Softball tournament to be held in honor of girl stabbed to death by man formerly of Grayson Co.

A softball tournament has been organized to support the family of a mother and daughter killed by a man formerly of Grayson County.

Kayla Blake, 37, and her daughter, Kennedi McWhorter, 13, both of Morehead, were stabbed to death by 44-year-old Joshua W. Cottrell on Friday, September 19, at their residence. Their bodies were discovered by the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office at approximately 10:15 that morning.

Cottrell was arrested several hours later in an emergency room near Paducah.

The suspect had been in a relationship with Blake.

Kennedi’s longtime softball coach, Wes Coldiron, told WKYT.com:

“You know, you lose such a bright, shiny star in this world, and you immediately go to why. Then after you deal with that, it’s what am I gonna tell my daughter and these other girls in the community that were her teammates? How do you explain that to a thirteen-year-old child?

“It was beautiful the other night at her vigil. You look around and see 300 people standing around there, at the relationships she made with people and the people she impacted, it’s more than just softball. It’s a family.”

Coldiron has decided to host a “Play for Kennedi” softball tournament in Montgomery County at the end of October.

He told WKYT.com that proceeds from the tournament will be given to Blake and Kennedi’s family.

“I think it’s great for people to get together and for people to heal and show up and support each other, I think that’s the biggest message with this tournament, and the community outpour has been tremendous,” Coldiron told the Lexington television station.

The tournament, for girls ages 8 to 14, will be held at Easy Walker Park, at 1395 Osborne Road in Mt. Sterling, on October 25-26.

Cottrell’s Grayson Co. connection

According to online records, Cottrell was listed as a Caneyville resident by the McCracken County Detention Center in a September 2023 arrest for public intoxication. His street address was Frank Smith Road, just east of Caneyville off Beaver Dam Road (Hwy 62).

Cottrell, who was 21 at the time and lived in Leitchfield, was convicted of second-degree manslaughter in the 2003 killing of 36-year-old Richie Phillips at a motel in Elizabethtown. Phillips’ body was found stuffed in a suitcase by fishermen in Rough River Lake in Breckinridge County, according to media reports from 2003.

Cottrell, who was also found guilty of theft by unlawful taking and tampering with physical evidence, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. He was released in 2019.

Cottree is being held in the Montgomery County Regional Jail.

(Headline photo: Kennedi McWhorter, courtesy of Malone Funeral Home)

By Ken Howlett, News Director

Contact Ken at ken@k105.com