ASHLAND, Ky. – Kiyan Miller ran for three touchdowns, Dylan Courtney threw for three more and Jamir Kirtley scored on offense and special teams as Covington Catholic beat Ashland Blazer 57-28 Friday night in the second round of the Class 4A playoffs.
The Colonels scored three touchdowns in the first quarter, led 36-14 at halftime and answered every Ashland touchdown with one of their own. CovCath improved to 8-4 and advanced to the regional championship. Ashland finished 10-2.
Miller opened the scoring with a 9-yard touchdown run to cap a seven-play, 61-yard drive. The Colonels needed just one snap on each of their next two scoring drives. Courtney hit Brandon Smith for a 45-yard touchdown, then found Owen Pitzer for a 36-yard score to make it 21-0 with 1:08 left in the first quarter.
Maverick Ashby got the Tomcats on the board with a 4-yard run early in the second. Miller answered with a 7-yard touchdown and ran in the two-point conversion to put CovCath up 29-7. Tanner Stutler found Justin Hughes for a 44-yard touchdown just 19 seconds later, but Kirtley’s 2-yard run pushed the Colonels’ lead back to 22 before halftime.
Ashby’s second touchdown cut the deficit to 36-21 midway through the third. Miller responded with a 1-yard touchdown run, and Kirtley returned a punt 75 yards for a score with 43 seconds left in the quarter to give the Colonels a 50-21 lead. Stutler and Hughes connected again from 39 yards out in the fourth before Courtney capped the scoring with a 43-yard touchdown pass to Mac Cogswell.
Miller finished with 166 yards on 21 carries, leading a CovCath ground game that put up 202 yards and four touchdowns. Courtney completed 6 of 8 passes for 152 yards, with three of those six completions going for scores. Kirtley added a 61-yard kickoff return to go with his two touchdowns.
The Colonels gained 354 yards on 38 plays and committed no turnovers. On defense, they recorded seven sacks, including two by Jonny Lind and one by Pitzer. Parker Payne led CovCath with 10 tackles and had an interception, while Miles Woolf recovered a fumble.
Ashby led the Tomcats with 60 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries. Stutler completed 13 of 16 passes for 160 yards and two scores, both to Hughes, who finished with six catches for 109 yards.
SCORING BY QUARTERS
CovCath: 21-15-14-7-57
Ashland Blazer: 0-14-7-7-28
SCORING PLAYS
C: Kiyan Miller 9 run (K-Rocco Gillette kick)
C: Brandon Smith 45 pass from Dylan Courtney (Gillette kick)
C: Owen Pitzer 36 pass from Courtney (Gillette kick)
A: Maverick Ashby 4 run (Max McAlister kick)
C: Miller 7 run (Miller run)
A: Justin Hughes 44 pass from Tanner Stutler (McAlister kick)
C: Jamir Kirtley 2 run (Gillette kick)
C: Ashby 5 run (McAlister kick)
C: Miller 1 run (Gillette kick)
C: Kirtley 75 punt return (Gillette kick)
A: Hughes 39 pass from Stutler (McAlister kick)
C: Mac Cogswell 43 pass from Courtney (Gillette kick)
Get the complete scores from all of this week’s action on the Underground Sports Shop Scoreboard at TriStateFootball.com/scores.
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