Paying another visit to the variety store...
Raising the bar
If you follow these pages on a regular basis, you probably checked out Tom Harris’ most excellent profile on Geneva’s Courtney Thompson.
Thompson, a senior, is the 2009 Star Beacon Ashtabula County Tennis Player of the Year... again.
As in, not for the first time.
However, what we failed to recognize is that young Miss Thompson — now hard at work preparing for the season as a key member of coach Nancy Barbo’s most excellent girls basketball program at Geneva — made some Star Beacon history this fall.
The daughter of Vern and Rhonda Thompson, Courtney is the first athlete — female or male — to earn Star Beacon Ashtabula County Player of the Year honors in a single sport for four consecutive years.
Previous to her doing so this fall, two of the famous Kapferer sisters — Kelly and Haley — had set the standard by being named Star Beacon Ashtabula County Player of the Year in three consecutive seasons, both doing so for legendary coach Rod Holmes at Jefferson. Kelly did it from 1997-98 through 1999-2000 and Haley matched her older sister, doing so in 2004-05 through 2006-07.
Kelly remains the only county athlete to earn Star Beacon Ashtabula County Player of the Year honors in three straight years — in two sports — having also been named Player of the Year in volleyball in 1997, 1998 and 1999.
With only four years of high school eligibility allowed in Ohio (some states, such as Kentucky, allow an athlete to play at the varsity level starting in the seventh grade, as former Browns quarterback Tim Couch did), Courtney has set a standard that can only be matched and never surpassed.
Courtney’s coach for her career — which encompassed an individual record of 78-18 (.813) at Geneva — was Scott Torok, the Star Beacon Ashtabula County Coach of the Year, who led Geneva to the Premier Athletic Conference championship in its first season in the new loop, becoming the first Geneva team to win a PAC championship.
Terrific trio
While we’re on the subject of Geneva, Barbo and her most excellent staff of her husband, John, and junior-varsity coach Rob DiPofi, will have three, count ’em, three, girls who earned Star Beacon Ashtabula County Player of the Year recognition this fall on the Eagle hardwood this winter.
In addition to Thompson in tennis, Jillian Nazor earned the honor in girls soccer and Taylor Webb did so in volleyball.
This fall marks the first time one school has had three individuals earn Star Beacon Ashtabula County Player of the Year recognition in any single sports season.
Are you kidding?
Two Anchorage men who told investigators they were horsing around with a “redneck flamethrower” set a 5-year-old boy’s head on fire and have been charged with felony assault and reckless endangerment, according to police and court records.
Jonathon Michael Miller, 29, and Stephen Ray Dilley II, 32, were jailed Tuesday after inflicting second-degree burns to the boy's head and singeing his hair with an aerosol sprayer and lighter, according to Alaska State Troopers. The child, who was injured Friday, did not receive medical treatment until arriving at school near his home in Anchor Point on Monday.
In what has to be up for Quote of the Year honors, troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters said: “It was described to the troopers as an accident. I mean a child, two guys, can of Quick Start, Bic lighter: How could this not go wrong?”
According to a troopers' affidavit filed in court, Miller told investigators he's been trying to toughen the boy up and the best way to do it is to “scare the (crap) out of them when they don’t see it coming.”
Asked why the child had not gotten treatment, Miller, uttered another Quote of the Year candidate to investigators, “Why go make bills for yourself over little things?” he said in affidavit.
McCormack is the sports editor of the Star Beacon. Reach him at donmac@suite224.net.
Sports
Related Photos
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COURTNEY THOMPSON of Geneva made Ashtabula County history this fall. BILL WEST
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DON McCORMACK
Discussion
A Don McCormack column: Courting history
Geneva great did just that this fall
- Sports
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Lakers make it four in a row
Amid a sea of pink and a blaze of red all over the court defensively, the Pymatuning Valley Lakers accomplished something many thought they couldn’t at the beginning of the season: Win the Northeastern Athletic Conference championship.
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Scholastic Schedule:
FRIDAY, FEB. 3
Boys Basketball
n Jefferson at Lakeview
n US at Geneva
n Lakeside at Riverside
n PV at Badger
n Mathews at Grand Valley
n Madison at North
n Andrews at Edgewood
n Perry at Chagrin Falls
n Lake Ridge Academy at Grand River Academy -
An appreciation for the past
In 1958, a mere 54 years ago, the Grand Valley High School and Ashtabula County boys basketball career scoring record belonged to Jim Dodd. The ACBF hall of famer scored 1,377 points in his career as a leading post player for the Mustangs.
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ALL-TIME ASHTABULA COUNTY BOYS BASKETBALL SCORING LEADERS:
- RK. PLAYER SCHOOL YEARS POINTS
- 1. A.J. HENSON GRAND VALLEY ’09-'12 1,531
- 2. Matt Zappitelli Conneaut ’85-’88 1,454
- 3. Steve Savel Pymatuning Valley ’05-’08 1,440
- 4. Jim Dodd Grand Valley ’55-’58 1,377
- 5. Adam Schumann Edgewood ’99-’02 1,341
- 6. Frank Zeman Deming ’52-’54 1,338
- 7. Sean Freeman Pymatuning Valley ’87-’90 1,301
- 8. Corey Shontz Pymatuning Valley ’05-’08 1,292
- 9. Fred Scruggs Harbor ’86-’89 1,248
- 10. Randy Linsted Pymatuning Valley ’73-’76 1,223
- 11. Emilio Parks Lakeside ’08-’10 1,221
- 12. Jemal Harris Harbor ’90-’93 1,214
- 13. Chuck Naso Jefferson ’54-’56 1,210
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Geneva doesn’t miss a beat
A team that knocks down half of its shots and takes care of the basketball is awfully difficult to beat. For a half, that’s exactly the kind of team Geneva was in downing Premier Athletic Conference rival Lakeside, 50-32, Wednesday night at Lakeside Gymnasium.
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Abbie answers call
When the game is on the line — no pun intended — it’s nice to have the ball in the hands of the area’s leading free-throw shooter.
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Maplewood too much for GV
The Maplewood girls basketball team has been a traditional power in northern Trumbull County while Grand Valley has struggled in recent seasons.
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Scholastic Statistics:
GIRLS BASKETBALL
PREMIER
Geneva 50, Lakeside 32
at Lakeside Gymnasium -
Area High School Boys Basketball Statistical Leaders:
INDIVIDUAL
POINTS PER GAME
1. Harry Story Lakeside 26.1
2. Cody Blizzard Lakeside 22.4
3. A.J. Henson Grand Valley 19.7
4. Tim Cross PV 17.7
5. Stephon Ortiz Madison 17.2
5. Quintin Ratliff PV 17.2
7. Mitchell Lake Grand Valley 16.3 -
Dibble can’t save Falcons
Gia Dibble scored a game-high 17 points, including a 3-pointer, but the Jefferson seventh-grade girls came up just short against visiting LaBrae on Wednesday, 25-21.
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Lakers make it four in a row
