Three Fatalities Within Three-Day Span

Single-vehicle crashes Tuesday and Sunday took the lives of three county residents, bringing the number of fatalities on Halifax County roads to five, four of those in February.
A 43-year-old Nathalie woman died shortly after noon Tuesday at Halifax Regional Hospital from injuries she sustained when she was ejected from her car, according to state police.
Pamela Charlene Farrar, of Coles Ferry Road, was driving a 2006 Toyota Camry when it ran off the right side of the road, struck two trees, overturned and came to rest on its roof, Sgt. Dave Cooper said.
The crash occurred at 10:27 a.m. Tuesday on Rt. 625, Ellis Creek Road, two miles from Rt. 624, Coles Ferry Road.
Cooper said Farrar was not wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. Trooper D.T. Spencer is the investigating officer.
A South Boston woman and a Virgilina man were pronounced dead at the scene of a single-vehicle crash on Rt. 602 Sunday night, according to state police.
Sergeant Cooper said Sara Newcomb Bridges, 33, of Lowery Road, South Boston, and Victor Carrington Self Jr., 37, of Seventh Street, Virgilina, were passengers in the 1986 Ford Ranger driven by Frederick Alan Quinn, 36, of South Boston.
Cooper said Quinn lost control of the truck, which then ran off the right side of the road, struck a tree and overturned.
Quinn, along with Bridges’ two children, ages 11 and 4, were taken to Halifax Regional Hospital by EMS personnel, Cooper said.
Quinn was transported to Duke University Medical Center, where he is reported in serious condition, a hospital spokesperson said yesterday.
Injuries to the two children were described by Cooper as non-life-threatening. He said none of the five people in the truck was wearing a seat belt.
The accident occurred around 10 p.m. Sunday on Rt. 602, North Fork Church Road, two-tenths of a mile west of Rt. 738, Kingwoods Road.
Cooper said the crash is still under investigation, and charges are pending. Trooper P.W. Leath is the investigating officer.
Farrar, Bridges and Self become the third, fourth and fifth traffic fatalities of the year in Halifax County. A 19-year-old Concord man was killed Feb. 18, in a two-vehicle crash on U.S. 501 at its intersection with Rt. 711.
A county man escaped serious injury in another single-vehicle accident Sunday, according to state police reports.
Trooper P.W. Leath reported that a 1997 Nissan Altima driven by Terry F. Walton, 43, of Cherry Hill Church Road, South Boston, ran off the right side of the road. Walton overcorrected, the car crossed the roadway, ran off the left side, overturned and came to rest on its wheels.
Walton was injured but not transported to the hospital, Leath said.
The crash occurred at 1 a.m. Sunday on Rt. 658, one-tenth of a mile east of U.S. 501.
Leath estimated damage to the Nissan at $1,500. He charged Walton with reckless driving.

HEC In Business Of Art, Design

By Paula I. Bryant
G-V Staff Writer
In an effort to transform the Southside region culturally, socially and economically for global competitiveness, the Higher Education Center (HEC) is developing new higher education degree programs that capitalize on local assets.
HEC Executive Director W. W. “Ted” Bennett and Amy Lammerts, director of Program Development, are convinced a critical part of this region’s future growth and success lies in the bachelor degree completion programs.
Under their leadership, the HEC is now focusing on building clear -cut academic and career pathways that allow students to see and follow a career path from high school and college into the workforce.
“We’re in the business of art and design,” Lammerts said. “We firmly believe design and creativity are the key.”
The current focus is on offering students an abundance of arts and design education and cultural opportunities by developing new bachelor degree programs such as the Wood Science and Design, Forestry, Hospitality and Tourism, and Graphic Arts and Design classes that will be introduced this fall. Also new to the HEC this fall will be the Center for Nursing Excellence.
Wood Science Design and Forestry
The Wood Science Design and Forestry degrees will capitalize on the region’s current assets, according to information provided by HEC officials.
With the loss of textile and manufacturing, forestry has become the largest revenue producer for all rural areas in Virginia. It is a resource people are familiar with and one that is already fully integrated into the economy.
As the region explores other avenues for future economic prosperity, it cannot afford to ignore or neglect an industry that accounts for much of its current employment base and has the potential to account for even more in the future, according to Lammerts.
She explained HEC has hired David Kenealy, a former instructor at Rockingham Community College, to serve as the director of the new wood science program.
In neighboring Charlotte County, forestry and logging employment is 59 times greater than is typical in the rest of the Commonwealth, HEC officials pointed out.
Average weekly wages in forestry and logging are 11 percent higher than the typical average weekly wage in Southern Virginia with the average weekly wages in wood product manufacturing being 13 percent higher, according to information provided by the HEC.
Simply put, HEC officials believe logging, wood products, furniture, and paper manufacturing are important industries for the region, and by developing degrees to expand them, the HEC will strengthen and support the region’s existing economic development efforts.
A natural extension of the region’s forestry base is the expansion of wood science and design because it represents a prime area of economic expansion for this region.
To take advantage of it, Southern Virginia must grow a skilled workforce with the technological and scientific background the wood science and design industry requires.
That’s where the HEC comes in. The center will position the region to meet this demand by leveraging existing partnerships to create a seamless career pathway from high school to a bachelor’s degree and the workforce, according to HEC plans.
HEC has secured support from five Southern Virginia high schools to institute a WoodLINKS USA program here in the fall.
WoodLINKS USA is a grassroots educational program that allows students to enter the program in high school to gain knowledge and training to meet the needs of the global forest products manufacturing industry.
When fall classes begin at two WoodLINKS training labs in Halifax County and Pittsylvania County, students will have an opportunity to be involved in on-site training opportunities at various industries and businesses across Southern Virginia, as well as education training programs on-site.
Students completing the WoodLINKS program in high school will have the ability to continue their education in wood science by enrolling in an associate’s degree program offered at the HEC. They can continue to the baccalaureate program in Wood Science and Design or Forestry provided by Virginia Tech at the HEC.
Those high school students who wish to enter the workforce directly will be prepared with two to three years of hands-on experience using the same machines in labs as professionals use in their everyday work, HEC officials said. This will make students completing the WoodLINKS program immensely more attractive to future employers.
According to Lammerts, Danville Community College already has had an entire class of 18 students from its manufacturing technicial certification program hired by Swedwood North America, a furniture manufacturer and subsidiary of IKEA that is building its North American manufacturing operation in Pittsylvania and Danville.
Hospitality and Tourism
Also slated to begin this fall at HEC is a Hospitality and Tourism degree program designed to support existing economic development efforts, as well as provide crucial input to help this industry expand in the region.
Class offerings slated for 2009 are culinary arts and hospitality.
According to information provided by HEC officials, hospitality and tourism has emerged as one of the leading strategies for rural economic development.
Between 2000 and 2005, while overall employment in the region fell by 8.7 percent, employment in hospitality and tourism actually increased by 1.8 percent. Over the same time period, the average weekly wage in the hospitality and tourism sector increased at a rate of 25 percent.
Design and the Arts
The arts and design program will begin in the fall featuring photography and graphic design classes as the first arts-career, creative building block at the HEC.
Also to be offered this year will be performing arts classes such as dance, voice and instrumental/music.
In 2009, offerings anticipated are theatre and theatre tech using The Prizery theatre.
According to Lammerts, other classes expected by 2009 include architecture, film-making, drawing, painting, animation/gaming, advertising, web design, fashion design and interior design.
The HEC sees the arts as a critical piece in the region’s future growth and prosperity. Just as the areas of science, technology, engineering and math are essential, so are the arts and the cultivation of Southern Virginia’s creative class, HEC officials believe.
Unfortunately, the need and financing of the arts has been lost to the focus on STEM areas, Lammerts said. So much so that the business of art as a career pathway for graphic design, visual and performing arts, ceramics, photography and culinary arts have fallen off the radar screen to numerous educators, school boards and administrators.
Lammerts said Patricia Ward and Lee Sandstead have been hired as coordinators for the Business of Art and Design at the HEC to focus on those students who do not neatly fit into a STEM silo.
With strong emphasis on creativity, the design and arts program will offer graphic, visual, performing, ceramics, photography, and culinary arts.
Lammerts explained she and other HEC officials have visited numerous arts centers in an effort to secure “advising partners” for the HEC’s Business of Art and Design.
In anticipation of expanding the graphic arts program, a team went to Chicago in October to look at similar arts and graphic design offerings in larger urban centers.
She spoke of visits to the Little Black Pearl and Gallery 37, Visual Arts Center, TCC, Marwen Arts Center, Hyde Park Arts Center and Chicago Public Schools After School Matters Program, all in Chicago.
Other advising partners include Virginia Commission for the Arts, Arts Council of the Twin Cities, Abingdon and the National Dance Education Organization.
With an affordable bachelor’s degree program in graphic arts and design, regional high-speed broadband access, and a clear plan to take on the challenges facing the area, HEC officials are betting Southern Virginia will be positioned as a prime attractor of jobs within the creative sector.
Center for Nursing
Excellence
An additional HEC initiative to capitalize on local assets and strengthen the region’s economic development efforts is the Center for Nursing Excellence (CNE).
The CNE will address the regional and statewide challenge of preparing qualified nurses and nurse educators to meet the growing needs of an aging society, according to HEC officials.
Soon to be located in an innovative and flexible nursing education facility at the HEC, the nursing program will feature an instructional delivery model designed to advance the nursing profession in Southern Virginia.
Nettie Simon-Owens, director of Workforce Development, explained the nursing center will serve as a regional hub for existing nursing higher education partners. Together the CNE and its partners will collaborate to continue delivery of traditional nursing education programs as well as develop and implement non-traditional instructional delivery models for multiple levels of nursing education and training.
The Halifax Education Foundation plans to build out 4,175 square feet of existing space at the HEC for the CNE.
Flexible scheduling of classes will allow more interested persons an opportunity to attend the CNE, Simon-Owens said, referring to parents who hold full-time jobs and have other responsibilities but still desire to pursue an education in a nursing field.
Existing nurses will have an opportunity to pursue higher education levels through the Bachelor’s and Master’s of Science in Nursing programs, she added.
Simons-Owen emphasized that healthcare providers including hospitals, nursing homes and doctors’ offices have agreed to support the project as employment partners with the CNE to help ensure employment opportunities for those completing the nursing program.
HEC officials anticipate increased salaries in the nursing profession as a result of the higher education being attained by nursing students at the CNE.
“The CNE will increase educational and workforce training opportunities for the surrounding area leading to higher paying jobs to meet healthcare needs in Southern Virginia,” according to information provided by HEC officials.
Also predicted as a result of the CNE program is an increase in the number of CNAs, PNs and RNs who will be available to fill the nursing shortage which may translate into higher salaries in these high demand professions.
With the multiple new class offerings this fall, HEC officials believe they are headed in the right direction.
The main campus, located on Bruce Street in South Boston, will continue to be used for administration and traditional classroom space to support all the center’s programs.
In addition, HEC has acquired the historic tobacco bag factory, 43,000 square feet that will make an ideal location to expand the graphic art collegiate campus, Bennett said.
Bennett is aware these plans will take time to develop and fund. However, the addition of the bag factory will provide the space needed to expand the art design theme for the whole center’s program with VCU and James Madison University.
According to the HEC executive director, the bag factory building will answer a significant number of space needs and will be the beginning of another campus here.
Also available for HEC use is 27,000 square feet in the former C. H. Friend Elementary School building, according to HEC information.
Bennett said HEC’s future plans, goals and initiatives are aimed at creating a strong, unified region destined for greatness and excellence in a global economy.
“The Southern Virginia Higher Education Center is proud to lead that charge to greatness,” he concluded.
For more information about the Higher Ed Center, persons can contact 572-5440 or toll free at 1-800-283-0098 or visit the website at www.svheducation.org

Turkey Tacos Take Center Stage During Beef Recall

In the wake of a U.S. Department of Agriculture recall of 143 million pounds of beef Sunday, Halifax County school officials took a pro-active stance Monday morning with turkey tacos and grilled cheese sandwiches taking menu center stage.
“We wanted to be pro-active, so we modified our menu, changing ground meat to other items this morning,” said Carolyn Higgins, Halifax County Schools food service supervisor.
“We have not heard from the USDA,” Higgins said yesterday. “Right now, we’re under the impression we have none of the recalled beef, but I’m having food service employees check the freezers to make sure,” Higgins said.
“Since USDA is still updating its list, we’re just not going to serve beef at this point,” added the food services supervisor.
USDA ordered the recall Sunday of millions of pounds of beef from a Southern California slaughterhouse that is the subject of an animal-abuse investigation.
The recall will affect beef products dating to Feb. 1, 2006, that came from Chino-based Westland/Hallmark Meat Co., according to an Associated Press report filed by Greg Risling.
The company provided meat to various federal programs, according to the report.
“Secretary of Agriculture Ed Schafer said his department has evidence that Westland did not routinely contact its veterinarian when cattle became non-ambulatory after passing inspection, violating health regulations,” according to the AP report.
“Because the cattle did not receive complete and proper inspection, Food Safety and Inspection Service has determined them to be unfit for human food and the company is conducting a recall,” Schafer said in a statement.
AP reported that a phone message left for Westland President Steve Mendell was not returned Sunday.
Officials estimated about 37 million pounds of the recalled beef went to school programs, but believe most of the meat probably has already been eaten, according to the AP report.

Obituaries

Sarah Newcomb Bridges
Sarah Newcomb Bridges, 33, of 2201 Buckshoal Road, Virgilina died February 17, 2008.
Mrs. Bridges was born October 14, 1974, in Halifax County the daughter of Carl Newcomb and the late Jane Walker Newcomb, and was married to Jeffrey Bridges. She was of the Baptist faith.
Survivors include her husband of South Boston; her father of Virgilina; three sons, Dakota Wayne Williams of Virgilina, Lane Neal Bridges and Hunter Dale Bridges, both of South Boston; and one daughter, Sierra Nicole Williams of Texas.
The family will receive friends this evening, February 20, from 7:00 to 8:30, at Brooks Funeral Home, and other times at the home of her father, 2201 Buckshoal Road, Virgilina.
Funeral services for Mrs. Bridges will be held tomorrow, February 21, at 2 p.m. at Brooks Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Jack Stewart officiating. Burial will follow in Oak Ridge Cemetery.
Online condolences may be sent to brooksfh@embarqmail.com

Hazel Winn Carmichael
Hazel Winn Carmichael, 77, of 3009 Cherry Hill Church Road, South Boston died February 17, 2008, at Halifax Regional Hospital.
Mrs. Carmichael was born January 15, 1931, in Roxboro, N .C. the daughter of the late George Edward Winn and Mattie Slaughter Winn, and was married to the late Harry J. Carmichael. She was a member of Mount Cana United Methodist Church.
Survivors include two daughters, Katherine C. Whitt and husband, Warren, of South Boston, and Joan C. Benson of Roanoke; three brothers, George Winn Jr., Charles Winn and Billy Winn, all of Richmond; three sisters, Frances Jackson of Chase City, Barbara Jean Wade of Bumpass and Gloria Winn; six grandchildren; and nine great-grandchildren.
Funeral services for Mrs. Carmichael will be held today, February 20, at 2 p.m. at Brooks Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Dana Mitchell Cook officiating. Burial will follow in Shady Grove UMC Cemetery.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider the American Diabetes Association, P.O. Box 2680, North Canton, Ohio 44720.
Online condolences may be sent to brooksfh@embarqmail.com

Thomas Kent McDowell Sr.
Thomas Kent McDowell Sr., 87, of 11221 Chatham Road, Vernon Hill died February 18, 2008, at Halifax Regional Hospital
Mr. McDowell was born in Halifax County September 12, 1920, the son of the late Alvin Walker McDowell Sr. and Hester Kent McDowell and was married to Dorothy Reaves McDowell, who survives.
Mr. McDowell was a member of County Line Baptist Church where he was a deacon, Sunday school teacher and past Superintendent. He was a former member of the Halifax County School Board having served for over 25 years. He was a tobacco and cattle farmer as well as owner/operator of a tobacco warehouse. Mr. McDowell was a World War II Navy Veteran.
Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Patricia M. Taylor and husband, Robert, of Honaker, and Betsy M. Nissley and husband, Dennis, of Crozet; two sons, Thomas Kent McDowell Jr. and wife, Phyllis, and Michael H. McDowell and wife, Wanda, all of Vernon Hill; nine grandchildren, Thomas Brian Taylor, of Raleigh, N.C., Anne Marie Gillespie of Knoxville, Tenn., Kevin Wade Toms of Richmond, Kent Wilson Toms of Crozet, Gregory Kent McDowell of Nathalie, Melissa Denise Colwell and Angela Diane Collins, both of South Boston, Bridget Ellen McDowell of Richmond, and Michael Weston McDowell of Blacksburg; seven great-grandchildren; two step-grandchildren, Brian Dale Tanksley of Gretna, and Brandon Drew Tanksley of Clover; and three step-great-grandchildren.
Funeral services for Mr. McDowell will be held today, February 20, at 2 p.m. at County Line Baptist Church with the Revs. John Campbell and Doug Gibson officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery with Military Rites.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider County Line Baptist Church, 13146 Chatham Road, Java, 24565.

Eddie ‘Billy’ Penick
Eddie ‘Billy’ Penick, 64, of Brooklyn, N.Y., formerly of Halifax County, died in New York.
Mr. Penick was born February 22, 1943, in Halifax County to the late George C. Penick and Lillian Chandler Penick.
Survivors of Mr. Penick include his wife, Diane Penick of the home; one daughter, Gwendolyn Penick of Glen Burnie, Md.; one son, Tyson Penick of Amityville, N.Y.; four brothers, General Grant Chandler, William Penick, Alexander Penick and Charles Penick, all of Halifax; four sisters, Dorothy Penick of Brooklyn, Ernestine Phillips of Queens, N.Y., Denise Stewart of Clover and Leola Carden of Ga.; two grandchildren; a devoted sister-in-law, Sofia Henderson; and other relatives and friends.
Two brothers, John Henry Chandler and James Chandler; and one sister, Edith Croker, also preceded Mr. Penick in death.
Funeral services will be held today, February 21, in New York.

Victor Carrington Self Jr.
Victor Carrington Self Jr., 37, of 9593 Hwy. 96N., Oxford, N.C. died February 17, 2008.
Mr. Self was born September 8, 1970, in Harrisburg, Pa., the son of the late Victor Carrington Self Sr. and Brenda Price Self.
Survivors include his mother of Virgilina; his grandmother, Etta D. Price of Virgilina; one sister, Tracy Self Greenway; one niece, Brittany Bowling; one nephew, Dylan Bowling, all of Oxford; and his girlfriend, Charlotte Wilborn of Clover.
The family will receive friends tomorrow, February 21, from 12:30 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., at Calvary Baptist Church, and other times at the home of his mother.
Funeral services for Mr. Self will immediately follow the visitation at 2 p.m. Burial will be in Virgilina Cemetery.
Online condolences may be sent to brooksfh@embarqmail.com

Winnie Wilborn Newby
Winnie Wilborn Newby, 84, of 1062 Wallace Cole Road, South Boston died February 19, 2008, at Halifax Regional Hospital.
Mrs. Newby was born July 6, 1923, in Halifax County the daughter of the late Herbert Wilborn and Lillie Conner Wilborn, and was married to the late Walter Lee Newby. She was a member of Ash Avenue Baptist Church and a retiree of J.P. Stevens.
Survivors include two sisters, Lula Wilborne and Betty Wazeka and husband, Bobby, of South Boston; and a number of nieces and nephews.
Four sisters, Margaret Bane, Martha Newby, Janie Sue Frazier and Barbara Puryear; and one brother, William Wilborn, also preceded Mrs. Newby in death.
The family will receive friends at Brooks Funeral Home this evening, February 20, from 7:00 to 8:30.
Funeral services for Mrs. Newby will be held tomorrow, February 21, at 4 p.m. at Brooks Funeral Home with the Rev. John Eure officiating. Burial will follow in Oak Ridge Cemetery.
Online condolences may be sent to brooksfh@embarqmail.com

Comets End Season With Loss To PH

By Joe Chandler
Sports Editor
For the first 16 minutes, the Halifax County High School varsity boys basketball team played as well as it had at any time during the season.
Playing on the road Monday night in the quarterfinals of the Western Valley District Tournament, the Comets forged a seven-point 27-20 lead at halftime over Patrick Henry, a team that had thrashed the Comets by 18 points five days earlier.
“The first half, they out-hustled us,” remarked Patrick Henry coach Jack Esworthy.
“They out-executed us. They wanted it much more than we did.”
Esworthy said that during the halftime break he and his players could hear Comets players shouting in celebration from the visitor’s dressing room, the rear of which was separated from the Patriots’ locker room by a wall.
“They were hyped,” Esworthy pointed out.
“Just last Wednesday we beat them 70-52 here. Up seven points at half? I would have been feeling pretty darn good about things, too.”
The good feeling didn’t last for the Comets.
A slow start by the Comets and an inability by the Comets to handle the Patriots’ ramped up defensive pressure in the second half allowed Patrick Henry to escape with a 50-47 win.
With the win, Patrick Henry advanced to face regular season champion and the state’s second-ranked team, GW, in last night’s district tournament semifinal game in Danville.
“The game was not won by them, it was lost by us,” said Comets coach Lynn Ramage whose team finished the season with a 12-11 overall record.
“We beat ourselves. The things we did in the first half, we didn’t do in the second half. It boiled down to who wanted it the most. I don’t doubt that we wanted it, but I think they (PH) wanted it more.”
The Comets held their own throughout the first half and, with a 7-0 run in the final 1:14 of the first half that included two baskets from Hakeem Ager, the Comets ran out to a seven-point edge at halftime.
Patrick Henry got back into the game with two baskets in the first 1:21 of the second half and used a quick 6-0 spurt near the midway point of the third quarter to take the lead at 34-33.
Two free throws from Kejuan Mayo got the lead back for the Comets with 3:14 left in the quarter. Those were the last points the Comets would score in the period. The Patriots, taking advantage of its defensive pressure, scored five unanswered points and led 39-35 at the end of the third quarter.
“They (Patrick Henry just double-teamed the ball,” Ramage pointed out.
“We handled it the first half but, for some reason, we didn’t handle it in the second half. We knew what they were doing. The first half we found the open people but, in the second half, for some reason, we couldn’t find the open person.”
Still, the Comets found a way to claw themselves back into contention. Durrell Chandler tied the game for the Comets with two free throws with 2:55 to play.
With the Comets trailing 45-43, Deshon Dabbs drove down the middle of the lane and sank a lay-up with 1:09 left in the contest. But, officials cited Dabbs for an offensive foul when he made contact with the Patriots’ Terrell Wilson and Wilson fell to the floor, taking away the game-tying basket.
With the Patriots up by four points, the Comets got a lay-up from Michael Ferrell with 27.3 seconds left to make it a two-point game. Wilson hit one of two free throw attempts with 24.4 seconds left to put Patrick Henry up by three points.
The Comets initially looked for a three-point shot on their ensuing possession but didn’t get it. They did, however get an easy three-foot jumper from Mayo to cut the Patriots’ lead to a point at 48-47 with 7.3 seconds left.
Patrick Henry’s Melvin Henderson sank two free throws with 1.7 seconds left to put the Patriots back up by three points. A desperation three-quarter court shot by Ferrell at the buzzer fell way wide of its mark, leaving the Patriots with the three-point win.
Esworthy called the charging foul against Dabbs “a game-changer.” Ramage called it the key play of the game. Yet, the Comets coach pointed out that the one play did not cause his team to lose the game.
“I don’t blame that charge for us losing the game,” Ramage said.
“The thing was we had a seven-point lead at halftime and we didn’t execute (in the second half). We had a chance to put them away.”

Slow Start Cripples Lady Comets In Loss To PH

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff WRiter
Another slow start turned into a bad finish to the season for the Comets varsity girls basketball team with a 61-45 loss at Patrick Henry Monday in the quarterfinals of the Western Valley District Tournament.
Patrick Henry tallied the last six points of the opening quarter to lead 11-4, and extended the lead to 25-12 by halftime and 41-18 after three quarters.
Halifax hit four three-pointers in the fourth quarter and closed to within 55-42 with less than a minute remaining, but got no closer.
Whitney McCargo led Halifax with 13 points, while Tiffany Wilson scored nine and Destiny Betts, Lauren Daniel and Nia Brown finished with five points apiece.
Shauna Harris and Melyse Brown each added three and Miyisha Younger two points for the Comets, which finished the season with a 10-13 record.
Bianca Jones and Latoya Flint led Patrick Henry with 23 and 15 points, respectively, while Lesha Walker and Sarah Williams each added eight.
“We made the same mistakes for most of this season, and that’s on me for not being able to correct those problems,” said Comets coach Ray Reaves.
“We knew at the beginning of the season that we were young and inexperienced and that we had some growing to do as basketball players.
“The talent is there, and we never questioned the fact that we have a talented team, but the inexperience showed tonight.
“Not taking the open shots in a big game like tonight, that’s a young mistake, and there were a lot of other little things...”
Patrick Henry coach Toree Morris said that her team was able to get the ball inside early to center Lesha Walker early for some close-in looks at the basket.
That opened things up for everyone else on offense, and the Patriots also played well on defense, she added.
Having the home court advantage also played a key role.
“Especially with this tournament where you have to travel so far. It would be nice just to have one site where everyone went to, so it’s not a disadvantage,” said Morris.
“I know that if we had to travel to Halifax for the first round, ride for two and a half-hours and get off the bus to play, it would be difficult.
“We have to go to Danville tomorrow, so it’s going to be the same for us.”
Halifax had six turnovers and scored only two baskets in the first quarter, buckets by Betts and McCargo, and it was 21-4 before Betts scored on a putback midway through the second period.
McCargo and Daniel hit field goals and Nia Brown and Betts added made foul shots to close out the first half, but the Comets faced a 13-point deficit.
Patrick Henry outscored Halifax 16-6 in the third quarter, with Wilson and Nia Brown knocking down baskets and Younger two free throws, as the Patriots’ lead grew to 41-18.
Halifax attempted to rally in the fourth quarter, scoring 27 points, but the comeback came too late.
McCargo, Harris, Wilson and Daniel all knocked down three-pointers in the quarter, while McCargo added a pair of two-pointers and Wilson another.
Daniel’s trey made it 57-45 with 30 seconds left, but that was as close as the Comets would get.
Monday’s game was the last for Comets seniors Shauna Harris and Mary Beale, and Reaves said he wished that the outcome had been different for their sakes.
“I hate it for Shauna, she’s been with us four years and she’s been a tremendous asset in helping our program move in the right direction,” said Reaves
“I just feel bad for her to have to go out this way after missing a lot of the regular season with an injury, and she wasn’t 100 percent tonight.”
“It’s a disappointing loss, especially against a team we thought we could beat, because I feel we have as many weapons as they do.
“We just couldn’t take care of business on the court, and some of that’s on me, but the girls have to step up and be responsible for what they have to do as well.”
Melyse Brown also wasn’t at 100 percent for Monday’s game and the Comets lost Betts to an injury before halftime, but Reaves did not use the injuries as an excuse for the loss.
“We can’t use that as an excuse. It may have taken a little wind out of us when Destiny went down, because we were already struggling and trying to find our way through the game.
“It took a lot out of us, and I hope she’s alright.”
There is hope for the future, with only Harris and Beale graduating from the Comets’ roster, according to Reaves.
“I told them to take some time off, relax and get this out of their system.
“They have to take a break sometimes, and this is a good time to take two or three weeks off before getting back into the gym.
“The talent is there, so is the heart and determination, and that’s something you can’t teach.”

Industrial League All-Stars Go Overtime For Win

The South Boston Business & Industrial Basketball League all-stars, behind 34 points from game MVP Rodney Palmer, went overtime Sunday to defeat the D.C. Blazers 98-94.
Jay Jones, who finished with 26 points for the Blazers, hit one of two from the line with four seconds remaining in regulation to send the game to the extra session.
Palmer scored nine of his 34 points in overtime to help his team seal the win.
Palmer finished with two three-pointers and hit six of eight free throw attempts, while Joey Barksdale had 14 points, including four three-pointers and a 2-2 game at the foul line.
Clyde Waller added 11 points for the Industrial all-stars, including a trey.
The Blazers were led in scoring by James Siebles, who finished with 28 points, including one three-pointer and a 7-11 game from the foul line.
Jones hit eight of 10 free throw attempts and finished with 26 points, while Sean Royster added 18 points, including a pair of three-pointers.