SuburbanOneSports.com recognizes a male and female featured athlete each week. The awards, sponsored by Univest, are given to seniors of good character who are students in good standing that have made significant contributions to their teams. Selections are based on nominations received from coaches, athletic directors and administrators.
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Female Athlete (Week of Feb. 9, 2017)
Liz Potash uses the word “fearless” to describe Abby Charlton on the basketball court. “She plays harder than anyone,” the Central Bucks East coach said. “She’s not afraid to get on the ground and dive for a ball – she will go for anything.” Not exactly the kind of thing you’d expect a coach to say about a player that suffered a torn ACL in not just one but both knees. In truth, no one would have blamed Charlton if she’d opted to walk away from basketball. As a matter of fact, those closest to the Central Bucks East senior gave her permission to call it a career after she suffered a torn ACL for the second time in as many years near the end of her sophomore season. “They said, ‘It’s your choice. If you want to give it up, it’s understandable,’” she said. Charlton had other ideas. “As soon as I found out that it was a torn ACL, my first words were, ‘I don’t want to quit. I’m going to rehab. I’m going to come back, and I’m going to be stronger than ever,’” she said. “I was determined to do that.”
Charlton is an advertisement for perseverance every time she steps onto the court. “I’ve just always been so blown away and impressed by the fact that whatever obstacle she has she just keeps overcoming it,” Potash said. “I think it says a lot about her that she’s not a starter for us, she’s not the highest scorer on the team, but it doesn’t make a difference to her. She’s battling back, no matter what it is. She’s just so tough, and she’s a great inspiration for the other kids. You have no excuses to not give everything you have when Abby’s on the floor with you and you know what she’s been through and what she’s battled through.”
During Charlton’s freshman basketball season, she was introduced to East’s remarkable Coaches vs. Cancer event. “I remember helping out, and that was one of the most successful years that they had – they raised over $100,000,” she said. “That was just amazing to watch that whole day and be a part of it. I knew that was something I wanted to be directly involved with when I got older. I actually have had family members that have been affected by cancer, and I know how awful it is.” This year, Charlton is co-chair of the event along with classmate Matt Pattyson. An excellent student, Charlton boasts a 4.1 grade point average and is a member of the National Honor Society. She is considering a business major and is deciding between Penn State, Clemson and the University of South Carolina.
To read Charlton’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/female/abby-charlton-0067876
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of Feb. 9, 2017)
Stick around in coaching long enough and you will be able to say you have seen it all. Just ask Kurt Handel, who has a wrestler – 170-pound competitor Joe Haywood – living the double life of a wrestler and key vocalist in the school’s choir who is balancing singing lessons for the upcoming district choir. “Joe took his junior year off from wrestling to focus on choir,” the Panthers’ coach said. “Joe approached me this fall and said he really wants to wrestle his senior year and would I be able to work around his choir schedule for practice and matches. I told him, ‘Let’s give it a try.’ Joe has done an excellent job at communicating his weekly schedule to me. If Joe misses practice time, I know he’s getting a cardio workout in sometime during the day. I never had such an arrangement with one of my wrestlers in 16 years as a head coach, but I’m happy Joe approached me about wrestling this year. I know we all benefited in so many ways in having Joe on the team.”
As for Haywood, well, it has been an adventure. “I just try to balance everything out,” he said. “I kind of just map it all out each week. If there is a big event or a big match, I just let my coach or my choir teacher (Jonathan Lechner) know my plans. It has been a total blessing to work with both of them.” The situation turned more surreal when Heywood began singing the National Anthem before matches. While you would think it would be trash-talker fodder on the mat, that hasn’t been the case. “No opponent has said anything to me,” said Haywood. “But I know one coach who came up to our coach and said, ‘Hey, is that the same kid who sang the National Anthem?’ I thought that was kind of cool.”
When it comes to examining the many sides of Joe Haywood, it does not go much farther than his immediate family. His mother is a music teacher at Lehigh Valley Academy, and from his father, Michael, there was the interest in sports. “My whole family has always pushed me to be the best I can be and showed me that there is no limit on what hard work can get you,” said Heywood, who is following the trail blazed by his older brother James, a former Quakertown football player, who chose to enlist in the Army National Guard and then parlay that service to his country into free tuition at a state school. Haywood, who has already been accepted to Bloomsburg and East Stroudsburg, is eyeing a career in the military where he hopes to sing in the Army choir. “Serving my country is such an honor, and it builds character,” said Haywood. “It will teach me responsibility, and it will show me the true value of teamwork and discipline.”
To read Haywood’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/male/joe-haywood-0067878
- Log in to post comments
