Trip to Kuwait, Iraq helps Leitao see the big picture
Thursday, Jun 12, 2008 - 12:07 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

Like many in his profession, University of Virginia men's basketball coach Dave Leitao occasionally talks of "battles" and "wars" and "warriors" when the subject is athletic competition. For that, he found himself apologizing to soldiers he met in Iraq this month, for whom war is no game.

"I think I was a little embarrassed that we use war terms when we're talking in sports," Leitao said yesterday, but the soldiers' response lifted his spirits.

"They said, 'Hey, it's your battle, it's your war, so we don't feel bad for you saying it.'"

Leitao, whose father served in the Army, returned early this week from a tour that took him to two military hospitals in the D.C. area, to Kuwait and to Iraq.

Joining him on the trip, sponsored by the United Service Organizations and called "Operation Hoop Talk: Talking with the Troops," were five former and current basketball coaches, including Jim Crews of the U.S. Military Academy.

"I think, to a man, we all left saying we'd happily go back again," Leitao said. "Whether I do or not, only time will tell. But it's something that affected all of us."

Leitao's interest in the military is not new. In January 2007, before U.Va.'s game at Maryland, he took his team to visit injured soldiers and Marines at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington.

About six months earlier, Leitao had been among the coaches in "Operation Hardwood III," a tour to Japan sponsored by the USO and Armed Forces Entertainment. There, the coaches were matched with military personnel who'd been split into teams.

"The basketball part of Japan was great, because you got to coach them," Leitao said. "This time was a little different. You got to learn. The conversations with the soldiers were so much different this time around."

One of the coaches' first stops was Camp Arifjan in Kuwait. In Iraq, Leitao stayed at bases in Mosul and Balad, spending much of his time "meeting and greeting soldiers" of all ranks. Among those he met were a woman from Farmville and a man who'd worked at U.Va. before enlisting.

Leitao left Iraq with a heightened appreciation for the military and the sacrifices soldiers make every day. The experience, he said, was "extremely enlightening, life-changing [in regards to] what you appreciate and your views on a lot of different things, especially on what's currently going on in the war, and how different it is from what you get either politically or from the media's standpoint."

When the coaches traveled in areas where they might be exposed to enemy fire, they wore helmets and body armor. They also endured sandstorms that disrupted their travel plans and offered tangible evidence of the obstacles U.S. soldiers face in the Persian Gulf region.

In the journal he submitted to VirginiaSports.com periodically on his trip, Leitao closed each entry with God Bless America!

Back in the States, he hopes to impress upon his players that what they "have to put up with as a student or an athlete pales in comparison to" the hardships that U.S. military personnel deal with routinely.

"Hopefully that means in moving forward, I can give them a little more perspective on having appreciation for the moment you're living in," Leitao said.

 

Still A Streak (Commentary) Posted 2008-06-11
HHS Star Hopes To Play This Fall, Then Head To U.Va.
By Chris Simmons

Alex Owah wears a ring around his neck, a ring that reminds him of his past and - he hopes - of his future.

It's the state championship ring he won last spring as a member of the Harrisonburg High School track team. Owah said he began wearing it shortly after his name made an unlikely jump from the sports pages to the crime report in April, thanks to a police affidavit that fingered him as a participant in an "armed robbery" of another teenager.

"I just keep it around my neck to remind me of how hard I worked and how hard I should keep working," he said this week. "... It keeps reminding me of what more I can do."

Owah's to-do list is fairly simple: He hopes to play football for the Blue Streaks this fall and for the University of Virginia beginning in 2009.

Both goals looked dicey two months ago when police said Owah admitted his role in the Halloween robbery - perhaps a prank that got out of hand - but the 5-foot-11, 170-pound tailback said in an interview this week that the Cavaliers have told him their scholarship offer still stands.

Even coach Al Groh called, Owah said, to assure him "he's still with me."

George McGovern was behind Thomas Eagleton "1,000 percent" in the 1972 presidential election, too, before dumping him when the heat became too intense. In other words, commitment can be fleeting, and Owah is no dope.

"They told me they were always going to be here no matter what ..." he said, "but I knew that if I was charged with anything, it would have been taken away."

Call it the Peter Rose Effect. If any would-be college jock needed another cautionary tale, Amherst's Rose provided it. Virginia Tech last month stripped its scholarship offer from Rose after the Group AA Player of the Year drew felony charges following an undercover drug operation.

Like Tech, U.Va. has had its share of problem kids, meaning Groh - whose political capital is in the red because of underachieving teams - can ill-afford to sign players whose PR problems negate their TD prowess.

Fortunately, Owah - who turned 18 on June 3 - has not been charged with any crimes. He has taken a hit, however. Although he declined to discuss the allegations in the affidavit, Owah acknowledged they put a "dent" in his reputation.

"Every kid makes a mistake - that's a part of growing up," he said, his black hair and small goatee cropped short. "... I feel I didn't make the right decision at the time, and you know, there's always room to correct it and get back to where you should be, and that's what I'm doing now."

Whether he will be given the opportunity is up to HHS and U.Va. Neither will comment on Owah's status.

Harrisonburg police said in April that two juveniles were charged in the armed robbery, which they said involved three HHS students, a Rockbridge County teen (the victim) and a knife (Owah didn't pull it, and nobody was seriously hurt). During questioning about the incident, according to the affidavit, Owah told police that one of the other two Harrisonburg athletes involved in the robbery had frequently sold prescription pain killers in the locker room before football games, an allegation that sparked an ongoing investigation.

People are reluctant to talk on the record about the case, but at least one thing is certain: Owah has no intention of moving back to Oklahoma for his senior season, a persistent rumor around town.

The Owah family left Enid, Okla., in 1997 when Alex's father, Andrew, accepted a job as a manager at the Perdue poultry plant in Bridgewater. Some believed Owah would have to return to Oklahoma simply out of concern for his safety - to put it in punk parlance, some of his peers might stupidly consider him a rat because the affidavit said he sparked the pill probe.

Owah scoffed at that.

"I was never worried about my safety, and there's no need for me to be worried about my safety ..." he said. "It never crossed my mind once that someone was going to actually do something. I never felt threatened."

Maybe that's because he's always been the man at HHS. Owah has started for the Streaks since his sophomore season, using his speed - 4.49 seconds in the 40-yard dash - to dart past defenders and collect scholarship offers from Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia, Tennessee, Wake Forest and James Madison.

In addition, Owah, who looks more like a soccer player than a football player, always had a reputation as a "good kid," a kid way too smart to jeopardize his future as a big-time football player. Even now, he's humble enough to question whether he could even have excelled on Enid's Class 6A football team. That's why his appearance in the affidavit was so stunning.

"I was caught off-guard, I was very surprised," said HHS athletic director Joe Carico, who also is an assistant football coach.

Owah was at a track meet at Turner Ashby when the affidavit became public. He said his brother called his father, who was attending the meet, to say Alex was on the news.

"Next thing I know they're showing video clips of me," Owah recalled. "... That really was crushing for me. ...They really crushed my image, and that's what hurt."

I know what you're thinking: Whose fault is that, Alex? But keep things in context. If the robbery occurred as reported, three HHS football players apparently tried to intimidate an acquaintance from Rockbridge County High School. Things went awry. A knife was pulled.

Stupid? Yes. Maybe the Age of Obama will convince kids that violence and posturing and payback are idiotic.

Owah, at least, appears to be on the right track. During a 35-minute interview, he frequently mentioned how important his father - a native Nigerian who graduated from Oklahoma State - has been in his life, and he's still hurting over the pain he caused both of his parents.

Family clearly is important to Owah.

Shortly after the affidavit's release, Owah had a small tattoo stitched on his upper back: "AEO 3." Those are the initials of the three Owah boys: Alex Eugene Owah, Andy Edwin Owah and Antonio Emmanuel Owah.

"I love my brothers to death," Owah said, "and I'd do anything for them. And through all this, they've always been beside me. ... And I just wanted to show my love for them."

Owah also was fortified by support from friends and fellow athletes, guys like HHS football player Michael Morris and track captain Kyle Banks.

"You really don't know who's there for you until something bad really happens, you know?" Owah said.

Owah hopes his life will return to normal in a couple of months, that talk about the affidavit will die down. Until then, he's working out at Gold's Gym and plans to attend football camps this summer. Beginning Saturday, he and Tony will drift to Myrtle Beach for a week, perhaps hoping the happy sound of a carousel - as the song suggests - washes away a tumultuous spring.

But most of all, Owah hopes for understanding.

"I still think I'm a big part of our community," he said. "I hope people can, you know, look past all this and just see that I'm, you know, I'm not as bad as, you know, they said or people say I am, you know. I hope that in time I can make up ... for the wrongs that I have done and, hopefully, be a big part of this community in everyone's eyes."

 

Wigger returns to Women's Open
Former Virginia player tied for first in sectional qualifier
Thursday, Jun 12, 2008 - 12:07 AM
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Former University of Virginia star Leah Wigger is heading to the biggest stage in women's golf for the second year in a row.

The three-time All-American from 2004-07, now playing on the Duramed Futures Tour, tied for first during a 36-hole sectional qualifier for the U.S. Women's Open at Skokie Country Club in Glencoe, Ill.

She'll be making her second consecutive appearance in the U.S. Women's Open, being contested this year at Interlachen Country Club in Edina, Minn. The tournament will be held June 26-29.

Her appearance also will mark the third consecutive year a golfer from Virginia plays in the Open, and she'll be trying to become the first to make it to the weekend. Last year, she shot 82 and 75.

Jennie Arseneault made the field in 2006.

 

Singletary gets better grasp of pre-draft camp
Friday, Jun 13, 2008 - 12:07 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

Sean Singletary took the call in an airport in Indiana, where he had worked out Wednesday for the NBA's Pacers. He was headed to Cleveland to try to impress Team LeBron. Singletary, who had started the week in Charlottesville, also has auditioned for the Heat, the Bobcats and the Pistons, and more workouts for NBA teams are scheduled.

"It's exhausting at times, but I'm definitely enjoying taking it all in," said Singletary, whose illustrious career at the University of Virginia ended in March. "I'm better prepared this year."

In 2007, you may recall, Singletary applied for the NBA draft and went through much the same process. He didn't play well at the pre-draft camp in Orlando, Fla., however, and ultimately decided to return to U.Va. for his senior year.

His second trip to Orlando received better reviews. Singletary's team went unbeaten at last month's pre-draft camp, and the Philadelphia-bred point guard flashed the skills that earned him a spot on the all-ACC first team three times. Draft analysts noted the improvement, especially his work on defense.

"I was a lot more pleased with what I did this year, just because I knew what was going on," said Singletary, whose jersey was retired before his final regular-season game at John Paul Jones Arena. "And I'm in better shape this year than I was last year."

His senior season was the only one in which Singletary didn't start alongside J.R. Reynolds. At U.Va. they'd formed one of the nation's premier backcourts, and they were expected to have a reunion of sorts in Orlando. But Reynolds, back in the States after playing professionally for Vanoli Soresina in Italy, felt ill and so withdrew from the pre-draft camp.

"I didn't want to go there and perform bad," he said.

The 6-2 Reynolds, who was second-team all-ACC as a senior, spent most of his college career at shooting guard, though he occasionally spelled Singletary at the point. He played both positions in Italy and grew from the experience.

"I'm more patient. I think I let the game slow down for me," said Reynolds, who's from Roanoke.

At 6-0 in sneakers, Singletary is small for an NBA point guard, and he's no lock to be drafted June 26. He said he's heard that he could go as early as the middle of the first round, but some Internet mock drafts don't list Singletary among their projected 60 picks.

"That's just one guy's opinion," he said. "I don't pay attention to that type of stuff anyway."

Singletary has spoken to Reynolds recently. Europe could be an option for him in 2008-09, Singletary acknowledged, but he's focused on making an NBA roster, be it as a draft pick or a free agent.

"I know with my skill and my IQ about the game, I'll be able to stick with a team," Singletary said, "so I'm not worried about that."

Reynolds, too, hopes to wear an NBA uniform next season. His immediate goal is to land an invitation to play summer-league ball for an NBA team. Still, if he ends up overseas again in 2008-09, Reynolds, who described the pay in Italy as "lovely," won't complain.

Other former Cavaliers playing in Europe include Travis Watson, Devin Smith and Jason Cain.

"As long as I'm making a decent amount of money, I know my shot at the NBA is going to come sooner or later," Reynolds said.


 

Hissey weighing options
By Jay Jenkins
Published: June 13, 2008

A relative unknown in baseball recruiting circles, Peter Hissey was fascinated when Virginia offered a scholarship last year.
After several months passed, the Pennsylvania product was blown away again, drawing invitations to work out in front of scouts at Philadelphia’s Citizen’s Bank Park and Boston’s Fenway Park.
Showcasing his talent paid off when he was selected in the fourth round by the Boston Red Sox, leaving the outfielder with a life-changing dilemma.
“It’s really the best of both worlds,” Hissey said Wednesday. “As I see it and with all the scouts that I talked to, Virginia is the best all-around experience a college baseball player can have. That opinion is not only shared by me — I committed there — but everyone that is involved in baseball and has been to UVa says that.
“If I was to play for the Red Sox, they are the high-water mark of Major League Baseball.”
It would not be the first time Virginia coach Brian O’Connor lost a program-changing outfielder to the Red Sox. In 2006, Ryan Kalish was drafted in the ninth round and signed weeks later for $731,000 while rumors swirled in Boston about an agreement between the parties before the draft was underway.
“I am different from Kalish because I didn’t have a pre-draft deal,” Hissey said. “I told the Red Sox that I had a number in mind and if they met that I would sign.
“At this point, we haven’t talked any specifics, so it is all up in the air.”
During his senior season at Unionville High School, Hissey hit .509, had a .672 on-base percentage and stole 26 bases. His power numbers were lacking, but explainable.
“I played on a lot of fields with big fences or no fences,” Hissey pointed out. “And this year, I walked 30 times and had 70 at-bats.
“I play in a small league so all the pitches I saw were junk away. I had a lot of doubles to the left side and I hit a lot of balls off the wall that way because that’s where the pitches were thrown.”
Asking for at least $1.2 million in a signing bonus, almost double what Kalish got two summers ago, Hissey is unsure when a decision or offer will be made. He does not, however, plan to wait until the end of the Aug. 15 deadline that teams in MLB have to ink a deal with a drafted player.
“I would really say it is too early to tell. I really haven’t talked too much to the Red Sox since I was drafted. I talked with Jason McLeod, the scouting director a little bit, but we are going to see this thing out. He said we should know something by the middle of July.”
O’Connor will not have to wait as long on a decision from left-handed pitcher Danny Hultzen, the second of seven Virginia recruits taken in the draft.
Essentially, the decision has been made.
“It was definitely cool to get my name called in the 10th round by the Arizona Diamondbacks, but I know that I am going to Virginia,” said Hultzen, who went 13-0 on the mound for St. Albans School in Washington. “I have been telling them that I am going to Virginia the whole time and it’s cool that they picked me, but I am strongly committed.”
He also fanned 13 batters in a complete-game shutout in the semifinal game of the D.C. Baseball Classic.
The southpaw gained national attention after his velocity jumped from 85 to 88 miles per hour to low 90’s and even as high as 94 after a rigorous long-tossing and weight lifting program last winter. As radar guns multiplied at his games, Hultzen remained steadfast in his commitment.
Credit his father for the college-first approach.
“My dad has been really straight forward and says when you make a commitment that you should honor it,” Hultzen said. “He definitely kept that in my head.”
Hultzen said he is hopeful that the recruiting class remains in place, something that another drafted incoming player, third baseman Steven Proscia, echoed.
Proscia, in fact, took his wishes a tad further after Hissey became a first-day selection.
“I got a text from him after the draft and he said, ‘Congratulations. You coming to UVa, right?’” Hissey recounted with laughter. “He said we had the 10th-best recruiting class and he told me the number of players drafted in our recruiting class, which is really incredible.
“Steven’s a great kid.”
Hopefully for O’Connor’s sake, Proscia is an even better recruiter.