Morris: No Contest To Computer Services Theft

Former Halifax County IDA Executive Director Kevin Scott Morris, 36, entered a plea of no contest Wednesday in Halifax County Circuit Court to one felony count for theft of computer services [in excess of $2,500].
In exchange for his plea, Morris, who served as IDA director from August 2002 to June 2004, was sentenced to a five-year suspended prison sentence, conditioned upon his good behavior for five years, and conditioned upon his completion of probation and counseling.
The Commonwealth moved to nol pros all other local charges against Morris, and the defendant was ordered to pay $620.50 in court costs.
Morris was originally charged with possession of child pornography, and his felony conviction for theft of computer services in Virginia would prevent his being treated as a first offender in Georgia where he is facing similar charges, according to Commonwealth’s Attorney Kim White.
“The Virginia charges led to an investigation in Gwinnett County, Georgia, where Morris faces numerous charges involving the possession of child pornography,” said White.
“Our office has been in contact with the District Attorney’s office in Gwinnett County every step of the way,” said White.
“Given that the offenses in Georgia are much more recent in time and that Mr. Morris resides in Georgia, we agreed with Georgia that whatever we could do to strengthen their case was the proper avenue to follow.
“All of us in Virginia have indicated our willingness to cooperate and testify, if needed, in any prosecution in Georgia,” added White.
White told the court that the original charges against Morris stemmed from a discovery by current IDA Director Mike Eades in early 2007 of what he believed to be child pornography on a laptop computer previously used by Morris in his previous capacity of IDA executive director.
Eades had been searching for documents related to IDA business that he believed may have been left by Morris on the IDA-owned laptop.
“Morris had exclusive use of it [laptop] and had taken it home and while traveling,” White told the court
Morris had resided in Georgia for approximately one and one-half years when Eades discovered the alleged images.
Eades, along with then IDA board chairman Larry McPeters, turned the laptop over to White, with White taking it to Richmond for a forensic evaluation by the Virginia Attorney General’s Office, White said.
Following the evaluation of the laptop computer, investigators from the South Boston Police Department traveled to Georgia, where Morris was taken into custody and interviewed last January.
Morris appeared in court Wednesday along with his attorney, Bill Watson, who told the court that his client has been cooperative to a fault with authorities during the course of the investigation.
“My client has lived within court-ordered restrictions to a tee,” said Watson, who characterized Morris as a good, productive citizen who is fortunate in many ways, including having the support of his wife and family.
Noting the support of Morris’ family, Judge Wellons told the defendant, “It was sad you put yourself in this position.
“These are serious charges…you have a lot of potential, and I hope you put it to good use.”
Morris is currently free on bond but under home electronic monitoring in Georgia, according to White.

Halifax Focuses On Budget, Banister

The Halifax Finance Committee will meet every Wednesday in March to address department expense budgets and overall general fund projections, according to Finance Committee Chairman Phil Hollis.
Under the proposed schedule, the first reading of the draft budget will be held May 13, and the final budget will be approved by Halifax Town Council at its June 10 meeting.
Also Tuesday, council requested that Town Manager Carl Espy work with County Administrator Bryan Foster on a joint resolution to the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) seeking a “scenic river designation” for the Banister River from Meadville to Halifax.
According to Espy, the designation would not stop projects that could affect the river, but the designation would raise the river’s profile.
The designation, according to the DCR, encourages protection and preservation of the river, and makes it so the General Assembly must approve construction of any dam that would impede the natural flow of the river.
What the designation does not do is give the state control over land use, does not give the public any right to use privately owned land and does not offer any land use controls.
A vote on the joint resolution and a 10-minute presentation from the DCR is scheduled for the April 21 joint meeting.
Council then voted to approve the new quarterly meeting schedule between the county and towns changing from the current bi-monthly meeting schedule.
Lastly, Hollis made a recommendation to council that the town explore the idea of conducting a study of the Banister River’s water and basin following the recent attempt to study the mining of uranium upstream in Pittsylvania County.
While any potential mining would be years off, Hollis said the town should have a record of the river’s radioactive isotope levels to serve as a baseline so that any change in those levels can be documented and proved at a later date.
Council voted to authorize Espy and Councilman Jack Dunavant to begin the process of finding the most suitable agency to conduct a study of radioactivity in the Banister River.

Authority Faces More Criticism On Fees

The facility fees issue resurfaced during Tuesday’s meeting of the Halifax County Service Authority.
Earlier, the Authority’s policy committee had recommended projects already begun be “grandfathered in” under the old fee rates. Authority Executive Director Willie Jones told the board 219 lots had been requested to be grandfathered under the old fees. In addition, 337 acres of unsubdivided land and 22 other parcels were also requested to be grandfathered in under the old fees. Jones said approximately 139 of those lots had already been subdivided for water and sewer.
The policy committee recommended criteria for accepting these parcels under the old fees if the parcels met certain conditions. Jones said the parcels must have been permanently platted, water and sewer lines must have been installed, and the request made to the Authority to be included in the exemption from the new fees.
Jones said to be grandfathered under the old fee schedule, residential projects must be completed and certificates of occupancy (CO) issued by May 1, 2009, and commercial projects must be completed and COs issued by December 31, 2009. Jones said there would be no time limit on obtaining building fees, but if a building permit, which is good for six months, is renewed, the Authority would not permit that project to be grandfathered in under the old fees.
Board member Rick Harrell said the policy committee attempted to determine criteria that would be fair in allowing contractors and developers who had begun building projects before the new fee structure commenced March 1 to be charged under the fee schedule in place when their building projects had begun.
A number of developers were present at Tuesday’s meeting questioning the facility fee exemption. Board member Dexter Gilliam made a motion to delay vote on the policy committee’s facility fee exemption recommendations until after citizen comments, and the board approved the motion.
John Cannon, who is building Edgewood Town Homes, told the board he had spent $780,000 out of his pocket with no assistance from Halifax County or the Town of South Boston on lights, gutters, highways, and water and sewer. He said of that amount, $200,000 was spent on water and sewer alone.
Cannon said 73 units remain to be built at Edgewood, and the facility fees on those units would cost him $200,750, and with tap fees of $1,500 per unit added, the total would be $310,250. Cannon told the board the water and sewer infrastructure and taps are already in place, and it isn’t fair to charge the facility fees to him after he has put them in at his own expense.
Josh Lief, general manager of VIR, along with Connie Nyholm, co-owner and managing partner of VIR, told the board the Authority changed the rules of grandfathering “after the game had started.”
They told the board money has been invested in the building projects at VIR, but they are not two-year projects and cannot be completed by December 31, 2009. Lief said some of the projects are long-term, planned for up to 10 years down the road. He said VIR has spent millions of dollars in different types of infrastructure.
“These are all long-term investments with private capital that has been invested under one set of rules, and you’re changing the rules and charging higher tapping fees,” Lief said.
“The water/sewer system at VIR was built largely by tobacco money,” said Nyholm. “It was an overall $4.6 million project, of which Halifax County put up a million and a half, but the other $3.1 million came from tobacco money that Danville and Pittsylvania County put up,” she added.
“When we opened, VIR was a farm generating $3,000 in taxes,” Nyholm said. “And there’s over half a million dollars in taxes coming out of VIR now. That’s a whole lot more than what it’s costing in water and sewer,” Nyholm explained.
“We could have built our own plant on-site, we already had the permit to do so using the Dan River at the time,” said Harvey Siegel, co-owner and developer at VIR. “We had our own water, we had eight wells, we had the ability to go to community water if we wanted to, and we could have had our own on-site sewer system,” he added.
“We never had to do any of this, it was all part of the big picture. It was community economic development, and we connected ourselves to it,” said Siegel. “We’re essentially being penalized for all the good work we did. We’ve made Halifax County an international headquarters for motorsport worldwide,” Siegel added.
Christian Roberts told the board he has talked with other localities in the area, and none charge a facility fee except Henry County. Roberts said Henry County doesn’t charge the fees to developers who pay for their own water/sewer system.
“I don’t think Draper Aden (the engineering company that studied the locality and made recommendations to the Authority) came to any other solutions except for the facility fee,” said Roberts. “And I don’t think it’s the fairest way to do this for the community, for economic development.”
“Every locality I talked with welcomed development,” Roberts said. “And a few of them laughed when we said what a facility fee was.”
Attorney Bill Watson, representing some developers who could not attend the meeting, asked the board to reconsider its position as to facility fees, and he asked the board to set a committee to meet with the developers to discuss the issue.
“I came here as an ambassador of compromise to see if there is some kind of way we could sit down with a committee, have a dialogue, and talk with you instead of at you,” Watson explained.
Board member Leon Plaster asked if the Authority can talk with the governing bodies to see if anything could be worked out for these developers to proceed as planned, through some form of incentives.
Board member Coleman Speece said perhaps the board could attend a joint meeting of the county and towns to discuss the feedback the Authority has heard on this issue.
Harrell said facility fees are for basic costs for the future, including pump stations, storage tanks and main trunk lines. He said the Authority was created without the money needed, no working capital, and it was hit with a $160,000 charge “right off the bat.”
Chairman Doug Bowman said the question is the projects in progress and how they are treated during the transition from the old systems to the Service Authority. “I think there is room for discussion on how we define projects in progress that should legitimately be eligible for exemption,” Bowman said. “The active projects that are not completed yet but well underway, I think deserve some consideration.”
Harrell said the fairest way to determine exemptions for projects was to draw a timeline. He said they should be close enough in progress to have a cutoff time next year. “We tried not to pick favorites and to do something that had some objective, significance to it,” Harrell explained.
Board member Fred Mistal offered a motion to table the decision on the issue for 60 days in order to have more discussion, but the motion failed for lack of a second.
Bowman offered a substitute motion to approve the policy recommended by the policy committee, with the addition of reviewing entities that have well-established projects that were initiated before the Authority’s existance. This includes projects that have been well-established and well underway.
“I think in situations where developers have put in infrastructure and have yet to complete the development of that infrastructure, then that’s an active project that merits consideration,” said Bowman.
Harrell said the Authority decided upon facility fees, instead of higher rates for all water/sewer customers.
Mistal said the Authority needs to study the issue more before making a decision on the adoption of the policy committee’s recommendations.
The board voted 5 to 1 to adopt the original motion proposed by Harrell to approve the recommendations of the policy committee regarding facility fee exemptions. Mistal cast the lone dissenting vote, and Thomas Walton was absent.

Obituaries

Ollie Catherine Rock
Ollie Catherine Rock, 64, of Bayou Vista, La. died March 10, 2008, in Terrebonne General Medical Center.
Mrs. Rock was born August 2, 1943, in Halifax County the daughter of the late Willie Lee Hazelwood and Annie King Hazelwood, and was married to Joseph Rock. She was a member of Bayou Vista Community Fellowship Church.
She is survived by her husband, two sons, Kent M. East and wife, Susan, of Clover and Jackie East of Berwick, La.; one stepson, Troy Michael Rock of Metairie, La.; two stepdaughters, Wendy Marie Gauthier and husband, Mike, of Metairie, and Lynnette Rock and husband, Tim, of Pa.; two brothers, Bradley Hazelwood and wife, Jean, of Halifax, and Elderidge Hazelwood of Scottsburg; three sisters, Daisy Franklin of Scottsburg, Barbara Hazelwood and husband, Joe, of Clover, and Ida Conner and husband, Mitchell, of Halifax; one grandchild, Cathy Lee East; and five step-grandchildren.
One sister, Carol Sue Hazelwood; and one son, Ricky Lee East, also preceded Mrs. Rock in death.
A graveside service will be held tomorrow, March 15, at 2 p.m. at Clover Cemetery with the Rev. Lloyd Moore officiating.
The family will receive friends this evening, March 14, from 7:00 to 8:30, at Brooks Funeral Home.
Online condolences may be sent to brooksfh@embarqmail.com

Frances Brandon Jeffress
Frances Brandon Jeffress of Philadelphia, Pa, formerly of Halifax County, died March 10, 2008, in Philadelphia at the age of 83.
Mrs. Jeffress was born April 8, 1924, the daughter of the late Betty Ann Brandon. She was married to the late George Jeffress and was a member of St. Mark Baptist Church.
Survivors include two daughters, Dorothy Darden and Gladys Newman, both of Philadelphia; 11 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; and one sister-in-law, Lena Brandon of N.C.
One son, Jimmie Jeffress, preceded Mrs. Jeffress in death.
Funeral services will be held tomorrow, March 15, at 11 a.m. at St. Mark Baptist Church with the Rev. Herbert Pettiford officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.

Leon Hugo Farmer
Leon Hugo Farmer, 91, of Wagstaff Lane, South Boston died March 10, 2008, at The Woodview.
Mr. Farmer was born in Halifax County on August 13, 1916, to the late James Edward Farmer and Sally Lawson Farmer. He was a member of First Baptist Church, Ferry Street.
Survivors include one son, Charlie Farmer of South Boston; one grandson, Charles McBride of Hartford, Conn.; four granddaughters, Gia McBride of Windsor, Conn., Stacey Perry of Manchester, Conn., Rita Blatche of Hart, and Stacey Farmer of Atlantic City, N.J.; and seven great-grandchildren.
One son, Bobby L. Farmer; and three brothers, Edward, Charlie and Herman Farmer, also preceded Mr. Farmer in death.
Funeral services will be held March 16, at 2 p.m. at First Baptist Church with the Rev. Haywood Jennings officiating. Burial will follow in the Farmer Family Cemetery.
The family will receive friends at the home of his son, 1121 Noblin Avenue, South Boston.

Nettie Tuck Snead
Nettie Tuck Snead, 83, of 206 South Main Street, Clover died March 11, 2008, at Halifax Regional Hospital.
Mrs. Snead was born November 25, 1924, in Halifax County the daughter of the late Peter Tuck and Lottie Powell Tuck Newcomb, and was married to the late Lafayette Snead. She was a member of Clover Baptist Church.
Survivors include one sister, Florence T. Newcomb of Clover; and a number of nieces and nephews.
Two brothers, Melvin and Henry M. Tuck; and one sister, Lennie Tuck, also preceded Mrs. Snead in death.
Funeral services will be held today, March 14, at 2 p.m. at Brooks Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Aubrey Heath officiating. Burial will follow in Clover Cemetery.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider Clover Volunteer Fire Department, P.O. Box 199, Clover, 24534.
Online condolences may be sent to brooksfh@embarqmail.com

Virginia Lipscomb Strignano
Virginia Lipscomb Strignano, 94, of Plantation, Fla., formerly of Halifax County, died March 11, 2008.
Mrs. Strignano was born April 23, 1913, the daughter of the late Henry P. Lipscomb and Susie Cunningham Lipscomb. She was married to the late Salvatore Strignano.
Survivors include her niece and her husband, Michele and Robert Holland of Orlando, Fla.; great niece, Rashida Holland; great nephew, Kiar J. Holland; and other relatives and friends.
One brother, Henry P. Lipscomb Jr., preceded Mrs. Strignano in death.
Funeral services will be held tomorrow, March 15, at 3 p.m. at Crossroad Baptist Church in Turbeville with the Rev. John T. Hubbard officiating. Burial will follow in the church.
The family will receive friends at the church tomorrow.

Grace Yvonne Stanfield Trimble
Grace Yvonne Stanfield Trimble, 62, of Bronx, N.Y., formerly of Halifax County, died March 8, 2008.
Mrs. Trimble was born on June 26, 1945, the daughter of the late Albert Nick Stanfield and Bertha McCargo Stanfield, and was married to Charles Trimble. She was a member of Emanuel Baptist Church in New York.
Survivors include her husband; two children, Gary Trimble and Ginger Buckley; five grandchildren; her stepmother, Gracie Stanfield of South Boston; five brothers, Albert Stanfield, Philmore Lester, and Leon Stanfield, all of South Boston, Jerome Stanfield of Hampton and Billy Chandler of Salisbury, Md.; eight sisters, Bertha Rogers and Lucille Stanfield of South Boston, Karen Carden of Scottsburg, Marie Walton and Atha Ridges, both of Bronx, Marjorie Carrington of Newport News, Martha Mitchell, Geri Stan and Barbara Columbus, all of Salisbury, Md.; five brothers-in-law; five sisters-in-law; and other relatives and friends including the devoted Annie Logan-Johnson.
Funeral services for Mrs. Trimble will be held today, March 14, at 2 p.m. at Jeters Chapel Baptist Church with the Rev. Antonio Brown officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
The family is receiving friends at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Albert Stanfield, 5122 Bill Tuck Highway, South Boston.

Malcolm Womack
Malcolm Womack, 68, of Washington, D.C. died March 8, 2008, at Laurel Regency Hospital in Laurel, Md.
Mr. Womack was born July 9, 1939, in Halifax County to the late Jack and Edna Barksdale Womack, and was married to Bertha Barley Womack.
Survivors include his wife; sons, Malcolm Womack and Timothy Womack and his wife, Neecole Womack; one daughter, Brenda Womack Kenny, all of Washington, D.C.; three brothers, Wilbert, David and Wayne Womack, all of Washington, D.C.; two sisters, Janice Womack Punkette and Celestine Womack of Virginia.
Five brothers, Eddie Lewis, Jack Jr., Clinton Earl, Wallace and Randy Womack; and two sisters, Catherine and Linda Gayle, preceded Mr. Womack in death.
Funeral services will be held tomorrow, March 15, at County Line Baptist Church with viewing at 10 a.m. until services at 11 a.m. with the Rev. Dr. Otis Dillard officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.

Van Lorenzo Carrington
Van Lorenzo Carrington, 44, of 1046 Marion Trail, Halifax died March 11, 2008, at his home.
Mr. Carrington was born in Halifax County on May 18, 1963, the son of Franklin McArthur Carrington and Rose Lee Carrington. He was a member of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church.
Survivors include one daughter, Lashell Garrett of South Boston; his mother of Halifax; his father of Nathalie; three brothers, Alphonso Carrington of Halifax, Larry Carrington of Omega, and David Carrington of Chase City; four sisters, Yvonne Acree of Nathalie, Jenett Carrington of South Boston, Maria Traynham and Denise Hamlett, both of Scottsburg; and two grandchildren.
One brother, James Thomas McCraw, preceded Mr. Carrington in death.
Funeral services will be held March 17, at 2 p.m. at Pleasant Grove Baptist Church with the Rev. Ronald Claiborne officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
Viewing will be March 16, from noon to 6 p.m. at Jeffress Funeral Home.
The family will receive friends at the home.

Comets Open Season Today

By Joe Chandler
Sports Editor
The Halifax County High School varsity baseball team opens its 2008 campaign at home today, facing a team that has quickly become familiar to both the players and coaching staff.
Martinsville High School, with former longtime Halifax County Middle School baseball coach Barry Powell at the helm, will be the Comets’ opponent for today’s 5 p.m. season opener.
“We’re ready to go,” Comets head baseball coach Kelvin Davis said.
“It’s always exciting to go out for the season opener and trying to get your first win. We’re going to try to do the things that we need to do to get a win and get the season off to a good start.”
Davis said getting off to a good start in is important. Next week his Comets will face a busy three-game week, in which they will play host to a trio of teams from the North, two from Pennsylvania and one from New York.
“We need to win this game Friday to get some momentum going for next week,” Davis pointed out.
“Those teams will be good teams. By the end of next week we could have a real good start going or a bad start going. We want to gave a good start.”
Davis said that while some of the Martinsville High School teams of the past have not been very strong, Powell’s Martinsville team is expected to be very competitive.
“Everybody around here knows Barry is a good coach,” Davis said.
“This is second year there and I expect Martinsville to be a much better team than they have been in the past.”
Davis and the Comets are hoping to get a good start today and start the process of rebounding from a disappointing 2007 season in which the team finished third in the Western Valley District behind district champion GW and runner-up Franklin County.
Last year’s Comets team finished 11-8 in regular-season play, a mark that included a 4-4 district record. The Comets bowed to Franklin County in the semifinals of the Western Valley District Tournament on a three-run walk-off home run in the eighth inning.
The Comets’ record of last season was the worst compiled by a Comets team in a four-year span. In the three prior seasons, Comets teams had won at least 14 games and made it at least as far as the semifinals of the Northwest Region Tournament. In one of those seasons, the Comets advanced to the Group AAA state tournament quarterfinals.
Seeing the string of three straight appearances in the Northwest Region Tournament snapped last season was a not a pleasant feeling, Davis said.
“Last year dampened our spirits a little bit,” Davis remarked.
“It was tough to take. One of goals this season is to do a lot better than what we did last year. We lost some close ballgames last year. Had we won some of them, we could have been right in the thick of things. But, that’s baseball. Things just didn’t go in our favor last year.”
The Western Valley District has always been a tough district when it comes to baseball. GW, Franklin County and Halifax County have been the big guns in the district for the past few seasons. E.C. Glass has also had a big hand in the district race at times.
Franklin County is expected to be strong again this season with a good handful of players returning from last year’s team. GW lost nine of the 13 players on last year’s team to graduation and longtime head coach Scooter Dunn retired after last season.
E.C. Glass had a good team last season and is expected to be a contender this season. Patrick Henry is looking to improve this season and William Fleming, new to the district this season, will be looking to be a competitive entity as well.
“This district is a tough district,” Davis pointed out.
“Franklin County was a young club last year and they turned it on at the end of the season. You can never count GW out of the mix. E.C. Glass always has a scrappy team that is going to find a way to stay in the ballgame and make things happen.
“We can’t take any of the district teams lightly,” added Davis.
“We need to make sure we’re focused on every district game so that we can take those games.
Davis said that while his team will have seven non-district games in which to get itself tuned up for district play, the focus from today forth is preparing for the district games, the first of which will be an April 8 home date with Franklin County.
“We have worked hard trying to get our guys geared up for the district.,” Davis said.
“The guys have, as one of their goals, to try to do better than what we did last year. We want to be contenders for the district championship again. That’s one of the things we’re focusing on.”

Comets Looking To Rebound

By Joe Chandler
Sports Editor
With eight players including four starters returning, the Halifax County High School varsity baseball team will be looking to try to rebound from last season when the Comets diamonders had their worst season in four years.
Comets head coach Kelvin Davis says he feels his team will be up to that task.
“The right attitude is there.,” Davis pointed out.
“Attitude means a lot to me. You can see the kids that want to improve. You can see it by their work ethic on the field.
“I’m tickled to death that they go at it every day,” he added.
“Everybody is really focused on what we’re trying to do.”
As far as projected starters, Davis is looking at junior Kaleb Long behind the plate, senior Justin Bagbey at first base, senior Michael Ferrell at second base, junior Eric Brandon at shortstop and senior Jeremy Foster at third base.
Outfield positions, however, are still very much up in the air. Junior Kyle Long and senior Daniel Wilborn will be in the outfield when they’re not pitching. Courtney Ervin (junior), Dale Trent (soph.), Josh Williams (senior), Michael Owens (junior) and Tyler Lewis (junior) are also being eyed for outfield spots.
“Hitting will be what will earn those guys a starting role,” Davis pointed out.
In looking at the pitching, Davis has Kyle Long, one of last year’s starters, returns. Long is being looked at to be an anchor for the Comets’ mound corp.
“We’ve met with Kyle and talked with him about how much he is going to mean to us this season,” Davis said.
“We’re not trying to put any pressure on him, but, with the experience that he has, he’s go to understand we need him to take on a leadership role and be a person that we can really count on when he goes on the mound. He’s got the potential. He’s got all the talent he needs for that job.”
Wilborn, who gained a lot of experience and confidence as a reliever last year, has been elevated to a starting role this season.
“We’re looking to get some quality innings out of Daniel,” this season,” Davis noted.
Coach Day (assistant coach Kenneth Day, who works with the pitchers) and I think Daniel will be a better starter than a reliever and he’s going to be in a starting role for us in some of our games.
“Daniel is not going to blow the ball by people. He throws a lot of off-speed stuff. Coach Day told me he has picked up on his velocity. We’re looking for Daniel to have a good year. The job he is going to do will be important to us also.”
Lewis, who was the mound for the Comets jayvees last season, is also expected to occupy a starting spot in the starting rotation.
“Coach Day sees a lot of potential in him,” Davis said.
“The thing we like about him is that his pitches move a lot. What we need to do with him is make sure he has confidence out there on the mound. We’re trying to build that confidence every day. Tyler can be a big asset to us. We have seen a lot in him so far and we feel he can help us this season.”
Davis said he has seen some good things from Trent and Hunt and feels they can be a big asset as well.
“Those kids have displayed a lot of potential as far as getting us out of innings that we need to get out of,” Davis pointed out.
“That’s not to say that they won’t someday be put in a starting role.”
Foster, who has seen some mound time for the area’s Dixie Pre-Majors and Dixie Majors all-star teams, is being looked at as a possible closer.
“He has displayed a lot of talent,” Davis noted.
“We like the things he brings to the table as a closer. He has been throwing strikes and we hope he continues to do that.”
In terms of experience, the Comets have a fair amount of experience on the diamond with Bagbey, Wilborn and Kyle Long and Kaleb Long aboard as returning starters.
Bagbey was a First Team All-Western Valley District pick last season at first base and Kyle Long was a Second Team all-district pick as a pitcher. Kaleb Long received Honorable Mention kudos as a catcher.
Allen Stephens, who was one of the team’s top sluggers last season, is not playing baseball this season, focusing his attention instead to conditioning and preparing for the start of his football career at Virginia Tech.
Five seniors, Bagbey, Ferrell, Foster, Wilborn and Williams, dot the Comets’ roster.
“I’ve met with them and talked to them as far as the leadership I am expecting them to show this year,” Davis noted.
“Every one of them has shown me they are ready for this year.”
The Comets coach says he likes the experience his team has going into the season.
“We’ve got some experience,” Davis said.
“A lot of these were playing behind some of the guys we had last year. But, we do so much during our practices that these kids are getting a lot of experience just through practice.
“Sure, it’s good to be in a game situation, and I know all kids want to be in that position,” Davis continued.
“But, I see a big difference in the kids we had that were backing up the guys last year that are in starting roles this year as far as experience from last year. The guys have great attitudes. They come out every day working hard. They want to improve. They and the coaching staff are doing everything they can to get this season off to a good start.”
Defensively, Davis says the infield is solid.
“We’re sound all the way around,” he remarked.
“The outfield is the one area that concerns us right now. Coach Torian (assistant coach Shawn Torian) is the outfielders coach and I’ve put it in his hands to get us the best three guys that can do the job out there.”
Offensively speaking, Davis said he is looking for a good effort from his players.
“We’re doing everything we possibly can to try to get the offense rolling,” Davis said.
“We’re doing more individual drills with the guys. We are trying to concentrate more on them individually. We’re giving them more at-bats and more swings. We’re doing all we can to help them.”
Davis said he is glad to have Day and Torian returning to the diamond as assistant coaches again this season.
“My hat goes off to Coach Day and Coach Torian,” Davis said.
“They have done a wonderful job. They’re showing me they are really dedicated. Through everything, from working with the players, from field maintenance, through ordering supplies, these guys go at it.
“I don’t have to tell them anything to do as far as the little things go,” Davis continued. “They know what I expect. Coach Day does a wonderful job with the pitching staff. I really feel he wants to turn it up a notch with his pitchers. Coach Torian has done a good job working with the outfielders.
“It’s a good atmosphere out there every day,” added Davis.
“It’s good to go out there and have guys there that you want to be around because they want the same thing you want.”

Lady Comets Strike Early For Win Over Person

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff Writer
The Comets varsity softball team pounded out 17 hits, five coming in a five-run first inning, and went on to a 11-4 win at Person High in its season-opener Wednesday.
Lashunda Davis and Lauren Daniel each went 3-5 at the plate, while Stephanie Clark and Paige Rickman each added two hits, Rickman with a solo home run for the Comets.
Kim Snead (double), Amber Bowman, Ally Thompson, Betty Rose, Whitney Womack, Melissa Morris and Katie Barnett each added a hit for Halifax County in the win.
Jordan Rhew led Person with two singles, while Meghan Lay had an RBI double, Erica Reaves a double, and Chelsea Wrenn (RBI) and Carrie Albert singles.
Comets coach Melanie Saunders said that she was pleased overall with the opening-game win.
“Their No. 1 pitcher (Brittany Shotwell) had a broken finger and could not pitch, but the pitcher we saw had good speed,” began Saunders.
“Our pitchers did a good job on the mound. Paige started for us and went four innings, and Stephanie came in and finished the game.”
Davis got the Comets off to a good start in the first inning with a leadoff single and Clark doubled her home before advancing to third on a passed ball.
Rose reached base on an error and Rickman slugged a two-run double for a 3-0 lead.
Daniel singled, stole second, and went to third on a passed ball, before scoring when Womack reached base on a third-strike passed ball.
Bowman’s RBI single capped the scoring in the first inning.
Rickman hit a solo homer in the top of the third for a 6-0 advantage, but Person struck for four runs on two doubles, two singles and a pair of Comets’ errors in the bottom of the third to cut the deficit to 6-4.
Halifax plated a run in the fourth on two hits, and added four more in the seventh on seven hits to pull away.
Davis hit a leadoff single in the fourth inning, went to second on a sacrifice bunt by Thompson and to third on a passed ball before scoring on Rose’s RBI single.
Four runs on seven hits gave Halifax some more breathing room in the seventh inning, with Morris and Daniel hitting back-to-back singles to start the rally.
Womack hit a RBI single, Barnett a single, Davis a double and Snead a two-run double, before a hit by Clark capped the rally that gave Halifax its final margin.
That run support proved more than enough for Rickman and Clark, with Rickman giving up four runs on five hits through four innings, all four runs coming in the fourth when the Comets committed two errors.
Clark gave up no runs and no hits in three innings to finish the game.
Rickman finished with five strikeouts, while Clark struck out six, including all three batters in the bottom of the seventh.
“We had a few mental mistakes on defense in the third inning that allowed runs to score that should not have, but these are the games which we need to learn from,” noted Saunders.
“We need to be able to stay focused from beginning to end, but all of the girls got a chance to play.
“It’s always good to be able to see the players at different spots.”