THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, April 13, 1995 TAG: 9504130542
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C8 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY RICH RADFORD, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 94 lines
First Colonial's baseball team had the deck stacked against it when the Patriots arrived in Ocala, Fla., for this week's Diamond Jubilee tournament. All because of a case of miscomm-unication.
Patriots coach Norbie Wilson told tournament officials that he needed to be guaranteed four games in the tournament. Tournament officials thought that was a minimum limit. In fact, it was a minimum and a maximum.
Under Virginia High School League rules, the Patriots are limited to 20 regular-season games. They play a 16-game Beach District schedule, leaving them four extra games.
There is the potential for the tournament's winning team to play four or five games, four only if it remains unbeaten in the double-elimination format.
Through Tuesday, the Patriots had won their first two games, knocking off tournament host Vanguard, 3-2, in eight innings late Tuesday.
``We can't play but four, but we don't intend to lose,'' Wilson said. ``If we lose, we'll have to drop out after our fourth game. But the tournament title means little to us. It's the exposure, competition and playing away from home that we came for.''
The Patriots have made the most of their free time, visiting the major league training camps of the Toronto Blue Jays and Philadelphia Phillies. They also plan a trip to the Kansas City Royals camp.
Jeff Ware, who pitched at First Colonial and Old Dominion University, greeted the Patriots when they visited the Blue Jays camp. Ware is on Toronto's 40-man roster, although he is likely to be shipped to the minors now that the Blue Jays have signed David Cone.
``Still, it was thrilling for me,'' Wilson said. ``Seeing him in the Blue Jays' camp was the proudest I've been since becoming a father.''
BOYS TENNIS: Norfolk Academy's superior depth has taken most of the mystery out of the Tidewater Conference team race, but no one's quite sure who'll walk away with the league's No. 1 singles title.
Defending champion Brad Schloss of Norfolk Collegiate is back, but he's already lost in straight sets to Nansemond-Suffolk's Craig Rice. Rice, the TCIS No. 1 singles runner-up a year ago, fell to Norfolk Academy's Bryan Duquette, who lost in three sets last week to Schloss.
And then there's Catholic's Mike Mostiller, who beat Schloss but couldn't handle Rice or Duquette.
``I think there are four or five guys who could win it,'' Norfolk Collegiate coach Mike McNabb said.
SOCCER: The Cox boys team is ranked 25th in the nation in the first UMBRO winter/spring poll as conducted by the National Soccer Coaches Association. St. Thomas Aquinas of Fort Lauderdale is No. 1. Hylton, the only other Virginia school ranked, is No. 10.
SOFTBALL: Some of the area's best softball teams will make their final tuneups for district competition beginning today when the inaugural Booker T. Washington Spring Classic gets under way at the high school.
The eight-team field includes three of the area's top ranked teams, No. 3 Great Bridge, No. 6 Booker T. and No. 8 Granby. Also entered is the defending TCIS champion, Nansemond-Suffolk.
Four games will be played on each of the three days of the event, with the first game at 9 a.m. each day. There will be no tournament champion, although tournament director and Bookers' coach Paul Palombo said a winner will likely be crowned in future years.
The marquee game on today's schedule comes at 9 a.m., when Granby takes on Great Bridge. The Wildcats (6-1) will be trying to rebound from a 4-2 loss to archrival Western Branch on Friday.
Tickets cost $2 per day. Three-day passes cost $5.
SURPRISE PARTY: Longtime First Colonial coaches Frank Webster and Sharon Conyers were honored by their fellow faculty members at a surprise luncheon last Friday.
Webster received a ring for his 28 years with football, Conyers a pendant for her 20 years with girls tennis.
Webster has compiled a 219-80-8 record at First Colonial and is 251-97-9 overall. His Patriots have been the most successful postseason team in the Beach. Conyers has more than 230 victories to her credit, and has had two state title teams and four individual state winners.
The faculty annually holds a workshop lunch the first day of spring break, making the affair a perfect setup to surprise the two.
``I was completely surprised until I saw Mily Kannarkat, and Laurie and Julie Shiflet (three of her four state champions) there,'' Conyers said. ``I knew there was something going on at that point.''
Webster was equally shocked.
``It was real nice,'' he said. ``The ring is very nice, a class ring-type thing, with some very complimentary engraving on the inside.''
SIGNINGS: Bayside's Andre Turner, a receiver and defensive back, has signed with Bowie State. He is projected as a strong safety. Turner has already met Proposition 48 standards . . . Atlantic Shores point guard Brandon Wynn has signed with Santa Fe (Junior) College in Gainesville, Fla. The 5-foot-8 Wynn averaged 8.5 points and 8.9 assists this past season. MEMO: Staff writers Paul White and Lee Tolliver contributed to this story.
by CNB