Lady Cougar Soccer Building Their Own Future

Lady Cougar Soccer Building Their Own Future
By David Gravely

Over 70 young soccer players gathered at Pulaski County High School recently to work on their game as the Lady Cougar Soccer team hosted the first annual Lady Cougar Soccer Indoor Camp.

"We have kids with talent in the area, but we need to get to them young and start teaching the basics and fundamental skills that they will need when they reach the high school" said Lady Cougar Soccer Head Coach Eric Martin. "Most kids come up through the system thinking that the most important thing is scoring goals. That's the wrong mentality, and we're working to change it. The young kids need to know the importance of passing and working as a team to move the ball. We want them to be confident that they can take on anyone, one on one, and keep the ball away from them. If they can do that and then add effective passing and ball movement, then the goals will come."

The players who attended the camp ranged from the youngest recreation league players to current eighth graders who will be trying out for the junior varsity team this coming spring. During the first day of the camp, the focus was on ball handling and effective passing techniques. The campers were split into groups by age, and current Lady Cougar varsity soccer players worked as their coaches with Coach Martin and assistant coach Tim McPeak over watching the progress.

"We want to try to get the players from all age groups together as often as possible to work with them" said Coach Martin. "We're trying to build our program up, and it has got to start from the younger levels. We want the kids involved, and we need them to be out playing as much as possible. We want our program to be able to compete with anybody, and to do that we've got alot of work to do. The good news is that the kids really seem to be willing to do that work."

The final session of the camp will be held this Sunday at Pulaski County High School, with a start time of 2 pm. Anyone interested in finding out more about the camp can contact Coach Martin at javascript:window.top.openSendEmail('etmartin@pcva.us.','','','');

Mitchell Paces Lady Dukes Past Blacksburg

Mitchell Paces Lady Dukes Past Blacksburg
By David Gravely

When only two players on your team score, the outcome normally isn't the one you want. When the final buzzer sounds, however, and one of those two players has outscored the opposing team all by herself, you get the results that the Dublin Middle School Lady Dukes found as they defeated Blacksburg on Wednesday by a final score of 28-20.

The first quarter found both teams playing solid defense, but having trouble finding the bottom of the basket. After six minutes of both teams being force to take hurried shots and having shots blocked, the score was tied at 4-4.

The second quarter found the Lady Dukes getting better looks at the basket, but still missing many of their shots and free throws. As was the case in their previous game the night prior, the offense looked confused at times as Head Coach Buddy Farris continues to teach his younger girls the offense. Dublin continued to apply pressure on defense, however, and were able to keep the Lady Bruins off balance offensively. The Lady Dukes outscored Blacksburg 8-4 in the second quarter to take a 12-8 lead into the locker room at halftime.

Dublin was able to hold Blacksburg in check until the final thirty seconds of the third quarter. Blacksburg scored four of their six points in the final thirty seconds to bring the game back to within reach. The quarter ended with the Lady Dukes holding on to an 18-14 lead.

Blacksburg started the third quarter off with more defensive pressure, and with 3:12 left on the clock hit a three point shot from the top of the arch to get within three points, 21-17. The Lady Dukes were able to add five more points in the course of the next two and a half minutes before Blacksburg hit another big three pointer with 39 seconds left, putting the score at 26-20 in favor of Dublin. Steals from Meredith Mitchell and Moriah Hinton, along with a final second layup from Mitchell put the game on ice for the Lady Dukes.

The 28-20 win moves Dublin to 7-4 on the season. Meredith Mitchell led all scorers with her 25 point effort. Moriah Hinton added three points.

Dukes Fall To Wolverines

Dukes Fall To Andrew Lewis
By David Gravely

The Dublin Middle School basketball team hosted Andrew Lewis Tuesday evening, and despite a third quarter rally to get the score close the Dukes fell 37-23 to the Wolverines.

After a first quarter of tough defense by Andrew Lewis and poor shooting by the Dukes, Dublin quickly found themselves down 8-2. Dublin regrouped in the second quarter, however, and after regaining the composure offensively they began to attack the basket. Good passing and shot selection put the Dukes back in the game by halftime, with Kevin Smith scoring six points as the Dukes brought the score to 12-17 at the half.

Both teams exchanged baskets in the third quarter, but Dublin added enough defensive pressure to continue to chip away at the Wolverines lead. With 3:18 left in the third, Issac Poe pulled up and hit a three point jumper to tie the score for the first time and give the Dukes some momentum for the first time in the contest. Andrew Lewis changed up their tactics and began to press on defense, going on a nine point run to retake the lead. Miguel Garcia put an end to the Wolverines run with a block with 25 seconds left in the quarter, and Head Coach Richard Lewis went into the fourth quarter searching for some offense.

The fourth quarter found the Dukes struggling again, as Andrew Lewis put the press back on and increased their lead to 32-20 with 4:50 left in the game. Unable to press the ball up the court far enough to run their offense, Dublin was forced to foul the repeated attacks by the Wolverines. Dublin was held to three points in the final quarter, allowing the Wolverines to take home the 37-23 win. Isaac Poe led the Dukes in scoring with eight points. Elliot Brewster followed closely behind with seven, while Kevin Smith added six. Bradley Church added two points to round out the scoring.

Andrew Lewis Outlasts Lady Dukes

Andrew Lewis Outlasts Lady Dukes

By David Gravely

Dublin Middle School sixth grader Taylor Dickerson hit a jump shot from just outside the free throw box to give the Lady Dukes their first lead of the game in the opening seconds of the third quarter, but Andrew Lewis was able to outscore Dublin in the second half to take home a 30-24 win.

The Wolverines started the game off on a hot streak, taking a 6-0 lead before Lady Dukes Head Coach Buddy Farris called a time out to calm his team down and get them on the right track. The Lady Dukes responded with tough defense and more aggressive drives to the basket, and by the end of the first quarter the score was tied at 6-6.

The young Lady Dukes team had trouble offensively for most of the night, missing multiple opportunities at the free throw line to take the lead. The half ended with Andrew Lewis holding on to a 11-10 lead. The Lady Wolverines should have had another two points, but a split second before the buzzer sounded to end the quarter Alexis Phillips came through with a huge block to end the half.

"We've made some changes to our offense, and the girls are still learning" said Coach Farris. "We've got some young players out here, and while we can play solid defense, we really need our girls to settle down and run our offense. They just need some confidence and they need to take better shots. We also need to work on hitting our free throws."

Dickersons third quarter jump shot was immediately answered with a layup by Andrew Lewis on the other end of the court, but the Lady Dukes continued to play solid defense and keep the game close. A rally by the Lady Wolverines in the final seconds of the third quarter gave them four of their seven points for the quarter, putting the score at 18-14 going into the fourth.

Dublin went into a press defense in an attempt to force turnovers, but the Lady Wolverines were able to break the press and force fouls on the other end of the court for free throws. Down 18-26 with just under two minutes left, the Lady Dukes went on a six point run to bring it close, but Andrew Lewis finished the game strong at the free throw line to win 30-24.

Meredith Mitchell led the Lady Dukes with eight points. Taylor Dickerson, Moriah Hinton, and Amiah Stables added four points each, while Lexi Hurst added three point. Tianna Crockett rounded out the Lady Dukes scoring with one point. The loss moves the Lady Dukes to 6-4 on the season.

The Demands of the "Occupy" Group

List of Demands
By David Gravely

Today, I was made aware of the "unofficial" list of demands that the Occupy Wallstreet group has put together.  While I can certainly appreciate the groups core desire to protest, and applaude their efforts to bring about a change in these times of financial hardship......some of these "demands" are absolutely insane and totally illogical.

Here, for you're consideration, is the list:

-Repeal the Taft-Hartley Act. Unionize ALL workers immediately.

-Raise the minimum wage immediately to $18/hr. Create a maximum wage of $90/hr to eliminate inequality.

-Institute a 6 hour workday, and 6 weeks of paid vacation.

-Institute a moratorium on all foreclosures and layoffs immediately.

-Repeal racist and xenophobic English-only laws.

-Open the borders to all immigrants, legal or illegal. Offer immediate, unconditional amnesty, to all undocumented residents of the US.

-Create a single-payer, universal health care system.

-Pass stricter campaign finance reform laws. Ban all private donations. All campaigns will receive equal funding, provided by the taxpayers.

-Institute a negative income tax, and tax the very rich at rates up to 90%.

-Pass far stricter environmental protection and animal rights laws.

-Allow workers to elect their supervisors.

-Lower the retirement age to 55. Increase Social Security benefits.

-Create a 5% annual wealth tax for the very rich.

-Ban the private ownership of land.

-Make homeschooling illegal. Religious fanatics use it to feed their children propaganda.

-Reduce the age of majority to 16.

-Abolish the death penalty and life in prison. We call for the immediate release of all death row inmates from death row and transferred to regular prisons.

-Release all political prisoners immediately.

-Immediate withdrawal from Iraq and Afghanistan.

-Abolish the debt limit.

-Ban private gun ownership.

-Strengthen the separation of church and state.

-Immediate debt forgiveness for all.

-End the 'War on Drugs'.

So there it is.  Simple, to the point, and in their minds completely rational and the cure to all of our problems.

Or not.

I can't even fathom how far off the deep end some of these people must have gone to believe that ANY of this would be helpful to our country.  Socialism, communism, and the complete disregard for our Constitution would be the only way to impliment these "demands".

I can only hope that sane and sober minds will prevail, and that these "protestors" will be allowed to protest within the limits of the law, but their misguided and flawed logic will be seen for what it is.

Cougar JV's Fall To Salem
By David Gravely

The Pulaski County Cougar junior varsity football team finished out their season on Thursday, and in a great game between two solid teams it came down to the wire as the Spartans took home the 33-26 win.

Pulaski received the opening kickoff, and surprised Salem with a long pass attempt on the first play of the game. Cougar quarterback Jesse Draper put the ball on target, but the Pulaski receiver couldn't hold on. After a Cougar punt, the Spartans went to their ground game, and with 7:11 left in the first quarter were able to put the first points on the board with a 9 yard touchdown run. The PAT put Salem ahead 7-0.

Pulaski took the kickoff, and on the first play running back Brandon Jones rambled 57 yards before being run down, giving the Cougars the ball at the Salem 3 yard line. After a bad snap caused Pulaski to lose a yard, Draper kept the ball on a quarterback keeper and went in for the score. A block in the back penalty against the Cougars took the score off the board, leaving the Cougars with third and goal from the 17 yard line. Draper took the snap, rolled out to his right, and with two Spartan defenders closing in he launched the ball to Jones for the 17 yard score. The Shane Chrisley PAT tied the score at 7-7 with 5:24 remaining.

Chrisley kicked the ball out of the endzone, giving Salem the ball at the 20. The Spartans capped off their 80 yard drive with an 11 yard pass with 1:33 left in the first quarter, and the PAT put Salem back in the lead 14-0. After the two teams exchanged punts on the next few drives, Pulaski was able to move the ball down to the Salem 5 yard line before a dropped pass in the endzone ended the Cougars efforts to tie the score. Salem's Isaah Harris put on a speed and footwork display to move the Spartans downfield, and with 57.6 seconds left he broke free for 45 yards to put Salem ahead 20-7 after the missed PAT. The Cougars would not go down easily, however, and on their first play of the drive Brandon Jones broke free down the visitors side of the field, cut back, and then sprinted for the endzone for a 58 yard score. The Chrisley PAT brought the score to 20-14 in favor of the Spartans.

After both teams punted on their first drives of the second half, Salem was able to add to their score with a 44 yard scoring run with 17.9 seconds left in the third quarter. The PAT was good, putting the scoreboard at 27-14 Salem. Pulaski would not lay down though, and after Draper hit a 54 yard pass to Jones, he connected with Justin Ball on a 23 yard touchdown pass with 8:06 remaining. Chrisleys PAT moved the Cougars closer, and as the Spartans began to move the ball on their next drive until a hard hit sent the ball to the ground where Malik Eaves recovered for the Cougars at the Salem 48 yard line. Another 19 yard pass to Mattox from Draper helped open up the ground game, and then another pass from Draper to Ball put Pulaski back in the endzone on an 11 yard score. The Chrisley PAT was wide, putting the score at 27-26 in favor of the Spartans with 5:21 left on the clock.

Salem was able to burn the clock running the ball, and with 2:25 left in the game the Spartan running back broke free up the middle to go 56 yards for the score. The blocked PAT left the score at 33-26 Salem. Pulaski had one final chance to tie the game, but the Spartan defense held, giving Salem the 33-26 final score.

Draper finished the game completing 7 of 16 passes for 159 yards, with three touchdown passes. Other standouts for the younger Cougars included linebacker J.D. Sutphin, running back Brandon Jones, running back and defensive back Jake Tabor, and linebacker Heath White, and running back Quincy Rollins. The Cougar junior varsity finished up their season with a 4-6 record, winning three of their last four games.

JV Cougars Pound Bruins

JV Cougars Pound Blacksburg
By David Gravely

It started with the first offensive play for Pulaski County's junior varsity football team on Thursday night at Bill Brown Stadium, and it didn't let up until the final snap as the younger Cougars defeated the Bruins 40-9.

After the Bruins kicked off to Pulaski to start the game, running back Brandon Jones took the hand-off from quarterback Jesse Draper and cut left.  He avoided two tackles, and then rambled 62 yards for the touchdown.  The Shane Chrisley PAT was no good, leaving the score at 6-0 in favor of the Cougars.  Blacksburg took the kickoff out to their 28 yard line, but were forced to punt.  Pulaski went to their air attack next, with Draper completing a 33 yard pass to Jake Tabor first, and then a 43 yard pass to reciever Lonnie Mattox for the score with 5:42 remaining in the first quarter.  The Chrisley PAT was good, and after another Cougar kickoff and another Blacksburg punt, Pulaski went back to work on offense with a 13-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. 

The second quarter started off with the Cougars on the attack again, with Draper hitting a 45 yard pass to Mattox to put the Cougars in the red zone.  Despite a stiffening Bruins defense, Pulaski drove towards the goal line with Draper taking the ball in from one yard out with 8:31 remaining in the half.   Chrisley's PAT put the score at 20-0.  Coach Richard Lewis continued to press the issue, and on the next Cougar possession Draper went back to the air with a 63 yard pass to Tabor that would have been longer and six more points, but a Cougar blocker's feet became entangled with a Bruin defender during the race to the goal line and Pulaski was flagged for a block in the back.  Pulaski lost it's momentum and turned the ball over on downs deep in Blacksburg territory.   Blacksburg came out and pressed the issue, hoping to put some points on the board before halftime, but a Bruins pass was intercepted by defensive back Austin Harless.  With time slipping fast off the clock, Draper hit Tabor on a 22 yard pass to move the Cougars close, and then Mattox made a leaping catch above the Blacksburg defender for a 12 yard touchdown catch with just 42 seconds left in the half.  The Chrisley PAT sent the Cougars into halftime with a 27-0 lead.

The Bruins started the second half off with the ball, but after moving a short distance Cougar linebacker J.D. Sutphin stepped in front of a Bruins pass for the interception, but after returning it a short distance the ball was knocked loose and the Bruins recovered again.   Blacksburg finally got on the board shortly after that, when the Cougar defensive back lost his footing and the Bruins were able to connect on a 24 yard touchdown pass.  The Bruins were hit with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after the score, but the PAT was still good, leaving the score 27-7.  Pulaski took the kickoff and went back on offense.  On fourth down and nine Draper dropped back to pass but missed his reciever, but a late hit on the quarterback moved the chains for the Cougars.  With 5:24 remaining in the third quarter, Draper called his own number for the second time and ran the ball to the left side of the line, crossing the goal line from six yards out.  The Chrisley PAT moved the score to 34-7.

The scoring slowed down throughout the fourth quarter, as the Cougars tried to get as many players into the game as possible.   With Pulaski pushed back deep into their own territory, quarterback Brandon Walters was tackled in the Cougar endzone for a Bruins safety.  The Bruins tried to attach the Cougar secondary again, but Austin Harless was the man on the spot again, as he got his second interception of the game.  The Cougars couldn't get a first down, so after a punt the Bruins went back to work again.  Blacksburg sent the ball deep, but this time it was intercepted by Lonnie Mattox.  After getting past the Bruins recievers, Mattox weaved his way for a few yards picking up blocks, and then picked up the pace as he went 93 yards for the pick-six.  The PAT was no good, giving the Cougars the final score of 40-9.

Draper finished the game with over 270 yards passing, throwing two touchdown passes and running for two more scores.  The win moves the junior varsity team to 4-5 on the season, with one game remaining next week as they host the Salem Spartans at Kenneth J. Dobson Stadium.  Kickoff is set for 6 pm.