Mavs, Barons set to do battle

By Bart Isley and Liz Keller Daily Progress sports
Published: January 13, 2009

With the release of the new private school rankings, the die is cast. The road to the Division I and Division II titles runs through Albemarle County.

Miller and St. Anne’s-Belfield held onto their No. 2 and No. 3 spots in Division II, but it was Blue Ridge’s ascent to the top spot in Division I that makes things particularly interesting as the local teams enter the meat of their schedules.

That stretch starts tonight at 6 p.m. when the Mavericks host the Barons for the first of two hotly-contested games between the two rivals from different classifications.

Blue Ridge (12-1) is coming off a comfortable 62-38 victory over Liberty Christian at home where Kristijan Krajina and Darnell Turner, two of Blue Ridge’s most consistent contributors sat out. That required coach Bill Ramsey to ask point guard Denzel Wilson to get things going for the Barons.

Wilson obliged.

The senior scored 10 points, snagged three steals and dished out three

assists just in the first quarter, sparking the Barons to the easy win.

With both Miller and Blue Ridge boasting a tall, talented frontcourt, the backcourt will almost certainly be where this game will be decided. The Mavericks’ D’Andre Corbin, Preston Terrell and Mychal Parker will have their work cut out for them guarding Wilson, A.J. and Scott Williams and the rest of the Barons’ talented, deep backcourt.

The Mavericks are coming off a 75-69 win over Archbishop Carroll in Chantilly where Parker put up a nifty 19 points.

Expect fireworks in Crozet.

Warriors secure

much-needed win

After dropping four straight games, Western Albemarle’s girls team picked up a critical Jefferson District win over Monticello on Friday. The Warriors used a well-balanced attack as nine different players reached the scoring column. Earlier in the week, the team hung with a very good Fluvanna team for much of the game, but ultimately lost.

The Warriors are very young with only two returning players from last year’s squad. According to first-year Western Albemarle coach Kris Wright, it is a matter of putting it all together.

“Pretty much our whole team is JV from last year. Ellen [Shaffrey] and Caitlin [Boles] are the only two that are back,” Wright said after Wednesday’s loss. “On JV last year, they won a lot of games, so they know how to win, they know how to play together, it’s just a matter of translating it from practice and from JV to the varsity level.”

Madison stays unbeaten

Things just keep rolling along for Madison County. The Mountaineers smashed Manassas Park 69-44 to move to 13-0 and 2-0 in the Bull Run District.

After a slow night against George Mason earlier in the week, Logan Terrell got back to his old self against Manassas Park, pouring in 21 points in the win. Jerel Carter, just days after filling in the scoring gap for Terrell with 22 points against George Mason, chipped in 15 points.

Madison will try and keep it going against Clarke County, one of only two schools that was able to derail Madison’s football team in the fall. Terrell, an All-Central Virginia fullback for the Mountaineers, might be looking to exact some revenge for that lone district football loss.

Fans in Charlottesville will get a chance for an up close and personal look at the Mountaineers this Saturday when they host Monticello.

Monroe picks up a nice win

William Monroe blew out Fluvanna Friday night,

75-50 behind a double double effort by Mike Wims, who scored 15 points and pulled down 20 rebounds. The other two members of the Dragons’ three-headed offensive monster, Mike Roach and Andy Brown also had nice outings.

Roach scored 15 points and dished out six assists. Brown scored 11 points, while distributing five assists while committing a single turnover.

Monroe will need that kind of balance come Friday when it hosts Monticello in a critical Jefferson District test.

Cardiac Patriots

Albemarle’s boys won yet another overtime Commonwealth District matchup Friday when the Patriots overcame a dismal, two-point fourth quarter performance to knock off Brooke Point 56-52. Brooke Point buried eight 3-pointers to help force the overtime, but faltered in the extra period as Albemarle pulled ahead.

The Patriots have made a habit of going into extra time, with three of Albemarle’s six Commonwealth matchups going into overtime. The Patriots beat Colonial Forge in overtime back in early December, then dropped a triple-OT thriller to North Stafford just last week, making the win over Brooke Point the second overtime game in a row.

Cameron Anderson and Adam Utz carried the scoring load in the most recent win with 15 and 16 points respectively. The Patriots (7-6, 3-3 CD) take on Riverbend tonight on the road.

BCHS’s Boyers shines

Buckingham County has been without leading scorer D.J. Jones for a few games now.

But Taylor Boyers has made sure the Knights haven’t missed Jones too badly.

Over a two-game stretch last week, Boyers averaged 27 points, including his 24-point, 22-rebound output against Amelia County last Tuesday and a 30-point night against Central Lunenburg in a 76-64 Buckingham victory.

In the game, Boyers went 20 for 23 at the free-throw line to put in the bulk of his scoring.

Jones’ absence may now turn out to be a blessing in disguise for the Knights. With Boyers emerging as a more threatening presence inside, James River District squads might have an even tougher time stopping Buckingham.

Balance key to Black Knights’ success

Nearly halfway through the boys slate of Jefferson District games, there doesn’t appear to be many teams who can keep pace with Charlottesville.

The Black Knights, the only unbeaten team in district play at 4-0, ran their fast-tempo offense to near-perfection Friday as they rolled to a road win over Orange County.

As usual, it was a collective effort, as four players reached double figures for Charlottesville.

Maurice Jackson paced the Black Knights with 25 points, including a pair of

3-pointers. The sharpshooter scored 20 in the first half to help CHS get out to a big lead, then as he cooled off after halftime, Terrence Briggs helped pick up the slack. Briggs contributed 19 points, with 15 in the second half. The sophomore also went a perfect 8 for 8 from the free-throw line.

Omari Minor and Kevin Leatherwood were consistent as they have been all season. Leatherwood scored a quiet 17 points and pulled down 10 rebounds as well, while Minor chipped in with 11 points.

Another telling stat was the team’s free-throw percentage against Orange — CHS shot 87 percent from the foul line. The Hornets, on the other hand, were 12 for 20.

“I was overall pleased with our offense. We shot the ball fairly well from the perimeter and when we had to, we did get to the basket and the free-throw line,” said Charlottesville coach Mitch Minor. “If we can get to the basket or dribble-drive or get in the lane and either make a layup or get fouled, then that’s a bonus for us.”

Charlottesville will get a big test tonight as it plays host to Western Albemarle. The Warriors (7-4, 3-1) are coming off their first district loss to Monticello.

Perimeter play keeps Hornets alive

On most nights, a team that connects on nine 3-pointers would win the game. Unfortunately, that was not the case for Orange County against Charlottesville as they were forced to play from behind most of the contest. But the Hornets, who cut a double-digit deficit to nine, were able to stay in the game until the end of the third quarter because of their 3-point shooting.

D.J. Brown put on a brilliant offensive display, draining five 3-pointers and pouring in a team-high 25 points. Quintin Hunter knocked down three long balls and Tyler Seal had the other trey for Orange.

But it was Charlottesville’s Briggs who may have come up with the biggest shot from beyond the arc of the game, as he hit a three at the buzzer to end the third quarter. The shot took the wind out of the surging Hornets’ sails.

“We were making a run, and coming out of halftime, that was our biggest thing,” said Orange coach Keyode Rogers. “But they ended the [third] quarter on a high note and hit a big shot right after we cut it down to nine, and it takes a lot out of you.”

Injury update

Shalita Brown was scheduled to undergo an MRI on her left knee on Monday to determine the extent of the MCL tear. Charlottesville’s senior leader, who, along with Shawntae Payne, carries the offensive load for the Black Knights, has missed several games after injuring her knee against Fluvanna County.

Terrell said Friday he was uncertain when Brown would return.

Payne leads the way

In Brown’s absence, Payne has stepped up, helping CHS to three straight district wins, including one against Orange County last Friday. In fact, Payne completely took over in the final minutes of that game, as she scored seven straight points to help the Black Knights edge the Hornets. She led all scorers with 23 points.

Charlottesville also got solid production from London Todd, a freshman forward, who contributed 13 points and 10 rebounds. She played much of the second half with three fouls.

“I told her I was proud of her because she got really tough at the end getting those rebounds. Those rebounds were key for us,” said Charlottesville coach Harry Terrell. “That’s pretty big to ask of a freshman.”

Ellie Von Storch added eight points and eight rebounds. Terrell is happy that other players are rising to the challenge.

“I was pleased with how the other teammates stepped up. Ellie went to the hole strong, Star [Lewis] had some open shots and she took them. They didn’t fall, but she took them and she’s going to have to do that,” Terrell said. “Everybody’s going to have to step up because Shawntae can’t do it by herself. And if they do that, particularly on defense, we’ll be fine.”

Lewis explodes

She may be just a sophomore, but Tamika Lewis is breaking out offensively for the Patriots. Lewis, who showed a lot of ability from the start this season, scored 25 points against Brooke Point last Friday, pairing with C.J. Jackson’s 13-point night to give the Patriots a 57-50 victory.