South’s Nathan Tanner tasked with leading West Virginia BACF team

Mount View’s Justin Haggerty (1) performs in final yr’s Class A state soccer playoffs towards Ritchie County in Ellenboro. (Photograph by Jay W. Bennett)

PARKERSBURG — If soccer ever tinkered with the concept as a year-round sport, Parkersburg South coach Nate Tanner could be all in.

The game is his ardour.

As he enters his fourth season with the Patriot program, Tanner and his employees are wrapping up their spring session of exercises and simply in time to step apart from his ordinary duties to educate the West Virginia squad for Friday’s Battle Towards Cystic Fibrosis Soccer All-Star Recreation at St. Marys Excessive Faculty.

Recreation time is ready for 7:10 p.m.

“I like being across the recreation of soccer — if I might, I might do all of it day day by day,” mentioned Tanner, who served as an assistant for the North-South Soccer Recreation however is tasting his first expertise as head coach with the BACF occasion. “The BACF recreation will probably be a distinct sort of expertise, however will probably be plenty of enjoyable as a result of you’ve gotten people who’re highly-motivated and likewise wish to have a very good time. It’s a optimistic expertise and being the top coach makes it further particular.”

Final week’s introductory apply featured a complete of 16 graduated seniors, with a number of handfuls of people who had been unable to attend due to prior commitments. Tanner will coach two members from his Parkersburg South workforce which completed 5-5 after dropping within the first spherical of the Class AAA state playoffs.

Trent Parsons is listed as a 5-foot-10, 165-pounder who performs broad receiver and defensive again.

“Trent was a program child who grew for us astronomically due to plenty of laborious work,” Tanner mentioned. “Once I first met Trent, and you’d have informed me he was a two-year starter, I might have thought you had been loopy. He put plenty of work within the weight room and realized the system. He turned a frontrunner on the workforce and was enjoyable to have round.”

Aidan Starcher is a lineman who stands 6-5 and hits the scales at 370. Starcher broke his leg within the second scrimmage of the preseason, which compelled him to overlook his complete senior yr. He will probably be taking part in soccer for Bluefield State within the fall.

“Aidan is one other child who had by no means performed soccer,” Tanner mentioned. “Not solely did we get a soccer participant out of him, however he modified as a younger man and matured as a human being.

“Aidan helped me run youth camps on the Elite Sports activities Middle this previous spring. He took cost and did plenty of the educating. It was cool to see that.”

One other native lineman at Tanner’s disposal is Parkersburg’s Jeffery Jones. The Massive Reds additionally will probably be represented by a pair of working backs/linebackers in Zach Howard and Kyle Corridor.

Distinctive to the West Virginia workforce are a pair of twins from Mount View — wideouts/defensive backs Justin and Jason Haggerty. The 2 siblings traveled greater than three hours one-way from McDowell County to attend final Thursday’s introductory session. They deliberate to remain the week within the Mid-Ohio Valley for practices and the BACF recreation.

The Golden Knights wrapped up a 10-2 season after dropping to eventual Class A state champion Ritchie County within the quarterfinal spherical of the postseason.

“We have now three practices to get our offense, protection and particular groups put in — and to get personnel sorted out,” Tanner mentioned. “That first day final week, the youngsters picked it up nicely. Our scheme is easy as it’s.

“The opposite day, we talked as coaches as this recreation being like a trial run earlier than the three-week interval in June and an opportunity for our complete employees to get their ft moist. Then we may have one other little break, adopted by the flex days in July.”

In three seasons with Parkersburg South, Tanner has guided the soccer program to 17 wins and two playoff appearances. The Patriots open the 2022 season on August 26 at dwelling towards Capital.

Earlier this month, near 80 gamers had been fitted for helmets.

“The celebrities are aligning,” Tanner mentioned. “Bodily, this workforce is true up there on the high within the 11 years I’ve been in teaching. Once I first bought right here, we had 45 to 50 youngsters on the workforce. The aim was finally round 60 to 70. Loads of youngsters have purchased into our program.”

Contact Kerry Patrick at kpatrick@newsandsentinel.com

WEST VIRGINIA

Head coach: Nathan Tanner, Parkersburg South

Assistant coaches: Evan Campbell, Bryan Youngblood, Zach Partitions, John Worth, Adam Wilson, Cody Miller, Larry Thompson, Ryan Rice, John Kinnaird, Sam Schuler

Roster

No. Title Faculty Pos. Hgt. Wgt.

16 Shadraq Greathouse Roane County QB/DB/LB 5-11 180

22 Trent Parsons Parkersburg South WR/DB 5-10 165

25 Justin Haggerty Mount View QB/WR/DB

26 Jason Haggerty Mount View WR/DB

27 Caleb Hatfield Level Nice WR/DB 6-2 170

34 Zach Howard Parkersburg H/LB 6-0 190

37 Eian Grigsby Level Nice LB 6-1 185

44 Kyle Corridor Parkersburg H/LB 6-0 190

46 Wes Hill Ravenswood H/DL 6-3 240

63 Brayden Connolly Level Nice G/DL 5-11 205

69 Colby Worth Level Nice OL/DL 5-10 220

71 Riley Boley St. Marys T/DL 6-2 275

71 Toby Copen Roane County OL/DL 6-1 270

76 Aidan Starcher Parkersburg South OL/DL 6-4 360

78 Jeff Jones Parkersburg OL/DL 6-1 285

80 Shawn Conrad Roane County WR/DB 6-0 185

81 Russel Might Roane County WR/DB 5-8 170

82 Dylan Knight Doddridge County RB/FB/LB 5-10 185

84 Jared Jones Doddridge County QB/WR/DB 5-9 165

86 Jaycent Ash Doddridge County LB 5-11 185

98 Wyatt Norman St. Marys C/H/DE 6-2 178

98 Case Landis Tyler Consolidated OL/DL 6-0 205