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By James J. Lidington

Isle of Wight Academy

FOOTBALL

Chargers senior running back Jackson Cofer rushed for 107 yards as Isle of Wight Academy’s varsity football team defeated host Christchurch School 23-7 on Saturday, Oct. 23.

The Chargers racked up 219 yards rushing; sophomore quarterback Jason Chapman’s season-high 151 passing yards also helped the IWA cause.

The win, the Chargers’ second in as many games, buoyed their record to 2-4. The Seahorses sank to 2-5.

Christchurch scored first, but IWA bounced back quickly on a 30-yard pass play from Chapman to senior wide receiver Alex Holt.

Chapman later added a yard-long scoring plunge. Senior kicker Jude Powell added a 35-yard field goal. Cofer scored his only touchdown of the night on a 4-yard run in the fourth quarter.

The playoff plot thickens for No. 4 IWA, which pulled ahead of Fuqua School (2-6) in the latest Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association Division III (small-school) poll. With the top four teams qualifying for postseason play, the Chargers were set to potentially strengthen their position even further Friday, Oct. 28, as they aimed for a win against the Fuqua Falcons themselves in Farmville.

IWA wraps up its regular season Friday, Nov. 4, with a home contest against Fishburne Military School, of Waynesboro. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

CROSS COUNTRY

The IWA cross country teams competed Thursday, Oct. 20, in a meet at Windsor Castle Park.

Lady Chargers varsity runner Hannah Edwards finished first with a time of 20:06.36 on the 3.1-mile-long course. Hannah McClain took fourth place with a time of 22:28.22, Lauren Maust was seventh at 23:41.71, and Reese Upton was 11th at 26:10.01.

The IWA varsity girls team finished second to Summit Christian Academy.

The IWA varsity boys team took first place and accounted for seven of the top-10 individual runners.

Senior Pierce Cutler finished first at 18:39.07, John Butler was second at 18:40.82, Zachary Jackson was fourth at 19:56.59, Jayce Joyner was fifth at 20:16.54, Robert Sullivan was seventh at 20:41.69, Brendan Mackie was eighth at 20:45.11, and Glenn Walters was 10th at 21:11.75.

IWA’s Joseph Phillips was the lone Charger finisher in the top 20 of the junior varsity boys race. Phillips came in 18th with a time of 29:16.94.

IWA’s Hannah Whitley took top honors in the JV girls race with a time of 24:11.90. Jocelyn Wilson was fifth at 24:50.80, and Hadley Etherton was 20th at 30:51.50.

Etherton, Whitley, Wilson and Phillips represented IWA at the VISAA Middle School Cross Country Championships on Sunday, Oct. 23, at Pole Green Park in Mechanicsville.

Whitley was the top IWA girls finisher, ending up in 78th place with a time of 17:30.7. Phillips, who had qualified just three days earlier, completed the course in a time of 22:28.