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A Maryland man, originally indicted on 72 felony charges in connection with a Grant County investigation involving a juvenile, was sentenced Monday in Grant County Circuit Court. Dontae Ronnell Smith Jr. appeared before Circuit Judge F. Cody Pancake III with his parents and defense attorney Lucas See after pleading guilty to fi ve felony counts of displaying obscene matter to a minor under a plea deal that dismissed the other charges.

Grant Memorial Hospital announced last week that John B. Sylvia will step down as president and chief executive offi cer. According to a press release from West Virginia University GMH, Sylvia’s decision refl ects his desire to spend more time with family. He will continue to serve in his role through early June and is committed to supporting a smooth leadership transition. “It has been an honor to serve the Grant County community and to work alongside such a dedicated team,” said Sylvia, MHA, FACHE.

Following a string of crimes, a Grant County man is now facing a series of misdemeanor charges.

On Feb. 24, an offi cer from the Grant County Sheriff’s Department received a call about a fi ght in progress at a residence in Grant County. When the offi cer arrived, one of the house’s residents, Terry Lee Bennett, told offi cers that his roommate, Jack Arnold Brookshire Jr., had punched him in the face and held him to the fl oor. Bennett told offi cers that he had confronted Brookshire about theft and wanted him to leave the residence.

A Pendleton County man is awaiting sentencing in federal court after pleading guilty to producing child pornography. Justin Tyler Mallow entered a guilty plea on Oct. 7, 2025, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia in Elkins. Mallow pleaded guilty to Count One of a three-count federal indictment, which charged him with production of child pornography.

The basketballs had stopped bouncing and the final minutes of practice were winding down Monday afternoon inside the Petersburg High School gym.

Players gathered near midcourt as head coach Stacey Berg delivered one last message before the team departs for Charleston and the WVSSAC Class AA State Tournament — a place the Vikings have not been since 2007.

For some of the players standing in that huddle, Berg reminded them, the journey had been years in the making.

“For some of you guys, this started six years ago,” Berg told his team. “Some of you started four years ago. My biggest fear as we get ready for these games is that we become satisfied.”

The Vikings have already accomplished something the program has not done since Athletic Director and Assistant Principal Jon Websters was a senior — reaching the state tournament. But Berg challenged his players to believe the job is not finished.

“We’re getting ready to embark on a journey that this school hasn’t done in 19 years,” Berg said. “They made it there before but didn’t win a game. I think it would be pretty neat to get down there and get a win.”

For Berg, the return to Charleston represents the goal the program has chased for years.

“It’s everything,” he said. “At the end of the day, that’s what we all came here to do as a program. When you haven’t been there for that long, getting back means everything.”

Berg hopes this senior class has also set a new standard for the program.

“The message to the underclassmen is it can’t be another long drought,” he said. “This senior class set the bar up here. We have to have the expectation every year that we’re going to compete and have that opportunity to go down there.”

The Vikings’ run to Charleston has been built on relentless effort and a blue-collar approach that has defined the team all season.

“We may not be big, tall kids,” Berg said. “We’re always undersized. So we have to come in with that blue-collar mentality — we’re going to outwork you, we’re going to out-hustle you, and we’re not going to be intimidated.”

That mindset was tested in Thursday’s regional championship victory over Braxton County.

“I think they came out early trying to send a message — that they were bigger and stronger,” Berg said. “We absorbed that. We took it on the chin and handled it.”

Berg said the key moment in the game came not from strategy, but from composure.

“I burned two timeouts just to calm things down,” he said. “It wasn’t about X’s and O’s. I just wanted everyone to stay calm. I was really proud of the kids because they held their composure.”

Even as the final minutes ticked away and the Vikings held the lead, Berg admitted he never felt comfortable.

“I remember looking up with four minutes left and thinking, ‘If we lose this game, you’re an idiot,’” Berg said with a laugh. “Then it got inside two minutes, and I started thinking we might actually be going to Charleston.”

When the final seconds arrived, the emotions hit all at once.

“It was like five or six years of work all crammed into 30 seconds,” Berg said. “I can’t really describe it.”

The victory sparked a wave of excitement throughout the community, with fans, students and families rallying behind the Vikings as they prepare for Charleston.

“To see the community come out the way they have — it’s pretty neat,” Berg said. “There’s pep buses going, there’s so much support. It’s been special.”

Berg was quick to point the credit back to his players.

“I give the kids all the credit,” he said. “They play with a lot of heart.”

Nearly two decades have passed since Petersburg last walked onto the state tournament floor.

Now a new group of Vikings will make that trip — a team built on grit, work ethic and years of belief that the program could return.

And when they step onto the court in Charleston this week, they will carry with them not only their own season, but the hopes of a community that has been waiting a long time to see it happen again.