On the Court, Mat and Field
Young people from across our city have been tough competitors this winter in Emerald Youth Sports.
Track and field athletes recently traveled to the Track and Field Coalition USA Indoor National Championships. All eight athletes that competed did exceptionally well in their events and age classifications. The most notable was Jasheala Bohannan and James Bohannan (siblings), who both placed second overall in the shotput in their respective age classifications. Also, Dominic Smith had a personal best performance in the 60-meter and 200-meter dash.
“It’s been a tremendous few months for the young people engaged in our athletics,” said Sanford Miller, director of sports and FCA urban outreach.
“We are grateful for the investment of time and resources by so many in our community to make Emerald Youth Sports possible for our city’s young athletes. Our staff and volunteers are especially looking forward to spring and summer, which always provides great outdoor sports and recreation opportunities.”
Wrestlers from Lonsdale, Marble City, Mechanicsville and other city neighborhoods descended on Hardin Valley Academy in early February for their first offsite wrestling meet of the year. Every competitor wrestled at least two matches with the team winning over half of them. Of the 22 boys, 14 were first-time competitors. The team spirit was easy to see as green uniforms filled up the corners of the mats every time a teammate wrestled.
In preparation for baseball season, players on Emerald Youth-sponsored teams from Emerald Academy, as well as Whittle Springs, Northwest and Vine Middle Schools recently worked out on the brand new turf field at Lindsay Nelson Stadium. The opportunity was made possible by Tennessee baseball head coach Tony Vitello, who is also providing a special game day experience at 25 home games this season for Emerald Youth children. They’ll receive complimentary tickets, be on the field and in the dugout to watch batting practice, and will be recognized in pre-game activities.
Volleyball continues to be a thriving sport for middle and high school girls, with our seven club volleyball teams making tremendous gains recently in their second tournament of the year.
Our 18-1 team finished fifth overall in their division, a huge uptick from their 13th overall finish in their first tournament. Also, our 14-1 team secured their second top ten finish and continued to play very well, barely missing out on the championship round after losing in the third and final set of the semi-finals. Our youngest team, 13s, showed promising improvement as well, winning their first game and taking three more teams to a third and final set.
The teams will return to the court this weekend for the 2019 Southeast Pre-Qualifier at the World’s Fair Exhibition Hall at the Downtown Holiday Inn.