ALBRIGHT: It may be a little early, but Patriots’ Samara Nunn making girls’ soccer POY voting a piece of cake

October 9, 2021

Parkersburg South midfielder Samara Nunn is the 2021 West Virginia Girls Soccer State Player of the Year. Period. End of discussion. Okay, so that last part isn’t entirely true. There are going to be two conversations, one amongst the coaches and one amongst the sportswriters. Cases are going to be made, voices may be raised, with voting taking place. Regardless, in a year where it appears Wheeling Park, George Washington and Cabell Midland have candidates of their own, this is an easy call: Nunn stands out. She’s the ultimate soccer player. There is no one close. No other ...

ALBRIGHT: Every team needs someone like Williamstown’s Brianna Winsett

October 6, 2021

Williamstown cross country runner Brianna Winsett has accomplished a ton competing on the Yellowjackets’ squad. She’s contributed to three state championships, she’s an all-stater, and is going to go down in history as a member of the most dominant XC team the school’s ever seen. What a resume, huh? It all is enough to make anyone forget about the great leader she’s become. And how that willingness to step up might just be the most enduring part of her legacy everyone recalls from her time in a Yellowjackets’ uniform. She’s got the making of someone anyone should want ...

TUESDAY MORNING QUARTERBACK: Texas Tech loss hard to swallow

October 5, 2021

Some losses are harder to take than others. But for Mountaineer fans this one was about as tough as it gets. One team had to travel 1466 miles. They were without their starting quarterback, leading rusher, best receiver, and three starters int the secondary. They had just been shredded for 70 points the previous week. The other had just played the #4 team to a standstill, and were in front of their homecoming crowd of 50,000. Obviously the intangibles favored the home team, right? Wrong. It was Texas Tech which came out with energy and focus, while West Virginia was listless and ...

ALBRIGHT: Doddridge County’s Dylan Knight took center stage in win over Ritchie County

September 28, 2021

Doddridge County’s offense fired on all cylinders in a 29-26 2OT win over the Ritchie County Rebels Friday at Cline Stansberry Stadium. Everything largely going according to plan. The offensive line did its job. Receivers caught the rare passes when asked and quarterback Jared Jones handled his read-option duties with aplomb. Stealing the show, however, was running back Dylan Knight. The senior grabbed the spotlight, took it, then ran and hid with it, thus bringing flashbacks of former Doddridge County rusher Hunter America, all while being a pain in his visitors’ side. ...

WEDNESDAY MORNING QB: Winning feels good for WVU

September 22, 2021

The West Virginia defense made a gallant goal line stand in the final seconds of the game Saturday to preserve a hard fought 27-21 win over Virginia Tech in front of a sellout crowd. It would be hard to overstate how important the outcome was. After a poor performance against Maryland two weeks earlier and with a road trip to the nation’s 3rd ranked team looming, losing after having a 20 point lead would have been devastating. Gone would have been any reasonable hopes for a successful season. Fans would have been discouraged. Trusting the climb would have been disparaged. For now ...

HUGHES: Great showing in crosstown showdown

September 19, 2021

This year’s crosstown showdown showed exactly what high school football is all about. In the face of adversity amidst quarantine restrictions, Parkersburg prevailed for the win. When Parkersburg South trailed throughout the contest, it nearly completed a late comeback. This game brought out the best of the city and its student-athletes. Last year’s game was cancelled following COVID-19 concerns, and nothing could fill the void. I grew up surrounded by the rivalry, and as a PHS graduate, I can remember plenty of great moments for both sides of the big game. We finally had the ...