News for New Kent County and Charles City County, Virginia | September 8, 2026
Sports
New Kent golfers post 10-stroke margin in winning 3A Region tournament
New Kent rebounded from a second place finish in conference golf by capturing the 3A Region title Tuesday on their home course at Royal New Kent. The Trojans totaled 319 strokes, 10 better than runner-up Riverside’s 329 and 15 ahead of third place Poquoson (334), the upset winner in last week’s conference tourney. New Kent’s Cole Baldwin carded a two-over-par 74 to win medalist honors. Teammate Robb Kinder placed third overall with a 77. Ted Gentile finished with 80 (ninth overall) while Slater Gammon shot 88 to complete the Trojans’ scoring. Jack Richards (95) and Kyle Peck (107) also competed…
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Grafton remains unbeaten after escaping New Kent with 7-6 win
Last year when Clark Harrell assumed the task of rebuilding New Kent’s football program, one of the keys to success, he said, would be to defeat an upper echelon team. In his words: “Someone you’re not supposed to beat.” Monday night with Grafton’s unbeaten Clippers in town, Harrell’s Trojans got their opportunity. But despite a punishing ground attack and a dominating second half performance, the hosts must look for another shot to secure that major upset. Grafton escaped with a narrow 7-6 win. “We were that far [from winning],” Harrell said afterward, raising his hands for emphasis and holding them…
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Drifters last drive downs Charles City 20-14
Two weeks prior to last Friday night’s contest, Charles City’s Panthers fell in the waning moments of a tight contest thanks to a last minute drive. The host Panthers, unfortunately, faced that déjà vu moment against the visiting Colonial Beach Drifters. A plunge by Colonial Beach’s AnaJai Lewis with 1:24 remaining on the clock proved to be the difference maker as the visiting Drifters escaped Charles City with a 20-14 victory. The hosts came out with a bang against the Drifters. With a slight rain coming down, Panthers return man Mason Jefferson and was able to gather his footing and…
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Inconsistency snaps Lady Panthers win streak
Charles City’s Lady Panthers looked to build upon a two-match win streak as they hosted visiting Middlesex in a Sept. 27 contest. Unfortunately for the hosts, the Lady Chargers quickly eliminated any notion of increasing the win column. Middlesex cruised to a 25-8, 25-8, 25-11 victory in the Tidewater District matchup. And while the play wasn’t considered pretty for the visitors, they took advantage of the Lady Panthers miscues. In set one Middlesex jumped out 14-2 in part of miscommunication between Charles City players before taking it 25-8. Charles City performed better in the second stanza, jumping out to a…
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Lady Trojans stun Jamestown with 1-0 overtime triumph
Hannah Gilland’s late goal in overtime broke a scoreless deadlock and lifted New Kent’s host Lady Trojans to a 1-0 sudden death overtime field hockey victory over Jamestown’s Eagles. “This definitely was a good win for us. It’s the first time we’ve beaten Jamestown,” said Lady Trojan coach Matt Duckworth, whose team improved to 5-4 overall and 2-3 against Bay Rivers District foes with Monday night’s win. The key to the historic triumph: “Just being relentless,” Duckworth said. “Even though we gave up more shots and more penalty corner opportunities, we were relentless,” he said. “Playing hard has been kind…
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New Kent second in Conference 25 golf
New Kent’s top four golfers combined for a 336 score over 18 holes on the par 72 Royal New Kent course near Providence Forge in Monday’s Conference 25 golf tournament. But that total proved to be three strokes too many for the hosts to slide past Poquoson as the Islanders carded 333 for an upset win. Poquoson’s Josh Brown took medalist honors with a 73. New Kent’s Robb Kinder posted a 76 to lead the Trojan contingent. Cole Baldwin (80), Kyle Peck (89), and Slater Gammon (91) completed the scoring for New Kent. Ted Gentile fired a 92 while Jack…
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Shutout victory guarantees most successful New Kent football season in 10 years
With a 28-0 shutout of Bruton, the latest edition of New Kent Trojan football accomplishes what nine others before it could not— win more than two games in a single season. Friday night’s victory before the home crowd is number three on the year thus far, and puts the Trojans in the running for a winning season. And to find the last such campaign, one must go back to 2003. That team finished 7-4, bowing out in the playoffs that year. New Kent now stands at 3-1, poised for a potential playoff appearance that would wipe out that 13-year drought….
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New Kent unable to make inroads versus Grafton
Grafton’s Clippers rocked New Kent’s host Lady Trojans back on their heels from the outset of Thursday night’s field hockey contest. In a game played almost entirely in New Kent’s end of the field, Grafton cruised to a 7-0 win. Five minutes in, the Clippers’ Grace Hoepfner scored the first of her four goals on the night off the contest’s initial penalty corner situation. Two more scores were followed by another goal as time expired in the first half, handing the visitors a 4-0 lead at the break. “I was hoping we could come out stronger after our win on…
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Swartout, Clardy-Joseph lead New Kent runners
Jon Swartout led the host Trojan runners while Jackie Clardy-Joseph paced the Lady Trojan contingent during Wednesday’s cross-country meet with Grafton and Warhill at New Kent. Swartout toured New Kent’s 5K course in 18:15.84 to finish fifth overall. Clardy-Joseph, meanwhile, ran 22:15.44 on the way to placing fourth. Grafton easily prevailed in both the boys and girls competition. The Clippers scored 32 points to Warhill’s 46 and New Kent’s 51 in the boys’ division, and cruised on the girls’ side with 17. New Kent and Warhill deadlocked at 60 each. Christian Lysek (6th, 18:30.75), Patrick Johnson (7th, 18:44.81), Brian Stevenson…
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Defending state champs survive scare from Lady Trojans
Two-time defending state 3A volleyball champion Warhill topped New Kent’s host Lady Trojans in straight sets Tuesday night. But the visiting Lady Lions failed to dominate against a determined underdog that kept the score close throughout. Warhill escaped with a 25-22, 25-19, 25-22 win, running its record to 6-1. New Kent, meanwhile, dropped to 6-5-2 overall, the two ties a result of splitting sets with two opponents during the Labor Day weekend Virginia Volleyball Showcase competition in Richmond. Warhill, meanwhile, utilized its front line height advantage in turning back the Lady Trojans. “They were up and over our blockers,” said…
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