Lee Johnson, who resigned as the Colonels’ head coach following the 2012 season, has joined the staff at Patrick Henry as an assistant under Alan Fiddler.

Johnson has taken the spot vacated by Jay Phares, who became the head coach at William Campbell High in Naruna. Johnson, who already has participated in a week of Patrick Henry’s spring practices, will coach linebackers and assist Casey Stewart with the Patriots’ defense.

A former head coach at Glenvar and North Cross before serving as Fleming’s coach for the last three years, the 43-year-old Johnson has not worked as an assistant coach since 2001 when he was on the staff at William Byrd.

“Being a head coach, sometimes you don’t get to coach as much on the field as you do when you’re a position coach because there are so many other things to take care of,” Johnson said.

Johnson said he contacted Fiddler this spring about the vacancy. He is hoping to land a teaching position at Patrick Henry when contracts go out later this month.

“I was looking at some things, but there weren’t a whole lot of jobs in this area,” Johnson said. “My daughter will be a senior [at Salem High School] this fall and I didn’t want to move.

“Alan’s a good coach to work for. We’ve gotten along since he got to Patrick Henry.”

The new Timesland top 15 is out and plenty of changes were made after four major meets were held over the weekend.

Among the highlights:

*Blacksburg put four runners under two minutes in the boys 800 meters at the MileStat Elite Classic in Richmond.

*Nick Link of Blacksburg ran 4:16.05 in the 1,600, while Noah Combs clocked 9:22.88 in the 3,200. Blacksburg’s Emily Beaty ran 5:06.22 in the girls 1,600.

*William Byrd’s Marcellus Fletcher went 46 feet in the triple jump at the Joe Curcio Invitational in Lynchburg where Alexis Brown of James River tossed the shot 38-10 and Liberty’s Nicole Smith threw the discus 121-8.

2013 TIMESLAND TRACK AND FIELD CHECKLIST

NOTE: Rankings are based on major invitationals and postseason meets. Meets include are Knights Invitational, Raleigh Relays, Big Red Invitational, Vince Bradford Relays, Mike Brown Invitational, Falcons Track Classic, Colonel Classic, Judy Thomas Invitational, Frank Carver Invitational, All-American Relays, Amherst Invitational, Tri-Cities Track Classic, Buffalo Invitational, MileStat Elite Classic, Joe Curcio Invitational and Bearcat Invitational.

BOYS
100 meters
1. Khalil Bonds, William Fleming (Colonel), 11.03
2. Andrew Storms, George Wythe (All-American), 11.10
3. Brandon Carter, Martinsville (Colonel), 11.18
4. Ryan Layman, George Wythe (All-American), 11.40
5. Arius McConnell, Salem (All-American), 11.41
6. Tanner Reed, Christiansburg (Colonel), 11.43
7. Riley Blevins, Marion (Thomas), 11.48
8. Joey Augustin, Christiansburg (Curcio), 11.53
9. Jamaal Preston, Liberty (Big Red), 11.55
…..Travis Hedgepeth, George Wythe (All-American), 11.55
11. Ryan Sims, Blacksburg (Knights), 11.57
12  Josh Pearson, Bassett (Buffalo), 11.58
13. Patrick Shulz, James River (All-American), 11.64
14. Ryan Kelly, Hidden Valley (Colonel), 11.65
15. Davonta Womack, Salem (Curcio), 11.67 Read more »

Northside’s Tierra Saunders took over the 2013 Timesland lead in the girls 400-meter run with an impressive clocking of 57.66 seconds last week in winning the event at the Amherst Invitational in Amherst.

William Byrd’s Marcellus Fletcher is the new Timesland leader in the boys triple jump at 44 feet, 11 inches.

Those were among the top performaces over the weekend in Timesland.

The updated Timesland track checklist is below.

NOTE: Rankings are based on major invitationals and postseason meets. Meets include are Knights Invitational, Raleigh Relays, Big Red Invitational, Vince Bradford Relays, Mike Brown Invitational, Falcons Track Classic, Colonel Classic, Judy Thomas Invitational, Frank Carver Invitational, All-American Relays, Amherst Invitational and Tri-Cities Track Classic.

BOYS
100 meters
1. Khalil Bonds, William Fleming (Colonel), 11.03 2. Andrew Storms, George Wythe (All-American), 11.10 3. Brandon Carter, Martinsville (Colonel), 11.18 4. Ryan Layman, George Wythe (All-American), 11.40 5. Arius McConnell, Salem (All-American), 11.41 6. Tanner Reed, Christiansburg (Colonel), 11.43 7. Riley Blevins, Marion (Thomas), 11.48 8. Jamaal Preston, Liberty (Big Red), 11.55    Travis Hedgepeth, George Wythe (All-American), 11.55 10. Ryan Sims, Blacksburg (Knights), 11.57 11 . Josh Pearson, Bassett (Colonel), 11.59 12. Patrick Shulz, James River (All-American), 11.64 13. Ryan Kelly, Hidden Valley (Colonel), 11.65 14. Elijah Onks, George Wythe (Thomas), 11.69 15. Fe’zahn Scott, Patrick Henry (Knights), 11.71    Dean Sayers, Hidden Valley (Colonel), 11.71 Read more »

John Otey, who resigned last month as the athletic director at William Fleming High School, has been named the new AD at Jefferson Forest.

Otey replaces Steve Mills, who is returning to the coaching ranks as Jefferson Forest’s girls basketball coach.

Otey turned in his resignation, effective July 1, at Fleming after less than two years in charge of the Colonels’ athletic program. Otey became Fleming’s AD in the summer of 2011 after serving as the school’s head athletic trainer.

William Fleming and Jefferson Forest both will be members of Class 4A Conference 24 next year when the VHSL begins its new six-classification system.

Jefferson Forest will hold a reception for Otey from 4-6 p.m. Thursday at the high school.

The prep track and field season will begin to heat up locally with Saturday’s Colonel Classic at William Fleming High School.

Among the story lines could be a showdown in the triple jump between Patrick Henry senior David Prince and William Fleming sophomore Warren Craft.

Prince, a Virginia Tech football signee, has not jumped yet in a meet this season. He is entered the in meet, but PH coach Chad Cox said Thursday he is not 100 percent certain that Prince will jump.

Craft, who has committed to Tech for basketball, also has yet to compete in the triple jump in any of the early major meets. Craft leads Timesland in the long jump so far this spring at 21 feet, 11 1/2 inches.

The third annual meet begins Saturday with field events at 9:30 a.m. The running events are set for 11 a.m.

TENNIS

North Cross will host the Blue Ridge Conference girls singles tournament at 9:30 a.m. Saturday.

However, North Cross AD Eric Lawrence said Friday that only two of the conference’s schools will have entrants. North Cross’ Schmedtje sisters — Evans and Helen — each will play an opponent from Virginia Episcopal in the semifinals.

The VIC boys singles tournament will be played today at Covenant School in Charlottesville. North Cross freshmen Joseph Cartledge and Michael Fleming are among the top contenders.

Troy Daniels had a noteworthy senior year at William Fleming High School.

The 6-foot-3 guard led Fleming to the2009  Group AAA boys basketball championship game where the Colonels lost 49-47 to a King’s Fork team that included current NCAA standouts Devante Gardner (Marquette) and Jaquon Parker (Cincinnati).

Daniels was named Timesland player of the year and was known for his long-range shooting. He had buzzer-beating 3-pointers to give Fleming wins over Franklin County and Radford. He made six of six 3-point attempts in a late-season win over North Cross.

Now the nation knows of Daniels’ 3-point prowess.

Daniels recently completed his four-year career at VCU with a single-season school-record 124 3-pointers, and Thursday night he won the NCAA’s 3-point contest in Atlanta as a prelude to the Final Four.

Is the Roanoke Valley-New River Valley the nation’s hotbed for college basketball shooters? From Blacksburg’s Doug Day at Radford University to Patrick Henry’s Curtis Staples at Virginia and to Cave Spring’s J.J. Redick at Duke, this area has produced some of the greatest college basketball shooters of the last 20 years.

John Otey has resigned as the athletic director at William Fleming High School.

Otey said Thursday in an email that he has turned in his resignation as Fleming’s AD, effective June 30, for “personal reasons.”

Otey has been Fleming’s athletic director since July 2011.

Fleming has had eight different fulltime or interim athletic directors since 2005.

Otey is a 1996 Fleming graduate who was hired as the school’s athletic trainer in 2007.

Fleming will compete in Division 4 under the VHSL’s new six-classifcation system, beginning this fall. The Colonels will be members of the Blue Ridge District.

Bobby Martin has been spotted on the William Fleming High School campus a lot in recent weeks. His trips haven’t been just to watch basketball games.

Martin, who was the interim head football coach at George Washington, has been named the new head football coach at William Fleming, Roanoke city councilman Sherman Lea said earlier today.

Martin succeeds Lee Johnson as Fleming’s coach. He will be introduced to Fleming’s players during a news conference at 1:45 p.m. today.

A Henry County native, Martin played football at Virginia Tech after graduating from Laurel Park High School.

He was the head basketball coach at George Washington until he left the position midway through the 2011-12 season. Martin was the head coach of the George Washington boys basketball team that reached the Group AAA state final in 2007.

He was named GW’s football coach for the 2012 season after the departure of head coach Jimmy Teague. Martin led GW to the Western Valley District championship, including wins in Roanoke over both William Fleming and Patrick Henry.

William Fleming posted a 1-9 record in 2012 and was 2-28 in Johnson’s three seasons.

Fleming will rejoin the Blue Ridge District in 2013 and will be a member of Division 4 in the VHSL’s new six-classification system.

The Virginia High School League ruled Tuesday that William Fleming must forfeit two 2012-13 boys basketball victories for using an academically ineligible player.

William Fleming used the ineligible player in a 57-34 nondistrict victory over Hidden Valley on Dec. 27 and in a 51-42 Western Valley District win over Halifax County on Jan. 4.

Both games were played following the final day of classes in first semester of the Roanoke City Schools academic calendar, in which the player did not pass the required VHSL minimum of five courses.

Scholarship rule 28-4-3(3) on Page 67 of  the VHSL Handbook reads as follows: For the purpose of this rule the student’s eligibility or ineligibility shall be determined on the first day of the school year and on the first calendar day following the end of the first semester according to the school board adopted calendar.

William Fleming’s administration appealed the forfeits with a belief that the first semester did not conclude until Jan. 6 the day before grades from teachers were due to be posted.

The VHSL disagreed. A four-man panel composed of members of the VHSL Executive Committee handed down a “unanimous and very quick” decision Tuesday afternoon, according to VHSL spokesman Mike McCall.

William Fleming principal Archie Freeman said Tuesday that he first informed the VHSL of the situation on Jan. 7.

The forfeits cost William Fleming’s boys team the outright Western Valley championship. Instead of a 16-5 overall record and a 7-1 district record, the Colonels are 14-7 overall and 6-2 in the WVD, tying George Washington for first place.

William Fleming and George Washington will meet in a one-game playoff for the district title Thursday at Franklin County High School in Rocky Mount.

Rockbridge County senior guard Andrew Rowsey, who is now fourth on the VHSL career scoring list, will make back-to-back appearances in the Roanoke Valley this weekend.

Rockbridge will play at Northside on Friday in a Blue Ridge District game, then the Wildcats will meet Patrick Henry at 4 p.m. Saturday in the Roy Stanley Memorial Shootout at Salem Civic Center.

Rowsey has 2,398 career points, placing him behind only Stacy Ervin of Twin Springs (2,687), Odell Hodge of Laurel Park (2,530) and Steve Marsee of Pennington (2,459). Rowsey trails Ervin by 289 points with a minimum of five games remaining. If Rockbridge can advance to the Region III Division 3 tournament, the 5-foot-11 senior might have a shot at the record.

Saturday, Rowsey could be matched against 5-foot-5 Patrick Henry guard Marcus Banks, who recently became the Patriots’ career scoring leader.

The five-game event features four Timesland teams that currently lead their respective districts, including one of the last of the state’s unbeatens – Carroll County.

River Ridge District co-leader Salem plays Three Rivers District leader Radford in the opener at 1 p.m. Carroll County, now 18-0, faces a Virginia Episcopal team coached by former PH and UVa star Curtis Staples in the second game.

The postgraduate teams from Massanutten Military and Hargrave Military are scheduled to tip off at 5:30 p.m. Massanutten features Kansas recruit Frank Mason.

The final game sends Western Valley District leader William Fleming against High Point Christian (N.C.). Fleming sophomore Warren Craft already has committed to Virginia Tech.