Trying hard to make a point about the value of love and support making a difference between success and loss brings me to 9:30 am on Saturday morning at Liberty University.

9:30 was the listed start time for the Girls Long Jump and we all knew it would be a hot 🔥 minute before Corrie Delp took the stage for the first of her three attempts.

Envision that you are going to a 2pm movie 🎥 at the local theater in Galax. You know that you have to sit through 20 – 30 minutes of advertisements and previews before you get to the reason you were there. For good measure, the air conditioning in the theater stops ✋ working and now you can add another level of discomfort to the equation.

Corrie Delp went from being mentally prepared to perform from around 10:30 to not making her first attempt until just after 1pm. Three and one half hours after  the event started our Junior finally got to come out of the limited shade and run down the trail that led to the pit of sand.

Surrounding Corrie was her Mother, two Sisters, Dad/ Coach, teammate and Boy Friend. Together ❤ this group kept Delp at an even keel across the long, long waiting period. Just how relevant is staying in the correct frame of mind ?

Two young ladies in Class 3 cleared an amazing mark of 18 feet ➕ during the regular season. Neither one was around for the Finals. Yes, it takes a great deal of athleticism to perform on the biggest stage of the season but to get past the heat, humidity and 210 minutes of can we start already……. it takes a Village and trust me when I say , Corrie Delp had one in Spades ♠️.

Congratulations 👏 to All 10 members of the Burcham Bunch that were honored and Thank You 🙏 Mr Worrell for your outstanding efforts 👏

Congratulations 👏👏👏 to Corrie Delp finishing 4th in the State Long Jump competition and to Brenden Fariss for both winning the District and qualifying for State.

Thank You to both Shawn Montgomery and Jon Delp for leading the way for our Track 👣 and Field Student Athletes.

Lynchburg, Virginia – For the third straight meet Corrie Delp landed with a PR effort of 17-7.75. The first time it made the Carroll County High School Junior the Three Rivers District Champion.

The following week in Christiansburg, Delp nailed one of her early attempts with the end result being a Regional Champion.

On Saturday afternoon at Liberty University, Delp under the watchful eye of her Father / Coach, had three more chances. If one of those opportunities went well it would provide another three in the finals.

At 1:10 pm Delp launched for the first time with a solid effort but it was red flagged due to stepping a quarter inch past the cutoff. One quarter of an inch will come into play once again later in the story.

Attempt #2 took place at 1:16 and it turned out to be the Money 💰 Jump of the afternoon. For the third straight time Delp posted a jump of 17-7.75 and that was strong enough to advance our Cavalier to the finals. This trip to Lynchburg was the third straight season on the biggest of stages but this time Delp was going to leave town with a medal 🏅 around her neck.

The fifth of her six jumps would have landed Delp in second place overall and would have given her the rather elusive Carroll County High School record that she manages to miss by one quarter of an inch. Sadly, the best jump of her career was also red flagged.

Realizing that his daughter had once again performed at a top shelf level, Dad decided to have a little fun with his middle of five daughters.

Holding up an ink pen, Coach Delp asked the lighthearted question, ” What is it with you and a quarter of an inch ?[“

Everything about the third daughter of a former Track and Field star 🌟 back in his prime, came in threes. Third trip to State and third straight performance in which Delp managed to reach her career best.

The best part of the Delp story is the fact that they are the First Family 👪 of Carroll County Track 👣 and Field. While all six jump attempts took place in a 38 minute window, the day itself began with an 8:00 am breakfast, ahead of a 10:00 am check in.

The bond between Corrie Delp and Jon Delp is matched by the family as a whole. Even when it came time to order her pre-meet meal, Corrie looked to her Coach and Mom for some advice. The answer turned out to be scrambled eggs 🥚 for protein, bacon 🥓 and two chocolate chip Pancakes for fun. The second pancake 🥞 went uneaten and hindsight says the second Pancake could have been the missing piece in regards to that final quarter inch ??

There are other Parents who coach their children in Carroll County, just not sure if its to the degree that Jon coaches Corrie, with Shawn Montgomery by their side.

Delp will return with the goals for next season to include that 1/4 of an inch ➕ finishing up with a fourth straight trip to Liberty University.

Also returning is fellow State qualifier, Brenden Fariss. Fariss just finished up his Sophomore year and enjoyed his time in Lynchburg.

Nathanael ” Rambo ” Dalton and Brayden Smoot are the two Seniors that graduated 🎓 this year. Everyone else on both the Boys and Girls teams should return next Spring.

Recapping, Corrie Delp placed fourth and that earned Carroll County High School 5 points ! Great way to end the 2024-2025 School year for CCHS.

In regards to Delp and Fariss, how ’bout them Cavaliers !!!

From here, our dear 🦌 friend Allen Worrell will take my story and make it read all grown up for The Carroll News!

Three years of joining the Delp Family 👪 in Lynchburg = PRICELESS