Leesville Road — Home
Leesville Road forward Quinton Marshall poured in 16 points and 15 rebounds in the Pride's 68-50 victory over South Granville Tuesday at the Chatlee Shootout at Lee County High School.
Marshall's
double-double leads Pride over South Granville
Playing in Lee County High's "Old Gym" — which with its 22-foot ceilings and dusty hardwood looks straight out of "Hoosiers" — the Leesville Road boys basketball team used a good old fashioned 14-0 run to close out the first half and cruise to a convincing 68-50 victory over South Granville Tuesday night.
Coming off a 68-44 loss to Union Pines Monday, the Pride improves its record to 1-1 in the Chatlee Shootout, which is hosted by Lee County. (Leesville returns to action Wednesday, Dec. 30, in the Shootout's third-place game slated for 4 p.m.)
Leesville senior Quinton Marshall made sure the Pride rebounded following the team's opening loss, posting 16 points and grabbing 15 boards against the Vikings.
"He had another good night for us," said Leesville head coach Roderic Brewington, alluding to Marshall's strong performance against Union Pines, when he scored 14 points and grabbed 18 rebounds. "We need that from him."
Leesville Road's Shyheid Petteway (31) drives toward the basket as Jake Lenox gives chase during Thursday's 39-38 win over Wakefield. Petteway scored seven points in the victory.
'Underdog' Pride hand Wolverines first league loss
Although his Leesville Road boys basketball team's eight-point halftime lead over Wakefield Thursday might have been impressive — as well as unexpected — head coach Roderic Brewington knew the contest's conclusion was long from over.
With the sound of Wakefield head coach Pat Kennedy's voice reverberating from a nearby locker room, Brewington implored his troop with two simple goals: maintain their intensity and win the third quarter.
"I told our guys 'I have been watching sports my whole life, you're the underdogs. I've seen it hundreds of times, the underdogs come out flat in the second half and then they lose it,'" instructed the coach. "'You have to meet their intensity.'"
Part two of his instructions were focused strictly on the game's next eight minutes.
Wakefield freshman (22) Makayla Williams swoops in for two of her six points in Thursday's 53-16 victory at Leesville Road.
Lady Wolverines pounce on Pride
In its last Cap-7 Conference contest before the holiday break, the Wakefield girls basketball team wasted little time knocking off Leesville Road Thursday, jumping out to a 17-4 advantage en route to a 53-16 victory.
Powered by a strong first-half performance from senior Kayla Harris, who scored all 15 of her points in the opening two quarters, the Lady Wolverines never allowed the Pride to get into a rhythm.
With Harris causing havoc in the paint, senior Nicole Weaver provided Wakefield with an outside presence, tallying 11 points and hitting three three-pointers.
Following his outsanding 2009 season, Millbrook junior Justus Hoffmann was named the Cap-7 Conference's Defensive Player of the Year.
Cap-7 announces
All-Conference
football honors
WF-R's Trea Jones receives
Player of the Year award
Two days after the Heisman trophy was awarded to the best running back on the best college team — Alabama's Mark Ingram — the Cap-7 Conference released it's awards Monday morning, including the league's Player of the Year honors.
And like the Heisman, the Cap-7 coaches also voted to award the best running back on the best team with the league's highest accolade.
After leading the Wake Forest-Rolesville football team to an undefeated regular-season, and its second straight 4-AA Eastern Regional appearance, Trea Jones was named the league's Player of the Year.
Holden O'Neal (left) scored an upset victory in Leesville Road's win over Enloe Dec. 9.
Pride wrestlers outlast Enloe
in Cap-7 opener
Two Leesville Road wrestlers earned their respective 100th career victories in Wednesday's Cap-7 Conference opener against Enloe, but the Pride's most compelling win of the night wasn't either of them.
Squared up against last year's league runner-up, Clay Trotter, Leesville's Holden O'Neal battled ahead early, shrugged off a late pin attempt, and sealed an 8-6 upset victory. The Pride wrestler never trailed in the bout.
"Holden has been in and out of the line up, but (he's) worked hard and gave us the points to pull it out," said Pride head coach Jason Wyss.
For his work on the pitch this fall, Leesville Road sophomore Fernando Castellanos was named to the Cap-7 Conference All-Conference team.
Cap-7 releases
All-Conference soccer selections
The Cap-7 Conference, arguably North Carolina's most competitive soccer league this fall, recently released its All-Conference selections.
Broughton — which won the conference's regular-season and tournament titles — led the league with seven All-Conference honorees, while Leesville Road and Sanderson tied for the second-most selections with six apiece.
Without further ado, the Cap-7 Conference All-Conference team ...
Wakefield's Savanna Johnson races against competition from Leesville Road , East Wake and WF-R during last week's swimming meet at North Carolina State University.
Pride, Wolverines hit the water
Leesville Road takes 20 of 24 swimming events Dec. 1
The Leesville Road and Wakefield swim teams got in some early-season work last week, competing against East Wake and Wake Forest-Rolesville at N.C. State's Carmichael Complex Dec. 1.
And the Pride flexed plenty of muscle in the pool, winning 20 of the meet's 24 events.
Leesville got off to a fast start, winning the women's 200-yard medley relay. Maggie Feltman, Jillian Schoening, Hannah Stephenson and Abby Vance combined to swim a time of 2:01.33 to notch the victory.
Leesville also bested the competition in the men's 200-yard medley relay as Connor Blevins, Charlie Barker, Matthew Hurley and Scott Johnson finished in 1:46.88. Wakefield's Alex Eiden, Grayson Davis, Rafael Lopez and Matthew Tolley snagged second with a time of 1:51.10.
Dillon Smith (32) makes for the basket during Leesville Road's game at Panther Creek Monday.
Panther Creek
pounces on Pride
Following Monday night's 68-55 loss at Panther Creek, Leesville Road boys basketball coach Roderic Brewington said he can see the type of team he wants on the floor — just not enough of it.
For the second consecutive game — and loss — the Pride (1-2) have battled back late from an early disadvantage with an aggressive style Brewington is looking for, but the push has been too late to erase a double-digit deficit.
The coach points out, for the Pride to be successful, the squad needs to put forth a complete-game effort.
"We have to do a better job of creating urgency," Brewington explained. "Two games in a row we were most urgent in the fourth, and at the start of the game today, I told them 'Let's be urgent in the first quarter.'
"It is something we have to work on a little bit. We have to be a little more physical, a little tougher, a little meaner."
Leesville Road junior Ryan Mangum (9), who received an invitation to the U.S. Army National Combine in San Antonio, Texas, will compete against some of the most talented football players in the country at the three-day event held in January.
Mangum invited to participate in U.S. Army National Combine
Leesville Road junior travels to
San Antonio for football showcase
Throughout the season, Leesville Road head football coach David Green often drops recruitment items — mostly letters, brochures and pamphlets — from interested colleges in front of the players' lockers.
Junior Ryan Mangum has received his share, including notes from Alabama and Notre Dame, but earlier this season a package appeared which the Pride defensive back/running back didn't recognize.
"It's usually letters in front of our lockers, but this was a big packet and I wasn't sure what it was," Mangum recalled.
Upon opening his mail, Mangum found out it wasn't another recruitment article, but rather the U.S. Army National Combine, offering an invitation to one of the most prominent and visible recruiting showcases in the nation.
The three-day event, held at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, from Jan. 7-9, features 500 of the best underclassmen football prospects in the country.
Continued ...
Leesville's Quinton Marshall (left) scored eight points in Tuesday's game against Green Hope.
Pride comeback falls short17-3 rally pulls Leesville Road
back into contest late
Midway through the fourth quarter of Tuesday's contest with Green Hope, the Leesville Road boys basketball team didn't appear on the verge of a remarkable comeback.
Trailing the Falcons by 15 points — Green Hope held a double-digit lead much of the game — the Pride just didn't look to have a turnaround in them.
But Grayson Hawkins three-pointer with five minutes to play was matched by Quinton Marshall one possession later, igniting a 17-3 rally which burned until the final seconds of the game.
Unfortunately for the Pride, the deficit was too much to overcome as Green Hope prevailed 70-66.
Continued ...
GALLERY: Pride squares off on mat with Warriors
Photographer Rob Orazi captured a few images from Monday night's wrestling match between Leesville Road and East Wake.
PHOTO BY ROB ORAZI
Senior Brad Moody (5) and the Leesville Road football team fell 36-8 in its 4-AA state playoff match-up with Fayetteville Jack Britt Friday. The Bucs' Eric Johnson (25) rushed for more than 175 yards in the victory.
Jack Britt proves
too much for Pride
It's hard to tell what missteps dug the Leesville Road football team a bigger hole in Friday's 36-8 defeat at Fayetteville Jack Britt — the Pride's numerous miscues or the squad's early offensive woes.
Either one alone might have made it difficult to knock off the Buccaneers, the Eastern Region's No.3 seed, but both proved to be deadly in the 4-AA playoff match-up.
And the Pride struggled its worst out of the gate, failing to gain positive yardage on any of its first four possessions. The stagnant attack allowed Jack Britt to build a 19-0 lead before Leesville earned its first first down.
"We made too many mistakes — early on particularly," said Leesville coach David Green. "But they are a very good football team, and they are not where they are by accident."
Ryan Mangum (from left), Nate Whittington and Thurston Cox are three players to keep an eye on Friday if Leesville Road wants to knock off Fayetteville Jack Britt and advance to the third round of the 4-AA state playoffs.
Pride preps for Jack Britt
A November trip to Cumberland County has become so routine for the Leesville Road football team, three-year varsity player Carson Moss doesn't know what it's like without one.
"We have done it three years in a row now. Every year I have been on varsity we have gone down to Fayetteville," explained the senior lineman prior to Wednesday's practice. "But it's always fun to travel, and I'm actually looking forward to going down there."
While the 9-3 Pride faces the daunting task of taking down 11-1 Fayetteville Jack Britt Friday, Moss and Company aren't intimidated by traveling down to the East Regionals' No. 3 seed — which plays its home games in the aptly-named "the Boneyard."
Why the reason for optimism?
First, Moss explained, it's refreshing just to see a new face across the line of scrimmage.
PHOTO BY ROB ORAZI
Leesville Road senior Thurston Cox (left) congratulates QB Austin Berrios during the Pride's 20-13 victory over Broughton Friday night. Berrios amassed more than 200 yards of offense in the postseason game. With the win, Leesville advances to play at Fayetteville Jack Britt Friday.
Pride capsizes
Caps in 'thriller'
Typically, when a defensive player makes a successful stop on fourth down, the opponents' drive is over. But that wasn't the case for Leesville Road's Gordon Martin Friday night.
Late in the fourth quarter of Friday's 4-AA state playoff showdown at Broughton, Martin was in coverage when Capitals' quarterback Jeff Moore’s pass appeared to hit the ground two yards before bouncing into the hands of his receiver.
However, the officials ruled it a legal catch giving Broughton a first down and hope, trailing 20-13 with 1:39 remaining in the game..
How does the defensive back respond? Martin steps in front of Moore’s next pass seemingly ending the game again. But a pass interference call again gave the Capitals new life.
Undeterred, Martin wouldn’t be denied on the next play hauling in a game-sealing interception and guaranteeing his Pride a 20-13 victory.
Broughton, Leesville Road's first-round playoff opponent, should expect a good dose of Pride running backs Dylan Edwards (42) and Nate Whittington (1) Friday night.
Pride battles conference foe Broughton
When this qualifies as a positive you begin to understand the rash of injuries the Leesville football team has battled this year.
As Pride head coach David Green listed off the handful of notable players expected out for Friday's 4-AA playoff opener at Broughton, the coach added "Well, the good news is Josh Stanley is off crutches this week."
Yes, having Leesville's first-string quarterback back on the mend is encouraging.
But as Green pointed out, the Pride must string together a few more wins before Stanley's back behind center.
Not an easy task, but Leesville has grown accustom to replacing starters this fall and have shown plenty of resiliency during its 8-3 regular season.
Leesville Road's Cody Pyper (25) drags down WF-R's Darren Kirby, who raced 74 yards on the second half's opening kickoff Friday night. The return triggered the Cougars' 20-3 victory.
Cougars overcome deficit, thwart
Pride's upset bid
Darren Kirby's 74-yard kickoff return to start the second half Friday was exactly what the Leesville Road football team couldn't allow Wake Forest-Rolesville to do, explained Pride coach David Green.
The play flipped the field and, more importantly, ignited a previously dormant Cougar offense, which was held scoreless in the first half.
Four plays after Kirby's return, teammate Trea Jones barreled into the end zone from 10 yards out, propelling the Cougars to 20 unanswered points and a 20-3 victory.
FILE PHOTO
Daniel Samper was one of 11 seniors to play in his final game during Leesville Road's 3-2 loss to Fuquay-Varina in the first round of the state playoffs Tuesday.
Pride fall in
first round to Fuquay-Varina
Ten weeks stood between the Leesville Road soccer team's first meeting with Fuquay-Varina — a 3-1 loss Aug. 20 — and the squads' match-up in the first round of the 4-A state playoffs Tuesday night.
And while the result, a 3-2 loss, might have been similar, Leesville coach Chip Stone argued the competition was anything but.
"Except for the 10 minute when we scored, they really outplayed us the first time," he said. "But this game was a totally different story."
Nearing the end
Six seniors share their thoughts on Friday night's finales
This is it. It all comes down to this.
Four years of up-and-downs, field-long gassers and film study have lead up to now.
Afternoons lifting weights, summer workouts and all the practices between games, too.
And Every moment Friday will be a memory replayed for years to come.
So there's little surprise the seniors of the Leesville Road, Millbrook and Sanderson football teams will be a tad emotional when they take the field Friday night — their last assured home game of their careers.
Sanderson's Mitchell Feldman (center) placed 13th in Saturday's 4-A Mideast Regional Cross Country meet in Cary, helping the Spartans to a second-place finish and a bid to states.
Mallory, Spartans state-bound
George finishes second;
Lady Wildcats nab fourth
A few hundred meters from the finish line of the biggest — and best — race of his life, Wakefield's Mitch Mallory tripped over his own two feet.
But the junior gathered himself —albeit spitting mad — and completed the race, placing fifth in Saturday's 4-A Mideast Regional Cross Country meet with a time of 15:58.23. His finish qualified him for next week's 4-A state championships in Winston-Salem — and he's the first runner to advance to the finals from Wakefield in at least six years, coach Wayne Dubnansky said.
"I tripped and fell on my way up the hill," Mallory shrugged afterward. "I just caught my own leg. I was in a bad mood coming up to the finish. I was pissed. I just wanted to get to the finish line as fast as I could."
Continued ...
Sanderson's Taylor Wyatt (left) holds off Leesville Road's Ian Ramsey during the second half of Tuesday's Cap-7 Conference tournament semifinals match. The Spartans won the contest 2-1.
Sanderson soccer shoots down Pride
Spartans advance to face Broughton
in championship game Thursday
Tied 1-1 with Leesville Road in the second half of Tuesday's Cap-7 Conference tournament semifinals match, Sanderson's Glenn Scott broke down downfield with teammates J.P. Rafferty flanked to his right and Casey Francis to his left.
With the Pride's three defenders in retreat mode, Scott hit Rafferty in stride, and the senior one-timed the ball perfectly to a streaking Francis, who added soft deflection for the would-be game-winner.
From the moment Scott cross midfield, the play appeared to have goal written all over it, and the trio didn't disappoint.
Sanderson head coach Todd Worley explained the Spartans couldn't have drawn it up better.
"It was a really nice breakaway and they all did all the right things," he said. "Casey made a nice touch on the ball."
Millbrook sophomore Keith Marshall tallied 162 of his 203 rushing yards in the first half of Friday's 39-23 win over Leesville Road. Marshall and the Wildcats visit undefeated WF-R Friday, Oct. 30.
Millbrook, miscues thwart Pride attack
Wildcats clinch win with four consecutive takeaways Friday
For a Millbrook football team plagued by costly turnovers seemingly all season, Friday's 39-23 victory over visiting Cap-7 Conference rival Leesville Road had a certain level of vindication to it.
The Wildcats forced the Pride into seven turnovers — including takeaways on Leesville's last four possessions — scoring a much-needed victory in Millbrook's postseason pursuit. (More importantly, Millbrook turned the ball over just once in their impressive victory.)
Following the win, head coach Clarence Inscore highlighted the parallels between how the Wildcats lost games earlier this season, and how they won Friday.
"What's been killing us all year, helped us tonight," he reasoned of turnovers. "We were finally on the right end of the turnover ratio. Again, that is huge for us. We are a good football team when we don't turn the ball over."
If the skill-position players shine in Friday night's Millbrook/Leesville Road football game, the boys upfront will undoubtedly be playing well. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. at Millbrook.
Pride, Wildcats square off Friday
In rivalry games, like Friday night's Leesville Road at Millbrook football match-up, records and previous performances can usually be thrown out.
(After scoring just 12 points against Broughton Oct. 9, did anyone see Wake Forest-Rolesville hanging 47 points on crosstown foe Wakefield. Me, neither.)
So, anything can happen when rivalries — i.e. emotions — are involved. And Friday will be no different.
For that reason, let's focus on these four facts leading into the contest.
FILE PHOTO
Alex de Groot (9) and the Wakefield soccer team battles Austin Dietz (left), Alex Oloffson (21) and the Millbrook soccer team in the first round of the Cap-7 Conference soccer tournament Monday night. The Wildcats host the match-up, set to begin at 6:30 p.m.
Cap-7 Conference soccer tournament schedule set
With the conclusion of the Cap-7 Conference boys soccer regular-season schedule Wednesday night, area teams begin preparing for their respective first-round match-ups in the league's tournament, which kicks off Monday, Oct. 26.
Fourth-seeded Millbrook (6-6) hosts fifth-seeded Wakefield (5-6-1), while second-seeded Leesville Road (7-4-1) hosts No. 7 Wake Forest-Rolesville (0-12). The Pride defeated the Cougars 7-0 Wednesday in the squads' respective finales.
Millbrook sophomore Samantha George captured first place in Tuesday's Cap-7 Conference Cross Country Championship, posting a time of 18:14.99. In addition to George's win, the Lady Wildcats also claimed the team title, tallying a score of 44.
Spartans,
Lady Wildcats
take Cap-7 crowns
George repeats as girls' winner, posting a time of 18:14.99
Entering Tuesday's Cap-7 Conference girls cross country championship race at WakeMed Soccer Park , Millbrook sophomore Samantha George — last year's conference champion — and Wildcat coach Brian Schneidewind compiled a strategy.
It was simple plan, really.
George was to hang in the lead pack, and pull away late. A good plan — likely a winning plan, too, considering her success last year.
But the 10th-grader decided against it.
"My coach wanted me to stay with the next top girl and leave her at the hill," George said. "But I was feeling pretty good, so I decided to go early."
The result? George posted a remarkable time of 18:14.99 en route to her second consecutive title, besting second-place, Leesville Road's Lauren Strapp, by nearly 30 seconds.
Leesville Road's Ryan Fleming (left) and Millbrook's Bradley Newman battle for possession late in the Pride's 2-0 victory Tuesday. Fleming scored a first-half goal in the win.
Fleming, Burns lead Leesville over Millbrook
Following the Leesville Road soccer team's 2-0 victory over Millbrook Tuesday night — the squad's fourth win in its last six contests — Pride senior Chris Hawthorne pinpointed how the Pride turned its season around.
After a tumultuous 1-4 start to the year, Hawthorne explained Leesville found a sense of urgency.
"We have been working harder on and off the field, in practice and in the games, and we've talked about people being more desperate on both sides of the field," he said. "Both in the attacking third and the defensive third, we needed to play harder. And that's been the difference."
Head coach Chip Stone explained more simply, saying "We were playing idiotic."
And now? "Our guys have bought into what we want to do, and they have played very well," he said. "At first, we weren't seeing the results for our effort. But now we have beaten some pretty good teams recently."
PHOTO BY ROB ORAZI
With starting quarterback Josh Stanley out, Leesville Road turned to its running game and senior Dylan Edwards (42) to get the job done in Friday's 59-14 win over Sanderson Friday.
Pride rebounds,
routs Sanderson
Mired in a quarterback conundrum thanks to a rash of injuries, the Leesville Road team didn’t need to find a golden arm to lead the Pride past Sanderson Friday night.
They just needed to find someone to hand the ball off.
The Pride rushed for 377 yards while passing just three times — two of which went for touchdowns — in a 59-14 throttling of the Spartans (1-7) to punctuate homecoming. Leesville Road (8-1) entered the contest averaging nearly 14 pass attempts per game.
“We thought we could run it and that’s what we wanted to do anyway to take the pressure off the quarterbacks,” said Leesville Road coach David Green.
Sam Bauckham (left) and the Spartans face Grayson Hawkins and the Pride Friday at 7 p.m. Both teams are coming off difficult losses last week, and look to rebound with a win.
Pride, Spartans stage showdown Friday
Green, Lewis talk about
upcoming match-up
While the Leesville Road (7-1) and Sanderson (1-6) football teams might be on opposite sides of the win-loss column, both squads find themselves in the same position entering Friday night's match-up: battling to get back on track.
After a thrilling, though disappointing, 35-32 loss to Wakefield last week, in hindsight the Pride suffered more than a discouraging defeat.
According to Leesville Road coach David Green, starting quarterback Josh Stanley was injured against the Wolverines and will not be behind center against the Spartans Friday.
And with back-up Austin Berrios also sidelined with an injury — suffered during a beautiful 51-yard touchdown catch against Wakefield — the Pride's QB position is an area of uncertainty right now.
Leesville Road's Bo Burns (9) looks to attack Sanderson's John Perfetti (4) during Monday's soccer match. Burns didn't score on this play, but he tallied two goals during the Pride's 4-3 win.
Pride soccer
sacks Sanderson
Monday night Sanderson senior Glenn Scott notched three goals — his 23rd, 24th and 25th scores of the season — but with less than 10 minutes remaining against Leesville Road, it was Pride senior Ryan Fleming who delivered the game-winner.
Tied at 3-3, the Pride's Chris Hawthorne sent a kick toward the front of the Spartan net and, after the ball was deflected, Fernando Castellanos popped it up for Fleming to finish off, clinching a 4-3 victory.
"I was just standing at the top of the 18, Fernando flipped it up and I just saw the volley, and thought, 'This is mine', and I hit it in," Fleming recalled after the game.
Junior wide receiver Nigel King (with ball) scored three touchdowns in the Wolverines' 35-32 win over Leesville Road Friday night. The victory gives Wakefield a 3-0 record in conference play.
King, Wolverines
battle past Pride
In the closing seconds of the Wakefield football team's 35-32 upset win over Leesville Road Friday night, the Pride's desperation heave fittingly fell in the hands of Wolverine standout Nigel King.
On a night when the junior receiver hauled in nine catches for 185 yards and three touchdowns, including a 38-yard TD in the third quarter — which resulted in the Wakefield student section serenading him with a chorus of "Happy Birthday" — King came up largest in the game's biggest moments. (And, yes, it was his birthday.)
"That's why we're glad we have him," said Wakefield coach J.D. Dinwiddie following the game. "If we need a big play, we have other guys who are capable. But when we need a momentum changer, Nigel's the guy who can get it done. And he did it tonight."
But it was more than a one-man show which held off a relentless Pride squad, led by a hobbled, yet gutsy QB Josh Stanley.
Trip Foreman (left) and Brandon Pittman have displayed a knack for making big plays this season, and both could play major roles in the outcome of Friday's contest between the Pride and Wolverines.
Wolverines, Pride duke it out Friday
Keep reading for an interesting
subplot to tonight's game
In the biggest Cap-7 Conference football game to date — Friday's Leesville Road (7-0) at Wakefield (5-2) match-up — Pride linebacker Brandon Pittman knows his defensive unit can't afford any breakdowns.
No miscues. No mental lapses. And no missteps, the junior explained.
"We know they have a ton of skill people, so we are really going to have to be disciplined," he said after practice Wednesday afternoon. "We can't have one person slip. We can't have someone out of position. Or that will bring our defense down."
Leesville receiver Gerroid Doughty — who may split time at defensive back — singled out the Wakefield's wideouts as an area of concern.
Leesville Road senior Bailey Wilson scored a 7-5, 6-2 victory in her final home match Wednesday.
Pride defeats Wakefield in finale
Although the Broughton and Wakefield tennis teams already secured the Cap-7 Conferences' two automatic bids into the state tennis playoffs, Leesville Road didn't go down without a fight in its regular-season finale with the Lady Wolverines Wednesday afternoon.
On the strength of its excellent singles play, winning five of six contests, the Pride recorded a 6-3 victory.
And in their last career home match, seniors Amy Weischedel, Julianne Dragan and Bailey Wilson finished on a high note, posting three wins.
It's a deserving conclusion to their careers, explained Pride coach Melissa Bowman, adding the trio were "integral to our winning season."
Wakefield's Kevin Kotecki (11) slips past Leesville Road's Chris Hawthorne (7) during Wednesday's Cap-7 Conference soccer match. The Wolverines pulled out a 2-0 win over the Pride.
Judge, Cervantez fuel Wakefield win
With less than 10 minutes remaining in the first half of Wednesday's soccer game at Leesville Road — two minutes after senior Jay Williams crumbled to the ground with a leg injury — Wakefield assistant coach Derek Williams was thinking defensively.
And the strategy definitely had merit.
While Wolverine Ryan Metts stood over a free kick, Williams instructed Vince Cervantez to fall back, and protect a Pride counteract. With Williams sidelined, Leesville might be able to take advantage of Wakefield's lineup change.
But as Metts' kick sailed towards goal, there was Cervantez leaping into the air, challenging Leesville keeper Davis Griffin. The Wakefield senior headed the ball off the crossbar, which fortuitously dropped down to teammate Greg Judge for the point-blank goal and a 1-0 Wolverine lead.
Leesville Road senior Bo Burns (left, No. 9) and Wakefield senior Street Johnson (right) have their respective squads surging following impressive matches earlier this week.
Pride, Wolverines face off on pitch Wednesday
Although Wednesday night's Sanderson and Millbrook soccer team's match will receive plenty of attention — and justifiably so — it could be argued Leesville Road's home match against Wakefield today features the most intriguing match-up.
Both the Pride and Wolverines have endured humbling stretches this year — Leesville lost five of its first six overall games; Wakefield faltered in five of its first conference matches. But entering tonight's contest, they are both riding notably turnarounds.
The Pride is unbeaten in its last three Cap-7 Conference challenges, including an impressive 1-1 tie with first-place Broughton Monday.
Likewise, the Wolverines jumpstarted its second half of league play with a tie against Sanderson last week, and a thrilling 5-4 victory over Millbrook two days ago.
Members of the Leesville Road Grill Team get amped up prior to the Pride's home football game against Broughton Friday afternoon. The pre-game cookout has become a popular traditional among Leesville Road's students, drawing several hundred before home and away contests.
Grill Team serves
up school spirit
Leesville Road senior Kevin Carney — affectionately known as the Grill Team Cowboy — explained it's not uncommon for a dispute to break out during the Grill Team's cornhole games.
The saying "If you ain't cheatin', you ain't tryin" carries some weight around here.
"Yeah, there are some arguments, and if you can shave a point or two, you try, but for the most part we are honest," Carney laughed, moments after he and teammate Nick Wheeler dropped a close match Friday afternoon.
But recreational beanbag games aren't what brought a few hundred green-clad Leesville Road students out to the grassy field adjacent to the Springdale Area Recreation Club last week.
PHOTO BY ROB ORAZI
Carson Moss (75) and the Leesville Road defense allowed QB Will Turner and Broughton to reach the end zone just once Friday night, en route to a 31-6 Pride victory.
Pride gets revenge on Capitals
Given the bitter memories of last year’s loss to rival Broughton, the Leesville Road football team had no shortage of motivation for Friday’s rematch.
Oddly enough, however, the Pride player who packed the biggest punch had no memory of last year’s game.
Gerroid Doughty, a transfer student from Wakefield — playing just his third game in a Leesville Road uniform — reeled in touchdown passes of 27 and 69 yards as the Pride put away the Capitals 31-6. With the victory, Leesville improves to 7-0 on the season.
PHOTO BY ROB ORAZI
Leesville Road's Carson Moss (75), Doug Theret (65), Dylan Edwards (42) and Josh Stanley (10) have been critical in helping the Pride average more than 37 points per game this season. The foursome look to continue its offensive dominance against Broughton Friday.
Leesville Road seeks redemption for '08 loss to Caps
People always talk about the one that got away.
Whether it be a girl, a fish or a financial windfall, when an opportunity is squandered, it is often remembered.
For the Leesville football team, the "one" in question is last year's humbling 35-14 loss to Broughton.
The Pride entered the 2008 game unbeaten eyeing an outright Cap-7 Conference title. On the heels of a 34-0 rout of Enloe to open the league schedule, Leesville looked to be the class of the conference.
Yet the Capitals throttled the Pride, slamming the door with a 21-point fourth quarter.
Alli Mossinghoff and the Leesville Road girls golf team are in second place heading into the Cap-7 Conference's finale at The TPC at Wakefield Tuesday, Oct. 6.
Wakefield golf wins again; Pride in battle for second place
Yelle earns low medalist honors
While the Wakefield girls golf team has all but engraved its name on the Cap-7 Conference title — the Lady Wolverines' win at Hedingham Golf Club Tuesday was their sixth consecutive victory — there is plenty of competition to watch at next week's league finale.
Following its second-place finish Tuesday, Leesville Road staked a one-point advantage over Broughton in the team standings heading into Tuesday's match at the TPC at Wakefield.
Although only bragging rights are on the line — there is no playoff or postseason bid on the line — it should be fun to watch.
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PHOTO BY ROB ORAZI
Leesville Road QB Josh Stanley fights through a tackle as
an Enloe defender pulls on his jersey during Friday's Cap-7 Conference opener. The Pride recorded a 34-7 win over
the Eagles.
Edwards, Pride upend Enloe
When the head coach is hoarse by the end of his pre-game pep talk, it must be the start of conference play. And Leesville Road head coach David Green fired up his troops with a speech that increased in volume and passion with each sentence.
“I’m sick and tired of hearing about what Wake Forest puts on their wall," shouted Green, referring to Wake Forest-Rolesville’s recent conference championship banners. "It’s ours this year. We aren’t sharing."
Feeding off its coach’s energy, the Pride jumped out to a 28-7 halftime lead at Enloe, and cruised to 34-7 victory.
