Volume 5 Issue 9

05 MILESTONES HIT IN HOOPS

07 THE ALL-SP FALL SQUADS

scr覺mmageplay THE CENTRAL VIRGINIA SPORTS AUTHORITY

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VOL 5 . ISSUE 9 :: JANUARY 10, 2014

DOWNTOWN ATHLETIC IS PROUD TO SPONSOR

THE 2013 FALL ALL-SP AWARDS CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE ATHLETES SELECTED FOR THE FALL 2013 TEAMS!

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PLAY FALL 2013

(434) 975-2704 downtownathletic.com

05 Milestones hit in hoops

scrımmageplay the central virginia sports authority

x’s and o’s 21 05 07

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MILESTONES Three big numbers hit in hoops

ALL-SCRIMMAGE PLAY The fall 2013 edition

19

GAME TIME STAB boys take holiday hoops tourney

23

FORWARD ON THE MAT The big lesson taught in wrestling

vol 5 . issue 9 :: January 6, 2014

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plAy FAll 2013 VOL 5 . ISSUE 9 :: JANUARY 10, 2014

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07 the All-sp FAll squAds

S TA F F Bart Isley, Creative Director Bob Isley, Infrastructure Director Ryan Yemen, Creative Editor O N T H E COV E R Buckingham County’s Kenneth Johnson M I S S I O N S TAT E M E N T Local sports are the lifeblood of every community in America, and we’re here to reach beyond the basics and give compelling accounts about Central Virginia athletes to our readers.

CO N TAC T U S [ e ] info@scrimmageplay.com

PAPA’S PUZZLE When you support us, We support you. Help us complete the puzzle.

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PREGAME

Splitting the D St. Anne’s-Belfield’s Kareem Johnson works his way through Western Albemarle’s Sam Chisholm and Eli Sumpter in the finale of the NBC29/Daily Progress Holiday Classic. Playing for the first time in tournament in years, STAB took on William Monroe, Charlottesville and finally Western in the championship, triumphing over the Warriors. That stretch of wins helped put the program back on the radar after a few slow seasons. For more on the win over WAHS turn to page 19. ✖ (Photo by Ashley Thornton)

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Family

Corner PRESENTED BY

ABOVE » While perfectionists can be some of the hardest workers and be the first in line at every drill in practice, their expectations can often become a problem in a game situation.

Managing perfectionism My son Jack is nearing the age where he’ll start playing sports, so for Christmas this year, we picked up shin guards and a properly sized soccer ball for him to get used to as spring approaches.

He was predictably really fired up to play and while he’d played soccer in the yard before, he was suddenly a bit more serious with the shin guards pulled up over the jeans my wife required if he was going to be outside. A friend who was in town stood in as a goalie as Jack took a few shots and he couldn’t seem to find the back of the net. A few shots in, he sat down in the grass and declared that he just wasn’t good at this and he didn’t want to play any more.

It’s safe to say that at four he’s already developing some perfectionist tendencies.

Perfectionism too often gets confused with trying to do your best. That’s a universally admired quality that we should all want as part of our makeup. Trying to do as well as you possibly can in your chosen discipline is a pretty critical part of succeeding in life.

Perfectionism is different — it’s about unrealistic expectations and a line of thinking that you can shield yourself from frustration by doing things perfectly.

It just doesn’t work that way. We’ve all heard the classic examples. The best professional baseball players don’t get a hit 70 percent of the time. Basketball legend Michael Jordan has missed tons of potential gamewinning shots in his career and he’s the greatest of all time.

But that can be a challenge to grasp for young athletes who can become obsessed with things going right solely because they expect them to go right. Perfectionists are often the team’s hardest workers and most diligent students of the game, which makes it harder to criticize their process. But on the flip side they can struggle to learn because they get dejected or frustrated because of a mistake they’ve made or a bounce that didn’t go their way.

It’s important to get perfectionist athletes’ expectations in line with reality and

help them understand that they can learn from mistakes. They have to understand that an error at second base isn’t the end of the world and that a few turnovers or a bad game won’t change the course of their career as a point guard.

We were able to quickly get Jack up and playing again. We explained that it’s really hard to score a goal in soccer, that it doesn’t just happen right away. He seemed to grasp that and went back to trying, playing and eventually having fun with it — once his expectations had been managed a bit.

While altering those expectations, it’s important to empower that athlete as a problem solver too. Teach them to come up with creative solutions after mistakes and attack the game that way. Those mental challenges are a huge part of what makes sports fun and it’ll help any hardwired perfectionist learn to love the game and embrace a challenge. ✖

Scrimmage Play and Triple C Camp are partnering to cover family issues related to youth and prep sports in Family Corner.

Bart Isley,

CRE ATIVE DIRECTOR

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First Quarter Reaching milestones Local trio hit key numbers in December

By Ryan Yemen

T

Matt Temple (right) accepts his 1,000-point ball from Madison County alum Logan Terrell, the last player to reach that mark for the Mountaineers. (John Berry)

{ HOW TO GET THERE } Matt Temple’s points scored in his first three years at MCHS.

134

426

305

Junior Sophomore Freshman

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K AR A EL DER

{POINTS}

here are certain numbers that remain hallmarks in sports and in basketball at the high school level, and getting to 1,000 career points in basketball means an awful lot. It’s the number that shows productivity, longevity and consistency.

This December, a pair of Madison County athletes reached the magic number first on the girls side with Chandler Gentry hitting the magic number just before the holiday break, and then on the boys side with Matt Temple getting his just two days after Christmas.

For Gentry, a four year starter, the number was pretty much inevitable after her breakout performance as a freshman where she was the focal point offensively as the Mountaineer’s looked to rebuild following the absence of Jordan Aylor, it’s previous star. Madison has been driven by Gentry ever since, taking its best steps forward last year as other options opened up around her to force teams to play against her more honestly. So far this year, the Mountaineer’s have been streaky going 4-5 to start the season, but Gentry’s consistency has Madison in position to finish a strong second half to the regular season.

On the boys end, Matt Temple’s been the same in terms of reliability, giving coach Ben Breeden a double-double threat on any given game as he does particularly well on the offensive glass and cleans up underneath thanks to his large frame — something that gives teams trouble on both ends. After flirting with the 1K mark at home against Strasburg, Temple reached the total just a few days later on the road in a 33-point effort to lead the way to a win over Clarke County. He became the first player to do so for Madison since Logan Terrell did it in 2010. Unfortunately for Breeden and Temple, the

team’s top shooting threat, Bobby Ford, went down with a season-ending knee injury in that same stretch. Last year the team struggled to find a third scoring threat after Temple and Ford.

Freshman duo Dre Twyman and Isaiah Smith have been great additions in helping Madison improve, and now more than ever, they will have to aid Temple.

And then there’s the mark for coaches.

What’s the magic number for a solid career?

200? 400? For Fluvanna County, the standard is now officially 500 and counting. Longtime Flucos coach Munro Rateau hit the 500 career wins mark midway through December making him not just one of the most succesfull basketball coaches ever in the state, but one of the winningest coaches period in any sport. And if you want to see why, look no further than the job he’s done this year, replacing his entire roster and still putting his team in the thick of the Jefferson District race after a big overtime win over Western Albemarle, the top-ranked team in the JD. Rateau might be playing with a young roster, but the results so far show that it might not be long before Fluvanna brews up another long playoff stint.

There are likely going to be others crossing milestones soon (Monticello’s Molly Shephard and Megan Comer come to mind) but for now, Gentry, Temple and Rateau have done a nice job of putting perspective on what qualifies as a great career on the hardwood. ✖

go online »

For more in depth hoops coverage head to our website at: www.scrimmageplay.com.

College Update

We’ve gone digital

STAB’s Imovbioh getting in a groove at UVa

But you can have it in print too!

By Ryan Yemen After a solid sophomore year, St. Anne’sBelfield alumus Sarah Imovbioh is rediscovering her game.

For those who watched her play in high school, they know that that means — doubledouble numbers through her tireless effort. In her second season playing at the University of Virginia, you don’t have to travel far to see what was the area’s most dominant player just a few years ago in high school is now doing in college.

Imovbioh started 13 of UVa’s first 14 games and the numbers don’t lie as she’s the Cavaliers leading rebounder, netting 7.6 boards per contest, with just under half of them coming on the offensive glass, a huge benefit to UVa’s offense so far. Speaking of offense, the former Parade All-American is shooting 55.6 percent from the field as the third leading scorer for the Cavaliers, sitting just a half a point behind teammate Faith Randolph at 11.0 ppg.

Through 14 games, Imovbioh also has 10 steals to bolster her defensive stats and while she’s battled through foul trouble much of the way thanks to her constant motor, she’s only fouled out twice. The Cavaliers sit at 7-7 to start the year, but with the former Saint contributing more and more, the future for this rebuilding programs looks bright.

UVa has a pair of big games with a road game against Duke on January 16th and then a big home showdown with Maryland on the 23rd. Anyone looking for a glimpse into the past of one of the best local high school athletes to take to the court should head to John Paul Jones arena for that Maryland date.

With plenty of time left in her collegiate career, one can only wonder if Imovbioh will become as dominant as she was as STAB. She’s working her way up to that awfully quick. She’s almost averaging those doubledouble totals already. ✖

HOW TO GET A PHYSICAL COPY OF SCRIMMAGE PLAY Step 1 :: Click here and head to the MagCloud version of the magazine.

It’s going to look like this below:

BELOW » STAB alum Sarah Imovbioh is rounding into form in her second season at UVa. (Virginia Sports Information)

Step 2 :: Click the Buy Print button next to the magazine and follow instructions to order Step 3 :: Wait patiently by your mailbox Step 4 :: When it arrives, take it out and read or stash away to your heart’s delight!

www.scrimmageplay.com :: 06

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Realligment. That was the story in a different postseason than we’re used to. Both the Buckingham County football and Orange County field hockey teams made it to the VHSL’s final four. Woodberry Forest had an outstanding year in football and cross country. In volleyball, there wasn’t anyone in the area better than Albemarle, but Fluvanna’s squad was hot on their heels. It was a different year, one without an area state champ, but also a season where rebuilding efforts across the board proved succesful. The tail end of 2013 might have felt odd all around, but it’ll be old hat come 2014 with what we saw this fall.

Presented by:

S TO R I E S BY B A RT I S L E Y A N D RYA N Y E M E N P H O T O S B Y R O N L O N D E N , A S H L E Y T H O R N T O N , P A T D I G R E G O R I O , J O H N B E R R Y, B A R T I S L E Y, R Y A N Y E M E N

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F I R S T

T E A M

Henry

Johnson

Brock

Tillery

Means

Londree

Martini

Bryant

Hearn

Weakley

Malm

Snoddy

Etheridge

Tyrell

Jefferson

Bernardino

OFFENSE

DEFENSE

QUARTERBACK

Kent Henry /// Western Albemarle, Sr. 3A West and JD offensive POY, 2,414 passing, 1,287 rushing, 52 total TDs RUNNING BACK

Kenneth Johnson /// Buckingham County, Sr. First team All-Division 2, James River, 2,341 yards, 39 TDs T.J. Tillery /// Monticello, Sr. First team All-Region 3A West, All-JD, 1,599 yards, 21 TDs Rashard Brock /// Charlottesville, Sr. Second team All-JD, HM All-Region 4A North, 1,137 yards, 8 TDs WIDE RECEIVER

Steven Hearn /// Western Albemarle, Sr. First team All-Region 3A West, All-JD, 819 yards, 13 TDs Ashton Weakley /// Madison County, Sr. First team All-Region 2A East, All-Bull Run, 76 rec. 1,343 yards, 11 TDs Josh Malm /// Monticello, Sr. Second Team All Region 3A West, First team All-JD, 760 yards, 9 TDs OFFENSIVE LINE

Donte Henry /// Western Albemarle, Sr. First team All-JD, First team All-Conference 29 Will White /// Charlottesville, Sr. First team All-JD and All-Conference 23 Andrew Shofner /// Woodberry Forest, Sr. First team All-VISAA D1, All-Prep League Adam Hill /// Monticello, Sr. First team All-Region 3A West, All-Jefferson District Jacob Snoddy /// Buckingham County, Sr. First team All-Region 2A West, All-James River

DEFENSIVE LINE

Sean Means /// Monticello, Sr. First team All-Region 3A West, JD defensive POY Akia Timberlake /// Goochland, So. First team All-Conference 34, All-JRD, 67 tackles, 11 TFL, 7 sacks Spencer Bibb /// Woodberry Forest, Sr. First team All-VISAA D1, All-Prep League, 47 tackles, 15 TFL Ryan Londree /// Albemarle, Sr. First team All-JD, Second team All-5A North LINEBACKERS

Ryan Etheridge /// Blue Ridge, Sr. First team All-VISAA D2, All-ODFC, 105 total tackles, 7 TFL Greer Martini /// Woodberry Forest, Sr. First team All-VISAA D1, All-Prep, 92 total tackles, 9 TFL, 9 PDs Drake Bryant /// Albemarle, Sr. First team All-Jefferson District, second team All-Region 5A North Michael Booth /// Monticello, Sr. Second team All-Region 3A West, first team All-Jefferson District DEFENSIVE BACKS

T.J. Tillery /// Monticello, Sr. First team All-JD, All-Conference 29 Nathaniel Tyrell /// Woodberry Forest, Jr. First team All-VISAA D1, All-Prep, 15 PDs, 2 INTs, 29.5 total tackles Jordan Jefferson /// Goochland, Jr. First team All-Region 2A East, All-James River District, 8 INT, 3 FF Kevin Bernardino /// Albemarle, Sr. First team All-JD, second team All-Region 5A North, 5 INTs PUNTER

Lester Coleman /// Woodberry Forest, Sr. First team All-VISAA D1, 12 of 20 punts downed inside 20-yard line

UTILIT Y PL AYER

P.J. White /// Blue Ridge, Sr. All-VISAA D2, All-ODFC, 603 rushing, 345 receiving, 16 total TDS

Breaking it down

RETURN SPECIALIST

Malik Bartee /// Charlottesville, Sr. First team All-JD, All-Conference 29, 6 KO return TDs KICKER

Holland Corbett /// Western Albemarle, Jr. First team All-JD, 59 PATs, 4-for-8 FGs

Here’s where the first team came from

{ 1ST TEAM }

Private Schools Jefferson District James River District Bull Run District

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S E C O N D

OFFENSE QUARTERBACK

Chris Thurston /// Charlottesville, Sr. First team All-JD, 848 rushing yards, 455 passing yards, 20 total TDs RUNNING BACK

David Dyer /// Goochland, Sr. First team All-Region 2A East, 1,208 rushing yards, 20 total TDs Rashon Torrence /// Fork Union, Sr. Second team All-VISAA D1, 1,025 yards, 9 TDs H.T. Minor /// Woodberry Forest, Jr. First team All-VISAA D1, All-Prep League, 838 yards, 7 TDs WIDE RECEIVER

Christian Asher /// Woodberry Forest, Sr. Second team All-VISAA D1, 394 yards, 4 TDs Jalen Harrison /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, So. First team All-VISAA D2, 546 yards, 9 TDs Chase Stokes /// Western Albemarle, Sr. Second team All-JD, 562 yards, 9 TDs OFFENSIVE LINE

Nathan Johnson /// Blue Ridge, Sr. First team All-VISAA D2, All-ODFC Tucker Herr /// Western Albemarle, Sr. First team All-Jefferson District Wade Kammauff /// Charlottesville, Sr. Second team All-Jefferson District Ryan Londree /// Albemarle, Sr. First team All-JD, Second team All-5A North John Creasy /// Goochland, So. First team All-James River and All-Conference 34 UTILIT Y PL AYER

Dominique Talley /// Albemarle, Sr. First team All-Jefferson District, 862 rushing yards, 8 TDs KICKER

Michael Armstrong /// Woodberry Forest, Sr. All-VISAA D1, 41 PATs, 6 FGs

T E A M

DEFENSE DEFENSIVE LINE

R.J. Jackson /// Louisa County, Sr. First team All-Jefferson District, All-Conference 23 Diondre Key /// Fluvanna County, Sr. First team All-Jefferson District, All-Conference 23 Jeremiah Jordan /// Charlottesville, Sr. 39 tackles, 5 sacks, 4 TFL Osiris Crutchfield /// Western Albemarle, So. 51 total tackles, 4 sacks, 9 TFLs LINEBACKERS

Bray Lamb /// Madison County, Sr. Second team All-Bull Run District, 65 tackles John Edwards /// Buckingham County, Sr. First team All-James River, 89 total tackles, 4 sacks, 9 TFL, 3 FR Conner Saunders /// Goochland, Sr. First team All-James River District, second team All-Region 2A East Larry Anderson /// Charlottesville, Jr. Second team All-JD, 115 total tackles, 8 TFLs DEFENSIVE BACKS

Deion Johnson /// Louisa County, Sr. First team All-JD, first team All-Conference 23, 40 tackles, 2 INT P.J. White /// Blue Ridge, Sr. First team All-VISAA Division 2, All-ODFC, 51 tackles Quan Washington /// Covenant, Jr. Second team All-VISAA D3, 13 PDs, 30 total tackles Brodie Phillips /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, Jr. Second team All-VISAA D2 PUNTER

Javier Moreno /// Goochland, Jr. First team All-Region 2A East, 37.5 yards per attempt RETURN SPECIALST

Goodience Flannagan /// Fluvanna County, Sr. First team All-Jefferson District, 2 PR TDs

HONORABLE MENTION Eric Davis /// Blue Ridge, Sr. Cameron Grooms /// Monticello, Sr. Josh King /// William Monroe, Jr. Austin Llera /// Covenant School, Jr. James Hewell /// Woodberry Forest, Sr. James Graves /// Madison County, Jr. Sam Allen /// Fork Union, Sr. Mark Uptegraff /// Fork Union, Sr. Leon Ragland /// Buckingham County, So. Bredt Stockwell /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, Sr.

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Isaiah Ferguson /// Orange County, Sr. Trey Cherry /// Louisa County, Jr. Hunter Etheridge /// Woodberry Forest, Sr. Leon Straus /// Charlottesville, Sr. Malik Johnson /// Louisa County, So. Myles Brown /// Woodberry Forest, Sr. Jaylen Allen /// Goochland, Sr. Demetrius Jones /// Buckingham County, Sr. Kareem Johnson /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, So. Alex McNair /// Monticello, Sr. Josh Wheaton /// Fluvanna County, Sr. Jesse Hickman /// Buckingham County, Sr. Robert Spivey /// Charlottesville, Sr. Michael Mabry /// Buckingham, So. Kelly Kirby /// Nelson County, Sr. Cody Perkins /// William Monroe, Jr. Andrew Allee /// Madison County, Sr. Troy Hughes /// Charlottesville, Jr. Damien Clark /// Orange County, Sr. Homer Barnett /// Nelson County, Sr.

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OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

KENT HENRY, WESTERN ALBEMARLE Kent Henry’s grandparents logged more than 6,000 miles, give or take a few side trips, over the last four years driving back and forth from Pennsylvania to watch their grandson play quarterback.

Henry himself logged a pretty critical 6.1 miles for Western Albemarle during that time, far from his grandparents’ total, but good for nearly every record in Central Virginia’s all-time offensive canon.

Henry’s 10,764 career total offense (a combination of 7,164 passing yards and 3,640 rushing yards in three years as a starter) comes out right around six miles worth of yardage. He’s now the area’s career record holder in passing yards and total offense, which is good for a spot in the state’s top-10 all-time in both categories. He’s accounted for 131 touchdowns in that time.

But one of the most impressive things about this season is that in a year where he was without his top returning target most of the season (Nic Drapanas) and lost his top receiver Daniel Kuzjak to graduation, Henry was nearly as good as he was during his brilliant junior year.

Drawing even more of the attention from opposing defenses and with an entirely revamped defensive front seven suffering through growing pains for the Warriors on the other side of the ball, Henry posted

numbers that were only slightly off his junior campaign and took on a much more significant load on defense as a defensive back/linebacker.

He threw for 2,414 yards and 36 touchdowns while rushing for 1,287 yards and 16 scores this season. He engineered perhaps the signature play of the season when he scrambled and hit Steven Hearn in the back corner of the end zone for a game-winning touchdown with no time left on the clock against Albemarle in the teams’ annual rivalry clash.

He led the Warriors to yet another playoff berth where Magna Vista cut the Warriors’ season short in the second round, continuing a string of five straight playoff appearances since 2009 by a Western program that made the playoffs just once (2003) during the preceding decade.

Henry has proven since he took over the quarterback spot for the Warriors as a sophomore that he’s one of the most dynamic, productive offensive weapons in Central Virginia history, shedding his label as a gritty, gamer type along the way.

Sure, he’s still gritty and he’s certainly a gamer. Western was never out of it with him behind center. But the last two seasons have proven he’s much, much more than that. ✖

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DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

GREER MARTINI, WOODBERRY FOREST Sometimes the only way to understand how good, or rather, exactly what a Division I athlete looks like is to watch one play in the absence of another. Greer Martini and Doug Randolph will be teammates next year again at Notre Dame. But this year, it was up to Martini to step up and lead the way for Woodberry Forest’s annually vaunted defense without Randolph. If that was the test, Martini passed with ease.

The Tigers lost just once this season, against eventual VISAA Division 1 champion Liberty Christian, and it was in that loss, just two weeks into the season, that Martini showed exactly what kind of defender he was. Playing in the middle of coach Clint Alexander’s defense, Martini made tackles he had no business making, playing with the range of a safety, penetrating the offensive line like a defensive lineman and making all the proper reads an interior linebacker should. Sure the Tigers might have fallen short in that contest, but in that game, Martini made his mark as the best and most instinctual athlete on the field, period.

Woodberry steamrolled its way through the rest of the season, reclaiming its crown as Prep League champions before stomping archrival Episcopal. Lost in the blur was that Martini was captaining a defense made of newcomers and underclassmen. The Tigers have put together

a solid stream of leaders by example in the past and Martini was as good or better than those that came before him, all of them Division 1 athletes themselves, from Randolph to Rogers Clarke (N.C. State) and C.J. Prosise (Notre Dame) to Aramide Olanyian (UCLA) and Ed Reynolds (Stanford).

He piled up 92 tackles, averaging 10.2 per game all while facing schemes designed to limit him. He forced four fumbles and had nine tackles for a loss and a crazy nine passes defended. What Martini did in coverage was truly impressive, giving a young secondary a natural centerfielder, but at the linebacker position — that’s unheard of at most any level of play.

The Tigers’ defensive prowess became especially important midseason when starting quarterback Hunter Etheridge went down to injury. It was in that stretch that the Woodberry senior led the Tigers past state runner up Collegiate. In that game against the Cougars, Martini defensively out dueled Michigan-bound Collegiate quarterback Wilton Speight to set up the resounding finish Woodberry had to the season.

There’s a reason Martini is headed to Notre Dame to join old teammates in Randolph and Prosise. He captained arguably the best unit in the state, both public or private and he made it look easy. ✖

- F OO T B A L L -

COACH OF THE YEAR

JOHN BLAKE, ST. ANNE’S-BELFIELD When you’ve won multiple state championships and produced winning teams year in and year out, it’s hard to admit that you didn’t get it right in a particular season. Seriously difficult.

But STAB head coach John Blake held himself accountable and went back to the drawing board this season, adapting to the current conditions his program faced without losing the Saints’ identity. In the process, STAB transformed from an 0-10 2012 campaign into a VISAA Division 2 playoff squad this year.

When Blake and the Saints got started this year, he candidly talked about how he hadn’t handled the 0-16 losing stretch as well as he wished he had. It wasn’t something he’d ever been through before as a coach. He’d always been generally successful during his career and he hadn’t had to manage an implosion like that.

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But he’s obviously more adept at managing the next season. He dumped a helmet change and went back to the Saints’ classic white shells. He made his expectations more clear by talking with the Saints’ young roster about how difficult the team’s first half of 2013 was going to be, but that things became much more manageable after the first four games.

Sure enough, after an 0-4 start, STAB’s players stayed the course and didn’t lose sight of the big picture. Blake found a tight end in sophomore Campbell Miller, a crucial element for STAB because of some of the offensive sets and attacks that the Saints have relied on for years. He found a quarterback who can put it in the air and reliably make the smart play in Lee Parkhill. Jalen Harrison and Kareem Jackson emerged as big time threats at receiver. They eventually found some life in the run game when Brodie Phillips stepped into the tailback role and kept defenses honest

during the closing stages of the season.

It just all pretty much came together exactly as planned for the Saints in the second half of the year. They took a particularly large leap forward with a regular season ending blowout victory over archrival Blue Ridge where STAB, according to Blake, took their focus to a completely different level with their season and a playoff spot on the line.

Then they made life tough on eventual state champion Bishop Sullivan in the opening round of the playoffs too, jumping out to a 10-0 lead and keeping the game deadlocked at 16-16 at halftime before the Crusaders pulled away after the break.

What’s wild is that Blake’s team may have been a year ahead of schedule. With just four seniors on the entire roster, 2014 may mean a full return to glory for the Saints. They’ve certainly already turned the corner. ✖

- F OO T B A L L -

NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR

LEON RAGLAND, BUCKINGHAM COUNTY Next man up. That’s always the story on the gridiron. An injury to quarterback John Edwards forced sophomore Leon Ragland over from receiver to under center at quarterback. As it turns out, it was the turning point for the Buckingham County football team. Not only did Ragland thrive in coach Craig Gill’s rush-heavy offensive attack, but it allowed Edwards to focus on shoring up the defense and seal the edge as a blocker at receiver. Sometimes it’s just chance that makes a team better, and finding Ragland at quarterback was a big break for this Knights team.

After getting off to a slower start than normal, Buckingham went on a tear through October and November, making it all the way through the Region 2A West playoffs into the Division 2A final four, the only public program to get out of its region this year.

While an awful lot of that had to do with Kenneth Johnson’s monster 2,000-plus yards at running back, those numbers were there in large part because Ragland rose to the occasion as a runner himself.

Without the misdirection game and a second threat in the backfield, the Knights offense struggled, but when Ragland found his stride just a few weeks into the season, the numbers this offense put up were nothing short of staggering. The sophomore had little trouble eclipsing the 1,000-yard rushing mark and finished the season averaging nearly a first down for every rushing attempt he had.

But what made Ragland so important to the Knights was the way he played late in October and through November. He was able to run, scramble and buy time on the few passing plays called, improvise and turn a sack into huge gains and all in the playoffs. Against James River in the first round of the playoffs he was unstoppable along with Johnson. The next game against Dan River, he managed the game against a stout defense and avoided making costly mistakes to help pull off the big upset on the road. The following week back at home, he was all over the field in a routing of Gate City to keep Buckingham perfect all-time at home in the playoffs.

The Knights season might have ended in the final four against Brunswick and Johnson may be gone, but after Ragland’s breakout year, Buckingham can’t wait to try for a sixth-straight playoff run. ✖

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- V OL L E Y B A L L -

Woods

Kline

Alvis

F I R S T

T E A M

Brown

Deal

Sarah Woods /// Albemarle, Sr. First team All-Region 5A North, 195 kills, 32.5 blocks, 34 aces Maddy Kline /// Fluvanna County, Jr. Conference 23 POTY , JD POTY, 310 kills, 295 digs, 79 aces Sydney Alvis /// Goochland, Jr. First team All-Region 2A East, Conference 34 and JRD POTY, 209 digs Lexi Brown /// Albemarle, Sr. Second team All-Region 5A North, 183 kills, 46 blocks

Wood

Santinga

Haden

Hannah Deal/// Albemarle, Sr. Second team All-Region 5A North, 181 kills, 83 aces Lainey Wood /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, Sr. All-LIS, 166 kills, 73 aces, 45 blocks Sheridan Santinga /// Madison County, Jr. First team All-Bull Run, second team All-Region 2A East, 347 kills Emily Haden /// Fluvanna County, Sr. First team All-Conference 23, 220 kills, 28.5 blocks, 60 aces

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S E C O N D

Olivia Shifflett /// William Monroe, Jr. First team All-Bull Run, Second team All-Region 3A East Maggie Spindel /// Western Albemarle, Sr. First team All-Jefferson District, 216 kills, 34 blocks, 48 aces Chelsea Woodfolk /// Albemarle, Sr. Second team All-Conference 16, 166 kills, 16.5 blocks Chandler Gentry /// Madison County, Sr. Second team All-Region 2A East, 383 digs, 187 kills

T E A M

Ali Sandridge /// Western Albemarle, Sr. First team All-Jefferson District, 222 kills, 129 digs Kate Stutz /// Fluvanna County, So. Second team All-Jefferson District, 748 assists, 127 digs Mesa Willis /// Goochland, Sr. First team All-Region 2A East, James River District, 185 kills, 29 blocks Kallegh Breeden /// William Monroe, Jr. First team All-Bull Run District

- V OL L E Y B A L L -

HONORABLE MENTION

Lyra Payne /// Monticello, Sr. Second team All-Jefferson District, 159 kills, 45 blocks Josie Summit /// Goochland, So. First team All-James River District, Second team All-Region 2A East Taylor Bauman /// Albemarle, Jr. First team All-Jefferson District, 253 digs, 25 aces Leslie Walters ///Fluvanna County, Jr. Second team All-Jefferson District

NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR 13 :: @scrimmageplay

Trystam Carr /// Monticello, Sr. Second team All-Jefferson District Margaret Giles /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, Sr. All-LIS, 277 assists, 124 digs Tysell Chambers /// Buckingham County, Sr. Second team All-James River District Bailey Colvin /// Madison County, Jr. Second team All-Bull Run District, 251 digs, 399 assists, 74 aces

Ellie Benning /// Albemarle, So. First year starter put up 638 assists, sixth-best total ever at AHS

- V OL L E Y B A L L -

PL AYER OF THE YEAR

SARAH WOODS, ALBEMARLE She was the breakout hitter for Albemarle in 2011 when the team needed it most. The next two years with a plethora of fellow classmates finding their own stride, Sarah Woods had to compete to earn her chances at the net. That combination paired with Woods’ unselfish attitude led Albemarle to an undefeated regular season in 2012 and then a perfect Jefferson District slate in 2013. It wasn’t easy sharing one ball with all that Albemarle coach Mark Ragland had on his roster with Hannah Deal and Lexi Brown stepping up their play in particular these last two seasons. Woods made it work.

What Woods did — especially this season as the already diverse hitting corps even further embraced it’s depth — was make the absolute most of her chances. The Patriots wily hitter led her team with 195 kills and was also the most efficient offensively, finishing with a 45 percent hitting clip, another best for Ragland’s bunch. Woods averaged 2.5 kills per set despite sharing time with Deal, Brown, Chelsea Woodfolk and a number of bench players as Albemarle routed the JD and consistently worked in substitutions because of the score. One can only wonder what kind of numbers Woods might have put together had the Patriots been challenged in the Jefferson District. But that also demonstrates the leadership she showed to propel the Patriots to the top after she was a crucial member of a massive rebuild back in 2011 that’s pushed Albemarle back to the top as Central Virginia’s most dominant volleyball program.

Woods made a lot of noise statistically again in 2013, but also showed she might even be a better teammate than her numbers show, and that’s saying an awful lot. To say the least, she will be sorely missed. ✖

- V OL L E Y B A L L -

COACH OF THE YEAR

CHRISTIE HARLOWE-GARRETT, FLUVANNA COUNTY Christie Harlowe-Garrett has been successfully guiding Fluvanna County volleyball for a decade, so finding new first accomplishments for the Flucos’ leader isn’t easy. Call it a breakthrough year, but this season was full of them.

The Flucos beat dominant Jefferson District force Western Albemarle for the first time in 10 years after several near misses against the Warriors.Then Fluvanna went on to win the first ever Conference 23 tournament with a thrilling 3-2 victory over John Handley in the final that earned a berth in the 4A North region tournament.

Fluvanna then picked up a victory in the opening round, beating Carroll County 3-1. The Flucos fell in the second round to eventual state champion Loudoun County, but by that point, they’d put together one of the finest seasons in school history.

It was supposed to be something of a rebuilding year for Fluvanna after they graduated the 2012 Scrimmage Play player of the year, Hannah Miller. But with a pair of strong hitters returning in Maddy Kline and Emily Haden and sophomore setter Katie Stutz back in the fold, there was a clear foundation for the Flucos to build around. Harlowe-Garrett

was also able to bring along Leslie Walters, who took a big leap forward in the middle this year and posted 132 kills and 53.5 blocks. That effort gave Fluvanna plenty of defense at the net even with Miller’s graduation.

In a year where a great deal changed in the local volleyball world with realignment, under Harlowe-Garrett’s leadership and personnel adjustments, Fluvanna County took advantage and put together a huge campaign. With Walters, Kline and Stutz all back, it could be just the beginning of a strong run by the Flucos. ✖

www.scrimmageplay.com :: 14

- FIEL D HOCK E Y FIRST TEAM Kendall Ballard /// Charlottesville, Jr. Conference 23, Jefferson District POTY Anna Bosworth /// Orange County, Sr. Second team All-Region 5A North, All-Coference 16, All-JD Sarah Vrhovac /// Albemarle, Sr. Second team All-Region 5A North, All-JD Ana Reuss /// Orange County, Sr. Second team All-Region 5A North, All-Conference 16, All-JD Lauren Gampper /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, Sr. First team All-VISAA D1, All-LIS, 7 goals, 13 assists Sadie Bryant /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, Jr. First team All-VISAA D1, All-LIS, 6 goals, 5 assists Alana Foster /// Orange County, Sr. First team All-5A North, All-Conference 16, All-JD Annie Cory /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, So. All-LIS, 19 goals, 9 assists Jessie Powell /// Western Albemarle, Sr. First team All-Conference 23, 7 goals, 3 assists Kelsey Stanley /// Louisa County, Sr. All-Jefferson District

NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR

SECOND TEAM Mia Garland /// Charlottesville, Jr. First team All-Conference 23 Emily Blow /// Charlottesville, So. First team All-Conference 23 Kathryn Deane /// Monticello, Jr. First team All-JD, second team All-Conference 23, 10 goals, 6 assists Morgan Woodrow /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, Sr. Honorable mention All-VISAA D1, All-LIS Alexis Steljes /// Convenant, Sr. All-LIS Lily Sosa /// Charlottesvile, Jr. Second team All-Conference 23 Mattie Morris /// Monticello, Sr. Second team All-Conference 23 Kendall Dowdell /// Charlottesville, Jr. Second team All-Conference 23 Julia Haney /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, Jr. Team captain, 3 goals Emily Johnson /// Albemarle, So. All-Conference 16

Valerie Hajek /// Western Albemarle, Fr. Second team All-Conference 23, All-Jefferson District

- FIEL D HOCK E Y -

PL AYER OF THE YEAR

KENDALL BALLARD, CHARLOTTESVILLE Kendall Ballard always had the hustle and the grit in her freshman and sophomore years. In that time she helped to bring Charlottesville to the forefront of the field hockey conversation in Central Virginia. As a junior though, Ballard took her game to a new level. Playing centermid, the Black Knights standout was simply menacing.

The same old hustle and tenacity made Ballard the defensive centerpiece for Charlottesville, and with that skillset paired with her length and knack for always being in position, teams were forced avoid her at all costs. And there was good reason for that — what she did when she got the ball, no matter where it was on the field, was problematic.

There are great stick handlers, great shooters, great passers. Rarely does a package like Ballard come around who has no physical match on the field and possesses all three abilities. She worked in tight quarters.

Her shot outside was like a tee-shot on a par-5 golf course, inside the circle it was deadly accurate.

In the end, the Black Knights’ junior was the obvious selection for the Jefferson District Player of the Year, and later the Conference 23 POY. She also made herself one of the top recruits in the state in the process. ✖

15 :: @scrimmageplay

ACADEMIC EDGE SPONSORED

BY

HARGRAVE

MILITARY ACADEMY

ORANGE COUNTY’S KIANI HUDGENS

Kiani Hudgens made a huge splash last season for Orange County’s girls basketball team, bursting on the scene as just a freshman. Hudgens runs the point for the Hornets and managed to help lead Orange to several Commonwealth District wins last season as well as key victories over Louisa County and Madison County during a complete rebuild of the Orange program.

Her efforts were strong enough in ninth grade to earn Scrimmage Play’s newcomer of the year award for the season.

She’s clearly not wasting time making an impact in other ways at Orange County High either, posting a GPA of 3.9 and earning a spot in the National Honor Society. She’s also part of her church choir and serves as a volunteer in the church nursery and is part of the Upward Bound collegiate prep program.

Hudgens manages to balance all of that with her role with the Hornets and her Strong Quality Basketball Association travel basketball squad.

It’s been a strong start for Hudgens so far and as a sophomore she’s got plenty of time to make an even bigger impact.

ABOUT HARGRAVE MILITARY ACADEMY Hargrave believes individual achievement is a gamechanger for all students, both on and off the field. With a college acceptance rate over 99% and a heavy emphasis on academics, your son will have competitive advantages ahead of his peers including leadership and character development.

The Academic Edge is selected by Scrimmage Play’s staff with the consultation of coaches and athletic directors. To nominate an athlete email info@scrimmageplay.com

1-800-432-2480 | WWW.HARGRAVE.EDU I M P R O V E D G R A D E S / 9 9 % C O L L E G E A C C E P TA N C E F I N D U S O N FA C E B O O K

- FIEL D HOCK E Y -

COACH OF THE YEAR

TRICIA & STEPHEN GRABEEL, ORANGE COUNTY Orange County walked out of a two-year exile in the wilderness of the Commonwealth District and back into the Jefferson District this year.

With Tricia and Stephen Grabeel at the helm, it was as if the Hornets never left. Orange leapt right back into the mix as a key contender in the Jefferson District and the Hornets didn’t stop there, winning their conference tournament to earn a berth in the 5A North tournament. Orange kept it going, beating Deep Run and Thomas Jefferson to earn a berth in the 5A state final four.

That’s the definition of getting a program headed back in the right direction. ✖

- CROSS COUNTRY H O N O R

BOYS Ryan Thomas (pictured) /// Albemarle, Sr. 15:36 in Group 5A, second in Group 5A Gannon Willcutts /// Western Albemarle, So. 16:05 in Group 3A, fifth in Group 3A Zach Gentry /// Albemarle, Jr. 16:14 in Group 5A, ninth inRegion 5A North Jakob Brooks /// Albemarle, Sr. 16:38 in Group 5A, 20th in Region 5A North Chris Ferguson /// Western Albemarle, Sr. 16:19 in Group 3A, fifth in Region 3A West Andrew de Jong /// Western Albemarle, Sr. 16:35 in Group 3A, sixth in Conference 29 James Ballowe /// Nelson County, Sr. 16:05 in Group 2A, second in Region 2A East Warren Riley Covert /// Charlottesville, Jr. 16:24 Group 4A, Conference 23 champion Alex Lomong /// Fork Union, So. 17:09 in VISAA D1, Prep League champion Peter Lomong /// Fork Union, Jr. 17:38 in VISAA D1, fourth in Prep League Robert Singleton /// Woodberry Forest, So. 17:14 in VISAA D1, third in Prep League Travis Moe /// Fluvanna County, Jr. 16:48 in Group 4A, fifth in Conference 23 Cole Dickerson /// Monticello, Sr. 16:43 in Region 3A West, seventh in Conference 29

BOYS RUNNER OF THE YEAR GIRLS RUNNER OF THE YEAR NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR COACH OF THE YEAR 17 :: @scrimmageplay

R O L

L

GIRLS Annie Taylor (pictured) /// Western Albemarle, Jr. 18:48 in Group 3A, fourth in Region 3A West Nicole Douma /// Fluvanna County, Sr. 19:04 in Group 4A, fifth in Region 4A North Madison Hunter /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, Fr. 19:35 in VISAA D1, second in LIS Averi Witt /// Western Albemarle, Fr. 18:53 in Group 3A, seventh in Region 3A West Chance Masioff /// Western Albemarle, Jr. 19:30 in Group 3A, 10th in Region 3A West Devon Burger /// Fluvanna County, Jr. 20:21 in Group 4A, 22nd in Region 4A North Ramona Bryant /// Nelson County, Jr. 19:56 in Group 2A, sixth in Region 2A East Katie Berry /// Madison County, Jr. 20:13 in Group 2A, 12th in Region 2A East Renee Craft /// Monticello, Fr. 20:21 in Group 3A Alice DuCharme /// Western Albemarle, Sr. 20:05 in Group 3A, sixth in Conference 29 Meg Prtichard /// St. Anne’s-Belfield, Sr. 20:52 in VISAA D1, eighth in LIS Sydney Winterton /// Albemarle, Fr. 20:12 in Group 5A, 23rd in Region 5A North Olivia Lewis /// Albemarle, Sr. 20:30 in Group 5A, 24th in Region 5A North Ryan Thomas /// Albemarle, Sr.

Annie Taylor /// Western Albemarle, Jr. Avery Witt /// Western Albemarle, Fr. Buz Male /// Albemarle

Blue Ridge School

2nd Annual Free Youth Lacrosse Skills Clinic

Hosted by blue ridge school Head lacrosse coach Kyle gardner With special guest u.s. Men’s lacrosse Team Member

Chazz Woodson

Chazz Woodson is a Blue Ridge School Alum (Class of 2001) and currently plays for the U.S. Men’s Lacrosse Team and the Major League Lacrosse Ohio Machine When: Saturday, January 11th, Noon - 2PM Where: Blue Ridge School Masey Gymnasium Open to boys currently enrolled in the 6th, 7th and 8th grades To register please contact Kyle Gardner at: 434-992-0519 or brslacrosse@BlueRidgeSchool.com space is limited.

ALL

boys • boarding • college bound 273 Mayo Drive, St. George, VA • 434-985-2811 • www.BlueRidgeSchool.com • admissions@BlueRidgeSchool.com

Game Time STAB 61, Western 56

Rare meeting between local public and private schools goes down to the wire

By Bart Isley

STAB’s Jalen Harrison goes up for a jumper in his team’s win over Western. (Ashley Thorton)

19 :: @scrimmageplay

St. Anne’s-Belfield’s Javin MontgomeryDeLaurier came back in with four fouls in the fourth quarter, and he knew he had to play smart if he was going to stay in a fast-paced, physical contest.

“Coach told me I really had to play smart and think about the situation — is it worth me having to sit the rest of the game or should I just give them the lay-up and continue to play,” Montgomery-DeLaurier said. “That helped me with my mindset coming in.”

The sophomore proved capable of adjusting and hit a big 3-pointer and added a critical put-back down the stretch as the Saints held off a Western Albemarle charge to win 61-56 in the Daily Progress/NBC29 Holiday Classic title game. “(Montgomery-DeLaurier) is such a presence on the boards and we got to a point in the fourth quarter at four minutes, I know how they shoot and I didn’t want to give them extra shots,” said STAB coach Brian Kent. “So we took a chance and he got two great buckets for us.”

STAB seemed to answer every time Western put together a run with a balanced offensive attack leading the way. Five Saints got into double figures with Tanner Morris’ 12 points leading the way. Jalen Harrison, Kareem Johnson and Montgomery-DeLaurier finished with 10 each and Parker Morris rounded out the bulk of the scoring with 11 of his own. Morris’ work on the defensive end — he came up with four steals — was a key spark for the Saints as they built a narrow twopoint advantage at the break.

Montgomery-DeLaurier had nine rebounds, two steals, two assists and three blocks on the night.

The Saints’ roster that’s dominated

by underclassmen managed to weather the storm in front of potentially the most raucous crowds they’ll play in front of all year.

“It’s a fun atmosphere and that’s kind of what we talked about in the locker room,” Kent said. “We talked a little about them but it was really just more go out there and enjoy the experience and enjoy playing basketball.”

Western struggled to score during the third quarter — both teams actually endured a nearly four-minute long scoreless stretch to start the second half — and fell into a 10-point deficit with Montgomery-DeLaurier largely tethered to the bench.

The Warriors also couldn’t rely on their foul-shooting prowess as they’d drawn just four fouls late into the fourth quarter in the up-tempo, physical battle. Despite hitting four fourth quarter 3-pointers (including three by Jake Maynard) and clawing back from the 10-point third quarter deficit, the Warriors couldn’t out-gun the Saints.

“I’m really proud of our team — I thought we played really well, really hard and deserved better than we got,” said Western coach Darren Maynard.

Western’s Sam Chisholm had a huge night underneath with 15 points and 15 rebounds while Will Mason also cleaned up on the boards with 13 on the night. Jake Maynard finished with 13 points and six rebounds including the trio of fourth quarter 3-pointers.

Western will jump back into Jefferson District play. The Saints get a short break before getting back into the Prep League mix.

“We’ve had a lot of these tough games and we’re continuing to grow as a team,” Kent said. “It’s getting us ready for the Prep League — January’s tough.” ✖

SUPPORTING THE FUTURE SPORTS STARS OF TOMORROW Best of luck to our 2013 student athletes as they embark on their college careers.

Maiah Bartlett Miles Davis Blissie DuBose Will Eppard Tyler Gimple Will Grossman Allie Nicholson Lloyd Smith Stewart Staunton Aaron Stinnie Catherine Towers

University of Mary Washington St. Joseph’s University University of North Carolina Stevenson University University of Mary Washington Colorado College University of Virginia Bates College University of Virginia James Madison University Gettysburg College

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THE NEXT STEP

Luke Heinsohn turned four years of athletic success at Covenant into an opportunity to shine at the Division III level, excelling in both football and lacrosse at Washington & Lee University. Luke set the career points record for the Generals’ football team, and is the school’s all-time leading rusher and scorer with 3,397 yards and 332 points.

In addition, he led the nation in scoring at 19.56 points per game as a senior. As an all-conference midfielder in lacrosse in his junior year, Luke scored 11 goals and dished out 13 assists for the Generals’ lacrosse team. As a senior, he scored 11 goals and doled out 14 helpers.

He’s done it all while always displaying the leadership and work ethic fostered at Covenant that paved the way for his next step.

THE COVENANT LOWER SCHOOL | Pre-K through Grade 6 THE COVENANT UPPER SCHOOL | Grades 7 through 12 175 Hickory Street Charlottesville, Virginia 22902 434-220-7330 1000 Birdwood Road Charlottesville, Virginia 22903 434-220-8125

CHARLOTTESVILLE’S ONLY CHRISTIAN PK-12 LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES SCHOOL

TEAM SPOTLIGHT COVENANT BOYS TENNIS The Eagles’ state championship boys tennis team took the time to volunteer for the Salvation Army during this busy holiday season. These athletes helped to raise money for those most in need.

This community can’t have enough examples like this. Great job Covenant boys tennis team! You’re volunteering to help make this area a better place.

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Overtime

Forward on the mat The lesson every wrestler learns, and others should too

M

y father said once that there was a singular moment where he knew that I was going to be “okay.” A moment where he knew I had whatever the baseline level of mental toughness was that life required and that I’d be able to survive the obstacles that simply living can toss your way.

That moment came on a wrestling mat.

In a basketball-obsessed region, I knew as a slow, lumbering 5-foot-8 freshman I had little chance of making the junior varsity basketball team. Something like 100 guys at a school tried out for a total of 26 spots and it just wasn’t in the cards. But my English teacher was the wrestling coach and he convinced me to come give it a try to stay in shape for football and lacrosse. Since I just didn’t know how to function without playing some sport in every season like I had since I was five, I gave it a shot. Simply by showing up, I became a varsity freshman starter at 140 pounds because we only had like 11 guys on the team.

I then proceeded to take beating after beating. In practice I got beat up. The conditioning was unlike anything I’d been through in any other sport. It was just brutal. Monkey rolls where guys flop over top of each other and hit the mat and endless bear crawls in a sweltering wrestling room were nearly the death of me.

In matches I got beat up too. Wrestling is a sport that requires experience or at least some background that gives you an advantage. It’s extremely difficult to just show up and start winning. No matter how strong you are, you need mat time, and even then it can take a long time just to master the basics.

I didn’t even have a takedown I could go to reliably my first year. I was an awkward 14-year old so my coordination was about four years away from actually catching up to my growth, and the mechanics were just baffling. I knew I wasn’t going to quit mid-season so I just kept trying to learn how to survive, mostly just to prolong the inevitable pin, but occasionally I was actually scoring points for escapes.

I finally got a favorable matchup near the end of our conference season, though I had to wrestle up two classes to get it. I stayed on the defensive during the early stages of the match and via a particularly devastating cross-face, earned a takedown and busted open my opponent’s nose. He seemed to lose focus as we had to stop the match a couple of times so he could stem the bleeding, but I held on to that early advantage and pulled out my first victory. It was one of those pure moments where hard work (and creative pairing by the coaches) paid off.

Wrestling is, of course, a sport that humbles. Immediately after winning that match, we entered the conference tournament. I was, predictably, the lowest seeded wrestler in my class and was matched up against a state runner-up who visibly laughed when I stepped on the mat. He snapped my head down and stepped over it before my head with his legs in a move I’d never even seen before. As he lifted my head off the mat, I saw my coach out of the corner of my eye shrug his shoulders and start walking away. I was pinned in nine seconds, a conference tournament record. Glorious.

We didn’t have many home matches as a fledgling wrestling program, and my parents were understandably not particularly excited about making one or two hour drives in the

22 :: @scrimmageplay

“Living it is a challenging, often brutal task.” dead of winter to watch me get pinned once in the championship bracket and then once in the consolation bracket.

But we had one match during that freshman season in our home gym. When my parents came and watched me take the mat in the always-flattering singlet against a senior from the opposing team in front of a big group of classmates (they must have had a morbid fascination with the school’s least productive athletic program) my father saw something that is, to me, wrestling’s most important lesson — block out everything else and focus on the task at hand.

It’s a challenging climb for everyone, there are very few naturals in wrestling. Which means you’re going to gain a great deal if you just don’t quit. If you just keep moving forward.

I think we all know that lesson intellectually. But living it is a challenging, often brutal task.

Along the way though, you find out that the small victories, like busting a kid’s nose and getting your first win, are worth the wait.

And the work. ✖

Bart Isley,

C RE ATIVE DIRECTOR

back talk »

What else does wrestling uniquely foster? Contact Bart at: bart@scrimmageplay.com

Success stories begin here.

Success Story: Kelcy Quarles Coming into South Carolina’s season the question was who was going to stop its Heisman hopeful and the potential number one overall draft pick in the 2014 NFL Draft Jadaveon Clowney. As it turns out, there’s another bonafide Sunday talent on that defensive line.

After the Gamecocks topped Wisconsin in the Capital One Bowl, one of the biggest questions surrounding the USC is how high will former Fork Union post graduate Kelcy Quarles will go in the draft as he declared himself eligible shortly after the bowl victory.

What a journey it’s been.

When Quarles came to Fork Union to play for John Shuman’s post graduate football team, the South Carolina native had a 6-foot-4 frame and was filled out at 265 pounds. Already committed to play for USC when he arrived at FUMA, Quarles chose to suit up for the Blue Devils in 2010 to try and refine his skills and become a better student, areas of expertise for Shuman and his staff and

the fine FUMA faculty.

At Fork Union, Quarles went from a three-star rating and the nation’s 91st-rated player in the country to a four-star rating and considered the third best prep school athlete. With the experience he garnered at the PG level, Quarles was able to join the Gamecocks in the spring of 2011 to be even more prepared for a true freshmen season. Flash forward two years later and it’s Quarles who led the defensive line with 13.5 tackles for a loss and 9.5 sacks, both team bests.

Add to it a fumble recovery and it’s easy to point to Quarles as the key player for the Gamecocks to rise to the occasion with teams trying to focus on shutting down Clowney.

Already a legitimate star in the SEC, it won’t be long before the former Blue Devil gets a chance to prove himself in the NFL. It’s just a matter of who he suits up for. In just four years, Quarles has been on quite the trek.

Fork Union Military Academy is the leading Christian military boarding school for boys in grades 6 - 12 and PG. www.forkunion.com — 1-800-GO-2-FUMA