High school basketball fans will have a wide selection of games to go to this weekend while supporting a noble cause at the 12th annual Rock the Ribbon Roundball Shootout on Friday and Saturday at Rockbridge County High School.
All four local high school teams will participate in the event, which is presented by ALCOVA Mortgage and Rock Hardwoods, with many other sponsors contributing, and is a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society. The event consists of 11 games, showcasing elite basketball players from Virginia, along with one school from Colorado. In the first 11 years, Rock the Ribbon raised about $110,000 for the ACS. The founder and director of the event is Senior Investigator Travis Patterson of the Rockbridge County Sheriff’s Office.
Day passes for Rock the Ribbon are $10 and can be purchased at the gate, with children 10 and under getting in free. Spectators can come and go as they please. T-shirts and concessions will be sold.
There will be four games on Friday and seven on Saturday. Starting the action during the school day on Friday at 1 p.m. will be the Rockbridge County boys and Roanoke Catholic.
The next Friday game will be between the Staunton and William Byrd girls at 5 p.m. At 6:30 p.m. the Staunton and William Byrd boys will tip off. The final game on Friday will be at 8 p.m., with the prestigious Oak Hill Academy boys of Mouth of Wilson, Va., taking on Colorado Preparatory Academy of Westminster, Colo.
Saturday’s action will start with three games involving local teams. The RC girls take on Smith Mountain Lake Christian Academy at 11 a.m. The PM girls will then face Rural Retreat at 12:30 p.m. At 2 p.m., the Class 1 PM boys, who entered this week at 12-2 overall, will take on larger Class 3 school Fort Defiance (7-5).
The Covenant girls will then battle Stuarts Draft at 3:30 p.m., and the Alleghany boys are scheduled to face Loudoun Valley at 5 p.m. The Oak Hill Academy boys will play Blue Ridge School at 6:30 p.m., and the event will conclude with an 8 p.m. game between the Colorado Prep boys and Gillion Academy School of Springfield.
For updates on the event, visit www.facebook.com/Rockthe-RibbonRoundballShootout, and see next week’s newspaper for the full stories and photos. For reports on the games involving local teams and weather-related schedule changes, visit www. thenews-gazette.com.
Rock The Ribbon Schedule Friday, Jan. 23 1 p.m. – Rockbridge County vs. Roanoke Catholic (Boys)
5 p.m. – Staunton vs. William Byrd (Girls)
6:30 p.m. – Staunton vs. William Byrd (B)
8 p.m. – Oak Hill Academy vs. Colorado Prep (B)
Saturday, Jan. 24
11 a.m. – Rockbridge County vs. Smith Mountain Lake Christian Academy (G)
12:30 p.m. – Parry McCluer vs. Rural Retreat (G)
2 p.m. – Parry McCluer vs. Fort Defiance (B)
3:30 p.m. – Covenant vs. Stuarts Draft (G)
5 p.m. – Alleghany vs. Loudoun Valley (B)
6:30 p.m. – Oak Hill Academy vs. Blue Ridge School (B)
8 p.m. – Colorado Prep vs. Gillion Academy (B)
ABOVE, Sophomore Tasha Shorter, RC’s only female wrestler, tries to hold down Staunton’s Caylaih Chandler in a 152-pound exhibition match. Shorter pinned Chandler in 3:52. AT RIGHT, The Wildcat team cheers on RC junior Finn Miller as he pins Staunton’s Omni Slagle in 5:06 at 132-pounds. (Stephanie Mikels Blevins photos)
