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By James J. Lidington

Isle of Wight Academy

FOOTBALL

Isle of Wight Academy’s Jackson Cofer rushed for 116 yards, wrapping up his career with more than 1,000 yards rushing, as IWA topped visiting Fishburne Military School 21-12 on Friday, Nov. 4.

The win was the fourth in a row for the Chargers after starting the year 0-4. They finished the year ranked third in Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association Division III play.

With IWA clinging to a 14-12 lead Friday, defender Grayson Brock’s sack of Fishburne quarterback Grayson Jones on fourth down with less than 10 minutes left gave IWA the ball after the Caissons had rolled as far as the Chargers’ 31-yard line.

Eight plays later, Cofer hauled in a pass from IWA sophomore signal caller Jason Chapman and appeared to be stopped after a short gain but outmaneuvered Fishburne defenders to preserve the win with 5:07 left.

Dylan Donnelly led the Chargers with 10 tackles.

The Chargers were down 6-0 at halftime against the Caissons but rallied in the third quarter. Their opening drive was an eight-play, 60-yard affair. After three first downs, Chapman appeared to hit Evan Bracey for a scoring strike of 16 yards only to have the play called back by a targeting penalty.

But on the team’s second chance at second down, Chapman hit Alex Holt for a 40-yard pass play that, along with Jude Powell’s PAT, put the Chargers ahead temporarily, 7-6.

Fishburne responded with an 11-play, 65-yard drive to make it 12-7 in favor of the visitors with 3:31 left in the period. After taking over at the Caissons’ 42, the Chargers went ahead for good four plays later when Cofer scored from four yards out, making the score 14-12.

CROSS COUNTRY

IWA cross country runners will compete Friday, Nov. 11, in the VISAA Cross Country State Championships at Woodberry Forest.

Pierce Cutler, John Butler, Zach Jackson, Jayce Joyner, Robert Sullivan, Brendan Mackie and Gage Huber met qualifying times for the state meet; Brett Landen, Jacob Dunlap and Glenn Walters will also compete.

For the girls, Hannah Edwards, Hannah McClain and Alex Wilson met qualifying targets;  Lauren Maust, Reese Upton, Hailey Whitley and Jillian Foster will also compete.

VOLLEYBALL

The IWA volleyball team concluded its regular season with a 3-0 loss to perennial powerhouse StoneBridge School on Oct. 25. The Chargers finished the year with a 6-7 record.