Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, December 21, 1994 TAG: 9412210073
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: M.J. DOUGHERTY
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Places like the White House, the Capitol, the Washington Monument, the Lincoln Memorial, the Smithsonian.
When NICK YOPP and his family went to Washington late last month, they visited a national shrine of a different sort: RFK Stadium, home of the Washington Redskins.
"That was it," said DANNY YOPP, Nick's father, about the trip. "We were working on a tight schedule. We just got there in time to get ready. So we didn't have time to do a whole lot else."
Of course, it was fitting that Nick Yopp only went to the stadium. After all, the Christiansburg High School freshman earned the trip to Washington because of his football skills - his ability to punt, pass and kick to be exact.
In September, Yopp won the 14-year-old division at the Christiansburg Punt, Pass & Kick competition. In mid-October, Yopp won the sectional competition for Southwest and central Virginia in Lexington. And Yopp's score that day placed him among the top five competitors in his age group from all the sections in Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia and the District of Columbia.
"It was the first time in a pretty long while [I had entered], I just wanted to," said Yopp, who has played football, basketball, baseball and soccer over the past few years. "Yes, I was [surprised]. I didn't think I'd get past the second round."
At Lexington, Yopp threw and kicked the ball about 48 yards and punted the ball about 37 yards.
"I just practiced, basically," Yopp said. "I didn't do anything [special]. I just practiced."
At Washington, a steady downpour made conditions miserable.
"We enjoyed it, it was great," said DRU YOPP, Nick's mother. "But the weather wasn't good. ... It was rainy and muddy and messy."
The weather was so bad the schedule for the competition had to be altered. Originally, the kicking and punting were going to be held before the game, with the passing event during halftime. But the bad weather pushed everything into the pre-game.
Still, each of the 41 youths, ages 8 to 15, who qualified for the team-level competition got the chance to walk out onto the turf of the stadium in front of the crowd of 43,384 and throw a pass.
"I had never felt turf that felt like that," said Yopp.
Added Danny Yopp: "He [Nick] said it felt like a carpet under his feet."
The weather also hampered the competitors. Yopp had his problems and did not perform as well as he did at the sectionals. But then again, no one did - the winning score for the 14-year-olds was 60 points below what Yopp scored at Lexington.
That could make it difficult for the winner to advance to the next level. Only the top four performances in each group from the 28 team championships advance to the national finals in January.
The Punt, Pass & Kick competition was sponsored by the Virginia Jaycees, the Virginia Recreation & Park Society, the Metropolitan Police Boys & Girls Clubs of Washington, D.C., and Gatorade.
HOOPIN' IT UP: The defending champions may have a new name. But they still have the same winning ways.
Dublin Express Stop - formerly Craft's Crew - opened the Pulaski Adult Men's Basketball League season with a pair of victories. The wins increased DES's league-record winning streak to 50 games.
Dublin Express Stop started the season by beating Pulaski Hospital 104-59. BOBBY HUNTER nailed 28 points while TIM PENN and DAVID SMITH added 22 each. DES then had four players break 20 points as it downed BBA Friction 104-68. Penn led the way with 23, SAM POINDEXTER and Smith 22 each and Hunter 21.
Elsewhere around the league:
RANDY OLVERSON poured in 41 points to lift Stevens Funeral Home over McDonald's 116-84. Olverson had 11 three-pointers in the contest.
L.R. Davis had six players score in double figures as it downed Coca Cola-PowerAde 101-50. TIM GOETZ led the way with 25 points.
Returning Minor League Tournament champion the Bad Boys had 10 players score as it opened with a 68-53 win over Heilig-Meyers/Comfort Inn. ROLLO ROLLINS had a team-high 14 for the Bad Boys.
Stevens Funeral Home features the top two all-time scorers in league history. DENNIS SHREWSBERRY is just ahead of Olverson in the career scoring race: 3,691-3,606.
The league once again features many former college athletes. Shrewsberry played at Virginia Tech. Penn and Smith were standouts at Radford. Olverson, Poindexter and MARK MILLS of L.R. Davis hit the hardwoods for Bluefield College. AARON MERCHANT of McDonald's was at Bluefield (W.Va.) State. And BRIAN UNDERWOOD of Pulaski Hospital played at High Point (N.C.) College.
The league season continues with games on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays through February. The season ends with a pair of tournaments - the Major (for teams with winning or break-even records) and the Minor (for teams with losing records).
INFORMATION, PLEASE: If you have an item for the Community Sports Notebook, you can get it to us three ways:
By mailing it to Roanoke Times & World-News, New River Valley Bureau, P.O. 540, Christiansburg, VA 24073.
By fax at 381-1656.
Or in person at the New River Valley Bureau.
When sending information, please include first names of all persons and a telephone number in case of questions.
Please be aware that because of publication deadlines, notices of upcoming events (such as camps and registrations) should be sent two weeks in advance in order to ensure their publication.
Also, please remember to send in the results of events that have been publicized in advance in this column.
If you have any questions, please call me at 381-1664.
by CNB