PREP NOTEBOOK: Covenant girls cross country rounding into form

Covenant’s girls cross county team placed just seventh in the season-opening Ragged Mountain Cup. But the race’s two-mile relay format might not have been an accurate portrayal of the Eagles’ abilities.

At the Woodberry Forest Invitational last Saturday, the running community got a little better understanding of the defending VISAA Division II state champions’ tremendous depth.

The Eagles placed second in the event behind just Trinity Episcopal, with three Eagles runners in the top 20 and another four runners in the race’s top 70 to add up to a score of 114 points to Trinity’s 73.

Bethany Coppock posted a time of 22:12 to place 14th, leading the way for Covenant. Brittany Murphy and Alicia Fox followed closely behind with finishes of 22:15 and 22:20, respectively, to finish 16th and 17th.

Covenant’s depth made the biggest impact in the squad’s four finishers after that though, with Rachel Rapp at 37th, Tory Meakem at 42nd, eighth-grader Kara Coppock at 69th and Nella Hendley at 70th.

Monticello also posted a strong performance as Holly Rich’s fifth-place finish sparked a fifth-place team result.

Lurking behind Covenant was rival St. Anne’s-Belfield. The Saints posted a team score of 279 to finish 11th. Peri Bowser led the way with a seventh place finish with a time of 21:48.

Monticello’s Hedgeman scores first TD for Norfolk State

Former Monticello standout Takeem Hedgeman scored his first collegiate touchdown this past Saturday, as Norfolk State beat North Carolina A&T 27-21.

Hedgeman, a 5-foot-10, 195-pound running back, scored on a 6-yard run in the first half to help put the Spartans ahead for good. The freshman finished with 31 yards on five carries in the win and has 63 yards on 11 carries through three games.

Hedgeman helped lead the Mustangs to their first Group AA, Division 3 title last year, rushing for 2,891 yards and a record 51 touchdowns as a senior.

He’s not the only local athlete to suit up for the Spartans.

Orange County product T.J. Minor is also on the NSU roster. Minor, a 6-foot wide receiver, was redshirted last season. He has two catches for 18 yards so far this year. In his senior season at Orange, Minor earned all-state honors and helped lead the Hornets to the Jefferson District title. He caught 59 passes for 1,054 yards and 10 touchdowns his final year.

NSU (2-1) travels to William & Mary this Saturday.

Gaesser makes National Academic honor roll

The Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association (IWLCA) recently recognized Lindsay Gaesser of Crozet on its 2008 National Academic Honor Roll.

Gaesser, a four-year starter at attack at Claremont McKenna College in California, was among 172 Division III lacrosse players across the country recognized as a scholar-athlete on the IWLCA list. A government and psychology major, Gaesser led the team again in points this season, finishing her collegiate lacrosse career with 85 goals and 151 assists. Gaesser also earned First Team US Lacrosse/IWLCA All-West Regional All-American honors in helping to lead the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Athenas to the 2008 NCAA Division III women’s lacrosse championships in May.

A 2004 Western Albemarle graduate, Gaesser led the nation in assists per game in 2007 and was the NCAA D-III runner-up in that category this season.

No place like home for CHS grad Ballard

Katherine Ballard, a graduate of Charlottesville High, returns to her hometown this weekend as Ohio University takes on UVa in field hockey.

The sophomore played in 22 games last season and tallied five shots, including four on goal. This year, Ballard has started in three games.

At CHS, Ballard earned Jefferson District player of the year honors and was named all-state in 2005 and 2006.

The Bobcats (2-3) play the Cavaliers on Sunday at 1 p.m.

VHSL participation reaches all-time high

The number of student participants in Virginia High School League athletics and academic activities increased in 2007-08 to an all-time high of 199,542, according to the 2007-08 VHSL Sports Participation Survey.

“We are thrilled that so many students are taking advantage of the wonderful opportunities available to them in the League’s 27 sports and nine academic activities,” VHSL Executive Director Ken Tilley said in a press release. “Since 1996, the VHSL has added 30 new state championships and events. We’re excited that our programs, as well as the number of student participants continue to grow to record highs.”

Cheer remained the most popular sport for girls with 10,855 participants, followed by outdoor track (8,366) basketball (7,927), softball (7,918) and soccer (7,896).

In boys sports, football topped the charts with 26,002 participants, followed by outdoor track (10,774), basketball (9,558), soccer (9,295) and baseball (9,219).

Volleyball gained the most participants among girls sports in 2007-08 with 393, and in boys sports, outdoor track had the biggest gain with 540 participants.