First of all, “Happy New Year” to everyone.  I hope that everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday filled with plenty of three “F’s” (food, football and family). 

Our new editor has asked that I take you on a trip down memory lane.  So while you continue reading this, we will take a look at Powhatan High sports over the past year: its teams’ successes, near misses and disappointing losses.

The first stop is the probably the best success story of the year for Powhatan sports.  Head Coach Steve Washburn, in his first season at the helm, guided the boys basketball team led by Michael DeLeon and Emmett Brown to a 10-0 home record (18-5 overall) and the first Southside District title for Powhatan before losing to Bruton 62-60 in the Region I playoffs.

The wrestling team had a solid showing on the mat early in 2007 as the program continues its growth under Coach Lee Richardson.  Blake Kierson won the 215 pound weight class last month at the Cosby Invitational while five other wrestlers placed in the top five as this program is on the rise.

Moving to the diamond where Powhatan has been blessed with having talented players come through its system.  Corey “Hawk” Jones literally stole the Region I championship from Poquoson by stealing 1st and 2nd in the 8th inning then scored on a throwing error for a 3-2 win.  However, their heroics came to an end in the state semifinals with a 2-1 loss to Waynesboro.

The softball team once again asserted its dominance as junior Sarah Davis baffled hitters with 212 strikeouts and a microscopic 0.24 ERA.  However, the Powhatan bats fell silent to Rebecca Mills of New Kent who shut out Powhatan 1-0 ending their season and hopes of a possible repeat trip to the state finals.

Both the boys’ and girls’ soccer squads won Southside District titles again but each failed to post a playoff win as the boys lost 2-0 to Riverbend and the girls to Courtland.  Olivia Moore and Jared Schiarelli were named to the first team for Region I.  Schiarrelli and Aaron Humphreys became members of the inaugural male class admitted to Randolph College, formerly Randolph-Macon Women’s College, where they both started on the soccer team.

Paul Woodson and Tyler Kee paced the golf team to another Southside District title.  The team improved during Regional play finishing second to Jamestown earning another trip to the state tournament where Woodson finished in 10th place and Kee in 18th.

Using her leg power, Kendell Wynne advanced to the state cross-country meet where she finished with a time of 21:16.40 over the 5K course.  At the Spring Group AA state track meet, Shawn Minor, though only 5’8”, cleared 6’2” for 9th place while Eric Watts jumped 21’ 6” for 6th place in the long jump.  On the girls’ side, Erin Lonon finished 8th in the 400 meters, Ana Tucker 10th in the 800 meters, Tiffany Morris 9th in the 300 meter hurdles and the 4x400 meter relay team placed 8th overall

On to the gridiron where the football team’s exploits have been well chronicled in the pages of Powhatan Today. This year, they finished 11-2 winning their third consecutive Region I championship, a first for this successful program.  The next milestone is win number 200 for Coach Jim Woodson, who is currently sitting at 199.

What would football be without cheerleaders?  This year’s squad won yet another Southside District title before barely missing out on a return trip to the state tournament at Regionals.  And for those of you who don’t think these girls are athletes, you try to do their routines or better yet the amount of pushups they did after every Powhatan football score (505 total points).

Finally, there are the field hockey and volleyball teams.  Both squads excelled this season as the field hockey team finished 12-5 after losing to Jamestown in the Region I playoffs.  The volleyball squad was led by Southside District Player of the Year Ana Tucker.  The team had winning streaks of nine and six matches during a 16-3 season.

As 2007 came to an end, the athletes and coaching staffs at Powhatan had accomplished a lot, winning the majority of Southside District titles.  Looking to the rest of 2008, the boys’ basketball team is already 4-0 with a win over William Monroe last Thursday and the spring sports get underway in February with all favored to win the Southside. 

But for now, we have reached our destination at the end of memory lane.  So, thanks for taking the journey with me and don’t forget to tip the driver on your way out.