Beamerball

Yep...forum probably just went down.

I remeber that story too, lee_fan. I had a teacher there that told us about it once, and he said they were cursed also. Maybe it isn't Richlands then. I'm sure you didn't mind seeing the two teams play good hard fought games, either Bigblue, I know I did. It's a shame we haven't seen those types of games with teams like Richlands anymore, hopefully Lee can break the "curse" someday. Richlands and Lee won't be playing each other next season, will they? I always enjoyed seeing the two bands go at it, even if the game wasn't worth watching the bands made it enjoyable.

Virginia High 5 Lee High 3 Once again, another big game, and another close one with too many errors( Lee commits 5), not going to win these key games with these costly errors. BEN HUR - Kevin Morrison went 2-for-3 and knocked in two to lead Virginia High (5-3, 1-0) past the Generals (5-2, 0-1) in Highlands District play. Matt Grimes struck out nine on his way to the victory. Reliever Preston Smith closed out the seventh for the save. Chaz Garrett went 2-for-2 with two RBIs for Lee High. Scoring: Virginia High 000 202 1 -5 7 2 Lee High 001 000 2 -3 5 5

Well..I want to see anybody but Abingdon, Marion, or Va High win it..lol. You know, I think Richlands somehow placed a curse on Lee. The Region playoff game between Lee and Richlands in 1998. A team that in 97' went 5-5 in the regular season and ended up making it to the state semi-finals only to lose by a field goal to Heritage. Then in 1998 a 8-1 record heading into that game, with already having beat Richlands(i beleive, correct me if i'm wrong) by a pretty big margin of victory(from what i remeber) and great running game with Buchannan at qb and Satterfield in the backfield (he rushed for 1878 yards that year). Ended up losing that game 24-12, in a game that play was greatly affected by the rain. Still to this day I believe something happenend on that day, and they are cursed. Maybe its just me, I don't know, but its just so weird going from some very good early years, state semi-finalists, then to a very good 8-2 team the next season, and then finally just falling apart the next season and never recovering the seasons after. So, is that it? You guys cursed Lee. REVERSE THE CURSE.

3-7...that would be their best record since 99'. Lets see 8-2 in 98' and 3-7 in 99', so 3-7 this season and 8-2 next season..umm, okay maybe not. Don't go crazy everyone, I can dream if I want to..lol. If only we didnt have an ignorant school board and could have actually found a good coach after Don Williams left. Oh, the good ole days.

Wow...its been a while since I've heard that...lol Who know's though, you may be right...hahaha

Well, bearing some possible laughter at my post and this thread, i've got to throw this one in. Best QB...Matt Perdue of Lee High. He still managed to throw for over 1,000 yards as a Junior last season, with a young and not very impressive recieving core, that just got thinner as the season went along, and offensive line that had troulbe blocking anything all season long. A couple of D-lineman that are suppossed to be again this year for Va High too.

Lee beats Cumberland Gap, TN 20-0 in 3 innings of play. Pounded out 7 doubles and a triple in the contest. Next game is against Virginia High on Thursday.

Lee beat Appy 12-1. Next game is Wednesday against Cumberland Gap, TN, before the key game against Virginia High on Friday.

Yeah, I guess its like "G" said, the issue is dead at the moment, however I did see this in the k-times news today. What else is new though? Its not like no one knew this already. Like the writer says, "it's no secret." I guess its just another reminder that eventually consolidation will happen in Wise, and it probably (and unfortunately for them) will be Appy. Seems like there is no way around it. Almost like a disease affecting southewst virginia spreading slowly throughout each county moving west to east..lol. Seriously though, I'd say Wise will have to go through the consolidation process sooner or later. http://www.timesnews.net/article.dna?_StoryID=3486953 Declining enrollment fuels Wise County consolidation debate Tuesday, April 05, 2005 By STEPHEN IGO Times-News WISE - It is no secret Wise County's public school enrollment has steadily declined during the past three decades. But enrollment is just one of many factors - renovations required for aging high school facilities is another - fueling the consolidation debate. Last month the Wise County School Board fired Superintendent Michael Basham after he revealed his recommendation that the board close three of the county's six high schools - Pound, St. Paul and Appalachia. The public uproar ended Basham's tenure, but the real debate over the long-term future of the school division may have just begun. In the 1970s the school division served far more high school students than today. The existing high schools were themselves built to serve a new era of students. For example, Powell Valley High School is a mid-1950s consolidation of aging high school buildings in Big Stone Gap and East Stone Gap. Many residents in East Stone Gap at the time opposed the closure of their school, but PVHS is as much a fixture on the high school scene now as its predecessors were during the previous decades. Five of the county's six high schools were built in the 1950s. St. Paul was built in the 1960s. Ron Vickers, supervisor of business and finance for the school division, says data on the target maximum student population for those buildings isn't available. "There's nothing solid to really set my feet on," Vickers said of his search. Instead, Vickers referred to the resource management study conducted by Richmond-based Commonwealth Educational Policy Institute (CEPI), which focused its analysis not on maximum capacities of whole buildings, but individual classrooms in the six high schools. CEPI pointed out that the average size of a high school classroom in Wise County is about 400 square feet. The norm for modern schools is between 600 and 700 square feet. Wise County's declining student enrollment trend began in the mid-1970s. In 1977-78 there were 9,965 students attending elementary and high schools in Wise County. Five years later (1981-82) the total had slipped to 9,750. There were 3,513 secondary - or high school, grades 8-12 - students in 1977-78, and by 1981-82 the total number of high school students was 3,378. By 1991-92 the combined elementary and secondary head count was 8,448, and by 1995-96 the total had slipped again to 7,882. The total number of 8th- through 12th-grade secondary students was 3,397 in 1991-92 and 3,313 by 1995-96. In the three school years between that five-year period of the early 1990s, the high school population had actually rebounded to a high of 3,476. By 2000-01 the total student population was down to 6,951. In 2002-03 it was 6,749; in 2003-04 it was 6,693. For the current school year it is 6,674. Compared to the total student population of the mid- to late-1970s, that's a decline of more than 30 percent. Looking at enrollment numbers over the decades for individual high schools is skewed somewhat because Pound High School once included seventh-graders and eighth-graders in the count, and now only grades 9-12. Powell Valley houses only grades 9-12, and the other four - J.J. Kelly, Coeburn, Appalachia and St. Paul - are home to grades 8-12. Still, the downward enrollment trend seems to have hit some high schools more than others. St. Paul High School has always been the smallest in terms of student enrollment and is also the only one of the six that has exhibited a stable student population since the late 1970s. It has maintained a total student body of about of 200 students. The most drastic declines at the other high schools seem to have taken a grip from the mid-1990s onward. For example, Pound had 505 students in 1977-78; 490 five years later in 1981-82; back up to 524 in 1991-92; and 504 in 1995-96. That's a 15-year stretch of enrollment stability in defiance of the overall trend. By 2000-01, however, that trend had more than caught up with Pound. That year it had 312 students, a loss of nearly 200 in just five years. There are 265 students attending Pound High School this school year compared to 524 in 1991-92. The other span-of-time enrollment glimpses at each of the other five high schools are: • Appalachia: 429 students in 1977-78 and 367 by 1981-82; 406 in 1991-92 and 358 by 1995-96; and 246 in 2001-01, 266 this school year. • Coeburn: 659 in 1977-78; 686 in 1981-82; 675 in 1991-92; 706 in 1995-96; 431 in 2000-01; and 403 this school year. • J.J. Kelly (Wise): 952 students in 1977-78; 859 by 1981-82; 843 in 1991-92; 791 by 1995-96; 590 in 2000-01; and 502 this school year. • Powell Valley (Big Stone Gap): 768 students in 1977-78; 778 by 1981-82; 688 in 1991-92; and 640 by 1995-96; 551 in 2000-01; and 494 this school year. • St. Paul: 200 in 1977-78; 198 in 1981-82; 184 in 1991-92; 223 in 1995-96; 206 in 2000-01; and 202 this school year with a low of 186 during the most recent five-year period recorded in 2003-04.

Well after Lee's opening season 12-4 win over Powell Valley, I thought so far so good maybe they will be really good this season. With about 3 innings left in the Lee High/Sullivan Central game last night once agian I was thinking the same thing, but man did that fade quickly. Maybe if they learn to catch fly balls under the lights then maybe there's a chance the season still will be a good one. Oh well, still Lee should've won this game. Central topples Lee 13-4 BY ALLEN LAMOUNTAIN Sports Correspondent TriCities.com Mar 31, 4:00 AM EST BLOUNTVILLE – Rallying from a four-run deficit with an explosive seven-run fifth inning, Sullivan Central toppled Lee High 13-4. The Cougars staked the Generals an early lead when Hank Middleton ripped a three-run home run to cap the top of the third inning off Central starter Jesse Lane, giving Lee a 4-0 lead. Middleton’s blast was the only hit in the inning for Lee (1-1), which saw designated hitter Matt Purdue get hit by a pitch from Lane and then Chas Garrett was walked. Middleton crushed a 2-1 pitch off the scoreboard in left field. Garrett pitched four and one-third innings before his defense let him down with eight errors leading to two huge innings for Central. "We just couldn’t catch a fly ball," said Generals head coach Roger Morris. "I don’t know if it’s the lights, not being used to the lights. This is just our second game of the season and we will be taking flyball practice under the lights." The Cougars (6-4) scored seven runs in the fifth with Lee giving up three errors to allow Central runners to circle the bases. Jeff Beverly (2-3, 2 runs, RBI) drilled a run-scoring double to right field in the stanza and Nathan Dinkle (2-4, run, RBI) plated a run with a double to center as well. Sophomore lefty Zach Nussman went 3-for-4 with three runs scored and an RBI, also delivered an inning and one-third of solid relief before tiring in the sixth and leaving with the bases loaded and no one out in an 8-4 contest. Enter right-hander A.J. Phelps, who already has two wins and a save this season. Phelps retired J.T. Coleman on a comebacker to the mound and the put out at the plate erased Generals shortstop Obie Torres. Phelps then struck out both catcher Howard Elliott and Purdue to get Central out of a jam. Central (6-4) struck for five more runs in the sixth with Jonathan Toler delivering a base knock RBI in the inning. Torres finished 3-4 for the Generals with a run scored and center fielder. Lee High 103 000 0 – 4 6 8 Sullivan Central 000 175 x – 13 10 4 SC – Farmer and Lane, Nussman (4) and Phelps (6). LH – Elliott and Garrett, Purdue (4) and Mullins (6).

From now on when I need to burn something I will start singing country roads while burning everything up...lol. West Viginiaaa...Mountain Mamaa...take me hooome....country roads..YEAH!

Yeah, thats probably when it was.

I don't know exactly. I thought that they won the state competition this year, but I really don't know. I do know they placed 4th overall in the National FFA Forestry contest in Louisville this year.

LOL....that reminds me that I should've posted about this a while back. Lee High State FFA Forestry champs..and they placed fourth in the National FFA Forestry contest. Sorry I had to post that somewhere. Maybe Lee is the most redneck now. Ummm, no, I doubt it.

LOL....now instead of Lee county being the OC capital, it's Tazewell County who takes over as king of Oxy's.

Here are the only schedules I could find from the schools websites: Virginia High: http://www.bristolvaschools.org/vhs/athletics/softball/softball.htm Abingdon: http://ahs.wcs.k12.va.us/ath_schedules.htm Marion: http://www.scsb.org/mshs/sports/marionsoftball/varsityschedule.htm Richlands: http://tazewell.k12.va.us/schools/rhs/softball.htm

Link to Lee's schedule... http://vhsl.sportscombine.com/scripts/p_tm_story.asp?t=220503 I wouldn't call it tough but i wouldn't call it easy either. Middlesboro, KY.(39-4 last year made it State, Va High, and Abingdon are the toughest teams on the schedule this year, don't know anything about Cumberland Gap. Rye Cove and JJ Kelly aren't exactly push overs either. Would like to see Castlewood and Tazewell back on the schedule this year again, rather than Cawood and Appalachia, then I could say Lee has a pretty tough schedule. I think Lee could toughen up on the schedule to get them a little more prepared for post-season. This might be Lee's best year if everything goes like it should. I have no clue about Abingdon's schedule.

Lee High 16 Powell Valley 4 Milligan signee Laken Stewart had a homerun, a doulbe, 3 runs, and 5 RBI's in the game. PV issued 12 walks and Lee had 12 stolen bases in the game. Good start to the season girls.

I thought this was funny..so I have to post about it. I read on the CD forum that fromer Lee High and current Thomas Walker coach Brian Lee, could be going to John Battle to coach. Anyone heard about this one? His greatest accomplishment that I know of in coaching, is taking a poor performing TW football team and turning them into a halfway decent team, other than that I don't know what JSB would see in him.

Nope....they lost to Abingdon in the first round of the district tournament. Marion and Abingdon advanced to Region. I believe Virginia High's only wins in district were against Marion once and the game near the end of the season against Abingdon.

Well...it looks like those schools will stay open. Wise County School Board fires superintendent Tuesday, March 15, 2005 By STEPHEN IGO Times-News WISE - A packed house roared with approval Monday when Wise County School Board member Robert Mullins announced "severance and termination" of Michael Basham as the county school division's superintendent, following Basham's proposal last week to close three high schools at the end of this school year. Monday's school board session needed all the seating J.J. Kelly High School's auditorium had to offer and then some. The Virginia State Police, county deputies and town of Wise police officers were also well-represented, and while the throng was often boisterous, it was also good-natured throughout. A neighborly, even cheery attitude and patience were in abundance and needed. The school board went into closed session immediately upon convening in order to discuss a personnel matter involving termination, resignation or reassignment. By the end of the evening's first closed session, the crowd joined to clap and shout in unison: "We're not leaving." After the board reconvened, Mullins announced that Basham "is terminated as of this evening." Mullins said the reason for the lengthy closed session was the hammering out of "an agreement in principle" between Basham's attorney, the school board and the board's legal counsel. Mullins said the terms of severance still had a few minor points to clear up, requiring yet another closed session. The crowd shared a groan and a few scattered shouts of discontentment, but board member Ann Gregory explained the legal requirements all school boards must abide. "We appreciate your patience. We understand this is very trying," Gregory said. She urged the public to appreciate the school board's responsibility to discharge its duties as required by law. Personnel matters involve privacy protections and are one of the allowable exceptions to public meetings under the Freedom of Information Act. Mullins did not specify what the continuing negotiations in closed session would involve, but Basham has about three years left on his current contract, which would imply contract buyout talks were part of Monday's deliberations behind closed doors. Supervisor John Peace II, who served as the chairman of that board last year and was one of a number of supervisors present Monday, said during the second closed session it was "sad it came to this point." "The main thing the people want is options," Peace said. "They want facts and figures and a well-thought-out plan well ahead of ... well, well ahead of the end of this school year. The way this all came about wasn't right. It's just real sad we couldn't have worked together." School consolidation has festered for at least the past three years in Wise County, after Appalachia High School was the only one of six high schools in the county left out of a long-range, $54 million renovations plan approved by the school board. Appalachia residents have accused the board and Basham of harboring secret plans to spring a consolidation scheme on the county ever since. Things began to heat up last fall when the school board agreed, 5-3, to Basham's proposal to hire an outside consultant to provide a resource management study. Again, Appalachia residents sounded the alarm that the study was a ploy to bring consolidation into the county via a back door. Last month when the Commonwealth Educational Policy Institute of Richmond presented the study, suspicions of consolidation coalesced. During the CEPI presentation, school board Chairwoman Margaret Craft promised the public an opportunity to comment on the study at a later date. However, last week began a series of unexpected moves on different fronts that brought a simmering situation to the boiling point. On Monday, citizens in St. Paul and Appalachia asked the Wise County Circuit Court to grant an injunction declaring the CEPI study illegal, and to enjoin Basham from using it to recommend consolidation. On Wednesday, Basham made public his intention to recommend to the board - during Monday's meeting at J.J. Kelly High - the closure of St. Paul, Appalachia and Pound high schools at the end of the current school year. The announcement touched off a furor in Wise County. On Thursday, the Wise County Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution opposing consolidation and directed the county administrator to explore options and recommendations for the future of the school division wholly separate from the school board. On Friday, Basham rescinded his school closures proposal because of the mood of the communities and the resolution approved by the supervisors.

Well, this one I don't TOTALLY agree with (to some extent I do), but lately I've noticed that Lee is the "cry babies" and yes,for a good reason. I just see it a little differently than some of you...as in I see it as school board and the county rather than the school as a whole, but anyway there's that one. Some percieve Abingdon students as the "sons and daughters of all d'em doctors and lawyers."(have to say it in your best hick tone or it just doesn't seem to sound right, lol)

All I know is that Lord Botetour beat Carroll in the State Quaterfinals, they were up 42-20 with around 5 minutes to go, from what I hear. I don't know any finals score. The other scores are as follows: Magna Vista 51 Hidden Valley 46 Charlotesville 78 Bruton 61 Spotswood 69 Riverbend 54 Semis....Fri. March, 11, at Siegel Center Charlotesville vs. Lord Botetourt, 3:00 p.m. Spotswood vs. Magna Vista, 7:00 p.m.

Key phrase is, "if he does good". As long as he doesn't let the "special kids" parents get involved things should go well. I don't expect too much from them this year but give him a couple of years and maybe things will happen, but who knows maybe he can make it happen this year, I guess we'll find out soon. I heard stories of how he took 30 boys from Keokee, which was probably just about every male in that school, and kicked everyone's butt in the old Cumberland district. He's not to worried about wins this season (that's why I don't expect too much this season), he's more into building a succesfull program, and doing things other coaches never could seem to do. They say he is known for working with 5th and 6th graders, bringing them up, which is also another good thing for Lee. Here is a link to forum where a few people from Kentucky had a little to say about him after news of his leaving Cumberland. http://www.bluegrasspreps.com/showthread.php?t=42653