West Forsyth High School - Cronus Yearbook (Clemmons, NC)

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Rob Harris TITAN FEVER, CATCH IT: West students show their spirit in a 9-6 gridiron win over Glenn. Titan fans had a lot to cheer about in 1986-87. islggitgggw miriam: fg fymisafiiiigge- fzazsiwfafi 53553320555 Jgi:g:f:fgg'E Q iifiisgzfiwii ,ngfrggzw-ffl z ,?g,1:.fg:g:m::: ilifiiilzfriiiifiiz a 7334-Lfwilw Um5:si,::ggg5w,r,9m,,W Sinn Aff 'gi egg if,-30-

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ANTICIPATION: The boys' cross country team awaits the gun that will send them on their way. The team exemplified the overall athletic program at West as they made it all the way to the state meet in Charlotte. Titans n Top By Mark Cartner hile West Forsyth has long been known for its academic excellence, the school's athletic program, in recent years, has enjoyed equal growth and a rise to prominence. With 18 varsity and nine j.v. teams fielded for 1986-87, West was able to boast one of, if not the most, powerful athletic departments in the area. Under Athletic Director Durwood Pack, the Titans have compiled over-all winning percentages that would have been considered unheard of just three or four years ago. Last year West finished second in the Wachovia Cup standings by a mere four points to Reynolds High School. The award is given annually to the conference school with the best overall sports record. After completion of this yearis fall sports schedule, West was in first place by four points. Easily the most noteworthy change in fortunes has been that of the varsity football team. Long recognized for their lack of production on the gridiron, the 1985-86 squad turned the tables finishing at 6-4. In 1986-87 the team cruised through the season undefeated and into the playoffs for the first time in the school's history. However, football was not the only sport that came of age. This year saw a resurgence in volleyball and wrestling, while other sports like soccer, tennis, and track and field continued to be strong. In fact, there were very few, if any, sports in which West was not a strong competitor. Not bad for a school that only a few short years ago was labeled the doormati' of athletics in Forsyth County. l76fSports Divider

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CHAMPIO S! The Varsity Football Team Rolled Through The Regular Season And Into The Playoffs Undefeated For The First Time In The Schoolis History By Mark Cartner Twenty one years ago, in only the sec- ond year of existence for West Forsyth High School, a simple coin toss was lost. The coin was flipped to decide a birth in the upcoming football playoffs. West, in 1965, had qualified for the spot, but there was another team with the same creden- tials. Since there was only one place open, a coin was used to decide who would rep- resent the conference. The rest is history. The next couple of decades proved to be, at the very least, frustrating for the school's football program. Not once in all the years after 1965 did a team from West qualify for the playoffs. In fact, winning had become so scarce that last year's 6-4 squad tied the best record ever posted. Still, even with the strides made by 1985- 86 team, there were no championships, no playoffs. August 1, 1986: at approximately 4:00 PM in the old gym, the beginning of what soon would be the most remarkable foot- ball campaign in the school's history was taking shape. Finally, after long, swelter- ing days of practice in the late summer's sun, the season began. Spirits soared as the opening clash with the Demons of Reyn- olds High School ended in a convincing 17-0 win. 1t's kind of funny, stated team mem- ber Trey Parham after the game, A cou- ple of years ago I would have been satis- fied with just beating Reynolds once in my two years. Now, after playing them twice, we're 2-O. The next two contests, with East For- syth and Glenn, provided the team with their second and third wins of the young season. Oddly enough, the final score of both games was 9-6. For as long as people talk of the 1986 season there will be but two negatives to speak of. The first of these disappoint- ments came in game number four against the Yellowjackets of Carver. The tilt was labeled as a nailbiter as each team was on the verge of a top ten raking in the state. For the most part the Titans controlled the game and even led as the battle ap- proached its conclusion. However, a win 178fVarsity Football was not to be, as Carver rallied to tie the score at 7-7, which is how it ended. But still, even with the tie, the team remained undefeated going into the North Davidson game. It was a year ago that a fiesty bunch of Black Knights made life miserable for the then seventh ranked Titans. But this year things were different as West notched its fourth win and a little revenge with a 28- 12 drubbing. Games number six, seven, and eight were also grudge matches. Last year, South Rowan, Kannapolis, and Parkland all handed West setbacks. But in 1986 the Titans returned the favor, outscoring the trio by a combined score of 75-10. Head coach Denny Zeiters called the Kannapolis victory the greatest of the year for these reasons: The Wonders ended up 6-1 and we shut them out 14-0. They're a big name school with a winning tradition, and this win propelled us into the top ten in the state. The final two regular season games proved to be monumental wins. An emo- tional 24-17 defeating of cross-river rival Davie High gave West its first ever confer- ence championship in football. Fittingly a record crowd was on hand to witness histo- ry in the making. The record stood at 8-0-1. With a win over Mt. Tabor the team set yet another record. After ten games, the scoreboard showed no losses or: AN UNDEFEATED SEASON. Normally at this school after ten foot- ball games had been played, everyone packed up and began to think of how next year would be better. It had become sort of a tradition. But in 1986, after 22 years, next year had finally arrived. The post- season was at hand and nowhere was there a more feverish pitch than at this playoff thirsty campus. Round one found the Titans matched against an explosive team from Greens- boro Grimsley. After a two week layoff and extreme changes in the weather, the Titans, unfortunately, played like the Ti- tans of old. Consequently, after the first :?gWfw.Lrfg- wmfrWtwwwQwX5g.5g.:'.':g3em-aggareserm-amwf Elm er' --we f :5 ,,:g5:g-15955'g-'1i'-ggife-'.4-.g:- -1, -1:2-ga. 'ijif'ffijf'ifQ,:i'ffffjQfl:'fE 'E E.,-,E M half of play, West trailed by two points The score remained the same until early ir the fourth quarter, when Herman McKin- nie broke perhaps the most memorable rur of his career. Herman took a pitch anc headed around left end. Eighty three yards later West led for the first time in the contest. The defense held the Whirlies ir check and by the time the final gun sound- ed, West Forsyth had its first ever playofl win, 17-9. It also ran the teamls unbeater streak to 13 games. continued on page 180