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South AD Roger Thompson refocuses

Parkersburg South High School currently has some openings. One of those should be filled in the not too distant future — the head boys basketball coach. Brett Rector recently stepped down to take an assistant job for University of Charleston men’s head basketball coach Dwaine Osborne. Rector previously had been an assistant at the Mountain East Conference program before heading to PSHS, where he engineered an eight-game turnaround as the Patriots once again reached the Class AAA state tournament. The Parkersburg South hoops job just closed at midnight Wednesday. Roger ...

Laughter is good medicine

The times continue to be trying indeed, especially in the world of basically no sports. Any morsel of potential good news and a break in the pandemic cycle is welcome. That’s why it was great to hear the PGA Tour is planning to resume action starting on June 11 with the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas. Not everyone enjoys the game of golf, but at least for those who do they can get out and play a round. I happened to run into former Wirt County boys basketball coach Roy Alltop the other day at the store. We exchanged some quick ...

ALBRIGHT: Doddridge County’s Reese Burnside working through troubled times

What is a two-time Class A pole vault state champion and two-time All-American in the junior Olympics to do for practice in these troubled times? Of all the spring sports, Doddridge County’s Reese Burnside joins his track and field brethren in the high jump and long jump as those stuck ...

Crying is not allowed

One of the first rules in life I think which stuck with me was there’s no crying in beisbol. After thinking about things for a little bit, it definitely was one of the firsts, but probably not the first. Beisbol, or rather baseball, is just a slang term for the grand old game on the world wide web. Truly, I think the first rule of life I can recall with vivid memory is having my grandmother allow me to pick my own “switch” for my youthful misdeeds. There’s nothing better than heading out of the house, sliding back the screen door and waltzing out to find your own ...

ALBRIGHT: Mary O title doesn’t bother Shay-Lee Kirby at next level

Shay-Lee Kirby is a warrior on the basketball court. Coaches, players or onlookers taking in her mad skills on either the offensive or defensive end of any past game could see as much for themselves. No scorer intimidates her when she’s guarding them. No shot is too big for her to take on the other end of the court, either. The West Virginia Sports Writers Association and state coaches were witnesses during her final season as a member of a dominant Parkersburg High School team. And this prowess anointed her as the best girls’ basketball player in the state via the 2019 ...