2024 Post-Season Award Winners

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Crittenden County High School held its annual football awards ceremony Sunday. Among those honored were (front, from left) Kaiden Travis, Most Valuable Lineman and 4-Year Senior awards; Braiden Brandsassem Greg Dozer Belt and Roach awards ; Caden Howard, RBI Impact, Record-Breaker, Trash Can Turnover, Captain and Most Valuable Player awards ; Cam’Ron Belcher, Most Valuable Special Teams Player, Feed Mill Grit Iron, 4-Year Senior and Record-setter awards; Quinn Summers, Record-setter, Captain, Crittenden Press Paul E. Mick Leadership and Most Valuable Offensive Player awards; (back) Adri Berry, Record-setter and First Female Player awards; Brayden Poindexter, Most Valuable Defensive Player and Tackling Points Leader awards; Noah Byford, 110 Percent Award; Trae Taylor, Most Improved Defensive Player Award; Conner Poindexter, JV Captain Award; Eli Lovell, JV Offensive MVP; Carson Yates, Solid Rocket Award; and Mitchell Brown, Most Improved Special Teams Player. Not pictured: Trent Todd, JV Defensive MVP; Michael Porter, Selfless Rocket Award; Blake French, 4-Year Senior Award; and Dakota Sosh, Most Improved Offensive Player Award.

 

5 Players Earn All WKC honors

Five athletes from Crittenden County High School have been named to the All West Kentucky Conference football team.

Junior quarterback Quinn Summers completing 190 of 304 passes for 2,416 yards and 27 touchdowns, with only eight interceptions over 11 games. He also rushed for 139 yards.

Senior defensive end Kaiden Travis recorded 47 tackles, including a dozen for loss and 3 sacks.

Junior lineman Braydin Brandsasse played both ways up front and on defense contributed 28 tackles, including 4 tackles for loss and 3 sacks.

Junior receiver/defensive back Caden Howard set some new school receiving records this season and led the team with 69 receptions for 956 yards and 11 touchdowns. Defensively, he added 52 tackles, 2 interceptions and 4 fumble recoveries.

Senior receiver/safety Cam'Ron Belcher was a key offensive weapon with 58 receptions for 835 yards and 9 touchdowns. On defense, he contributed 54 tackles and 4 interceptions.

Rockets' playoffs end at O'Cath, again

 

Brayden Mahnke went down with a knee injury,
and never returned to the field.

OWENSBORO, Ky. – For the fifth time across the last 13 seasons, Crittenden County’s football playoff aspirations have come to an end in Owensboro. The Rockets lost Friday on the road 41-13 to Class 2A’s top-ranked Owensboro Catholic.

The Catholics had scored twice just five plays into the game, courtesy in part to a Rocket fumble. The Aces stayed on the gas, posting 35 points in less than 13 minutes following the opening whistle – thanks, again, in part – to two more CCHS turnovers in the early going. 

Crittenden had been "clock'd" in the first minute of the second period. 

In a sense, the Aces’ fast start hurried the Rockets’ slow walk to the virtual gas chamber that has existed in playoff games at O’Cath over the team’s association in Class 2A. When the running-clock mercy rule kicked in, misery was mitigated to an extent. 

Caden Howard was injured catching a pass near
the end zone on fourth down. Booster Club President
Serena Dickerson holds an ice pack on the wound.

Crittenden was unable to gain any momentum at all, and the game was never close – a slight contrast to the Rockets’ first loss (51-0) at O’Cath six weeks ago when they were able to compete for a time.

One of few bright spots for CCHS was a 75-yard kickoff return by Caden Howard that put Crittenden in scoring position in the first quarter. Yet that chance was squandered when the Rockets went four and out in the red zone.

Senior Tyree McLean scored twice in the second half – on a pass from junior QB Quinn Summers and on a 1-yard run – to get CCHS on the scoreboard against O’Cath reserves.

Crittenden entered the playoffs as a No. 4 seed in the regional post-season format after going winless in league play this season. Next fall, the district makeup will change a great deal. It will be a six-team league with newcomers Fort Campbell, Trigg County and Todd Central joining Crittenden, Mayfield and Caldwell County in the Class 2A First District. Murray High, a district foe in recent years, will be leaving the league as part of KHSAA’s reclassification. 

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Crittenden County 0 0 6 7

Owensboro Cath 27 8 6 0

SCORING PLAYS

OC-Xavier Maddox 13 pass from Brady Atwell (kick failed) 11:15, 1st

OC-Deron Crowe 13 pass from Atwell (Andrew Garvin kick) 10:29, 1st

OC-Miles Edge 10 pass from Atwell (Garvin kick) 7:03, 1st

OC-Edge 48 run (Garvin kick) 2:36, 1st

OC-Edge 18 pass from Atwell (Waryn Eblhar pass from Atwell) 11;17, 2nd

CC-Tyree McLean 6 pass from Quinn Summers (Adri Berry kick failed) 6:19, 3rd

OC-Shaiden Mitchell 12 run (pass failed) 1:40, 3rd

CC-McLean 1 run (Berry kick) 5:47, 4th.

TEAM TOTALS

First Downs: CCHS 11, OCHS 12

Penalties: CCHS 3-15, OCHS 6-51

Rushing: CCHS 12-11, OCHS 21-203

Passing: CCHS 14-26-1, 170; OCHS 15-20-0, 197

Total Yards: CCHS 181, OCHS 400

Fumbles/Lost: CCHS 2-2, OCHS 2-1

INDIVIDAUL STATISTICS

Rushing

CCHS: Brayden Mahnke 4-11, Trae Taylor 1-0, McLean 1-1, CamRon Belcher 1-8, Summers 5-(-9). OCHS: Mitchell 7-34, Crowe 1-4, Vince Carrico 3-15, Edge 2-60, Dremail Carothers 1-(-6), Carter James 2-16, Atwell 5-74.

Passing

CCHS: Summers 14-26-1, 170. OCHS: Atwell 13-17-0, 180; Carothers 2-3-0, 17.

Receiving

CCHS: Caden Howard 3-31, Brayden Poindexter 1-24, McLean 4-45, Belcher 4-44, Taylor 1-10, Mahnke 1-16. OCHS: Maddox 2-51, Crowe 1-13, Ebhlar 3-32, Carrico 1-17, Edge 2-28, Cameron Woodward 1-9, Noah O'Nan 2-18, Russ Boarman 1-12, Carter James 2-27.

Defense

CamRon Belcher solo, assist; Landon Curry 3 assists; Blake French 3 solos; Brayden Mahnke 6 solos, assist, TFL, fumble recovery; Tyree McLean 2 solos; Michael Porter solo; Kaiden Travis solo, TFL; Braydin Brandsasse 2 solos, assist; Caden Howard solo; Brayden Poindexter 5 solos; Trae Taylor 2 solos, assist; Noah Byford 3 solos, assist; Gaige Markham solo, assist; Eli Lovell solo, assist. 

Records: Crittenden 4-7, Owensboro Catholic 11-0

Owensboro Catholic Aces

    

 BY: ANDY HUNT

This time of the year is when we typically see those big accomplishments of Rockets that have come before this current team get surpassed by a newer group of Rocket football players.  This season is not the exception and with big nights by multiple Rockets on Friday, we could see as many as 10 more records fall.  

Read below to find what passing record Quinn Summer now owns that wasn't

THE SHOW | 11w2024 | Playoffs at O'Cath

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Rockets roast Lakers on Senior Night

The team enters Rocket Stadium for last time in 2024

MARION, Ky. – Crittenden County put a bow on its final performance of 2024 at Rocket Stadium, wrapping up a shutout victory decorated with several firsts in a game that marked the last home appearance for 10 seniors.

Senior Tyree McLean scores in the first half
GO HERE FOR MORE PHOTOS

The Rockets dispatched winless Calloway County 36-0, a rewarding win after two consecutive losses—their third two-game skid of the season. But the victory also celebrated memorable milestones for several players: junior Trae Taylor scored his first career touchdown, senior Landon Curry (typically a defender) took his first and possibly last chance at carrying the ball on a rushing play, and senior Michael Porter notched both his first career touchdown and first-ever pass reception. Junior receiver Caden Howard also broke Preston Morgeson’s touchdown receptions record with his 26th career TD catch, one of two in the game, while junior quarterback Quinn Summers threw for over 300 yards for the first time.

“It was a good night for the Rockets,” said coach Gaige Courtney. “It was a really good way to send off the seniors. That was our message all week. It was the last time they will get to play here. It’s a special place and it means a lot to them. It was just really good to see a lot of things happen.”

Injuries in the Rocket lineup provided plenty of opportunity for others to step up. With senior running back Brayden Mahnke and junior lineman Michael Counts sidelined, Curry and Taylor saw more action, leading to standout moments on the field.

The Rocket defense posted a shutout, preserving
although Calloway got into the red zone once
GO HERE FOR MORE PHOTOS

“It was good see all of (the seniors) get a lot of playing time, make plays and get some touches. Michael Porter getting in the end zone really meant a lot to me. He’s a kid that works his hind end off and to be reward like that on senior night is a big deal,” the coach said. “And that’s just one example. There were tons of them out there. Landon Curry made a ton of plays. There were a lot of guys who did. That’s the way senior night should be.”

Crittenden (4-6) scored three times in the first half and twice in the second. Summers nailed four touchdown passes with senior Tyree McLean and Taylor getting one each, and Howard had the other two. Howard finished with 142 yards on six catches. Porter added the only rushing touchdown, closing out the Rockets’ offensive performance. Senior CamRon Belcher posted eight catches for 107 yards and intercepted a pass on defense. 

With their season finale at Rocket Stadium behind them, the Rockets quickly shift focus to the postseason, which opens next Friday at undefeated Owensboro Catholic, the No. 1 team in Class 2A.

SCORE BY QUARTERS

Calloway County 0 0 0 0

Crittenden County 8 14 8 6

SCORING PLAYS

Critt - Tyree McLean 1 pass from Quinn Summers (Caden Howard pass from McLean) 6:35, 1st

Critt - Howard 25 pass from Summers (Adri Berry kick) 11:15, 2nd

Critt- Trae Taylor 6 pass from Summers (Berry kick) 2:52, 2nd

Critt - Howard 42 pass from Summers (Summers run) 4:52, 3rd

Critt - Michael Porter 1 run (Berry kick failed) 9:58, 4th

TEAM TOTALS

First Downs: Rockets 17, Lakers 10

Penalties: Rockets 6-50, Lakers 9-65

Rushing: Rockets 14-33, Lakers 37-156

Passing: Rockets 29-36-1, 362; Lakers 4-9-1, 37

Total Yards: Rockets 395, Lakers 193

Fumbles/Lost: Rockets 1-1, Lakers 5-1

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

Rushing

Rockets: Summers 6-22, Taylor 2-11, McLean 1-(-2), CamRon Belcher 1-(-1), Blake French 1-(-6), Gaige Markham 1-3, Landon Curry 1-5. Lakers: Logan Smith 22-96, Christian McIntosh 1-(-2), Shaun Phillips 5-44, Carter Tudor 9-18. 

Passing

Rockets: Summers 28-35-1, 351; Conner Poindexter 1-1-0, 11. Lakers: Tudor 4-9-1, 37.

Receiving

Rockets: Howard 6-142, Belcher 8-107, Taylor 4-23, Dakota Sosh 1-6, McLean 7-58, Markham 1-9, Eli Lovell 1-6, Porter 1-11. Lakers: Smith 1-7, JayDynn Darcus 2-26, Phillips 1-4.

Defense

CamRon Belcher assist; Landon Curry 7 solos, 8 assists; Josh Marshal solo; Tyree McLean 7 solos, 3 assists, TFL, caused fumble, fumble recovery; Michael Porter solo, assist; Kaiden Travis 6 solos, 3 assists, 3 TFL; Caden Howard 6 solos, 3 assists, TFL; Pierson solo; Brayden Poindexter 8 solos, 3 assists, 2 TFLs; Trae Taylor solo, assist; Noah Byford 2 solos, 2 assists; Trent Todd 2 solos, 2 assists; Eli Lovell solo. 

Records: Crittenden 4-6, Lakers 0-10

Calloway County Lakers

 BY: ANDY HUNT

Calloway County Series (5-6)

• 1979 – Away – 22-6 – WON
• 1980 – Home – 29-6 – WON
• 1981 – Away – 40-8 – LOST
• 1982 – Home – 29-26 – LOST
• 2003 – Home – 34-7 – LOST
• 2004 – Away – 49-15 – WON
• 2005 – Home – 43-28 – WON
• 2006 – Away – 32-0 – LOST
• 2007 – Home – 49-7 – LOST
• 2008 – Away – 28-6 – LOST
• 2023 – Away – 34-13 – WON
• Scoring in the series is 280-231 in favor of Calloway County
• 1979 was Calloway County’s first varsity season of football.
• Calloway County was