Spartans look to draw on soccer success
By Dave Morrison for the register-herald
fairlea – Greenbrier East coach Jared Patton had a special guest speaker for his team before the Thanksgiving break .
It was far from a stranger , or a name from the past . It was senior Adam Seams . Patton asked his point guard to speak to the team about what it takes to win a state championship and Seams was uniquely qualified having only a couple of weeks prior helped the Spartans win the Class AAA state soccer title .
Patton gave Seams the floor and for 10 minutes he did just that .
“ Adam is a born leader , and he was the perfect person to talk about what it means to be a champion , what it takes to be a champion and what it ’ s like being a champion ,” Patton said .
“ You just don ’ t go out and win , it takes a level of commitment , a lot of hard work , and Adam and his teammates worked for years to win that state championship . It ’ s one thing if you hear a coach or a former player say it . But I ’ s another if you hear it from a peer . It was a unique perspective of what he and his ( soccer ) teammates did to winning that state championship , and it hit home for a kids to hear that .”
Seams was one of the best soccer players in the state , a top defender and on the basketball floor he is also one of the best points guards
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Jenny Harnish / The Register-Herald
Greenbrier East ’ s Adam Seams gets the ball past Woodrow Wilson ’ s Keynan Cook Dec . 17 , 2021 , at Greenbrier East High School in Fairlea .
for the same reasons . He is one of the area ’ s top passing guards .
“ I watched a lot of soccer over the last three weeks of the ( soccer ) season and I see a lot of his soccer skills that he brings to the court ,” Patton said . “ I see where he gets his court vision . and I saw the way he played defense ( considered one of the top soccer defenders ) and he is like that in basketball .”
Last season Seams helped lead the Spartans to a 13- 11 record and berth in the Class AAA Region 3 co-finals where they lost to Geoge Washington 43-42 on a last-second 3 .
Seams averaged 12.5 points and had 18 double-figure games , 19 3-pointers and hit 77.8-percent of his free throws ( 56 of 72 ).
The loss to George Washington served as a cruel ending to a season of cruel endings . The Spartans lost six games by two or fewer points .
“ It was tough ,” Patton said . “ Not that the record means everything but six more wins would have looked better . It ’ s been a focal point coming into this year that we have to finish . Last year we didn ’ t finish . We led that region 3 final with GW by 10 points in the third quarter .”
The Spartans return eight seniors , many of which made starts or played significant minutes .
Aside from Seams , Goose Gabbert returns to the lineup along with Monquelle Davis to give the Spartans and dynamic backcourt .
“ Goose has worked his tail off ,” Patton said . “ He doesn ’ t play fall sports and I don ’ t think he missed a day of our off-season practices . He ’ s a fierce competitor and he ’ s a great shooter . He is a lot like his older brother ( John , now at Wheeling University ). He ’ s like a sponge , soaking up all the information we give , asking questions . He loves the game ; he understands the game .”
Gabbert averaged 11 points per game last year , with 15 double figure games and he had 45 3 pointers and made 70.2 of his free throws ( 40-57 ).
Davis averaged 6.8 points per game with 17 3s and three double figure games .
“ We ’ ve taken it easy with Monquelle , he had an ankle injury ( late in the football season , where he was a QB and WR for the Spartans ),” Patton said . “ He ’ s a high-energy guy but I told him we need him ready for Musselman ( the opener , Dec . 9 ), not right now .”
Bryson Brammer , an excellent shooter , also returns for his senior season after averaging 5.9 points with five double-figure games . Of his 50 field goals , 30 were 3s .
Kaiden Huffman ( 4.2 ) and Jude Libby ( 1.7 ) are returning seniors who should factor in with Chris St . Clair and Chris Jacobs .
Gabe Patton , the coach ’ s son , is also a junior with varsity experience , He averaged 3.7 points and had 13 3s .
“ He has the most ( varsity ) time of our non-seniors but like everyone else how much he plays is up to him ,” Patton said .
Patton is high on some young players who still have to come along including future point guard Peyton DeHaven as well as Donovin Penn and Jacob Tomlinson .
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