THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 16, 1995 TAG: 9504140178
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 18 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ED MILLER, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Long : 143 lines
NOW THAT DEEP CREEK has won a state indoor track title, Hornet coach Richard Cox expects that ``everyone will prepare for us.''
Sure they will. But preparing for the Hornets is one thing. Catching them could be quite another.
``Deep Creek proved this winter that they are the team to beat,'' Great Bridge coach Steve Sawyer says.
The Hornets have a deep corps of sprinters and one of the state's top all-around performers in senior Jason Waters. After a couple of years as the district's up-and-comers, the Hornets have arrived.
If there's a team capable of holding off Deep Creek, it could be Great Bridge. The Wildcats have the region's top group of middle distance runners and are defending district champions.
``Hopefully we can give them a push during the post-season meets,'' Sawyer said.
Rounding out the top three is Western Branch.
Here's a capsule look:
DEEP CREEK
Coach: Richard Cox.
Last year's record: 2nd in district, 8th in region.
Top returnees: Lawrence Claiborne (sprints); Dee Harrell (sprints); Jason Waters (sprints, hurdles, jumps); Deon Dyer (shot put, discus); Damone Perry (sprints); Jesse Grant (sprints, jumps).
Top newcomers: Angelo Sykes (sprints); Juston Howell (middle distance).
Outlook: Deep Creek has scary speed. Claiborne, Perry and Harrell took second, third and fifth in the 55 meters at the state indoor meet, an unheard-of trifecta. Waters scored 22 points by himself at the state meet, taking second in the long and triple jumps and third in the 55-meter hurdles. And Dyer won a state shot put title with a throw of 55 feet. Add to the mix Grant, a sophomore who wasn't on the indoor team, but opened the outdoor season by going nearly 23 feet in the long jump at the Colonial Relays. The Hornets are loaded.
GREAT BRIDGE
Coach: Steve Sawyer.
Last year's record: 1st in district, 7th in region.
Top returnees: Eric Adams (3,200); Jason Buckley (800); Mike Donnelly (1,600); Jordan Brandon (shot put, discus); Melvin Bates (400, long jump).
Top newcomers: Terrence Pettigrew (sprints); Roscoe Coles (sprints); Rory Hoilman (distance).
Outlook: Great Bridge will be tough to beat in distance and middle distance events. Buckley owns the area best in the 800, Donnelly owns it in the 1,600 and Adams in the 3,200. They form three-quarters of the area's top 3,200 relay team. Great Bridge is more than just a glorified cross country team, however. Brandon has thrown 52-9 in the shot put, best in the area so far. Bates is among the district's best in the 400 and we've yet to mention Tony Felton, defending district champ in the high jump, and Brian Hunter, district runner-up in the pole vault.
WESTERN BRANCH
Coach: Wade Williams.
Last year's record: 3rd in district, 10th in region.
Top returnees: Malik Cook (sprints, jumps); Tony Smith (hurdles, jumps); Derone Watson (sprints); Daniel Parker (hurdles); Eric Jordan (hurdles, jumps).
Top newcomers: Darren Walton (sprints, jumps); Kenny Mosely (sprints); Clayton Porter (jumps).
Outlook: The Bruins will be competitive in every running event, from the 100 to the 3,200, as well as the relays. They'll also be heard from in the hurdles and jumps. Cook has the area's best time in the 200, while Smith owns area bests in both the 110 and 300 hurdles. Williams had 60 boys out of the team, which is the kind of depth necessary to do well at the district level.
CHURCHLAND
Coach: Clarence Brown.
Last year's record: 5th at district meet.
Top returnees: Greg Boothe (sprints); Jarmon Mayes (100, 200, 400); Ryan Smith (1,600); Jamin Elliott (triple jump).
Top newcomers: Bjorn Shoulders (distance); Josh Hester (distance); Sheldon Barnes (shot put).
Outlook: Churchland lacks depth, but does have several of the area's top performers. Boothe was state indoor champion in the 55 meters, and has posted the fastest time this season in the 100 meters, at 10.6. Elliott was third in the state indoor in the triple jump, and Mayes is one of the region's top high and intermediate hurdlers.
NORCOM
Coach: Joe Langston.
Last year's record: 4th in district, 3rd in region.
Top returnees: LaVar Bowers (shot put, discus); Jason Wells (400, 800); Marte McCall (shot put, discus); Anthony Hawkins (400); Terrence Oxendine (jumps, 400).
Top newcomers: Jerrod Ruffin (800); Michael Manning (hurdles); Briheim Rice (sprints).
Outlook: Norcom has been in the middle of the pack the last two years and will probably finish there again. Bowers is the defending district champion in the discus and was runner-up in the shot put. Wells was sixth in the 800 last year. Oxendine will be the resident jack-of-all-jumps, a position held down last year by Larry Staton.
OSCAR SMITH
Coach: Pat Troia & Ed Lowery.
Last year's record: 7th at district meet.
Top returnees: Rodney Worsley (100, 200); Shawn Sanderson (sprints); Thywinston Swain (shot put, discus); Rafael Butts (shot put, discus); Guy Workman (distance).
Top newcomers: Demitrus White (sprints, relays); Byron Harvin (hurdles).
Outlook: Things are looking up at Oscar Smith. Troia and Lowery have rekindled interest in track and have a ``solid'' 22-man team, Lowery says. The Tigers are probably a year or two away from running with the big boys, however.
INDIAN RIVER
Coach: Fred Spellman.
Last year's record: 6th in region.
Top returnees: Stefan Saunders (pole vault); Ernest Davis (pole vault); Anthony Person (800).
Top newcomers: Mike Hayes (1,600, 3,200); Jason Petroski (1,600, 3,200).
Outlook: Success has hurt the Braves. Not the success of the track program, but of the football and basketball teams. Both teams went far into the state playoffs, and Spellman says many athletes who would normally be out for track have passed this year. Spellman's left with his thinnest squad in years, although the Braves are unusually deep in the pole vault, with 12-foot jumpers Saunders and Davis.
WILSON
Coach: Ken Dugan.
Last year's record: 8th at district meet.
Top returnees: Bryan Bonner (hurdles); Perez Bottoms (800, 1,600); Kenya Edwards (1,600, 3,200); Edwin Shannon (hurdles, jumps). Mike Porter (1,600, 3,200).
Top newcomers: Demarkeo Hurdle (400, relays); Chad Scott (200, long jump); Antione Orton (sprints).
Outlook: Bonner placed in both hurdles events at last year's district meet and Bottoms was fifth in the 800. Wilson will need several other people to emerge to escape the basement in the tough Southeastern District. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Greg Boothe
Churchland
by CNB