We’re continuing to follow the Yorktown High School varsity football team’s undefeated season.
The Patriots are now 8-0, having defeated the Falls Church Jaguars 55-6 on Friday night. The blowout is just the latest triumph for the team, which is hoping to close out a perfect regular season after going on the road at Mount Vernon (Oct. 28) and hosting the cross-town rival Washington-Lee Generals (Nov. 4).
In his four years in the NFL, Kapinos has punted for four different teams. An All-American at Penn State, Kapinos was signed by the New York Jets as an undrafted rookie in 2007 and has been an NFL nomad ever since. He played for the Green Bay Packers from 2008-2010, with the Indianapolis Colts for one game in 2010, and for the Pittsburgh Steelers from December 2010 through this summer, when he was released after the preseason. Now, Kapinos is cooling his heels in Arlington while waiting for an injury or poor play to put another punter out of commission.
Though Kapinos maintains a home base in Arlington, while he’s signed he will move into an apartment in whatever city he’s playing for. It’s an experience not unlike Kapinos’ childhood. Born an Army brat in West Point, N.Y., Kapinos moved from city to city before his family settled down in Springfield, Va. By the time Kapinos became an All-Met punter for West Springfield High School, he had already attended 8 or 9 different schools.
The Yorktown Patriots are now 4-0 after defeating National District football rival Hayfield before a home crowd Friday night.
Despite a slow start on offense, the Yorktown defense held up and led the team to a 21-0 victory. The Patriots will try to improve to 5-0 this week when the team faces J.E.B. Stuart on the road.
More Residents Upset With Road Work — Arlington Ridge residents aren’t the only ones who have qualms about Arlington County’s traffic calming efforts. In the Chain Bridge Forest neighborhood, residents “wanted $16,000 worth of speed humps… What they got was $200,000 worth of concrete dividers and narrowed lanes that they said increased the risk of drivers being rear-ended while turning into the neighborhood.” [Washington Examiner]
Chicken Boosters Look to 2012 — Supporters of hen-raising in Arlington are hoping for action from the county government in 2012. They hope to convince homeowners (and the County Board) that keeping outdoor chicken coops won’t cause noise and odor problems, since hens are quieter than roosters and since regular coop cleaning can abate the smell. [Sun Gazette]
This video of a 13-year-old soccer player making an incredible bicycle kick goal at the Thomas Jefferson Community Center soccer field is making the rounds on the internet today.
Starting this year, a few new sports will start to be played in the shadows of the office towers and high-rise hotels that line Jefferson Davis Highway. Among them: street hockey, rugby and outdoor volleyball.
An “old school” street hockey league is currently accepting new player and team registrations. The co-ed league will play on Thursday nights from May through July at a surface parking lot near the corner of 20th Street and S. Bell Street. The league’s start date — May 5 — is set to coincide with the Crystal City’s Fit Week.
The Caps pep band and drumline will be on hand starting at 1:00 p.m., along with Slapshot (the Capitals mascot) and the Red Rockers cheerleaders. There will also be balloons for the kids and a slapshot cage for fans to test their hockey skills.
At 3:00 p.m., the rally will head into Hard Times Cafe (3028 Wilson Blvd) to watch Game 3 of the Capitals playoff with the New York Rangers. During the game, there will be raffles of autographed items and a giveaway of two Game 5 playoff tickets.
Davies Driver Sentenced in Crash — The driver in the fatal 2009 George Washington Parkway crash that left soccer star Charlie Davies severely injured was sentenced to two years in prison Friday. Maria Espinoza was drunk when the SUV she was driving hit a guardrail near Memorial Bridge and split in half, killing her best friend and leaving Davies maimed. Davies, now playing for DC United, scored two goals in the team’s home opener at RFK Stadium on Saturday. [ESPN, NY Times, Washington Post]
Arlington Woman Rescued from Potomac River — An Arlington woman was rescued by the Coast Guard after her kayak overturned in the Georgetown Channel, near Key Bridge, just before noon on Sunday. The woman, identified at 61-year-old Jenie Upchurch, was reportedly struggling to stay afloat when a Coast Guard vessel arrived at the scene and threw her a life ring. [U.S. Coast Guard]
If there was ever a day to skip out of work after lunch, this is it. Between the nice weather, the start of the NCAA basketball tournament and — of course — the fact that it’s St. Patrick’s Day, this is not a day that should be spent cooped up in an office filing TPS reports.
Here are a few places you can go to wear the green, watch the game or otherwise have a good time.
The board’s 3-1 vote to reject the proposal came after nearly 75 speakers — including neighbors, student athletes, nuns and local gadflies — spoke both strongly in favor and strongly against the O’Connell lighting plan.
(Board member Barbara Favola recused herself due to her work for Marymount University. The lighting proposal called for Marymount’s athletic teams to be granted partial use of the fields.)
DC United goalie Bill Hamid is expected to stop by and greet fans at the event, which is being organized by the Arlington Athletic and Social League. There will be gift bags for the first 50 fans who arrive, plus raffles for DC United opening day tickets (the game will be held on March 19 at RFK Stadium) and other memorabilia.
In addition to the soccer festivities inside, organizers plan to set up pick-up games of cornhole outside on the patio.
Bishop O’Connell High School wants to spend $6 million renovating its football and baseball fields. The renovations would add new artificial turf to the football field, making it doubly usable as a regulation soccer field.
The renovations would also add lights to both fields, so they can be used after the sun goes down. The school has agreed to limit hours of use, however.
