Spring Sports Preview

March 7, 2023

Students and fans are excited for spring sports to start back up so they can play and watch the sports they love. “I’ve been looking forward to this season starting because I’ve missed the team, and I always have so much fun during the games,” said softball athlete and junior Madison Owen.

The spring sports offered at Fluvanna County High School include soccer, lacrosse, softball, baseball, outdoor track, tennis, and esports. Tryouts for these sports started the week of the Feb. 20 and games began the first week in March. Here is a run down on what to expect for each sport this season.

Soccer

Last year, both boys and girls soccer had successful seasons. The boys, under the direction of Coach Jason Davis, made it to the second round of playoffs, then lost. The girls team won Regionals after a competitive season.

“Winning regionals was amazing. We all worked hard, even with adversity and coming into the tournament ranked 8th,” said sophomore Piper LaRochelle. “The student body did a nice job coming out to the games. We even had local news articles about our success which was rewarding, but overall, it felt like the school itself didn’t do anything to recognize us for this huge accomplishment. It’s upsetting, but I’m still more than proud of what we accomplished,” she added.

The girls varsity soccer coach this season is Katrina Hinkleack.

Lacrosse

Fluco lacrosse didn’t have the best season last year, but the players made memories that will stick with them forever. On the girls side, sophomore Katie Bond said, “I am very excited for this season and I loved last season because I got to bond with girls I normally wouldn’t have. I have made so many friends and built a lot of trust with other girls and my coaches so I’m excited for that to be the case again this year.”

Jennifer Payne will be returning as the girls lacrosse coach, while the boys lacrosse team is welcoming a new coach, William Bailey.

Baseball/Softball

Baseball and softball had winning seasons last spring. Varsity softball lost the first round of Regionals, as did baseball.

“Last year we had a successful season, but we fell short in the first round of Regionals, so I hope this year we have an even more successful season and go farther,” said Owen.

Softball will be directed by returning coach Tre Smith, while the boys varsity baseball coach is Joel Gray, who has been coaching the sport for at least a decade.

Outdoor Track

Many students participate in track every season, but outdoor track offers perhaps the widest variety of track options that cater to an athlete’s individual strengths. For example, you can do shot put even if you’re not big on running, compete in sprints if you’re exceptionally fast, or focus on a longer distances category if you have stamina. Many athletes return to the sport year after year, even when things don’t always go their way.

“Last season the most eventful thing that happened to me was breaking my elbow, but I am very excited for this season since I couldn’t participate for the whole season last year. I have a lot of friends that run track so that makes practice fun,” said sophomore Avery Ables.

The head coach for outdoor track this season is Melanie Kennedy.

Tennis

Both girls and boys tennis will be under new coaching this season, with Engineering teacher Terry Schnitter overseeing the girls and Tammy Lyons overseeing the boys.

“I’m feeling good about this season. With new coaching it will be a change, but I think it will be a good change. We also have a lot of new people, as well as returners this season. Having returners will help us to win more games this year,” said senior Jay Lyons.

Esports

Esports has been practicing the last several weeks in preparation for their season which runs April through October. Esports has been a team at FCHS since the 2021 school when they began by having Zoom meetings after school. According to Coach Ryan White, this is their third spring season and their sixth season overall at Fluvanna. He noted that they have eight regular season matches which involve playing games such as Mario Kart 8, Rocket League, Overwatch, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Splatoon 3, and Madden 23.

Practice time varies for students. “Each student isn’t at the same level as another student player. For example, in Rocket League, one of our players is advanced and is doing more advanced skills like ‘Off the Wall double taps’ to score a goal, while we have other students who can’t complete a basic aerial shot. So that student would practice different training modules in Rocket League to better his aerial skills,” White explained.

Last season, the Mario Kart and Madden players made it to the 2nd round in the playoffs before losing, while their Splatoon 3 team made it to first round of playoffs.