LAFAYETTE ATHLETIC BOOSTER CLUB

NEWS & NOTES

Volume 6 Issue 1 January 2005

LABC PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE:

As we approach the middle of the school year, I wanted to take the opportunity to provide you with an update on the Lafayette Athletic Booster Club (LABC). A majority of our efforts this fall have been focused on fund raising activities. One of our major fund raising activities each year is our fall golf tournament. This year’s tournament was another success with over $5,000 raised for the LABC. Thanks to everyone who made this year’s golf tournament a success, especially Pegi Shurtz who served as the tournament coordinator. Another major fund raiser is the concession stand at the football games. This year, the over $2, 000 was raised by the sale of concessions. A special thanks to Patti Banks for leading the concessions effort this year. A third fund raiser is our membership drive. To date, we have collected $1,415 in memberships against a goal of $2,000. Thank you to everyone who has joined the LABC. If you have not yet joined the LABC, I strongly encourage you to join. These fund raising activities will be used to support our outstanding weight lifting & conditioning program, to support an academic advisor, to make a contribution to an athletic education endowment, to support two $500 college scholarships, and, if funds permit, make a special equipment purchase for the athletic department. In closing, I would like to thank you for your support of the LABC and I want to encourage you to get out and support our winter and spring athletes. Go Luck RAMS!

Jim Reyher - President

AD’s CORNER: by Dan Barner

JUST LIKE THE TEMPERATURES OF THE FALL SEASON, OUR RAMS HAD SOME HIGHS AND LOWS: This fall our Rams continued to shine as our seven varsity teams combined for an overall record of 72 wins and only 15 defeats. Three of these teams finished the

regular season undefeated and district champions; two others finished second in the district, one finished third and one finished fifth. Since entering the Bay Rivers District in the fall of 1997, our athletic teams have competed in 22 sports seasons (eight fall seasons, seven winter seasons and seven spring seasons). Including this fall, our Rams have seen all our teams in a particular season finish the year in the upper half of the district 10 times. What makes this feat so remarkable is the fact that only three other district schools have able to have all their teams finish in the upper half of the district in a season and none of them have done it more than three times. Second to our 10 is Grafton’s three times including this fall; Tabb has accomplished it three times and Jamestown once. Also, our success this fall has once again put our Rams in a great position to win the Bay Rivers District overall sports championship. During our first seven years in the Bay Rivers District, our Rams have won the overall district championship four times and finished second the other three years. The other winners have been Poquoson twice and Tabb once.

The highs of this fall included outstanding regular season finishes by all of our teams. Girls Cross Country, Field Hockey and Football all finished their regular seasons undefeated. Our Cheerleaders and Golf teams finished second in the district, our volleyball team finished third while our boys Cross Country team finished fifth in the 10 team district. Some of the lows of the fall were season ending defeats by the our defending state championship field hockey team in the VHSL State quarter-finals and a upset loss in the Region 1 finals in football. And these where lows only because of the very high expectations that theses teams place upon themselves. Another season low, and one that showed once again why our Lafayette athletes and their teams are always so competitive, was an automobile accident that ended the season of two of our top cheerleaders just days before the VHSL State Championships. Our cheer team had less than a week to make major changes in their routine that they had worked on for months. With only a couple of days to practice the new routine our cheerleaders still performed at a level that earned them an 11^th place finish in the state.

Our Field Hockey led the way this fall by finishing the regular season undefeated and winning the most games of any fall team. As defending state champions, our stick ladies won their second straight Bay Rivers District championship and won their first 18 games before being upset in the region 1 semi-finals. A few days later, their season ended in the state quarterfinals when Courtland High School, the eventual state champions, defeated our Rams in Charlottesville. Even though the season did not end they way that our team and most their following thought it would, it was still a truly outstanding season. This year’s team tied the school record for most wins in a season, 19, which was set last year. They became the first field hockey in the history of the school to go through the regular season undefeated and set a new record for the most consecutive wins in a season with 18. They also won back-to-back district championships for the first time since joining the Bay Rivers District eight years ago and finished 5^th in the VHSL.

The 2004 football regular season ended with our Ram football team being undefeated and ranked number 2 in the state. With a high scoring and with being one of the most exciting teams in LHS history, our football Rams, much like our field hockey team, had their aim on a state championship. After a come-from-behind win against Courtland High School in the Region 1 semi-finals, Grafton upset our Rams in the finals. Just four weeks earlier, our Rams after a slow start, dominated Grafton in a battle of undefeated teams and played before the largest crowd since the early 70’s. The loss ended a season that many, including myself, thought that our Rams could win the state crown. Even though the season ended in such a disappointing manner, it was never-the-less a great season. Finishing the season with a 11 and 1 record assured our Rams that they are still the winningest “AA” team in the state since we join that classification eight years ago. Our record of 84 wins and only 17 losses during this period not only gives Lafayette football the most win in the state of all “AA” teams but also the highest winning percentage. Also, making the Region 1 finals this year marked the seventh straight that our Rams have reach the title game. This makes Lafayette the only school in the state to accomplish this feat. By going undefeated in the Bay Rivers District, this year’s team became only the fourth team the past eight years to go through the league schedule undefeated. Southampton has done it once and Lafayette has done it three times.

Our third team that finished the regular season undefeated was our girls cross country team. After going 9 and 0 in the district regular season, our Lady Runners slip a bit in the district tournament and finished second. They followed with a second place finish in Region 1 and ended the season by finishing 11^th in the VHSL state championship. Considering that our Rams were not among the pre-season favorites to win the district title and the fact that we did not have one senior among our starting runners, this addition of Ram Cross Country turned out to be a very successful and special campaign.

Our other four fall teams may not have won the district championship, but they did have very successful seasons. Both our golf and cheerleading teams finished second in the Bay Rivers District and second in Region 1 and both finished in the top 15 in the state. Our golf team finished 8^th and our cheerleaders finished 11^th in the VHSL State Championship Tournament. Our girl’s volleyball team had another good year, winning 16 matches and finishing third in the district. This year marked the fifth time in the past seven years that our volleyball team has made the regional playoffs. Our boy’s cross country team ended their season on a high note by finishing 5^th in the Region 1 race. Considering that they finished 5^th in the district during the regular season and 4^th in the district race, the 5^th place finish in the regional competition was a major accomplishment and showed the team improved from the start of the season.

ACADEMIC + CITIZENSHIP + SPORTSMANSHIP = LAFAYETTE ATHLETICS: It has become a tradition that in each sports season, the success that our student/athletes achieve on the playing fields is equally matched with success that they earn in the classroom and in the area of community service and sportsmanship. As mentioned above, our winning percentage on playing field this fall was just at the 83% level. In the classroom this fall, 68% of our athletes earned a 3.0 or higher for the first marking period. Although the 68% is a little lower than what our student/athletes generally earn during their season of participation, it is still represents that two-thirds of our student/athletes are academically working at a high standard. Further, this high standard of excellence in the academic sector can really be seen in our honored student/athletes. This fall we have over 300 student/athletes participating on one of our teams. Of those 300 plus athletes, 38 received some type of post-season honors in their sport with 11 making VHSL All-State Team. Of those 38 honored athletes, 31 or almost 82% had a 3.0 or higher GPA during their playing season. This fall our student/athletes also contributed many hours of community service during a variety of projects. Our teams raised money for the Angels of Mercy, did the bell ringing for the Salvation Army, did a blood drive for the American Red Cross, did road side clean-up for the Va. Dept. of Highways, cleaned yards for the elderly and sent “goodie packages” to solders in Afghanistan. This fall, we had no VHSL violations with our fans, coaches or players in the area of sportsmanship. Following on the heels of our school being only one of three “AA” schools in the state to be awarded the Wachovia Sportsmanship Award from the VHSL last year, our field hockey team was awarded the sportsmanship award at the VHSL State Tournament in November. Sportsmanship is a major cornerstone of our athletic programs. We applaud all Rams for their good behavior at all games. Remember that it is just as important to learn the lessons of proper behavior in defeat as it is in victory. As a player or fan, please be reminded that at all events you represent Lafayette High School and your behavior reflects either positively or negatively on our school and our athletic programs. Please show good sportsmanship at all times. Looking at the results above it is evident why I tell people, and do it proudly, that Lafayette has the best student/athletes anywhere. They do it in athletics, they do it in the classroom, they do it in the community helping others and they do with pride, spirit and good sportsmanship. Just a lot of reasons why our kids are the best!

SPORTSMANSHIP AWARDS: Each sports season, one athlete from each team is named the recipient of our Sportsmanship-Integrity- School Spirit award. This is the most prestigious award given to our athletes during a sports season. The winner of this award is selected by a committee of students. This fall’s recipients are: Field Hockey – Chandon Hudgins, Cheerleading – Jonathan Simpson, Girls Cross Country – Mallory McClaine, Boys Cross Country – John Harbin, Golf – Chad Adler, Football – Dakari Taylor-Watson, Volleyball – Leah Smith. Congratulations to these athletes for being selected by their peers as the winner of this award.

MILESTONES: Mallory McClaine: Mallory became Lafayette’s first cross country Region 1 champion since our Rams became “AA”. Only a junior, Mallory was our first district champion last year as a sophomore.. Mallory has been both an All Bay Rivers District and Region 1 runner for three years. Chandon Hudgins and Maddie Lyerly : Both were named to the VHSL All-State field hockey team. Chandon, a junior, and Maddie, a senior, were also named to the All-District and All-Region 1 team. Kellie Jenkins: Kellie was named was named to the All-State team for the third year. Kellie was also named the District and Region Player of the Year. Last year as a junior, Kellie was honored as the Co-State Player of the Year with teammate Emily Jones and broke the Lafayette record for goals scored in a season by scoring 32 goals. She finished her field hockey career as school’s leader in goals scored and played in more victories, (59), than any other players in the school’s field hockey history. Kellie was also named the Daily Press field hockey player of the year. Melissa Griffith: Melissa was named to the All-State volleyball team as she completed her fourth-year on the varsity volleyball team and tied Danielle Farr’s record of playing in more victories (72) than any other volleyball player in the history of LHS volleyball. Trevor Wagner, Robert Pinkett, Chris Rogers, Steven Kitchen, George Pittman, , Mike McKenna and Nick Richey: All seven were named to the VHSL All-State football team. All were seniors except for Pinkett, Pittman and Kitchen who are juniors. With the selection of these seven, our Ram football program has now produced at least four All-State players for seven straight years. George Pittman: Besides from earning All-State honors, George became the first running back in the history of LHS football to gain over 1,000 yards for three straight years. He is now the school’s all time lead rusher with 4, 439 yards. George is also the school’s all-time leader in scoring touchdowns with 54. Kyle Hughes: Kyle passed for more yards in a single season than any other quarterback in the history of LHS football and became only the third quarterback at Lafayette to pass for over 1,000 yards in a season. Kyle, a junior, finished the year with 1,402 yards and is now the Rams all-time leader in yardage passing. The best news about George and Kyle and all state performers, Robert Pinkett and Steven Kitchen, are that they are only juniors and will have one year playing for LHS. Coach Pat Thompson Ms. Thompson was named Bay Rivers District Field Hockey Coach of the Year for the third straight year. Coach Paul Wheeler: Coach Wheeler was named the Bay Rivers District Football Coach of the Year for the fourth straight year.

ACADEMIC HELP: Just a reminder. If your child needs help with their academic work, please do not hesitate to call our athletic/academic advisor, Mr. Keven Jones. He is monitoring many of our athletes on a weekly basis, but your input is needed if you son/daughter is having an academic problem. Coach Jones is a very caring educator and has done an excellent job the past few years in helping many of our athletes become better students. Again, don’t wait until it is too late. Coach Jones can help. You can reach Coach Jones by calling 565-4236 and asking for his voice mailbox. He will return your call as soon as possible. Also, if your son or daughter is a junior, please make sure that you look at the important dates for the SAT and ACT that are listed on the back sheet.

LHS ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME: On Friday, October 1^st , second class of athletes were inducted into the Lafayette Athletic Hall of Fame. This year’s inductees included: Scott Hays, class of 1974, was an all-state football player and all-district track performer. He still holds the school’s record for the pole vault. Scott also played football at William and Mary and was named to the all Southern Conference team. Scott lives in Hilton Head Island, SC and is the leader of a corporate communication consulting firm. Loretta Saunders, class of 1979, was all district basketball player and was a member of the track team. She is the only female basketball player in the history of LHS to score 1,000 points and was one of the first LHS females to receive a full athletic scholarship. Loretta is a building leader and lives in Newport News, Va. Shawn McLane, class of 1981, was the state diving champion and an NCAA All American while attending William and Mary. Shawn lives in Glen Allen, Va. where he is Doctor of Pulmonary medicine. Ben Walker, class of 1982, was a Three sports star at LHS. He was all district in football and baseball and was a state champion in wrestling. Ben wrestled and played baseball at VMI where he an all conference athlete in both sports. He lives in Newport News, Va. and works for Siemens VDO Automotive. Sarah Bailey, class of 1985, was an all district performer in cross country and in outdoor track was named to the National Coaches Association All American team. Sarah attended Burton Community College where she was a member of the school’s National Championship Cross Country team and earned All American in outdoor track. Sarah lives in Williamsburg and works as a certified nurse’s assistant and as a medical technician. Sarah also finds time to help coach track here at LHS. Hannah Catherine Allport, class of 1986, was the first female to letter in four sports and to compete on four different teams that won district championships. She was an all- district, all-region and all-state performer in cross country and ran track at James Madison University. Hannah lives in Charlottesville and is the Director of Development for the Virginia High School League. Chris Haywood, class of 1986, was an All American soccer player at LHS. He is the schools all-time leading score in soccer with 100 goals. At Old Dominion University, Chris was a four year starter and was named to a number of All-American teams. After graduating from ODU, Chris player professional soccer for the Baltimore Blast. He lives in Williamsburg and is the owner of the Williamsburg Indoor Scorer Complex. Chris also coached the LHS boy’s soccer team for five years. Susan Ries, class of 1988, was an all-district and all-region performer in cross country and all-district in outdoor track. Susan continued her education at Mary Washington College but an injury ended her running career. Susan lives in Emerald Isle, NC. where she is a veterinarian and owner of a veterinarian clinic.

STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING ROOM: Coach Wheeler has the strength and conditioning room going full blast. Monday through Friday, from 3:00pm to 4:45pm, coach works out any athletes that is not in season. Each training session consist strength training and speed work. Each day from 5:00pm to 6:30pm, coach works with athletes on in-season teams. Since we started our strength and conditioning program eight years ago, we have always stressed the importance of having our athletes become stronger, faster and more physically fit. Off-season strength and conditioning is essential for all our athletes, not only for better performance, but also for safety and reducing the risk of injuries. During the first couple weeks of January this year, we had so many out-of- season athletes attending the workouts, between 75 and 100, that we added another coach to help coach Wheeler. Therefore, because of the funding provided by our Athletic Boosters Club, we now have two coaches working to insure that all athletes who attend the workouts will get the proper instruction. Each year more and more athletes are taking advantage of this great opportunity. The benefits, not only physically but also psychologically, will enhance our athlete’s ability to perform at a much higher level. We ask you to strongly encourage your son or daughter to get involved with this program. We would also like to encourage you to come and visit one of the workouts so that you can get a first hand look at this outstanding program that Coach Wheeler has put together. For all upper-classman, LHS now offers a strength and conditioning class during the school. It is an elective PE class that is worth one credit. If you would like more information on this class or have questions concerning the strength and conditioning program, please give me a call at 565-0440. Again, please encourage your son or daughter to get involved with this program.

Finally, this fall we had another great sports season at Lafayette High School. We have had many exciting and priceless moments and have seen our athletes achieve much success. Although a large number of athletes mentioned in this newsletter received some type of post-season honors, it is extremely important for everyone to know and understand that our success is based on the hard work and achievement of all our athletes. We have been very fortunate to have a bunch of athletes, starters and substitutes alike, who have daily “stepped up to the plate” and have done what they needed to do to be successful. We should all be proud of each and every one of them.

GO RAMS!

SENIORS – HAVE YOU FILLED OUT THE NCAA CLEARINGHOUSE FORM. IF YOU ARE GOING TO PLAY AT THE DIVISION I OR II LEVEL IN COLLEGE YOU MUST FILL OUT THIS FORM NOW. GO TO:

NCAACLEARINGHOUSE.ORG

JUNIORS AND SENIORS

HAVE YOU TAKEN YOUR SAT OR ACT YET? IF NOT, YOU NEED TO SIGN UP TODAY!

SAT TESTING

Testing Date Registration Date

March 12 February 7

May 7 March 25

June 4 April 29

MORE INFO AT:

WWW. COLLEGEBOARD.COM

ACT TESTING

Testing Date Registration Date

April 9 March 4

June 11 May 6

MORE INFO AT:

WWW. ACT.ORG

INPORTNAT DATES:

Feb. 16 – Spring Physicals – 3:00 PM

$12.00 – Checks to LABC

Feb. 21 – Spring Sports Start Practice

March 9 – Spring Parent Seminar – 6:30 PM

March 9 – Spring Meet the Coaches Night

7:30 PM

March 13 – Winter Awards Ceremony –

6:00 PM

March 14 – AD meets with spring athletes

March 15 – AD meets with spring athletes

June 13 – Spring Awards Ceremony –

6:00 PM

Tentative Fall Sports Starting Dates:

Aug. 1 – Football & Golf

Aug. 8 - Cheerleading, Field Hockey,

Cross Country & Volleyball