The Kentucky High School Baseball Coaches Association announced its All-State Teams today, with a trio of Owensboro Catholic players being honored.
Luke Scales leads the way for the Aces, earning a spot on the All-State First Team. Scales finished the season with a .495 batting average to go along with six home runs, 36 RBIs and 25 stolen bases.
“Luke had one of the best overall offensive stat lines we have had since I have been coaching at OC,” Head Coach Derek Hibbs said. “He was top 20 in the state in batting average and slugging percentage. He has a great knowledge of the strike zone, the ability to drive the ball to all fields.”
Scales also appeared on the mound in 11 games, toting an ERA of 1.04 en route to a 4-1 record and nabbing four saves.
“He is also sure-handed with the glove and anchors the infield at shortstop,” Hibbs said. “He gave us great innings on the mound as a quality reliever finishing top 5 in the state in saves. He had one of the best overall seasons in the state and was properly recognized with his 1st team selection.”
Scales gave credit to all of those who have contributed to making him the player he is today and said that this is only the beginning as he continues to work day in and day out.
“I am very honored to be selected/named to a list in the same category with such great athletes and hard workers,” Scales said. “I would not be able to do any of this without my teammates, coaches, and family because of the roles that they play in the game of baseball and how much they motivate me to be better on and off the field everyday. Baseball is my passion, I’ve dedicated much of my life to this sport and being selected to this team is one of my greatest accomplishments and is motivation to keep working hard and improve everyday. Being selected to this team is a great reward for all of the hard work that has gone into the game.”
Meanwhile, Finley Munsey and Sam McFarland both earned a spot on the All-State Third Team for their contributions offensively and on the mound.
Munsey finished with a .325 batting average, tied Scales for a team-leading 36 RBIs, two home runs and 14 stolen bases.
Munsey—who is set to continue his baseball career at Olney Community College—also was a key contributor all season long on the bump for the Aces.
Munsey said he’s thrilled to see all of his hard work pay off and to share the honor with his teammates.
“This honor means a lot to me, the list has a lot of very talented players on it and to be mentioned on there is a huge honor,” Munsey said. “Also seeing Sam and Luke on there also was awesome, they put in a lot of work and it was well deserved, they are both great players and great teammates with very bright futures.”
In his senior season he started in all 10 of his appearances, finishing the season with an ERA of 1.49 to go with 61 strikeouts en route to an 8-0 record.
“Finley put a lot of work in the off-season to improve his arm strength and pitch repertoire, and turned himself into a bona fide ace,” Hibbs said. “He started the majority of our big games and answered the call with quality start after quality start… He had a great senior campaign, and we would not have had the success we had without his leadership on the field.”
McFarland served as the leadoff man for the Aces all season, doing well with a .395 batting average to go along with two home runs, 25 RBIs and 13 stolen bases.
“Sam is a dynamic athlete who can do a multitude of things on the field,” Hibbs said. “He is our leadoff hitter, who is great at getting on base and wreaking havoc on the bases when he gets there. He also is good at driving runs in when we need it in other situations. He anchors the outfield in centerfield and has great range. His arm is one of the best in the state. He also was one of our best pitchers this spring and came through with big starts in the regular and postseason. His versatility is a huge asset to our success.”
On the mound McFarland appeared in 10 games, starting in seven, owning an ERA of 1.71 paired with 44 strikeouts en route to a 7-2 record.
McFarland said that he owes this honor all to his partners in crime on the diamond and the tutelage he received from his coaches over the course of his career.
“I would definitely say that I couldn’t have gotten this award without such supportive teammates and coaches,” McFarland said. “I’m really proud of everything we accomplished as a team this year and I think Luke and Finley are very deserving of their awards. They were both really strong leaders and pushed everyone to be better this season. Although it’s upsetting that Hunter and Finley are leaving, I’m looking forward to coming back next year with even higher goals.”
Kentucky High School Baseball Coaches Association Teams:
First team: Ben Hidgon (McCracken County), Justin West (Paducah Tilghman), Luke Scales (Owensboro Catholic), Eil Burwash (Bowling Green), Nathan Lawson (Russell County), Will Koger (Bardstown), Owen Barger (North Bullitt), Daylen Lile (Trinity), Korbyn Dickerson (Trinity), Deaton Oak (Oldham County), Travis Smith (Walton-Verona), Dalton Davenport (Nicholas County), Bennett Myers (Franklin County), Micha Cowan (Lafayette), Jaxson Davis (Lexington Christian), Brandon Anderson (Madison Central), Christian Howe (Danville), Ethan Wood (Danville), Kade Grundy (Somerset), Caden Petrey (Whitley County), Bryce Blevins (Lawrence County), Mason Moore (Rowan County).
Second team: Grant Godwin (McCracken County), Jackson Shoulders (Lyon County), Preston Chaudoin (Hopkinsville), Patrick Forbes (Bowling Green), Carson Myers (Bowling Green), John Orberson (Campbellsville), Gunner Bush (Green Co), Alex Galan (Southern), Cooper Haycraft (Pleasure Ridge Park), Matt Klein (Trinity), Colin Murphy (Trinity), Nic Schutte (Male), Sam Thompson (St. Xavier), Mitchell Barger (Beechwood), Tyler Hutson (Covington Catholic), Seth Benner (Great Crossing), Jake Faherty (Great Crossing), Brady Baxter (Danville), Kent Damron (Knott County Central), Tait Lakin (Pikeville), Jake Heighton (Raceland), Chase Alderman (Rowan County).
Third team: Colton Evens (Henderson County), Brody Williams (Lyon County), Tate Vanhooser (Caldwell County), Finley Munsey (Owensboro Catholic), Sam McFarland (Owensboro Catholic), Dalton Fiveash (Franklin-Simpson), Kruise Newman (Logan County), Arren Hash (Campbellsville), Hayden Jones (Taylor County), Jayden Scroggins (DeSales), Ethen Hodge (Trinity), Nick Hammond (Collins), Cooper Hellman (North Oldham), Brandon Dyer (Montgomery County), Aaron Abner (George Rogers Clark), Thomas Howard (Frederick Douglas), Luke Gaffney (Boyle County), Haden Smith (West Jessamine), Brady Morse (Danville), Ryan Sartin Slone (Johnson Central), Luke Preston (Boyd County), Trevor Callihan (West Carter)
