Volume 7, Issue 12

13 Delaurier

keeps even keel through recruitment

scr覺mmageplay the central virginia sports authority

A Rising Tide

How Covenant baseball has patiently rebuilt its program page 07

vol 7. issue 12 :: April 2, 2016

IT’S HOW YOU PLAY THE GAME woodberry forest summer camps Since 1967, Woodberry Forest’s summer camps have been getting boys outside to play their favorite sports or try new ones. Visit www.woodberry.org/camps or call 540-672-6044 to register! father–son weekend June 10–12 • Ages 5–10 sports camp June 19–July 8 • Ages 10–13 football camp July 13–16 • Ages 12–16 basketball camp July 17–20 • Ages 9–16 squash camp July 17–22 • Ages 10–16 lacrosse camp July 21–24 • Ages 10–16

woodberry forest school An exceptional boarding school community for boys in grades nine through twelve woodberry forest, virginia 22989 • woodberry.org

13 DelAuRieR

keeps even keel THRougH ReCRuiTmenT

scrımmageplay the central virginia sports authority

x’s and o’s

13

07

More than this Covenant baseball it takes next steps

13

Staying Grounded DeLaurier’s journey from Nelson to Durham

19

Game time Albemarle girls lacrosse edges Western

23

The next big run Guessing which public schools make it to June

A Rising Tide

How Covenant baseball has patiently rebuilt its program page 07

vol 7 . issue 12 :: April 2, 2016

21 07

05

Aiming for Status quo PG hoops squad looks to maintain status

vol 7. issue 12 :: april 1, 2016

Sta f f Bart Isley, Creative Director Bob Isley, Infrastructure Director Ryan Yemen, Creative Editor O n th e Cov er Covenant’s Matt Shobe M i s s i o n Stat e m e nt 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 ntact U s [ e ] info@scrimmageplay.com [ p ] 434-249-2032

Community Partnership

Working hand in hand with Red Shoes Cville to support the Ronald McDonald House of Charlottesville.

Choose the Red Shoes Cville special at www.papajohns.com

pregame

The Right stuff Every year you get the occasional no-hitter. It’s not often that you get a perfect game, and much less with a Group 3A squad facing a Group 5A opponent. Cody Spencer threw six perfect innings and struck out 12 batters in his team’s 10-0 win over visiting Orange County in William Monroe’s home opener. Less than a week later, Spencer put together a complete game shutout of Central Woodstock in an 8-0. ✖ (Photo by Brian Mellott)

03 :: @scrimmageplay

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

The Classroom

Coach, trainer, mentor Why tailored education works

By Clayborne Education

C

onsider the following math problem, which you might encounter on a standardized test either this spring or in the fall (feel free to ponder it yourself; answer is at the end of the column):

The Problem Andrew, Bethany, Carter, and Destiny are going to a basketball game. How many ways can the four of them sit side by side, in a row, such that Andrew and Destiny do not sit immediately next to each other?

Different approaches This is a hard problem, and like most hard math problems it can be solved in multiple ways. But when we factor in how different students might respond to such a problem, the complexity multiplies exponentially. For one thing, different learning styles might dictate different approaches to the question.

But there’s much more to it than that.

{ let’s get help } An increase in the % of homeschool students shows the desire for families to have individualized instruction. (National Centers for Educational Statistics)

2.9

3.4

2012 Kara El der Kara El der

20 07

2003

2.2

Don’t ever give up For some students it may not even be worth it to try the problem, because they can reach their score goal by mastering the basic and medium difficulty problems and leaving out the hard ones altogether. Other students may possess the skills to attack such a problem but lack the confidence to do so until they’ve built a foundation of success on more basic problems. Still others could get the question right if given enough time, but shouldn’t engage this question because it would take too long to be worthwhile.

Finally, for some students test anxiety is so great that the psychological challenge of a this question has to be addressed before we can even consider the content.

There is a solution Tests are complex. Students are diverse. So there could be a thousand reasons a student

4 :: www.scrimmageplay.com

“Among those students with the lowest predicted probability of attending college, a small class increased rate of college attendance by 11 percentage points.”

Source: Experimental Evidence on the Effect of Childhood Investment on Postsecondary Attainment and Degree Completion by Dynarski, S., Hyman, J., & Schanzenbach, D. W. in 2011. doesn’t reach his/her potential on a test. To best address this quandary it takes a flexible, personalized, one-to-one approach. This is why students all over the world are discovering the power of one-to-one instruction, whether it happens in the classroom, at the tutoring center, in the home, or online.

Make a decision Approaching a standardized this spring or fall? The best thing you can do is find an experienced guide who understands both tests and students. And while many students can achieve score increases on their own, a test prep coach can make that score increase a good deal more likely … and often deepen the student’s broader education in the process. Coaches, trainers, mentors: they matter in sports … and they matter in the testing world as well.

for more info »

Start a study group, learn how at : https://collegereadiness.collegeboard. org/sat/practice/study-groups/

First Quarter

Aiming for status quo Domecq looks to anchor Warriors’ pitching staff

By Ryan Yemen

W

Sophomore Derek Domecq is 2-1 in his first three starts for the Warriors. (Ryan Yemen)

{ 500 and above } Western Albemarle’s winning % over the last four seasons.

.909 .719

.750

05 :: @scrimmageplay

201 2 El der Kara Kara El der

20 13

201 4

2015

.500

hen he began his freshman season, Derek Domecq started as a reliever.

By the end of the year, he was arguably the Warriors most effective and consistent starter.

Just three starts into the 2016 season, he’s picking up where he left off and then some.

Domecq was handed a loss to start the season, a 6-2 defeat at the hands of Amherst, but in his last two starts he’s shut down Waynesboro with a 9-1 win and Albemarle with a 3-2 victory. With the Warriors working in Luke Tenuta to fill the void left by Josh Casteen, the expectations for their established ace exceed the level for most sophomores.

But that’s hardly new for Warriors head coach Skip Hudgins, who’s been on staff for 33 years. Four years ago, he placed the same expectations on Jack Maynard, who also had a breakout freshman campaign and improved to become one of the area’s best arms.

“Derek’s a sophomore, but he’s already a veteran, was by the end of last year,” Hudgins said.

For junior catcher Ryan Sukovich, seeing the second-year starter succeed comes down to more than just his stuff. Domecq is listed at 6-feet and 210 pounds and is a hard-throwing lefty that can clock in the 80’s without over throwing. When you have that as a lefty, you’re going to be tough period, but when you’re more than just that, you become a real problem.

“His speed definitely helps him a lot, but it’s the way he’s hitting his spots right now that’s huge,” said Sukovich. “A lot of pitchers can throw hard but they leave it over the middle (of the plate). He’s hitting his spots (inside and outside) exactly. He’s got a really good changeup that brings down his pitch and makes his fastball look about two miles an hour faster. It’s a really good pitch.”

With 14 strikeouts against Waynesboro followed by nine strikeouts the next week

against Albemarle, he’s well ahead of his pace last year, in which he tallied 61 strikeouts over 55.3 innings. As he continues to add velocity and becomes a more cerebral pitcher, there is also an element of just going out there and getting the job done. Domecq doesn’t feel much different this year, and that’s not a bad thing.

“I’m still just regular old Derek but I’ve been working hard since football season for this, getting prepared, coaches helping me with my fundamentals,” Domecq said.

Having that young arm to bank on is huge for the Warriors, and with Tenuta, a junior who stands at 6-foot-7 starting to make waves, this Western pitching staff should be able to pick up the slack as the team tries to improve offensively. It’s not easy replacing a Stevie Mangrum, Harrison Lund and Casteen, it’s something that takes time. But with weapons like Henry Kreienbaum in the heart of the order, it only takes a little time to find that proper chemistry.

If Domecq can continue to churn out the innings and the low run totals, the Warriors have an excellent opportunity to be right where they’ve been the last two seasons — looking to make some noise in a tough Region 3A West tournament. The Warriors faced a strong out of district schedule with Amherst, Spotswood and Fort Defiance that should help ready them for the Conference 29 tournament further down the road. ✖

go online »

For more baseball coverage head to our website at: www.scrimmageplay.com.

Free throws

We’ve gone digital But you can have it in print too!

Brown and Henry having breakout seasons at Hampden Sydney

By Ryan Yemen He was an integral part of Albemarle’s 2014 Group 5A state title run and he’s proving to be every bit as or more important for Hampden Sydney. Hunter Brown had a solid freshman season for the Tigers with two goals and seven assists, but as sophomore, he’s simply lighting it up.

The former Patriot is third in scoring for Hampden Sydney this season with his seven goals and 20 assists in just 11 games played.

He was red hot to close February out as he tallied five points against Greensboro, four points against Methodist and then four points against Catholic to help the Tiger string together three straight wins in a six day stretch. He’s collected 26 groundballs while also causing five turnovers.

He’s not the only local playing in Farmville though. There are three former Western Albemarle athletes on the Hampden Sydney roster. Kent Henry is back with the Tigers.

He and Brown have gone from rivals in high school to foes on the Tigers practice field as the former Warrior is back playing defense.

Henry missed an early portion of his freshman year, but still managed to come back and start in nine games. He nabbed 12 ground balls and caused five turnovers while committing just thee. As a sophomore, Henry’s production has increased as he’s got 30 ground balls which is good for second best on the team. He also has five caused turnovers and three assists in his 11 games played, 10 of which he started.

Dylan Curry, and Preston Hughes are also in their sophomore year with the Tigers. Curry played in four games as a freshman and five so far this year as a midfielder. Hughes has played in a pair of games over the last two seasons as a defenseman.

The Albemarle and Western Albemarle products have helped to pace the Tigers to a 7-4 start to the season and have won all four of their home games so far. The sit in third place just behind Roanoke and Washington and Lee in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference with six more conference games to play. They can take over second place when they face the Maroons on April 2. ✖

BELOW » AHS graduate Hunter Brown is starring at attack for the Tigers in 2016. (HS sports information)

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:

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

More THAN THIS

c 7 :: @scrimmageplay

> STory by ryan yemen > Photos by Bart Isley and AShley Thornton

W

hen Jeff Burton came to Covenant three years ago it was for a variety of reasons.

However, at the forefront was the well of baseball knowledge in this town, more solid coaching than you could shake a stick at. His idea was simple — find a place where he could bring in coaching specialists and help an area of talent become greater than the sum of its parts.

“With my connections to the University of Virginia baseball program, one of the reasons I took this job was that there was this flood of coaching excellence that has come forth,” Burton said. “We have four former major league players that have been able to help us. Joe Koshansky has coached with us and was the 2004 ACC player of the year. Keith Werman who played for UVa and is now in the Padres system. Chris Haney and his father Larry who are legends in this town, they grew up here and played professionally. Larry Mitchell who also played in the big leagues. And then John Kessick, he played eight years in the pros as a catcher and is the best teacher I’ve ever seen at that position.”

That’s what Covenant’s core, one that went under a massive talent rebuild three years ago has been around since Burton arrived. The Eagles were competitive despite their youth in 2014. They made big strides last year to become a player again in the Virginia Independent Conference with Miller and former member Liberty Christian. This year, it’s the next step. This consolidation, this group of talent are becoming juniors and seniors with a lot of experience and just this year are hitting that window of opportunity where they can contend at the top.

The Eagles have played for state titles at the VISAA Division 2 level before.

They won in 2003, finished as runner up in 2010 and came out on top in 2011.

Those last two teams were made up of everyday students with solid collegiate potential — Sean Rutherford, Lee Coppock, and Sam Patterson. Covenant has never been, nor has ever tried to be a baseball factory. But Burton’s idea, to give the everyday student the best baseball opportunities available to them and create an environment of competition where every player is pushing the other — is one that is now in its third season. www.scrimmageplay.com :: 8

Luke Burton (center), Jeff Burton (right)

Jacob Haney

Matt Shobe

“I feel like the team chemistry is so much better this year and that we’re all just one and that’s helping us as a team so much.”

- Haney 9 :: @scrimmageplay

“(Cavaliers) coach Brian O’Connor and I talked about it, that I wanted to use this program as a platform for the young UVa players to get in the game as coaches,” Burton said. “That with (the other former pros), these kids, if they don’t get better it’s not because of coaching. It’s about not wanting it badly enough and so that’s why our program has become about (UVa) basketball coach Tony Bennett’s pillars of leadership — are you passionate? We are a college prep program, but that doesn’t mean you’re supposed to go and play college baseball, but we’re going to give you every opportunity to do so. All of these coaches, it’s not like they’re getting paid to do this. They’re in for the love of working with the kids, the game. It’s passion. If we don’t see them bringing the love to the field, we’ll shut down practice.”

It’s bearing fruit. Yes, the Eagles have a handful of collegiate level players who could have gotten there on their own, but they aren’t trying to be the Oak Hill Academy of baseball and produce Mike Trout or Bryce Harper. What the Eagles have and want to continue to be is a school where the everyday player gets to look at playing at the next rank. It’s not about trying to play for O’Connor’s national powerhouse, but simply in college at any level, if that’s what the athlete wants. Yet there’s a delicate line that Burton is determined to walk where it’s more than just about the sport. He’s every bit as interested in fitting in with the character of the school he joined and making sure that it’s not about producing one talent, but rather one talented team.

“Each school has its own character and environment and we’re always going to be a school about a Christian environment, and that’s not going to be for everyone and you don’t come here just to be a baseball player.” Jeff Burton said. “We’ve got four kids heading to play college baseball and seven right now that will and they’re 16 and 17 years old. It’s very easy for them to think about themselves and forget that they’re playing for this team. We’ve got no room for individuals and while it’s an individual skill game, but when you jump on the field it’s a team game and so that’s what we’re dealing with. We’re making sure we have our antenna up for that this year.”

Last year, Burton was generous with his pitchers and he distributed innings almost evenly amongst a half-dozen players.

And while the Eagles have their eyes on leaning heavily on a couple of arms, early on, their success has allowed them to get five different pitchers 10 or more innings over a 12-game stretch. So far none of them, between Matt Shobe (one of the team’s two seniors), Jacob Haney, Luke Burton, Will Moore or Tyler Mahone have higher earned run averages than 2.40.

“I feel like the team chemistry is so much better this year and that we’re all just one and that’s helping us a team so much,” Haney said. “This pitching rotation is deep and I feel like it allows us to go really deep into ball games, allows us to get saves, win the close games.”

Each of them have appeared in five games. Burton and Mahone are sporting 1.17 and 1.27 ERA’s respectively. Shobe is at 1.40.

Trent Miller has thrown 8.2 innings and has a balmy 1.62 ERA. Unsurprisingly, the Eagles are off to a 10-2 start and the team’s pitching depth is better than the program has ever seen.

“I’m a big believer in pitch counts, but I feel like there a couple of guys that threw just 20 innings or less last year that I can get to 50,” Jeff Burton said. “I don’t know that will happen, but the point is

?

the 2011-2012 Winter All Scrimmage Play Awar

WHy D A S

Congratulations to all athletes

Downtown Athletic Store iS prouD to SponSor

the 2014-2015 Winter All-SCrimmAge PlAy AWArdS congrAtulAtionS to All the AthleteS SelecteD for the 2014-2015 teAmS!

all-scrimmage

play win

ter 2014-2015

Downtown Athletic is prouD to sponsor

the 2014 Fall all-SP awardS congrAtulAtions to All the Athletes selecteD for the fAll 2014 teAms! www.downtownathletic.com 199 Zan Rd Charlottesville, VA 22901 (434) 975-2704

because we support local athletics including our sponsorship of all the All-scrimmageplay Seasonal squads

DOWNTOWNATHLETIC.COM all-scrimmage

play fall 2014 Under Armour • Russell Athletic • Adidas • Schutt • and more

www.downtownathletic.com 1180 Seminole Trail, Suite 210, Charlottesville, (434) 975-2704 downtownathletic.com VA 22901

Tyler Mahone

Will Moore

Sam Lepage

“Everyone is getting an opportunity here and there and it builds. it’s competition that’s building depth that helps us going into each game,” - Lepage 11 :: @scrimmageplay

that we could go there because we have six returning arms that can throw 70 to 80 miles per hour and five of them are juniors. But they are all more than just pitchers, and that’s the school that we are, we don’t have that ability, that depth of the bigger competition to be any other way.”

So what do you do when you think you’re one of the best arms on a team and you aren’t on the mound? The competition goes elsewhere. It becomes carousel. Suddenly, on your off day you’re hoping to play shortstop, or catcher. It trickles down all around the field. With this staff, just about everyone is available to play most positions. The question is who wants it?

“If you’re passionate about something, you don’t take days off,” Jeff Burton said. “One of the things that’s happened is that we’ve built enough depth that we’re all competing with and for one another. You’ve got three kids that are used to starting at shortstop, but you can only play one of them at a time. This is the recruiting strategy that O’Connor and every good coach in college uses — in theory you have 18 All-American shortstops in a program. The best one is going to play. But when one doesn’t run out a ball, you go to the next and the kids figure that out. We’ve got six guys that want to pitch against (defending D2 champion) Greenbrier Christian.

When we play Miller, I’m not going to throw my sixth-best pitcher out there. Which guy is throwing the best right then and now, has the best stuff and is doing it against other guys who are competing just as hard? That’s what competition is all about and what I think life is all about.”

Offensively, Covenant is watching its depth bleed through in a similar fashion. Mahone and Haney have 14 RBI through 12 games with Moore with 13, Shobe with 11 and Luke Burton and Miller with 10. Freshman Mason Mitchell is having a breakout season with .474 batting average so far and six RBI. Sophomore David Szatkowski is hitting .400 in eight games played. The youth behind the initial youth movement that’s starting to age is also kicking in.

“We have a more versatile offense this year than before where it was more a contact hitting team than power hitting,” Luke Burton said. “This year we’ve got those guys that can hit it over the top of the fence, but team speed ahead and still some great contact hitters that we’ll be able to play with a lot of different situations.

It’s so nice to have that versatility.”

But Jeff Burton will be happy to tell you none of that matters without the leadership. Sam Lepage is a senior captain with a .978 fielding percentage that leads the team with at least 14 or more total chances. He’s second on the team in that category and also in put outs just behind Haney. He’ll catch, he’ll bunt, he’s a yeoman.

“I feel like so much of this team has come about because you see what happens when a team tries to build on small ball or guys going out to right field after catching, those kind of things” Lepage said. “Everyone is getting an opportunity here and there and it builds. It’s competition that’s building depth that helps us going into each game. We’re all accountable. Injuries don’t matter. You need a shortstop, a new pitcher, a catcher, it’s no problem.”

Within that team building was a winter where the Eagles simply discovered a desire teamwide. It wasn’t just about being the best player, but making sure you also had the best teammates around.

It stretched from the gym to off the field on a personal level, one about valuing this dynamic of competition at each and every position.

“Everyday it’s about telling these kids over and over about being thankful, being servant, playing for something bigger than yourself,” - Jeff Burton

“As a team, there wasn’t any offseason where we worked harder, lifted harder in the off season,” Shobe said. “Our biggest pillar right now though is humility where every player respects the other so that we’ve been able to build a real team.”

What about Jeff Burton and his staff? Working with youth has its lessons for adults too. And so for a team that’s built on providing coaching, what have elders learned within this program and this sport that is renowned for handling or not handling failure? As the saying goes, if you fail two-thirds of the time at the plate, you’ve had a hall of fame career.

“What I’m realizing, we’re realizing as coaches is that everyday

it’s about telling these kids over and over about being thankful, being servant, playing for something bigger than yourself,” Jeff Burton said.

“We want the competition, the battling and to be able to handle the failure that this game presents and handle it well.”

So when the Eagles fell last year to Atlantic Shores in the state quarterfinals, they got a solid chance to deal with humility and come back at it. And this year, with so many returning players, they’ve gone through the offseason together and burned through the month of March with an oustanding record. They continue to lean on the variety of coaches they have, both on and off the field. They’re sticking with the program, doing all the things they can and should to avoid hitting a plateau.

“We have these people that we can go to who know so much about the game and are ready to talk and are so reliable,” Haney said. “They know how to teach and teach us the right things.”

So while the offseason involved the usual fundamentals, the workouts and the physical matters of the game, what’s different about this Covenant team is the emphasis that Jeff Burton has put on leadership, chemistry and cohesion. It’s a coming of age story that repeats over and over again in athletics. Pick a sport, pick a winning team, they’ve all been talented in some shape and form. But it’s when talent meets direction that bigger things happen. Covenant baseball is approaching the goals it had in mind when its third-year coach took over. The success this year isn’t happening by accident. There’s been a design in place for quite some time. And now It’s about that classic baseball term — execution.

Now with seven weeks until they meet the crossroads, Covenant will be preparing to answer those questions and set out to take the next logical, but truly difficult step — fulfilling expectations. ✖ www.scrimmageplay.com :: 12

Staying Grounded

Story by Bary Isley — Photos by Ashley Thornton 13 :: @scrimmageplay

T

The first thing you noticed is the packed-out gym, usually with a big contingent of non-regulars, non-parents, non-students. Then you see the middle-aged men in Duke University hats sitting alone or as a group, hoping to catch a glimpse of the future Blue Devil, to be able to say they were there, that they saw greatness before it arrived at Cameron Indoor.

Then there’s the opposing player who requested that the star participate in an impromptu postgame dunk contest. There are the students who want a photo with him, the taunts from opposing student sections, the gawkers, the recruiting reporters.

It’s a hurricane.

And there, in the eye of that storm, the calm, steady presence in the center, is St. Anne’s-Belfield senior and Duke University signee Javin DeLaurier, the most highly-touted born and bred local recruit in at least two decades. Fierce and unyielding when he steps on the court, but always gracious with his time after a game.

He even let one of his smallest fans, a preschooler who was saying “Javin” over and over again after a state quarterfinal tilt that as soon as he was done with an interview take time to talk with him.

DeLaurier’s entire presence and approach begs the question -- How? How has he managed to handle all the pressure with such grace? How does he stay focused on what he’s doing in a basketball world that goes insane over big-time recruits?

The answer, as it often is, isn’t as much about DeLaurier. It’s about where he came from. It’s about the friends, family and community that surround him. And that starts with a Nelson County farm, a farm that’s been a part of DeLaurier’s family for generations.

www.scrimmageplay.com :: 14

“When Javin was three or four he was helping me mend fences or get up square bales or take care of horses and cows,” said Javin’s mother, C’ta DeLaurier.

That’s where the work ethic that Javin has become known for started to develop and it’s continued to be reinforced there. Take last summer for instance, where DeLaurier had some work to do before he headed to Las Vegas to play for an AAU national title at the Adidas Uprising tournament.

“Last summer I had to do 500 bales of hay before I flew out to Vegas the day after getting back from a tournament,” DeLaurier said.

“I remember thinking while I was out in the field, basketball is so easy compared to this. I don’t care how many games I play in a day (doing the farm work) was miserable. Just having those values instilled in me from an early age is something I really appreciate.”

The farm was also where an even more central concept started to take root, the idea of using your tools and abilities to work outside yourself. To make something and impact people rather than become self-absorbed.

“We talk about being a producer versus being a consumer,” C’ta said. “When you’re just thinking about yourself, that’s consumption.

What are you producing for other people? What are you giving back, what’s the sense of reciprocity? You’ve gotten so much, don’t continue to consume, give back, produce more than you take.”

That isn’t framework that Javin’s mother and dad Jason DeLaurier are putting on a more vague concept after-the-fact either, not by any stretch of the imagination.

15 :: @scrimmageplay

“My family did a lot for me, so something we stress is being able to give back because I’ve been blessed in a lot of ways.”

- DeLaurier “I’ve heard that a lot, definitely when I was growing up, she’d tell me that I was consuming too much and not producing,” Javin said. “It’s this whole thing about what are you giving back.”

That’s also not lip service, that’s a family ethos that’s been put into practice on a regular basis. You can see it in the family members that come out for games, like his aunt Dee Mitchelson, who’s a fixture at games or checking on scores when she’s assisting Charlottesville’s girls basketball team. There’s tangible proof and an example laid out for Javin on a regular basis by his family.

“My family did a lot for me, so something we stress is being able to give back because I’ve been blessed in a lot of ways,” DeLaurier said.

“It’s almost a responsibility to give back.”

It certainly doesn’t seem to be an optional part of the agenda, nor should it be, but in the world of high-major basketball recruiting, it’s often the self-promoters, the hanger-ons, the me-focused that seem to control what goes on. That sort of perspective is rarely cultivated,

Academic Edge

s p o n s o r e d

b y

h a r g r av e

m i l i ta r y

a c a d e m y

Western albemarle’s logan foster

Logan Foster isn’t messing around when it comes to her educational plan. As a sixth grader, she took an introduction to psychology class at UVa’s Summer Enrichment Program, and the class sparked something in the Western Albemarle senior.

“I just kind of fell in love with the brain and I’d like to be a neurosurgeon, but I’ve got a lot of steps to that,” Foster said. “I might find something else on my way there.”

Aiming to be a neurosurgeon is a lofty goal, but one that Foster’s academic performance and outside-the-classroom pursuits support.

She’s enrolled in seven advanced placement classes and has already gotten into UVa. She’s regularly shadowed a neurosurgeon at UVa and she also works in a UVa biology research lab with professor Barry Condron.

In between all that research and studying, Foster serves as one of Western Albemarle girls lacrosse’s key defenders, part of a squad looking to return to the state championship game after advancing there a year ago.

“Besides her intense coursework and high GPA she definitely brings that competitive strength,” said Western coach Tara Hohenshelt. “She puts her head down and she does her work. She’s very focused, she’s a silent worker.”

Like we said, Foster isn’t messing around.

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 of 100% and a heavy emphasis on academics, your son will have competitive advantages ahead of his peers including leadership and character development.

The Academic athlete of the issue 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 / 1 0 0 % C o l l e g e Acc e p t a n c e f i n d u s o n fa c e b o o k

www.scrimmageplay.com :: 16

“Coach Kent is a part of my family, I love him like he’s a part of my family ... It’s been an amazing experience. I’m so glad I stayed.”

- DeLaurier

17 :: @scrimmageplay

with players often shipped all over the country to various schools or teams to develop or create exposure. It’s what places like Huntington Prep and Oak Hill become known for -- finishing schools for highend basketball talents. It’s why players like Thon Maker, recently of Carlisle in Martinsville and now in Canada, eventually arrive in college or the professional ranks as mercenaries without much of the solid grounding that can be so critical to development not just as a basketball player, but as a person.

“We don’t subscribe to the idea we’re going to send my kid off to some place else to possibly get good in one aspect of his life while recognizing that there are many different aspects,” C’ta DeLaurier said. “Like, are you a good person? Are you mentally well?

Recognizing that it’s a marathon and not a sprint. Sometimes I feel like kids are sent off just to get that one specific skill when you still need a family, you still need a school.”

But part of that, and part of why a lot of players and families end up searching elsewhere, is that they can’t find that where they are or they don’t properly value what they have when they’ve got it. Too often that ends in some disappointment. For every Mamadi Diakite that becomes part of an incredible support system at Blue Ridge that helped get him into school early at UVa because that was what was good for Diakite, there are coaches or other factors that can impede an athlete’s development or put their goals ahead of the player’s best interest.

At STAB, that was never an issue for DeLaurier and the family recognized that. DeLaurier grew up going to the school and his high school coach Brian Kent has been his coach in some capacity, in some sport since he was 11 years old. They’ve built the kind of trust that usually only comes from a longterm relationship, a bond forged over years. Knowing that someone has your back that knows where you came from and how you got here, that knows how hard you worked to make what looks like overnight success happen.

“Coach Kent is a part of my family, I love him like he’s a part of my family,” DeLaurier said. “He’s been my coach in sports in one way or another since I was 11 years old. Over time we’ve just developed a bond. It’s been an amazing experience. I’m so glad I stayed.”

That also made it an easier decision to stay at STAB when opportunities to go somewhere else came knocking. It wasn’t just about basketball, it was about everything the school has to offer, as DeLaurier has blossomed into a top-notch student capable of handling the rigors of a Duke education. But it’s also about the coach that’s become a part of the family.

“Coach Kent has always said ‘what else do you need from me?

Who can I get, what do I need to provide so Javin has access?’ You couldn’t ask for a better situation,” C’ta DeLaurier said. “Coach Kent’s agenda is always kids first. Whatever they need, let me try and get that. Why go somewhere else when you have that at home?”

Home. Home matters. Or it should at least. Home, after all, is the only way you get to experience what Javin DeLaurier did this year. Along with the guys he grew up with and the friends he picked up along the way, DeLaurier got to make a serious run as the Saints advanced to the state final four in a challenging VISAA Division II. Instead of a group of players he was just getting to know, next to him was Kareem Johnson.

“That’s my best friend man,” Johnson said. “We’ve been playing basketball for the longest time. I’ve seen Javin grow a lot, I’m proud of him. It’s been a long journey.”

Instead of what DeLaurier will face in college, where a group of players can become very close but often don’t know each other as well as childhood friends do, DeLaurier got to enjoy something different.

He got to make a run with guys who understand him, who know his true history. Who lived it with him.

“Javin really lives in the moment,” Johnson said. “He wants to be a leader on the court and he wants to take care of things one thing at a time. He doesn’t want to look off into the future so soon.”

There was Jalen Harrison too, a later addition who transferred to STAB during high school and became a fixture on the basketball team.

He’d come from playing with YaYa Anderson, Fluvanna County’s own phenom that also made a run and stayed where he got started.

“It’s a humbling experience for all of us because it shows how fortunate (Javin) is and how fortunate YaYa was with the gifts they were given for basketball,” Harrison said. “It’s cool to see someone who’s so close to you have the success that they’ve had.

Harrison has also witnessed how little it has changed who DeLaurier is and how he approaches the game.

“He hasn’t let anything get to his head at all,” Harrison said. “He works harder than anybody out here, he’s doing anything he can to get better. It’s amazing to be a part of it.”

When you’ve got Johnson and Harrison who knew you when you weren’t a Duke commit, you have to stay down to earth. Those friends, like his family, make it easier for DeLaurier to be himself.

“We’ve been going to school together since we were like this tall,” Javin said as he held his hand up a couple of feet off the ground.

“These are my best friends that I’m going to have for a long time.”

Family, friends, school and coaches. DeLaurier was able to handle everything that happened to him because he had the right support system and the right situation. He also was able to handle it because everyone around him and Javin himself knew how good that situation was. They didn’t get caught up in the fact that the grass might be greener on the other side.

That’s not easy to do. It’s not easy to handle everything that’s been thrown at DeLaurier in the last year. There aren’t many people who can even understand what he’s gone through. One of those rare people, however, is close by. Phil Stinnie, STAB’s girls basketball coach, knows what it’s like to be a phenom in Charlottesville. Stinnie went from Charlottesville High to Virginia Commonwealth to a thirdround pick in the NBA draft. He’s seen what’s gone on with DeLaurier, and he’s got some perspective on it.

“He went from an unknown to a phenom in basically a year,” Stinnie said. “People have to understand it wasn’t because he grew.

It’s because he grew inside that gym. He put his time in.”

That’s what’s critical, is that DeLaurier never listened to those “people.” He listened to his people. He took some advice, but mostly he applied lessons he learned and values instilled in him to make his own decisions and treat people the way he’d like to be treated.

“This whole process has been a huge family effort, it’s required a lot of sacrifice on their behalf from everyone,” DeLaurier said. “My parents, my siblings, my grandparents, aunts and uncles and I really appreciate both the time and financial resources. They’ve all been nothing but willing to give. It’s a huge reason why I’m in the position I’m in now.”

He’s also there spent more time being a producer than a consumer.

Because in the end, what you produce, that’s what really matters. ✖ www.scrimmageplay.com :: 18

Game Time Albemarle 12, Western 11 F/OT

By Bart Isley

Albemarle’s Sophia Crouse tries to evade Western defender Lily Elder.

(Bart Isley)

19 :: @scrimmageplay

Angie and Lizzy Chapman found themselves in a 2-on-1 situation on a fastbreak in the second overtime, with one Western Albemarle defender marking the two Albemarle attackers. Lizzy, the heady senior who was a little further outside the play, thought quickly.

“Lizzy being the selfless person that she is said ‘cut, cut’ and so I cut, my sister stayed back,” Angie Chapman said. “Sarah (Hanssen) sent me a perfect pass and the rest is a blur.”

With her sister helping hold the defender in place, Angie Chapman flashed toward the goal and Hanssen found her. With 1:41 to play in the second overtime, the junior connected and in the process lifted Albemarle to a 12-11 victory over Western in a down-to-the-wire installment of one of the area’s top girls lacrosse rivalries.

Chapman’s goal was the decider in part because of the newly adjusted overtime rules that have taken the girls game from a timed overtime to a sudden victory situation immediately after regulation.

“The draw controls have a little more emphasis,” said Western coach Tara Hohenshelt. “You’re keeping an eye on the clock but you’re really looking for the best opportunity. We did have opportunities and we need to do a better job of taking care of the ball and shooting.”

With a track meet breaking out during overtime, Albemarle seemed to handle the transition game nicely, showing very few nerves as the ball flew up and down the field.

“We’ve been doing a lot of sprints and working out really hard,” said Albemarle sophomore Jenn Wendelken, who poured in five of the Patriots’ 12 goals. “All of our hard work just played out on the field today.”

That improvement in transition came in part because the Patriots have been working on that in a pretty intense way.

“This week we worked on transition a lot, filling the lanes, finding the open holes and making the right cuts,” said Albemarle coach Lauren Thraves. “Even working on switching fields and letting them know that going backwards to go forward is okay.”

The game see-sawed back and forth throughout, with multiple lead changes and short runs that never allowed either team to gain any real control of the proceedings. With 2:40 left in the contest, Western pushed ahead on a Hanna Schuler goal, one of her four goals and an assist on just five shots in the game as part of an incredibly efficient effort

by Schuler. But Wendelken answered with her fifth tally of the day with 1:59 to play, the goal that eventually forced overtime at 11-11.

While Western came up on the short end of the stick in overtime, it’s the kind of game that the Warriors need to play in and play well in to get where the 2015 state finalists want to go.

“They’re always ready to play us and we’re always ready to play them and it’s a battle,” Hohenshelt said. “We’re just so lucky to have that opportunity.”

Outside of Wendelken’s explosive effort, Albemarle got goals from Lizzy Chapman who scored two goals on just three shots, Morgan Rose who had two goals and Summer Maxwell and Anna Murray who had a goal each. Wendelken also led the Patriots with seven draw controls while Lindsey Earles finished with five draws.

Albemarle keeper Caroline Shephard finished with nine saves.

For the Warriors, Hannah Planz had a goal and two assists while Sammie Magargee and Bella Moriconi each had two goals. Moriconi also led the Warriors with five draw controls. Audrey Russell and Kate Snyder each had a goal as well.

Goalies Catherine Adams and Ava Divita combined for 12 saves for the Warriors. ✖

team Spotlight Miller Girls Basketball Only one local basketball team won a state title and it was their second in a row. Congratulations to the Mavericks girls who wrapped up back-to-back VISAA Division 2 championship runs with a pair of blowouts to start the state tournament and then a hard faught battle with Nansemond-Suffolk. Great job, Miller! Good luck with the 3-peat!

495 Brookway Drive,

Come see our team at Taylor’s for all your collision repair needs. Taylor’s has been family owned and operated since 1986.

Charlottesville, VA, 22901 434-296-9821

Always remember you have the right to choose where your vehicle is repaired.

www.taylorautobody.com

Best of luck to our 2015 student athletes as they embark on their college careers.

Jake Allen

Baseball

Harvard University

TaylorAnne Barry

Women’s Soccer

Randolph-Macon College

Jeremy Benner

Baseball

Sewanee – The University of the South

Fritz Berry

Men’s Lacrosse

Trinity College

Molly Brooks

Women’s Squash

Bates College

Sadie Bryant

Women’s Lacrosse

Gardner-Webb University

Eric Buhle

Men’s Lacrosse

University of Richmond

Emily Carden

Women’s Lacrosse

Washington & Lee University

Gideon Elron

Men’s Lacrosse

Wesleyan University

Julia Haney

Women’s Lacrosse

Princeton University

Khalig Howard

Men’s Lacrosse

Denison University

Lang McNeely

Men’s Lacrosse

Rhodes College

Parker Morris

Baseball

Cornell University

Rhys Nordstrom

Men’s Squash

Bard College

Austin Park

Men’s Lacrosse

Amherst College

Lee Parkhill

Football

Christopher Newport University

Brodie Phillips

Men’s Lacrosse

Dickinson College

Rob Schotta

Men’s Lacrosse

Denison University

Audrey Schreck

Women’s Lacrosse

University of Denver

Bredt Stockwell

Football

Sewanee – The University of the South

St. Anne's-Belfield School

Grades PS-12, 5- and 7-Day Boarding in Grades 9-12

(4 3 4) 2 9 6 -510 6 · w w w. s t a b . o rg

Cole Rakes REALTOR ® Independently Owned and operated Licensed in the Commonwealth of VA RE/MAX Action Real Estate 1770 Timberwood Blvd Suite 101 Charlottesville, VA 22911 Cell: (434) 326-2905 Office: (434) 296-007

cole.charlottesvilleareahomes.com

W

e can’t teach our students everything, but we can prepare them for anything.

Our dedication to excellence rooted in spiritual formation assures that every day, whether on the field, in the classroom, or in the community, Covenant students are ready for the future ahead.

Overtime

The next big run Which teams this spring has the best early chance?

W

hat Albemarle’s boys basketball team did during the winter postseason was tremendous. The Patriots made an incredible run, beating a tough Hampton squad in the Crabbers’ backyard at Old Dominion in the state quarterfinals to earn a spot in the state final four.

It was a long time coming, as in the long tenure of Greg Maynard and it required a tremendous leap forward by a slightly overlooked senior class that put in the work in the offseason to make Albemarle stronger.

We’re not in the business of making predictions, in part because high school sports playoff runs can be hard to predict — look at Albemarle basketball and Monticello baseball last year, who fought out of a tough conference and ran the table all the way to the state final four.

But here’s a look at three teams that didn’t make the state tournament in 2015 that might be ready to take a leap forward this spring.

The first one comes from the same spot that produced winter’s biggest surprise — Albemarle. The Patriots’ boys soccer squad is poised for a monster year just a season after falling in the Region 5A North quarterfinals. Despite the graduation of William and Mary’s Marcel Berry, the Patriots are loaded with talent and they add a rock in goal in Jake Gelnovatch, a keeper who’s been a force on the club circuit and is headed to Louisville next season. The Patriots opened the season with a 6-1 hammering of Charlottesville at CHS that served as a coming out party for Brendan Moyers 2.0, the forward version, as the former center midfielder scored four goals in his new role as a finisher for the Patriots.

The depth doesn’t end there, with proven talents like senior Griffin Coffey and Jordan Parks back and talented freshmen joining the varsity. With a disappointing 2-1 loss last year to Briar Woods fresh in most of the roster’s mind, the Patriots could be primed for success.

On the girls side, Western Albemarle returns the bulk of its roster after a young team came just one win shy of a state title. Breakout campaigns from Jane Romness, Shannon Moore and Nicole Heon should put the Warriors right back where they left off, looking to chase Blacksburg for a championship.

In softball, Orange County has made some noise over the years, but last year the Hornets got knocked out of the Conference 16 tournament in the first round, despite going 15-5 in the regular season.

This year, Orange has a lot back in the fold. With senior Hannah Jones at first, sophomore Lexi Lomax at shortstop and senior Courtney Wright pitching, there’s a solid core with five senior starters in total. One of them is power hitter Tearra Goode, who opened the year with a four RBI performance against Madison that included a two-run home run.

The Hornets have the tools to turn regular-season success into postseason pop if they can stay focused.

Out at Goochland, the Bulldogs’ baseball team may have graduated two key members of a 19-3 squad that fell in the region tournament to King William, but the lineup that’s

22 :: @scrimmageplay

“We’re not in the business of making predictions, in part because high school sports playoff runs can be hard to predict.” back is deep and talented, particularly on the pitching staff. That’s where a trio of talented left-handers join hard-throwing righty Tanner Bradshaw. That’s a lot of pitching for any team but particularly a Group 2A squad, and a lot of it’s seasoned as lefty Coleman Duty is a senior and Bradshaw is a junior. Along with Nick Norman, that trio threw more than 100 innings last season. There’s also star outfielder Scott Carter and Reid Chenault who can play all over the infield. Throw in second baseman Andrew Harcum, promising sophomore John King at third and junior catcher Stephen Roberts and the Bulldogs should be in good shape.

Of course, there are a ton of teams that could make a run this season. But these four have some of the puzzle pieces that often indicate big postseason potential.

Putting those pieces together is the work everyone faces over the next couple Bart Isley, of months. ✖ c reative dir ector

back talk »

What deep playoff runs do you foresee? Contact Bart: bart@scrimmageplay.com

Success stories begin here.

Success Story: Russell Bodine Russell Bodine hails from Scottsville, Virginia and first made his name playing for former Fork Union high school coach Micky Sullivan. As a junior and senior, he was an All-State honoree and helped the Blue Devils to VISAA Division 1 final four showing in 2009.

As a three star recruit, he signed with North Carolina to play in college in February of 2010.

At Chapel Hill, Bodine moved from his position as a guard in high school to playing under center. As a sophomore he started at 12 games. The following year he was as reliable as before and earned All-Atlantic Coast Conference honorable mention as a red-shirt junior. That prompted him to test the waters at the next level.

He was rewarded for his decision after he put 42 repetitions in the bench press at the NFL combine, the best

in his class. With their fourth round selection, the Cincinnati Bengals made Bodine the 111th pick of the 2014 NFL Draft. At just 22 years old, Bodine enter the Bengals training camp as the team’s projected starter, a job he held on to with a strangle hold.

The Bengals have been to the playoffs in both of Bodine’s first two seasons. He’s started all 16 regular season games for Cincinatti and also in the playoffs. He became the first Bengals rookie drafted outside of the first round to start all games since Eric Steinbach did so in 2003.

Bodine was a road grader in high school, in college and is now the same for the Bengals and quickly becoming one of the most reliable centers in the NFL. He got his start and FUMA and even though he’s at the top now he’s never stopped working hard.

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