WCAC in 2009

The conference should be pretty competitive next year. PVI and St. Johns lost a lot of talent, they should have some nice young players coming up through the program. Good Counsel returns alot of starters from last year and DeMatha has two D1 commits already. Congrats to Jimmy Reed (SJC) for committing to Maryland and Josh Leehmius (SJC) for doing the same to North Carolina!

Where are the two DeMatha guys committed?

Chris Cook (George Mason) and Daniel Dragos(Temple)

St John's will be very good, as always. DeMatha should also be good with so many players returning. PVI will surprise, as they have added not just rising juniors to the mix, but also several transfers from NDA. Gonzaga is still a year away. BI--they will be very interesting given Coach Gallagher's success last year at the end of the season--can they keep getting better? Good Counsel is going to be good, too, I think, as they seem always to hit the ball so well. Leemhuis and Reed will be hard to beat out as the WCAC's top players, with exception of Chad Morgan from PVI who could, conceivably, hit 8-12 homeruns.

Can the NDA transfers play varsity at PVI this year? I am not sure of the rules of transfer when kids come from far away. Is NDA far enough away so that kids can go directly to varsity?

rhobbs--PVI will return about 7 seniors (plus 2 seniors who transferred from NDA), only 2 juniors (who played varsity last year), and one soph (who played varsity last year). I agree that they will be better than some people think. Chad Morgan is All-World and can play about anywhere. Costello is their ace, but add Pat McDonald, Lansing Veeder, Torey Mancari, Eric McGee to the mix and you have four pretty darned good additional starters. The infield should be good, too, with Dan Savage, Lem Zeigler, and Tyler Costello (when not pitching or recovering) as returning anchors. Veeder and Zeigler can both play infield or outfield, and PVI will probably mix them up that way, so they have great flexibility to fill behind pitchers. Reeves will bring alot to the outfield and the batting order this spring. Heck, at 1B, Coach Emerson can use Costello, Morgan, Ruffin, and Mancari interchangeably. They are all good there. I think Coach Emerson will have a lineup that can hit, from one through nine or ten. This team will be good, especially if they find another pitcher or two. Will they beat StJ, DeMatha, and Good Counsel? We can only wait and see.

gamefan--as I understand it, yes, the NDA kids can play because they reside in Loudon, not Fairfax, County. I think the rule is that a student cannot play at the school to which he transfers anytime after his freshman year if there is a WCAC school in the county in which he resides. Therefore, because they are from Loudon Co, they can play.

Mancari and Reeves are from Faquier County.

Also, the reason they can play at PVI this year is because NDA is a VA Independent Private High School. Therefor they do not fall under the same rules for transfer as what would happen from a private to public, or WCAC private to WCAC private.

Prescedence set when Brian Short spent all of one season at NDA back in 2001-2002 (??) and transferred to PVI the next year.

That is wrong. The reason that they can, is where the live. Because Faquier County does not have a WCAC team living in a county that borders it then a player can transfer without penalty.

The only other way a player could transfer to a new school is if a player moves, not with a aunt, then you can play without sitting out a year.

Redstags-

That doesn't make a whole lot of sense. It would if NDA was a WCAC team, but not in the current situation. NDA is a CAC team, which is a 3 team VA Independent private school conference (NDA, Benedictine, and Blue Ridge). What bearing does that have on the availability of a WCAC school? Are you saying that the only reason they can transfer is because they don't have a private school in Faquier?

I'm not arguing that it couldn't be right, I just want some clarification. My understanding (as told by someone who has been dealing with all of these kids leaving NDA) was that since NDA was a non Archdioses school/WCAC school, you could transfer anywhere without penalty. At least that's the understanding I gained from those kids and their parents.

Obviously by know you have figured out that I was one of the coaches that NDA kept in the dark for all of a year before this incident occurred.

I understood the WCAC transfer rule to allow such transfers provided it was not from an adjacent county. Thus, since Fauquier Co is not adjacent to Fairfax Co, the NDA kids could transfer to PVI. But that is simply what I had heard before or read on this website before.

In any case, it must be permissible, since Cody Reeves and Torey Mancari are at PVI. They are good players who will fit in well and help PVI this year.

Anyone know if they have college offers?

isaacvanwart said it right except it is where the kid lives and has nothing to do with what school he goes too.

If NDA was in Fairfax County or even better if Anne Arundel County then the kids would not be allowed to play this year at the varsity level. I hope this make sense.

Anybody have a list (or want to start one) of WCAC 2009 guys who have signed already .... and let's add it here as they sign.

St J

Leemhuis--UNC
Reed--Maryland

PVI

Morgan--VT

quote:

Prescedence set when Brian Short spent all of one season at NDA back in 2001-2002 (??) and transferred to PVI the next year.

Not sure about the wcac rules but we lived in va and attended NDA during this time frame. The year Brian Short transferred to PVI he began that year at NDA and attended for a couple of months if my memory is correct. He was not allowed to play on the varsity at PVI that year but he did play on the JV team

The PVI website lists Cody Reeves as a player who signed with Towson St.

Who is the 'real deal' in Maryland, in 2009?

Mike Trionfo, a Calvert Hall prospect, also signed with Towson.

OBTW: Towson State changed their name to Towson Univ......., eons ago.

= Edited by Moderator - MN-Mom =

Back to the WCAC for 2009. It appears that it is up for grabs. DeMatha, StJ, PVI, Good Counsel, Gonzaga, and BI will all be tough. PVI is young and maybe a year away, and Gonzaga and BI will likely falter through lack of pitching and lack of depth. DeMatha, StJ, and Good Counsel should be awfully tough to beat. The typical WCAC schedule will be brutal, with just about any team having about an even chance of winning on any give night. I also notice that the nonconference schedules tend to be brutal, with WCAC teams playing tournaments out-of-state and rolling into nonconference games against outstanding area teams. Pitching will be a premium.

I still think Reed and Leemhuis are favorites for Pitcher of the Year and Player of the Year in the conference.

Chris Casale - Gonzaga pitcher - signed to play at Georgetown!

The Costello kid at PVI is a pretty tough pitcher also, only a junior!

gamefan--did one of Gonzaga's best pitchers transfer to a public school (a kid who had a brother who was a stud pitcher at Gonzaga several years ago)?

Costello is an ace for PVI. The shut down guy. But they have lost Pat MacDonald to other interests, and he was their presumed #2.

Jr transferred to QO in Maryland. His brother pitches for Davidson. Wishing him well!

Don't know any specifics about McDonald's situation, but I will say he went to PVI only to sit the bench for many years behind some quality kids. He would have been a prime player at his local high school. From baseball only perspective, too bad.

I don't know what happened Pat MacDonald from PVI either, but the word is that he is not playing. He is a very good pitcher and would have helped PVI be competitive in a very tough WCAC in 2009.

So, StJ slaughtered Robinson in Saturday's scrimmage. How did other WCAC schools do?

Gonzaga over St Mary's Annapolis - 24 (?) to 7

gamefan--Is Gonzaga really, really good, or is St. Mary's not up to snuff? If the former, then add Gonzaga to the mix of potential WCAC contenders.

with the way teams rotate pitchers, experiment with batting order and try to find chemistry, i wouldn't read into a preseason score. but, this is the dawn of the coach bradley era. i heard he was on '00 championship team, so he knows how to win. good luck, zaga, except when you're playing the stags!

Gonzaga scored 1 run last night against mediocre Mount Vernon pitching.

I heard that Mike Murdock pitched a gem, and I also heard that he shut out Langley in a scrimmage. It seems that he is better than mediocre. And if Gonzaga can score 24 runs against St. Mary's of Annapolis, they have some bats. Maybe Gonzaga won't win the WCAC, but they cannot be a bad team--not with all the school has to offer quality players in all sports. It seems to me that MV just played a very good game.

Rough night for Gonzaga last night v Landon. Mark Williams pitched a 1 hitter through 5 innings with 7Ks, and Gonzaga was ahead 8-0. Coach put in new pitcher(s)- series of errors in the field, and Landon hit the lights out - ended up winning 11-8.

I have now seen every WCAC team play this year, and I am very surprised at the poor quality of play compared to recent years. 2008 truly was an exceptional year, especially with all the Div I talent at the top of the conference. This year, there are 5 or 6 genuine Div I talents shining--in the entire conference. Josh Leemhuis, Chris Cook, and Chad Morgan are the true studs of the conference this year. That is it from position players. Throw in Reed and Willoughby as pitchers, and you pretty much have named the league's talent.

DeMatha--Cook is fabulous. Hitting over .500. Clutch. Willoughby 2 hit PVI, and the two hits were a misplayed pop up and a seeing eye ground ball.

PVI--Morgan is a stud. Homeruns, triples, doubles, a great arm. After that, Veeder, Costello, and Reeves are not producing. Costello and McGee are pitching well. After that, is is mostly a case of sophomores and juniors who have never played varsity baseball before committing errors and making outs at the plate.

StJ--Reed will end up pitcher of the year, unless Willoughby beats him out. Leemhuis is just a great all-around talent, from hitting to arm strength to having a great feel all over the field.

Good Counsel--This team has the potential to win the conference, especially the tournament. Why? Because Good Counsel always gets better throughout March and April, and hits the snot out of the ball in late April and throughout May. Pitching and defense may be the weak link.

O'Connell--Wow, are they bad. Even their stud, Zack Tessier, is awful. Against PVI he committed three errors on routine balls. He can still hit well, but defensively, how does he succeed at High Point? O/C's pitching is JV level, at best. O/C's defense may not even be at that level. They committed at least 8 errors against PVI. Outfielders threw the ball to no-man's land while runners ran the bases like it was little league.

Gonzaga--Well, I give Mt Vernon alot of credit for beating them, but seriously, how does a school of nearly 1000 boys that can recruit to stock up on studs produce a team so anemic offensively? If Casale is a Big East success, he will have to work awfully hard with someone who really knows what he is doing.

BI--Coach Gallagher continues to try to develop a good team, and he is a fabulous coach, but the talent just is not there. Zere is hurt, or was, which kills them, since he is nearly everything to both offense and defense. I don't see them beating the top three or four teams even once.

McNamara and Ryken--I regret having to say this, but these two should be playing in the WCAC JV program. Even then, they likely would not win the conference. I want them to be better, and I want them to keep working to get better, but they just cannot compete.

It is a down, down year in the WCAC. I thought PVI, StJ, and DeMatha would have more major talent on the field. Maybe it's there, and they just did not show it when I saw these teams play. I can tell you that I think teams like Stone Bridge (beat DeMatha by 11-0) and other top public school teams would beat these top WCAC teams this year. I don't even know if it is that close a call. There may be some hidden gems on these teams, but if they are there, it is time to start playing like it.

Thanks for that indepth report. Considering the sorry excuse for a baseball preview that was in the Post today, your piece might be the best writing we're going to get on the subject. I hope you file additional reports!

I'm wondering if what you perceive as an overall drop in talent in the WCAC is a consequence of just fewer kids in the cohort, (2008 being a peak year, and fewer kids in each class after that; although it looks like right now we're in the middle of another big baby boom), or if the best baseball players in the area are going elsewhere. My son is a U15 freshman, and I heard that many kids from the travel team I thought was the best in the area went to Georgetown Prep. Some other really good kids he played against stayed in the public school system. A kid who caught for him -- really good, now starting on varsity as a frosh at QO -- told my son he didn't want to get up for those 6:30am lifting sessions at SJC. Will be really interesting to see how these kids all turn out in four years.

On a related note, DeMatha beat SJC yesterday 5-2. DeMatha broadcast the game on its website.

LHPMom

Thanks. I think I am seeing it pretty well, but it is certainly possible I may be missing the boat. It is still early. Nevertheless, from the games I have seen, the internal WCAC hierarchy hasn't changed much, but because it lost so much talent from the 2008 class, it just is not anywhere near as good as it was last year.

I saw that Dematha score and was not surprised. I think Dematha may win the WCAC. But their loss to Stone Bridge makes the WCAC look pretty bad.

One other thing--I don't think BI is a serious contender in spite of the 5-0 start. Yes, they beat Good Counsel, but I still think Good Counsel will be a much improved team by mid-April, and will be good enough to beat anyone at that point. I just don't see BI beating Dematha, StJ, or PVI.

As for GPrep and StAlbans, I'd say--if you can get in and you can afford it, go there. Succeed at those schools and you open doors.

I would be very hesitant to believe in a kid who is not motivated enough to do 0630 workouts to become a better player. I wish the catcher well, but he will languish in mediocrity if he cannot get past that barrier he has placed in his own path.

Good luck to your son. Lefty pitchers are always in demand.

Word is that BI beat PVI last night, 2-1. I underestimated just how good BI is this year--undefeated with wins over Good Counsel and PVI (though PVI appears to be way down, playing some five or six inexperienced sophomores and only one or two juniors and seniors). BI has three or four good hitters and some decent pitching to keep teams off balance. Gallagher continues to get the most out of the talent he has available.

Rhobbs -
Do you have an update? Perspective with only two weeks left? Have you been able to get to the games of the different schools? Your opinion is interesting as you seem to have some depth of knowledge with the players in the league.

I am more than willing to say I was wrong on several scores. First, I did not believe that Coach Gallagher was going to be able to duplicate last year's miracle turnaround, but he has. He has BI ranked #1 in the VISAA Div I poll, and in contention for 2nd place in the WCAC (but then, nearly everyone behind Dematha and ahead of SMR and McNamara is in contention for 2nd place). Second, I did not see DeMatha's dominance coming like it has. Still undefeated in the WCAC. Third, I did not give Gonzaga credit, under a new coach, for being able to gel as they have. Fourth, I thought St. J and PVI would both recover much better from their senior losses from last year (10 and 9, if I am not mistaken, respecively)--neither did. In fact, both teams are huge disappointments, but both are young.

But, don't forget that I was correct on some fronts. DeMatha's loss to Stone Bridge was horrific in light of their dominance of the WCAC. What does that tell us about the conference? I had Good Counsel pegged. They are good and will get better. And I may end up being ultimately correct--DeMatha will win the WCAC with any number of good teams in 2nd place--GC, Gonzaga, BI, PVI, StJ. McNamara and SMR will bring up the rear.

I will now tell you that a search of the websites reveals some interesting outcomes and possibly trends. DeMatha got murdered on their spring trip--10-0 and 10-4--in the NE. PVI won the Southeastern Baseball Classic (4-0). Gonzaga went 2-2 in Louisiana, beating the #2 ranked team in the State. BI was destroyed by South County over their spring break. St. John's went 3-1 on their spring break trip, then came back and beat Maret, GC, and Spalding (13-0), going to 12-5. What does all of this tell us? It appears that DeMatha is moving in the wrong direction while the other teams are catching up and, possibly, surpassing them.

In the end (the WCAC Tournament in early May) anything can happen. However, DeMatha, while the favorite, will be hard pressed to stop a hot StJ, PVI, GC, or Gonzaga (I still don't think BI has the pitching depth to pull it off, but I have been wrong about BI before and should start putting my money on Coach Gallagher). It just seems that DeMatha may have gotten complacent or something. Then again, maybe their spring break opponents were top competition while teams like those PVI played in SC were weak? It is worth considering that PVI also beat St Anne's Belfied twice over their break, leading one to think maybe PVI is coming around for real.

In any case, the quality of play has to be better than it was early, when it seemed these young teams made error after error and struck out in 7 out of every 10 at-bats. A little more tweaking here and there by the coaches, and there is no telling who will end up winning the WCAC tournament.

Finally, the one troubling piece remaining is the DeMatha loss to Stone Bridge, the BI loss to South County, the PVI loss to Calvert Hall--it could well be that the WCAC is way, way down this year?

The entire region public and private is more balanced. 2008 had so many top end guys it was crazy. They also had more quality 2nd tier guys. So many two and three year starters.

There is no where near this depth in the 2009 class.

I agree, Superball, on the extraordinary nature of the 2008 class.

As for 2009s and even 2010s, I think it just is taking some time for many of them because they did not get playing time with all those 2008s hogging the field. I think the talent is there--it just has not had any chance to blossom. It is too bad for those kids. Who knows how good a kid is until he gets about 20 consecutive at-bats over 5 or 6 straight games?

I do believe the WCAC is way down from what we have all started taking for granted (the 2008 level of play). That is our mistake. We cannot expect other classes to live up to that expectation. I am the most guilty. When I watch a WCAC game and see errors I thought were done at the JV level, it shocks me. But I need to understand that the last time some of these kids were on a high school field they were JVs. Again, though, many are coming along now with 15 or 20 games down.

How does a team get absolutely annhilated by another team in a mercy-rule game, then three or four weeks later turn around and nearly mercy-rule the team that crushed them? Is it a matter of coaching? The vagaries of the 16 and 17 year old mind? Purely a function of pitching? I don't know, but O/C has turned its season around, beating DeMatha yesterday after crushing PVI last Thursday. O/C is now a top team in the WCAC when, in its first matchup against PVI, it looked like a JV team. Can anyone explain how they did it?

DeMatha appears to be going in the wrong direction. They had better get back to the club they were in March if they want to waltz through the WCAC tournament as they did the first part of their WCAC schedule.

BI, PVI, Good Counsel, Gonzaga--who knows from day-to-day, game-to-game? BI has been losing the close ones while PVI has been winning them. Tournament seedings may not make a lot of difference, as all these teams seem to be at the average level with the exception of DeMatha at the top and SMR and McN at the bottom.

-- pitching.
-- rain-outs and rescheduling forcing teams to use pitchers they wouldn't ordinarily use -- which, I guess is a function of pitching. ;-)

And, OK, I have to say this, I know I'm a mother of a pitcher and maybe I'm too sensitive -- but good pitching sometimes seems like more of a result of the size of the umpire's strike zone than how well the kid on the mound is hitting his spots. Some won't call corners, some don't seem to recognize a slider, some will call the inside corner but not the outside... those games usually turn into slugfests or lots and lots of walks.

And that too comes back to pitching.

It occurred to me a few days ago that people often call baseball a game of failure in which a hitter can fail 7 out of 10 times and still make it into the Hall of Fame. No one ever says that about a pitcher or a shortstop. I think the game is really played in the field and not at the plate. In that respect, it's not a game of failure at all. You make your pitches, your defense makes the plays, or you lose the game.

Play-offs at George Mason this year?

LHPMom

LHPMom,

I have to agree about the strike zones. I have sat there and watched 2 good pitchers match up and both are out of the game by the 4th or 5th inning of a 8-6 game, and 2 medicore pitchers pitching into the 6th inning of a 2-1 game. The difference in the games was the strike zone.

It seems at this age, a lot of pitchers have a hard time adjusting to some of the strike zones that they see.

Plus, few pitchers at this age have the stuff to dominate hitters when there is a small strike zone and you have to pitch more in the middle of the plate.

These kind of strike zones usually result in a lot of walks, a lot of hits, or both. But it usually is not a good crisp baseball game.

quote:

Originally posted by getagoodpitchtohit:
LHPMom,

I have to agree about the strike zones. I have sat there and watched 2 good pitchers match up and both are out of the game by the 4th or 5th inning of a 8-6 game, and 2 medicore pitchers pitching into the 6th inning of a 2-1 game. The difference in the games was the strike zone.

It seems at this age, a lot of pitchers have a hard time adjusting to some of the strike zones that they see.

Plus, few pitchers at this age have the stuff to dominate hitters when there is a small strike zone and you have to pitch more in the middle of the plate.

These kind of strike zones usually result in a lot of walks, a lot of hits, or both. But it usually is not a good crisp baseball game.

getagoodpitchtohit--You raise the age-old debate about the strike zone by suggesting that pitchers and hitters need to adjust to an umpire's strike zone, while, of course, the rule book sets forth a clear strike zone in black and white. This indicates to me that umpires may call a strike zone that is different from the one in the book, and, as I have argued many times, that is unfortunate. It allows for subjectivity, inconsistency, and failure for all concerned. It diminishes the game. But, in this imperfect world, the players who adjust will succeed more often than those who don't.

High school baseball is in tough shape with the weather and tournaments ongoing. It will wreak havoc and may separate the teams with pitching depth from those that might have succeeded with one or two aces at the top. Should be interesting.

Yes, the GMU site for the WCAC tournament was a shocker. I wonder if Shirley Povich was already taken or got more money from someone else? GMU does not have lights. The drive will be a lengthy one for DeMatha, St. John's, GC, and Gonzaga. PVI is in good shape, but can PVI even get to GMU (they will have to beat O/C or GC to even get there). Mason also seems awfully sensitive about field conditions--will the WCAC even get this thing off the ground if the rains continue?

I assume Povich was already taken; U14 and U13 select teams play there, so does Georgetown (their season's probably over with already though)... they are busy just about every night of the week.

Drivewise, GMU isn't that bad... it's not Ryken after all...

I hope they can get these games in. Looks like it's going to rain every day this week!

DC sports fan lists the games at Bowie - Not GMU. Don't know about the reliability of the source, but that's what it says.

The WCAC Semi-Finals and Finals will now be at Bowie Baysox Stadium. Semi-Finals are Sunday, 5:00 & 8:00, I believe. Monday's final will be at 7:00pm.

THink they'll play the remaining games before the playoffs? Or just go with the seedings as they are?

If games are a wash today & tomorrow, they will just start the playoffs Friday or Saturday!

WCAC dropped some games because of rain. First round games are at higher seeds today. Semifinals moved to Baysox Stadium on Sunday and Finals there Monday (7:00). Weather reports are for possible thunderstorms today (30% chance), thunderstorms Saturday (60%), but very good weather Sunday through Wednesday.

DeMatha in a slump. St. John's, O'Connell, Good Counsel, or PVI could pull some upsets. DeMatha may not win this thing. And you cannot count out Coach Gallagher's s****** Cardinals--maybe the best coached team in the WCAC.

First off, wrt the post above, it appears HSBBW has a program that turns a positive word s-c-r-a-p-p-y into an apparently negative word s******. Strange. The Cardinals are as described--very much so. Coach Gallagher gets the absolute most out of his kids and somehow they compete every game, regardless of odds.

Now, it turns out, and don't ask me how, #5 BI plays #6 PVI for the WCAC Championship. Tell me that's not crazy. It just goes to show you what a topsy-turvy year it has been in the WCAC. DeMatha dominated the regular season (but could hardly win outside of conference) while PVI was #6 during the regular season (and won nearly every out-of-conference game, including the SBC Tournament). PVI has pitching depth, so had Costello to beat O'Connell on Friday and Mancari to beat St. John's last night. McGee would seem to be the likely starter tonight. Who does BI have left? Kraft? He pitched against Good Counsel on Thursday, so should be good for tonight. Hard to predict this one, too. BI beat PVI once and PVI beat BI once (in extra innings, 1-0).

Game is at Bowie Baysox Stadium at 7:00 if interested.

Both BI and PVI start the VISAA tournament tomorrow. PVI is seeded #2 and BI #7.

My son just passed on some gossip that PVI has an import from Venezuela who lives with the coach? He said the boy hit a triple in yesterday's game.

If true, maybe the other schools need to go to the Dominican and pick up some guys...

Now THAT is hilarious. Puentes, Mateos . . . Hispanic names = Venezuelan ringers? Very funny. And the Murakami boys are Japanese imports! Which coach is playing Mr. Mom to the Venezuelan?

WCAC Championship Game:

BI 3 v. PVI 2

Game suspended heading into the top of the 6th (PVI is away team as the lower seed). It will resume Wednesday night at 5:00 at Annandale HS.

BI and PVI both play first round VISAA games tonight. BI at St. Christopher's and PVI against Trinity Episcopal at Waters Field.

Venezuelan. That really is funny.

PVI beat BI 4-3 in the suspended finals. Tyler Costello pinch hit in the 6th for PVI and tied it with a HR. He then won it in the 7th with a sac fly.

Congratulations to PVI and BI both. Neither was supposed to be in this game, and both persevered through low seedings, long bus rides, bad weather, the intervention of VISAA games, and the suspension. Both are very deserving of their places in the finals.

Props to PVI. Some (inc me) doubted they could lose so much and maitain high level and they showed they could by winning both the WCAC and VIS titles.

PVI in 2009 did something even the great team from 2008 failed to do--win THREE Champsionships:

--Southeastern Baseball Classic
--WCAC Championship
--VISAA Div I State Championship

No other team in PVI history has accomplished this TRIPLE. It is a great accomplishment for a team that was expected to be "down" this year. And PVI was down.

They started out playing sub .500 baseball. When seniors Justin Puentes and Charles Beacom began playing full-time, and when senior Torey Mancari was given the opportunity to be a starter on the mound, the Panthers got on a tear and never stopped. (Tyler Costello's junior bat also played a huge role in their success--he had played almost exclusively as a pitcher until the WCAC tournament, when his timely hits saved them.)

The key to the season was the adjustment made by Coach Emerson, after recognizing he was putting way too much pressure on his inexperienced sophomores (who seemed to be a combined 4/96 after about 12 games), to insert his seniors into starting roles. Had this been done from the start, PVI may have been close to last year's 3 losses instead of this year's 9 losses. In any case, the coaches eventually got it right and the seniors saved the season.

That is not to say that the sophomores won't make up a great team when it is their time. Next year and the following year they will be center stage, trying to duplicate the past accomplishments of the PVI program. They are more than capable of doing it.

As for the WCAC, any coaching changes coming? Can PVI hold onto Emerson forever? When will a college (or another high school) make him an offer he cannot refuse? Is Gallagher a permanent fixture at BI? Will the new blood at Gonzaga "stick"?

... stay tuned for the next episode of "As the WCAC Turns..."