INSIDE
a ENTER
A BUSINESS
A RELIGION
A OBITUARIES
A CLASSIFIEDS
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Winston Lake Junior Golf Association Teaches Youths Fundamental Skills
By DEBY JO FERGUSON
CHroni'cU Sporn Writer
The Winston Lake Junior Golf
Association is a membership orga
nization in which any male or
female under 17 years old is eligible
to join, with the membership being
limited to the first 30 who apply.
According to Ernest Morris,
golf professional and organizer of
the program, "This organization was
formed to give kids who were inter
ested in golf a chance to learn the
basics and fundamentals of the
sport r ?
"We don't go out and recruit
kids for this program. We find that
if a person comes on their own and
wants to learn how to play golf that
they will stick to the program.
"For the past eight years almost
everyone who entered the program
stuck it out. This year we had 43
kids enroll in the program," Morris
said.
There are three divisions in the
program: 10 and under, 12 and
under and 17 and under. This gives
each age group an equal chance to
learn and compete with youngsters
on their own level.
The program had three major
golfing events this season: the
Match Play, Long Drive Contest
and Beat the Pro event.
In the Match Play event the
winners as follows:
In the 10 and under Class A
division, Eric Wilson took first
place, with Anthony Wellman fin
ishing second.
In the 12 and under division,
Ashley Lindsey finished first, with
Darius Sturbivant taking second.
Jarmar Eller-Crawford took first
place in the 10 and under Class B
division. Phillip Jefferies took first
in the 17 and under Class A divi
sion, with Vince Manns finishing
second. In the 17 and under class B
division A1 Reaves finished in first
place and Deron Simmons took sec
ond.
The Long Drive Contest had
three, with Chip Williams taking
first in the 10 and under division,
Lonnie Wellman finishing first in
the 12 and under, and Jason Wright
winning first place in the 17 and
under division.
In the Beat the Pro event, no
one took that position, with the pro
holding a score of 37. However,
Robert Drayton came the closest
with 49 points, counting his 11
point handicap.
Wake Forest Football
?Opens with New Coach
Jim Caldwell, Wake Forest's
new head football coach, is facing
his first recruiting class, signaling
the opening of the preseason
preparations for the 1993 Demon
Deacon campaign.
? Caldwell and his coaching
staff had barely one month to
assemble this year's group of
freshman, but the first-year coach
has spoken highly of the 16 new
comers and is excited about hav
ing them on hand for their initial
workouts.
"This is a good group of
young student-athletes, and we
are really excited about each and
every individual in the class of
'97. We're looking forward to a
great start with them." Caldwell
said.
Caldwell replaced retiring
head football coach Bill Dooley,
the winningest coach in Atlantic
Coast Conference history.
Caldwell has served as a full
time assistant under five coaches
for the past IS years; four have
won national titles and the other is
now a highly regarded coach in
the National Football League.
Caldwell was assistant coach at
Southern Illinois, Northwestern,
Colorado, Louisville, and Penn
State.
For the past seven years,
Caldwell has worked under one of
the nation's coaching legends, Joe
Paterno, at Penn State. "Caldwell
is one of the bright young people
in college coaching. He has
tremendous knowledge of the
game and is a marvelous motiva
tor," Paterno said.
According to Caldwell,
"After my first year at Southern
Illinois under Rey Dempscy, I
began to think about preparing for
a head coaching position.
"From that point on over the
next IS years, I began to devise
my offensive and defensive
philosophies, collect recruiting
Jim Caldwell
information and team to evaluate
possible staff members.
"At the same time, I've never
been inpatient, never applied for a
head coaching job. This (Wake
Forest) was the first opportunity
which came about, and I feel for
tunate to be here," Caldwell said.
According to Caldwell, "My
first months as head coach have
been extremely hectic, I have to
admit In fact, I have been so busy
that I really haven't had time to
celebrate my appointment. The
days have been full, busy hiring a
staff, organizing recruiting, and
providing new direction to the
squad members in preparation for
the upcoming season.
Caldwell is joined with two
players from Winston-Salem:
George Kinney, a sophomore
whose face is familiar on the field
and earned a varsity letter in 1992
for his excellent work with the
Deacons spccial team; and Milgo
Floyd, a freshman who graduated
from Carver High School last year
winning all-Northwest honors
playing under Coach Keith
Wilkes.
Caldwell and his team will
open their season with their first
game on Sept. 4, when Wake For
est faces Vandcrbilt in Groves
Stadium at 6 p.m.
* A
Mk, Andrew Bradsher, youngest on the teamy never missed a session,
^ Winston Lake Junior golfers get in a little practice before play ,
Roadrunners Honor Founding Track Coach
By DEBY JO FERGUSON
CkronieU Spom Writer
Virgil G. Simpson is a legend,
a historical figure or a beginning for
the future of many who follow in
his footsteps.
Simpson was honored last
week at his home by the Roadrun
ner track team, friends and DeVal
Penn, the current head coach.
Simpson informally organized
a running club during the summer
of 1972. The initial group of partici
pants was smalt in number. They
competed primarily in local track
meets.
Inspired by his teen-age daugh
ter, Sharon, who encouraged him to
expand the Roadrunners track club,
Simpsron officially organized the
club on May 19, 1973.
According to Simpson, "My
daughter showed an interest in run
ning, in competing. I told her if she
could get three of her friends to join
her, I'd take them to competitions."
It begin with Simpson's daugh
ter, Sharon, Vanessa Smith, Donna
Matthews and Lemilla Johnson.
With the encouragement of his
daughter and her friends in the
spring of 1973, Simpson expanded
the club into a summer program
with 30 athletes competing under
the name Roadrunners Track Club.
On May 19, 1973 they competed in
the Annual District Junior Olympic
Games at Wake Forest University.
The event was a success, with
22 of the 30 athletes placing first,
second or third in their events and
qualifying for the State Junior
Olympics Games in Raleigh.
On June 2, fifteen of the 22
participants excelled with victories
at the state meet and then advanced
to the Regional Junior Olympics in
Manchester, Tcnn. on July 14.
By the end of the 1973 season
the 30 athletes had won more than
100 medals and trophies. The club
continued to grow and accomplish
feats that seemed nearly impossible.
In 1975 the team was registered
with the Amateur Athlctic Union.
The club is also a member of the
North Carolina Association of Ath
Virgil Simpson, founder of the Roadrunners Track Club, and a few athletes enjoy a cookout in his honor.
letes.
The team has accomplished
many feats over the years under
Simpson's leadership. Simpson said,
"I don't like to lose." Some of the
accomplishments arc represented in
the runners themselves.
Since 1974, the club has had an
average of 65 youngsters participat
ing each summer in local, scctional,
state, regional and national meets.
In 1976, James Samuels, in the
long jump event, won first place in
the regional meet and qualified for
the nationals, where he finished
sixth, jumping 23' 8".
In 1978, Vanessa Smith and
Teresa Hall were both alternates to
the national meet. Smith competed
in the high jump, and Hall compet
ed in the long jump and low hur
dles.
In 1979, the club was repre
sented in the nationals by Hall and
Teresa Woodbury. Hall qualified in
the regionals, placing second in the
long jump and winning the low hur
dles. Woodburry qualified in the
regionals, placing first in both the
100 and 220 dash.
In 1980 the nationals was held
in San Jose and Santa Clara, Calif.
De De Slade participated in the long
jump, placing sixth in this meet and
second place in the regionals.
Thrre are former Roadrunners
who are attending college. Ninty
five percent of these youngsters
have been and are presently active
in the track and field program at
their colleges.
"1 knew we had some kids who
could really run, and I knew there
was money available to help spon
sor. I wanted our kids to have a
chance at competing, an opportunity
to cash in on running. That first year
I put the girls in the 4 x 40 relay
team, they started winning first
place every time they went out.
Man, we started cleaning up,"
Simpson said.
"The next year everyone want
ed to run, and they started coming
from everywhere. There was a lot of
expense ? shoes uniforms, travel,
and lodging ? but we got it togeth
er with some parents who had some
interest and shared the expenses
with me.
"My principal at that time let us
rent the bus in the summer, which
ment buying gas and insurance. So
we'd have bake sales, car washes
and candy sells plus contributions
from churches and organizations to
raise the money, but we made it
"I remember one special girl,
Vanessa Smith, who specialized in
the high jump and relays ? the 400
and 800 relay ? and got a scholar
ship to Winston Salem State Uni
versity," Simpson said.
Simpson remembered one team
in particular, the Durham Striders
Track Club, being their toughest
competition. He also tearfully
Please see page B3