Two former athletes and one contributor will be inducted into the fifth class of the Carroll County High School Sports Hall of Fame on January 19, 2018 at CCHS.
The ceremony will take place in between Carroll County’s varsity girls’ and boys’ basketball games with Glenvar. The ceremony is expected to take place at approximately 7 p.m., depending on the length of the varsity girls’ game.
While the first three CCHS Sports Hall of Fame classes each encompassed 15-year periods (1969-1984, 1985-2000 and 2001-2016), the last two classes were open to all eligible athletes from all time periods. This year’s inductees include athletes Ryan Gravley, Lindsay Martin and contributor Chuck Thompson.
A 2013 graduate of Carroll County High School, Gravley led a boys’ basketball resurgence during his four-year playing career with the Cavaliers. A point guard, Gravley helped guide Carroll County to the Region IV championship and a school-record tying 24 wins in 2012-13. That season, the Cavs set a new record for best start in school history by winning their first 18 games. Carroll finished a second consecutive undefeated season in the Southwest District that season en route to the Region IV championship with a 66-48 victory over Salem, the eventual state champion. The Cavs also advanced to the Group AA Tournament for the first time since 1991 that season.
Gravley led Carroll in scoring (15.2 points per game) and assists (4.3 per game) while only turning the ball over 35 times as a senior. He became the first Cavalier to win Region IV Player of the Year honors since Terry Dalton in 1981. He also earned first-team all-state honors to become the first Carroll player to do that since Dalton 32 years earlier.
Gravley also is one of just a handful of Carroll County boys’ basketball players to reach 1,000 career points. A four-year letter winner in basketball, he went on to star at Emory & Henry College for four seasons, finishing third in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference in assists in 2017.
Gravley was also a standout baseball player and golfer at Carroll, earning All-Southwest District honors two years as a shortstop. In 2013, he also was a regional qualifier in golf.
Much like Gravley, 2012 CCHS graduate Lindsay Martin also helped Carroll County’s basketball program reach new heights. As a senior that season, Martin helped lead the Lady Cavaliers to a 23-5 record and the first Region IV, Division IV championship in program history. Carroll County also recorded the first Group AA State Tournament win in program history that season, defeating Staunton River to advance to the state’s Final Four for Group AA.
During the historic season of 2011-2012, Martin was named Southwest District Player of the Year, Region IV Player of the Year and selected first-team all-state by the Virginia High School Coaches Association.
A 5-7 forward, Martin led Carroll as a senior with 13.8 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. She also averaged 2.2 steals per contest and became just the fourth Lady Cavalier in school history to reach the 1,000-career point milestone. She is still one of just six Carroll girls to finish with 1,000 career points.
Martin also shattered the school record for 3-pointers in a season with 59, breaking the mark of 44 she shared with Brandi Jones by shooting a scorching 41.8 percent (59-of-141) from beyond the arc as a senior. She also set the school record for most 3-pointers in a career.
Martin continually improved during her four-year varsity basketball career at Carroll County. As a freshman, she received Southwest District Honorable Mention accolades. As a sophomore, Martin was named to the All-Southwest District second team, and then during her junior season she received first-team all-district honors and second-team All-Region IV hardware. During her senior season, she won district and region player of the year awards, was named first-team All-Group AA, First-Team All-Timesland, and played in the 2012 VHSCA All-Star Game in Hampton.
She finished as a Cavalier with 1,092 career points. Martin went on to play four years of college basketball – freshman year at Catawba College before transferring to Ferrum College as a sophomore.
From the day he took over as principal at Carroll County High School in 2012, Chuck Thompson has proven time and time again to be one of the biggest supporters in the history of Cavalier athletics.
That statement is backed up just about anywhere you look on the CCHS campus. From facility improvements to his attendance at Cavalier games, both home and away, to his founding of the Carroll County Sports Hall of Fame, Thompson’s guidance and leadership have been a driving force behind Carroll County athletics over the past several years.
“He is outstanding to work for because you have his support no matter what and he is 100 percent behind us if we want to do anything to make our facilities better, our kids better, or our programs better. He is 100 percent behind it and you can’t beat that,” said Carroll County Athletic Director Darrin Matthews. “He sees as many athletic events as he possibly can, home and away. He goes above and beyond what you see from a high school principal and he is outstanding to work for.”
Aside from founding the Carroll County Sports Hall of Fame as a way to honor outstanding Cavalier athletes not already featured on Carroll County’s Wall of Fame, Thompson’s influence on CCHS athletics is evident in many other aspects. Under his guidance, new tennis courts have been added at the high school, which are now prominently colored with the Cavalier silver and navy blue. Thompson was also behind the placement of championship banners in the CCHS gym and he is responsible for several upgrades to Carroll County’s track – including the long and triple jump pits, new painted markers, and the track and football storage facility.
Additionally, Thompson is credited for creating Carroll County’s beautiful softball facility – Cavalier Park – with new softball lights, new bleachers, concessions, press box, and a new gazebo at the tennis courts. He also was behind expanding the parking lot at Cavalier Park to meet the increasing demands there as the program has grown, as well as the landscaping around Cavalier Park, the tennis courts and practice facilities.
Additionally, Thompson oversees the annual aeration, seeding and maintenance of all CCHS game fields (football, soccer, baseball and softball) and he established the first VHSL swim team in Carroll County High School’s history. His legacy at CCHS is sure to grow as he continually plans to upgrade the high school’s facilities.
Allen Worrell can be reached at (276) 779-4062 or on Twitter@AWorrellTCN
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