Grant County Press

09/05/2026

Petersburg will have an extra week to prepare for its next opponent as the Vikings enter a bye week before returning to action Friday, Sept. 11, against Berkeley Springs.

Petersburg enters the bye following its 43-36 season-opening loss to Pendleton County, a game in which the Vikings battled back from an early deficit and stayed within striking distance throughout the night.

The Indians opened the season with a 55-12 loss to Keyser and were originally scheduled to face Hancock this week. After Hancock canceled its football season, Berkeley Springs picked up a replacement game against Clear Spring.

The matchup gives the Indians another opportunity to get on the field before meeting Petersburg, while the Vikings will use the open week to prepare and regroup. Clear Spring is also scheduled to face Petersburg later this season in October, giving the Vikings an early look at another future opponent.

Next Friday’s matchup will also feature a familiar face on the opposite sideline.

Berkeley Springs is led by head coach C.J. Watts, a Petersburg High School graduate. Watts graduated from PHS in 2017 and will now face his alma mater as the head coach of the Indians.

The Vikings will return to the field next Friday looking for their first win of the young season against a Berkeley Springs squad that will now have two games under its belt.

09/04/2026

COURT UPDATE — Sentencing for Lawrence “Grasshopper” Puffenbarger, scheduled for Friday in Pendleton County Circuit Court, has been postponed as attorneys work toward a possible resolution of additional pending cases.

Sentencing is now set for Nov. 16 at 2 p.m., with a status hearing scheduled for Oct. 2. If an agreement cannot be reached in the pending cases, Special Prosecutor Robert Ryan said he will ask for the next case to be set for trial.

More on the latest developments in Tuesday’s Grant County Press.

09/04/2026

The Grant County Press is expanding its coverage of local student-athletes during the 2026-27 school year through a new sponsorship partnership with Ted Davis Auto Sales.

Ted Davis Auto Sales has signed on as the official sponsor of the Press’ athletic coverage for the year and will also sponsor the return of the newspaper’s weekly player recognition, now rebranded as the 'Grant County Press Athlete of the Week'.

Each 'varsity level' athlete selected as an Athlete of the Week will also become eligible for the inaugural 'Grant County Press Athlete' of the Year Award', which will be presented at the end-of-year athletic banquet.

The addition of the year-end award is part of the Press’ continued effort to expand local sports coverage and give student-athletes more opportunities to be recognized for their accomplishments.

We’re excited to bring this feature back in a bigger way and to recognize athletes from every season and every sport. Having Ted Davis Auto Sales support our athletic coverage allows us to continue building on what we’re doing and create something special for our local athletes.

09/04/2026

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09/04/2026

Petersburg volleyball split a tri-match Thursday night, falling to Martinsburg before bouncing back with a straight-set win over Pendleton County.

The Vikings opened the night against a strong Martinsburg squad, dropping the match 2-0 with set scores of 25-9 and 25-14.

During a team huddle, Petersburg head coach Shannon Earle challenged her players to keep battling.

“Show them how tough you are; I want to see how tough you are,” Earle told the team.

The Vikings responded later in the night against Pendleton County, taking control in a 2-0 victory. Petersburg won the opening set 25-17 before closing out the Wildcats 25-13 in the second.

Petersburg finished the tri-match 1-1 on the night.

09/03/2026

Petersburg boys soccer fell to Moorefield, 10-1. The Yellow Jackets led 5-0 before the Vikings scored off a corner kick. Moorefield took a 7-1 lead into halftime and pulled away in the second half.

photo 📸: Carl Holcomb

09/03/2026

Petersburg picked up a 5-1 victory over Moorefield, powered by a huge night from freshman Kaylee Wolford, who recorded a hat trick with three goals.

Jozlynn Appold added two more goals for the Lady Vikings to help seal the win.

A five-goal night and a freshman hat trick — not a bad way to make a statement.

photo 📸: Carl Holcomb

09/01/2026

First paper of September is here. 🗞️

Fall sports are in full swing, court news is moving and local government leads A1.

September always seems to bring Friday night lights, packed calendars and plenty of stories worth telling.

Busy season has arrived — and we’re here for it.

08/31/2026

🏈 A little Monday flag on the play, so we figured we’d clear this one up...

For the record, no one representing the Grant County Press was ejected from Friday night’s Petersburg-Pendleton game, and the Vikings were not assessed a penalty because of anyone with the Press.

There was an interaction involving a football contributor and an official. The contributor complied with the official’s direction, and that was the extent of it.

The Press continued covering the game from the sidelines throughout the night.

Ejections involving the Press: 0
Penalties against Petersburg because of the Press: 0

As much as our sports reporter would probably enjoy the street cred, she was not ejected and did not cost the Vikings a penalty.

08/31/2026

Game One Highlight Reel: Petersburg fought back from an early 14-0 deficit, tied it before halftime, and took the lead in the third quarter before Pendleton County secured the 43-36 victory.

Not the ending the Vikings wanted, but they battled back and stayed in it until the very end.