Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, July 10, 1994 TAG: 9407290009
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB TEITLEBAUM STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
William Fleming's Burrall Paye doesn't know how many boys' basketball games he's coached, but there have been quite a few. On Monday, he will be head coach for the West boys against the East in the second game of a doubleheader at the Hampton Coliseum.
James River's John Shotwell is back for the fifth time. He's on the staff of the West softball team for its game Wednesday. Previously, though, Shotwell coached the West in four boys' basketball games.
He and Paye were on the staff for what is regarded as one of the most memorable upsets of the boys' basketball series, which dates to 1972 in Salem. Before the 1989 game in Lynchburg, the East boys had rolled to seven consecutive victories and were dominating the series.
That year, the West coaching staff that was headed by Magna Vista's Jim Young and included Shotwell and Paye came up with strategy that interrupted the East's domination.
Realizing each player had to play so many minutes, the West coaching staff decided to use some of its strongest players with some of its weakest players. The East played its strongest players together and when its weaker players came into the game together, the West dominated on the way to an 89-74 victory.
``We knew they'd throw their best at us to start. We had some good players all the way down, but we couldn't take our weakest players and hope to do anything,'' Shotwell said. ``So we mixed them [the best and the worst] up. They blended in beautifully.''
It didn't hurt that the West also had a sleeper from Ervinton named Trazel Silvers, who was voted most valuable player for his team and easily was the dominant player on the floor that night.
The West won again in 1990 but since then has lost three. The East has won 10 of the past 12 games, including last year's 106-68 blowout that was the most one-sided in the series' history.
``We're going to have to do some of that this year [inventive strategy] if we're going to win it,'' Paye said. ``We'll take any and all suggestions.
``They [the East] have us outmanned. Not that we don't have good players, because we do. We have to figure some way of maximizing our strength. Our wings [guards and small forwards] are the strongest part of our team.''
The West doesn't have a lot of height behind 6-foot-6 William Fitzgerald of Fleming. It does have excellent shooting guards, headed by Salem's Mark Byington, Northside's Nathan Hungate and Hayfield's Ronnell Felton.
Byington, the Timesland boys' athlete of the year and the Group AA player of the year, is aware of the East's domination in the series. He also is the player who keeps finding ways to beat the odds.
First, he was the catalyst as Salem won the Group AA basketball title. In the spring, Byington played a key role as his doubles team won its match to give the Spartans a 5-4 victory over Blacksburg and the Group AA tennis title. Though Byington had never played high school tennis before this year, he was a big factor in the championship.
Byington won't take credit for finding ways to win.
``I've been lucky in that a lot of things fell into place,'' said Byington, who will attend North Carolina-Wilmington on a basketball scholarship.
He does believe the West usually is battling big odds against the East in boys' basketball.
``I think the Tidewater and Richmond areas are really strong in basketball,'' said Byington, who has played with and against some of the better East players in AAU competition. ``This looks pretty tough because I saw lot of names that I know are good players.''
Byington knows Louisa County's Robert Shelton well; they played AAU basketball together and were opponents in the Group AA championship game. He also has played against Bethel's Tony Rutland, arguably the best Division I prospect this year for public schools in the state. Rutland is headed to Wake Forest.
Byington isn't that concerned about the West's lack of height. One of the team's ``big'' men will be 6-3 Nathan Routt, a teammate of Byington at Salem.
``He may not be taller [than a lot of their players], but he'll be stronger,'' Byington said.
ADDING SPORTS: When Mike Smith took over as the all-star games' director, he recalls there were but four sports - football, boys' and girls' basketball and baseball. Next came softball, and this year volleyball makes its debut Wednesday afternoon at Hampton University.
The growth won't stop there. Smith says boys' soccer will be added next year.
``We probably won't add girls' soccer because fewer than half [the Virginia High School League] schools have girls' teams,'' said Smith, Hampton High School's football coach.
Blacksburg's Meredith Braine, Timesland's volleyball player of the year, is one athlete who profits by the addition of that sport. So does George Wythe's Stacey Green, the Timesland girls' athlete of the year.
``I heard rumors [about adding volleyball],'' Braine said. ``We have one practice, and that's not enough time to get a team together. It's hard when you haven't played with these people before. Everybody's good, though, and we can [at least] put a basic system in within an hour. The longer you work, the better the team can be.''
Green, a solid basketball player, was more proficient in track. With volleyball, it enabled her to grab a spot in the games, since she likely would have been an alternate in basketball.
GAMES BACK IN HAMP-TON: Rumors are flying that Lynchburg will try to get the games and coaching clinic back next summer, but that's not likely to happen.
``It's a year-to-year thing,'' said Smith, who was instrumental in the games and clinic moving to Hampton after eight years in the Hill City. ``Hey, I'm not going out on a limb. I just vote [on the site]. But it stayed in Lynchburg for eight years, and it ought to stay here a little longer. This year, we're getting more people to come here and take a little vacation.''
SHOTWELL COMING BACK: Shotwell said just before his James River team played in the Group A softball championship game that he was retiring from coaching to run his bed and breakfast in Buchanan known as the Berkley House.
He's had second thoughts and will continue to coach softball and golf at James River. It means he likely will be back next year as a softball coach because of his state runner-up status this season.
``Mr. [James River principal Larry] Journell said they'd be losing coaches in eight sports, and if I went it would be 10,'' Shotwell said. ``I have nothing else to do except run this place [the Berkley House]. I have a good group of girls coming back, so I'll coach again.''
STRANGE FEELING: Salem played Northside six times in boys' basketball during the 1993-94 season, and nowhere was there a more fierce rivalry than between Byington and Hungate. In one game, they became tangled and shoved each other while out of the officials' sight as the teams took off downcourt.
Now they're West teammates.
``I talked to Nathan the other night and we're looking forward to it,'' Byington said. ``It's going to feel strange to pass to him instead of defending him.''
TIMESLAND REPLACE-MENT: Grayson County's Shane Griffith, the All-Timesland kicker, has dropped off the West football team and is being replaced by All-Timesland wide receiver McQuail Gravely, who caught 47 passes for 756 yards last season for Martinsville.
by CNB