Eagle’s gridiron grit

Reynolds relishes chance to 'smash some heads'

Ben Reynolds doesn’t take warming up for football practice lightly. He backpedals intensely, with his weight still shifted forward at his feet. He gets in a rhythm. So much of one that he passes two groups of football players that took off before him. The length of the warmup backpedaling was only about 50 yards.

Veritas Christian School coaches didn’t seem to mind Reynolds’ intensity, though.

“Run ’em over, Ben,” defensive coordinator Paul Wilson said to Reynolds.

Reynolds, a 5-foot-10, 164-pound senior linebacker/fullback, appeared to be the leader of the Veritas football team during practices Monday at Community Bible Church in Lawrence. The facility is located about seven miles from the school. Parents gave their kids a lift to practice for the most part.

Veritas won’t start school until after Labor Day, but the football team already finished two-a-day practices last week. It will continue practicing this week.

Veritas senior Ben Reynolds grimaces as he drives a sled during practice. Reynolds, a linebacker/fullback, practiced with the rest of the Veritas football team Tuesday.

The varsity team, which consists of only 12 players, went through fundamental blocking drills from the three-point stance on Monday. There was one instance when line coach Byron Mays didn’t like the pace with which the team jogged from drill to drill. It was too slow. As a result, the varsity team ran the length of the football field and back.

Reynolds was the first one to return.

“He’s just got that mental makeup of being a football player,” Veritas coach Doug Bennett said. “He’s not the biggest kid on our team, but he’s the one who loves to lay the hit on people, likes to set the tone, and is a vocal leader too.”

Reynolds said Bennett had been preparing him to be a leader of the team. You could say Reynolds will be excited to carry a heavy workload – and punish opposing defenders – at his position.

Cameron Pratte, right, cools himself off with a drink of water. Pratte, a seventh-grader at Veritas Christian School, practiced with the rest of the football team Tuesday.

“Fullback was always one of my favorite positions, because not only do you get to carry the ball, but you get to smash some heads in the process,” Reynolds said.

Reynolds will also play middle linebacker and serve as the captain of the defense.

Veritas finished last season 6-3 and lost to Wichita Word of Life in the KCAA playoffs. Veritas will begin the regular season on Sept. 1 on the road against Baileyville.

Girls volleyball

Regular season practices started on Monday for the Veritas girls volleyball team. Team members prepared for the regular season atmosphere last week when they participated in the five-day Veritas Christian School Volleyball Camp.

Coach Kyle Billings said the team would return five of its six starters this season. Billings said he would count on junior middle blocker/setter Adi Williams as a team leader this year.

“The strongest part of her game is her setting and her defensive skills,” Billings said. “She always wins our defensive award of the year.”

Another team leader this season will be junior middle blocker/setter Kristie Tiegreen.

“She’s an unbelieveable player. Her hitting is her strongest part, but her serve is very good too,” Billings said. “She’s a very well-rounded player in every aspect.”

Veritas finished 13-3 last season. It finished fourth in the state tournament.