HURRICANE, W.Va. – To some, Will Washburn was a terrific basketball player and a cheerful individual with the brightest smile. Will was an eighth-grader when he passed away in 2020. Washburn had been playing the game he loved, basketball, one evening in his driveway when he suddenly collapsed.
Washburn passed away at 15 on April 27, 2020. The life of Washburn will forever live on throughout the community of Hurricane.
“Will was a phenomenal basketball player,” said Hurricane boy’s head basketball coach Lance Sutherland during the Thursday edition of the Kanawha Valley Sports Report. “He could and may have been one of the best to come through Hurricane. Unfortunately, we lost him way too early. The thing I remember most about Will, and my son [Tanner] was able to play with him, was his smile. His smile was infectious. You knew he was having fun when you looked at him. He played hard and made everyone around him better.
“He was so much more than a basketball player because he helped the kids in school, and he was a friend to those that did not have friends. An all-around great guy.”
The Hurricane boy’s basketball team will host a two-day basketball event starting this evening to commemorate the life of Washburn.
The two-day event welcomes middle and high school boys’ and girls’ teams. There will be two games starting at 6 pm Friday, with Musselman and Hurricane’s junior varsity teams playing in the auxiliary gym and St. Albans and Winfield’s varsity squads going toe-to-toe in the main gymnasium.
Washburn’s father, Brian, serves on Sutherland’s staff, and Sutherland thought what better way to honor Washburn than play against teams like Winfield and St. Albans, which had players he played with throughout his life.
“I thought it was time to get something back in Putnam County,” Sutherland noted. “We had the Putnam County Classic when I started coaching, which all four county teams played. With the classic, Will played with many of the Winfield and St. Albans players, and it was perfect to have those teams. We traveled back and forth with Musselman for six to seven years.”
Seven schools will be represented this weekend, including Ironton, Ohio, where Washburn’s father grew up.
Sutherland wants everybody that does attend to be able to recognize the impact Washburn had on everyone.
“We are using this as a way to promote his legacy and basketball and show that basketball is fun and be a place to come spend a Friday night and Saturday,” Sutherland stated. “We want people to enjoy that we can sit in the stands and watch, coach, or play the game.”
Hurricane will enter its first game Friday evening with a 2-2 record. The Redskins picked up their second win of the season Tuesday evening after squeezing past Capital, 66-63.
Hurricane spent last weekend at University High School, dropping its first two games of the season. The Redskins went toe-to-toe with University Friday evening but fell short, 86-75. However, the defending Class AAAA champions Morgantown Mohigans blew by Hurricane on Saturday, 102-39.
“Against University, we learned that we have to play four quarters,” Sutherland said. “We played well in three quarters but laid a goose egg in the second quarter. It is going to take 32 minutes to win. Morgantown, on the other hand, they are a different beast. They rival the Huntington team with [O.J.] Mayo and [Patrick] Patterson. I have never seen a team that covers all the angles with length and height.”
Sutherland will rely on the play from dual-sport standout Mondrell Dean. Dean transferred from South Charleston earlier this year, and his physical traits from the gridiron make him difficult to guard on the hardwood.
“He brings leadership,” Sutherland stated. “He is a smart basketball player on the floor. He knows what is going on and helps the other players by showing and teaching them what will happen. Mondrell brings that leadership and ability to teach the younger kids. He is like an extension of the coaching staff on the floor. Kids fear him because of his stature and size when we go after him during practice.”
The Redskins will look to advance their record with a game Friday evening against Musselman at 8 pm, then Saturday evening against Winfield at 7 pm.
If you would like to donate to the Will Washburn Foundation, you can donate here.
Click here for the full two-day schedule.