ROANOKE, Va. – The 2023 Adam Ward preseason showcase was held Sunday afternoon at Patrick Henry High School.
“We started thinking maybe there was something we could do in the fall. We know a lot of coaches and have a lot of connections,” said Grant Smythers, a member of the Adam Ward Classic Committee. “Maybe we could bring people together and keep his spirit alive.”
The annual Adam Ward Classic, held in February of each season, was founded in 2017 to raise scholarship money in honor of the late, local journalist. Since its inception, the committee has raised over $100,000.
The two games featured in the preseason showcase on Sunday was Oak Hill’s Red Team versus Miller School and Oak Hill’s Gold Team versus Massanutten Military Academy. Each game did feature some local flare as former Radford Bobcats guard Gavin Cormany now with Oak Hill’s red team played against his former teammate in Elijah Kelly who now plays for Miller School. While the Warriors started the game on a 16-0 run, the Mavericks of Miller School did force overtime. Oak Hill’s red team was victorious 66-62.
In the later game, the Oak Hill Gold Team defeated Massanutten 81-74. Former Cave Spring high school standout guard Stark Jones is now with Massanutten.