State baseball tournament: Boyd County outlasts Wolfe County for spot in semifinals

Frank Conley felt no fear sending Alex Maynard home for what became the deciding run in Boyd County’s 2-1 win over Wolfe County in the Clark’s Pump-N-Shop Baseball State Tournament quarterfinals Sunday.

“When I saw that left fielder turn, I was sending him,” said Conley, who has guided the Lions since 2019. “If he gets thrown out, he gets thrown out, but we’re gonna push that.”

Maynard scored from first on a deep shot to left by Brayden Coleman. By the time Jaxon Hollon corralled it for the Wolves, he kept it in hand to hold Coleman at second rather than send a rocket to home plate.

Coleman’s RBI double was the second hit in as many at-bats for Boyd County after it managed just one through the first four innings of a game that started at 8:30 p.m. Saturday. The contest was suspended at 11:30 p.m. following three separate rain delays and play resumed at 1 p.m. Sunday with the Lions due up to bat in the bottom of the fifth, the score tied at 1-1.

Kris Evans, pitching in relief of Jayden Hollon, quickly retired the side for Wolfe County (24-11). Conner Davis, who entered for Boyd County starter Brody Biggs, gave up a hit before stranding a Wolf with a strikeout. Maynard knocked a one-out, full-count single into left before a liner to second brought Coleman to the plate with two outs. He put Boyd County (31-5) in front on the first pitch he saw.

“They were pretty frustrated last night, today they were a lot looser,” Conley said. “When we play loose, we’re a pretty good team.”

Wolfe County, a tiny program making its first state tournament appearance, was fruitless in its first two bids to tie in the top of the seventh. Then Davis issued three straight walks, bringing freshman Landon McWhorter to the plate with full bags.

On an 0-2 count, McWhorter watched as a called strike three ended the Wolves’ season.

“It’s just a matter of knowing what I can control and not,” Davis said of his nerves down the stretch. “I can’t control that kid’s swing, I can’t control the umpire. I can just control my actions.”

Davis’ final pitch appeared to sail into the right batter’s box; McWhorter’s frustration over the final call led to his ejection from a game that was already over.

Some of that emotion carried over from the night before, when both squads were visibly annoyed by the frequent starts and stops. The head coaches, each restricted to the dugout before postponement, were of different minds on how to proceed Saturday night.

Boyd County preferred not to play in wet conditions and was fine moving to Sunday, when it would also stand to benefit from Davis’ arm being available again after mandated rest. Wolfe County was fine to push through the rain and, under the impression that it would complete the game after persisting through a couple of delays, continued to throw Hollon, its No. 2 pitcher. During the third rain delay, Wolves head coach Benny Campbell lobbied to continue playing the game but the KHSAA made the final call.

“We were told earlier in the game that the game would be finished, so that’s why we kept the kid out there,” Campbell said. “We just kept trying to win.”

Wolfe County had just tied the game before the final weather delay on Saturday. How things might have played out if play continued into early Sunday morning will be a hot-button topic for a while in Campton, but the Wolves will have a solid shot to make more history in 2026 They graduate just one senior (Brayden Wilson) and return eight juniors, including their top two arms (Max Whisman and Hollon) and top three hitters.

“We can get right back here next year but you’re gonna have to work even harder, do more little things,” Campbell said. “… We played two top-20 teams in the state and competed with both of ’em, with 12 kids. But it doesn’t matter the number: I have 12 kids with the biggest hearts ever and that’s all you can ask as a coach.”

McCracken County 9, South Warren 4: Brady Thompson finished 3-for-4 with two RBI from the eight-hole to propel the Mustangs (31-8) to the semifinals.

Thompson, McCracken’s 10th-best hitter by average on the season, connected for a two-out single in the bottom of the second that scored the Mustangs’ first two runs. He grounded out in his next at-bat before singling in the fifth and eventually scoring as part of a three-run Mustangs frame. Thompson singled again in the sixth.

Held without a run for five innings, the Spartans (31-9) finally tagged Mustangs starter Caden Kern (seven hits, six strikeouts) for a pair in the top of the sixth. The 4th Region champs loaded the bases and added two more against reliever Noah Godwin in the next frame, and had them loaded again before a grounder to Godwin stopped their rally.

McCracken County, which has won the 1st Region every season since opening its doors in 2013, advanced to the semifinals for the eighth time in the last nine state tournaments.

Pleasure Ridge Park 9, Spencer County 2: A 2-2 game got away from the state tournament greenhorns in the fifth, when PRP (28-6) sent three runs home in the top of the inning and followed it up with a rapid 1-2-3 sit-down as Spencer County (28-9) looked to answer in the bottom.

The defending champs put two more across in each of the last two innings, giving them a tournament-high 19 runs through two games. The result set up a semifinals showdown with McCracken County, whom PRP defeated in last year’s state championship game.

Joey Dudeck struck out 12 of the 25 batters he faced through 6½ innings before Brayden Bruner got the last two outs for the Panthers.

Trinity 6, Taylor County 2: The first five batters reached for Trinity, allowing it to build a three-run lead from which the Cardinals (29-7) couldn’t rally on Saturday. The Shamrocks became the first team to secure a spot in this year’s semifinals.

Taylor County got two back in the immediate frame, but the Shamrocks (36-3) tacked on additional runs in the second, third and fourth to maintain a comfortable advantage. Zach Floyd was 2-for-2 with two RBI and a run for the winners.

KHSAA baseball state tournament schedule

All games at Kentucky Proud Park

Saturday

Trinity 6, Taylor County 2

Sunday

Boyd County 2, Wolfe County 1 (completion of game that started Saturday)

McCracken County 9, South Warren 4

Pleasure Ridge Park 9, Spencer County, 2

Friday

4 p.m.: Trinity vs. Boyd County

7:30 p.m.: McCracken County vs. Pleasure Ridge Park

Saturday

7 p.m.: Championship game

This story was originally published June 8, 2025 at 4:34 PM.