Author: David

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Finding themselves down 14-8 late in the second quarter against the Black Knights of North Davidson on Sept. 14, the Watauga junior varsity football team’s “mood” darkened, individual players blaming each other and pointing fingers. Then, said head coach Marshall Thomas, the team found leadership — and rebounded in the second half for a 24-14 victory.

BONUS PHOTOS AT BOTTOM OF ARTICLE (click any image for slide show mode)

“When you are working with freshmen and sophomores at the junior varsity level,” said Thomas after the game, “the leadership roles on a team may not have evolved. Amid the internal conflicts tonight, we had guys step up into those leadership roles and got the team unified in a positive direction. Our execution improved in the second half because of that leadership and that is why we won.”

SELECTED INDIVIDUAL NOTES

• Kyle Williams: 9 carries for 105 yards, including two, 2-point conversions
• Matthew Leon: 19 carries for 91 yards, plus one fumble recovery
• Cade Keller: 7 carries for 96 yards and a TD, 1 fumble recovery
• Nyle Peays: 76-yard “pick 6” pass interception and return
• Thomas Deiters: One 2-point conversion pass reception

BONUS PHOTOS

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Admitting that nobody is happy with a losing outcome, Watauga varsity men’s soccer head coach was pleased with the effort and intensity of his Pioneers in a 1-0, non-conference loss to visiting Cox Mill on Sept. 14.

“You never want to lose, obviously,” said head coach Josh Honeycutt after the game, “but I truly feel that this is the best we have played so far this season, really since the Ardrey Kell game. We are starting to figure some things out, defensively. The quality of play was there tonight. We probably should have had at least one goal, probably two. When the ball is bouncing around in the box, we need to do a better job of clearing it out, but when you make it a 1-0 game against a very good opponent instead of a 5-1 loss last time out, we are making strides in the right direction.”

Watauga has one more non-conference game, an 11 a.m. affair vs. Cuthbertson on Sept. 16 at Jack Groce Stadium, looking to improve on the team’s 2-7-1 start.

For Honeycutt and the Pioneers, though, it is all about the preparation. He intentionally schedules state playoffs-caliber opponents in the early season to get his team prepared for the Northwestern Conference slate.

“Our primary goal is to win a conference championship, which gives us a better seeding should we make the state playoffs,” said Honeycutt. “Facing those types of playoff quality teams early gets us ready. Our guys know that.”

Indeed, the 2022 edition of the Watauga varsity opened with a non-conference slate in which they went an identical 2-7-1 in non-conference, but finished the season 13-9-1 including a 9-1 record in winning the NWC conference championship before losing to Weddington in the third round of the 4A state playoffs.

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Jumping out to a 2-0 lead over Cox Mill, the Watauga junior varsity men’s soccer team was in perilous territory even if eventually winning the day, 3-1.

“A 2-0 lead is dangerous,” said Watauga JV head coach Vern Collins after all was said an done. “It is still close enough that the opponent can rally and close the gap. And it is also wide enough that your team could get a bit complacent. You have to finish.”

Finishing is what Collins and his staff have been emphasizing the last few weeks during the early, non-conference portion of the 2023 season — and that attention to detail paid dividends against the visiting Chargers. While Cox Mill dropped in a second half goal to narrow the gap, to 2-1, the Pioneers responded with a late goal and played good defense the rest of the way.

SELECTED INDIVIDUAL STATS

• Lucas Hamilton: 1 goal, 1 assist
• David Ganley: 1 goal
• Noah Van Werkhoven: 1 goal
• Shiris Kandel: 1 assist
• Tegan Martinez: 1 shot on goal
• Trace Martinez: 1 shot on goal

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — It might have been a little closer than expected, but Watauga High School’s young junior varsity volleyball team swept their South Caldwell counterparts on Sept. 13, 2-0 (25-17, 25-19), at Lentz Eggers Gym.

BONUS PHOTOS AT BOTTOM OF ARTICLE (click on any image for slideshow mode)

The Spartans’ JVs battled back to narrow deficits a few times, but ultimately could not handle the well-skilled and disciplined Pioneers led by middle blocker Rylee Mitchell, outside hitters Athena Elliott , Gracyn Blanton and Kasey Gragg, as well as sparkling defensive play by libero Bella Wade and setters Ava Zaragoza and Lilli Combs.

SELECTED INDIVIDUAL STATS

• Rylee Mitchell: 6 kills, 2 stuff blocks, 2 service aces
• Athena Elliott: 6 kills, 1 dig
• Gracyn Blanton: 3 kills, 1 dig
• Ava Zaragoza: 6 assists, 3 digs
• Bella Wade: 7 digs, 2 service aces, 1 assist
• Lilli Combs: 11 assists, 1 service ace, 2 digs
• Sophie Kop: 4 digs, 1 service ace
• Lillon Henline: 2 service aces, 2 digs
• Julia Rowan: 3 kills

BONUS PHOTOS

By David Rogers. MORGANTON, N.C. — Although neither the Watauga men or women captured the top individual spots in the Northwestern Conference Pre-Conference cross country meet on Sept. 11, both captured the team titles.

Women’s Division

After Makenzie Jordan (North Carolina School of Math and Sciences) finished No. 1 with a blistering time of 22:03 and Ashe County’s Emory Taylor took the No. 2 spot in 23:54, Watauga came in numbers and all five scorers finished the 5,000-meter course within about a minute of each other, including No. 3 Sadie Buchanan, No. 4 Janie Beach Verhay, No. 5 Winter Shaw, No. 6 Sophie Parker, and No. 7 Lainey Johnston.

The Pioneers seemed to come in waves. Runners from NC School of Math and Science, Ashe, Hibriten and Draughn picked up the next few spots, then it was No. 14 Sophie McVoy before No. 20 Sydney Cate Townsend, No. 21 Maggie Visser, No. 22 Carrie Bradbury, No. 23 Keatyn Wuest, No. 23 Scarlett Rupp, and a 4-way tie at No. 26 with Elyse Rea, Katherine Rex, Madden Maple, and Julian Martinez-Jaime.

In total, there were 58 women competing in the race and 33 of them were Pioneers. With the top five runners from each team contributing to the team score, Watauga’s No. 3 through No. 7 placings handily won the team title, with 59 points (lowest score wins, in cross country), followed by NC School of Math and Science (97), Ashe County (145), Draughn (155), Hibriten (168) and Freedom (221).

MEN’S DIVISION

Watauga’s top finisher in the Men’s Division was Andreas Roman at No. 8, but that opened a virtual floodgate of Pioneers, including No. 9 Santino Wood, a tie at No. 10 shared by Jonah Norris and Holden Womak, No. 12 Levi Anderson, No. 13 Elliott Taft and No. 14 A.J. McAulay.

Then, after a couple more Math & Science runners, it was another wave of Pioneers in Calvin Zwetsloot, Grady Gates, Zeke Walker, Cameron Nance, Isaac James, and Hayden Walker.

All totaled, there were 53 young men competing, and 23 of them were Pioneers. Top honors went to Hibriten’s Christopher Church, followed by Everett Tucker (NC Math & Science), Tray Powell (Draughn), Jonah Griggs and Christopher Uren (Freedom) and then two more NC Math athletes, Lucas Nagel and Lucas Lyons, before the first wave of Pioneers.

Team Scores

1. Watauga (75)
2. NC School of Math & Science (83)
3. Freedom (146)
4. Hibriten (177)
5. Draughn (196)
6. Ashe County (221)

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Hiring from within an already successful women’s basketball team, Watauga High School announced on Sept. 11 that Bill Torgerson is the new head coach of the women’s program.

Torgerson is not new to either the Watauga program nor to basketball. Since June 2020, he served as assistant coach under former head coach Laura Barry, who earlier in the summer resigned her position at Watauga to become an assistant coach at Davidson College.

Torgerson previously served in numerous other basketball coaching capacities, including:

• Peak Blue Travel Basketball Coach – Spring/Summer 2023
• Parkway Middle School – Head WBB Coach – November 2019 – February 2021
• Greenwood High School, Greenwood Indiana – Head WBB Coach – June 2018 – May 2019
• Vance High School (Now Chambers), Charlotte NC – Assistant MBB Coach – October 2002-March 2003
• Fort Wayne Carroll High School, Fort Wayne Indiana – Assistant MBB Coach – October 1999 – March 2001
• North Miami High School, Denver Indiana – Head MBB Coach – August 1994 – May 1999
• Olivet Nazarene University, Kankakee Illinois – MBB Student Assistant Coach, 1993-1994 Season

Togerson’s “day job” is as lecturer in the English department at Appalachian State University since the 2019-20 academic year. Prior to serving at App State, Coach Torgerson was an Associate English Professor in the Institute of Writing Studies at St. John’s University in New York City and has also taught high school and middle school English courses in the public schools of both Indiana and North Carolina.

In accepting the new basketball role, he reflected on the opportunity to use the game as a platform for growth and personal development.

“I’m thankful and excited for the opportunity to continue to build on the success that Coach Laura Barry has established during her seven years leading the Watauga program. One of the things I most admired about Coach Barry was her leadership around the idea of creating a family atmosphere among members of the program, and that she stressed the notion of having a growth mindset,” said Torgerson.

“It’s especially rewarding for me that I have worked with some of these players since they were in the fifth grade,” he added. “We are extremely fortunate to have in the women’s basketball program young women with high goals and an intense desire to be in the gym regularly. I will do all that I can to try and help support their goals and empower them in their pursuits both on and off the court.”

In announcing the hiring, Watauga athletic director Dustin Kerley reinforced the decision that Torgerson was the right person for the role.

“During Coach Torgerson’s time at WHS,” said Kerley, “he earned a great reputation as a very detail oriented and hardworking coach. We are excited for the future of our women’s basketball program and feel that Coach Torgerson can continue to keep our program competing at a very high level. He cares deeply for all of the girls in our program and is passionate about using the game of basketball as a platform to have a positive influence on young people.”

Torgerson told High Country Sports that the returning team members are already hard at work.

“The team is currently working out, splitting time between gym workouts and speed/strength training several times a week,” said Torgerson. “Our first practice also starts tryouts and this will be October 30th. The varsity team kicks off the season as they did last year, at the Providence Day Super Scrimmages in Charlotte. The team will notably play in the Charlotte Hoops Classic for their first regular season game and compete over the winter holiday break in The John Wall Tournament in Raleigh.”

Torgerson takes over a program that tied Hibriten with 8-2 records atop the Northwestern Conference in 2022-23, before losing to Charlotte Catholic in the fourth round of the NCHSAA 4A State Playoffs. Under Barry, the Pioneers rolled up an overall record of 124-55.