A blog dedicated to the community sports of the Virginia Peninsula. The continuation of my former weekly column with the DAILY PRESS and Virginian Pilot. VPS includes posts from my work with RecruitNoVA/757.com and MileStat.com, and other journalistic outlets. Please join me and send your stories of hope and triumph to jfmcgrath65@gmail.com.. My sports journey continues...please feel free to share the ride...
Axsom's Army Antagonizes AAU Field with #1 ranking and Top-20 AAU Recognition
In its most recent event, the old and new fighters of Axsom dojo of Newport News competed in the 2021 AAU Karate National Championships, which were at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, SC.
This year's competition was the first major comeback event since the COVID outbreak, which pushed last December's Nationals to an online format.
Yet, the break away from live mat competition didn't leave Axsom's martial artists worse for wear. In fact, a whole new group of 15 beginners competed in Short and Long Kobudo (weapons forms), Kata (empty hand forms), and Kumite (sparring), and the advanced division had opportunities at different styles of kumite as well.
Axsom's dojo had 32 athletes participate this year, and six coaches, who brought home a total of 81 Medals, 37 were GOLD, and 40 of the team's medals were in the kumite division!
Likewise, three of the athletes made the AAU National Team Pool for international travel and competition.
An added bonus this year was that the Bull-Moose Dojo was named the #1 Participating Dojo at the National Championships and a "Top 20 AAU Club" in the country.
Advanced Division (Black Belts):
Austin Galeski (18-34 Male): Silver Short Weapons (Tonfa); Silver Open Weight Kumite; GOLD, National Champion, Ippon Kumite; Selected for the AAU 2021-2022 National Team Pool traveling to Romania for the WUKF World Championships.
Jessica Sigsbee (18-34 Female) did not place in her events, but did win a $1,000 AAU Scholarship to William and Mary.
Ryan Sigsbee (16 Male): Bronze Ippon Kumite; Silver in ISF Olympic Rules Kumite; Silver in Team Rotational Kumite; GOLD in Sanbon Weight Class Kumite;
Selected for the AAU 2021-2022 National Team Pool traveling to Romania for the WUKF World Championships.
Jaylen Nicholson (14 Male)
Amiyr Gordon (12 Male) Silver in Kata; Silver in Long Kobudo (B0); Bronze in Kumite; Selected for the AAU 2021-2022 National Team Pool.
Intermediate Division (Brown Belts):
Brett Fallen (16 Male) GOLD in all 3 Divisions -- Kobudo, Kata, and Kumite! Silver in Team Rotational Kumite.
Alex Tomaino (16 Male) Silver in Kobudo and Kata; Bronze in Kumite; Silver in Team Rotational Kumite.
Joe Fuscia (13 Male) Bronze in Kumite.
Chris Gordon (7 Male) Silver in Kobudo; GOLDS in Kata and Kumite!
Novice Division (Green Belts);
Miranda Martinez-Chellis (15 Female) GOLDs in all three events--Kobudo, Kata, and Kumite, GOLD in Team Rotational Kumite
Daniella Martinez-Chellis (14 Female) Silvers in Kobudo and Kata; GOLD in Kumite!
Dakota Parnell (13 Male) GOLD in Kumite!
Ryan Wartell (12 Male) Bronze in Kumite.
Conner Strickland (11 Male) Silver in Kobudo and Kata; Bronze in Kumite.
Lucas Gardner (8 Male) Bronze in Kumite.
Shianne Medlin (8 Female) GOLDs in Kata and Kumite!
Isaiah McClain (8 Male) GOLD in Kumite!
Beginner Division (White Belts):
Hudson Burns (18-34 Male) Bronze in Kata and Kumite; GOLD in Kobudo!
Emily Galindo (15 Female) Silver in Kobudo; GOLD in Kata and Kumite!
Jasmine Elsayyad (14 Female) Silver in Kobudo; GOLD in Kumite!
Brodee Blackwell (12 Male) Silver in Kata; Bronze in Kumite; GOLD in Kobudo!
Nate Carney (12 Male) GOLDs in Kata and Kumite, Silver in Team Family Kobudo.
Coley Carney (10 Female) Silver in Kobudo; GOLDs in Kata and Kumite, Silver in Team Family Kobudo.
Robert Gibson (9 Male) Bronze in Kumite!
Cristiano Perez (8 Male) Bronze in Kata; Silver in Kumite.
Reagan Strickland (7 Female) Silver in Kumite; GOLDs in Kobudo and Kata!
Billy Lamping (7 Male) Bronze in Kumite.
Kylah Johnson (6 Female) Silver in Kumite; GOLDs in Kata and Kobudo!
Xavier Johnson (6 Male) Bronze in Kobudo and Kumite; Silver in Kata.
Daniel Carney (6 Male) Silver in Kobudo; GOLDs in Kata and Kumite! + Team family Kobudo.
Mia Blackwell (5 Female) GOLDs in all 3 divisions- Kobudo, Kata, and Kumite
Alana Humber (5 Female) Silvers in all 3 divisions-Kobudo, kata, and Kumite.
Axsom's Army Finishes Out 2020 Virtually
We have fallen woefully behind on updates from the Axsom dojo. In fact, Sensei "Moose," as he is affectionately called, just sent a fourth one today. So, we're going to dedicate the month of July as Martial Arts Month here at VPS. It will be a good month to promote the dojo as McGrath Educational will be posting a big announcement on July 15, and hopefully steering extra traffic to Virginia Peninsula Sports.
Here's how Axsom's Army ended the 2020 campaign, as reported by the good Sensei himself.
TEAM Kata:
18-34 year olds Will Whitaker, Austin Galeski, and Shaun Coles (SILVER Medal/Cup); Ryan Sigsbee, Anna Deller, and Jabari Smith (GOLD Medal/Cup); 15-16 year olds Brett Fallen, Alex Tomaino, and Braeden Monroe; Miranda ChellisMartinez, Daniela Chellis Martinez, and Maimouna Ouattara; 13-14 year olds Hunter Feicht, Matthew Thomas, and Joe Fuscia (GOLD Medal/Cup); 9-10 year olds Conner Strickland, Amari Mathews, and Jalyn Wilks (Bronze Medal/Cup).
Kata Results:
18-34 year old Male - Austin Galeski (Bronze Medal)
15-16 year old Male - Alex Tomaino (Silver Medal); Brett Fallen (Bronze Medal)
5-6 year old Male - Daniel Carney (Bronze Medal)
Kobudo Results:
18-34 year old Male LONG Kobudo Advance (Bo and Eaku) - Austin Galeski (Silver Medal); Will Whitaker (Bronze Medal)
18-34 year old Male SHORT Kobudo Advance (Sai, Tonfa, Kama, Nunchaku) - Austin Galeski (Bronze Medal)
18-34 year old Female LONG Kobudo Advance - Jessica Sigsbee (Bronze Medal)
18-34 year old Female SHORT Kobudo Advance - Jessica Sigsbee (Silver Medal)
15-16 year old Male Novice - Brett Fallen (Silver Medal); Alex Tomaino (Bronze Medal)
13-14 year old Male Intermediate - Joe Fuscia (Bronze Medal)
11-12 year old Male Beginner - Ryan Wartell (GOLD Medal)
9-10 year old Male Beginner - Moustapha Ouattara (Bronze Medal)
9-10 year old Female Beginner - Coley Carney (Bronze Medal)
7-8 year Female old Beginner - Shianne Medlin (GOLD Medal)
5-6 year old Male Beginner - Daniel Carney (GOLD Medal)
In total, our dojo had 23 total competitors compete. Not everyone medaled. The dojo brought home a total of 30 Medals for team and individual events.
Osborne, Spector Win Joe-Zilla 5 Miler
2021 Joe-Zilla 5 Miler
Lionsbridge FC News - Soccer Rules in Newport News!
FREE YOUTH SOCCER CLINIC ON JULY 3 PRESENTED BY RIVERSIDE
We are pleased to announce our next FREE community youth soccer clinic, presented by Riverside, on Saturday morning, July 3. These spots always go *extremely fast* so do register right away!
Register for the FREE Youth Soccer Clinic!
OPPORTUNITY TO CLINCH PLAYOFF SPOT THIS WEEKEND
Lionsbridge hosts West Virginia (Fri) and Tri-Cities (Sun)
Last weekend, Lionsbridge FC captured the CoVa Cup for a third straight year (highlights). This weekend, could more history be in the cards?
The Bridge has a chance to capture its first USL League Two playoff berth in club history. If Lionsbridge wins both games this weekend, the club will clinch a playoff spot. Lionsbridge currently sits 5 points ahead of 4th place Tri-Cities with five games to go. The top three teams in the division will make the playoffs. However, there are many paths that lead to a playoff spot for Lionsbridge, including either two wins on the weekend or a tie Friday and win on Sunday.
WEEKEND SCHEDULE at TOWNEBANK STADIUM:
Friday, 7pm vs West Virginia United
Sunday, 7pm vs Tri-Cities FC
Get Tickets!
CHICK-FIL-A NIGHT on SUNDAY:
One lucky fan will win FREE CHICK-FIL-A FOR A YEAR on Sunday's Chick-fil-A Night at Lionsbridge FC!
SUMMER CAMP SEASON IS HERE!
It's not too late to sign up your youngster for Lionsbridge FC Summer Camps. The first one starts next week and they continue through July. W are offering day and night camps in Newport News, Hampton, York County, Gloucester and Suffolk. Registration is now open at LionsbridgeFC.com/camps.
Yorktown 8K Freedom Run Results - Otstot and Spector Win on Memorial Day
http://peninsulatrackclub.com/?ical_race=yorktown-freedom-run-8k
2021 YORKTOWN FREEDOM RUN MEMORIAL DAY 8K
Held at Yorktown Battlefield, Yorktown, VA
Memorial Day, Monday, May 31, 2021
Sponsored by the Yorktown Rotary Club
USATF CERT# VA14007RT
A PENINSULA TRACK CLUB and HAMPTON ROADS SUPER GRAND PRIX EVENT
Place O’All Name Age City State Time Pace PTC
===== ===== ========================== === =================== ====== ===== ===
TOP OVERALL MEN
1 1 ADAM OTSTOT 39 WILLIAMSBURG VA 25:41 5:10
2 2 ROGER HOPPER 30 CHESAPEAKE VA 25:46 5:11
3 3 BARON FREEMAN 21 HAMPTON VA 26:23 5:19
TOP OVERALL WOMEN
1 12 BETHANY SPECTOR 31 VIRGINIA BEACH VA 30:57 6:14
2 18 EMILY HONEYCUTT 30 NEWPORT NEWS VA 32:11 6:29
3 20 SVETLANA GONCHAROVA 23 WILLIAMSBURG VA 33:05 6:40
TOP MASTERS MEN
1 11 TOBY WORM 48 SMITHFIELD VA 30:37 6:10
2 13 GREG LYNN 47 HAYES VA 31:29 6:20 *
3 16 CHRIS LAWS 45 NEWPORT NEWS VA 32:01 6:27 *
TOP MASTERS WOMEN
1 39 KAREN SANZO 44 HAMPTON VA 36:14 7:18 *
2 51 CONNIE GLUECK 57 WILLIAMSBURG VA 38:30 7:45 *
3 60 MAY CARLSON 45 HAMPTON VA 40:10 8:05
MEN: 12 AND UNDER
1 37 AUGUSTUS SWANSON 12 PRINCETON IL 36:03 7:15
2 67 BRAXTON LEE 11 QUINTON VA 40:49 8:13 *
3 156 ISAAC BECK. 10 NEW KENT VA 55:01 11:04
MEN: 13 – 19
1 6 LUCAS SIMMONS 17 CHESAPEAKE VA 27:40 5:34
2 8 EVAN MCCUE 16 CHESAPEAKE VA 28:45 5:47
3 10 JARRETT SINDT 19 VIRGINIA BEACH VA 30:34 6:09
MEN: 20 – 24
1 54 MATTHEW MCILROY 20 NEWPORT NEWS VA 39:12 7:53
MEN: 25 – 29
1 4 TANNER SMITH 26 NEW KENT VA 27:07 5:28
2 14 MIKE SANDY 29 LAUREL MD 31:47 6:24
MEN: 30 – 34
1 5 BLAINE O’REILLY 32 WILLIAMSBURG VA 27:35 5:33
2 74 FRANK NIXON 34 CHESAPEAKE VA 41:35 8:22
3 140 JARED B DETRICK 32 HAMPTON VA 51:34 10:23
MEN: 35 – 39
1 7 RYAN CARROLL 38 CHESAPEAKE VA 27:50 5:36 *
2 9 ADAM KENYON 39 SUFFOLK VA 28:53 5:49
3 15 CHRIS NOVAKOSKI 39 CHESAPEAKE VA 31:56 6:26 *
MEN: 40 – 44
1 21 ROBERT CLAYPOOLE 44 HAMPTON VA 33:18 6:42 *
2 25 MATT KIRWAN 41 HAYES VA 34:09 6:53
3 34 MATHEW CHERUIYOT 41 WILLIAMSBURG VA 35:20 7:07
MEN: 45 – 49
1 17 DOUGLAS MARSHALL 47 MATHEWS VA 32:08 6:28
2 27 PAUL SCRIBBINS 48 GLOUCESTER VA 34:19 6:55
3 28 TIM RYAN 47 YORKTOWN VA 34:24 6:56
MEN: 50 – 54
1 24 RICHARD KEESEE 50 HOPKINS MI 34:07 6:52
2 58 AARON CANDELLA 52 YORKTOWN VA 39:51 8:01 *
3 61 KEVIN HUGHES 52 WILLIAMSBURG VA 40:18 8:07
MEN: 55 – 59
1 19 JOHN PIGGOTT 56 WILLIAMSBURG VA 32:38 6:34
2 22 JON LEIDING 58 VIRGINIA BEACH VA 33:29 6:45
3 29 ORLANDO PEREZ 59 NEWPORT NEWS VA 34:33 6:57
MEN: 60 – 64
1 31 KELVIN ANDERSON 60 NEWPORT NEWS VA 34:34 6:58 *
2 49 TIMOTHY HODGE 61 VIRGINIA BEACH VA 38:26 7:44
3 55 JOHN OLSON 61 YORKTOWN VA 39:27 7:56 *
MEN: 65 – 69
1 30 STEPHEN J CHANTRY 66 WILLIAMSBURG VA 34:33 6:57 *
2 42 JIM DUFFY 69 POQUOSON VA 37:19 7:31 *
3 77 JAMES GULLO 66 WILLIAMSBURG VA 41:49 8:25 *
MEN: 70 AND OVER
1 53 DALE ABRAHAMSON 72 YORKTOWN VA 38:54 7:50 *
2 78 GEORGE CARRIGAN 72 WILLIAMSBURG VA 41:49 8:25
3 104 JOSEPH L VERDIRAME 71 SUFFOLK VA 45:54 9:14 *
WOMEN: 12 AND UNDER
1 87 ANNA BLACKSTON 9 MIDLOTHIAN VA 42:35 8:34
2 144 ELLIE EPPS 11 YORKTOWN VA 52:17 10:31 *
3 180 LILY BROWN 10 WILLIAMSBURG VA 1:05:00 13:05
WOMEN: 13 – 19
1 32 SORENNA JEAN 19 WILLIAMSBURG VA 34:42 6:59 *
2 59 BROOKE SWARRINGIM 15 LANEXA VA 40:04 8:04
3 81 CANNON JEAN 16 WILLIAMSBURG VA 42:00 8:27 *
WOMEN: 20 – 24
NONE
WOMEN: 25 – 29
1 36 EMILY PHILPOTT 25 YORKTOWN VA 35:48 7:13
2 43 MYKAYLA HERGES 27 VIRGINIA BEACH VA 37:20 7:31
3 109 SARA MORROW 29 NORFOLK VA 47:08 9:29
WOMEN: 30 – 34
1 23 KRISTIN ROBERTS 34 ALEXANDRIA VA 33:42 6:47
2 90 JCOURTNEY WILLIAMS 33 WILLIAMSBURG VA 43:18 8:43
3 92 EMMA HARDY 32 TOANO VA 43:27 8:45
WOMEN: 35 – 39
1 35 MEGAN SCHULZE 38 GLEN ALLEN VA 35:21 7:07 *
2 45 ERIN WOOD 35 NEWPORT NEWS VA 37:58 7:39
3 48 ERIN MACHIE 36 NEWPORT NEWS VA 38:21 7:43
WOMEN: 40 – 44
1 85 LATISHA TUCKER 41 VIRGINIA BEACH VA 42:22 8:32
2 89 STEPHANIE EITZEN 43 YORKTOWN VA 43:02 8:40 *
3 96 MICHELLE HOOPER 41 HAMPTON VA 44:03 8:52
WOMEN: 45 – 49
1 64 SUSAN HAGEL 48 NORFOLK VA 40:32 8:10 *
2 120 CARISSA WORM 45 SMITHFIELD VA 48:58 9:51
3 124 SUSAN R HUTCHINS 46 CHARLOTTE NC 49:35 9:59
WOMEN: 50 – 54
1 84 KAYE GREEN 52 SMITHFIELD VA 42:17 8:31
2 112 ALYSON KAST 52 YORKTOWN VA 47:20 9:32 *
3 113 CRIZTINA JEAN 52 WILLIAMSBURG VA 47:28 9:33 *
WOMEN: 55 – 59
1 63 DEELYN ROBINSON 55 WILLIAMSBURG VA 40:30 8:09
2 80 CAROLINE KIGGINS 57 YORKTOWN VA 41:59 8:27
3 99 CAROL GRANTZ 55 PORTSMOUTH VA 44:52 9:02
WOMEN: 60 – 64
1 83 NORMA PHILLIPS 60 WILLIAMSBURG VA 42:11 8:30 *
2 130 SHIRLEY STEPHENS 64 WILLIAMSBURG VA 50:37 10:11 *
3 155 LINDA PIERCE 62 EARLYSVILLE VA 54:34 10:59
WOMEN: 65 – 69
1 98 HELEN WORTHINGTON 66 BENA VA 44:41 9:00 *
2 135 MARTHA GULLO 68 WILLIAMSBURG VA 50:51 10:14 *
3 142 DEBORAH LUDI 66 YORKTOWN VA 51:55 10:27
WOMEN: 70 AND OVER
1 125 PATRICIA TRAVIS 70 WILLIAMSBURG VA 49:41 10:00 *
2 131 BARBARA BIASI 73 YORKTOWN VA 50:37 10:11 *
3 150 VIRGINIA DAVIS 71 NORFOLK VA 53:39 10:48