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NaVorro Bowman Jr. is forging a separate path from his NFL dad

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A dejected, 9-year-old NaVorro Bowman Jr. stared at the car’s passenger-side floor mats as tears inched down his cheeks after his first tryout with the Team Takeover AAU basketball program in Washington, D.C.

When the coach had the best players scrimmage at the end of the session, he abrasively instructed Bowman to take a seat against the wall.

As Bowman and his mom drove away from the gym, he sobbed and said he didn’t want to play basketball anymore.

“I was going as hard as I could, and when the coach told me to sit while everyone else was playing, I was going through all types of emotions,” Bowman recalled.

Playing against those seasoned Team Takeover kids proved more difficult than slam dunks on the mini-hoop in the San Francisco 49ers Kids Room at Levi’s Stadium while his father, NaVorro Bowman Sr., forged his legacy as one of the greatest linebackers in franchise history.

“Little NaVorro could move his feet because he played soccer,” said his mother, Mikale Bowman. “He was really good at defense, but had problems getting the ball up the court. He also couldn’t shoot very well. He was crying. He felt defeated.”

He didn’t stay that way. Bowman Jr. has since developed into one of the nation’s premier high school basketball prospects in the Class of 2027.

The 6-foot-3 junior guard, ranked No. 46 in the 2027 ESPN SCNEXT 60, is starring for Notre Dame High School, which plays Sierra Canyon High on Friday in a boys’ basketball game between two of California’s top teams (ESPN2, 11:30 p.m. ET).

Bowman Jr. holds scholarship offers from UCLA, USC, Villanova, Cal, TCU and his father’s alma mater, Penn State, among others.

“I’ve been blessed to coach a lot of high-level kids,” Notre Dame head coach Matt Sergeant said. “I don’t know if I’d rank anyone higher than NaVorro in terms of his desire to compete. He wants to win every drill, fights for every inch on the court, and accepts coaching. And he’s a smart, funny kid with an innate Magic Johnson-type joy that can light up any room.”

Mikale Bowman, NaVorro Bowman Sr. and NaVorro Bowman Jr. pose for a photo.
From left to right: Mikale Bowman, NaVorro Bowman Sr., and NaVorro Bowman Jr.

Bowman Family

After that Team Takeover tryout, Mikale took matters into her hands and called her husband. Bowman Sr. was finishing his final NFL season in 2017, his lone year with the Oakland Raiders, capping an eight-year career that saw him earn four first-team All-Pro honors.

Soon to return to the family’s Maryland offseason home, Bowman Sr. received an edict regarding his son’s athletic trajectory.

“If you don’t coach him, he’s not playing,” Mikale told her husband.

Team Takeover fielded two teams heading into that spring and summer. They included some of the best youth basketball players in the D.C. area — a Red squad and a Black one.

Bowman Sr. volunteered to coach a developmental squad called the Gray team. It was for kids — like his son — who weren’t polished. At the end of that summer, after the Red and Black teams were eliminated from the AAU national championships, the Gray team continued to advance, and it eventually placed ninth in the country.

“NaVorro Bowman Sr. is a patient, excellent coach and teacher who instilled confidence in all of those kids,” Mikale said. “Each week, you could see them improving.”

Bowman Jr.’s rapid development didn’t go unnoticed. 

“He had some athleticism, played extremely hard and challenged himself to stop his man from scoring,” Bowman Sr., 37, said. “His best trait was that he was a competitor.”

Heading into nationals that year, the much-improved Bowman Jr. was asked to join the Black squad. 

“It felt great to grow with the kids who supposedly weren’t good enough to play on the so-called best travel teams,” Bowman Jr. said. “So when they asked me to jump over to the Black team, I was like, ‘Nah, y’all cut me. I’m good.’ ”

NaVorro Bowman Jr. dribbles the ball.
NaVorro Bowman Sr. on his son: “His best trait was that he was a competitor.”

Notre Dame High School

To accelerate his son’s basketball education, Bowman Sr. reached out to a couple of old friends. One was Patrick Robinson, the ball-handling wizard and D.C. playground legend more popularly known as Pat Da Roc. The other was Keith Williams, a renowned trainer who has tutored the likes of NBA players Kevin Durant, DeMarcus Cousins and Markelle Fultz, among others.

“Players from the DMV [District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia] are gritty, they go hard. So I had to learn how to play physical and get tougher mentally” said Bowman Jr. “Training with Pat got my handles tight. It was a masterclass in the use of hesitation dribbles. With Keith, it was about fundamentals, repetition and mastering pull-up jumpers off the dribble. The better I got, the better I wanted to get.”

Williams knew Bowman Sr. when he was an adolescent competing against some of the area’s top high school and college basketball players at the 24-hour Run-N-Shoot facility in District Heights.

“Most people don’t realize how good he was at basketball,” said Williams. “NaVorro was an incredible defender with quick feet. He had natural instincts and anticipation. During his NFL offseasons, he’d be in the gym with us holding his own against NBA guys.”

Williams had to temper Bowman Sr.’s timeline and expectations, though, urging patience as it related to his son’s development.

“I got Little NaVorro when he was 9 years old, and he was such a nice kid,” said Williams. “I told his dad, ‘Here’s the problem: There’s no way he’s going to be as hungry as you were at that age. You came up rough, in a one-story house with two rooms and seven people. You can’t duplicate that. He ain’t hungry right now. But he’ll get there.’ ”

Bowman Sr.’s hunger was born from necessity. He grew up along two older brothers in tough Suitland, near D.C. His father worked at the electric company and moonlighted as the neighborhood mechanic. His mother managed a nearby Wendy’s.

“I absorbed their work ethic while also being aware of what was going on around me,” Bowman Sr. said “There was a lot of violence, a lot of drugs. My parents didn’t have all the resources, but they were hard-working. They stressed school and being respectful. It sounds cliche, but most of the guys I came up with are now dead, in jail, or doing really bad.”

He honed his toughness playing tackle football in the streets with bigger, older kids. But basketball was his first love. The Run-N-Shoot facility was an oasis that kept him away from the temptations that his peers fell victim to.

One middle school teammate was a neighbor, a quiet kid with long arms and legs, and a sweet shooting stroke for whom basketball was also a security blanket. His name was Kevin Durant.

“I was more outspoken at that age than Kevin,” Bowman Sr. said. “He was quiet and would defer to others. But he was so skilled, so long, and could score all day long. I’d be telling him to shoot every time he touched the ball. Even at that young age he was something special.”

Bowman Sr. played for the nation’s most revered AAU team at the time — DC Assault — with other future NBA players, such as Nolan Smith and Michael Beasley.

As a junior at Suitland High School, he was among the nation’s top football recruits after compiling 165 tackles, nine sacks and three fumble recoveries on defense. On offense, he rushed for 1,200 yards and scored 22 touchdowns. After his junior season, he was named Washington Post first-team All Met, first-team all-state, and Maryland Defensive Player of the Year.

He also received basketball overtures from Clemson, Wake Forest, N.C. State and others before focusing solely on football. “I wasn’t getting any taller,” said Bowman Sr., who is 6-foot. “But hoops was always my first love.”

Navorro Bowman Jr. goes up for a layup.
When one of Notre Dame’s projected starters was injured during a fall league game, Navorro Bowman Jr. came off the bench and scored 21 points. He’s started every game since.

Notre Dame High School

Home on summer break after his freshman year at Penn State, Bowman was stuck in a traffic jam on a balmy Friday night on Okie Street in northeast D.C. Mikale was a few cars down, dressed up, out with friends, and sitting in the same congested stretch en route to Dream, a popular nightclub.

When Bowman Sr. walked over to say hello amid the spontaneous block party atmosphere that was fueled by the stalled cars’ blaring music, Mikale was taken aback by the commotion surrounding her.

“That’s NaVorro! That’s NaVorro!,” her friends yelled.

Mikale was a track athlete at Largo High School, Suitland’s rival. She was a 100-, 200- and 4×100-meter sprinter.

“I’d heard his name before and my girlfriends knew him from Suitland,” said Mikale. “I ran track but didn’t really follow sports, so I didn’t see what the big deal was. But when he came over to the car, I noticed how handsome he was, with this big, beautiful smile.”

Their first phone call was more serious than Mikale expected. The young man was vulnerable, talking about how deeply hurt and affected he’d been by the recent death of his father. That initial conversation lasted hours.

“I felt his pain on a very personal level because my father was murdered when I was 14,” said Mikale. “We’ve been stuck together like glue ever since.”  

On Fridays, when Bowman was at Penn State, she’d leave work, either from the Universal Hair Salon in Fort Washington or her gig as an assistant at a Bethesda realtor’s office, and drive four hours to spend her weekends in State College, Pennsylvania.

Some of those autumn Saturday afternoons were spent among the other 106,000 spectators in Beaver Stadium as she watched her boyfriend become one of the nation’s most dominant college football players.

Two years after their first conversation, she was still taking those long weekend drives, but now with infant NaVorro Jr. strapped in his rear car seat. By then, Bowman Sr. was wrapping up a decorated college career as an All-American and two-time first-team All-Big Ten linebacker before forgoing his final year of eligibility to enter the 2010 NFL draft.

“Ever since he got cut from his first AAU team, it’s been a process. He didn’t like that feeling.”

— NaVorro Bowman Sr. on his son NaVorro Bowman Jr.

By the time Bowman Jr. enrolled in middle school, he was a blur from sideline to sideline, baseline to baseline on the basketball court. His jump shot was dependable, and his handles crisp.

“He had a unique flair with the way he moved and handled the ball,” said Mikale. “He wasn’t just good, he was entertaining. And he wasn’t chasing points or hunting shots. He let the game come to him.”

Mikale had seen the brutal toll that football exacted on her husband and his peers. She was grateful that he walked away physically and mentally intact, and for the upward mobility it provided their family. But she had long told her son — in no uncertain terms — that he’d never be allowed to play the game that made his father famous.

So imagine her surprise, when picking him up from The Bullis School one early fall afternoon, to see her eighth-grade son clad in shoulder pads and gripping the face mask of a helmet that dangled by his side.

“I’d been hinting for a while about wanting to play, but she either didn’t catch on or was just ignoring me,” said Bowman Jr. “I was going to all the early training sessions and practices, telling her that I was staying late at school to study. She just stared at me with this cold look.

“My dad must have smoothed things over because I was allowed to play. And I absolutely loved it. I played running back, receiver, corner[back] and defensive end. It was the most fun I ever had. I had to get it out of my system because I knew that in high school I wanted to give everything I had to basketball.”

As a freshman at St. Paul VI in northern Virginia, Bowman expected to be a varsity contributor on a D.C. area powerhouse that is perennially ranked among the nation’s top high school basketball teams. But he’d have to wait his turn.

That 2023-24 St. Paul VI team finished as runner-up in the Chipotle Nationals, losing to future No.1 NBA draft pick Cooper Flagg’s undefeated Montverde Academy (Fla.) squad in the championship game. St. Paul VI featured five starters who earned major NCAA Division I scholarships: Ben Hammond (Virginia Tech), Garrett Sundra (Notre Dame), Isaiah Abraham (Connecticut), and Darren Harris and Patrick Ngongba (Duke).

After fall workouts and practices before the start of that season, Bowman Jr. was sent down to junior varsity.

“He didn’t like that one bit,” Mikale said. “He was upset and sulking around. I finally had to tell him, ‘Your path is your path. Stop worrying about what other people are going to say and think. Even Michael Jordan and Chris Paul played on their high school JV teams. A few years from now, nobody is going to care what you did as a freshman.’ ”

After a few weeks, Mikale noticed a shift in her son’s demeanor. He hopped in the car one afternoon after practice, smiling, and volunteered without provocation: “I actually like this now. I’m having fun.”

“Not making the varsity at Paul VI messed with me a little bit,” said Bowman Jr. “It was humbling. I was practicing against two of the best senior guards in the country every day in Ben Hammond and Darren Harris. It was a reminder that I had a lot more work to do.”

In early February 2024 during his son’s freshman year, Bowman Sr., then a defensive analyst at the University of Maryland, received a call from his former San Francisco 49ers coach, Jim Harbaugh. He asked Bowman Sr. to join him and the Los Angeles Chargers as their linebackers coach.

While Mikale was having lunch at a restaurant shortly after Bowman Sr., was hired by the Chargers, an acquaintance asked her about the Los Angeles-area schools they were thinking about enrolling their son upon their return to the West Coast.

“You should really look at Notre Dame,” the man advised. “I’m close with [rapper] Master P. That’s where his son went.”

Mercy Miller, the son of the rap icon and founder of the legendary hip-hop label No Limit Records, was a star basketball player at Notre Dame. In December 2023, Miller set the school’s single-game scoring record with 68 points before accepting a scholarship to the University of Houston.

“We were looking at Harvard-Westlake, Sierra Canyon and some others at that point, and the guy calls Master P and hands me his cell phone,” Mikale said. “And P was like, ‘I heard your son’s good. Y’all should go to Notre Dame.’ ”

After a number of visits, most of the coaching staffs were lukewarm at the prospect of Bowman Jr. — who’d only played junior varsity ball — joining their teams. But the Notre Dame visit was different.

“The energy from that visit felt like home,” said Bowman Jr. “The admissions director took us around, and the coaches seemed genuinely excited about having me there.”

If there were any doubts about the new sophomore from D.C., they were quickly assuaged during fall practices. Bowman turned more than a few heads with his poise, body control, playmaking, long-range shooting, and his ability to attack the rim and create his shot off the dribble.

“Right before Little NaVorro left to go to California, he’d turned the corner,” said Williams. “He grew, got better, and blew up during his sophomore year out there.”

When one of Notre Dame’s projected starters was injured during a fall league game against Redondo Beach, Bowman Jr. came off the bench and scored 21 points without missing a shot. He has started every game since.

“As soon as he got here, it was undeniable how good he was going to be offensively,” coach Sergeant said. “The initial questions we had were from a defensive and rebounding standpoint. But by late October, early November, we saw a kid with the whole package. It was obvious then that NaVorro was going to be a special player for us.”

NaVorro Bowman Jr. holds the ball while a defender guards him.
NaVorro Bowman Jr. on college offers: “Offers don’t mean anything. If anything, it’s made me want to work harder to get more.”

Notre Dame High School

Playing alongside Tyran Stokes, a gifted 6-7 wing and the consensus No. 1 player in the Class of 2026, Bowman Jr. was a nationwide revelation once this season tipped off.

He averaged 16.4 points over his first nine games, including a 26-point, five-rebound, six-assist gem against Mater Dei, as Notre Dame raced to a 9-0 start to the season. During the team’s run to the state semifinals, he averaged 23 points per game.

“As soon as he started having success, those schools that weren’t really feeling him started calling,” said Mikale. “But I made it clear that we weren’t interested in hopping around. We liked where he was, and he was going to stay there.”

The momentum continued snowballing on the Nike EYBL (Elite Youth Basketball League) circuit last summer. Playing on NBA star Russell Westbrook’s Team Why Not squad, Bowman Jr. established himself as one of the nation’s most electrifying backcourt talents and California’s top-ranked point guard in the Class of 2027.

And with Stokes suddenly withdrawing from Notre Dame on Nov. 5, Bowman Jr. will be playing under a more intense spotlight this season.

“Ever since he got cut from his first AAU team, it’s been a process,” Bowman Sr. said of his son. “He didn’t like that feeling. When he started to experience success against the top guys, he never got complacent and always answered the bell.”

Bowman Jr.’s hunger hasn’t waned. Judging from chatter on the grapevine as his junior season is underway, it’s only become more ravenous.

“I follow my dad’s example and listen to everything he says, like starting my workday at 5:30 a.m. while my competition’s sleeping,” Bowman Jr. said. “He’s excelled at the highest level of sports, and he’s a coach. And he also helps me from a mental standpoint, with simple stuff like making my bed every morning to start the day off by accomplishing something.”

As the scholarship offers grow, so is that hunger that was predicted when he was 9.

“Offers don’t mean anything,” said Bowman Jr. “If anything, it’s made me want to work harder to get more. The only goal in front of me right now is for us to win a state championship. The chip on my shoulder is getting bigger, just like that first time I got cut.”

Alejandro Danois is the author of The Boys of Dunbar: A Story of Love, Hope and Basketball. He is also a journalist, cultural critic and film producer. He taught his dog, Teddy Pendergrass Danois, to say “I love you.” When he’s not working or watching sports, he can be found on a dance floor or at a Karaoke near you belting out Alexander O’Neal’s “If You Were Here Tonight”.



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College basketball player killed in shooting on interstate

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January 13, 2026

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NASHVILLE (WSMV/Gray News) – A college basketball player was killed in a shooting on a Nashville interstate.

Fisk University announced that 20-year-old Andre Bell, a sophomore business administration major and student-athlete, died from a shooting on I-65 North at the I-40 interchange.

Police believe that Bell and two friends had been at a gymnastics event at the fairgrounds before getting onto the interstate to return to campus.

Police said Bell’s friends reported noticing a dark sedan in the left lane beside them. Both of them said they were distracted by their cellphones when they suddenly heard multiple gunshots and realized Bell had been hit, according to police.

Bell’s car allegedly slowed and spun back into traffic before hitting a red pickup truck. The dark sedan continued traveling on the interstate, according to police.

‘Bright, gentle young man.’ College basketball player killed in shooting on interstate in...
‘Bright, gentle young man.’ College basketball player killed in shooting on interstate in Nashville(Fisk/MNPD)

Bell was shot in the head and was initially taken to the hospital in “extremely critical condition,” where he died from his injuries.

“He was a dominant force on the Fisk University men’s basketball team, but he was most remembered for his infectious smile, loving personality, and unique ability to always bring warmth to a room,” said Jeremiah Crutcher, Fisk University’s men’s basketball head coach. ”We now have a deep absence in our program, but more importantly, we have a deep pain in our hearts. He will be truly missed.“

Anyone with information on the dark sedan, please contact crime stoppers at 615-742-7463. Callers to Crime Stoppers can remain anonymous and qualify for a cash reward.

Copyright 2026 WSMV via Gray Local Media, Inc. All rights reserved.



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SCOTUS referees transgender athlete case

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January 13, 2026

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WASHINGTON (Gray DC) -Supreme Court Justices will hear landmark cases Tuesday, Little V. Hecox and West Virginia v. B.P.J, that deal with transgender athletes.

It has the potential to re-write the rules around who’s allowed to play which sports.

As it stands right now, 27 states have laws that ban transgender athletes from playing women’s sports.

Supporters of the ban say transgender players have a biological advantage.

Others say it’s the latest crusade against an already marginalized group.

“What this case is about is: are states allowed to draw distinction between biological males and biological females in a space where their size, their speed and their strength matters?” Said West Virginia AG John McCuskey.

McCuskey is advocating for a law that would prohibit trans girls from participating in female sports.

The issue has drawn wide-spread attention, with President Trump signing an executive order last February to pull funding from schools that don’t comply.

Now, Justices will play referee.

“This is a chance, these cases that are going to be heard next Tuesday for hopefully the United States Supreme Court to provide some clarity that heretofore has not existed,” said Don Daugherty with the Defense of Freedom Institute.

Some believe a federal law would be overkill, and instead individual schools should handle these students on a case-by-case basis.

“This is not a case about elite sports competition at the Olympic level or at the professional level,” said Columbia Law professor Suzanne Goldberg. “This is a case about school sports. And again, school sports are part of an educational program. The point of an educational program is to enable all kids to learn. And the law promises that that learning and those opportunities will be free from discrimination.”

Goldberg says there’s a lot to lose.

“What’s at stake more broadly is when their governments will be able to use the law as a weapon to punish categories groups of kids because they are transgender”

A decision is expected by June.

Copyright 2026 Gray DC. All rights reserved.



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Cubs announce schedule for 2026 Cubs Convention this weekend

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January 13, 2026

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The Chicago Cubs on Monday announced the schedule for the 2026 Cubs Convention, set for this coming weekend at the Sheraton Grand Chicago along the Chicago River.

The Cubs Convention will be the first time the team can come together with fans to honor the team’s 150th anniversary as a National League franchise, as well as the upcoming 10th anniversary of the Cubs’ 2016 World Series championship.

Fans who attend the convention at the hotel, at 301 E. North Water St., will get to watch footage in the Theater Room documenting Cubs history and notable players, view a 150th anniversary exhibit with materials from the Cubs and Wrigley Field archive, and buy limited-edition merchandise — including jerseys with a 150th anniversary patch.

Fans will also get to vote on who should be on the Cubs 150th Anniversary Team, with a special roster of iconic past players who helped shape Cubs history. Voting through the Cubs website begins at noon Friday, Jan. 16, and closes at 6:15 p.m. Saturday, April 25

Honorees will be announced during the 2026 baseball season. 

The convention will begin Friday, Jan. 16, with a star-studded opening ceremony in which the Chicago Cubs Hall of Fame Class of 2026 will be introduced. Friday will also feature the talk show “Off the Mound with Ryan Dempster,” and a brand of karaoke known as “Harry Carayoke.”

On Saturday, the convention will feature discussions, including a 2016 World Series Team Reunion featuring alumni of the history-making team, a “Remembering Ryno” panel discussion honoring the life of Ryne Sandberg, and a “Kids Only Press Conference” presented by Advocate Children’s Hospital.

A Baseball Operations Update with Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer and general manager Carter Hawkins, and a sit-down with Cubs manager Craig Counsell, will also be held Saturday. Also on the agenda for Saturday is a live taping of “The Compound” podcast with Ian Happ, an opportunity to have a beverage with Cubs executive chairman Tom Ricketts at an afternoon reception, and more “Harry Carayoke.”

On Sunday, young baseball and softball players can take part in a youth sports clinic headed by Cubs players, alumni, and Nike RBI coaches. The clinic is sold out, and is open only to those who have pre-registered.

A celebration of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is also set for Sunday.

The Cubs did not go by their current name until 1902, but they trace their history back to 1870 — when they were officially just called the Chicago Base Ball Club, and were colloquially known as the Chicago White Stockings. In 1876, the White Stockings became a charter member of the National League.



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Somerville names Ohemeng Kyeremateng as New Parks Director

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January 13, 2026

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Seasoned municipal recreation leader brings decade-plus of experience in equitable programming, operations, and fiscal stewardship

Mayor Jake Wilson is welcoming Ohemeng Kyeremateng as the city’s new Director of Parks and Recreation. Kyeremateng brings more than a decade of municipal parks and recreation leadership experience focused on expanding access, strengthening community programming, and improving the stewardship of public recreational spaces.

Prior to joining Somerville, he held senior leadership roles across multiple communities, including serving as Deputy Director of Recreation for the City of Hartford, CT, where he helped oversee parks, facilities, aquatics, and community programs and managed significant operating and capital budgets.

“I’m proud to welcome Ohemeng as our new Parks and Recreation Director. Recreation is quality-of-life infrastructure,” said Mayor Wilson. “It’s youth sports, afterschool and summer programs, and the daily opportunities that help kids thrive, and neighbors connect. Ohemeng brings the experience and drive to grow participation and strengthen the programs Somerville families and all our residents rely on.”

In Hartford, Kyeremateng directed division-wide strategy and operations, collaborated with schools and community partners to deliver neighborhood-based programming, and helped manage budgets exceeding $10 million.

Most recently, Kyeremateng has served as Director of Recreation for the Town of Palmer, MA, leading year-round programming, overseeing town recreational assets, and supporting long-term planning and facility improvements guided by community needs.

Kyeremateng is a scholarship award recipient of the American Parks and Recreation Foundation and a graduate of the National Recreation and Park Association’s Revenue Management School, with expertise in financial sustainability and revenue strategy. He holds an MBA in Management and a bachelor’s degree in Sports and Leisure Management.

“I’m honored to lead Somerville’s Parks and Recreation Department,” said Kyeremateng. “Recreation programming can help community members of all ages discover new talents, meet new friends, and just have fun. I’m looking forward to working with our team to deliver great programs for everyone in Somerville.”

For more information on the city’s Parks and Recreation programming, please visit somervillema.gov/parksandrec.



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Youth, experience winning combination for Auburndale girls

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January 13, 2026

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By Mike Warren
Sports Editor

MARSHFIELD – A junior-laden Auburndale girls’ basketball team has found early-season success by combining lots of varsity experience with a few new faces.

“I think our experience is getting us off on the right foot,” Head Coach Josh Nagel told Gene Delisio, WDLB/WOSQ, following a 5-0 start in December. “I’ve got a lot of girls with fifty career games or more under their belts and it’s starting to show. We’re able to work on some of the finer things and they’re picking some offensive tendencies up a little bit quicker. We were able to progress a little bit faster here at the start of the season, which was nice to see. They are all familiar. They know what to expect with what we’re trying to do in our system, so we were just able to hit the ground running.”   

Kylie Anderson is the lone senior on Auburndale’s varsity roster this season.

“She started every game for us last year,” said Nagel. “She’s our off guard, but she’s been stepping up a little bit more this year and actually handling the point position off and on, so Gracie Hasenohrl doesn’t have to do it all the time. 

“And then I’ve got Gracie Hasenohrl and her sister, Rose Hasenohrl (both juniors).

They’ve been major contributors the last couple years.

“Then there’s (juniors) Chesney Nagel and Myah Katzenberger.

“Breleigh Grimm (junior) is another one of those players. She’s a capable scorer as well,” Nagel added.

“We’re waiting for (junior) Lily Bellanti to get back off her ACL injury, so that’s just going to make us stronger.

“That junior class has gotten a lot of experience since they were freshmen, so that’s where all those career games come in,” the second-year head coach told Delisio. “They’ve had to play maybe sooner than they needed to. I don’t know what the case was, but they’ve got the experience and it’s showing here this year.”

In addition, Marti Anderson is a sophomore who’s been getting substantial minutes so far this season. 

“So, we’ve got a little bit of new coming in with a lot of the old and hopefully it pays off,” said Nagel.

He added that physical strength has been the area in which he has seen the most improvement from last season to this year.

“We’ve had some girls put some time in in the weight room here this year. And that physical strength builds confidence. When you’re physically strong you’re more confident with the ball, which has cut back on our turnovers here at the start of the season. Hopefully that continues,” Nagel said.

Katzenberger, a five-foot, nine-inch forward, was a second-team All-Marawood Conference selection a season ago, and Nagel is expecting another big year out of her.

“She’s got a nice outside shot. Most people think she’s just an inside player, but she shoots the three pointer at a high clip, right around forty, fifty percent. She can play with her back to the basket. She’s passing out of the post real well. She knows she’s going to get a double team coming her way and she’s been really cognizant this year of turning around, facing the basket, and if it’s there she’ll make a move, and if not she’ll kick it out and repost,” Nagel said.       

Nagel also said much of the credit for Auburndale’s fast start this season should go to his team’s man-to-man defense.

“We’re only giving up thirty-five, thirty-six points a game, and part of that is we can put great pressure on the ball. With Gracie Hasenohrl and Chesney Nagel, they can put great ball pressure on ball handlers and shooters, and the rest of the girls just know how to play help defense, so we can face guard and those other three girls on the court at any given time are always in the right spot,” said Nagel.  

The Eagles are coming off a 21-5 record a season ago, which ended with a loss to Bonduel in a Div. 4 Regional Final.

Auburndale JV features international trio

Up until just recently, the Eagles’ junior varsity basketball squad had among its membership three foreign exchange student/athletes from three different countries.

Juliette Mills, 17, from Orange, Australia, 160 miles west of Sydney in New South Wales, is in Auburndale until her year abroad ends Jan. 14. While there, the five-foot, nine-inch senior competed in softball, volleyball and JV basketball.

“I never had played softball, so I wanted to try a new sport,” Mills told Hub City Times on Jan. 7. “I really liked it. It was a lot of fun. Volleyball was where I made a lot of closer friends. I just like being a part of the team. And I love watching as well.”

Since Australia has only club sports that practice and play just once a week, and does not include them in their high schools, this was the first opportunity for Mills to be a part of those experiences.

“Prom was probably my favorite part of my exchange year. I really enjoyed the summer. And the Fourth of July was cool. Oh, and I really enjoyed Homecoming,” the 2025 Auburndale Homecoming Queen added. “At photos, I fell down the stairs with my heels on, and so then I didn’t wear my heels onto the stage because I didn’t want to fall down the stairs again. So my mom told everyone that I’m her barefoot queen.”

Mills has three more quarters left of high school back home.

After that, Juliette says she will pursue a career as a flight attendant.

Still a part of Auburndale’s JV team are Lola Marchand and Iris Galetto.

Marchand, 17, is from Normandy, France and in her senior year.

“Homecoming was fun. I really liked it,” said Marchand, who added all three girls especially enjoyed watching Auburndale’s football season, since it’s a sport they don’t have in their respective homelands.

Marchand, who also played volleyball, will this spring participate in track & field, which will be another new experience for her.

France, like Australia, offers sports only at the club level and not in its high schools.

Galetto, 16, is a junior from Turin in western Italy.

“Basketball is fun. I really like watching the varsity,” said Galetto, who added she enjoys practice more than the games. “The girls on the team are really nice and they try to take us in.”

Galetto said she is more of a runner and participated in cross country in the fall and will go out for track & field in the spring — two sports she also competes in back home.

“I like track better, so I’m really looking forward to it and it’s going to be a whole lot of fun,” she added. “And cross country was really fun, but I don’t really like long distance. I’m more like a short-distance person. But the (cross country) team was really fun. They’re like a second family. I really liked the girls on the team. It was amazing and I had so much fun.”

Galetto says she will focus on running the 400 and the 800 during the track season.

She will have two more years of high school left once she returns home to Italy.

After that, Iris says she will either become a teacher or study law.

“If I could, I would just run, but I don’t think I’m good enough to run for a living.”

Both Galetto and Marchand will be in Auburndale through the end of the current school year.





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Governor Morrisey appoints Brian Cochran as Mercer County circuit court judge

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January 13, 2026

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CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WVVA) – Governor Patrick Morrisey has appointed Brian Keith Cochran to serve as Mercer County’s 13th Circuit Court judge.

Cochran fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge William J. Sadler in December.

Cochran has served as Mercer County’s prosecuting attorney since 2020 and brings more than three decades of combined law enforcement and legal experience to the bench. He has handled a wide range of criminal and civil matters and has represented individuals, businesses, municipalities and governmental entities across West Virginia. Cochran served as city attorney for Bluefield and worked in private practice before returning to public service.

He earned his Juris Doctor from Appalachian School of Law and holds degrees in criminal justice and liberal arts from Fairmont State College, Marshall University and Glenville State College. Cochran was admitted to the West Virginia State Bar in 2007.

Cochran has received awards including American Legion Police Officer of the Year and the U.S. Attorney’s Department of Justice Award for Meritorious Service. A lifelong West Virginian, he has been active in youth sports, church activities and civic life in Mercer County. He and his wife Connie have been married more than 30 years and raised three children in the county.

Cochran said he appreciates the governor’s confidence and pledged to “ensure that justice is done fairly and impartially, and to be respectful to all who come before the court in order to provide every party a full and fair opportunity to be heard.”

Cochran must run in the May 2026 election to serve the remaining seven years of Judge Sadler’s term.

Copyright 2026 WVVA. All rights reserved.



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