ALLEN READY TO PUT ON A SHOW
Just like everybody else playing in tonight's annual Scott Brown Memorial Basketball Classic, Joey Allen is looking to have some fun. I'm looking to showboat a little bit, said Allen, a 6-foot-2 guard/forward for Westside High this season. With coach Hopkins, you don't get much chance to showboat. If you mess up, he'll let you have it.
For part of the season, the Renegades were the No. 1 team in Class AA and had aspirations of bringing home a state title. The team hit an unexpected roadblock in its state tournament quarterfinal matchup with Keyser, though, taking an early exit with a 64-59 loss. Allen, who led Westside with 20 points, took the loss particularly hard, fighting back tears in the post-game press conference. For him, it's still a topic that's tough to talk about today. We did pretty good, but we came out in the second half and looked like we didn't put forth the effort. I think that was the difference in the game, he said. I just try not to think about it. I have other things on my mind, and I still play basketball and work out every day because I plan on going to college to play ball. I don't like to think about it. It kills me.
Tonight Allen has a chance to put that all behind him when he suits up for the Class AA-A all-stars. I'm just glad I get the chance to play with the best competitors that I've played against, he said. I just hope to go out there and have fun. While Allen did not qualify to be in the finals of the three-point shooting competition tonight, he hasn't completely ruled out the dunk contest. I'm not trying it. I should. I probably could, but I don't know, he said after throwing down a two- handed slam in Friday's practice. I've got to get warmed up before I can dunk. During the regular season, Allen never attempted to dunk in a game, but in the laid-back atmosphere of an all-star game, he might give one shot if the opportunity arises. I probably will, but they'll probably put me on a Sprite commercial if I try, he said, referring to the commercial where a player jams the ball into the rim and falls down. He figures his three-point shooting skills will be a little more important than his leaping ability, especially with coach Fred Ferri's long ball-focused offense.
I like (Coachs Ferri and Larry Spangler) because they like the three-point shot. That kind of surprised me, Allen said. Their whole offense is three-pointers, but I guess that's why (Ferri's Oak Hill Red Devils) made it to the state tournament finals. It's a pretty good offense if you can shoot threes. A 15-point per game scorer as a member of Class AA's all-state team, Allen should have no problems on the offensive end. Defensively, though, he's looking forward to the challenge of taking on state Gatorade Player of the year Brandon Moore of Spring Valley. That don't mean nothing, Allen said with a smile about Moore's honors. I hope I guard him. I'll shut him down.
Above article by Lance Cranmer of the Beckley Register Herald
Carl note I have heard that the AA-A team lost to the AAA team but Joey had a real good game scoring, I think, 15 points.
Boys and Girls All Coalfield Conference Basketball Teams
Girls: First Team from Westside Shena Toler and Tabatha Sprouse - - Second Team Ashley Osborne and Ashlea Kirk - - Honorable Mention Erin Baley
Boys: First Team from Westside Matt Cook and Joey Allen - - Second Team Ryan Maynard and Brent Prichard - - Honarable Mention Michael Asbury - - CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL RENEGADES!!!!!!!!!
Candice Massey of Westside trots to third base on a passed ball in Last Thursday's game with Montcalm at Baileysville
Winning last Thursday's game with Montcalm wasn't the only first-time experience for the Westside softball team. Going the distance was, too. This is the first time we've gone seven innings, said WHS coach Sarah Patrick so I'm real proud of them. Patrick did a little celebratory dance on the field after the game, with musical accompaniment provided by her team. The Lady Renegades were singing a winning tune from the bottom of the first inning on. After dropping behind, 2-0, Westside responded quickly. Lindsey Walls walked to lead off the inning and scored on Shena Toler's triple to center. Toler came home on Tabatha Toler's RBI single to center. Stephanie Morgan drove in the go-ahead run with a hit to left. Morgan retired the next six batters she face, aided by Shena Toler's nice catch on an Amanda Goins line drive in the third. Westside added to its lead in its half of the third. Latoya Harvey reached on an error. Shena Toler walked, and both runners had moved up a base by the time Tabatha Toler pounded a triple into the right field corner. That made it 5-2.
An error on Morgan's grounder allowed Toler to come home, and the lead went to 6-2. The Lady Generals pushed across an unearned run in the fourth and threatened to score more with runners on the corners. But the Westside infield stayed alert on an attempted double steal, and catcher Candice Massey tagged out Erin Eller as she tried to come home. Laura Black's sacrifice fly in the fifth got Montcalm within 6-4. The Lady Renegades got big contributions from the lower part of the batting order in the bottom of the fifth. With two outs and the bases empty, Massey singled, stole second and moved to third on a passed ball. Amy Hatfield walked, and Massey scored on a wild pitch. Westside would add two more runs, including an RBI single from Walls, to extend the margin to 9-4. Trista Brunty had an infield single to drive in a run in the sixth, making it 10-4. Montcalm scored once in the seventh, but Walls stretched high to snare a Jennifer Blankenship line drive that ended the game.
I thought we played a lot better defense, Patrick remarked. And we hit the ball better. The girls needed this. Stephanie pitched a good game. Morgan had six strikeouts and gave up four hits. Tabatha Toler was 2-3 with three RBI. Walls and Shena Toler each went 1-3 and drove in a run.
Other games Westside nipped Summers County 9-7 last Friday at Hinton behind the hitting of Trista Brunty. The Lady Renegades lost to Van 10-0 in five innings earlier in the week. Shena Toler's double was the only WHS hit. Man beat Westside 11-1, last Tuesday in a six-inning game at Man. Toler and Brunty had hits for the Renegades.
Above article by John Conley of the Independent Herald..
Baseball
Westside 6 - Mt. View 4
A four-run seventh inning lifted the Renegades to a 6-4 win over Mt. View last friday at Welch. Matt Brooks had a two-run single in the seventh. Michael Asbury homered for WHS and picked up the win in relief of starting pitcher J.J. Waldron. Larry Perkins had two hits for the Golden Knights. Lawson Smith doubled and lost the game in relief
Westside 12 - Burch 2
WHS pounded Burch, 12-2 in a five-inning game at Williamson last Tuesday. The Renegades put up six runs in the first inning and never looked back. Michael Asbury, Ryan Maynard and J.J. Waldron had two hits each. Asbury homered. Josh Hall had a triple, and Bryan Price, doubled and drove in a pair of runs. Trey Brunty was the winning pitcher. He relieved Waldron...
