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When Wheeling Park head football coach Chris Daugherty first joined the staff at his alma mater back in 1993, one of his main duties was serving as the team’s strength and conditioning coach. It’s fitting then that Coach ‘Doc’ has been instrumental in planning not only the offseason conditioning for his own team, but also for all the athletes in Ohio County. When the West Virginia Secondary Schools Activities Commission unveiled its phased return to athletics in the Mountain State, it required some quick thinking and planning. Coaches and athletes are limited in what they can do during Phase I, so the idea was to maximize the little time they had with each athlete and get them back in some semblance of shape as the summer progresses. That’s kind of what Doc has been doing since he took over in 2009 following the late Mark Nardone as head coach. Daugherty’s teams struggled his first two seasons, going 3-17. But since, they’ve been on a tear, going 68-21-1 during the regular season. Included in that is the 2015 state championship season, the school’s only one in football to-date. Doc’s winning percentage in the regular season is 64 percent. Take out the aberrations of the first two season, and that jumps to 76 percent. Modified workouts extend to the Daugherty household as well, as the coach keeps his daughters working hard to stay in game shape for basketball. His eldest played at Fairmont State and recently signed on to join the Park girls’ staff as an assistant. The middle daughter is a promising incoming freshman at Park, and his youngest is still in middle school. They will be getting put through the same paces as his football players. So, it’s no surprise both experience success.

You’ll be missing out on the usual three-week period in terms of increased restrictions, but aside from that, how different will this be from your normal training regimen?

We will actually get to our three-week practice during Phase 3 of the WVSSAC phased return to play protocol.  Phase three does have some changes to our normal three weeks of practice like we are not allowed to wear a helmet, shoulder pads, and no contact at all but overall, it will be similar to our norm.  The big change is Phase 1 and Phase 2 when we have to keep the kids in pods of 10, and we cannot mix them.

Coach Doc has put together a 76 percent winning percentage the last nine seasons and has won 64 percent of his games overall.

During Phase 1, given groups of 10 or fewer, do you plan to stagger individual coaches with their groups for conditioning and then just rotate? Will you stagger players by class at different times of the day to cut down on larger groups?

We actually streamlined the Phase 1 and Phase 2 for all of the athletes in the county. We have worked very hard to get the kids in groups of 10 based on their sport, and we will work 40 athletes out at the same time, starting at 8:30 a.m. and finishing at 6:30 p.m. Phase one must be outdoors, so we are using the Wheeling Island Stadium because we can safely work 40 kids at a time. Phase one will start to recondition the athletes after a long inactive period.

Given you can only train outdoors during Phase 1, do you plan to cart some of the strength training equipment outdoors or stick to more traditional cardiovascular training and agility drills?

We will take no equipment outside. We are not allowed to use equipment for phase one. In Phase 2 we will start to use some equipment and maybe the weight room again. Phase 1 we will use bodyweight strength activities, plyometric exercises, change of direction movements, and conditioning.

Phase I of the Ohio County plan calls for the conditioning workouts for all athletes at Wheeling Island Stadium, not just the football team.

Do you see this continuing into late July and then setting back or altering the traditional two-a-day training the first few weeks of August?

July will be Phase 3, and we will start to practice a lot like our normal three weeks, obviously following the WVSSAC guidelines.  Hopefully, all goes well here in the Ohio Valley and in the State of West Virginia, which will then open us up to a normal August. Only time will tell.

Your daughters play sports as well. How tough has been for you as a parent, wanting to get out there not only with your team, but allowing your daughters to continue training and getting ready for their respective sports?

On Tuesday afternoon W.Va. Gov. Jim Justice announced that all school buildings statewide will remain closed for the remainder of the academic year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “I’ve promised and promised you over and over I would not put you a position that would be harmful and try to protect us in every way, especially our kids. The last thing I would do is put kids in harm's way," the governor stated.

Executive Director Bernie Dolan of the WVSSAC releases a statement about the threat of the Coronavirus in West Virginia. (Photo by Teran Malone) Following the governor's announcement, WVSSAC Executive Director Bernie Dolan released a statement on social media platforms announcing the state high school basketball tournaments have been canceled along with the entire spring sports season. “This is an extremely difficult time for our students, coaches, schools and communities,” Dolan said. “West Virginians are a resilient group who will overcome this virus and all problems that come with it.” The WVSSAC began the girls state basketball tournament last month, but they were unable to complete it due to the rapid spread of COVID-19.

The West Virginia state high school basketball championships may never be decided on the court this season. WVSSAC Executive Director Berne Dolan offered a somber take Friday, noting that it’s nearing the point of no return whether the boys’ and girls’ tournaments can be held, along with spring sports. Classrooms are closed until, at minimum, May 1. Any further delays and the already slim hopes of sports renewed this season dwindles to next to nil. But that doesn’t mean a champion can’t be crowned. In fact, three have, on the boys’ side anyway. Enter young Robbie Mounts of Video Productions, Inc. in Charleston. VPI is a company owned by his father, Butch Mounts. It handles video streaming, editing, recruiting videos and other customizable options throughout the Mountain State. While MetroNews is the name you’re familiar with from covering the Super Six and boys’ and girls’ basketball championship games and the state baseball tournament, its Video Productions that handles the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds, along with all other WVSSAC state tournaments. Softball? VPI. Soccer, volleyball, wrestling, track & field? VPI, as well. Not only does VPI handle custom recordings, but it also livestreams all of the events covered on a multitude of platforms, including the company’s Twitter, YouTube and Facebook pages.  In business since 2014, Bruce noted that Video Productions’ streams have totaled seven million minutes of watch time—this year alone. But like everyone else, Bruce, Robbie and their respective employees are presently waiting for sports to return and finding themselves with an unplanned amount of free time. That’s when Robbie had a plan and put it into motion.

A screenshot from one of the Class AAA semifinal simulations, th is one pitting Wheeling Park against Martinsburg.

This Should Be Fun

Robbie’s a 2013 graduate of George Washington High School and handles more tech-intensive side of the business, along with live streaming coordinating and the occasional film work. And, like a lot of guys his age, lists video games as one of his interests. So, when Robbie learned of the indefinite postponement of the boys’ tournament, he decided to run out and get a copy of NBA 2K20 for his PlayStation 4. While being the most popular of the console NBA gaming titles, it also has extensive create a team and character customization features. There’s also a dedicated fan base that designs teams and uploads them to the 2K cloud server for the entire player base to access. He set out looking for teams that qualified for the state tournament and found a number of them were already created by one user. He downloaded those, tweaked the logos where necessary, then set to work creating the remaining teams. That total included eight additions teams on the Class AA level as it hadn’t completed regional final action. That was the “easy” part. Players also had to be created. Robbie wasn’t about to phone these in either. It helped that in the normal course of Video Productions calendar that he’d seen a number of the teams already and had access to rosters, lineups and a good idea of which players were capable of what. But it wasn’t all teams. For this, he set out to watch Hudl videos, YouTube, anything to get some video on the players and teams he’d yet to see in person. Robbie and Bruce originally talked about just doing the AA regional and tournament games. But Robbie felt that wasn’t enough. It had to be all or nothing. “It was kind of a just do it or don’t do it thing,” he said. “I wasn’t going to do it and only put so much effort into certain teams and players. That simply wasn’t right. I think (Bruce) was trying to save time and talk about just doing AA and I said not a chance. We’re doing it all or nothing.” He picked up the game on March 23. The first day VPI was able to run any of its simulated games via livestream was April 8. Calling it a time-intensive undertaking doesn’t quite do it justice. “I can’t tell you how many days in that two and half weeks or so that I’d wake up, start at it, only stop to eat and go back to bed, only to get up and do it the next day.”

Wheeling Central's Avery Lee (3) receives some encouragement at the free-throw line during a quarterfinal matchup against Clarksburg Notre Dame.

The Numbers Say You’ve Lost a Step

Robbie explained on the company Facebook page that no player was rated higher than 85 or lower than 75. He wanted to ratings to reflect what he discovered through research or in-person viewing but didn’t want anyone overpowered. Naturally, some still complained, even if in jest. “We had a lot of Poca people comment that (Isaac) McNeely wasn’t a good enough shot from the outside,” Robbie said. “His perimeter shooting rating was an A, so I can’t really help a whole lot more than that.” D --  asdfas With teams designed and players created, it was time to set about the important part. Simulating the tournament itself. First, Robbie had to get the AA regional final games out of the way. Once that was accomplished, the unofficial digital state tournament could begin. Locally, the Ohio Valley had three participants in the tournament, Wheeling Park in AAA and Wheeling Central and Magnolia in A. Matchups were dictated by seeding. Magnolia lost in the quarterfinals to Charleston Catholic. The Irish defeated the Maroon Knights in the semifinal round and followed that by beating Williamstown in the A title game. University topped Martinsburg 73-65 in the AAA championship. The Bulldogs defeated Wheeling Park 71-57 in the semifinal round. In AA it was defending champion Chapmanville holding off Bluefield, 59-58. You can view the AAA, AA, and A championship games, along with all the quarter and semifinal round action via these YouTube links or visit Video Productions’ Facebook page and click on videos.

Magnoolia's Trevor Williamson had a monster digital first half against Charleston Catholic..

Well Received

There remains an ever-so-slight chance student/athletes from West Virginia high schools could compete before the end of the school year, and that is one reason why Bernie Dolan has yet to officially pull the plug. Dolan, the executive director of the West Virginia Second Schools Activities Commission, has deep roots with Ohio County Schools so he is well aware of the desire possessed by student-athletes to have something of a semblance of a spring sports season. But is that possible, even if public and Catholic schools return to classrooms on May 1? “If there is anything possible, it’s going to look significantly different than it has in the past,” Dolan explained. “If the kids can go back on May 1, we would start the spring sports on May 4 because of how long they have been out of school, and we also would not waive the rule we have about having practice for at least two week prior to the beginning of the spring. “That means the first day that a baseball or softball game, or a track meet, could take place would be May 20,” he said. “We have moved spring sports into June before, and that took place back in 1994 when we had the measles that a lot of the kids came down with. The state track meet that year actually did not take place until June 16-17, so if that happens again this year, it wouldn’t be the first time.”

Will there be anything to see at local ballfields this spring and summer?

What It Could Look Like

Once upon a time ago when a coronavirus didn’t hold captive the world, student-athletes in baseball, tennis, softball, and track would have started their seasons at this time of year and would have continued until the OVAC postseasons, sectional and regional competition, and then state championship events. At this point, though, the regular season would be abbreviated, and the playoff would extend into June just like it did 17 years ago. “The seasons would be very tight if we are allowed back into the schools after April 30,” Dolan said. “There would be a short season, and then we would move it quickly into the tournament time. “Now, it is awfully late to be able to pull that off so that means it would have to make some concessions along the way, and that’s only if the decision is made as far as whether or not we could pull that off,” he continued. “Those events have a lot of moving parts, so that’s a discussion that would need to take place.” If the SSAC were to offer the same spring championship experience for this year’s qualifiers, the facilities must be available, as well. “And checking to see if the facilities we use for those spring championships are ready for use is one thing, and then the dates would come into play,” Dolan said. “Right now, there’s no reason for us to check on those dates because we really have no idea what decision the Governor will make when the April 30 date is approaching. “I’ll be honest, it would be a tough sell to everyone who is involved with making that decision, so I really can’t tell you what to expect even if the kids are allowed to go back to the classrooms for the last bit of the year,” he said. “And there’s no real reasons for the SSAC to make any sort of official statement right now, and that’s why we’ve not said anything about it until now.”

The Lady Knights were defeated in the first round before the state tournament was suspended. (Photo by Teran Malone)Head Coach Penn Kurtz for Wheeling Central discussing the upcoming action during a timeout. (Photo by Teran Malone)

Hope for Hoops?

There was a plan, but a pandemic smothered it. There is a new plan just in case. “Our plan if the students were allowed to go back on March 21 was to get the girls’ championships moving forward in Charleston, and to get the boys regional events scheduled so they could move forward with the postseason, too,” Dolan said. “We also had all of the spring sports scheduled to get started with a little bit of overlap for the student-athletes, but we felt it could have worked out.” But what about the recommended precautions as society eases back into competition, crowds, and in-persona communication? “Now, the number of fans that would be allowed is an unknown factor right now, and I can tell you that it would be very difficult to have social distancing take place during a track meet,” Dolan explained. “Right now, we can’t contemplate any plans for the completion of the basketball season and how we could make the spring sports work because so much changes day-to-day. I know there have been legislative leaders who have strongly suggested that the Governor just close the public schools for the rest of the year, but he’s refused to do that because he believes there’s still a chance. So, just like with everything else, it’s a wait-and-see situation.”

Executive Director Bernie Dolan of the WVSSAC will await guidance from the Justice Administration. (Photo by Teran Malone)

Pulling the Plug

With a pair of Patriot state title winners, the 2020 WVSSAC Girls Swimming Championships will always be a source of pride for Wheeling Park High School athletics. At the Aquatic Center at Mylan Park in Morgantown on Feb. 21, Patriot Abby Turner solidified her stellar resume by claiming a third state swimming championship, while Park teammate, Jenna Bopp, carved her name in the Park athletic record book by earning her first state crown. What’s even more impressive is that both have achieved so much in the water as only juniors. Turner and Bopp have their senior seasons still ahead of them. Bopp wasn’t seeking redemption at the 2020 state championships, but that is what she achieved when she earned her first West Virginia championship in the 100-yard breaststroke. Bopp had placed second in the event as a freshman and sophomore, and in both years, she was edged out by Parkersburg High School’s Jaden Welsh. Bopp knew the competitive history between the two would make their showdown in the 100- yard breaststroke one of the most anticipated events at this year’s state championships. Bopp said she was confident going into the race, and ultimately claiming a state championship is a uniquely rewarding experience. She thanked her parents, Diann and Victor Bopp, and her coaches for their support. “It feels good,” Bopp said. “It was really relieving. My mom was crying… The competition has been tough, but the coaches helped make it happen. Hard work and dedication made it happen.”

Continuing Hard Work

Bopp is now well aware that a showdown with Welsh is again anticipated in the 2021 West Virginia swimming finals. However, she said she’s still enjoying her state championship and is not yet ready to think about next year’s event. She said she has competed against her rival so much that they’ve developed a bond. “I consider her a friend,” Bopp said of Welsh. “We compete against each other in four events every time (Wheeling Park and Parkersburg) meet.” Bopp, who has been swimming since the fourth grade, said she has not set specific goals for her senior season. Still, she knows she will not waiver in terms of her work ethic and commitment leading up to her final campaign. “I’m going to continue to work hard,” she said. “Obviously, I’d like to continue to drop time and continue to feel good in the water… I like the training aspect of swimming, and I like being involved in a sport with my friends. We push each other. My parents are really supportive, and they spend a lot of time getting me to meets. I’m very appreciative of them.” Abby Turner’s state title this year in the 100-yard freestyle was not her first. In fact, she’s a three-time state champion. She claimed West Virginia championships in 2019 in the 50-yard freestyle and the 100-yard freestyle. Turner said it is always exciting to win a state championship. However, there is pressure to repeat as a state champion after you’ve won the crown. “It was different because I had to hold onto my title,” Turner said. “It was just as exciting, but the competition was just as tough this year.”

Five Records