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Live updates | State titles pile up at Friday’s Ohio, Kentucky state swimming, diving meet

Published

1 year ago

February 21, 2025

Live updates | State titles pile up at Friday’s Ohio, Kentucky state swimming, diving meet

Follow along as the Cincinnati Enquirer covers the 2025 Ohio High School Athletic Association and Kentucky High School Athletic Association state swimming and diving meets.

Brendan Connelly and Tony Tribble are at Canton’s C.T. Branin Natatorium for the Ohio meet while Jack Schmelzinger and Emory Davis are covering the Kentucky meet at the University of Kentucky’s Lancaster Aquatics Centre. Friday’s action includes Division II finals in Ohio and girls diving and swimming finals in Kentucky. Saturday’s action will include Division I events in Ohio and boys events in Kentucky.

Be sure to refresh this story to see updates, videos, photos and more from The Enquirer’s sports staff.

The Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy group of Taylor Bacher, Posey Sollman, Sophia Fink and Julia Shafer are 400-yard freestyle relay state champions after a monster final leg by Shafer. Other finishers: Wyoming, fourth; Indian Hill, seventh; Seven Hills, eighth.

Connor Bennett of Ross High School won the 100-yard breaststroke in 55.61 seconds. Also swimming in that event were: Weichu Wang, Cincinnati Country Day (fourth), Cooper Stenken, Wyoming (sixth) and Henry Stimson, Seven Hills (seventh).

Connor Bennett of Ross High School wins 100 breaststroke at state meet

Connor Bennett of Ross High School won the 100 breaststroke in 55.61 seconds in the OHSAA state swimming and diving meet, Feb. 21, 2025.

Ross High School’s Cooper Burt won the 100 backstroke in a new Division II state record of 48.28 seconds. He broke old record by 0.01 seconds. Purcell Marian’s Leo Gustavsson took sixth.

Ross’s Cooper Burt breaks a state record in the 100-yard backstroke

Ross High School’s Cooper Burt won the 100 backstroke in a new DII state record of 48.28 seconds Feb. 21, 2025. He broke old record by 0.01 seconds.

Roger Bacon’s Reese Reilly won back-to-back state titles in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1.01.89 on Feb. 21, 2025, in Canton. Taylor’s Corine Rieskamp took third while Indian Hill’s Habby Henz finished fifth.

Roger Bacon’s Reese Reilly wins 100 breaststroke state title

Roger Bacon’s Reese Reilly won back-to-back state titles in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1.01.89 on Feb. 21, 2025, in Canton.

Wyoming’s Willow Adams took sixth in the 100-yard backstroke while Mariemont’s Chelsea Noone took seventh.

Notre Dame Academy’s Clare Herfel won the KHSAA state championship in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:58.62. Close behind her in second was teammate Sadie Hartig. Finishing sixth was Liv Wallace and eighth, Danaka Tucker, both NDA swimmers.

Reece Yauger of Ryle took third place in the 100-butterfly while Beechwood’s Ryon Argo finished seventh.

Keira Kobida of Highlands, the only Northern Kentucky athlete to participate in the 100-freestyle final,will take home fifth place.

Wyoming girls led the three Cincinnati relay teams in the 200-yard freestyle by placing third, with CHCA (fourth) and Summit Country Day (eighth) following.

Indian Hill boys placed second in the event by just .03 seconds. They touched the wall in 1:25.52. Wyoming’s relay finished seventh in the event.

In the girls 500-yard freestyle, Mariemont’s Julia Bohl finished fifth; Marissa McNerney, Seven Hills, finished sixth and Madison Stecher, Roger Bacon, finished eighth.

For boys, Indian Hill’s Arjun Velayutham finished third and Seven Hills’ Colin McNerney finished seventh.

Taylor senior Corine Rieskamp took sixth in the 50-yard freestyle.

Purcell Marian senior Leo Gustavsson took third in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 45.64.

In the 200 individual medley, Reese Yauger (Ryle) took fourth, Ryon Argo (Beechwood) took fifth, Gabriella Stephens (Ryle) seventh and Abby Carnes (Notre Dame) eighth.

Sarah Jones of Highlands took fifth in the 50-yard freestyle race.

Notre Dame Academy had three swimmers in the 200 freestyle final. Sadie Hartig placed third, Clare Herfel fourth and Liv Wallace seventh.

See NKY state finalists’ final dive at OHSAA state championships

Seven Northern Kentucky divers were state finalists at the KHSAA state diving meet on Friday.

Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy’s Julia Shafer won the 100 freestyle in 50.77 seconds, her second individual win.

Wyoming’s Ansley Neff took third with a time of 51.84.

CHCA’s Julia Shafer wins the 2025 DII 100-yard freestyle state title

CHCA’s Julia Shafer wins the 100 freestyle in 50.77 seconds, her second individual win, at the OHSAA state meet Friday, Feb. 21, 2025, in Canton.

Notre Dame Academy took fourth in the 200-yard medley relay at the KHSAA state meet. Originally, the girls finished fifth until the top placer, Sacred Heart, was disqualified. Other Northern Kentucky schools in the race finished seventh (Dixie Heights) and eighth (Ryle).

Another CB got his second gold medal as Cooper Burt won the 100-yard butterfly in 47.72. His 200-yard medley relay team won gold earlier in the night.

Madeira’s Max Welty took eighth.

Cooper Burt of Ross wins 2025 DII 100-yard butterfly state title

Cooper Burt of Ross wins the 100-yard butterfly in 47.72 at the 2025 Ohio High School Athletic Association state swimming and diving meet in Canton.

Cooper’s Chris Nowak discusses placing fifth at KHSAA state diving

Cooper junior Chris Nowak finished fifth at the KHSAA diving championships and second among Northern Kentucky competitors with a score of 418.85.

Ross swimmer Connor Bennett got his second gold medal of the evening with a win in the boys 200-yard individual medley. His time was 1:49.32.

Ross’s Connor Bennett wins DII boys 200-yard IM state title

Ross High School’s Connor Bennett wins the boys 200-yard individual medley state championship in a time of 1:49.32 Friday, Feb. 21, 2025, in Canton.

Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy’s Julia Shafer wins the 200-yard individual medley with a final time of 2:01.71.

Other local finishers were: Reese Reilly of Roger Bacon (third), Lila Gregory of CHCA (sixth) and Sophia Fink, CHCA (eighth).

CHCA’s Julia Shafer wins the Division II 200-yard individual medley

CHCA’s Julia Shafer wins the 200-yard individual medley in a photo finish Friday, Feb. 21, 2025, at C.T. Branin Natatorium.

Notre Dame Academy’s Savannah Bien finished third in the KHSAA state diving competition with a score of 435.80 to lead the seven Northern Kentucky girls to place in the top 16. Other top-16 placers: 5. Chris Nowak (Cooper) 418.85 7. Rylee Pernell (Scott) 376.5 8. Grace Hedger (Campbell County) 375.75 10. Addison Tinkler (Highlands) 369.00 13. Emmalee Albertson (Ryle) 332.50 and 16. Zoey Beagle (Scott) 306.15.

NDA diver Savannah Bien places third at 2025 KHSAA state meet

Notre Dame Academy sophomore Savannah Bien finished third at the 2025 KHSAA state diving tournament and first among Northern Kentucky competitors.

Indian Hill senior Jason Zhao wins the 200-yard freestyle in a time of 1:35.42.

Other locals in that race were Arjun Velayutham, Indian Hill (third) and Colin McNerney, Seven Hills (sixth).

Indian Hill’s Jason Zhao wins the 200-yard freestyle state title

Indian Hill’s Jason Zhao wins the 200-yard freestyle state title in a time of 1:35.42 on Friday, Feb. 21, at Canton’s C.T. Branin Natatorium.

Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy’s Taylor Bacher wins the 200-yard freestyle for the third year in a row with a time of 1:49:49. Other local finishers in this race were Ansley Neff, Wyoming (second), Emma Rosenbaum, McNicholas (fifth) and Julia Bohl, Wyoming (sixth).

She took second place in the 100-yard butterfly in 54.87 seconds in the final individual event of her high school career. McNicholas’ Emma Rosenbaum took eighth place in the event.

CHCA’s Taylor Bacher wins 200 freestyle for third consecutive year

CHCA’s Taylor Bacher wins the 200 freestyle for the third year in a row with a time of 1:49:49.

Ross High School’s Cooper Burt, Connor Bennett, Luke Mignery and Timmy Pfirmann won the boys 200-yard medley relay in a time of 1:32.3, reports Brendan Connelly. Indian Hill took sixth and Seven Hills, eighth.

Ross boys relay wins 200-yard medley Ohio state title in 2025.

The Ross High School boys relay team of Cooper Burt, Connor Bennett, Luke Mignery and Timmy Pfirrman win the 200 medley relay in 1:32.3 Feb. 21, 2025

Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy girls finished second in the first event of the 2025 state meet, followed by Indian Hill’s fourth-place, Seven Hills’ sixth-place and Roger Bacon’s eighth-place finishes.

Enquirer staff arrives in Canton

Four Southwest Ohio divers finish in the state’s top 10

The Ohio state championships kicked off Tuesday with the Division II diving competition, followed by Division I on Wednesday.

As such, the Ohio divers have already finished their season with three divers finishing in the top eight: West Clermont’s Bryce Cousins (fifth), Sycamore’s Simon Huth (seventh) and Anderson’s Bella Basford (eighth).

The KHSAA delayed Kentucky’s diving competitions earlier in the week because of the weather. The girls diving competition was rescheduled to 2 p.m. Friday ahead of the finals, scheduled for around 6:40 p.m.

Which Greater Cincinnati swimmers and divers qualified for the 2025 state meet?

Brendan Connelly provided previews for Ohio Division I, Ohio Division II and Northern Kentucky swimmers and divers heading to state. Here are the links:

Check out Greater Cincinnati photo galleries from major swimming contests in 2025

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Ohio

Urban Meyer recalls Pete Rose’s texts about Ohio State football

Published

1 hour ago

May 10, 2026

Press Room

Urban Meyer recalls Pete Rose’s texts about Ohio State football

Cincinnati Reds legend and well-known gambler Pete Rose was possibly more than just curious about Ohio State football’s 2012 season when he texted Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer.

Appearing on “The Triple Option” show with Alabama running back Mark Ingram May 6, Meyer told a story about his relationship with Rose.

After OSU hired Meyer, the Reds asked him to throw out the first pitch at a game. Meyer threw to his son, Nathan, and walked into the dugout, where Rose, MLB’s all-time hit leader, was waiting to greet him.

“I couldn’t get enough talking about ‘Big Red Machine,’ and he wanted to talk college football,” Meyer said on the podcast, explaining how the two spoke for hours and exchanged numbers.

Meyer said that during his first season, Rose texted him early on. He wanted information about the team, like news on Braxton Miller’s shoulder injury.

“I told that to someone, and they said, ‘You’re an idiot. Do you know he’s trying to get information from you for gambling, and you could get in trouble?’ ” Meyer said.

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Though Meyer asserted that he never disclosed much, he started to steer the conversations clear of college football after he realized Rose potentially wanted information for gambling.

The two had another conversation in Las Vegas, where Rose told Meyer he gambled daily after retiring.

Rose was banned from baseball for betting on the sport, something he admitted to in his 2004 autobiography. Rose was reinstated in 2025 and so is considered eligible for the Hall of Fame.

Still baseball’s most prolific hitter (4,256 hits), Rose died in 2024.

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8th Annual Trumbull County Special Olympics Invitational held in Girard

Published

13 hours ago

May 9, 2026

Press Room

8th Annual Trumbull County Special Olympics Invitational held in Girard

GIRARD, Ohio (WKBN) – Over 100 athletes came together for the 5th Annual Trumbull County Special Olympics Invitational Saturday morning in Girard.

These athletes represent five different schools across Trumbull County to compete and spread the message of inclusion, achievement, and sportsmanship.

The Invitational continued its long-standing tradition of honoring the legacy of Randy Suchanek while celebrating the dedication and accomplishments of Special Olympics athletes throughout the region.

“You can hear all the excitement for this, for the athletes that are here today,” said superintendent Bryan O’Hara. “They work hard all year long to participate. We’ve always worked hand in hand with the rotary to get this accomplished is a lot of work behind the scenes.”

Participating schools included Ashtabula, Geauga, Columbiana, Kent-Portage and Trumbull Fairhaven

“There’s a lot of nice participation from girard students as you see behind us, and a lot of participation from the community helping out,” Girard-Liberty Rotary co-president Andy Kish added.

O’Hara added that the event keeps everything in perspective, seeing the athletes compete in the spirit of fun, along with the courage and determination that they show.

Alex Sorrells contributed to this report.

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Can you eat Ohio River fish? Just Askin’

Published

1 day ago

May 9, 2026

Press Room

Can you eat Ohio River fish? Just Askin’

Can you eat fish from the Ohio River?

In 1975, future presidential candidate Michael Dukakis, then governor of Massachusetts, bet 20 pounds of New England cod that the Red Sox would defeat the Reds in the World Series. If things went south for Boston, Ohio governor James Rhodes promised to send Dukakis 10 pounds of Lake Erie perch and 10 pounds of Ohio River catfish. The Reds ended up winning and the cod was sent to the Convalescent Home for Children, in Cincinnati.

At the time, people were still eating catfish from the Ohio without too much concern. The fish were also served at several restaurants along the river.

There were warnings in 1977

But two years later, in 1977, The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission released the results of a study of contaminants found in the tissues of Ohio River fish. They warned anglers in cities such as Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Louisville, Wheeling and Gallipolis that man-made chemicals known as PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, had been discovered in the river fish. Later, high concentrations of mercury were discovered in the fish, too.

Thanks to the Clean Water Act of 1972 and the environmental regulations that followed, the river is now cleaner than it was in the seventies. And it’s still teeming with a variety of fish, including catfish, striped bass, drum and black bass, among other species.

But even though PCBs were banned by the Environmental Protection Agency in 1979, they are still found in fish, since they remain in the sediment in the bottom of the river. “Organisms live in the sediment and fish feed on them,” Rich Cogen, the executive director of the Ohio River Foundation told The Enquirer. Mercury is also a big problem, according to Cogen.

So the question is: Can you eat fish caught in the Ohio River?

The short answer is yes. But it depends on what species you are eating and where along the river you caught it.

There are also very strict limitations on how frequently you should eat them, according to the web site for the Ohio Sport Fish Consumption Advisory, part of the Ohio Department of Health.

In areas of the river between the Belleville Lock, located 204 miles downstream from the river’s origins in Pittsburgh, to the Indiana border, the advisory agency currently recommends consuming Ohio River fish no more than once a month max. That area includes Adams, Brown, Clermont, Gallia, Hamilton, Lawrence, Meigs and Scioto counties.

Here’s where to check

Recommendations change throughout the year, but you can keep up by visiting the Ohio Department of Health’s Sport Fish Consumption Advisory page, which provides updated information on when certain fish, usually bottom feeders such as carp, are deemed too dangerous to eat at all.

Here’s who should take a pass on Ohio River fish

The agency also warns that people who are more likely to have health effects from eating contaminated fish, includingchildren younger than 15 years old, pregnant women and women who are planning to become pregnant to avoid Ohio River fish altogether.

Just because you have to limit the amount of fish you eat, doesn’t mean the river is a bad place for fishing, as long as you limit your intake or do catch-and-release fishing. Just make sure you have a proper fishing license before casting your line.