Upon Further Review

Hey, you know how it works. Story is written, story causes e-mails, slaw-jawed sports blogger calls out people in e-mails.

End of story. End of discussion.

So excuse me if I write one more thing when it comes to a certain (and small) population of folks who don’t think Wilson Memorial girls soccer will be one of the better programs out there once young ladies like Hannah Myers, Angelica Thacker and McCauley Vailes get a little older, wiser and better. Actually, how about I just type what was said by another coach in the Shenandoah District girls soccer ranks. A coach who is at the helm of a 11-1-1 Buffalo Gap team.

“Wilson is the team of the future in our district, they’re well coached,“ said Bison coach Al Zeller after his team and Wilson fought to a scoreless tie Tuesday.

OK, told you so. Now let Eight Belles (465.83 miles from Fishersville) rest in peace.

Sights seen at a Waynesboro baseball practice Tuesday: You know, one day after the Little Giants entered any and all Group AA discussion by beating Turner Ashby 7-6 on Monday.

Virginia Tech pitcher and former Waynesboro standout Jake Peeling, baseball bag in tow, hoping to get some work in.

A lot of smiles.

A team, specifically Joseph Lucas and Jeremy Hanh, wanting to get back to the Group AA Final Four.

“We’re not thinking that far ahead,“ Hahn said. “We’re still taking it one game at a time.“

Jim Critzer in a 1970s-style gray wig.

So, after prac ... WHAT?! Critzer in a wig? The salty, old ball coach decided to wear it, well, because he said he likes to have fun and loosen things up a bit.

“I’m getting old,“ he said, donned in sunglasses and topping the ensamble off with a dog-chewed Waynesboro ball cap. “I’ve got to try to look young.“

And another thing: Riverheads dominance of Shenandoah District boys soccer officially ended (for this year, at least) last night when Wilson Memorial scored a 7-0 win over Buffalo Gap. You gotta think that anytime opposing defenses want to stop Josh Miller from pouring in three goals in a game, that’ll be OK with their coach. But that’s easier said than done. Miller, who also plays basketball while still managing to look like a soccer player, is only a junior and, boy, does he score. And to think, just like the girls team, Miller is going to be one year older, wiser and better come next season. (Please, hold all e-mails. Thanks.)

Seriously, when you find out that it’s your job to mark up Miller on the pitch, do you get that same feeling I get when you see a frozen dinner has “assembly instructions?“ Because, and let’s be honest here folks, that really makes me sigh and want to give up the whole thing and go hungry for the night. You know, kind of like when you look at your Southern Valley District boys soccer schedule and see your next opponent is (enter segway here)

Waynesboro. I mean, all the Little Giants did was follow up a five-goal first-half output against Rockbridge on Friday by scoring seven goals (yes, seven, you know, 7) in the first 21 minutes again R.E. Lee on Tuesday. This team is 19 deep folks, and if Bill Meicke had a few more sets of Umbros, they’d be 21 deep.

“We are one big team even though we have a JV and a varsity squad,“ Meicke said. “We try to make sure that we get those guys up and give them a little bit of exposure in the game so that it’s not a new thing when they step in and play next year.“

Yeah, Meicke forgot to add “and winning” at the end of the last sentence.

Hey, Josh Podgorski over at Stuarts Draft knows exactly what his baseball team has to do if they want that No. 3 seed in the Southern Valley District tournament. “We have two more district games, we know what we have to do if we are going to win,“ he said after Draft lost 6-4 to Fort Defiance. Good on him. Now, all of Draft waits to see if the Cougars are on their game the rest of the way. This late in the season, every night has to be your best night and, if it’s not, your buddies in arms have to figure out a way to bail you out and make it happen.

With the arm (Cameron Cook) and the bats (let’s talk Zac Marion) that the Cougars have, you gotta think it’s only a question of when they’ll come around. Problem is, they’re running out of time.

“We need to stay focused on what we need to do,“ Marion said.

Good on him. Following coach’s lead. Now turn the computer off and let’s see what happens.