J
Athletes well-engaged at QEA
I SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE
inic ?
:? Quality Education
i Academy's Fighting
Pharaohs have been busy
I representing their city and
i school well.
With a five-game win
ning streak over the past
week and a half, they are
gearing up for this weeks'
big games. Today (Thursday,
Jan. 29), Bull City Prep
(Durham) will come to
Winston-Salem. QEA will
travel to Raleigh on Saturday
to take on rival Word of God.
The Pharaohs fully intend to
continue on their winning
streak and maintain their
ranking of #20 in the nation.
The Fighting Pharaohs
are not only busy on the
court but also in the co'mmu
nity. Winston-Salem's team
has adopted a street (Parrish
Road) and can be seen raking
leaves and picking up trash
jn an effort to beautify the
community.
Comer
from page B\
grueling summer sessions at a training center in
Mocksville, which attracts many of the area's top
high school wrestlers. "Since day one, 1 fell in
love with the sport," he said. "With all the weight
I've lost and all the training I've gone through, I
have no regrets. I'm thankful for all the time that
I've put in."
While there's no question about the physical
demands of the sport. Comer has come to under
stand that the mental
aspect is equally impor- |~
tant. He openly admits
that he's glad that he
never listened to friends
who warned him that
wrestling would be far
tougher than he ever
imagined.
"I never paid atten
tion to what people told I
me," said Comer, who I
wants to pursue a career
in cellular research so
he can help discover
cures for diseases. "Competing in this sport has
taught me how to push myself and not be con
cerned about what others might say or think. Yes,
it takes hard work and it takes discipline. But
that's what it takes to compete at a high level in
this sport. It's worth it."
In some ways, wrestling seems to be some
what of an odd fit for Comer, an accomplished
musician who plays the piano and trumpet.
Before trying out for the wrestling team. Comer,
a Boy Scout, played trumpet in Reagan's march
ing and jazz bands.
On the other hand, wrestling doesn't seem so
out of place when you consider Comer's family
roots. His father, William Comer Jr., was a city
champion wrestler at Hanes High School in the
1980s.
Even though this is Comer's final high school
season, he has no plans for this year to be his last
hurrah on the mats. He plans to continue in col
lege, whether it's on a wrestling scholarship or as
a walk-on.
"My entire senior season continues to be a
learning experience," he said. "I had to get accus
tomed to how strenuous wrestling is at the varsity
level compared to the junior varsity. My objective
is to keep working, keep getting better and we'll
see what happens."
off a potential game-win
ning 3-pointer. But the shot
was off target, and Montel
Twyman of Atkins grabbed
the rebound as the final
buzzer sounded.
Standen was a source
of irritation for the Camels
the last time these teams
met in early December.
The Villains won by double
digits and Standen scored
25 points. This time, inten
sified defensive efforts pro
duced a different outcome,
and Standen was held to 14
points.
"We did a much better
job on him this time," said
Prim. "The defense made it
a lot more difficult for him
to get good looks at the
basket."
Photo by Craig T. Greenlee
William Comer
Submitted Photo
The team poses while cleaning Parrish Road.
Dash have a new manager
SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE
Coaching veteran Tim Esmay will
manage the Winston-Salem Dash in
2015.
Esmay is the 44th manager in
Winston-Salem's 102-year history of
baseball. He will be joined by pitching
coach J.R. Perdew, hitting coach
Charlie Poe, athletic trainer Josh Fallin
and strength and conditioning coach
Shawn Powell.
Esmay will manage in the profes
sional ranks for the first time, but he
boasts extensive experience in the colle
giate ranks. Following a successful
playing career at Scottsdale Community
College and Arizona State University,
Esmay was an assistant coach for six
seasons before netting the head coach
position at the University of Utah. He
spent eight seasons with the Utes, and
he became the first head coach in school
history to lead the program to a Western
0 Athletic Conference division title.
In 2005, Esmay returned to Arizona
State and acted as an assistant coach for
five seasons. He took over the Sun
Devils' head coaching position in 2010,
during which he led ASU to a 52-10
record, the number one national seed in
the NCAA Tournament and a spot in the
College World Series. During his five
year tenure as Arizona State's head
coach, Esmay posted a 201-94-1 (.681)
record and always finished at least 11
games above the .500 mark.
Tommy Thompson, Winston
Salem's 2014 skipper, will manage the
White Sox Low-A affiliate, the
Kannapolis Intimidators, this year. Gary
Ward, last year's hitting coach, will pos
sess the same role with the rookie-level
Arizona League White Sox.
The Dash's 2015 season begins on
Thursday, April 9 in Frederick, Md.,
while BB&T Ballpark's sixth season
kicks off on Thursday, April 16 with a 7
p.m. game against the Myrtle Beach
Pelicans, the Cubs' new High-A affili
ate. For tickets or more info, visit
wsdash.com.
ASU Phot
Tim Esmay is taking the helm.
Atkins
from page Bl
we've been emphasizing.
There's more unity among
the players. Earlier this
season, we played a lot of /
'me' ball. Now they're/
V- finding out that playing
team ball is the way to win
games. We didn't help our
selves with the way we
shot at the foul line. If we
make some free throws, the
game wouldn't have been
as close as it turned out to
be."
Even though Syrus
Sadler (14 points) was the
only Atkins player to score
in double figures, his team
mates provided sufficient
support to help deliver the
victory. Justin Nolan, who
finished with six points and
a game-high 10 rebounds,
scored two of his baskets
during the latter stages of a
tense fourth quarter.
Atkins led 24-19 at
halftime, but Bishop
McGuinness bounced back
to cut the Camels' lead to
37-33 with 4:15 left to play
in the game. Nolan scored
from inside to push the
lead to 6 points, but C.J.
Cappuccio hit a 3-pointer
and Brad Standen added a
free throw to make it 39-37
in favor of the Camels.
On Atkins' next posses
sion, Nolan broke free on a
drive from the left wing
and delivered what proved
to be the game-winning
points. The Villains
responded with a score by
Andrew Desalvo, but they
were never able to draw
closer.
The two teams traded
turnovers on back-to-back
possessions in the final
minute of play. Desalvo
attempted to tie the game
with a short jumper, but
Garrett Whitaker blocked
the shot. In the meantime,
the Camels missed four
free throws, which gave the
Villains one more opportu
nity to win with time run
ning out. For the game,
Atkins went 6-of-17 at the
free-throw line.
On Bishop
McGuinness's final posses
sion of the game, Standen
found enough space to get
DJ. Williams (2) of Atkins dribbles past the defense.
Coqch Prim
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