The Westhill boys basketball team was over 1,200 miles away from home and facing its toughest challenge of the season so far on Saturday.

The Wolf Pack trailed West Virginia’s 4A state champion, Spring Mills, by one point with seven seconds left in the final game of the program’s first trip to Florida for the prestigious KSA Pre-Holiday Tournament.

With the ball in the hands of Westhill’s reigning large school basketball player of the year, Eli Prince, the Wolf Pack advanced the ball up the court with ease.

Spring Mills’ defense collapsed on Prince and the crafty senior found fellow senior Jackson Goodness streaking down the middle of the court.

Goodness caught the ball, took a dribble to dodge a defender and threw up a high hanging floater from the left elbow.

“I just knew we needed to get some type of shot up because we were down and there were only a few seconds remaining,” Goodness said. “So, whether it was Eli or me … just one of us needed to get a shot off.

“It definitely came to me on the fly. It was kind of an awkward position because I had a really big kid on my right. I kind of had to do it on the run. It was kind of just all in the moment.”

The shot went in and the celebration began for Westhill’s thrilling 42-41 victory over Spring Mills.

“We didn’t necessarily have the play for any specific person,” Westhill coach Jon Connelly said. “It was kind of just a we can see what was there.”

This was the Wolf Pack’s third victory in three days on their trip to Florida for the KSA Events Pre-Holiday Basketball Tournament at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center.

Westhill defeated Sulphur (Louisiana) 63-53 on Thursday and Cullman (Alabama) 39-36 on Friday.

The Wolf Pack’s three out-of-state opponents boasted impressive résumés.

But so does Westhill.

They won the Class B state title in 2023 and reached the Class A regional round in 2024. Last year, the Wolf Pack finished with a 23-3 mark before falling to eventual Class A state champion Glens Falls in the regional championship. In total, Westhill has won six state titles in seven trips to the big game.

“We love what we have as far as our skill level and trust and chemistry within our group, but we also wanted to take these guys and get them out of her comfort zone a little bit,” Connelly said.

Sulphur won their 5A league title and finished last season with a 33-8 record.

Cullman sported a 26-5 record in the 2024-25 season and won its 6A league title. It was also just a few years removed from winning the Alabama state title in 2022.

“When you play teams in Central New York, you have some familiarity there,” Connelly said. “But then, when you’re on the road, you don’t know what you don’t know. It’s freeing … to just go play basketball with kind of nothing to lose, but at the same time, these guys show just incredible toughness and grit to show up and play. These teams we played were bigger than us. The kids were taller, they looked physically stronger, but proud of them for sure.”

The Wolf Pack return home with a 9-0 record and will look to recharge the batteries as they prepare to host Jamesville-DeWitt on Dec. 30.

“I mean, we just played four of our toughest games of the season in five days,” Connelly said. “We played ITC, then hopped on a plane the next morning and played these three teams. The kids deserve some rest.”

(A News and Sentinel Op-Ed – Photo Illustration – MetroCreativeConnection)

It has been the honor of my life to serve West Virginia as your United States Senator, fighting for the concerns of our communities and making sure the voices of West Virginians are heard loud and clear in Washington, D.C. As a lifelong native of the Mountain State, I know how diligent and determined the people of our state are, and they deserve representation that works as hard as they do. I’m proud to announce that I’m running for reelection in 2026 to continue my hard work on behalf of West Virginia in the U.S. Senate.

With President Trump’s endorsement of my reelection, it is my goal to continue working with him to deliver on America First policies that strengthen our country and state, ensuring that West Virginia always has a seat at the table.

Since I first came to the Senate, we’ve made significant strides in areas that matter most to West Virginians: strengthening our economy and lowering taxes, securing our borders, providing support for our veterans and law enforcement officers, connecting our communities with broadband access, unleashing American energy through our state’s vast natural resources, and fighting to protect the values, rights, and freedoms that matter most to our people. While these are important successes that I’m proud we’ve accomplished together, I believe there is much more work to be done.

I have risen in the ranks of Senate Republican leadership to the fourth highest position in the U.S. Senate and have never been in a better place than I am now to serve our state and to deliver for West Virginia. Through my leadership on the Senate Appropriations Committee, we have seen tremendous progress in responsibly delivering resources for West Virginia that strengthen our families, authorize critical research, and help local projects reach completion. As Chairman of the Environment and Public Works Committee, I have led the charge on investments into our state’s roads, bridges, and drinking water infrastructure, and fought for American energy dominance and those in West Virginia who power our state and our nation.

Every decision I make is steered by the perspectives and stories I hear from constituents along our main streets, in our classrooms, at small businesses, and around kitchen tables. Your concerns shape my priorities, and your resilience inspires my determination. As we move forward, I remain committed to hard work and transparent leadership that ensures your voice is always heard in the halls of Congress, and that West Virginia’s priorities are always put first.

The road ahead is not without challenges, and West Virginians can trust that I will continue to display proven, conservative leadership that meets our country’s most pressing issues head-on. I am dedicated to continuing the fight for solutions that reflect our shared values and protect the principles that matter most to our people, our families, and our communities.

I ask for your support once again, not just for my campaign, but for the work we can do together to build the future that West Virginians deserve. I have never taken for granted the trust that the people of our state have placed in me, and I look forward to earning your vote and continuing our work together in the U.S. Senate.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WTAP) – Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced Friday that the state has requested that the Purple Heart be awarded to the two National Guard members shot in Washington, D.C.

The Governor requested the Purple Heart to be awarded posthumously to U.S. Army Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, who was killed in the incident, and be awarded to Air Force Staff Sgt. Andrew Wolfe, who was critically injured.

“Their actions on that tragic day meet the highest and clearest standards for the Purple Heart, a decoration that recognizes those wounded or killed in action against an enemy or during a hostile or terrorist act,” Morrisey said. “I could not think of two servicemembers more deserving of this award.”

Gov. Morrisey also reviewed broader work by the West Virginia National Guard and the West Virginia Department of Veterans Assistance during 2025.

The National Guard carried out overseas missions, including deployments to the Middle East and Europe, and operations along the U.S. Southwest border. The Guard also responded to two major flooding events in the state. In February 2025, more than 350 service members were mobilized across 14 counties, conducting swift-water rescues, distributing nearly 340,000 bottles of water and clearing more than 17,000 tons of debris.

A separate response to flash flooding in Ohio and Marion counties in June 2025 involved nearly 200 Guard members who cleared an additional 12,000 tons of debris.

When the federal government shut down in October, the National Guard helped ensure families had access to meals. One hundred sixty-four service members distributed more than 1 million pounds of food to over 400 food pantries.

The governor highlighted work by the West Virginia Department of Veterans Assistance. Services officers secured $5.4 billion in federal benefits for West Virginia veterans in 2025, an increase of $500 million from 2024.

The department also advanced facility modernization projects. The Veterans Home in Barboursville received upgrades to the kitchen, infirmary and HVAC systems.

Major renovations are underway at the Veterans Nursing Facility in Clarksburg, including construction of a new kitchen and installation of a modern nurse call system.

“Taking care of the common, everyday issues can make a huge difference in our everyday lives, and that’s just what Veterans Assistance is doing with these upgrades. Our veterans are fantastic people who don’t ask for much, and it’s great to see this great work being done on their behalf,” Gov. Morrisey said.

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