Supervisors Tackle $98 Million Budget

Supervisors got down to work Monday night on the 2008-09 county budget proposal totaling $98.4 million.
In their first budget work session, supervisors began tackling the $5.7 million gap between expected revenues and anticipated expenses.
This year’s budget represents a 5.25 percent decrease from the current budget that totals $103.8 million, a decrease due to completion of the $61 million school construction program, according to County Administrator Bryan Foster.
Even though the total budget has decreased, the fiscal strain on the county continues to increase, he said pointing to the gap between expected revenues and expenses.
When compared, the original budget requests from all departments and agencies versus the expected revenue has resulted in a deficit of approximately $5.7 million.
If this deficit were to be eliminated solely by increasing the real estate tax, Foster told supervisors the rate would need to be increased by 16 cents to a new rate of 57.5 cents per $100 of assessed value.
Creating this deficit are large ticket items for which there are no corresponding increases in revenue.
Topping the list of items blamed for the deficit is increased funding to schools. Trustees are asking for an additional $2,671,050 in local funding over last year’s allocation of $13,242,430, representing a 20.17 percent increase.
Other increases from the current budget include:
n Landfill tipping fees increasing by $800,000 and landfill transportation fees up by $500,000 for a total of $1.3 million, due to the cost of transporting solid waste to the regional landfill in Mecklenburg County;
n Industrial Development Authority seeking an additional $182,793;
n Social Services asking for an increase of $211,000 over the current year’s budget; and
n Two new expenses in the proposed budget including capital projects totaling $650,000 and new debt service for the transfer station totaling $197,000.
All of these combined increases and new expenses total $5,211,843, a huge chunk of the $5.7 million deficit supervisors are facing.
Monday night, supervisors limited their discussion to an overview of the budget and individual departments, but opted to discuss school funding in detail at next Monday night’s meeting when they will meet with the school board.
However, Foster referred to the school budget Monday night when making suggestions on how the board could balance the out-of-kilter budget.
The county administrator is recommending supervisors only increase the school budget $693,000 in additional local funds instead of funding the $2.6 million extra local dollars the school board is seeking.
School board members also are requesting a pool of 5 percent of personnel costs in order to grant pay increases to all employees, although the amount of raise for specific employees may be more or less than five percent, he explained.
The schools are forecasting no reduction in personnel from the current year and have included two new state-mandated special education positions in their budget.
“This amount (local funding totaling $693,000) should be sufficient to give teachers a pay increase and fund all critical needs,” Foster said. However, this amount will not fund any new programs or initiatives.
Supervisors will hold a public hearing on the proposed school budget next Monday, (Mar. 17) at 6:30 p.m. in the second floor meeting room of the Mary Bethune Complex.
Also included in the proposed budget is a 2 percent cost of living adjustments for all county employees. The merit component will be reduced to a pool of 2 percent of salary expense. Depending upon their evaluation, employees would be eligible for up to a 3 percent merit increase in addition to the cost of living adjustment, Foster explained.
In addition, Foster told supervisors health insurance costs will remain level with employees having more choices for their coverage in the coming year. The county will continue to contribute a flat $362 per month towards employee coverage, he further added.
Supervisors also discussed increasing the real estate tax rate by 6.5 cents; increasing the personal property tax rate by 35 cents; using $1.8 million of reserve funds; agreeing to lease-purchase 10 new school buses instead of outright purchase; and budget cuts across other departments and agencies.
Foster has recommended supervisors increase the real estate tax rate to 48 cents per $100 assessed value.
“The proposed 48 cent real estate tax rate for fiscal year 2009 keeps us comparable with our neighboring counties in this part of Virginia,” Foster said.
According to 2007 local tax rates, Campbell’s rate is 43 cents; Charlotte, 42 cents; Henry, 54 cents; Lunenburg, 44 cents; Mecklenburg, 39 cents; and Pittsylvania, 50 cents.
Foster pointed out the FY 2009 budget is the first to be prepared with the recently adopted twice-annual real estate collection with one-half of the tax bill due June 5 and the remaining half due December 5.
Due to the earlier tax collection date, a new tax rate will be put in place by April 7.
The county underwent a general reassessment of real property that became effective in January, with total property values increasing by almost 16 percent.
According to Foster, this increase does not include new construction and additions since last year.
By law, the county is required to lower its real estate tax rate so that revenue generated after the reassessment is no more than 101 percent of the revenue generated last year, or else the county must advertise a tax rate increase.
In an effort not to advertise an increase, the county has advertised tax rate lowered from 48 cents to 41.5 cents per $100 assessed value.
However, Foster is recommending an effective real estate tax rate of 48 cents per $100 value, which may be lowered by supervisors if they find ways to cut expenses.
For every one-cent increase in the real estate tax rate, Foster said $358,182 is generated.
The county administrator also is recommending supervisors approve a 35 cents increase in the personal property tax rate.
Each one-cent increase generates an additional $21,431 that can be used to pay for solid waste expenses next year, Foster said referring to $1.3 million annual expense of solid waste disposal.
“The excellent partnership enjoyed with the Town of South Boston since 2000 allowed the county to have zero disposal costs and share in commercial revenue generated by the town’s landfill operations.
This benefit has ceased, and the county must develop a revenue stream to support this new expense, Foster said.
Monday night, the county administrator reminded supervisors they had agreed at their planning retreat to fund the $1.3 million solid waste expense using real estate and personal property tax increases.
In addition, Foster pointed out the one time revenue gain the county will realize from changing to a twice a year real estate tax collection will be used to pay off the two-year note to purchase the property and pay for the landfill station construction.
Another option supervisors are considering to increase county revenue in the coming year is implementation of a 4 percent meals tax that has the potential for raising $200,000 to $300,000 annually.
Although county residents would pay a portion of the meals tax, this is one of the few revenue sources that would have some portion paid by non-county residents, according to Foster.
In order to put a meals tax in place, it must be approved in a voter referendum, Foster told supervisors.
Both the towns of South Boston and Halifax already have a meals tax levied at 3 percent and would not be affected by a county’s meal tax, if implemented.
Following Foster’s overall presentation on the budget Monday night, Finance Chairman Doug Bowman commended the staff for delivering a comprehensive budget packet to board members.
Bowman then guided board members through a review of departmental budgets with the county administrator highlighting points that will impact budget deliberations, such as changes (if any) in the number of employees in each department.
For example, Foster pointed out the public works department will hire three employees to operate the new transfer station expected to open in August, and one new position is being added to building and grounds staff to help maintain the six vacant schools’ and fairgrounds properties which the county has acquired in the last year.
In an effort to cut costs, supervisors will only send out one tax bill in the coming year, although taxes can be paid in two installments.
According to Foster, one real estate tax statement will be mailed in May containing two coupons, one due June 5 and one due Dec. 5.
Reminders will be placed in newspapers before the Dec. 5 deadline, notifying real estate owners the second installment is due.
“You’re making a big change,” Foster said. “If you start by sending them a double notice, they’re going to continue to expect it. You’ve got to start from the get-go educating folks.”
Also a reminder can be included when the personal property tax bills are mailed out, he added.
The county administrator pointed to a savings of “several thousand dollars” by eliminating the second tax bill mailing.
After two hours of budget discussions, supervisors wrapped up their first workshop Monday night agreeing that additional belt tightening is necessary.
“You’ve got to remember the average household in Halifax County for 2007 had less than an average 3 percent increase in income,” said ED-6 Supervisor Wayne Conner. “In my opinion, there might just have to be some belt tightening.”
Supervisors will hold a public hearing on the entire county budget on Monday, Mar. 31.
Another public hearing to establish the tax rate for county residents will be held Thursday, April 3 with supervisors setting the tax rate and adopting the final budget Monday, April 7.

Treasurer Addresses ‘Nuclear Option’

Last week’s board of supervisors’ “nuclear option” proposal to eliminate two constitutional officers – the treasurer and commissioner of revenue -- prompted an in-person response from both of those constitutional officers this week.
Prior to a budget workshop Monday night in Halifax, Treasurer Linda Foster and Commissioner of Revenue Brenda Powell told supervisors they had received a large show of support for both offices from the general public.
Supervisors have openly discussed the possibility of changing to a county manager form of government in order to eliminate the two constitutional offices, a decision that would have to be approved by voter referendum.
The discussion took place last week after supervisors received a letter from the treasurer expressing her dissatisfaction with the lack of progress being made using the MUNIS system as she prepares this year’s early tax bill mailing.
Since that meeting, Supervisor Chairman William Fitzgerald and Finance Committee Chairman Doug Bowman met with the treasurer to discuss her concerns.
Accompanied to the meeting Monday night by eight treasurer office employees, Foster said the support received from the community in recent days has “really made us feel good.”
She said deputies in the two offices were offended by remarks reported in the newspaper that inferred the county manager could get more work accomplished by the 20 or so employees in the treasurer and commissioner’s offices.
“They did not like that because it was kind of like a slap in the face for them saying they were not doing their jobs. They are doing their jobs, and they’re doing good jobs,” Foster told supervisors “putting it on the record.”
“Brenda and I both really work hard for this county and towns. We both were elected last year, and we got large votes of confidence just like some of you did, and I know you’re proud of your votes just like we are,” she continued.
Foster said she is disturbed by any mention of a resolution that purports to change to a county manager form of government.
“That type of government gives a lot of power to that individual,” she said. “It also takes away the voting rights of people for these two independent offices.”
Foster asked the supervisors not to further consider changing to a county manager form of government at this time.
She referred to the letter she wrote to the board of supervisors.
“My intentions were to really get someone in our office to fix this computer system. You all have bought this system. You’ve paid for it upfront. You spent a lot of money on it. My intention is to get these problems solved,” she said.
Foster did not apologize for sending the letter last week.
“As far as that goes, if it took that letter to get someone in my office last week to start on these things, then I don’t apologize for this letter because it is my responsibility to the taxpayers to see that the money is being spent wisely. This computer system has been purchased, then it needs to work,” she told board members.
Checks and balances on the treasurer’s side is very important, Foster said. “I want these balances right.”
She explained that a MUNIS representative came to her office last week, along with County Finance Director Stephanie Jackson.
“It took a while, but we got one year balanced out,” she said. “We did address some problems, and they hopefully will come back later and fix some of these problems that have got to be fixed before this system will work.”
Foster said someone is going to have to sign off on the balances when transferring records from the treasurer’s system to the MUNIS system.
“Who is going to do it if it’s not me?” she asked. “I’m the one who is in that office and accountable for it, and I want it right. My balance has always been right, and I expect for it to be right.”
She further explained that was the whole reason she wrote the original letter.
“All I wanted you to do is fix what you got, and hopefully we can go with that forward. We hope that some progress has been made,” she said informing supervisors the MUNIS representative took some of the problem issues with him back to the office to try and solve.
Employees in the treasurer’s office will be training on the MUNIS system next week, Foster added.
“It’s not the fact that we don’t want to work with it,” she said. “It’s the fact that we want it right. It needs to be right as far as these balances are concerned.”
She further added the treasurer’s office can’t bill someone if employees are unsure the balance is correct when that bill is sent out.
Foster referred to an earlier letter she wrote to the county administrator on January 14 saying, “I mentioned all of that in my budget letter.”
Looking to brighter days with the MUNIS system, Foster said, “Hopefully the next pass of data conversion will be better since this particular (MUNIS) manager is involved. If we’re paying MUNIS to come in here, then we need the best. Halifax County deserves the best, and if that manager has more expertise than the trainers have in the past, then we need to get him as much as we possibly can.”
Since the county is paying the manager the same amount of money as the trainers, Foster said the county needs the best.
“It needs to be done,” she continued, “because we’ve got to get it worked out before this twice a year billing goes out.”
“It’s not that we don’t want to work with it. We want to work with a system that will work for us too. And it needs to be correctly done,” she concluded.
The treasurer’s office currently is handling vehicle decals, while training on the MUNIS system and preparing to send out real estate bills in May.
“It’s not a really easy time for anybody to go into a data conversion anyway, and it is really putting extra strain on us,” she said noting employees have been working overtime on decal distribution.
She expressed her appreciation to the finance director and the MUNIS manager for taking their time to help the treasurer’s office “out of a tight bind.”
“He looked here to see what we needed to get it straight, and that’s the main thing, to get it straight,” Foster said, adding, “Stephanie has been a lot of help to us too.”
Commissioner of Revenue Powell informed supervisors her office “has not had a lot to do with MUNIS” because everything has been geared to tax collection so far.
She said the commissioner’s office has had one day of training on the business licenses.
“Other than that, none of the real estate and personal property stuff has been discussed in my office, and so far I’ve done everything they’ve asked me to do. When they want me they’ll call me,” she said.
Following comments from the two constitutional officers, Chairman Fitzgerald clarified the board of supervisors did not want to imply that employees in the treasurer’s office were not doing a good job.
“The idea of change to a manager form of government was an idea as a cost savings to the taxpayers of this county,” Fitzgerald said. “That was the only reason. It wasn’t to eliminate anybody’s job. It wasn’t to focus on any individual. It was strictly save the taxpayers of this county some money.”
The board chairman added, “The idea is still out there. It’s not going away. I can tell you that this board is still considering it. How this board can save money for taxpayers is the only focus this board is relying on. It’s not to reflect on any employee in your department that they’re not doing a good job.”
However, Fitzgerald maintained the board is committed to the MUNIS system.
Finance Chairman Bowman agreed with Fitzgerald explaining no one meant to imply they could do a better job than the treasurer or commissioner of revenue.
“It was mainly an idea that has surfaced before. We think it has merit, and we have been frustrated with the MUNIS effort so far, so we hope we can get all these things resolved,” he concluded.
Finance Director Jackson said she and the MUNIS manager worked with the treasurer for two and a half days last week accomplishing much.
“I think we identified a lot of the problems that will help us find the solutions,” she added.
According to Jackson, the MUNIS conversion programmer will get the treasurer’s office another “pass of data with a lot of the pieces that were missing in order for us to be able to prove this out for Linda to feel comfortable in signing off on the balances we have outstanding.”
Jackson agreed to make herself 100 percent available to help get the training done and to insure the treasurer’s office feels comfortable with the new system.
“We worked hard for two days, and I was very pleased with the progress we made last week,” she concluded.

Trustees Take No Action On HCHS Finance Class

The Halifax County School Board took no further action on the proposed finance class Monday night after hearing comments from six county residents.
Five of those who spoke indicated their support for the class. Charles Purcell, the father of an eighth-grader, said, “I believe this class is well-needed…our young people need it, society needs it, and I wish it had been there when I was in high school.”
The second speaker, Lisa Hatcher, also a parent, spoke against the proposed class. Hatcher, who has one child at the middle school and another at the elementary school level, said students already have enough requirements for graduation, especially those who are pursuing an advanced diploma. She also said she instructs her children in financial matters at home.
Hatcher said the finance class should be an elective, and the money that would be spent on establishing the class could be put to better use. “We need to use some of this money to recruit teachers and keep the teachers that we have in Halifax County now,” she said.
Chairman Steve Anderson replied the finance class is currently being offered at the high school as an elective.
Lisa Rosche, who has a daughter in the finance class this year, said not everyone has access to teaching financial matters to their children at home. “The finance class offers all these benefits…I think it’s really important,” she said.
Former educator Faye Satterfield told the board when she was in high school she would have benefited from a finance class, but she did not have room for it in her schedule.
Bernard Mitzler said a finance class is a good thing, even for adults, and John Woody said it would be beneficial because it teaches students about stocks and other investments.
Woody related his own experience with investing in stocks. “The kids would enjoy learning about this,” he said.
After closing the public hearing, Anderson told those at the meeting the board has approved the class as a required subject. He said the board would decide at what point to move forward with submitting a request to the state department to make the course a requirement for graduation.

Obituaries

Willie Thomas Holt
Willie Thomas Holt, 28, of 1187 Huell Matthews Highway, South Boston died March 10, 2008, at Halifax Regional Hospital.
Mr. Holt was born January 4, 1980, in South Boston the son of Edward Thomas Holt and Barbara Cole Holt. He was a member of Southside Baptist Church, a 1999 graduate of Halifax County High School, and was a 28-year member of Woodmen of the World.
A funeral service will be held at Southside Baptist Church today, March 12, at 2 p.m. with the Rev. Don Bryant officiating. Burial will follow in Shady Grove United Methodist Church Cemetery.
Survivors of Mr. Holt include his parents of South Boston; one brother, Allen Holt and fiancé, Mindy Trammell, of Virgilina; one aunt, Brenda Thaxton; and four uncles, Edward Cole and wife, Edith, Timmy Cole and wife, Regina, William H. Holt and Bobby R. Holt.
One sister, Lee Ann Holt; his maternal grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Cole; and his paternal grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Willie S. Holt, preceded him in death.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider the American Diabetes Association, Southside Baptist Church, or the Shady Grove UMC Cemetery Fund.
Online condolences may be sent to brooksfh@embarqmail.com

Oscar Stover Tuck
Oscar Stover Tuck, 92, of Durham, N.C., formerly of Halifax County, died March 9, 2008, at Durham VA Medical Center.
Mr. Tuck was born in Halifax County on September 17, 1914, the son of the late Henry A. Tuck and Sylvia Rickman Tuck. He was a member of Revelation Baptist Church and was an Army Veteran of World War II.
Survivors include two sisters, Lillian Rebecca Kidd of Silver Springs, Md. and Edith Ray of Morehead City, N.C.; and a number of nieces and nephews.
A funeral service for Mr. Tuck will be held tomorrow, March 13, at 11 a.m. at Powell Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Don Bryant officiating. A private burial will follow in Oak Ridge Cemetery.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home tomorrow for one hour prior to the service.

Susie Powell Neal
Susie Powell Neal of Landover, Md., formerly of Halifax County, died in Maryland at the age of 83.
Mrs. Neal was born March 5, 1925, to the late Extra Powell and Judith Powell and was married to the late Richard Donald Neal.
Survivors include one daughter, Nancy Neal Jones; two sons, Harry Neal and Michael Neal; one brother, the Rev. Andrew Powell and wife, Janice; four sisters, Vernessia, Barbara, Jean and Dorothy; three grandchildren; one son-in-law; and other relatives and friends.
One brother, Clarence Powell, also preceded Mrs. Neal in death.
A funeral service was held March 6, in Landover.

Reaves Resigns As Varsity Girls Basketball Coach

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff Writer
Varsity girls head basketball coach Ray Reaves has resigned his position, according to Halifax County High School athletic director Allen Lawter.
Lawter announced the resignation Tuesday, saying in a press release that “We would like to thank coach Reaves for his hard work and dedication to our student-athletes.”
“We will immediately proceed with the search for finding a new head coach.”
Reaves, who has coached the varsity girls for three years, said yesterday that he informed the team of his decision during a team meeting Friday.
“I’ve been here for seven plus years and coached in the program for that long, starting with jayvee and moving up to varsity three years ago,” said Reaves, also a teacher at the high school
“The situation here has been pretty tough, and some things as a young, inexperienced coach I brought on myself, while others were out of my control.
“Nonetheless, our coaching staff and team have had to deal with them.”
Reaves said he reached his decision after sitting down with his wife, Sarah, for several days to assess the situation.
“We thought this was the right time to make this decision to move on and possibly find something else.”
Reaves said he came to the conclusion that he was not the right person for the varsity girls basketball head coaching position.
“I feel like somebody else who has a different coaching style and philosophy could come in and do a better job, and these girls deserve somebody who can take them to the top,” he explained.
“I don’t doubt my coaching ability or my knowledge of the game,” continued Reaves, adding that his particular coaching style and the way he handles things may be better suited to coaching boys than girls.
“With that said, I just felt like this situation was not a situation where I could be as successful as I need to be.
“The administration didn’t run me away, the critics didn’t run me away, this was a decision my wife and I made on our own.
“We felt like this was best, not only for me and my family, but for the program.
“It would have to be a completely different coach and a different style, but I just didn’t feel like I was the person for the job.”
Reaves said he appreciated everything the administration has done for him during his stint as Comets’ coach.
“Every time something has come up, the administration has supported me, and I appreciate Mr. [Albert] Randolph and coach [Allen] Lawter giving me the opportunity three years ago.
“I haven’t enough good things to say about them, and for the most part I’ve had the support from the girls, their parents and families.
“You’re not always going to get 100 percent support from everybody, but as a coach in any sport in any high school, you’re going to get that.
“Again, I don’t think my coaching style and the way I do things were a good fit for this program.
“I don’t doubt that this program could be very successful, and I feel bad for the girls,” continued Reaves.
“I’ve talked to several of them as individuals after the team meeting, and they’re upset and disappointed, because I think for the most part this team enjoyed playing for me.
“They enjoyed working hard and learning more about the game, helping move this program forward.”
Reaves said that he would take a few months off to consider his coaching future.
“I’ve already been contacted by two different high schools in the area and if I do get back into coaching I would love not having to relocate,” said Reaves.
“I told them I needed time to consider whether I wanted to coach or not, and whether I wanted to pick up and leave Halifax County.
“I just don’t think I’m suited for this particular job, I feel I’m better suited for a boys coaching job, but I hate it for the girls.”
Reaves compiled an overall 21-43 record as girls varsity basketball head coach, but the program has made progress following a 2-16 mark his first year at the helm.
The Comets were 9-14 overall, including three wins against Western Valley District teams in the 2006-2007 season and finished 10-13 this past season, including two district wins.

Comets Rally For Win

By Joe Chandler
Sports Editor
For the first 74 minutes, the Halifax County High School varsity boys soccer didn’t seem to be making a good deal of headway against Heritage High School here in Monday night’s pre-season scrimmage.
Heritage had more than doubled the Comets’ attempts at shots on the goal and finally scored in the 12th-minute of the second half to take a 1-0 lead.
But, the Comets rallied to score two goals in the final six minutes and upended the Pioneers 2-1.
We’ll take a win any way we can get it,” Comets head coach Frank Shealy said after the win that gave the Comets a split of their two pre-season scrimmage games.
“I don’t know if it was a case of Heritage letting down or we just kept stepping it up. A problem with Halifax soccer has been finishing games. We have either a great first half or a great second half, but can’t put the two of them together. Tonight, we finished it.”
The Comets had only two shots on goal in the second half and both of them hit their mark. Zack King scored the Comets’ game-tying goal in the 34th minute of the second half with the help of an assist from Dru Henderson.
Henderson took the ball down the side of the field and made a good cross pass to King who, in turn, kicked the ball into the net.
Raleigh Powell hit the game-winning goal for the Comets in the 36th minute on a shot that glanced off of the glove of the Heritage goalkeeper and dropped into the goal.
Heritage had a number of shots at the Comets’ goal, holding a 12-4 edge on shots in the first half and a 5-2 edge in the second half. Fortunately, for the Comets, both of their second-half shots cashed in.
“We were down on shots on goal, but our shots counted,” Shealy noted.
“Our offense didn’t create what I wanted it to. I had my skill people up top and it didn’t pan out until the very end.”
The Comets coach said he was pleased to see his team get the win, but that the Comets still have a long way to go.
“I’m not saying we had a great game, but it was consistent throughout,” Shealy said of the win.
“We learned a lot today. I think we played a little better. Coach Dyer (assistant coach Chris Dyer) and I saw a lot of things we need to work on with possession and maintaining control of the ball.”
Shealy said he was pleased with his team’s defensive effort and cited the solid play of Gabe Aguilar in the goal.
“Gabe had eight saves and a couple of those were real good, hard shots at him,” Shealy pointed out.
“We improved our defense a lot. We switched things up a little bit. Andrew Wilkins did a great job of playing sweeper. The defense as a whole did well. Drew Moser, Cody Lewis, and Chris Valez had a good game. I put J.W. Webb in at stopper. He showed me something, He’s not very big, but he’s a tough little guy inside. He got the ball out when we needed to. He’s not afraid to challenge people.”
The Comets will open regular-season play Friday night when they host Martinsville High School. Game time is 7 p.m.

Smith Scores Five Goals In Comets Win Over Heritage

By Joe Chandler
Sports Editor
Melissa Smith was one of the scoring ringleaders last season for the Halifax County High School varsity girls soccer team. Monday night she showed no sign of letting up.
Smith, with five goals, led the Comets to a 6-3 win over Heritage High School in a pres-season scrimmage game in Lynchburg.
“We did a lot better than I expected,” Comets head coach Sid Young of the win in his team’s only pre-season scrimmage.
“We were real pleased with the way the girls played. Heritage has usually been a good test for us.”
Heritage jumped on top quickly, scoring a goal at the 2:53 mark of the first half to grab a 1-0 lead. Smith tied the game with a goal on a breakaway at the 11:03 mark of the first half. Scoring a goal on a penalty kick at the 13:37 mark of the first half, Smith put the Comets up 2-1. Just over two minutes later, Smith added her third goal of the game to put the Comets up 3-1. The Pioneers rallied to score late in the half, hitting a goal at the 26:10 mark to make the score 3-2.
After having held a 3-2 lead at halftime, the Comets got rolling again early in the second half with Smith kicking in her fourth goal of the night at the 13:20 mark to put the Comets up 4-2. A goal by Sarah Rosche at the 17:42 mark put the Comets up 5-2. Heritage bounced back to score a goal at the 25:17 mark to cut its deficit to two goals. Smith helped the Comets keep the game out of the Pioneers’ reach by scoring her fifth and final goal of the contest in the waning minutes to give the Comets a 6-3 edge they held until the end.
“Overall, we played pretty well,” Young said.
“We had planned to play everybody regardless of what the situation was. But, everybody got some pretty good minutes. The girls saw things they need to work on. One of them is getting in better shape. The girls are still not in shape. But, it’s difficult to be in shape in just two weeks.”
Offensively, the Comets had a big night, getting off 40 shots on the Heritage goal. By contrast, Heritage had only 11 shots on the Comets’ goal.
First-year Comets goalkeeper Nia Brown had a big game in coming up with seven saves.
“We thought she did a tremendous job,” Young said.
“The goals they (Heritage) scored on her came on things and situations we had not yet worked on in practice. Nia has made tremendous progress in the last two weeks. I hope she will stay with it.”
Young cited good defensive play on the part of Megan Rosche and C.A. Nichols at the sweeper positions and Emily Rosche, Meredith Elliott and Lauren Faulkner at defender. He also noted that Lacy Will, Taylor Raney and Mary Beale had a good game at midfield.
Also cited by Young for their good play were first-year senior Ti Lambert and a pair of players that were recently pulled up from the junior varsity team, sophomores Krystal Childrey and Amber Gaulden.
The Comets will open regular-season play tonight, going on the road to face Prince Edward County High School in Farmville.
“In the past, Prince Edward County has given us good games,” Young pointed out.
“They have been very competitive. The girls realize they need to pick up as far as their conditioning and we have a few things we need to fine-tune and work on.”