Written by Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune Sports Reporter
Both seniors on the Newport men's basketball team, which won the 9th District Championship for the second consecutive year in March, have committed to college, and one will join a team that will move to NCAA Division I. .
DeSean Jackson averaged 10.9 points and 6.1 rebounds for the 32-4 Wildcats and was scouted by Mercyhurst University in Erie, Pennsylvania.
The school recently accepted an invitation to join the Northeast Conference, which will field a team in this year's NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament.
Mercy Hurst mA four-year interim period must be completed to obtain full Division I status. During that time, teams can compete at the Division I level but cannot participate in postseason play.
Newport's other senior starter was Jabari Covington, who signed with Union Commonwealth University in Barbourville, Kentucky. The Bulldogs won the Appalachian Athletic Conference and advanced to the second round of the NAIA playoffs in March.
Covington averaged 12.6 points and 4.4 rebounds in his senior season at Newport. He was named the Most Valuable Player of the 9th Region Tournament after scoring a team-high 15 points in the championship game.
As a junior, Covington won the 2023 Region 9 title game with a last-second shot. Jackson was not on that championship team. He transferred to Newport last summer.
Beechwood girls basketball coach aims to turn program around
Celeste Hill Brockett was introduced as the head coach of the Beachwood women's basketball team during a ceremony Monday night, officially taking the helm of a program that has not won since the 2013-14 season.
The Tigers had a 9-22 record last season with a young team that included one senior, four juniors, one sophomore, four freshmen, and six eighth-graders. They have lost eight of their last 10 games, five of which were scored by 31 points or less.
One of Beechwood's wins was over district rival Holmes. Holmes is the high school where Brockett spent much of his basketball career as a player and coach.
Brockett was a three-year starter for Holmes from 1987 to 1990, served as a varsity assistant, and then spent four seasons as the Bulldogs' head coach from 2004 to 2008. Her teams had a record of 55 wins and 50 losses, with one of her teams advancing to the 2007 Regional 9 finals.
During his collegiate career at Old Dominion University, Brockett totaled 2,112 points and 1,124 rebounds. She was named Colonial Athletic Conference Player of the Year three times. She went on to play women's professional basketball in Greece and Israel.
Beechwood graduate sets record at collegiate track and field championships
Beechwood graduate Natnael Weldemichael won the men's 5,000-meter race at the Horizon League Outdoor Championships in 14 minutes, 18.43 seconds, the fastest time ever recorded in the same event at the conference meet, which began in 1998.
Weldemichael, a sophomore at Northern Kentucky University, broke the meet record of 14:23.94, set in 2019. He also placed seventh in the 1,500-meter run on Sunday (3:59.60) and accounted for 12 of the team's 22 points at the championship meet. .
During his senior year at Beachwood University, Weldemichael placed first at the Class 1A state cross country meet and won gold medals in the 1,600 and 3,200 runs at the Class 1A state track meet. He became the school's first individual cross country state champion.