varsity.roanoke.com

Shelley Blumenthal had a harrowing trip to Maryland on Thursday.

It was worth the trouble.

Blumenthal, who resigned after winning his eighth VHSL Group AA boys' soccer championship at Blacksburg last spring, was named the National Soccer Coaches Association of America Division II high school coach of the year Friday night during a banquet in Baltimore.

For several nerve-wracking minutes Thursday, he wasn't sure if driving up Interstate 81 in a snowstorm was a good idea.

"I got stuck in that 10-mile backup on 81 in Botetourt County," Blumenthal said.

Most Blacksburg road trips with Blumenthal at the helm ended with positive results for Blacksburg's soccer team.

The Bruins finished 23-0-1 after a 2-0 victory over Cave Spring in the Group AA final in June at Radford University. Blumenthal stepped down shortly thereafter with a career record of 313-20-14.

The national Division II award essentially covers schools that would fall into the Group AA or Group A ranks in Virginia, Blumenthal said. The former Blacksburg coach had been eligible for the award on four previous occasions following his selection as South Region coach of the year.

"When you realize how many folks there are out there and you see the records some people have compiled, it can be very humbling," Blumenthal said. "There is a high school coach who is a Lynchburg College graduate like I am, who is 62 now and coaches boys and girls teams in California. His total combined wins are around 1,170."

Also at the banquet, Blacksburg seniors Tim Becker and Matt Becker were named NSCAA Scholar All-Americans for their work on the field and in the classroom during their junior year of 2006-07.

Tim Becker broke Blacksburg's single-season school record for goals with 34, while Matt Becker had 25 goals and 10 assists. Both have 4.21 grade point averages and are National Merit Scholar semifinalists.

"Today at the luncheon Claudio Reyna, the captain of the U.S. men's team; and Christine Lilly, the captain of the U.S. women's team; were there to shake hands with the winners of the scholastic awards," Blumenthal said Saturday. "The twins really like that."

Blumenthal, who resigned as Blacksburg's coach to take a job as a guidance counselor at Roanoke Valley Governor's School for Science and Technology, helped coach the Roanoke College men's team last fall.

A void still exists for Blumenthal, whose first year as Blacksburg's head coach was 1992.

"I love the game, obviously," he said. "It was a big part of my life and continues to be. I'm sure I'm going to miss it. I miss it now."

Blumenthal's shoes are so hard to fill at Blacksburg it will take two people. Former assistants Travis Bishop and Jon Bohland -- a pair of former Blacksburg players -- will serve as co-head coaches for the Bruins this season.

Bishop is a former head coach at Bluefield College, while Bohland was a head coach at Cave Spring for one season as well as a head coach at a private school in North Carolina.

"Both have a fair amount of head coaching experience," Blumenthal said. "I think they complement each other well. Travis is a motivational type, while Jon is a very cerebral coach."

Amherst County stars take VHSCA honors

Virginia Tech-bound Peter Rose and Derrick McCoy of Amherst County were named players of the year on the Virginia High School Coaches Association All-Group AA football team released Saturday.

Rose, the Lancers' quarterback, was named offensive player of the year after leading Amherst to its second Group AA championship with a 56-10 rout of Sherando. McCoy was chosen defensive player of the year by a panel of Group AA coaches.

Blacksburg placed two players on the first team -- offensive tackle Daniel Overstreet and place-kicker Caleb Violette.

Also earning first-team honors were linebacker Tyler Snow of William Byrd, defensive lineman Justin Woods of Bassett, center John Fitzgibbons of Martinsville and offensive guard Dylan Hall of Pulaski County.

Second-team choices from Timesland were tight end George George and defensive end Patrick Pollifrone of Salem, running back/defensive back Martin Scales of Bassett and defensive lineman Dylan Walsh of Rockbridge County.

Hidden Valley's Lombard signs with Charleston Southern

Hidden Valley shortstop Megan Lombard, a first-team All-Timesland selection in 2007, has signed a scholarship to play at Charleston Southern.

Lombard is the second Hidden Valley product to sign with Charleston Southern in the last two years. Former Titan Megan Hall led Charleston in batting with a .277 average last season as a freshman.

Hidden Valley coach Katrina Jeter played for current Charleston Southern coach Jeff Aumend when both were at Queens (N.C.) College.

Lombard batted .492 with six home runs and 25 RBIs last year for Hidden Valley.

She scored 25 runs and had a .532 on-base percentage.

Lombard is the daughter of former VMI basketball player Kelly Lombard. Her mother, Lori, is a former field hockey player at the University of Connecticut.

Dorrell, Lewis win at Asics Invitational

Blacksburg's Peter Dorrell and William Fleming's Kayla Lewis scored victories Saturday at the Asics Invitational track and field meet at Liberty University.

Dorrell won the boys' 3,200-meter run in 9 minutes, 33.40 seconds after claiming the 1,600 on Friday night with a time of 4:19.88.

Lewis took the girls' shot put with a throw of 39 feet.

Blacksburg's Laurel MacMillan grabbed a pair of second-place finishes in the 1,600 (5:10.71) and 3,200 (11:20.35). Salem's Patrick Pollifrone was second in the shot put (49-6).

Kenara Hurt of Liberty placed third in the 300 meters (42.69), while Staunton River's James Bell was third in the pole vault (13-6).

Blacksburg's girls 1,600 relay team was second with a time of 4:21.57.