Notes: Va. Beach Sports Club honors Kellam girls hoops coach and FC boys soccer coach

Kellam High School girls basketball and softball coach T.J. Jones and First Colonial soccer coach Joe Tucei were honored Monday as Sportspersons of the Year by the Virginia Beach Sports Club.

The awards were announced at the club’s annual jamboree.

Jones’ team is the defending Group AAA state champion. Tucei has been the Eastern Region Coach of the Year three times.

Athletes who were honored included Kempsville soccer player Steven Hedley, Princess Anne girls basketball star Raven Harris and Tallwood track standout Octavia Rinehardt.

Cox field hockey coach Julie Swain and Green Run football coach Shawn Wilson are the club’s Coaches of the Year.

Baseball: Look who has the lead in Southeastern District The regular season has a long way to go, but Western Branch’s baseball team is in position to finally loosen Great Bridge’s grip on the Southeastern District.

The Bruins moved alone atop the district with a 3-0 victory over Hickory on Friday and earlier this season defeated Great Bridge.

Western Branch hasn’t won the Southeastern regular season since 2001, and its last tournament crown came in ’03. Great Bridge has swept the district regular-season and tournament titles for four consecutive years.

If this is the Bruins’ year, they’ll rely on a senior-laden lineup — seven seniors started Friday. Ace righthander Chad O’Connor pitched a four-hitter, and fellow seniors Jacob Pierce and Daniel Alvarez provided key hits.

“We’ve all been playing together since JV,” said Pierce, a catcher. “We’ve all been growing together and getting better as a team. We’d like to go out and step up for each other.”

Track and field: Green Run boys 400 relay team is flying  . The Green Run boys 400-meter relay team ran the fastest time in the state this spring when the foursome of Antonio Simmons, Tavon Gatlin, Davion Jones and Dejor Simmons posted a winning time of 41.95 at the Peninsula Relays last weekend.

Watching from the stands was Stallions football coach Shawn Wilson.

“That was their first time out, and they had two bad handoffs,” Wilson said. “So, I hope they can run high 40s by the end of the season.”

Their winning time would have won five of the last six state meets — and they still have seven weeks to get it right before the state meet.

More track: Bookers eye Norfolk State Relays after big performance Booker T. Washington boys coach Che Jacobs has the Bookers rolling.

Last weekend, they won the Norview Invitational.

Sophomore sprinter Rasul Crenshaw and hurdler Cordarol Madison paced the Bookers. Crenshaw won the 100 and 400 meters. Madison won the 300 hurdles and finished runner-up in the 110 hurdles.

“I really feel like we’re going to win the Eastern District title,” said Jacobs, whose team finished runner-up last spring. “We feel like nobody can beat us on the track right now.”

The Bookers will be tested Saturday when they compete at the Norfolk State Relays. 

-- Staff writers Jami Frankenberry, Bryan Black and Larry Rubama contributed to this report