The Press-Dispatch
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B-2 Sports Wednesday, July 31, 2019 The Press-Dispatch see them communicate and talk on the same level as us coaches, that's what we real- ly strive for. We are really ex- cited for that development." The Chargers expect to see some major improve- ments on both sides of ball. The offense is expected to be solid and the defense is expected to be much im- proved in year two of Ste- phens' scheme. "Great defense is bud- dy ball," Stephens said. "I don't think our guys ful- ly understood how our de- fense worked as a system [last year]. We understand the scheme better. We are taking away the things we want to take away and we giving up the things that we are okay with giving up. I ex- pect a huge improvement in our performance in that as- pect of the game." Pike Central wide receiv- er Conner O'Neal said he expects big improvements this year, and the team has already set a goal to win a sectional playoff game. "[That's the] Big goal for us," O'Neal said. "That's something our school has wanted for a long time. We have definitely come a long way [since last season]. The summer started off a little shaky at first, but now that we are all on the same page, it's gotten a lot better." O'Neal echoed Stephens' thoughts on how the par- ticipation in the offseason older brother, Colton. "We didn't necessarily see it coming when Colton broke those records," Ste- phens said. "He was a very strong, natural athlete, but Connor is more polished as a route runner and is bet- ter at understanding con- cepts and leverages of de- fenses. He has the same kind of physical attributes as his older brother, but he has a better understanding of how to get himself open against different defenses." Connor had 79 recep- tions for 518 yards and a touchdown this past sea- son, and nearly broke Colton's single-season re- ception record of 81. Colton finished his ca- reer with 137 receptions for 1,436 yards and 11 touch- down, all of which are school records. O'Neal said he can attri- bute a lot of his toughness and his "no nonsense de- meanor" to his older brother. "He wrestled in high school and every night we were on the floor wrestling and fighting each other," O'Neal said. "I took a few beatings, but in the long run in, it toughened me up." O'Neal said he doing his best to soak everything in and enjoy every part of his senior season, just like his brother told him to. "[He said] Live it up while you can," O'Neal said. "And don't let it sur- prise you when it's over, be- cause it flies by." Another reason O'Neal may be in line for the best season by a wide receiver in school history is because of the quarterback Lars Ut- terback. "Connor is also going to benefit from playing with a kid, who I think is going to have just a dynamite fu- ture at quarterback," Ste- phens said. "Lars throws a pretty throw ball and he's the most pure passer I have coached at Pike Central. If we can find a way to keep him upright, then I think they both will have remark- able seasons." Pike Central is expected to pass a lot more this sea- son after being limited with more mobile quarterbacks in previous seasons. "Will we be complete- ly different? " Stephens asked. "Last year, we had to smoke-and-mirror and scheme our way into every- thing. This year, it's going to be a lot less about try- ing to trick our opponents and more about executing well and daring the other teams to stop us. That's re- ally where we want to be as a team." O'Neal said he's excited to have Utterback throwing him the ball this season. "It makes things a lot more fun," he said. "It's nice to have a good quarter- back who can put the ball right on the money." Not only is O'Neal the Chargers' top offensive weapon, but he also will play outside linebacker and return kickoffs this season. He had been a strong safe- ty the past three years, but was moved up into box be- cause of his aggression and physicality. When asked how he felt about his coach calling him the pound-for-pound tough- est player in the PAC, O'Ne- al said, "It feels pretty good to hear him say that be- cause it's something I have worked for my whole life." REWRITE Continued from page 1 MEDIA Continued from page 1 SPORTS BRIEFS All-Sports Passes available at Pike Central High School Individuals planning on attending a large number of regular season sports contests at Pike Central High School during the 2019 -20 school year can save money on admission fees by purchasing an All- Sports Pass. An All-Sports Pass, which is good for all regu- lar season home events at Pike Central High School, costs $70 for adults, and $50 for students and se- nior citizens. A family package is available, if all passes are purchased at the same time. Fans must pur- chase two adult passes at the regular price, and the student passes for stu- dents in the same family are $10 each. Students will not be al- lowed to use an adult pass to enter the gates. Passes must be shown at the gate of each event, every time. All-Sports Passes will be good for entry into varsity and junior varsi- ty football games, volley- ball matches, basketball games, wrestling match- es, and swimming during the winter; and baseball games, softball games and track meets in the spring. All-Sports Passes can be purchased at the Pike Central High School ath- letic office from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Individuals can earn an All-Sports Pass by signing up and working five gates for each pass. For more information, contact the Pike Central High School athletic department at 812-354-8478, extension 495. Kiwanis golf scramble set for September 7 The annual Petersburg Kiwanis Golf Scramble will take place on Sat- urday, Sept. 7 at Prides Creek Golf Course. The scramble, which starts at 9 a.m., is the Pe- tersburg Kiwanis' top fundraiser for its Chil- dren's Christmas Pro- gram that provides un- derprivileged children in Pike County with gifts during the holiday. Registration is open at the golf course and costs $40 per person or $160 for a team. Can't make the event and still want to help? Sponsor a hole for $100. Make checks payable to Kiwanis and mail to: Dustin Schnarr at P.O. Box 14, Petersburg, IN 47567. For any questions, call Schnarr at 812-295 -8183 or Prides Creek Golf Course at 812-354-3059. Registration is now open for the Join the Herd 5K The inaugural Join the Heard 5K Walk and Run is set for Saturday, Sept. 28. There is a $20 entry fee that includes a buffalo hat. T-shirts are also available for $10, but must be preor- dered by Friday, Sept. 20. All proceeds from the event will benefit the Buf- falo Trace Festival on Sept. 27 and 28. Prizes will be awarded to the first, second and third-place male and fe- male finishers. Registration begins at 8 a.m. the morning of the race, with a 9 a.m. start time. Participants should line up at the Pe- tersburg Police Station on 4th Street. Refreshments will be available after the race and a group photo will be taken. To register, contact Jan- et Graff at 812-354-3001 or janet.graff@amber- manorhc.com. Pike Central's Levi McCarter, Connor O'Neal, coach Dave Stephens and Lars Utterback answer ques- tions about the Chargers' upcoming season during the second annual High School Football Media Day at the Bauerhaus in Evansville on Monday. Steve Smith and Hayden Duvall compete during the WBDC Corn- hole Tournament at the Pike County 4-H Fair on Saturday, July 27. Louis Duvall watches as Doyle Smith tosses a beanbag during the WBDC Cornhole Tournament at the Pike County 4-H Fair on Saturday, July 27. Pike Central's Blaine Pitcher lead blocks for Brandon Goeppner during the Chargers' scrim- mage at Washington on Thursday, July 25. A pack of Chargers bring down a Washington ball carrier on Thursday, Ju- ly 25 at WHS. 8U Little League team takes first Welding Unlimited, an eight-and-under lit- tle league baseball team, won first place out of five teams and went unde- feated against Petersburg Little League opponents. The team included, front row (l to r): Kadyn Dupin, Quintin Query, Kylee Query, Taylor Rus- sell and Laken Mullis; back row: assistant coach Greg Loveless, Maddox Loveless, Lukas Carri- co Strom, Jackson Bur- khart, Grayson Schul- theis and head coach Kyle Query, By Dennis Marshall Press-Dispatch Sports Editor sports@pressdispatch.net The WBDC Cornhole Tournament of Champions stopped at the Pike County 4-H Fair on Saturday, July 27. Louis and Hayden Duvall won the doubles-elimina- tion tournament in the pro- fessional division after de- feating the "Crawford Coun- ty Boys" in the championship match. The grandfather-grand- son combo advanced to the WBDC Tournament of Champions on Saturday, Sept. 28 at the Huntingburg Herbstfest. The WBDC Cornhole Tournament also included an amateur division for all ages, which was won by the duo of Micheal Eckes and Josh Moore, of Oakland City. The next stop of the 2019 WBDC Cornhole Tourna- ment of Champions will be Saturday, August 3 at the Jas- per Strassenfest. Registra- Petersburg grandfather-grandson combo wins WBDC Cornhole Tournament tion will start at 9 a.m. and throwing begins at 10 a.m. WBDC is taking pre-reg- istration now by calling 812-634-WBDC or online at WBDC.us. The cost is $10 per pro- fessional team and all pro- fessional team members must be at least 18 years of age. The amateur division is open to all ages and no pre-registration is needed. Following the festival tour- naments, WBDC will crown their 2019 WBDC Cornhole Tournament of Champions with a double-elimination tournament of the 16 earns who have won during the season or are points lead- ers. For further information, check the website informa- tion at WBDC.us. weight lifting program is the biggest difference to the program this season. "The past years, it was just a few guys in there who are actually dedicated to it," he said. "This year, it's the whole team. We are in there almost everyday together." Utterback and McCarter kept their answers short and sweet. "We all know that we will really lay it on the line for each other," Utterback said. "[My goal is to] Just try to make everybody around me better." While McCarter said he's really enjoyed the time he spent with his teammates during their careers. "I have known a lot of them for a real long time," McCarter said. "Football in general at Pike Central is a good time." A total of 27 high school programs attended the event that was sponsored by Evansville Teachers Federal Credit Union. Call us at 812-354-8500 or email sports@pressdispatch.net GOT SPORTS NEWS?