sports roundup

Diocesan Sports Roundup

By David Steinbacher
Special to the HERALD
(From the Issue of 1/4/07)

Bishop O'Connell High School alumnus Terrence Wilkens ('94), one of the premier punt/kickoff returners in the National Football League, will lead the third-seeded Indianapolis Colts in their quest to qualify for the 2007 Super Bowl.
Indianapolis, coached by Tony Dungy, will host sixth-seeded Kansas City Jan. 6 in one of two AFC first-round contests.
For Indianapolis to advance to the Super Bowl, the Colts will have to defeat Kansas City and also win their next two playoff games.
Wilkens played both football and basketball at O'Connell. He also played wide receiver/punt returner/kick returner at the University of Virginia, and has been one of the AFC's top 10 punt returners all season long.
The 30-year-old Wilkens has one touchdown this season via an 82-yard punt return several weeks ago. He has recorded over 1,000 total yards via kickoff returns, and over 200 total yards via punt returns this season as well.
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Veteran successful soccer head coach Alberto Starace and the Lady Knight soccer team finished the season ranked eighth in America, according to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America/Adidas poll.
The poll included all girls’ teams in the entire country that played fall soccer, at both private and public schools.
A strong Knights squad was led by senior striker Liz Carroll and junior striker Brook Chang.
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O'Connell alumna Kate Ziegler ('06) has set a host of USA all-time swim records in recent months. The Great Falls resident, currently attending George Mason University in Fairfax — although not a member of the GMU swim team — recently broke past Olympian Janet Evans 1,650-yard freestyle record with a phenomenal time of 15 minutes 37.17 seconds.
Ziegler, a likely Olympian in 2008, now owns all three of the USA all-time short distance freestyle records (500, 1000 and 1,650). It is quite an amazing accomplishment for the diocesan teenager.
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Two Bishop Ireton Cardinals were selected for the Virginia Independent Schools Division I All-State Football team: senior offensive lineman Matt Delaquesta and junior linebacker Andrew Rodriguez.
As of this writing, Delaquesta's college plans are unknown.
Rodriguez also played running back and wide receiver for the Cardinals, who finished 3-7 overall in '06 under first-year head coach Peter Rotkis. Rodriguez will spearhead a strong nucleus of returning players for Rotkis in the fall.
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The Notre Dame Lady Dragon basketball team in Middleburg remains the number-one ranked team in the entire metro area by the Washington Post.
The Dragons, featuring a number of Division I college recruits, defeated Community School of Florida 65-21 in their most recent contest, to improve to 13-1 for the current season.
The Dragons finished last season with a most impressive overall record of 28-3, and are currently ranked nationally by USA TODAY.
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At one point in the young basketball season, the Bishop O'Connell Knight boys’ team weighed in with a 4-0 record, and was ranked as high as 22nd in America by USA TODAY. Subsequently, the Knights dropped a 61-59 contest on the road to St. Mary's Ryken, and have fallen out of the national rankings.
Regarding future diocesan boys basketball contests, O'Connell will host Paul VI Jan. 7 and will visit the Panthers Jan. 19. The Knights will visit Ireton Jan. 11 and will host the Cardinals Feb. 9.
Ireton hosted Paul VI Jan. 3, after this edition went to press, and will travel to Fairfax to square off with the Panthers Jan. 30.