When hurricane Helene came ashore Thursday night, September 26th, as the biggest storm ever to hit Florida’s “Big Bend” area, CSD’s football game against Mountain Island Charter had already been postponed, rescheduled and rescheduled again.
Hurricane Helene slammed into Florida as a category-four hurricane. The storm produced catastrophic winds up to 140 mph and the rain bands reached across most of the southeast.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said that one person died from the storm but there would likely be others.
While this storm hit Florida the effects were felt far up the southeast. CSD administrators and sports staff, who had been watching the storm for days, knew it would be big. Davidson was in its path.
Heavy flooding rain began Thursday during school and with the storm only predicted to intensify throughout the night and into early Friday, many schools including CSD switched to a remote learning day.
As CSD students and teachers worked from home early Friday morning, the storm, still with gusts over 50 mph, toppled down trees, blocked roadways and knocked out power to many in the community.
The outer bands of Helene affected those in North Carolina throughout the day on Thursday as a tornado warning in Mecklenburg County led to students and teachers at neighboring school, Davidson Day, to sit out in the hallway and let the warning pass.
For Spartan football players, the remote day meant waiting. The football game against Mountain Island Charter has been rescheduled for Monday, September 30th.
With the weather looking better, the Spartans are excited to take on their second conference opponent of the year, Mountain Island Charter, who is 1-3 in the young season.
But Helene is not the first unexpected weather occurence to impact the Spartans so far this year. Almost a month to the day earlier, on Friday, September 30th, just minutes into the second quarter of the game against Charlotte Country Day School, ominous clouds and then thunder and lightning caused a weather delay and then the postponement of the game. Trailing 14-0, the game could not be continued or rescheduled so the Spartans reluctantly accepted a loss.
When the Spartans are able to play a complete game, they are showing the dominance that comes with a veteran team that includes 12 seniors.
Against Bishop McGuinness, the Spartans put their foot on the gas from the start and won 42-7. As reported on Max Preps, they were led by impressive performances by senior quarterback Jake Johnson, senior wide receiver, Brandon Albert, and junior running back, Jaxon Robeson. Johnson completed 66.7 percent of his passes with one touchdown, Albert had 6 carries for 22 yards and two touchdowns and Robeson had 2 receptions for 35 yards and a touchdown.
With a 2–2 (overall) and 1-0 (conference) record, and the Spartans about to get into the meat of their conference schedule, fans and team supporters hope the weather incidents are now a thing of the past and it’s time for the Spartans to make a run at the conference championship and state playoffs.
No one knows what else this unusual season has in store for the Spartans but hopefully the wind will be at their backs.
