2022 saw several history-making achievements in local athletics

Since this week’s edition is serving as a retrospective of the most talked about events of the past 12 months, I would like to take the opportunity to look back at the biggest sports stories of 2022.

As always, this is a tough list to compile. With four coverage area schools participating in everything from football to track to volleyball to wrestling and even e-sports, it’s impossible to include every major event. However, after starting in January of 2022 and working my way forward all the way through last month, I have decided on the top six sports-related stories that were covered by the News Journal. My goal was to do a top five list, but I simply couldn’t narrow it down, so we ended up with 5A and 5B selections…

They are:

5B) Track and field teams bring home state titles – On the front page of our June 8 edition, a photo of shot putter Bronson Bates (Williamsburg) appeared, along with a story about how he was one of five local athletes to bring home first place medals from the 2022 KHSAA state championships. Inside the paper was a photo of the other four state champions – John Hail, Connor Messer, Noah Bonnell and Sean Simons – who made up the 4×800-meter boys relay team for Corbin.

5A) CHS soccer teams advance to Elite 8 – Between mid-October and early November, we followed along as the Corbin High School boys and girls soccer teams won 13th Region championship titles and advanced all the way to the Elite 8 of the 2022 KHSAA state championship tournaments. In the end, the boys team finished with a 17-7-1 season record, while the girls finished at 17-5-1 overall.

4) CHS baseball wins region – The June 1 edition featured the headline “STATE BOUND HOUNDS,” announcing that the Corbin Redhounds baseball team had once again secured a 13th Region championship title, and would be advancing to the 2022 KHSAA state championship tournament. The baseball Hounds fell to Central Hardin in the first round at state, finishing the season with an overall record of 26-13.

3) Whitley County Volleyball is Elite – The top sports headline in our November 2 edition read “ALL ELITE WHITLEY” after the 13th Region champion volleyball Colonels defeated Wolfe County in the opening round of the 2022 KHSAA state championship tournament. Whitley fell to eventual state champs Notre Dame in the Elite 8, finishing their season with an overall record of 25-15.

2) Lady Hounds make the big dance – Back on March 9, photos appeared on the front page of our paper showing the Corbin Lady Hounds celebrating on the court after winning a 13th Region championship title with a thrilling 43-41 victory over district rivals South Laurel. The Lady Hounds won a region-best 25 games last season, wrapping up their historic campaign with a 42-35 loss to GRC in the opening round of the Sweet 16 tournament at Rupp Arena.

1) Football Hounds go undefeated en route to state title game – This past football season was definitely one for the history books at Corbin, with the Redhounds going 14-0 leading up to a much-hyped showdown with Boyle County in the Class 4A finals. The Hounds outscored opponents by a combined 297-0 between October 7 and November 11, and defeated Johnson Central and Franklin County before losing a heartbreaker in the state finals, 32-26. The 2022 CHS football team has become known as the “last class on the grass” with facility upgrades, including a brand new artificial playing surface, coming in 2023.

Editor’s Note: The print version of this column ends the list here, but unintentionally omitted was the Corbin High School softball program’s 13th Region championship victory last May. The softball Hounds defeated North Laurel 3-0 in the finals of the 2022 regional tournament, earning a spot in the KHSAA state playoffs. They fell to Louisville Holy Cross 8-0 in round one at state, ending their history-making season with an overall record of 20 wins and 14 losses.

So, there you have it… the top sports stories of the past year. Again, there were many, many more major developments in the world of local athletics, but I don’t think that anyone can deny the importance of the accomplishments listed above.

Congratulations again to all of our coverage area athletes and coaches, and here’s to what I hope will be a great 2023!