Sports - Randolph Record

05 Mar

Wildcats to play at noon Saturday in Raleigh in basketball title game

Bob SuttonSportsclass 1-A, Eastern Randolph athletics, Johnny Thomas, nchsaa, Prep Basketball, Wilson Prep

Eastern Randolph hopes to add state-championship hardware to the West Region prize claimed Saturday. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) RAMSEUR – Eastern Randolph’s bid for its first state championship in boys’ basketball comes in the Class 1-A final at noon Saturday at Reynolds Coliseum on the North Carolina State campus in Raleigh. The Wildcats (29-2) meet East Region champion Wilson Prep (26-7) in the title game. The North Carolina High School Athletic Association announced game times and sites for the eight championship games – four for boys and four for girls – on Sunday afternoon. Eastern Randolph is coming off two comeback…

04 Mar

Huge comeback propels Eastern Randolph boys to state final

Randolph RecordSportsclass 1-A, Davonte Brooks, Eastern Randolph, Johnny Thomas, nchsaa, Pierce Leonard, Prep Basketball

Eastern Randolph team members and coach Johnny Thomas – with arms raised – celebrate the Class 1-A West Region title. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) MORGANTON – Eastern Randolph rallied from a 21-point halftime deficit to keep its season alive and advance to a state championship in boys’ basketball for the first time. The Wildcats pulled out a 62-59 victory against Bishop McGuinness in the Class 1-A West Region final Saturday afternoon at Freedom High School. “As the coach, even I’m at awe at what they just did,” first-year Eastern Randolph coach Johnny Thomas said of his players. Eastern Randolph (29-2) will…

02 Mar

Regional path sends Eastern Randolph boys on trek

Bob SuttonSportsBishop McGuinness, class 1-A, Eastern Randolph athletics, nchsaa, Prep Basketball, state playoffs

Eastern Randolph’s Nicah Taylor soars in the lane for a shot against South Stokes. (PJ. Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) RAMSEUR – Eastern Randolph will head to Morganton as part of the best season in history of the school’s boys’ basketball team. That’s where the Wildcats will take on Bishop McGuinness in the Class 1-A West Region final at 1 p.m. Saturday. The game will be at Freedom High School. The North Carolina High School Athletic Association announced the venues for the neutral-site regional finals Wednesday morning, a day after Tuesday night’s semifinals set the matchups across the state. Third-seeded Eastern Randolph (28-2)…

01 Mar

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Payton Purdue

Randolph RecordSportsathlete of the week, Eastern Randolph, girls' basketball, high school basketball, Payton Purdue, Prep Basketball, prep sports, student athlete

Eastern Randolph, girls’ basketball Eastern Randolph had a breakthrough season in girls’ basketball, and Purdue, a senior, played a significant role. The team secured its first winning season in six years. Purdue was one of three seniors on the Eastern Randolph roster. She was the starting center. The Wildcats reached the third round of the Class 1-A state playoffs. They finished with a 19-8 record.

01 Mar

Prep basketball: Eastern Randolph boys keep season going, win regional semi on road

Randolph RecordSportsclass 1-A, Class 2-A, Devonte Brooks, Eastern Randolph athletics, Elizabeth York, Gracyn Hall, Johnny Thomas, nchsaa, Pierce Leonard, Prep Basketball, Randleman athletics, Timothy Brower

Coach Johnny Thomas makes a postgame video with his Eastern Randolph boys’ basketball team after winning the Class 1-A West Region semifinal at South Stokes. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) WALNUT COVE – Pierce Leonard scored 10 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter and Eastern Randolph rallied past South Stokes to continue its best postseason in program history. The Wildcats put together a strong second half to pull out the Class 1-A West Region semifinal, winning 74-71 on Tuesday night. “I told them, ‘I am proud of you. We’ve had a long season, but this is not it,’ ” first-year…

28 Feb

New-look Tigers keep lofty goals for baseball season

Bob SuttonSportsClass 2-A, Hunter Atkins, Jake Smith, nchsaa, piedmont athletic conference, Randleman athletics, Randleman baseball, Seth Way

Randleman coach Jake Smith receives a water bath courtesy of Riley Edwards after the Tigers won the 2022 state championship in Burlington. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) Randleman’s baseball team embarks on another season of high expectations RANDLEMAN – Randleman has been at the top of the Class 2-A baseball world in the state for the past two years. Going into this season, the Tigers are going to look different. The goals haven’t changed. “It’s exciting for the kids, a lot of them waiting their turn,” coach Jake Smith said. “I think we’ve got a lot of guys who are excited about…

27 Feb

New Eastern Randolph baseball coach holds ties in region

Bob SuttonSportsBrent Haynes, Eastern Randolph athletics, Eastern Randolph baseball, Hunter Atkins, Prep baseball, Tyler Parks

RAMSEUR – Brent Haynes figured that he would land a job as a head coach for a baseball team when the right opportunity came around. Eastern Randolph athletics director Foster Cates had the same thing in mind for Haynes. So this week, Haynes begins his first season as coach of the Wildcats. “I’m pumped up. I’ve always wanted to have my own program,” Haynes said. “To have the opportunity present itself is pretty exciting for me.” Eastern Randolph was in need of a coach last summer after Mitchell Frazier stepped away. “I had been telling (Haynes) that when we had…

26 Feb

Shore likes set-up with UCA baseball

Bob SuttonSportsGrant Little, Old North State League, piedmont athletic conference, Prep baseball, Rob Shore, Uwharrie Charter Academy

ASHEBORO – Rob Shore knows what it takes to be successful in high school baseball and he likes what he sees entering his first season as Uwharrie Charter Academy’s coach. Shore moved up to the top spot after one season as an assistant when Lee Kennell stepped down. “I’ve always liked the smaller school and smaller setting,” Shore said. Keeping track of Shore’s credentials is no simple task. He was an assistant coach for six years at Southwest Guilford before an 11-year run as Trinity’s coach. That was followed by four years at Ledford, where his 2018 team reached the…

25 Feb

Prep basketball: Randleman girls, Eastern Randolph boys move on

Randolph RecordSportsBrecken Snotherly, Eastern Randolph athletics, nchsaa, Prep Basketball, Randleman athletics

Eastern Randolph’s Nicah Taylor goes up for a shot against Robbinsville in the third round of the Class 1-A state playoffs Saturday. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) RANDLEMAN – Top-seeded Randleman fended off another challenge in the Class 2-A state playoffs, defeating eighth-seeded East Rutherford 62-55 on Saturday afternoon in the third round. Elizabeth York scored 19 points, Gracyn Hall had 18 points and Audra Petty and Jordan Booker both posted 10 points for Randleman. The Tigers (27-1) move on to the West Region semifinals Tuesday night at home against East Burke (26-2), a 54-37 winner against No. 13 seed Newton-Conover. Randleman…

24 Feb

Prep boys: Special season ends on downer for Blue Comets; Eastern Randolph advances

Bob SuttonSportsAsheboro Blue Comets, Brian Nance, Camden Walker, D.J. Headen, Davonte Brooks, Hakeeme Butler, nchsaa, Pierce Leonard, Prep Basketball, Trinity athletics

Hakeeme Butler tries to get Asheboro on the board in the first quarter of Thursday night’s loss to Greensboro Smith in the Class 3-A state playoffs. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record) ASHEBORO – Asheboro’s special season in boys’ basketball didn’t come to a fitting conclusion. That’s what made losing so hard to grasp for the Blue Comets. Ambushed from the start by Greensboro Smith, Asheboro couldn’t sustain any of its rallies long enough in a 73-46 loss in the second round of the Class 3-A state playoffs Thursday night at raucous Asheboro Recreation Center. “That’s the thing about this team, we all…