60 Minutes with the Man 👨 I describe as our Coach with the Hardest Job in Carroll County – West Long

One of the main goals we have in regards to all of the Coaches giving of their time for our youth is to offer them a platform for their programs.

Every Coach has their own mindset in regards to this and that helps explain the swing in the levels of usage from one program to the next.

West Long and I have a great deal in common in regards to the Big Picture 📷 that we call life. The biggest difference between the two of us is Long is a lifer of Carroll County versus my being a short timer of just four years. Other than that we are chasing the same things….

Yes, Long wants to build a Wrestling program that will make our County proud but that is just the Tip of the Iceberg. Coach wants to make a difference in the lives of the people that he comes into contact with, not just while they are in his new Wrestling Room practicing or competing during a match.

Tonight we compared notes 📝 back and forth for just over an hour about his visions and his goals. It’s easy to hear the compassion in his voice and see the vision he has for those that he has in his program.

Why do I consider his job the toughest in the High School system?

There is no natural fan base to draw from because of the fact that HS Wrestling is not a mainstream sport.
The tougher it is to understand a sport = the harder it is to get people to give up evening Family time and limited resources to attend.
I truly believe that every Student Athlete desires to perform in front of their classmates and in the winter time the sport competes against Basketball 🏀. A sport much easier to follow.
The schedule is so different because unlike most other sports at this level, Wrestling is not guaranteed a set number of Home Dates.
In no other Sport will one of our Athletes have to run five miles and not eat Lunch in hopes of making weight on the day of competition.

I could go on for a while but hopefully I have made my point with this list. Yes, West Long is in for an incredibly long uphill climb with this but he is in it for the Long Haul and my Love 💓 for the underdog means I will be there with him every step of the way !

If this was a political campaign (Thank God its Not), our tag line would be something like A Vote for West Long is for Today and for the next Decade (or two) !

There will be plenty more as we move forward, together!

Let’s call this the one about James Earl Jones, Casey & Combs… Update on Our Building…

Last night 🌙 at the Home Volleyball match I handed the 🎤🎙🎤 over to Cavalier Baseball ⚾️ Coach Casey Burcham for a brief update. In between sets, Coach announced that the first HUGE hurdle has been cleared – the building itself has been ordered !!!

For those of you that aren’t up to speed, Casey & Combs started out chasing a dream of building an indoor hitting facility that could be used by both the Baseball program and the Softball program.

The dynamic Duo were kind enough to sit down with me early on about this ” Legacy ” project and they had me at Hello !

The structure itself is indeed on its way but now comes the challenge of creating the funds to purchase everything that is needed to bring the building up to the point where it can serve it purpose.

Two more Big Ticket 🎟 items are in place during the month of October. First, the Softball Alumni Game and then a Golf ⛳ tournament.

Looking to both have some fun and raise more money 💰, I have pitched an idea 💡 to Casey about how we can raise even more Cash 💸 on Sunday, October 6th.

The idea includes both Combs and Casey holding clipboard 📋s during the pre-game festivities. The question they will be asking is a two-part and it involves our beloved Rick Nester. The day is going to be terrific and everything raised is going to the items needed for inside the facility.

Yes, we are going to have a building this winter and now its time to fill it with everything that are Diamond 💎 programs need to continue their paths to success for decades to come !

The line from one of the greatest Movies 🎥 James Earl Jones starred in (Field of Dreams ) had to do with Build it and they Will Come. Casey Burcham is chasing a Legacy moment and we’re going to make sure it happens !

Build it and Victories Will Come !

Lady 👩 Cavaliers net a Win for the ages over visiting Alleghany High, 3-1

The Hill – Veteran Head Coach Cindy Edwards has been leading her teams onto the Volleyball court in Carroll County for going on four decades now. Her team collected a monumental victory Tuesday night, 3-1( 25-22, 25-21, 17-25, 25-21) over Alleghany in the Cavaliers opening match of Three Rivers District play.

The 2024-2025 squad started the season with just eight combined years of Varsity experience. Gone was the stable of players that graduated, including District Player of the Year, Alyssa Ervin.

Edwards took another hit when she lost Junior Corrie Delp for the season and Brooke Webb missed some time as well and the team entered the night at 2-3 on the campaign.

Alleghany came to town and jumped out to an early lead in all four sets but the Lady Cavaliers played a bend but don’t break mentality, centered around the teams lone Senior, Aza Petty.

” Aza Petty had an outstanding game, she is our only senior and she played like she was,” Edwards said.

” Brooke Webb also had an outstanding game she had 5 kills but that does tell you had good she played, her energy tonight was contagious. Also I felt that Laken Burnett ran the offense very while finishing with 22 assist 1 block 1 ace and 5 digs.”

Coach Edwards was describing Winning by committee and the teams confidence grew as the night went on.

The opening set was the most back and forth of the evening as the teams remained within three points from start to finish. CCHS pulled away with a 4-1 spurt after the teams were tied at 21-21.

In the second set the Cavaliers were down 20-17 before closing out on an 8-1 run. Alleghany Coach Charles Leitch tried his best to slow the roll by using both of his timeouts during the deciding stretch.

Set number three followed the same path as the Cougars raced to 7-3 and 13-6 and 19-10 leads. This time Petty ( 14 kills, 3 Aces and 7 Diggs) and Callie Harris teamed up for a strong run before the visitors posted a 25-17 victory.

Alleghany looked to force a fifth set and looked well on their way, leading 12-5. Trailing 15-10 and the momentum belonging to AHS, Carroll County went on their biggest run 🏃‍♂️ of the evening.

By the time the dust settled the run was 10-2 and Carroll County led 20-17. The Lady Cavaliers took turns finishing off the Match with the honor of the final point belonging to Faith Nicholson. Raylee Goins and Arizona Thompson teamed up for a crucial Block after AHS pulled within one at 17-16.

This team lacks experience and by Volleyball 🏐 standards, lack height. But they are smart, play hard and well coached. All of that leads to being 1-0 in the District.

Carroll County (3-3, 1-0) returns to action Thursday night at Glenvar and returns to The Hill next Tuesday night to host James River High School.

Carroll County Junior Varsity opened the night and managed to go toe to toe against a much taller team. The teams were knotted at 16-16 before AHS closed the set on a 9-2 run for a 25-18 victory. In the second set the Lady Cavaliers were down 18-7 but managed to finish the contest on a strong note. The teams played out the match 7-7, giving the visitors a 2-0 sweep (25-18, 25-14)