Thomas Dale High School | Archive | December, 2007

Girls Basketball POW – Dec. 11

Posted on 12 December 2007 by redwan123.

Kalia Johnson
Thomas Dale

Height: 5-9
Year/Age: Freshman, 14
Position: Guard
Performances: Johnson scored 18 points and had six rebounds in a 56-48 win over James River and had 23 points, nine assists and eight rebounds in a victory over Varina.
Favorite food: “Pasta salad that my mom and her co-worker makes.”
Favorite music: “I don’t have a favorite, I just listen to whatever I am in the mood to listen to.”
Best trait: “My court vision and how I penetrate and dish the ball.”
Funniest teammates: “Alexis Hobbs and Alyssa Frye because they are always doing something stupid and laughing and making jokes.”

What you wouldn’t know: “I want to write a book. And I love to cook but I **** doing dishes.”
Basketball or volleyball: “Basketball of course.” Johnson also plays on the Thomas Dale girls volleyball team.
On the Knights good start: “Outside of the basketball court we blend together real well. We still have a little bit of stuff to work on but being that we are Thomas Dale we are doing pretty good.”

– Seneca Contomanolis

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Madison Parrish, Thomas Dale

Posted on 11 December 2007 by redwan123.

Madison Parrish was the last line of defense before you got to the Thomas Dale goalie Miranda Lojek this season.

It was never more apparent then when the sweeper saved a potential game-winning shot while backing up Lojek in the first overtime of the Central Region championship. Thomas Dale (18-3) went on to beat James River in the second overtime.

But that was nothing new for Parrish as she made numerous goal line saves all season. Coach Beth Jaeckle credits her with holding the defense together and connecting the goalie to the field and other players.

Parrish, a junior, earned honorable mention all-state honors and will return next year to try and help the Knights three-peat as region champions.

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Carrie Jaeckle, Thomas Dale

Posted on 11 December 2007 by redwan123.

Defense became more of a focus for Carrie Jaeckle after she was moved from center midfield to stopper.

But the senior captain ended up scoring the biggest goal all year for the Thomas Dale field hockey team.

Against James River in the Central Region final, Jaeckle found the back of the cage in double-overtime as the Knights (18-3) repeated as champs.

Jaeckle is a solid defender who sees the field well and Coach Beth Jaeckle, her older sister, said, “She was great at distributing the ball and getting the ball out wide.”

She finished the season with five goals and five assists.

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Julie Robertson, Thomas Dale

Posted on 11 December 2007 by redwan123.

You would be hard-pressed to find a more well-rounded field hockey player than Julie Robertson.

Robertson can score, defend, has great stick work and incredible speed. The DigitalSports field hockey player of the year, she was moved from forward to center midfield to take advantage of her endurance.

The move didn’t hurt her as she scored 11 goals and had 12 assists this past season while Thomas Dale repeated as Central Region champions. The Knights (18-3) lost in the state quarterfinals to Mountain View 2-1.

Robertson is only a junior yet she was named Central District player of the year and was second team all-state.


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Loren Favale, Thomas Dale

Posted on 11 December 2007 by redwan123.

Loren Favale will tell you straight up she still has a lot to learn about field hockey.

But that didn’t stop her from dominating offensively for Thomas Dale as the Knights made a run to the quarterfinals of the state tournament this past season.

A soccer player at heart, the senior forward scored 18 goals and had six assists. Favale’s coach Beth Jaeckle said she, “peaked this season with being able to finish goals and score.”

Thomas Dale (18-3) repeated as Central Region champions with a 1-0 overtime victory over James River and then fell to Mountain View 2-1 in the state tournament.

Favale earned honorable mention honors for the state team and was first team all-region.

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David Cole, Thomas Dale

Posted on 10 December 2007 by redwan123.

David Cole was the most unassuming player on Thomas Dale’s team. He just fit in. A complimentary piece in Dale’s middle.

Yeah right. As soon as an opponent thought that, there was Cole in the middle of the action making plays.

He had 192 kills, tied for tops on the team with Johnston.

He also put up 63 blocks with his long arms and leaping ability. Cole was a good server as well, with 18 aces.

Anyone would like to have a complimentary piece that productive.

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Bradley Johnston, Thomas Dale

Posted on 10 December 2007 by redwan123.

Bradley Johnston‘s windmill of a right arm never seemed to get tired in Thomas Dale’s dream season.

When he got in a hitting zone, it was lights out for opponents.

Johnston, 6-2, registered 192 blistering kills and 65 aces. He wasn’t selfish though, as he delivered 307 assists to go along with 62 blocks and 31 digs.

When Michael Blankenbecler wasn’t controlling a game, Johnston was as Dale won the state championship on a 26-0 campaign with three games lost the entire season.

More bad news, Central Region. He’s only a junior.

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Michael Blankenbecler, Thomas Dale

Posted on 10 December 2007 by redwan123.

What can Michael Blankenbecler not do?

The Thomas Dale Knight set, blocked, led, dug, hustled and scored in various ways, leading his team to the state Group AAA title, Dale’s first ever in boys volleyball.

A coach’s dream and an opponent’s nightmare, the 6-1 Blankenbecler racked up 406 assists, 147 kills, 118 blocks, 30 digs and 26 aces in Dale’s 26-0 season.

The Knights dropped three games all season, and a lot of it was because of their senior captain. Just read what coach Mike Walker had to say after Dale won the Central Region title.

“He just means so much to this program. I know Michael is going to make the play. It might be two or
three guys who hit harder, but he beats you. He just beats you.”

That’s why Blankenbecler is our player of the year.

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Dale Still Unbeaten

Posted on 07 December 2007 by redwan123.

by Stephen M. Lewis
DigitalSports Richmond

There’s no doubt. Thomas Dale freshman Kalia Johnson is a very special player.

But her teammates aren’t bad, either. The Knights blitzed Varina 29-8 in the first quarter, going on to a 73-60 victory in a battle of unbeaten teams Friday night.

Johnson poured in a game-high 23 points and hauled in eight rebounds. But it was her nine assists that killed the Blue Devils (3-1).

She assisted on four straight Dale field goals in the first quarter, three of them 3-pointers. The Knights (4-0), ranked seventh in the DigitalSports Top 10, were up 14-4 at that point.

By the time she dished out her fifth assist of the quarter for another trey, Dale led 29-8 and effectively ended the contest.

Taylor Bradley (10 points) hit two treys in the quarter, Alyssa Frye (15) made one and Andrea Hobbs the other.

“Varina is a very competitive team,” Dale coach Kevin Coffey said. “We came in with the mindset to take care of our job.”

The guard-heavy Knights’ job is to shoot 3-pointers and shoot them well. They hit six last night, cooling off as the game went on.

By the time TD’s fifth trey went through off of Jennifer Reoch‘s hands, that’s when Rikita Allen (18 points) woke up Varina’s offense.

The point guard, playing her first game of the season, scored eight straight points to slice Dale’s advantage to 13, 36-23.

“We came in strong,” Dale coach Kevin Coffey said. “As the game went on we got a little laxed.”

The Knights picked it back up in the third quarter, this time by going in the paint.

Johnson was at it again, penetrating and finding Rashida Scott and Frye for buckets. Then Bradley scored to end a 10-0 run that put Varina down 58-36.

“To see a freshman have that natural court sense…,” Varina coach Katie Benjamin said of Johnson. “She’s such a cerebral player. It’s good for her and good for Thomas Dale. Not too good for us. She’ll be an outstanding player in this area for four years.”

If Varina could have played the first and third quarters like they played the second and fourth, it could’ve been a closer contest.

The Blue Devils erased half of a 22-point deficit on freshman Raneka Dunaway‘s trey with 1:40 left.

Reigning DigitalSports player of the week Rischelle Carter scored 12 points, LaTonya Willis added 10 and Ashley Vieira eight for the Blue Devils.

Thomas Dale (4-0): Frye 15, Johnson 23, Bradley 10, Key 3, Brown 2, Curley 0, Reoch 5, Salyer 0, An. Hobbs 7, Scott 3, Al. Hobbs 5. Totals: 23 20-35 73. 3-point goals: Frye 2, Bradley 2, Reoch, An. Hobbs.
Varina (3-1): Allen 18, Carter 12, Cooper 0, Copeland 1, Dunaway 8, Harris 3, Johnson 0, Vieira 8, Willis 10. Totals: 21 13-19 60. 3-point goals: Dunaway 2, Allen, Harris, Carter.

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