THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, August 4, 1994 TAG: 9408040227
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 22 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JOHN GORDON SUN, SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: Long : 114 lines
Members of Suffolk's Faith Temple United Church of Christ (Apostolic) honored LaTasha Colander with a surprise welcome home party last Sunday afternoon.
Colander, who traveled to Portugal for the World Junior Olympics recently, will be entering North Carolina this fall on a track scholarship. She is a graduate of Portsmouth's Wilson High, but she and her family are members of the local church.
Bishop Obadiah Colander, pastor of the church, is her grandfather, and her father, the Rev. John Colander, is the church's associate pastor. The event was part of the Colander family reunion held here last weekend.
Several of her awards, certificates and trophies were on display at the church along with a variety of T-shirts that came from major track meets.
``I was really surprised,'' Colander said. ``They had clippings of all the news articles about me and a big poster picture of me. It was like a museum.
``They even had a VCR set up, showing some of my track meets.''
Colander placed second in the 100-meter high hurdles at the World Junior Olympics in Portugal with a 13.30 - her best time in that event. She leaves for Chapel Hill on Aug. 17.
WIN SOME, LOSE SOME: Lakeland High had to cancel its first football camp this week, but Franklin High is having its camp as scheduled.
Not enough participants signed up for the Cavalier camp, and those who did register will be given refunds.
``We only had four kids show up, and that wasn't enough,'' Ed Smither, Lakeland's athletic director and football coach said. ``I guess a lot of the younger kids were on vacation or at Boy Scout camp.''
Smither's plan was a camp for six to 12-year-olds, but next year, he may try either a one-day session or a program for older kids.
Meanwhile, out at the Charles Street Gym in Franklin, where the football field house is located, coach Joe Jones is conducting three separate sessions.
A camp for fourth- through seventh-graders runs from 9 to 10:30 a.m. A linemen's camp, for eighth- through 12th graders, is from 10:30 a.m. to noon. Jones held a passing skills camp in the evenings, Monday through Wednesday, this week.
``It's tough the first year,'' Jones said. ``It takes a while to get programs like this started.''
Assisting Jones are Tom Hall, defensive coordinator at Franklin High, Dave Lease, the wide receivers' coach, and Todd Hampton, a junior varsity coach.
TENNIS TOURNAMENT: Davy Slack of Suffolk won the men's 4.0 singles crown at the Peninsula Tennis Patrons Association rated Championships in Newport News last weekend. Then he and his father, David, teamed up to take the 4.0 doubles title.
A Nansemond-Suffolk Academy student, Slack defeated Eric Christianson of York, 6-4, 6-1, in the finals. He and his father edged H.L. Shankles and Mark VanDervort, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2, in the doubles finale.
SOFTBALL AND PIG PICKIN': Suffolk Land and Timber's slow-pitch softball team is hosting a double-elimination tournament at Monogram Field off Nansemond Parkway Aug. 6-7. The tourney will have rain dates of Aug. 13-14.
``We're having the tournament to help raise money for our travel to the regional tournament in Burlington, N.C., and the World Series in Rock Hill, S.C.,'' said Jerry Clark, the team's manager. ``Right now, we are looking at 10 teams.''
A pig pickin' is scheduled for both days, from 2 p.m. until. For more information, call Jerry Clark at 934-3655.
COACH V TO SPEAK: Jerry Varacallo, head football coach at Nansemond River High, will be one of the guest speakers at the fourth annual youth football coaches clinic in Virginia Beach from 2 to 6 p.m. Saturday.
The clinic, which is free to the public, is sponsored by the Tidewater Sharks football team and will be held at the Center for Effective Learning Stadium, formerly Union-Kempsville Stadium, off Witchduck Road.
Varacallo's topic will be the three-step drop. Other speakers include Darnell Moore, head football coach at Norfolk State; Red Stickney, head coach of the Tidewater Sharks; and Mac Partlow, assistant coach of the Newport News Apprentice School.
Other high school head coaches on the program (and their schools) will be Lew Johnston, Western Branch; John Bowles, Kempsville High; Bob Pannenbacker, Maury High; and Chris Worst, Kellam High.
According to Sharks General Manager Tom Overstreet, there are at least two Suffolk players who will be on the Sharks roster this season. They are tight end Savoy Cherry and defensive lineman Sean Cherry, both graduates of former Yeates High.
GOLFERS NEEDED: The Suffolk chapter of the American Red Cross is still scouting around for players to participate in the fourth annual Red Cross Golf Tournament at the Suffolk Golf Course next Tuesday.
A shotgun start at noon is scheduled for the Florida best-ball tourney, according to Frank Spady, director of the event. He added that there would be prizes for the longest drive on one hole and closest to the pin on one of the par 3 holes.
Last year, there were about 75 players, but as of last Monday, there were only 25 signed up.
OOPS: In last Sunday's Sun, we said the entry fees for the Iron Dukes Golf Classic scheduled for today were $30 per person or $200 per team, which includes greens fees, cart and luncheon. It should have been $50 per person, but there was a limit of 30 teams.
Proceeds will go to the Windsor High football program, according to Tommy Austin, Windor's new head football coach and the golf tourney's director.
GYMNASTICS CAMP SCHEDULED: Gymnastics Inc. and Suffolk's Parks and Recreation Department are co-sponsoring a gymnastics camp at Birdsong Recreation Center Aug. 22-26.
The camp will be divided into tumbling tots (children 3-5 years old) and gymnastics (youngsters 5 years old and older). Cost is $25 for tumbling and $35 for gymnastics.
PEANUT FEST WILL FEATURE SPORTS: The 17th annual Peanut Fest will feature several different sports events this year, officials have announced.
A corporate cup competition among local corporations will kick off the sports activities Sept. 17. Those events will be at the Suffolk YMCA.
Other events include a 60-mile bicycle ride, Sept. 24, beginning at 9 a.m.; 5K race, Oct. 1, 5:15 p.m.; golf tournament, Oct. 5, noon; auto demolition derby, Oct. 7, 7:30 p.m.; and rodeo, Oct. 8-9, beginning at 2 p.m. both days and 7:30 on Oct. 8. by CNB