Bob Sutton - Randolph Record

28 Jul

In review: UCA’s state titles highlight top area moments

Bob SuttonSportsAsheboro Blue Comets, Brecken Snotherly, Connor Carter, Eastern Randolph athletics, Hunter Atkins, Providence Grove athletics, Randleman athletics, Southwestern Randolph Cougars, Tanner Marsh, UCA wrestling, Uwharrie Charter Academy athletics, Wheatmore athletics

Members of the Uwharrie Charter Academy wrestling team celebrate a dual team state championship last winter. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) There were championships and near misses and an assortment of other superlatives associated with the 2022-23 school year for Randolph County high school teams. Uwharrie Charter Academy racked up a pair of team state championships in Class 1-A. The Eagles secured the dual team wrestling title and a few months later picked up the baseball crown. ** Eastern Randolph’s boys’ basketball team had its most successful season ever by advancing to the Class 1-A state championship game. Wilson Prep won the…

27 Jul

Check on college-bound athletes from area schools

Bob SuttonSportsAsheboro Blue Comets, Cade Hill, Calvin Smith, Caroline Wright, Diego Gutierrez, Dylan Hodges, Jake Little, Mid-Piedmont Conference, piedmont athletic conference, Trinity athletics

Jake Little of Trinity made a big impact in baseball for the Bulldogs and he’ll continue playing in 2024. (File photo) Here’s a check on some of Randolph County’s top athletes from the Class of 2023 with their college intentions: ** Asheboro’s Nicolas Chavez signed to go to UNC Asheville for men’s track and field. He was a hurdler and pole vaulter for the Blue Comets. ** Katelyn Thomas of Asheboro is headed to Anderson (S.C.) University to play women’s tennis. She has been on the Mid-Piedmont Conference all-conference team the past two years. ** Diego Gutierrez of Asheboro is…

24 Jul

Candidates secure spots for November ballot in Randolph County

Bob SuttonNews, PoliticsAsheboro City Schools, election, Election 2023, Randolph County Board of Elections

ASHEBORO – There will be five candidates for three spots on the City of Asheboro City Council. Candidates to file by Friday’s deadline are Eddie Burks, Jane Hughes Redding, Charles Swiers, Harry Okeke and Joey Trogdon. Burks, Redding and Swiers are incumbents. ** For the Asheboro City Schools Board of Education the candidates are incumbents Gidget Kidd, Ryan Patton and Gwenn Williams along with Melissa Calloway and Todd Dulaney. ** Mayor Filmore York will run unopposed in Liberty. Greg Carpenter and incumbent Don Herndon are the filers for Liberty town commissioner. ** In Franklinville, Priscellia Dunn and L. McKay Whatley…

22 Jul

ZooKeepers deal with curves late in season

Bob SuttonSportsAsheboro Zookeepers, Coastal Plain League, McCrary Park

Asheboro ZooKeepers outfielder Carter French reaches for second base on a slide earlier this season. French plays for North Carolina during the college season. (PJ. Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) ASHEBORO – Highs and lows, comings and goings. That sums up what the Asheboro ZooKeepers have been going through lately. In the past week’s games, they’ve gone 2-2. Saturday night’s 12-1 whipping of the Holly Springs Salamanders at McCrary Park came with numerous highlights, including the first home run for Lleyton Lackey. The game was reduced to seven innings by the mercy rule, with Win Scott firing a four-hitter. Yet it’s generally hard…

20 Jul

NC East-West All-Star Games: Asheboro players make unique marks in soccer showcase

Bob SuttonSportsBrecken Snotherly, Calvin Smith, Cristian Ortiz, Gracyn Hall, North Carolina East-West All-Star Game

Brecken Snotherly of Eastern Randolph heads up the court with the ball during Monday night’s North Carolina East-West All-Star Game for girls’ basketball at the Greensboro Coliseum. Snotherly played for the West team. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) BROWNS SUMMIT – Asheboro’s Calvin Smith and Cristian Ortiz each did something no other players in the North Carolina East-West All-Star Game could claim. They were issued the only yellow cards during the boys’ soccer game Tuesday night at MacPherson Stadium. “They were both kind of tactical,” Smith said of the infractions. “They weren’t cynical.” Those moments aside, the duo from Asheboro embraced the…

18 Jul

ZooKeepers send three to CPL showcase

Bob SuttonSportsAsheboro Zookeepers, Coastal Plain League, Jacob Dienes, Tyler McPeak, Win Scott

Win Scott delivers a pitch for the Asheboro ZooKeepers. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) ASHEBORO – The Asheboro ZooKeepers had three players selected for this week’s Coastal Plain League All-Star Game. First baseman Tyler McPeak and pitchers Jacob Dienes and Win Scott were set to participate in two days of activities at Lexington, S.C. The Lexington County Blowfish were the host team for the All-Star events. McPeak, a graduate student at Lenoir-Rhyne, has been one of the league’s top power hitters. Dienes and Scott are both rising juniors at North Carolina State. The Asheboro trio will be on the West Division team.…

16 Jul

Soccer duo embraces Asheboro’s rise

Bob SuttonSportsAsheboro Blue Comets, Calvin Smith, Cristian Ortiz, North Carolina East-West All-Star Game, prep soccer

Cristian Ortiz of Asheboro reacts to scoring a game during the Class 3-A state playoffs last fall against West Iredell. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) Blue Comets have two players in NC East-West All-Star Game ASHEBORO – Calvin Smith and Cristian Ortiz helped take Asheboro’s boys’ soccer program to new heights. They’re being rewarded with spots in next Tuesday night’s North Carolina East-West All-Star Game at MacPherson Stadium in Browns Summit. With two players in the summer showcase, it’s an indication of the growth of Asheboro soccer. Last year’s 23-2-2 record for the Blue Comets was part of a season that ended…

15 Jul

The Taco Loco reopens after 3½ months of misery

Bob SuttonBusinessAsheboro business, Asheboro restaurants, downtown asheboro, The Taco Loco

ASHEBORO – The Taco Loco is back serving customers after the popular Mexican restaurant in downtown Asheboro was closed in various fashions for more than three months following a busted pipe. The Taco Logo should be operating with a complete menu Monday. “We’re excited to be opened back up,” restaurant manager Jackie Munoz said Saturday. The re-opening began late-afternoon Friday with the sale of tacos only. “We were slammed,” Munoz said. For the weekend, a limited menu is in place. The restaurant at 138 Sunset Ave. announced April 4 that the dining area would be closed until further notice. The…

15 Jul

Hall makes family connection for NC East-West All-Star Game

Bob SuttonSportsGracyn Hall, North Carolina East-West All-Star Game, piedmont athletic conference, Randleman athletics

Gracyn Hall of Randleman takes a shot during her senior season. (Randolph Record file photo) Randleman basketball player’s father competed in football showcase RANDLEMAN – Gracyn Hall will represent Randleman one more time in girls’ basketball. It’s appropriate on many levels including a family connection to the North Carolina East-West All-Star Game. Hall and Eastern Randolph’s Brecken Snotherly are among the players for the West team in Monday night’s game at the Greensboro Coliseum. “Playing in this game is a very big thing,” Hall said. “Just to be nominated was an honor and then to be chosen for this is…

13 Jul

Trinity forms Athletics Hall of Fame

Bob SuttonSportsHall of Fame, Robert Mitchell, Trinity athletics, Trinity High School

TRINITY – Details are coming together for the first Trinity High School Athletics Hall of Fame, with the first induction class likely coming later this year. “Trinity has an extremely rich heritage,” athletics director Robert Mitchell said. “We’ve got years and years of great athletes and championships. We’ve got decades and decades of special accomplishments.” Mitchell said the goal is to recognize achievements of coaches, student-athletes and contributors. The school has been around in some form for more than 125 years. “We have a wide variety (of potential Hall of Famers) from different generations,” Michell said. “It won’t be a…