St. Mary’s County athletes joined the inaugural season of Flag Football for Maryland. A group of energetic athletes and unified partners, some of whom were also playing soccer, practiced diligently and picked up the sport rather quickly.
St. Mary’s developed two unified football teams with comparable ability and talents. The St. Mary’s Blue team consisted of athletes Shaun Ridley, Daniel Simpson, Larry Mills, Dillon Kelley, and Jimmy Hawkins, and unified partners Wil Ridley, Alan Hill, and Wesley Thompson. The St. Mary’s Black team consisted of athletes Thomas Smith, Terrel Nowlin, Brandon Chan, Robert King, Matt Dobson, and Sam Huffman with unified partners Marc Rinaldo, Annah Rice, and Don Bewick.
The State competition was held on October 31 at Mount St. Mary’s College in Emmitsburg. The two teams played each other first, competing against athletes that are normally teammates. The Black team got out to a 6-0 when Marc Rinaldo scored a touchdown from a Thomas Smith pass. With good defense and constant pressure by Terrel Nowlin, the Black team held the lead for most of the game. The Blue team got a safety from Shaun Ridley to cut it to 6-2. With less than 5 minutes left, the Blue team scored a touchdown from a long pass by Wil Ridley to Larry Mills. The Blue team held tight on defense and scored another touchdown reception by Larry Mills to Daniel Simpson in the final seconds to give the Blue team a 15-6 win.
In the second game of the day, the Blue team played against the talented Lower Shore team. After an early score from Lower Shore, the Blue team was able to tie the game with a long run by Shaun Ridley after a short pass by Wil Ridley. The Blue team continued to move the ball offensively but could not get back on the score board. Lower Shore continued to put the pressure on, with a couple of long touchdown passes and runs and ended up winning 30-6.
Even when they were down, the Blue team continued to play hard and made some nice plays including a leaping interception by LarryMills.
In the last game of the day, the Black team played against the Lower Shore team. The Black team played great defense early on, led by Terrel Nowlin, and took the lead after gaining good field position off an interception by Thomas Smith. A few plays later on 4th down, Thomas Smith ran a great route and caught a 5 yard touchdown pass from Marc Rinaldo in the back of the end zone. Lower Shore tied the game right before half after a long touchdown run. Lower Shore regained the lead on their first possession of the second half, and got another follow on score. The Black team continued to fight including a reception by Annah Rice that appeared to be a touchdown; however, it was ruled just short of the goal line with 3 minutes left in the game.
So, in this inaugural season, St. Mary’s Blue team brought home the silver and the Black team took the Bronze.
Overall the teams played well and had a great time. Lower Shore athletes and partners played very well and were a lot of fun to be around. A special thanks to the unified partners who played and practiced with the teams and a very special thanks to Coaches Jim Hawkins, Lloyd Grayson, and Lisa Owens for their support.
GOLF
The Special Olympics St. Mary’s County Golf Season attracted several athletes for skills events, 9-hole alternate shot, and 18-hole alternate shot play. Working in partnership with Wicomico Shores Golf Course, the athletes trained weekly to prepare for regional, state, and national competitions. Two athletes from St. Mary’s attended the National Competition in Lincoln, Nebraska, bringing home the gold in alternate shot 18 holes. Jimmy Hawkins and partner Bill Lowe represented Maryland in the national event, playing against athletes from Tennessee, Massachusetts, and Maryland. They shot two of the best games ever with a 90 and 95 on a very challenging course. They brought home the gold in their division. Congratulations to both players. Local athletes training in the skills competition of putting, shooting, and chipping were Karla Kless, Keith Stamp, Ronnie Noordzy, Rebecca Elwell, Christy Brinkley, Michelle Johnson, and Amanda Lowe. These athletes went on to com-pete at the state level. They represented St. Mary’s County well, bringing home medals and ribbons, in spite of rain and cool winds. Karla was the only golfer out of 70 athletes to chip the ball onto the green and into the hole. Ronnie was the only athlete to pitch the ball over the barrier and land all five attempts into the circle. Wow!
The regular golf season began in July with athletes practicing at Wicomico Golf Course. Three levels of competition were available. The level 1 skills athletes from St. Mary’s worked on skill building, these athletes practiced and competed in driving, putting, and chipping competitions. On the courses of Chesapeake Golf Course, Paint Branch, Glade Valley, Geneva Farms, Compass Pointe, and Easton Golf Course, five local athletes and their partners played in Level 2 and Level 3 competitions. Level 2 is 9 holes, alternate shot and Level 3 is 18 holes, alternate shot. Athlete golfer Annie Bassford and partner Karin King placed first in their division, shooting a 57. Joey Owens and partner Brian Tierney won 3rd place in their division and had their best game ever – a 53. Golfer Russell Bucci and his partner Paul Guy won 1st in their division, shooting
their best game ever, a 61. Kegan Zimmerman and partner Jason Zimmerman shot a 70 during their first 9-hole competition. In level 3 competition, Jimmy Hawkins and Bill Lowe went up against formidable competition and won the gold medal. Head Coach Joe Owens noted the fine play by several athletes who were new to the sport this year. The support of family members during practices and competition was extremely valuable. He also added his gratitude to Patty Myers and her staff for the use of Wicomico Shores
Golf Course for weekly practices.
Special Olympics St. Mary County 2009 golf program was a great success thanks to the hard work and dedication of the coaches, the athletes, and their families.
CYCLING
The management and police department of NAS Patuxent River helped Special Olympics St. Mary’s offer an exceptional cycling season. Mr. John Romer, Chief of Police, worked with local Special Olympics volunteers to set up and monitor
a training location aboard the base that offered a warmup area, straight-aways, turns,
and hills. Officers monitored the training site each week to keep athletes safe. They also joined the athletes in riding the courses during training.
This year’s cycling program was the largest in local history, attracting 36 cyclists on 2-wheel, 3-wheel, and handcontrolled bikes. Volunteers with the program include NAS civilian employees, local contractor employees, and active duty personnel. Their efforts to maintain a safe training environment helped the athletes of all ages prepare for local and state competitions. Special Olympics St. Mary’s County held a regional qualifier with 50 athletes from St. Mary’s, Anne Arundel, Howard, and Montgomery Counties. For the state Special Olympics competition, 20 local athletes traveled to Sykesville and competed in 500 meter, 1K, 2K, 5K and 10K distances.
Athletes from the local delegation are Michael Bald, Russell Bucci, Angela Buckler, Brady
Carrigan, Casey Chappelear, Joshua Fondren, Bill Ford, Jeffery
Hagen, Linda Higgs, Amanda
Lowe, Stephen Maras, Laura
Marini, Joe Quade, Betti Russell,
Kyle Russell, Melanie Shannon,
Andy Thompson, and Kegan Zimmerman.
These athletes brought
home medals and ribbons to acknowledge
their participation and
level of competition.
Coach JR Russell, is thankful for
the superb support of Pax River.
“The athletes trained in various
distances and this environment
allowed them to practice regardless
of their experience levels. The athletes have improved tremendously
this year.”
BOWLING
Esperanza Lanes once again, was the site of the Special Olympics St. Mary’s County training session for bowling. Mr. Dave Long opened the lanes to our athletes for bowling practice each week, for eight weeks. Over 90 bowlers participated and then competed in the largest local tournament, ever. This is a great partnership with Mr. Long and the Esperanza Lanes to benefit the athletes in St. Mary’s County. A very sincere thanks to Dave and the staff at the lanes for their generous contributions to our athletes.
The local tournament occupied 24 lanes of the bowling alley. Awards were presented
based on scores that day. Following are the results from this year’s local tournament.
Lane 1 and 2: 1st-Amanda Lowe; 2nd-Arielle Gray; 3rd-Jeremy Degler; 4th-Danielle Krug;
5th Shelby Beall
Lane 3 and 4: 1st Julie Barker; 2nd Betti Russell; 3rd Gloria Armstrong; 4th Tammy Wise;
5th Michael Palmer
Lanes 5 and 6: 1st Brady Carrigan; 2nd Ricky Lasky
Lanes 7 and 8: 1st Austin Debeltz; 2nd Jennifer Haley; 3rd April Newton; 4th Jimmy Finch;
5th Terri Insley; 6th Angelica Ringgold; 7th Karla Kless
Lanes 9 and 10: 1st Kim Ballard; 2nd Linda Hammett; 3rd Melody Chase; 4th Jack O’Brien;
5th Melanie Shannon; 5th David Shipman
Lane 11: 1st Vicki Farmer; 2nd Martha Hyson; 2nd Patrick Johnson; 4th Jerry Gatton; 5th Susan Epp
Lane 12: 1st Charlotte Coppage; 2nd William Butler; 3rd Trina Williams; 4th Edie Ferguson
Lanes 13 and 14: 1st James Woodland; 2nd Justin Fowler; 3rd Michael Wood;
4th Marshall Thompson;5th Mandy Blackistone; 6th Ryan Gerhold
Lanes 15 and 16; 1st Steve Gildersleeve; 2nd Ricky Stuver; 3rd Rachel Hicks; 4th Suzanne Green;
5th Michael Bald; 6th Tom Bayne; 7th Debbie Gatton; 8th Joanie Himes
Lanes 17 and 18: 1st Hope Taylor, 2nd Stephen Maras; 3rd Andrea Brown; 4th Bill Ford;
5th Linda Higgs; 6th Shelby Boyer; 7th Angela Pitts
Lanes 19 and 20: 1st Bobby Hislop; 2nd Debbie Davis; 3rd Chong Fairclough;;4th Keith Stamp;
5th Shawn Somerville; 6th Charlie Sayers; 7th Ann Marie Fanzo
Lanes 21 and 22: 1st Russell Bucci; 2nd Christy Brinkley; 3rd Tom Stewart;
4th Connie Buckler; 5th Ronnie Noordzy; 6th Michelle Haley; 7th Scarlet Cundiff; 8th Kelly Guffey
Lanes 23 and 24: 1st Jason Wright, 2nd Kegan Zimmerman; 3rd Barry Burris; 4th
Tim Higgs; 5th Joe Quade; 6th Jim Downs; 7th Greg Geller; 8th Patty Lippincott
SOCCER
Special Olympics St. Mary’s County sports competitions are a source of many remarkable events for the athletes and coaches who participate. This year’s State Soccer Competition is no different. The competition and the accomplishments of the athletes are memorable.
Over 70 athletes, coaches, partners, and family members traveled to the Crown Sports Complex in Fruitland, Maryland, near Salisbury, to compete in a series of divisioned soccer games. The St. Mary’s County contingent consisted of four traditional soccer teams (7v7) and a player development team.
Each team played in a series of games against similarly-skilled opponents. St. Mary’s Team 1, consisting of all athletes, competed in a division with unified teams (consisting of athletes and partners). They played against teams from the Hartford, Howard, and Washington. This team worked really hard and brought home the gold. They were coached by John Toner and Jim Hawkins. John commented, “the whole team, down to the last man and woman, played better than I have ever seen them play. They definitely stepped up their game to a new level against a group of unified teams. One of the referees even commented on how potent our team’s attack was. Also, Daniel Simpson stepped in and played goalie for the first time in the absence of Sam Hoffman and did a great job. He was very talkative throughout all of the games directing his teammates and shouting encouragement. He was a picture of how a goalie should play the game. Jim and I are very proud of the team and their accomplishment.”
St. Mary’s Team 2, led by Jim Patrey and Jim Bucci, played extremely well, also. They were set up with teams from Anne Arundel, Carroll and Prince George’s. Each member of the team made stellar contributions to the team’s success. Coach
Patrey was amazed with athlete Shelby Boyer, “the dashes she made after making a goal was great.” She scored five times during the overall competition. “Goalie James Sewell only allowed 3 goals in the six games that the team played this entire season. Pretty impressive.” This team brought home silver medals to acknowledge their performance. They were helped during practice by the McNamara Brothers.
St. Mary’s Team 3, led by Serge and Terri Lefebvre, went up against some aggressive
competitors, but they held their own. Teams from Garrett, Howard, and Anne Arundel were in their division. Coach Lefebvre commented, “Even though we were up against heavy competition, our team pulled together and did great.“ Team 3 brought home the silver medal.
St. Mary’s Team 4 was inspiring. This team includes athletes who have joined soccer for the first time. They are not large in stature, but they are huge in spirit and enthusiasm. They successfully played against teams from Calvert and Baltimore, winning the gold medal. Coach Mark Fondren and Assistant Coach Lisa McAloon commented, “they played better than we have ever seen. They had so much energy and proved they knew the game. Each athlete should be very proud of how they played.”
St. Mary’s Player Development Team also did well. This team consists of athletes who are just learning soccer along with coach mentors who play on the field with the athletes, directing and supporting them in the game. This team played a nail biter against Anne Arundel County. In their second game, they competed against a team with
more skilled players; however, they held their own. Michelle Johnson and Karla Kless played offense supported by Kristin Klear. They handled the ball and performed personal bests. With Ronnie Noordzy in the goal and defensive players Andy Thompson and Vincent Treglia, the team gained the confidence to continue play, even
against a strong team. Partners Vicki Pilkington, Shelly Debeltz, Cheri Leonard, and Connie Thompson, along with Coach Gene Thompson were extremely impressed with the stamina and commitment of the athletes. As they continue to learn the sport, they can use this experience to be even better.
