By: Gary Fauber, Sports Editor | Posted: Feb. 16, 2018 | Source: Beckley Register-Herald
It’s mid-February in southern West Virginia. That can only mean one thing.
It’s archery season.
Elementary, middle and high schools all over the state have adopted archery programs through the Archery in the Schools program. Some of them will be in Raleigh County today and Saturday. (more…)
Posted: Feb. 16, 2018 | Source: The Marietta Times
WILLIAMSTOWN — Eli Inman had 17 points, 10 rebounds and four assists to help lead Williamstown past Clay County, 58-46, and grab fifth place in the LKC.
The Yellowjackets, who finished the regular season 17-5 and await their postseason matchup, also got 12 points and seven boards from Cullen Cutright as well as 10 markers and seven caroms from Baylor Haught. Xavier Caruthers had an 11-point effort for the ‘Jackets, who also received eight points from Trent Lynch.
Clay County (12-8) was led in scoring by Thomas Haverty (14) and Isaac Workman (13).
Calhoun County 67, St. Marys 63
ST. MARYS — Ben Frederick double-doubled and visiting Calhoun County shot 50 percent from the field Thursday night as the visiting Red Devils knocked off St. Marys, 67-63, to capture 11th place in the Little Kanawha Conference.
St. Marys, which dropped to 7-11 and got a game-high 21 points from Evan Lamp, held a 23-17 lead after the opening quarter.
Frederick finished with 16 points and 10 boards while Red Devil teammates Adam Parsons (15), Trevor Carder (13) and Soney Wilson (13) also provided plenty of scoring punch. Parsons added five assists and John Whipkey chipped in eight markers.
Richard Dornon double-doubled with 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Blue Devils, who also got 10 points and a game-high six assists from William Steele. SMHS also had a combined 17 points from Peyton Auxier and Cameron Miller.
Calhoun County (5-15) returns to action with a road tilt Tuesday versus Harman.
Wood County Christian 68, Calvary Baptist 56
SUMMERSVILLE — Wood County Christian was sizzling from the floor Thursday in a West Virginia Christian Athletic Tournament game.
The Wildcats (10-14) knocked off Calvary Baptist (21-5) 68-56 to advance to the semifinals at 6 p.m. today against Cross Lanes Christian.
Wood County Christian made 23 of 38 (61 percent) shot attempts. Luke Spencer led the way with a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double. Trey Davis added 14 points, Garrett Napier netted 12 and Sam Cremeans and Ethan Thibault chipped in 10 apiece.
Isaac Massie led all scorers with 21 points for Calvary Baptist. Robert Clutter added nine.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Valley (Wetzel) 45, St. Marys 44
PINE GROVE — A tough season for St. Marys didn’t get any better here Thursday as Mary Taylor’s potential game-winning basket went off the iron as host Valley (Wetzel) survived the Blue Devils, 45-44, on senior night.
Sophie Palmer finished her final regular season game with 23 points to lead all scorers for the hosts. Caitlyn Underwood chipped in 11 markers for Valley (12-9), which squandered a 30-16 halftime advantage.
SMHS, which will carry an 8-14 record into a 3:30 p.m. Saturday home sectional game versus Paden City, battled back to take a 44-42 lead late. After the Blue Devils missed two foul shots, Valley made one and the visitors had the ball. However, a SMHS turnover then proved costly and Valley made two more freebies and then held on at the end.
Addie Furr (16) and Ciara Bennett (11) led the Blue Devils, who went 20 of 40 from the charity stripe, in scoring. Kylie Wright grabbed 10 boards and had three assists in the setback.
Victory Christian Academy 36, Wood County Christian 22
SUMMERSVILLE — In the opening round of the WVCAT here Thursday, Wood County Christian couldn’t recover from a 15-4 deficit after the first quarter as the Wildcats were saddled with a 36-22 defeat at the hands of Victory Christian Academy.
WCC, which dropped to 6-13 and plays at 9 a.m. today versus Greater Beckley Christian, received eight points from Hannah Headley and four markers apiece from Ellie Powell and Sidney Strause.
VCA (9-7) was led in point-production by Abby Gregory with 10 and Emily Markham with nine.
Caldwell 66, Paden City 22
CALDWELL — Cayton Secrest was three steals shy of a triple-double Thursday, registering 20 points, 11 rebounds and seven swipes in Caldwell’s 66-22 victory over visiting Paden City.
The Redskins also got a 14-point, 11-board double-double from Julia Griffith, 12 points and four assists from Cloe Siddle and 10 points from Lexie Weisend.
Paden City got 13 of its points from Hannah Loy.
Ryan Fischer/The Herald-Dispatch | Alexandria Christian, 11, of Elkview Middle and Adam Workman, 11, of Marlington Middle drew back their arrows during the 8th annual Elkview Middle School Archery Tournament on Saturday, February 3, 2018, at the Chris Cline Athletic Complex in Huntington.
By: Fred Pace | Posted: Feb. 4, 2018 | Source: Herald-Dispatch view additional photos here
HUNTINGTON – Thanks to movies like “The Hunger Games,” participation in youth archery has increased each year at the annual Elkview Middle School Archery Tournament, which was held at Marshall University this year.
“I want to be as good of an archer as Katniss is in ‘The Hunger Games’ movies,” Marra Tharp, an 11-year-old student at Moundsville Middle School, said in reference to one of the movie series’ main characters, Katniss Everdeen, who is known for her archery skills. “This is my first year in the tournament, and I have been practicing since the summer to be ready for this tournament.”
By: Chris Lawrence | Posted: February 3, 2018 at 6:02 a.m. | Source: WV MetroNews
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — More than 1,400 students from elementary to high school are stepping wide eyed into an arena they may never have envisioned seeing, much less playing in. The students are all participants in the state’s Archery in Schools program and this weekend they are shooting at the Elkview Middle School Invitational Tournament.
Crystal Thomas – High school and middle school students toe the line to release arrows inside Marshall’s indoor practice facility in Huntington.
However, instead of shooting inside the gymnasium at Elkview Middle School where the tournament is normally held, they’re shooting inside the Chris Cline Athletic Complex at Marshall University.
“We played a football game down there in 2016 and just had a great turnout,” said Eddie Gray, the archery coach and athletic director at Elkview Middle School. “I told them I’d really like to host an archery tournament there. We’ve looked at it a couple of times and here we go.”
The 2016 flood played havoc with the Elk River community. Ever since the flood destroyed Herbert Hoover High School, Elkview Middle has been forced to share it’s gymnasium with the high school. Now, with the portable classrooms for Hoover built in the Middle School parking lot, a tournament featuring 1,400 students was out of the question.
However, Marshall Athletic Director Mike Hamrick grew up in the Elk River community and was eager to help. Marshall was among the first to collect relieve supplies and delivering them in the wake of the 2016 disaster and they’ve been willing to help in any way possible.
“I was blown away when I found out how many kids were going to come to our campus and compete in archery,” said Hamrick.
Elkview Middle School was the first in West Virginia to field an Archery in Schools team. The program was initiated by Hamrick’s brother Ed Hamrick who was at the time the Director of the West Virginia DNR.
“These kids competing at an early age, they’ll just continue to be outdoorsmen and it’s going to protect our beautiful state,” said Hamrick. “Hunting and fishing is just such a part of what we do in West Virginia.”
Gray said the initial plan was to stage a tournament drawing shooters from three states. However, the idea hit a scheduling snag since it was the weekend of the Kentucky state archery tournament and a huge regional tournament in Ohio. But Gray wasn’t discouraged.
“We’ve got about 1,400 kids from all over the state,” he said. “I’m tickled to death.”
The young shooters come to Huntington for the tournament from as far away as Moundsville, Wheeling, and Martinsburg. Hamrick admitted, it’s not a bad thing to have 1,400 potential future students paying a visit to your campus.
“Marshall University is thrilled to host all of these high school and middle school students on our campus,” said Hamrick. “To be honest, I had no idea this many kids in West Virginia competed in archery. I’m thrilled to see that, but more than that I’m excited that all of these kids from all over the state are going to get the chance to come here and see Marshall University.”
Chris Lawrence is the anchor of the MetroNews Morning News, heard weekday mornings from 6-9 a.m. on MetroNews stations across West Virginia. Chris is also the host of the award-winning West Virginia Outdoors, heard Saturday mornings at 7 a.m. across the network. Chris has won numerous awards for coverage of hunting and fishing. Chris Lawrence can be reached via email at clawrence@wvradio.com, Twitter @WVOutdoors, Facebook @chris.lawrence.9822 and Instagram @chris_lawrence_metronews.
8th Annual Elkview Middle Archery Tournament Inaugural Archery at the Cline – Marshall University Team Results (courtesy of Elkview Archery)
Elementary Division
1st – Lakeside – 2893
2nd – Marlinton – 2819
3rd – West Teays – 2782
4th – Bridge/Clendenin – 2778
5th – Washington District – 2705
Middle School Team
1st – Buckhannon Upshur – 3181
2nd – Hurricane – 3160
3rd – Marlinton – 3151
4th – Ripley – 3141
5th – Elkview – 3136
High School
1st – Ripley – 3344
2nd – Herbert Hoover – 3281
3rd – John Marshall – 3263
4th – Buckhannon Upshur – 3258
5th – Cabell Midland – 3245
Posted: Jan. 22, 2018 | Source: The Register-Herald
Area wrestling teams have been traveling across the state for the last eight weeks, getting in as much mat time as possible before the season shifts its focus from dual matches to bracketed tournaments.
That time has arrived, and wrestling fans in this part of the state won’t have to travel far to see their teams make a push for the state tournament.
The next three weeks will provide plenty of wrestling here in southern West Virginia. It all starts Tuesday when Class AAA No. 6 Greenbrier East hosts Class A No. 3 Greenbrier West in the “Beauty and the Beast” Greenbrier County championship. The match will start at 7 p.m. (more…)
Left to right: Makayla Martin (13), Lilly Russell (12), Josie Davidson (11). Photo by Mark Burdette.
By: Mark Burdette | Posted: Jan. 19, 2018
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA (The Clendenin Leader) – Each year the athlete’s from Famous Superstars, an all-star competitive cheer gym based in Charleston, WV, always look forward to their first competition of the year held in Charlotte, NC. The Spirit of Hope 2018 National Championship sponsored by Universal Spirit is a two day National Competition that all-star cheer teams come from all over the east coast to compete in hopes to get a paid bid to U.S. Finals in Virginia Beach, VA; D2 Summit and The Summit in Orlando, FL at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex at Disney World; and the coveted Cheerleading Worlds (The Super Bowl of Cheerleading) at Disney World.
To capture the “Spirit of Hope”, The Clendenin Leader decided to follow several athletes who are members of Famous Superstars Glitter, which is a Level 3 Junior team, who proudly represent the Elk River Valley area on the national stage. Athletes Josie Davidson (11), Lilly Russell (12) and Makayla Martin (13) are members of Famous Superstar Glitter. Josie has been cheering for Famous for 7 years. This is Lilly’s second season with Famous. Makayla has been cheering for Famous for 3 years. They all serve as bases for their team while Lilly on occasion serves as a flyer during their routine.
The Spirit of Hope competition is all three athletes favorite competition. When I asked each of these young athletes the question, “Why do you look forward to Spirit of Hope each year?” the unanimous consensus is they like what the competition represents and the fact that Hope wanted to help others instead of herself and that her story lives on. Many of the athletes that attend each year come to not only compete but show their support for Hope who was a cheerleader just like them.
Not just for the competition itself but the Spirit of Hope’s popularity is deeply rooted with its connection with the March Forth With Hope Foundation. In June 2003, Hope Elizabeth Stout was diagnosed with bone cancer at the age of 12. Unfortunately, the treatments did little to stop the disease from spreading and by November, Hope was confined mostly to a wheelchair. But then something magical happened and it changed many lives in the process.
The Make-A-Wish Foundation visited Hope in November 2003. They told Hope she could have anything she wanted; to just name it. Hope thought for a few minutes and then answered: “You know, I am lucky…I have been to Disney World, swam with the dolphins in Cancun and go to the beach all the time. You say there are 155 kids on the waiting list? Well, my wish is TO GRANT ALL THEIR WISHES, ALL 155 OF THEM. And to do it just as soon as possible.”
Even though Make-A-Wish was faced with a herculean task-Hope’s Wish would cost nearly $750,000–they sprang into action. A local company got the ball rolling with a $25,000 donation; the Charlotte Observer ran a December 19 story on Hope which local WBT radio personality Keith Larson picked up on during his morning radio show. He had Hope on for what is now a legendary interview; one that is replayed every Christmas; the Carolina Panthers went on a roll, winning game after game en route to the NFC Championship and a Super Bowl appearance and a mid January black tie, “Rat Pack” themed event was planned called appropriately, THE CELEBRATION OF HOPE. Appropriate because Hope pretty much planned the event; right down to the last detail.
Unfortunately, she didn’t live to see it. Hope Elizabeth Stout passed away on January 4, 2004, surrounded by her family and her precious kitties.
After her death, donations poured into the Make-A-Wish office at such a fast rate that volunteers had to be brought in to count money and answer the phones. Children brought in the contents of their piggy banks; girls donated their babysitting money; a homeless man in Charlotte walked into the MAW offices and gave what little he had. He told the stunned volunteers, “it isn’t much but I want to help Hope.”
On Friday, January 16, the Celebration of Hope gala was held at the Westin in Charlotte, NC. Over 1,000 people attended the event and at 11:00, emcee Keith Larson announced to the stunned crowd that $1,116,000 had been raised and the money was still coming in. All of the kids would have their wish granted. Hope’s Wish had been fulfilled.
Now you have a little glimpse into the impact that this little cheerleader has had on so many lives and why the Spirit of Hope is such a special event. Personally, it is my favorite competition to attend each year and I have been blessed by the impact that the Spirit of Hope has had on my daughter’s life. Hope serves as an inspiration for so many athletes and her story continues to be told each and every year through the endless love and support her devoted parents Stuart and Shelby Stout put on display at the Spirit of Hope.
We all look forward to talking with Stuart and Shelby and to get our annual photo with Hope’s parents.
Left to right: Sydney Roy, Shelby Stout, Kenzie Carroll, Stuart Stout and Karleigh Burdette. Photo by Mark Burdette.
I had a brief opportunity to share with Stuart about the launch of our new online publication The Clendenin Leader and told him about the article that I wanted to do to show how Hope’s Story continues to touch lives. I asked him if he could share with our readers about the March Forth With Hope Foundation and it’s connection with the Spirit of Hope competition.
According to CEO and Board Chair of the March Forth With Hope Foundation, Stuart Stout explains, “The Spirit of Hope has become an integral part of the March Forth With Hope Foundation and supports our effort to help families who have a child facing a life threatening illness. Since we began this partnership over a decade ago, the Spirit of Hope has contributed over $400,000 to this effort. Shelby and I look forward to attending the event each year where we renew old acquaintances and begin new ones. We have had the privilege of watching so many of these young kids grow up to be outstanding people…some like Torie Dingler who is an osteosarcoma survivor, even come back and help us in our booth each year. When Hope’s Wish comes out in December, we know that the entire competitive cheerleading nation will be there to support the movie…and in doing so, will help us grow the March Forth With Hope Foundation so that more families can be helped. We are honored by the support of everyone who attends the Spirit of Hope!”
Have you heard the BIG announcement? Get into the Spirit of Hope and let’s get it trending!!! #HopesWish #SpiritofHope #TarajiPHenson 📢❤️ pic.twitter.com/QdwbpJWyde
— UniversalSpirit (@US_Cheer) January 14, 2018
Stuart and Shelby Stout make a BIG announcement about their upcoming film that has been in the works for the past couple of years and it’s finally is going to happen. Via @US_Cheer
As you roam the hallways of the Charlotte Convention Center it is wall to wall cheerleaders, cheer moms, cheer dads and other family and friends that are there to cheer their teams on. Vendors on each side providing food and drinks with long lines to boot. Especially the Starbucks line that is at a minimum of 20 to 30 people deep every time I would pass by. Needless to say, I never get my Starbucks fix. The competition takes up the entire convention center with 3 performance halls, 1 warm-up hall and the ballroom hosts the awards on Sunday.
Josie, Lilly and Makayla’s and the rest of the teams day starts early to get ready for competition. Depending on their performance time it can be 6:00 a.m. or earlier. There is a minimum of 2 hours worth of preparation that goes into making these athletes shine on stage. Putting the uniform on is the easy part. However, the makeup and the hair is a different story. Interesting enough most of these girls rely on not their own moms to do their makeup and hair but there are other cheer moms that line girls up like assembly lines to get them ready. At this age all the cheer moms are secretly counting down the days to when the girls can do their own makeup and hair but I’m sure they aren’t holding their breath.
I’m sure you wondering where do the cheer dads fit into all of this and do they even attend the competitions? Absolutely! Coming from a cheer dad myself we all have a very similar job description. Sometimes we wear one of our favorite cheer dad t-shirts to show our daughter or son’s support that explains what we do on the back just in case we happen to forget. Trust me the cheer moms never let us cheer dads forget. A typical cheer dad job description is to load the bags, drive the car, listen to their music, unload the bags, pass out the money and cheer louder than anyone else in the stands!
As I was waiting on Josie, Lilly, and Makayla to take a picture of them just before they competed I passed Josie’s dad Mark in the hallway. He was carrying Josie’s backpack to the room where the athletes keep their personal belongings while they compete. By the way, backpacks are standard outfitting gear for cheerleaders and cheer dads like Mark can be seen carrying one throughout the entire weekend. He turned to me and said, “My job is done here.” Meaning his wife Jamie called or texted him in a frantic and said that Josie forgot her backpack in the hotel room and asked if he could run and get it and bring it to her because it has her lipstick in it and she about ready to leave for warm-ups. He made it just in time.
Once we get our athletes ready to go and get them to the meet time to join up with their team our work is still not done. As the athletes head off to warm-ups we all cheer them on and tell them we love them and to have fun and do their best. This gives us a few minutes to catch our breath, get something to eat if we are hungry and head to the performance hall to watch Team Glitter perform. One of the cool things about these competitions is they all typically have a VIP section where family and friends can go in front of the stage to cheer on the cheerleaders. The lights go down and the emcee announces your team as they all come out from behind curtain hopping, jumping and hugging each other to the music as they hit the stage. Once they are in position the lights go up and the music starts and you begin to witness the best and most adrenaline pumped two and a half minutes in all of sports.
Famous Superstars Glitter 2018. Photo by Mark Burdette.
Each year for Famous Superstars the Spirit of Hope event is their first competition of the year. Most of the teams that they perform against have already a couple of competitions under their belt. Over the years Famous has done very well at this event and this year was no different.
Team Glitter didn’t walk away as national champions in their division this time but executed two zero deduction routines which is all they could ask for. When you become a national champion at Spirit of Hope you get a jacket that all the athletes want to walk away with and proudly wear. In this case, not so much to show off their jacket but to continue to spread Hope’s Story with the world every time they put on their jacket. Glam Squad was fortunate enough to represent the gym at Famous Superstars and brought home the coveted national championship jacket in the Level 2 Youth D2 division.
Now being a cheer dad for 8 seasons with Famous Superstars it has been one of the best investments we have made in our daughter, Karleigh. She truly loves the sport and it has made a positive impact in her life. As for Josie, Lilly and Makayla I know they share the same passion for cheerleading as the rest of their teammates and can attest to the positive impact the sport continues to play in their lives every day.
Final Results for Famous Superstars at the 2018 Spirit of Hope National Championship:
Shimmer – 3rd place (L1 Tiny D2)
Sparkles – 7th place (L1 Mini D2)
Glow – 6th place (L1 Youth D2)
Glam Squad – 1st place (L2 Youth D2)
Glitter – 4th place (L3 Junior D2)
Diamondz – 4th place (L3 Senior D2)
Royalty – 2nd place (L3 Senior Coed D2 Small)
Gold – 6th place (L5 Senior Coed Small)
Liberty’s Eric Workman battles Mason’s Eddie Moore in a 195-pound weight class matchup Saturday afternoon at the Summersville Arena and Convention Center. Liberty’s Workman won the match. Photo by Brad Davis The Register-Herald.
By: Gary Fauber | Posted: Jan. 12, 2018 | Source: Beckley Register-Herald
Liberty didn’t make it to the championship pool of last week’s West Virginia Army National Guard Duals. That doesn’t mean the Raiders were unsuccessful.
The Raiders won all five of their duals on the second day, providing a jumping point to propel them into the second half of the season.
“Definitely something we can work on,” Liberty coach Nick Hylton said. “I’ve seen a lot of positives and a lot of negatives, but we are seeing progression each week and that’s our overall goal is to build to the region and make it to the state tournament.” (more…)
