A New Era in South Lakes Football

Crossing Midfield, Along With The Gender Barrier

White, Yates may be female, but they are part of the football team.

By Karen Goff | Email the author | August 31, 2010

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Under the pads and the helmets, opponents see South Lakes High School junior varsity linemen No. 78 and No. 71 as players blocking the way. Only when they see the fingernails, do they have a clue. That's because Nos. 71 and 78 have manicures - this week in sparkly blue and green, the Seahawks' school colors.

No. 71 is Sumiya Yates. No. 78 is Chermara White. They are junior girls returning for a second season playing offensive and defensive line. For Chermara, playing football was a long time coming. She was a freshman cheerleader at South Lakes. She's played lacrosse, done gymnastics, played basketball, ran track and participated in South Lakes' annual powder puff football game. But something was missing. She wanted to play football like her idol, Troy Polamalu of the Steelers.  "I am the biggest Pittsburgh Steelers fan," says Chermara. "Sumiya and I were cheerleaders freshman year, but we got in trouble for yelling too much. We wanted to play football!"

Latasha White, Chermara's mother, said she hoped it was a phase. Perhaps the girls would attend a training camp and be dissuaded. Nope. Perhaps they would get hit hard, early and often.  Nope.  Maybe if they chipped a sparkly blue nail?  "I was just trying to avoid the thought of my daughter playing football," says Latasha White. "But Chermara came back from training camp in 2009 and said 'this is all I want to do.' " The girls were a little frustrated with their lack of playing time in 2009 under coach John Ellenberger. However, with new coach Andy Hill in charge, they feel this could really be their year.

Coach Hill says the girls will play JV and will dress for varsity games. At his previous position at Park View High in Loudoun County, there was usually one girl who came out for the team each year, Hill says. For various reasons, most did not last a season.  The girls say they have already shown their commitment to the team.  "Last year, I think some of the players tried to scare us off," said Sumiya. "That only made us push harder."  Senior Mike Bissonnette says the girls proved themselves last year.  "It is cool they are out there," he said. "Last year they proved they are here to play and not just wear a jersey." Hill says when it comes to tenacity, there is no gender division.

"They are members of the team like their 68 other teammates," he said. "They are respected by their male counterparts, but not in a way that sets them apart simply because of their gender.  They come to practice, work hard, and do what the coaches ask.  Male or female, that's what the team demands, and they are living up to their responsibilities." The girls dress at South Lakes in the girls' locker room. At away games, the entire team arrives dressed, so locker rooms are not an issue. The girls say their favorite part of the game is defense. Sumiya (6 foot 1, 185 lbs.) plays defensive tackle. Chermara, 5-4, 152, plays defensive end.

"I wasn't surprised when they wanted to be lineman," says Hill. "That's a position where you think of the biggest, toughest players, but it's also a position that's involved in every play.  We had talked about moving Chermara to fullback, but she seemed more comfortable on the line." Chermara is so comfortable; she hopes to stay a while. She says she would love to play for the DC Divas, the women's pro football team, after a representative from the Divas came to South Lakes for a presentation last year. "She's been addicted to the notion of football ever since," Latasha White said. The junior varsity begins its season Wednesday against Falls Church High School.

South Lakes Seahawks Armed with Athleticism

New offense, conditioning program seek to utilize team's greatest strength

By Michael Beller | Email the author | August 29, 2010

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New South Lakes football head coach Andy Hill has no illusions about the daunting task in front of him. To turn around a team that hasn't had a winning record since 2002, he must change the culture surrounding the Seahawks. "What we really started talking about was accountability," Hill said. "If we want to get a different result, we have to do things different than we have in the past. That started with our offseason." Hill brought a fresh mentality to South Lakes this summer. Relative to the rest of the teams in the VHSL AAA Northern Region, the Seahawks lack size. To compensate for that, Hill insists that his team needs to be the best conditioned.

"Any time you look at a good program, it's the little things," Hill said. "The way they talk about their workouts, the way they view conditioning as a tool to get better rather than a punishment to endure at the end of practice. "If you look back at last year's game film, [these guys] were in a position to go 7-3 or 8-2 but they lost a few games late. We have to be in excellent physical condition." To take advantage of their improved stamina, South Lakes now runs a spread option, no-huddle offense. By forgoing a huddle between plays, Hill hopes the Seahawks can victimize opponents who may not be able to keep up with their pace. Spreading it out wide should enable them to use their speed and athleticism, and get their skill players the ball with some space to operate.

"This year we have more speed," said senior running back Ja'Juan Jones. "The spread offense allows us to take advantage of one-on-one situations." Under former coach John Ellenberger, the Seahawks ran a Wing-T, which is based on ball control and running the football. In the spread option, South Lakes will inevitably throw the ball far more than it did in the past. It's a change senior wide receiver and free safety Sean Price feels fits the team's personnel.  "There are more options because our team is so athletic, we can pass and run with the same people," Price said. "Last year we had the same athletes, but they were so limited in the backfield. Now that we're out in the open, we can throw it everywhere and we can run it everywhere."

Even though the sheer athleticism is there from top to bottom, there's still a learning curve. The spread calls for the Seahawks' receivers to run more complex routes than they have the last few seasons. Also, with more frequent stretches and sweeps, there's more pressure on the wideouts to get good downfield blocks. Thus far this offseason, wide receivers coach Andre Allen is very pleased with what he has seen out of his guys.

"I think they're adapting to the spread pretty well," Allen said. "They're getting the plays down, getting our formations down and starting to understand the concepts of our plays. Once they get that down to a tee, we should be good to go." The Seahawks employ more two-way players than the average team, another strategy aimed at capitalizing on their athleticism. In addition to Price, senior wide receiver and cornerback Darius Smith and senior quarterback and linebacker Mike Bissonnette start on both sides of the ball. While the Seahawks have their eyes focused on their first winning season in nearly a decade, Hill stresses it's not all about winning and losing. At the end of the day, he wants his players to have ownership of the team.

"The thing that's going to help us have a winning season is when we realize it's us, that we're going to put our name on it, that we're going to have no excuses," Hill said emphatically. "We need to say, 'This is our season, and we're going to sign our name to the bottom of it when it's done.'" In addition to a signature, the Seahawks are confident that bottom line will also have more wins than losses.

Former South Lakes Track Standout to Run at Vermont

By Brian Belefski | Email the author | August 20, 2010

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Former South Lakes High School  track and field standout athlete Valerie Moyer, who holds six track and field records for the Seahawks, is off to try to do the same at the Division I level. Moyer earned a partial academic and athletic scholarship to the University of Vermont. "I fell in love with Vermont when I visited the school this past November," said Moyer.  "I actually got in touch with them," Moyer said. "I met with the coach and went up there.  I'm enthusiastic and excited to be with them." After another visit to the Burlington campus in March, Moyer met some team members and found out that Vermont would be a perfect fit to continue her competitive track career and earn a quality education.

Moyer's father, Steve, ran track in college at University of Maine and has guided her through the steps of becoming a college athlete. "My father has been very supportive throughout my career," Moyer said. "He really gets it and has helped me get to where I am." Moyer says her coaches at South Lakes also had an important impact on her. "South Lakes cross country coach Kevin Donovan has influenced me a lot," Moyer said. "He's always brought a good attitude to gravitate to." South Lakes track and field coach Scott Raczko and assistant coach Joseph Schuler were also beneficial in developing Moyer into a Division I-caliber track performer, Moyer says.

Moyer is a versatile athlete who competes in distance running and high jump.  Having a scholarship doesn't automatically qualify Moyer to participate in events early in her college career, though. Moyer admits that she's up to the task of running at the Division I level, but because she's new to the team, she will have to work hard to qualify for the meets and help the Catamounts vie for an America East Conference title. The Catamounts are constructing a new, $2.5-million track facility. Moyer's personal best in the 800-meter run was 2:22.03 at the Nike Spring Invitational. She has also vaulted 5-feet,  2 inches in the high jump.

That mark was third best at the Northern Region Championship on May 22, and good enough to place ninth at the Virginia State Championship on June 4. Both are also school records at South Lakes. In total, Moyer holds six South Lakes records. Other records include the 1,000-meter run (3:06:55) at the 2010 Northern Region Indoor Track and Field Championship; the mile run (5:20.85) at the 2010 Southern Track Classic; the two-mile run (12:51.00) at the 2009 PR Relay Kickoff; and the 5,000-meter run (19:31.86) at the 2009 Milestat.com Invitational.

Andy Hill takes over Seahawks program.

By Yasin Jama and Karen Goff | Email the authors | August 25, 2010

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During five seasons at  Park View High School in Sterling, football coach Andy Hill's team made four playoff appearances and earned two district titles.

Hill is now trying to bring the same level of success to South Lakes High School.  Hill, 32, replaces coach John Ellenberger. He takes over  a team that went 5-6 in 2009. The Seahawks started 2009 5-1, then lost five games in a row.

"I'm excited to be the new head coach for South Lakes," said Hill. "We have big goals for the 2010 season, but there is no magic formula. We have to come together as a team, and dedicate each day to working harder and smarter than our opponents."  Hill, a Minnesota native, has shown he is up for a challenge. After his first losing season in 2008, Hill corrected the team's mistakes and led Park View to a winning record the following year.

"During the 2008 season, I learned the most about myself and about running a football program when Park View went 3-7," said Hill. "I learned lessons that helped me see weaknesses in our program, mistakes on my part, and strategically flaws. When I corrected those mistakes, it helped us lead our 2009 team to an 8-4 record and an appearance in the Division III Region 2 final. Hill, who will teach history at South Lakes, faces and additional challenge of changing the culture of the South Lake football team. South Lakes' last district title came in 1991 and it has not  had a winning season since 2002.  The players are receptive to a new attitude and, potentially, a winning season, he says.

"We are a lot more of a team." said senior wide receiver Sean Price, one of seven seniors returning to the team. "We are a lot more serious here with Coach Hill. There is not as much joking around. The new coaching staff is great." The Seahawks "looked good" in their first scrimmage last Saturday against Woodson High School, said Hill.  "Woodson was 11-2 last year," said Hill. "We wanted to play a good team. Good teams show you what you need to do."

Hill says to turn a program around, a new attitude starts on the field, of course, but continues in the classroom and the community. "Players, coaches, parents, and the school community are not victims of a given culture, but rather they are the creators of the culture in which they exist," said Hill. "We are going to ask our players, parents, and school personnel to get on board," he said. "But to simply think that a new coach will automatically change the culture takes away the ownership of all parties involved.  If we all embrace the impact that we can have on empowering this program to success, then we will succeed."

South Lakes will scrimmage at Washington-Lee High School Thursday at 7:30 p.m. The season opener is Sept. 10 at home against Thomas Jefferson.