Follow the link below for the 2015 golf season tryout schedule. There will also be a parent/player meeting on July 29th in the multipurpose room (first floor long hallway towards the end on the left). Tryout Schedule

By: The River City News

Staff report/Photo: Covington Catholic students with Scott McKinley

A new endowment has been established at Covington Catholic High School to benefit the school's new STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) program.

The endowment was established in the name of Greg Keller, a 1980 graduate of Covington Catholic. Scott McKinley started the endowment in honor of Keller, his lifelong friend and fellow allumnus, who passed away in August of 2000 after a three-year battle with Hodgkin's disease.

"In my opinion, the STEM program is the most important new academic discipline that the school has ever sponsored. It will expand the career horizons of every young man in the program," said McKinley. "I hope this endowment will help draw publicity about the program, garnering it more financial support, but also attracting bright students from around the area."

At Covington Catholic, Keller was a member of the National Honor Society and a Second Team All-State linebacker for the football team. He attended Northern Kentucky University while working at St. Elizabeth as a phlebotomist. He did graduate work at the University of Illinois on a teaching fellowship, earning an Master's degree in biology based on research of the effects of heparin-binding proteins. Later, he also received an MBA and worked as a quality control manager for Coca-Cola, La Croix and Precision Packaging.

"Greg Keller emulated the essence of the program before the term STEM ever existed." said McKinley.

We invite you watch this video showing the impact these students and faculty leave behind.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4Aw8BM9dxo

By: River City News ( CovCath press release)

Covington Catholic Athletic Director Mike Guidugli has transitioned his leadership of the athletic department to Tony Bacigalupo, according to a press release issued by the school on Thursday morning. In Guidugli's 28 years as athletic director, Covington Catholic won 10 state championships, 21 state runner-up titles, and 130 regional titles.

During the 2014-15 school year, 66% of students participated in KHSAA-sanctioned sports programs at CCH. While Guidugli has stepped down as athletic director, he will remain on staff at CCH as Assistant Principal, Dean of Students, and Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds.

Guidugli began his career in the Diocese of Covington 45 years ago as a teacher at Bishop Brossart before starting as a full-time English teacher at Covington Catholic in 1985. In 1987, he became athletic director and continued to teach part-time until 1992 when he assumed the Assistant Principal position while continuing in his role as athletic director. He has also long-served as the Dean of Students and the Buildings and Grounds Supervisor. In addition to his administrative duties he has been a head coach in track and field, swimming and diving, and an assistant coach in cross-country. He received a B.A. in Education and Secondary Administration from Xavier University in 1975.

Bacigalupo has assumed the athletic director role from Guidugli. Bacigalupo joined the CCH faculty in the fall of 2013 after a nine-year career in sales for Total Quality Logistics. He has been Assistant Varsity Basketball Coach for the Colonels for four seasons. With 14 years of coaching overall, he received the NKAC Coach of the Year award in 2007. He has B.A. degrees in Business Administration and Economics and an A.A. in Accountancy from Thomas More College (2004) and a Masters of Art – Teaching from the University of the Cumberlands (2013).

"Mike Guidugli is part of the fabric of CovCath. He consistently led our athletic programs to prominence, while exhibiting strong values of faith and sportsmanship both on and off the field," said Covington Catholic Principal Bob Rowe. "His tenure, impact and results across our athletic programs are unsurpassed. Mike cultivated a reputation of integrity and respect with the KHSAA and his peers. He built a proud tradition and foundation that Tony Bacigalupo will very ably assume. We are so proud of our past, and equally excited about our future. Go Colonels!"

By: NKY.com online sports.

Congratulations to the 4 Colonels who were selected to the All-Northern Kentucky Baseball Team.

Click the link to view a video trailer detailing the 2015 Europe Trip! Click Here.

A special thanks to Mrs. Julie Stengle for organizing the trip and Mr. Dan Schlipf for being a parent chaperone.

Students that Attended the Trip:

Dan Foster

Tyler Boehmer

Jordan Tuemler

Nick Jacobs

Zach Rohling

Ben Schlipf

By: Cincinnati.com

Northern Kentucky All- Stars

Track and Field

100–Jake Erpenbeck, Covington Catholic, and Alex Veneman, Highlands: The two senior rivals went at it all season, with Erpenbeck (area best 10.80) finishing second at state in the Class 2A meet in a photo finish and Veneman finishing fifth. Erpenbeck edged Veneman by 0.04 seconds to win the regional title

200–Jake Erpenbeck, Covington Catholic, and Alex Veneman, Highlands: As in the 100, the seniors were state title contenders. Erpenbeck ran in 22.13 seconds at state to finish second, edging Veneman (22.20) in third. Veneman was regional champion.

4x100–Covington Catholic: The group of seniors Logan McDowell, Jake Erpenbeck and Lee McClure; and sophomore Henry Toebbe won the 2A state title in an area-best 43.33 seconds.

Shot put–Branden Johnson, Dixie Heights and Michael Schulte, Covington Catholic: The Dixie senior was sixth in the 3A state meet with an area-best 49 feet, 9.75 inches and also regional champion. The CovCath junior was second at 2A, just behind Johnson's throw at 49-6.

Discus–Luke Foertsch, Covington Catholic: The senior won the 2A state championship in an area-best 15-2 feet, 2 inches

Pole vault–Andrew Beiersdorfer, Covington Catholic: The senior placed sixth in the 2A state meet with an area-best 12 feet and was regional champ.

2nd Team

110 hurdles–Nick Jacobs, Covington Catholic: The junior was fourth in the 2A state meet in 15.53 seconds and second in the region.

Honorable Mention

Covington Catholic: Ben Boydston (high jump), Jared Flood (4x800), Grant Guenther (3,200, 4x800), Andy Kuykendall (triple jump), Logan McDowell (long jump), Harrison Sommerkamp (pole vault), Ben Thieman (800, 4x800), Thomas Ziegler (4x800)

Tennis

Player of the Year: Austin Hussey, Covington Catholic - The senior won his fourth-straight Ninth Region singles title and advanced to the state semifinals. He ended his career with one state championship and one runner-up finish, and he will play in college for the University of Kentucky.

Coach of the Year: Al Hertsenberg, Covington Catholic - He guided the Colonels to their 14th straight regional title and a state runner-up finish in the team tournament.\

First team

Austin Hussey, Covington Catholic: The senior won his fourth-straight Ninth Region singles title and advanced to the state semifinals. He ended his career with one state championship and one runner-up finish, and will play for the University of Kentucky.

Max Cook, Covington Catholic: The freshman was Ninth Region runner-up to Hussey and advanced to his first state tournament where he won one match and lost in the round of 32.

Anthony Bosch/Blake Heimbrock, Covington Catholic: The sophomore Bosch and his junior teammate won the Ninth Region championship and advanced to state, losing in the first round.

2nd Team

Jake Haught/Jared Haught, Covington Catholic: Junior Jake and sophomore brother Jared were regional runner-up to their Colonel teammates but lasted longer than any Northern Kentucky boys doubles team at state, advancing to the round of 16.

Honorable Mention

Singles: Grant Woodcock, CovCath.

By: James Weber, jweber@communitypress.com

(Photo: Thanks to Ken Williamson)

The Pan-American Games are considered a major stepping stone to the Summer Olympics.

Although his performance in the tuneup gave him a boost to his hopes for the 2016 Olympic Games, Max Williamson is focused on more immediate goals.

Williamson, the 2013 Covington Catholic High School graduate and incoming Stanford University junior, won a bronze medal in the 400 individual medley during the Pan-Am Games swimming competition mid-July in Toronto. The race uses all four of the major competitive strokes in the sport.

"The biggest thing I took away was the power of the whole Team USA attitude of the Games, the different feeling of representing your country and not just your team," he said. "It's totally different when everyone has flags on their suits and goggles."

Williamson had the fastest time in the field in the preliminary heats and had a strong race to medal in the finals.

"My goal was to medal and it was a high goal," he said. "When I was the No. 1 seed after prelims, I was shocked and excited and pumped up for finals. The finals were a tough race, there was a lot of good guys, some tough Olympians and I fought through it."

Williamson had his family there with him.

"We were all there," said his father, Ken Williamson. "My mom and dad were there and we had a whole cheering section. It was amazing. It was a lot of fun."

The former Covington Catholic standout graduated with seven state championships, two in relays and five in four different solo events. He still has the state record in the 200-yard freestyle and 200-yard individual medley. Williamson considers himself a stronger finisher than starter and wants to work on his early speed.

"I have a strategy in that race (the 400 IM), and that is coming hard in the back half. In the finals that strategy was tested because I was against guys older than me with great front-half speed. I was in last place after 100 and one place away from last after the 200," he said. "The last 200 I gained a lot and passed people. I just trust the training that I've done and I get confidence from that."

Williamson will next compete at the U.S. Nationals in San Antonio in August, contesting five different events.

"I want to win. The top layer will be more shallow because some of the guys will be at the world championships," he said. "Some of the guys who normally get third or fourth could get first and I want to be one of those guys. The Pan-Am was my biggest meet of the year so I can go into this and not have as much stress and expectations."

After that will be college season at Stanford, one of the nation's top swimming powers. Only next spring can he focus on preparing for the Olympic Trials and earning a trip to Brazil.

"I've had a lot of success taking things a step at a time," he said. "I'm focused on now, and then the collegiate season, getting faster on the front end. And after NCAAs all my sights will be set on the Olympics. There's a lot of good in doing what got you here, and that's getting better at technique. Making it better."

Williamson returned to California shortly after his Pan-Am race but got to enjoy a little bit of the Canadian scenery.

"You're pretty much in the athlete village all the time and that was pretty cool," he said. "All these people are at the top of their sports and that's the most intense and motivated group I've ever been around. It was cool to see how different people succeed in different sports."

Follow James Weber on Twitter, @JWeberSports

By:Melissa Stewart, mstewart@communitypress.com (Cincinnati.com)

(Photo: Melissa Stewart/The Community Recorder)

COVINGTON – On a cool summer Wednesday morning, Collin Brungs and Max Keith are outside of John G. Carlisle Elementary School tossing water balloons onto a multicolored tarp.

Surrounding and holding tightly to the tarp is a group of elementary students. They giggle as they work with Brungs and Keith to balance the water balloon on the tarp, attempting to toss it from one side to the other without it hitting the ground.

Flop. Splash. This water balloon may have hit the ground, but the spirits of Brungs, Keith, and the students are high. They're spending time together, having fun and learning.

Brungs, 13, and Keith, 14, are incoming freshmen of Covington Catholic High School (CovCath). They've been spending the week at Carlisle Elementary volunteering through CovCath's new partnership with Covington Partners. Covington Partners is a nonprofit organization of the Covington Independent Public School District.

"It's been a lot of fun," Brungs said. "You get to interact with the kids and have a great time. You have fun with them and help them out when they need it."

Many CovCath students are volunteering with Covington Partners this summer as classroom and field trip assistants in their summer program. The program offers enrichment and fun activities, as well as field trips to Covington students.

"Summer learning programs like ours are important for two reasons," Covington Partners resource development coordinator Tom Haggard said. "One, our students get to keep practicing their reading and math skills over the summer. By staying in the habit of reading and practicing math facts, our students are able to stay on pace with their peers and not fall behind academically. Second, the summer is a fun and engaging time where students get to build positive relationships with teachers and school staff."

Young students are also building positive relationships with older students as well, he said. That has certainly been the case with the CovCath students.

"The students have been very helpful," Haggard said. "They've built relationships with our students and they've been great role models."

This partnership with Covington Partners is one way CovCath is fulfilling its mission through its community service program, CovCath director of business operations and marketing Jill Franxman said. Students donate about 19,000 hours of their time and talents in a given year.

"Our mission is to educate our young men spiritually, academically, physically and socially," Franxman said. "We hope to build leaders for our community and more importantly, teach them to become leaders who give back."

Franxman said the partnership with Covington Partners is a win-win for all those involved.

"We're helping our home community while providing our students with important leadership service where they can both be role models as well as learn some things themselves from the experience," she said.

By: River City News ( CCH press release)

The Covington Catholic Colonels will open the 2015 season with a "throwback" football game on Friday, August 21, with kickoff scheduled for 5:30 pm. It is "throwback" in the sense that Friday afternoon games were the norm decades ago, but CovCath home games were later moved to Saturday afternoons. Early evening or afternoons have been the only options for a stadium without permanent lighting.

On this Friday after school opens, the focus will be on celebrating the tremendous growth and success Covington Catholic has had in the past several years. With enrollment now over 600 students, CovCath has had many recent successes across its mission of "educating young men spiritually, academically, physically and socially."

With a new head football coach, a new turf field made possible with significant funding from the NFL Foundation Grassroots Grant and plans to further renovate the stadium's infrastructure, the school is excited to invite alumni and the community to join in the kickoff to the new season.

All CovCath alumni - especially football alumni, including former coaches and assistant coaches - are invited to attend the game and a reception to follow in the school's gym. Since CovCath football began in 1967, approximately 1,000 graduates have played on the team. Alums are encouraged to wear their old "throwback" gear

By: Chris Mayhew, cmayhew@communitypress.com (Cincinnati.com)

(Photo: Chris Mayhew/The Community Recorder)

PARK HILLS – Covington Catholic High School will field a new logo unifying its sports teams and education branding with the sign of the cross.

CovCath, Northern Kentucky's only all-male Catholic high school, will unveil a new athletic turf with the school's new cross inset into a "C" logo at mid-field during a 5:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 21, "throwback" football game vs. Ryle High School. A set of soccer "throwback" games will be Aug. 22 with a 5 p.m. junior varsity game and 6:30 p.m. varsity game each against Trinity High School in Louisville.

Established in Covington in 1925, CovCath has been in Park Hills since 1954. The school draws students from 21 ZIP codes from counties including Boone, Campbell, Kenton in Kentucky and Hamilton in Ohio.

"I think it's going to encourage us and definitely bring a lot more energy into the program," said senior football player Cameron Pitzer, of Villa Hills, of the new field and logo.

The school's colonel logo, dressed in royal blue and white, is getting a makeover and will also be unveiled with the main "C" and cross logo Aug. 21.

A throwback game is a chance to see the new turf field paid for with $230,000 of the $653,000 cost paid from an NFL Foundation Grassroots Grant, Principal Bob Rowe said.

People are invited to watch a video and hear guest speakers about the school's past successes and future plans after the Aug. 21 football game, Rowe said.

Track, soccer, football and lacrosse teams will all use the field, Rowe said.

Creating a new logo replaces various other logos each different sports team had including one featuring a basketball net. The new C logo took the same cross used on the school's official seal, Rowe said.

"The most important part that we wanted to make sure that was prominent was our Catholic identity," he said.

A trend for area high schools and middle schools, including Highlands Middle School in Fort Thomas, is to create a school-wide logo and brand, said Jill Franxman, CovCath's director of business operations and marketing.

"We're going to share a brand standards document, so just like Procter & Gamble and Disney and Apple have long perfected if you will, and many schools are headed in the same direction," Franxman said.

Up is the direction of CovCath's enrollment within the last five years, she said.

CovCath's enrollment has increased 25 percent in five years from 485 students to 610 students starting classes Aug. 17, Franxman said.

And at 173 students, this year's freshman class is the biggest since 1972, she said. Last year's freshman class had 162 students.

Rowe said he credits CovCath's "product" for enrollment growth.

"You look at our spirituality, our community service that we offer and what we're producing in these young men each and every day," Rowe said. "I think people see that out there in the community and they want to be a part of it."

And credit for academics needs to go to teachers, he said.

"Academically we feel like we're leading the way with regards to we're implementing a new STEM program," Rowe said.

STEM is an acronym for Science Technology Engineering and Math. CovCath is starting with two classes that will eventually evolve into a four-year program, he said.

Students in STEM courses will earn college credit, said Laura J. Sage, CovCath's director of advancement.

Student ACT scores are averaging about 26, Sage said. CovCath had three students earn a perfect score of 36 on the ACT last year.

"There is a lot of newness going on," Rowe said. "There's a lot of excitement and energy."

Having a new field and and unified school logo brings excitement, and hopefully more people to games, said soccer player Bryce Day of Edgewood

"I like the cross in the middle of the C," Day said of the new logo. "I think that's kind of cool."

Friday night lights coming

Adding stadium lights is a CovCath goal, Principal Bob Rowe said.

"I think it's important for our student athletes to be able to participate on Friday nights in front of more people," Rowe said.

Having a 5:30 p.m. Aug. 21 throwback football game is part of a way of generating excitement for eventually adding field lighting, he said.

"There's a reason why the NFL is played on Sunday, college is played on Saturday and high school is played on Friday, and we need to be a part of that," Rowe said.

By: Story by Bryan Burke, associate editor/Photo: RCN file

Covington Catholic football has a lot of new elements to it this year. Most prominent among the recent changes is new head coach Eddie Eviston who replaced last year's coach Dave Wirth in the offseason. Eviston comes most recently from Georgetown College and has already dug into his new roster.

"These players have been very open-minded about new staff coming in and seeing them in a different way than they have been seen," Eviston said. "We might move some guys to new places and we do that so that we can be successful, and they're buying into that. They're open-minded to moving to help the team, so that's been good."

Another big change for the Colonels in 2015 is a new district, as KHSAA has bumped them up from Class 4A to Class 5A. Joining them in that district is last year's 6A State Championship runner-up Dixie, as well as Grant County, and CovCath's old rival and defending 4A State Champion Highlands.

"It's a great district with two schools coming off of a state run. We're excited about it to be able to be in the 5A," Eviston said.

Last season, the Colonels' offensive philosophy was based on spread formations designed to get the ball quickly out to their speedy receivers on the outside to let them operate in the open field. Eviston's scheme, though, will have some run-and-shoot elements that will be incorporated into the spread formations of the past.

"We are kind of a run-and-shoot offense. There has always been these hybrid-type of offenses, so we have some spread, but we also have a lot of run-and-shoot concepts as well so it's kind of a marriage between the two," he said. "We do have that philosophy that we want to get the ball in the hands of our fast guys as quickly as possible and have them do things, but we also need to be able to run the ball. That element of our offense is key and something we will do and not just say."

Who will be throwing passes in the offense is still a question mark. Some of the players on the roster a year ago that were assumed to be quarterback options are no longer with the team, so Eviston and his staff need to find—and groom—the talent that exists in training camp this summer. It seems the front-runner to land that starting spot is sophomore A.J. Mayer who has worked under center with the Colonels in practice since June.

"We're young with not much game experience at all, but I think we have the right guys at the right place. I think people who might not know who these guys are now will hopefully know in the middle of the year as the season progresses," Eviston said. "A.J. Mayer is doing a really good job. He's had the most reps because a couple of our guys are baseball guys, so they weren't with us in the spring. He was the first one back come June while some other guys weren't quite back, so he's gotten the most reps and the best grasp of what we're doing offensively."

There are other players currently listed at quarterback on the depth chart that may end up at another position if Mayer wins out in the summer competition. No matter who it is, the quarterback will benefit from having an experienced offensive line in front of them.

"Offensively we have a strong senior group up front on the offensive line. They have to be our go-to people. In my eyes, it doesn't matter what class they're in. We have to rally behind them and count on them so they will determine how well our offense does."

Defensively, CCH also has some key veterans on that side of the ball as well. School president Ethan Salmons is slated to start at linebacker along with junior Alex Shelton to form a well-rounded linebacker corps. Eviston intends to play more of a four-man front than what previous coach Dave Wirth ran last year has head coach.

"Everybody's defensive schemes are kind of set up to stop the spread, but our other philosophy is if we can't stop the run, we'll get carved up. We want to make sure we can stop the run as much as possible and then handle the spread."

With that kind of approach on defense, open field tackling becomes paramount to stop the spread. Teams across the state are limited in terms of how much contact a team can have in practice, so in today's football world coaches have to rely on other methods to get their players ready for live action on the field.

"Tackling is something that we addressed early. Everyone is limited on contact. We saw that coming and kind of forecasted that. We will work a lot of our tackling drills on air or on a dummy so that we don't have that player-to-player collision as much. We have to be great open field tacklers," said Eviston.

Last year, the Colonels found a lot of hidden yardage and explosive plays in the kick and punt return game that benefitted them to racking up some key wins during a solid season. That element of the game is something that Eviston recognizes the importance of and has kept himself and his staff from overlooking in the sessions leading up to the season opener.

"That's one thing as you go through the summer that sometimes you put on the backburners, but we have addressed it as a staff, we have addressed it with our players and we do a lot of technique stuff for it. It's very important to us that we don't miss that third component of the game. We'll drill it hard."

Also new this year is the playing surface that was installed this past week. Even though the lights on the field will not be ready until the 2016 season, CovCath is still going to kick its season off on a Friday evening at home at 5:30 p.m. against Ryle.

By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter

Ryan McGinness played wide receiver, running back and quarterback on the Covington Catholic football team last season and finished with 898 all-purpose yards on offense.

With his athleticism and versatility, McGinness fits right in with the run-and-shoot offense that new head coach Eddie Eviston is installing during practice this summer. The 6-foot-1, 170-pound senior will be playing slotback for the Colonels in their season-opener on Aug. 21 against Ryle.

Ryan McGinness will fit right in with CovCath's new run-and-shoot offense after getting nearly 900 all-pupose yards last season. (Photo by Cathy Lachmann)

"Last year, we pretty much ran a spread offense and this is something completely different," said McGinness, one of the team's few returning offensive starters. "This one gives us tons of different looks and we can run a lot of stuff out of any formation."

From his slotback position, McGinness could go in motion and become a running back or break down the field as a pass receiver. He could even take a handoff and throw the football himself.

"Ryan will be a weapon for us this year on offense as he will have the most game experience among all of our offensive skill players," coach Eviston said.

McGinness obtained that experience by playing multiple positions on last year's CovCath team that posted an 8-6 record under former head coach Dave Wirth, who resigned in January and is now on the coaching staff at Mount St. Joseph University in Ohio.

Eviston signed on as CovCath's new head coach in February. For the last two years, he was the offensive coordinator for the Georgetown College football team that averaged more than 500 yards per game in both the 2013 and 2014 seasons. Before he took that job, Eviston was head coach at Newport Central Catholic where his teams compiled a 35-8 record in three seasons and won two Class 2A state championships.

The new coach revealed his plans to use a run-and-shoot offense during CovCath's spring practice, but McGinness didn't take part in those drills because he was playing baseball. He had to wait for pre-season practice to begin in July to learn his role in the sophisticated offense.

"It's a difficult offense to grasp at first, but he did a good job relaying the message and teaching us what's supposed to happen," McGinness said of coach Eviston.

Even though McGinness had more experience at quarterback than anyone else on the CovCath roster, the coaching staff decided to use him at slotback and have sophomore A.J. Mayer call the signals in the new offense.

McGinness said he enjoyed having the ball in my hands on every play when he played quarterback, but he's looking forward to focusing on just one position this season and not switching around like he did last year to fill vacancies when teammates were injured.

"He's a sophomore, but he's ready to go," McGinness said of Mayer. "He's a big kid with a great arm and he reads the field well. It's going to be good for the program in the future having him back there because he's going to get tons of experience. I'm happy with it all."

McGinness said he has been contacted by football coaches at Austin Peay University in Tennessee and Butler University in Indiana along with several small colleges. If the CovCath run-and-shoot offense gets rolling this season, he'll get a chance to impress even more recruiters.

"Our motto this year is 'Challenge Accepted,'" McGinness said. "We have a tough schedule, but we're ready to go. We just need to keep working hard every day."

COVINGTON CATHOLIC COLONELS

2014 SEASON: 8-6 record, lost in third round of Class 4A state playoffs.
THIS SEASON: Class 5A, District 5 with Dixie Heights, Highlands, Grant County.
COACH: Eddie Eviston (35-8 in three seasons at NewCath).

2015 SCHEDULE
Aug. 21 – RYLE, 5:30 p.m.
Aug. 28 – ST. XAVIER (Ohio), 5:30 p.m.
Sept. 4 – at Sycamore (Ohio), 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 11 – at Lexington Catholic, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 18 – at Beechwood, 7:30 p.m.
Sept. 26 – Columbus DeSales (Ohio), 1 p.m.
Oct. 10 – GRANT COUNTY, 1 p.m.
Oct. 17 – HIGHLANDS, 1 p.m.
Oct. 23 – at Dixie Heights, 7:30 p.m.
Oct. 30 – at Scott County, 7:30 p.m

By: Marc Hardin, prepsports@enquirer.com (cincinnati.com)

(Photo: The Community Recorder/James Weber

The Jeremy Robertson coaching tree is branching out with some new sprouts. The Covington Catholic soccer coach and one-time Highlands coach has five former assistants who are now head coaches, four of them leaders of area boys' soccer programs.

"It always makes things interesting when you go head to head," Robertson said. "It should definitely make for an interesting year."

Every year is interesting in the Ninth Region, which confounded its followers with yet another surprise tournament champion. St. Henry entered last year's regional three games above .500, and knocked off Holy Cross, Boone County and perennial power CovCath in the penalty-kick final.

CovCath was a favorite last season, rendering last year's second straight regional ouster via penalty kick a bitter disappointment. But Robertson was happy for St. Henry coach Stephen Hahn, his former assistant at Highlands.

"I've always said that whoever is playing the best in the regional, wins," Hahn said. "We had 16 seniors last year, and we lost them. I think we're going to be OK with our six new seniors, but I think when you're looking for a team that can win the Ninth Region, you have to look at seniors. CovCath and Conner have a lot of seniors."

Conner welcomes back 10 starters after failing to qualify for the regional. All but two players are seniors. Veterans include forward Logan Parsons, defenders Gavin Siekman, Zane Dennler and Jake Ryan, and dynamic midfielder Charlie Wend, who scored 15 goals. Parsons had six goals and 12 assists.

"Before this, the biggest senior class I had was eight," Conner coach Kevin Crone said. "We have never won the region. But, for once, we have a lot of seniors, and it's important to have that."

CovCath returns 18 seniors and seven starters, including forward Jacob Litzler, midfielder Bryce Day and defenders Michael Wessels, Austin Flynn and Ben Darpel. Day, a Division I college recruit, and Wessels are three-year starters. Day scored six goals last season. Liztzler scored five.

"St. Henry was senior-heavy last year, and that group pulled through," said Robertson, in his fourth year at CovCath. "I'm hoping senior experience takes us farther. We have several juniors who are playing well. We have a lot of guys who remember their last two seasons ending on penalty kicks."

Another former Robertson assistant, Highlands coach Matthew Winkler, knows the sinking feeling of a close loss. The Bluebirds fell 1-0 to Boone County in the first round of the regional tournament. Boone County, coached by former Robertson assistant Chris Norris, lost 2-1 to St. Henry in the semifinals.

All but three regional games resulted in one-score margins. Coaches expect something similar this year. Looking to challenge the Colonels and Cougars are Boone County, Cooper, Dixie Heights, Highlands, Holy Cross, Newport Central Catholic, Ryle and St. Henry.

Defending 10th Region champion Scott is rebuilding after last year's trip to the state final. The Eagles return five starters including senior goalkeeper CJ Seay and senior attacker Devin Morgan. Bishop Brossart seeks a return to the top during the Eagles' youth movement.

Defending 32nd District champion Simon Kenton returns seven starters as the top local team in the Eighth Region.

Players To Watch

By: Rick Broering, prepsports@enquirer.com (Cincinnati.com)

In three years as the head football coach at Newport Central Catholic, Eddie Eviston led the Thoroughbreds to state championships in his first (2010) and last seasons (2012) before accepting a position as the offensive coordinator at Georgetown College. Now, Eviston is hoping to bring similar immediate success to Covington Catholic.

"Every program should have that (state championship or bust) attitude," Eviston said. "Deep down I don't know if that's a reality for every program or not, but I think at Covington Catholic, with the type of program it is, that should be a realistic goal every year. We're coming in here as a staff and coaching these guys up for that ultimate goal.

"I've never been a three- or five-year plan guy. Let's get after it now."

Achieving that ultimate goal won't be easy.

Since he was announced as head coach, the last five months have been a whirlwind for Eviston. For most of the offseason, he was commuting from Georgetown to Covington for conditioning with his team. Since summer camp started, the Colonels haven't practiced on their home field once due to new turf being installed, which has meant roughing it on a sloppy grass field behind the school's campus or finding other venues, such as the turf soccer field at Town & Country in Wilder.

Then there's the football aspect of the job where Eviston and his staff have to install a new offensive and defensive system, familiarize the team with new verbiage, and evaluate all of their players to figure out optimal lineups. A new coaching staff means a fresh start for all of the players in the program. As a result, competition has been stiff at most positions during the Colonels' summer camp.

Chris Reisiger, the anchor of four returning seniors on the offensive line, said the intensity of practices and the lack of down time with the new coaching staff has helped in lessening the learning curve and increasing the competition.

"It's a little bit of a culture shock," Reisiger said. "We're very productive in our time on the field. Everything is quick and upbeat. We get a lot done in a shorter amount of time. We're pretty intense daily in general."

Sophomore AJ Mayer has emerged as the front-runner in one of the most crucial position battles at quarterback. Mayer has impressed his coaches and his teammates with his physical tools.

"He's picked up the offense the quickest, but he's still a sophomore," Eviston said. "His ceiling is very high. He has a lot of potential at that position. I'm excited to get to watch him develop. He'll have his peaks and valleys and we'll take some bumps as he learns things, but I think he's the type of kid that will bounce back quickly."

In addition to having a coach that is well-respected as an offensive guru and developer of quarterbacks – Georgetown averaged 506 all-purpose yards per game the last two seasons – life should be made easier on the sophomore signal-caller by having an experienced offensive line protecting him, and a stout defense on the other side of the ball minimizing damage when mistakes are made.

"AJ has so much natural talent, it's incredible," senior linebacker Lucas Timmerman said. "He has a great arm, and it looks like he's really learning a lot. He's already making better decisions, which is making our defense better. The defense will definitely be a strength again this year, especially towards the beginning of the season with a young quarterback, we'll be looking to lead the team. "

There won't be any time for the Colonels to ease into the season, as they open up play on Aug. 21 at home against an improved Ryle team, the first test of what should be a grueling slate for Eviston's squad. The following week they'll take on perennial Greater Catholic League South powerhouse Cincinnati St. Xavier at the University of Cincinnati's newly renovated Nippert Stadium as part of the Skyline Chili Crosstown Showdown.

In addition, the Colonels are bumping up from the 4A district they've played in the last four years to a 5A district that includes arch-nemesis Highlands and familiar rival Dixie Heights, who had been playing at the 6A level since 2011.

Eviston's players understand that their road to a state final still runs through Highlands, which has defeated the Colonels 13 consecutive times since CovCath won its last state championship in 2006, including five times in the postseason. Still, their new coach has them focused on bringing home the hardware in 2015.

"That's the attitude. That's what we're trying to breed," Timmerman said. "Anything less than a state championship is a failure."

By: Rick Broering (Cincinnati.com)

RYLE (5-7 last year) AT COVINGTON CATHOLIC (8-5)

WHERE/WHEN: 5:30 p.m. Friday at Wooten Field, Park Hills

WHAT TO EXPECT: Ryle started slow last year losing five of its first six games, but finished strong to end up 5-7. The Raiders are hoping to pick up where they left off last season in year two of the Mike Engler era. CovCath fans are anxious to see the new look Colonels after former Newport Central Catholic coach and Georgetown College offensive coordinator Eddie Eviston replaced Dave Wirth as the head coach in the offseason. Ryle beat CovCath 21-14 last season.

There's a lot of preseason buzz surrounding both teams' starting quarterbacks. Ryle junior Tanner Morgan, a transfer from Hazard, holds multiple Division-I scholarship offers and threw for over 4,800 yards and 56 touchdowns in his first two seasons at Hazard. CovCath sophomore AJ Mayer earned the starting job in summer camp by impressing his coaches and teammates. Most eyes will be focused on that matchup, but the battle in the trenches will likely be more pivotal to the outcome of this game. This is a good measuring stick for both programs to start the season; a lopsided score either way would be an impressive statement for the winning team.

By: Joe Danneman ( Fox 19 News)

CCH Press Release

Covington Catholic High School announces the establishment of The Art and Rita Arlinghaus Family Scholarship to provide financial assistance for young men to attend CovCath. This endowment was created by the family, which includes numerous alumni and future students of CovCath, in honor of their parents. The school is very grateful for this generous support.

As long-time Northern Kentucky residents and active community members, Rita and her late husband Art raised seven children, five of whom graduated from Covington Catholic - Ronald (CCH Class of 1967), Ken, Terry (1972), Dale (1974), Mark (1978), David (1980), and Mary Jean Klein. In addition, eleven of their grandsons have graduated or will graduate from Covington Catholic.

Rita Arlinghaus stated, "I'm just so proud to be a part of the Covington Catholic community. My husband, Art, was a big proponent of Catholic education. Fourteen of the boys, both sons and grandsons, have attended CCH with a couple more still to come. It's wonderful to see the tradition continue with all of the boys from the second generation wanting to attend."

"My family feels strongly about the value of a Covington Catholic education. We want to make sure that current and future students can attend Covington Catholic."