Merger changed dynamics of county sports scene
Published 10:40 pm Friday, December 6, 2019
<p>Carson Whitehead was a four-year starter at linebacker for Harlan County and helped lead the Bears to regional titles in 2010 and 2012. He still holds the record for most tackles at HCHS and ran for over 1,800 yards at running back.</p>
<p>Blair Green was an all-state guard for Harlan County’s 13th Region championship team in 2018 before moving on to the University of Kentucky where she was a key reserve as a freshman.</p>
<p>Jordan Brock led Harlan to a pair of 13th Region titles while earning all-state honors. Brock was an All-OVC selection as a member of the Tennessee Tech squad.</p>
<p>Ashley Overbay was a standout pitcher for Harlan and was also the team’s top hitter. She leads the Enterprise All-Decade Team for the 2010s.</p>
<p>Cameron Carmical led Harlan County to its first 13th Region Tournament title in 2017, earning all-state honors in the process. Carmical is now playing at Eastern Kentucky University.</p>
<p>A five-year starter at catcher for Harlan County, Tyler Boggs leads the all-decade baseball team. He was the Bears’ top hitter and top pitcher for several seasons and pitched a complete game when HCHS beat South Laurel in the regional semifinals in 2013.</p>
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High school sports in Harlan County changed like never before in 2008 when Cawood, Evarts and Cumberland high schools closed to form Harlan County High School. The emergence of HCHS as a relevant program in statewide circles in the 2010s was the biggest difference from the decade before when local programs struggled to compete as they had done through much of the 20th Century.
My fourth all-decade team will feature only two schools, unlike the past two decades when there were four teams. There were five teams from 1967 until Lynch closed in 1981.
Football may have been benefited more from consolidation than any other sport. The three teams involved in merger had won only one playoff game since Evarts won a regional title in 1990 with future Mr. Football Scott Russell leading the way.
Tom Larkey wasted very little time turning the Bears into a winner with a playoff win in each of the first two seasons. The Bears broke a 20-year drought between regional championships in the county with a run to a 5A regional title in 2010. HCHS lost in overtime in the 2011 regional finals before rolling to a second regional championship in 2012. The Bears lost to Damien Harris and Madison Southern in the 2013 semifinals but won four straight district titles from 2010 to 2013.
After a couple of down seasons, the Bears captured their third regional title in 2017 with an impressive postseason run following a 1-4 start, then won a fifth district title in 2018.
The Bears had more than their share of stars in the decade, led by linebackers Carson Whitehead and Jake Middleton. Marcus McMillian, Middleton and Whitehead were the program’s top running backs behind a strong and physical offensive front.
Harlan put up some big numbers on offense early in the decade with Ty Saragas under center and receivers/running backs like Vince Bianchi, Cody Logan and Dakota Morris and several others. Andrew Link was the Dragons’ top rusher during this decade and the previous one with over 3,000 yards on the ground. Harlan had its best season of the decade in 2015 with its first district title since 1999.
Local girls basketball teams had the biggest impact statewide with Harlan’s Jordan Brock and Harlan County’s Blair Green and Kaylea Gross all earning all-state honors. Harlan played in four straight regional championship games from 2014 to 2017 and won two regional titles. The Lady Dragons were also a regular in the All “A” Classic state tournament, finishing as runner-up during Brock’s senior year of 2017.
Harlan County played in four straight championship games from 2016 to 2019, winning a regional championship in 2018. The Lady Bears were in the regional finals seven times in the first 11 years of the program.
The Harlan County boys made a run to the regional finals in 2013, then broke through for a championship in 2017 with seniors Cameron Carmical, Treyce Spurlock and David Turner leading the Bears to Rupp Arena for the first time in program history and for the first time in the county since Cumberland in 2003.
Harlan County made a run at regional baseball supremacy midway through the decade as Tyler Boggs, James Bond and Connor Leisge led one of eastern Kentucky’s best pitching rotations. Boggs, a five-year starter at catcher and on the mound, threw a strong game in the regional semifinals in 2013 as HCHS upset South Laurel before falling in the finals to North Laurel. It was the closest any Harlan County team came to winning a regional title. The Bears won three of four district title from 2011 to 2014 with a lineup that featured Boggs behind the plate, Braxton Fields at shortstop with Bond roaming center.
The HCHS softball team dominated the 52nd District during the decade by winning eight of 10 district titles as Destinee Jenkins and Kacie Russell provided a strong 1-2 punch on the mound while athletes like Kaitlyn Stittums at shortstop, Farren Clark at third and Nikki Creech and Lainey Cox in the outfield gave the Lady Bears a strong defense and athleticism on offense. But while Harlan County dominated the district as a team, Harlan pitcher Ashley Overbay put up the most impressive numbers for an individual. Overbay posted a 43-20 record on the mound with a 1.94 earned run average. She struck out 624 while walking on 64. She was also Harlan’s best hitter with a .498 average in earning all-region honors. She led Harlan to its first trip to the 13th Region Tournament and a 14-8 record as a senior in 2018.
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Boys basketball
First team
G — Cameron Carmical, HCHS
G — Tyler Brewer, HCHS
G — Alex Sergent, HCHS
G — Treyce Spurlock, HCHS
C — Tyler Miller, HCHS
Second team
G — Andrew Creech, HCHS
G — Kyle Hogue, HCHS
G — Kilian Ledford, Harlan
F — Tyrese Simmons, HCHS
F — David Turner, HCHS
Third team
G — Noah Busroe, Harlan
G — Drew Nolan, HCHS
G — Alex Pace, HCHS
F — Aaron Caldwell, HCHS
C — Aaron Simpson, Harlan
Girls basketball
First team
G — Jordan Brock, Harlan
G — Blair Green, HCHS
G — Miranda Davenport, HCHS
F — Ashley Mullins, Harlan
C — Kaylea Gross, HCHS
Second team
G — Kaitlyn Stittums, HCHS
G — Brooklyn Massingill, Harlan
F — Emma Bianchi, Harlan
F — Mackenzie King, Harlan
C —Heather Maggard, HCHS
Third team
G — Whitney Gilliam, HCHS
G — Phebe McHargue, HCHS
G — K.K. Johnson, HCHS
G — Jourdan Ledford, Harlan
C — Sarah Evans, HCHS
First team
Football
Offense
T — Michael Smith, HCHS
T — Zach Caldwell, HCHS
G — Alex Haywood, HCHS
G — James Hill, Harlan
C — Will Banks, HCHS
QB — Ty Saragas, Harlan
WR — Tyrese Simmons, HCHS
TE — Aaron Caldwell, HCHS
RB — Marcus McMillian, HCHS
RB — Jake Middleton, HCHS
RB — Andrew Link, Harlan
K — Marcus Kelly, HCHS
Defense
E — Cole WIlson, HCHS
E — Jordan Calton, HCHS
T — Brian Owens, HCHS
T — Tucker Lewis, HCHS
LB — Carson Whitehead, HCHS
LB — Garry Henson, HCHS
LB — T.J. Green, HCHS
DB — Dakota Morris, Harlan
DB — Austin Maggard, HCHS
DB — Jordy Brewer, HCHS
DB — Devon Rodrigues, HCHS
P — Jordan Kelly, HCHS
Second team
Offense
T — Andrew Baker, HCHS
T — Austin Fee, Harlan
G — Travis Fields, HCHS
G — J.W. Cooper, HCHS
C — Jesse Hensley, HCHS
QB — Scotty Bailey, HCHS
WR — Vince Bianchi, Harlan
WR — Caleb Adkins, Harlan
RB — Dylan Cornett, HCHS
RB — Quintin Mickens, HCHS
RB — Cody Logan, Harlan
K — Boone Allison, Harlan
Defense
E — Dylon Smith, HCHS
E — Derek Akal, HCHS
L — Jeremiah Eldridge, HCHS
L — James Phillips, HCHS
L — Kainer Caudill, HCHS
LB — Caleb Carmical, HCHS
LB — Kenny Pennington, Harlan
LB — Dalton Overbay, Harlan
DB — Zach Chitwood HCHS
DB — Kilian Ledford, Harlan
DB — David Allen, Harlan
P — Eric Young, Harlan
Baseball
First team
P — Jared Sizemore, HCHS
C — Tyler Boggs, HCHS
1B — Connor Leisge, HCHS
2B — Caleb Hogue, Harlan
SS — Braxton Fields, HCHS
3B — Scotty Bailey, HCHS
OF — Sawyer Fields, HCHS
OF — Noah Busroe, Harlan
OF — James Bond, HCHS
DH — Ben Abraham, Harlan
Second team
P — Tyler Cornett, HCHS
C — Brendan Rutherford, HCHS
1B — Austin Wilson, Harlan
2B — Zach Doss, HCHS
SS — Will Varner, Harlan
3B — Tye Patrick, Harlan
OF — Ryan Cope, HCHS
OF — Benjamin Lewis, HCHS
OF — Andrew Dozier, HCHS
DH — Chance Brown, HCHS
Softball
First team
P — Destinee Jenkins, HCHS
C — Savanna Sergent, HCHS
1B — Kacie Rusell, HCHS
2B/P — Ashley Overbay, Harlan
SS — Kaitlyn Stittums, HCHS
3B — Farren Clark, HCHS
OF — Madison Noe, Harlan
OF — Nikki Creech, HCHS
OF — Lainey Cox, HCHS
DH — Hannah Johnson, HCHS
Second team
P — Katie Johnson, HCHS
C — Emily Long, HCHS
1B — Anna Karst, Harlan
2B — Madison Brewer, Harlan
SS — Jessie Johnson, HCHS
3B — Jourdan Ledford, Harlan
OF — Haley Blakley, HCHS
OF — Jesse Cochran, Harlan
OF — Alyssa Mills, Harlan
DH — Tia King, HCHS
