands vs. Conner, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday
Championship match, 5:30 p.m.
tenth REGION BOYS AT MONTGOMERY COUNTY
Thursday
Championship match: Brossart vs. Montgomery County, 6:30 p.m.
eighth REGION BOYS AT CARROLL COUNTY
Wednesday
Woodford County vs. North Oldham, 6 p.m.
Simon Kenton vs. South Oldham, 8 p.m.
Saturday
Championship match, 1 p.m.
9th REGION GIRLS AT ST. HENRY
Thursday
Notre Dame vs. Conner, 5:30 p.m.
Dixie Heights vs. Highlands, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday
Championship match, 2 p.m.
tenth REGION GIRLS AT HARRISON COUNTY
Wednesday
Brossart vs. Montgomery County, 5:30 p.m.
Campbell County vs. Bourbon County, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday
Championship match, 7 p.m.
eighth REGION GIRLS AT CARROLL COUNTY
Thursday
Grant County vs. South Oldham, 6 p.m.
Simon Kenton vs. Woodford County, 8 p.m.
Saturday
Championship match, 3 p.m.