The Republican Party of Hamilton County has named Bill Clifford as Vice Chairman.  According to my news-gathering partner, the Hamilton County Reporter, The announcement was made by GOP County Chairwoman Laura Campbell.

Clifford and his wife Sheryl have devoted many hours volunteering for the local party.  Sheryl also serves on the Board of Directors for the Hamilton County Federated Republican Women.

Clifford ran for Hamilton County Sheriff in the 2018 Republican primary election, but lost to Dennis Quackenbush.

by

Richie Hall

Sports Editor

Hamilton County Reporter

Everything came together for the Fishers boys volleyball team this season.

The Tigers had all the pieces for a post-season run, and were willing to do the work. They were rewarded with a state championship, which took place in May at Franklin Community High School.

While Fishers won its state title just a few weeks ago, head coach Carlos Capó knew about his team’s potential towards the end of last season.

“We only had three seniors in our varsity team last year, with only one being a starter,” said Capó. “We finished sixth, but beat multiple teams ranked higher than us. For example, we beat Cathedral three times last year, with no losses, and they were ranked No. 1 going into the state tourney and finished state runner-up.

“All of my returning starters plus most of my non-starters play winter travel club,” said Capó. “When you look at our state tourney roster, only four players didn’t play winter travel club. They played in very competitive teams that played in big tournaments, including Chicago and St. Louis. So I knew the boys were putting in the needed effort in the off-season to be even better than last year. I knew we had all the pieces for a state tournament deep run, but it wasn’t until the season got underway and within the first two weeks, we had already played teams ranked second through fifth in the state and beat each of them in a convincing manner.”

A key match for Fishers was a big win over Roncalli on March 14. It was the first time in the five-year history of the team that the Tigers had beaten the Rebels, and Capó called it the most memorable moment of the season outside of the state tournament.

“For the past four years, we hadn’t been able to even win a single set in any previous matches,” said Capó. “By year four, we had beaten all power house teams at least once. This was our one monkey on our backs. To add a bit more color, the past two state finalists weekends (2017 and 2018) we were matched up against Roncalli both years in the quarterfinals. Losing in three straight sets each time.”

Once it was in the post-season, Fishers cruised through, winning five matches without dropping a set. In the regionals, the Tigers defeated Columbus East 25-5, 25-13, 25-16 in the semi-finals, then beat Cardinal Ritter 25-17, 25-11, 25-17 to win the championship.
At the state tournament, Fishers took care of Zionsville in the quarter-finals 25-12, 25-17, 25-11. The Tigers then beat Carmel 25-23, 26-24, 25-18 in the semi-finals, and won the state title by defeating their old nemesis Roncalli 25-18, 25-19, 25-13.

Capó said his team was solid “in all aspects of the game.” Fishers definitely was dominant on offense, as it had the top two kill leaders in the state: Senior Mario Capó put down 344 kills, while his classmate Parker Beale hit 321 kills. Both were outside hitters for the Tigers.
“Our middles and right side also did a very solid job hitting, so teams couldn’t just concentrate on blocking the outside hitters,” said Carlos Capó.

That included senior middle blocker Logan Krehibel, whose hitting percentage of .414 placed him fifth in the state. Krehibel and senior Luke Moritz finished the season second and third respectively in blocking, with 93 and 82.

“While a high percentage of sets went to the outside hitters, in the state championship match, our hitting was solid, but our blocking was unbelievable,” said Capo. “We finished the match with 11 total blocks.”

Fishers’ defense was also solid. Sophomore libero Franky Capó was fifth in the state in total digs, collecting 304. Senior setter Jordan Guler finished second in the state in assists, totaling 901.

“Another aspect of our game that was solid was executing when out of system,” said Carlos Capó. “Franky did an outstanding job setting the ball when Jordan took the first pass. I was complemented by other coaches stating that we were by far the best team in out of system situations.”

Fishers finished the season undefeated against Indiana teams at 36-0. The Tigers’ overall record was 40-2, with their only losses to Louisville St. Xavier.

“A very strong team that we competed well against the two times we played them,” said Capó. “They won the Kentucky boys high school championship again this year. We beat other teams from Louisville and Chicago area.”

Hamilton County Reporter

The Hamilton Southeastern baseball team is making its fifth appearance in the semi-state.
The Royals qualified for the semi-state in 1988, 1993, 1998 and 2004, in addition to this year.

An article in Friday’s Reporter was trying to communicate that this was the first time Southeastern had been among the last four baseball teams in the tournament. It is actually the second time, as the Royals were among the last four teams in 1998. The format then is the same as it is now, where two teams play each other in the north and south semi-states. The winners advance to the state finals.

Southeastern reached the semi-state championship game in 1988 and 1993, placing it among the last eight teams, as semi-state winners qualified for what was then the four-team state finals. In 2004, four teams played in each semi-state, with two teams advancing to the state finals.

Fishers will be announcing the 37 Thrives program Tuesday, which will keep local residents and businesses updated on the State Road 37 construction project.  The work is scheduled to begin late this summer.

For that, and other road construction updates around the Fishers area, see the latest information below, as provided by the City of Fishers:

===================

STATE ROAD 37 

126TH STREET
Work has begun on intersection improvements for 126th Street and Parkside Drive. View the Fact Sheet to learn more about this project.

96TH STREET
Utility relocation is beginning on 96th Street as part of the road widening project, resulting in periodic lane restrictions over the coming months. For more information about the 96th Street road widening project, view the Fact Sheet.  

OUTSIDE OF FISHERS
The Indiana Department of Transportation have begun work on the northeast quadrant of I-465. Contractors will work to patch and repave segments of I-465 and I-69 from U.S. 31 all the way down to I-70. To learn more about this project click here.

by

Richie Hall

Sports Editor

Hamilton County Reporter

The Hamilton Southeastern baseball team has already gone further in the IHSAA
post-season tournament than any other Royals team in the history of the program.

Now, the only thing standing between Southeastern and its first appearance at state
is a group of Cavemen.

The Royals (21-8) will take on Mishawaka (25-6) in the Class 4A north semi-state
Saturday at Plymouth. That game will see its first pitch around 3:30 p.m., following
the 1A game between Rossville and Washington Township.

“We were at Plymouth earlier in the year, however, we didn’t play very well in
the Plymouth Invite,” said Southeastern coach Jeremy Sassanella. The Royals
dropped both games at that invitational in early May; the coach believes his team is
“looking more at redemption at that site from earlier in the spring,” rather than the
familiarity of having been there.

Southeastern earned its semi-state spot after beating Fort Wayne Carroll last Saturday to win the Lafayette Jefferson regional.

The Cavemen beat Lake Central to take the La Porte regional, but that game was delayed
to Monday due to weather. That allowed the Royals a chance to see Mishawaka play.

Sassanella called the Cavemen a “bunch of quality ball players with a very competitive spirit.” He noted that 10 of the players on the Mishawaka team were on the Cavemen’s football team that reached the semistate last fall.

“They are a physically big team of grinders, we’ll have to be at our best,” said
Sassanella. “Their pitching staff is strong with three quality right handers that have
been very good for them all year. They’ve got some quality bats at the top of the order
and have also been able to manufacture runs as they’ve needed.”

Junior Donovan Snyder is Mishawaka’s leading hitter, with a .433 average. He is the
co-leader for the Cavemen in runs scored with 27. Snyder shares that place with senior
Grant Jablonski, who also has 27 runs scored. Jablonski is batting .368 and leads
Mishawaka in hits with 32 and runs batted in with 26. Jablonski is also the Cavemen’s
best pitcher with an 8-0 record and a 0.41 earned-run average; he has struck out 78 this
season.

Greyson Droste is on top of Southeastern’s batting list with a .407 average. Droste
also leads the team in hits with 33 and in doubles with 11. He is tied with Matthew
Buckingham for most RBI with 25; Buckingham has scored the most runs with 21.
On the mound, Tyler Schweitzer (8-2) and Michael Dillon (8-1) have been the dominant pitchers, with Schweitzer compiling a 1.21 ERA and 85 strikeouts. Dillon has
struck out 63.

Sassanella said that as the post-season begins, a coach looks for his team to be
business-like and focused, but at the same time not too tight.

“They’ve really grown over the course of the year and they’re a group that played
together a long time,” said Sassanella, who said his team knows what is at stake and
what needs to be done. “Our preparation has been sharp and focused this week and I’m
hopeful and confident we’ll be ready to play.”

Thompson Thrift Retail Group (TTRG), on behalf of Fishers District, the Fishers Arts and Cultural Commission, and Nickel Plate Arts is soliciting artist proposals for four prominent outdoor wall murals to be installed at the new Fishers District located on 116th and IKEA Way near IKEA and Top Golf in Fishers, Indiana. Artists may propose designs for one or more of these murals.

The murals are intended to be representative of Fishers and should embrace the city’s SMART | VIBRANT | ENTREPRENEURIAL spirit. The goal is to create murals that offer an “Instagramable” moment for the residents and visitors to Fishers District.

The mural(s) must fit within the confines of the walls (site plans, renderings and wall dimensions are included herein). All mediums will be considered – paint, printed applique, dimensional, and other, pending the approval of the Developer and City of Fishers. Application must be durable and withstand inclement weather for up to 5 years.

If you are an interested artist, here are the details:

Continue reading Call For Artists →

Hamilton County Reporter

An updated Junk Ordinance will go into effect within the unincorporated areas of Hamilton County on Thursday, June 20. On Monday, May 13, the Hamilton County Commissioners approved the ordinance, which prohibits the accumulation of inoperable vehicles and junk on private property.

Dillinger

“It is in the best interest of the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of Hamilton County to prohibit the accumulation of junk,” said Steve Dillinger, president of the Hamilton County Commissioners. “Not only are these yards unsightly, but they also reduce the property value of those living nearby. Some even create fire hazards, pollute surface water and attract rodents.”

The terms of the updated ordinance apply to all real estate privately owned in Hamilton County outside a city or town. The term “junk” refers to discarded, abandoned, or cast-off materials including, but not limited to, scrap metals, broken glass, building materials, automobile parts, furniture, mattresses and appliances. Also, disassembled, unlicensed, junked, wrecked, or other inoperable vehicles will not be allowed to remain on property for more than 15 days, unless the vehicle is in connection with a legally zoned automobile sales or repair business.

“This ordinance also addresses excessive numbers of vehicles – operating or not,” said Dillinger. “You are no longer allowed to park more vehicles outside your garage than the number of bedrooms, as shown on your county property record card for the residential lot, plus one. So if you have a four bedroom home, you should not have more than five cars parked outside your garage at any time.”

Anyone in violation of the new ordinance will be subject to fines. Once notified of a violation, by either the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office or the Director of the Hamilton County Planning Department, the homeowner will be given up to 60 days to rectify the problem. If the property is not brought into compliance, the homeowner can be fined up to $2,500 for the first offense and up to $7,500 for any future violations.

If the property continues to be a problem, the county may forcibly remove any or all materials that are in violation and assess the costs of the removal to the landowner.

In addition to Westfield and Butler star Ryan Pepiot, three other Hamilton County baseball players were selected in this week’s Major League Baseball Draft.

Matt Gorski, a Hamilton Southeastern graduate and junior at Indiana University, was taken in the second round as the 57th pick. Gorski, an outfielder, had a productive junior year, batting .271 with 61 hits, 58 runs scored, 46 RBI and 12 home runs. His fielding stats are even stronger, with 111 putouts and no errors for the entire season.

Harrison Freed, a Westfield graduate and junior right fielder at Butler University, was taken in the 13th round to join his teammate Pepiot. Freed had a sensational junior year, batting .376 with 82 hits, 73 runs batted in and 17 home runs.

University senior Reese Sharp was drafted in the 28th round. Sharp has committed to play at Indiana University.

When HSE School Board President Michael Bottorff resigned  his seat on the board last week, the question swirling around the local community was, how will the board go about selecting someone to fill the board seat?

After a Tuesday board executive session, we now know.  Residents residing in Fall Creek Township may apply through 4pm, Friday, June 7th.  To be eligible to apply, you must be at least 18 years of age, you must have lived in Fall Creek Township at least one year and have no record of a felony conviction.

The application must include the following:

· Name

· Occupation

· Relationship to HSE

· Brief description of why applicant wishes be considered

All applications must be submitted to this e-mail address: djustice@hse.k12.in.us

Candidates will be interviewed in public, with at least three finalists.  Those interviews  will be held Tuesday, June 18, 2019, at 3:00 p.m. in the Mudsock Room at the HSE Central Office.

The board plans to make a formal appointment at the regular board session, Wednesday, June 26, 2019.

The new First Internet Bank headquarters will start a skyline for the downtown area of Fishers.  That’s what a city official told me just before ground was broken in the new building, beginning construction on the project that is expected to be completed in about two years.

First Internet Bank CEO & President David Becker, Fishers Mayor Scott Fadness, representatives of Browning Investments and a number of others spoke before the crowd assembled for the ceremony.

This is part of a $157 million Browning Investment development along 116th Street in the downtown Nickel Plate District in downtown Fishers.