CORBIN — Cody Philpot’s Corbin Redhounds had an impressive season with 26 wins against a challenging schedule.
They clinched the 50th District title and finished as runners-up in both the Kentucky 2A ,Section 7 Tournament and the 13th Region Tournament. One of the Redhounds notable achievements was being one of only four teams to defeat the state championship Whitley County.
However, Coach Philpot’s greatest pride was in how his team came together and fought hard throughout the season.
“Obviously, the season didn’t need where we wanted it to but that can’t overshadow the fact that we had a great year,” Philpot said. “A lot of people will point to the 26 wins as our success, and those were great, but the way this team came together this year and the stuff that they had to battle through together was the true measure of success. This group understands the responsibility that they have in the community as role models and being there for others as well as any group I’ve coached and that’s saying a lot.
“I felt like we progressed well, they got better every day,” he added. “It seemed that any time we made a mistake in game, we talked about it, fixed it and then would see us execute the next time the opportunity arose. That’s about all you can ask for.”
Corbin remained as one of the top teams in the 13th Region Throughout the season. Philpot said some of the keys to his team’s season came during spring break.
“Our spring break trip is always a key to our development he said. “We faced an elite group of teams in Florida this year and were able to compete day in and day out. I think that set the tone for us to come back and compete and beat some of the top teams in Kentucky.”
With the abundance of talent returning, Philpot expects big things out of his in 2024.
“Absolutely, we return basically all of our pitching from this year and have a lot of positives for the pitching staff to be able to build on,” he said. “And then offensively you see Walker (Landrum), Kade (Elam), Mikey (Neal), Bradric (Helton), Jeremiah Gilbert), Noah (Cima) and Cam (Estep) all get another year to develop and come back stronger next year.
“Bradric, Jeremiah, Cruz (Cima) and Ethan Abner were our unquestioned top four arms all this year“ Philpot said. “I expect them to continue to grow and for Bradric and Jeremiah to have a phenomenal senior campaign. Will Freeman and Lucas Tarvin pitched in some big situations this year as well and look to get a bigger work load next year.
“Offensively, Walker and Kade will continue to lead us as they’ve helped do for the last two seasons,” he added. “The rest of the returnees mentioned above will help lead as well, Mikey, Bradric and Jeremiah being seniors, Noah having a breakout year this year and looking to grow as well as Cam Estep who was really surging for us at the end of the year.”
Even with the abundance of talent returning in 2024, Philpot was quick to point out losing Cameron Combs, Jacob Baker, and Landen Sizemore to graduation will hurt.
“As much as it hurts losing Combs and Baker’s productivity on the field, it hurts even more in the locker room and off the field,” he said. “Landen Sizemore has also been a huge part of this team for the last two seasons. Those three embody what it means to be Redhounds. They gave everything they had day in and day out for themselves and their teammates for their entire career and still found time be mentor the youth, be great role models and just be overall great people. I can’t count how many people in the community have came up to me and talked about how impressed they have been by our kids as people. That really makes us as a coaching staff proud and is a reminder of why we do what we do.
“As always, I have to give credit to the community makes makes Corbin Athletics what they are,” he added. “We have tremendous support here and the trajectory of the program is on its way up. We’re excited to see what the future holds for these kids next year and beyond.”
