THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 9, 1994 TAG: 9410070352
SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN PAGE: 25 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JOHN GORDON, SUN SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines
A pair of Lakeland High 10th graders are capturing a lot of trophies in area martial arts competition.
Noland Griggs, 14, and Robert Bulls, 15, won their respective classes at the Kids Fall Open Karate Championships at the Hampton YMCA last weekend.
Griggs grabbed first in weapons for the intermediate division while Bulls took top honors in hand forms for the beginners bracket.
The event featured about 2,000 youngsters from all over the Eastern Mid-Atlantic Region. Griggs and Bulls both use the Kung Fu (or Chinese) style of martial arts in the competition, and the bouts are longer and involve more advanced techniques, according to Garry Griggs, Noland's father.
Griggs, who has been competing for almost two years, also finished third in hand forms and was fourth in fighting. Bulls, who has been participating about a year and a half, was fourth in fighting and musical forms.
Although he wasn't supposed to move up to the intermediate - or blue-green belt - level until December, Griggs had progressed so rapidly that he competed in the higher classification at Hampton.
In another Battle of Champions tourney at Poquoson High on Sept. 17-18, Griggs took third in the 13-14 age group while Bulls placed second in the 15-17 category. The two accumulated points in three specialties: fighting, empty-handed and weapons.
Last year, the duo won the Virginia State Karate Championship for their ages, and they hoping to compete in next year's World Karate Championships in Baltimore. This will be the first time that the United States has been host for the tournament.
SAUNDERS SCORES TD: Tony Saunders, a graduate of Surry County High, intercepted a pass and returned it for a touchdown as the Apprentice School Builders of Newport News trimmed Methodist College, 42-28.
The defensive back also has a pass breakup and eight tackles - six unassisted - so far this season.
Michael Drier, another area athlete, has 15 tackles, 10 unassisted and one sack for the Builders who are 2-2 for the campaign. A defensive end, Drier was graduated from Lakeland High.
TWO SAINTS NOMINATED: Two Nansemond-Suffolk Academy seniors have been nominated by the school for Wendy's High School Heisman Award, which is a newly created national program that recognizes academic achievement, community service and athletic accomplishments.
Clara Marks played on the Saints' field hockey team and is No. 1 on the tennis team, which has captured the TCIS championship for the last nine years. She is ranked ninth in the state and 13th in the Middle Atlantic Tennis Association.
A member of the National Honor Society, Hi-Y Club and the Student Cooperative Organization, Marks has given many volunteer hours at the Franklin YMCA.
Danny Totten is captain of the soccer and lacrosse teams and member of the N-SA basketball squad. He has played lacrosse in both the Virginia State Games of Hampton Roads and the Virginia Commonwealth Games.
The recipient of the 1992 of the Pilot Club Leadership Award, Totten is a member of the National Honor Society and the Spirit Club. He has worked for the Suffolk Youth Athletic Association as a basketball and soccer referee.
``These two students represent the outstanding efforts that many students at Nansemond-Suffolk Academy make each day in the classroom, on the playing field, and in the community,'' said N-SA headmaster William N. Owen.
POPLIN NAMED ALL STAR: Suffolk resident Jeff Poplin has been named to the 1994 East Regional All Star softball team. He plays with Keith Enterprises, a Virginia Beach printing company.
``I've played with them four out of the last five years,'' Poplin said. ``I'm normally a catcher, but this year they shifted me to the outfield.''
He batted .620 during the regular season and slugged 57 homers in 60 games. Keith Enterprises finished fifth in the Amateur Softball Association's industrial league World Series last year in Tupelo, Miss., and 10th this year when it was held in Lakeland, Fla.
The all star team was selected by teams managers from across the country. Each regional team, named by Dudley Softball Company, has 12 players. Other regional teams are southeast and southwest, the midwest and the west coast.
A native of Albemarle, N.C., Poplin, 37, moved to the area when he was 3 years old and was graduated from Norfolk's Lake Taylor High. He is a fireman with the Norfolk Fire Department and has been playing competitive softball for 20 years. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER
Champions Griggs, left, and Bulls.
by CNB