Randolph Record - Randolph Record

22 Feb

UCA, Randleman, SWR, Wheatmore advance in girls’ basketball playoffs

Randolph RecordSportsbasketball, Eastern Randolph, girls' basketball, playoffs, Providence Grove, Randleman, SWR, Uwharrie Charter, Wheatmore

ASHEBORO — Four Randolph County girls' basketball teams advanced to the second round of the state playoffs with wins Tuesday night, while two others saw their seasons end. Uwharrie Charter Academy, Randleman, Southwestern Randolph and Wheatmore cruised in their first-round playoff games. UCA, a No. 3 seed in Class 1-A in the West Region, topped No. 30 seed Bradford Prep 54-38. Also in Class 1-A, Eastern Randolph fell short in a 65-62 loss to Cherokee. Randleman, the top seed in the Class 2-A, dominated No. 32 seed Shelby Burns with a 64-17 victory. No. 11 seed Southwestern Randolph was a…

22 Feb

PAC Boys: UCA emerges with league title

Randolph RecordSportsbasketball, Providence Grove, Uwharrie Charter

Ashton Troutman of UCA lets out a big yell prior to the buzzer going off in a victory against top-seeded Providence Grove. RANDLEMAN – Uwharrie Charter Academy put together a solid boys’ basketball campaign in the Piedmont Athletic Conference, and the Eagles might have saved their best for late in the season. They capped this part of the surge by winning the PAC Tournament with Friday night’s 66-52 toppling of regular-season champion Providence Grove. Coach Brad Monroe’s team won three of its last four regular-season games before last week’s three-game sweep in the conference tournament while holding the No. 3…

22 Feb

PAC Girls: Tigers girls keep title wave going

Randolph RecordSportsRandleman

Randleman’s Gracyn Hall shoots the ball against Uwharrie Charter Academy during the PAC Tournament girls’ championship game Friday night at Randleman. RANDLEMAN – Randleman’s girls’ basketball team made it through Piedmont Athletic Conference play unscathed, capped by the league tournament championship. The Tigers headed off to the state playoffs with a 22-0 record. Last week turned out to be rewarding for Randleman, which won twice on its homecourt in the tournament to back up its regular-season championship. “The bull’s-eye has been on our back all year,” Randleman coach Brandon Varner said. “The pressure has been building.” First there was a…

20 Feb

Virtual Academy student wins Randolph County spelling bee

Randolph RecordGovernment, NewsEducation, schools, Spelling Bee

Marcie Rudzinski of the Virtual Academy after spelling the final word “primordial” winning the Randolph County Schools Spelling Bee at Randleman Elementary school in Randleman on February 15th, 2022. PJ WARD-BROWN/NORTH STATE JOURNAL RANDLEMAN — Maycie Rudzinski of The Virtual Academy at Randolph was the winner of Randolph County School System’s District Spelling Bell on Tuesday at Randleman Middle School. Rudzinski, a seventh-grader, emerged from a field of 25 entrants. She spelled “primordial” – meaning existing at or from the beginning of time -- correctly to clinch the victory. “I wasn’t expecting it,” Rudzinski said of winning and the opportunity…

17 Feb

LEVY: When will they ever learn?

Robert LevyOpinionsRobert Levy

As I explore the present, I can’t avoid comparing it to the past. The names change. The places and faces are never identical. But like a false backdrop behind the camera in a Zoom call, it’s only cosmetic. Essential reality never changes. For instance, on March 7, 1965, a group of voting rights demonstrators blocked traffic as they walked across Alabama’s Edmund Pettus Bridge. The marchers did not have a permit; so, the police ordered them to disperse. The marchers disobeyed the police and marched anyway. The result was called Bloody Sunday. Similarly, a group of Canadian truckers blocked the…

16 Feb

Tears flow at Senior Night ceremony

Randolph RecordSportsEastern Randolph, prep sports, Providence Grove, Ramseur, Randleman, Southwestern Randolph, Wheatmore

Emotions flowed in a special manner on Senior Night at Providence Grove. Thursday night’s ceremony between the girls’ and boys’ basketball games against Wheatmore included recognition of senior basketball players and cheerleaders. Cheerleading and boys’ basketball seniors were honored before the girls’ basketball seniors. The final of those recognitions drew a tearful standing ovation. That’s when the parents of the late Lily Butler came onto the court. Butler, who had been a member of the girls’ program, died in July at age 17. She also had been on the cross country team. Her parents, Chip and Carol Butler, received numerous…

16 Feb

Asheboro triple jumper takes third at state meet

Randolph RecordSportsAsheboro, prep sports, Randleman, swimming, track and field, Wheatmore

Senior Arianna Lovingood-Smith of Asheboro claimed third place in the Class 3-A girls’ triple jump in the indoor track and field state championships Saturday at the JDL Fast Track Indoor Facility in Winston-Salem. Lovingood-Smith had a mark of 34 feet, 10 inches. Cramer’s Alexis Willis won the event with an effort of 37-10, while Lovingwood-Smith was just 2 inches off the mark from runner-up Gisele Dulnuan-Kersey of Franklinton. On Friday in Class 1-A/2-A, Randleman had two solid finishes in the girls’ shot put. Iniyah Mitchell was fifth in 31-5¾ and Kyle Vaughn placed seventh at 30-1. In the boys’ 55-meter…

16 Feb

UCA rolls in Class 1-A wrestling with seven regional champs

Randolph RecordSportsprep sports, Providence Grove, Southwestern Randolph, Trinity, UCA wrestling

Uwharrie Charter Academy’s wrestling team gathers for a photo after finishing as the runner-up in the Class 1-A dual team state playoffs, falling to Avery County on Feb. 5. A week later, the Eagles were overwhelming champions in a Class 1-A regional. Seven wrestlers from Uwharrie Charter Academy won individual championships in the Class 1-A regional, which was held Friday and Saturday at Rosewood. The Eagles soared to the regional championship and built all sorts of momentum heading to the state tournament. Thirteen of the team’s wrestlers will head to states. UCA’s champions were freshman Brandon Jordan at 113 pounds,…

16 Feb

PAC finals to be played at Randleman

Randolph RecordSportsbasketball, Mid-Piedmont Conference, prep sports, Randleman

Elizabeth York of undefeated Randleman goes up for a shot during a Piedmont Athletic Conference girls’ basketball game. RANDLEMAN – Randleman will be the site for Friday night’s finals in the Piedmont Athletic Conference Tournaments for boys’ and girls’ basketball. As the regular-season champion on the girls’ side, Randleman was designated as the host school for the finals. Quarterfinals were held Monday night, with semifinals set for Wednesday at the site of the higher-seeded teams. Undefeated Randleman is the favorite in the girls’ bracket. After a bye, the Tigers were set for a semifinal encounter with fourth-seeded Wheatmore, which eliminated…

16 Feb

4-H groups show appreciation to community leaders with Valentine gifts

McKenna GardenerFeatures4-H, Asheboro, McKenna Gardner, Valentine's Day

ASHEBORO — Modern America has turned Valentine’s Day into a commercial holiday with expensive jewelry, heart-shaped chocolates and reservations three months in advance. One group sought to bring back the childhood magic of Valentine’s Day with service to the community. Randolph County 4-H held a Valentine’s Community Service Night on February 8. The intention was to return to the roots of the holiday, which has various legends related to its origin. The Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus. The stories surrounding these saints describe priests willing to perform marriages for soldiers who were forbidden…