News for New Kent County and Charles City County, Virginia | October 23, 2026
Sports
Injuries, long rallies plague Lady Panthers in volleyball contest
Plagued by injuries and garnering a visit from last year’s state semifinalist Mathews Lady Blue Devils, Charles City Lady Panthers couldn’t overcome the odds during a Sept. 13 contest. The Lady Panthers, who only dressed seven players, fell 25-9, 25-8, 25-11 in straight sets in the Tidewater District contest. “The last 48 hours I lost half of my team,” said Lady Panther head coach Jessica Hornsby. “One has a concussion, another has a broken finger, and one was injured during pregame. Two more are out for personal reasons and we did the best with what we could.” The hosts started…
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Quick turnaround too much for Panthers to overcome
Playing two games within a four-day span tends to have weary effects on a football team. Such was the case for the Charles City Panthers in the Sept. 9 contest at the Group 1A fourth-ranked team Sussex Central. Field position combined with fatigue from visiting Charles City factored in a 46-6 defeat in the non-district contest against the Tigers. Mental mistakes plagued the visitors early on, as high snaps combined with a lack of blocking forced Charles City to punt on the opening possession. Sussex wasted little time as they marched down the field 48 yards, capped off by Trevon…
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Panthers have no answer for Ruffin, Southampton in 51-12 rout
Tuesday night’s football contest between the visiting Southampton Indians and hosts Charles City turned out to be a rough one for the Panthers. Check that. It turned out to be a “Ruffin” one for the home team. Behind 303 first half rushing yards from running back Tayriel Ruffin, Southampton ran all over the Panthers 51-12, ruining the home opener. Charles City survived an early scare in the first quarter as the visitors pounded the ball on eight consecutive runs from the Power I formation down to the one-yard line. However Indian signal caller Andrew Blunt would bobble the exchange on…
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Trojans rush into Colonial Heights, walk out with 42-13 triumph
Throughout the offseason, New Kent head football coach Clark Harrell has been asked on several occasions how would the Trojans produce a running game with the departure of Davion Barnes to graduation. “I’m going to let my offensive line answer that question,” he said. Did they ever. Behind the strong front five in the trenches, New Kent amassed 328 rushing yards en route to a 42-13 rout of Colonial Heights in the Sept. 1 season opener for both teams. A stifling Trojan defense humbled the host Colonials ground game throughout the night. On the second offense drive of the game…
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Youthful Lady Trojans victorious in volleyball season opener
With five starters graduated from last year’s squad, New Kent Lady Trojan head volleyball coach Cyndi Burnett said this year’s team has a different dynamic. An Aug. 30 contest for the youthful group helped Burnett to see how they’d react in a game environment. Through guidance of returning players, New Kent propelled themselves to a 25-16, 22-25, 25-18, 25-14 victory over the visiting York Lady Falcons to win their opening contest of the season. Both teams exchanged scores from the onset of the opening frame. But the hosts pushed an 18-13 lead to a 10-point advantage thanks to six straight…
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Lone goal enough to lead New Kent field hockey to victory in home opener
New Kent Lady Trojan field hockey coach Matt Duckworth knows that he is working with a youthful team in the 2016 season. If an Aug. 29 indication proved to be a sign of things to come, a bright future is in store for the program. A goal by freshman Karsyn Justice moments into the second half proved to be the decisive factor as New Kent topped Colonial Heights 1-0 in the home opener for the Lady Trojans. With both teams deadlocked after one half of play, New Kent seized the opportunity to forge ahead. At the 27:35 mark, the Lady…
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Lancaster serves way to victory over Charles City in volleyball opener
Entering year two of its relaunch, Charles City’s Lady Panthers volleyball program is seeking improvement on a two-win campaign from last season. And while the team showed improvement in its first contest on Aug. 29, taking care of basics will prove as a focal point this year. Lancaster’s Lady Red Devils invaded Charles City and knocked off the hosts Lady Panthers 25-9, 25-9, 25-11 in a three game sweep. Charles City struggled from the onset, falling behind mostly in part of serves from Lancaster’s Riley Moliuax and Rachel Valdrighi. Lancaster jumped out 4-0 in the opening set before a Lady…
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New Kent youth golfer making waves in local, regional tournaments
A New Kent resident is making waves in a United States golf tournament. And he is only six years old. Rylan Opett’s success on the golf course has earned him the honor as U.S. Kids Golf Local Tour Champion Player of the Year in the Boys’ 6 and under age group. His achievement not only recognizes him as the top performer in his division, but earned him an invitation to play in the U.S. Kids Golf World Championship next year in Pinehurst. The three-day event will host 1,500 kids from the United States and 50 other countries at the course….
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Charles City runs circles around Dukes, wins opener 33-6
Last year, it took Charles City’s Panthers eight games before they notched their first victory. This year it only took one contest. Powered by a strong performance on the ground, Charles City rushed over and around the hosting Cumberland Dukes 33-6 in the Aug. 26 season opener for both teams. The visiting Panthers used the ground game to their advantage early on, with senior running back Cecil Tyler recording a 32-yard run. Classmate Mason Jefferson would do the honors with a two-yard dive to give the visitors a 6-0 lead in the first quarter. Jefferson would return to the end…
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Runners tackle course in Rock the River 5K at Jenna Bash Festival
Runners took to the course in the Rock the River 5K at the 9th annual Jenna Bash Festival on Aug. 6. In the men’s division, Gabriel Bollhorst crossed the line in 24:51 to win the event. Second place went to Eugene Brown with a time of 30:46 and Dylan Rooks rounded out the top three with a time of 33:05. For the women, Irene Bierie was the first to break the finish line barrier with a time of 26:51. Kristen Taylor emerged as the runner-up with a time of 28:54, and Melissa Allen clocked in with a time of 34:37…
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