College baseball - Randolph Record

10 Jul

Close games prove costly for ZooKeepers

Randolph RecordSportsAsheboro Zookeepers, Coastal Plain League, College baseball, Lenoir-Rhyne, McCrary Park, Owen Blackledge, summer college baseball, Zach Evans

Zach Evans takes a swing during a recent game for the Asheboro ZooKeepers. (P.J. Ward-Brown / Randolph Record) ASHEBORO – The Asheboro ZooKeepers were involved in a bunch of close games heading into the Coastal Plain League’s all-star break. Not all of those outcomes worked out well for the ZooKeepers. So when play resumed this week, the ZooKeepers were in sixth place in the eight-team West Division with a 5-6 second-half record in the split season. The ZooKeepers ended last week with a pair of games with the High Point-Thomasville HiToms. Asheboro outfielder Owen Blackledge was dubbed the top hitter…

08 Jul

Randleman pitcher finds his Way to Liberty

Bob SuttonSportsCollege baseball, Liberty Flames, piedmont athletic conference, Prep baseball, Randleman baseball, Randleman Tigers, Seth Way, Virginia Tech

Pitcher Seth Way, right, confers with coach Jake Smith and catcher Isaac Yates during a game this year. (PJ Ward-Brown / Randolph Record) RANDLEMAN – Seth Way has changed his college destination, but he’ll still be joining a Division I program in the state of Virginia. Way, who has been a standout two-way player for Randleman, announced a commitment to Liberty last week. “I knew as soon as I got on campus that’s where I wanted to go,” said Way, who had a standout high school career for Randleman. The right-handed pitcher had signed in November with Virginia Tech, but…

03 Jul

Atkins, four other ZooKeepers picked for CPL All-Star Game

Bob SuttonSportsAll-star game, Asheboro Zookeepers, Coastal Plain League, College baseball, Hunter Atkins, Randleman baseball, summer college baseball

Nic Schutte fires a pitch for the Asheboro ZooKeepers during last week’s victory against High Point-Thomasville. (PJ Ward-Brown / Randolph Record) ASHEBORO – Third baseman Hunter Atkins of the Asheboro ZooKeepers is one of the team’s five selections for the upcoming Coastal Plain League All-Star Game. Atkins, a third baseman from Randleman, will join second baseman Sal Laimo and pitchers Mason Maniquez, Noah Samol and Dylan Dickert on the West team. The CPL All-Star activities will be held Sunday and Monday in Forest City. Atkins began this week with a team-best .306 batting average in 23 games. He had knocked…

26 Jun

Blackledge builds own career with Asheboro ZooKeepers

Bob SuttonSportsAsheboro Zookeepers, Coastal Plain League, College baseball, Lenoir-Rhyne, Owen Blackledge, summer college baseball

Owen Blackledge has brought energy to the Asheboro ZooKeepers for a second summer. (Courtesy of Asheboro ZooKeepers) Son of former NFL quarterback makes good use of time in Asheboro ASHEBORO – At about this time last year, Owen Blackledge had just left Omaha, Neb., where he was a member of a College World Series team. While some goals and destinations have changed, Blackledge is now in the middle of his second season with the Asheboro ZooKeepers. The rising senior outfielder knows how to make adjustments. He once played collegiately for national power Texas Christian University and now has one year…

17 Jun

Ex-Randleman standout Atkins looks for new baseball home

Bob SuttonSportsAsheboro Zookeepers, Coastal Plain League, College baseball, Hunter Atkins, Randleman Tigers, Randolph County Post 45, summer college baseball, UNCG

Hunter Atkins (Bob Sutton / Randolph Record) ASHEBORO – Former Randleman baseball standout Hunter Atkins said playing for the Asheboro ZooKeepers this summer is a treat. It’s also serving as an audition. After one season in UNC Greensboro’s program, Atkins has entered the NCAA transfer portal. That puts more emphasis on the third baseman’s production for the ZooKeepers in the Coastal Plain League. “Trying to get some stats up and see if I can get to a good home,” Atkins said. Atkins had a redshirt season in 2024, so he never took the field for UNCG. The Spartans had a…

15 Jun

College softball, baseball: Perdue, others collect USA South honors

Randolph RecordSportsBrody Gardner, College baseball, College softball, Greensboro College athletics, Kyler Perdue, Pfeiffer athletics, USA South Conference

Kyler Perdue (Courtesy photo) Area softball players made big impacts during the past season Kyler Perdue of Pfeiffer was named the USA South Conference’s Rookie of the Year for softball. Perdue is a Southwestern Randolph graduate. Perdue, a freshman shortstop, batted .350, starting in all 49 games. She was an all-conference second-team selection. Pfeiffer produced a 45-4 record and advanced to the NCAA Division III Tournament. The Falcons went 2-2 in the tournament, eliminated in a 6-4 loss to regional host Christopher Newport in Newport News, Va. Freshman infielder Madison Varner, also a Southwestern Randolph alum, had one hit in…

11 Jun

ZooKeepers experience early ups, downs in CPL

Randolph RecordSportsAsheboro Zookeepers, Coastal Plain League, College baseball, McCrary Park, summer college baseball

Asheboro ZooKeepers teammates greet Alex Kean after his home run Saturday night against the Boone Bigfoots. (Asheboro ZooKeepers) ASHEBORO – A mix of results has been the norm for the Asheboro ZooKeepers in the opening weeks of the Coastal Plain League baseball season. So with a two-game winning streak, the ZooKeepers held a 6-7 record through Monday. On Sunday in Boone, Ryan Kennell and Zach Evans each had three hits as the ZooKeepers upended the Boone Bigfoots 9-8 in 10 innings. Davis Germann provided the go-ahead single in the four-run final inning. Owen Simmons and Mason Manriquez handled the pitching…

30 May

Asheboro ZooKeepers crank up with busy baseball slate

Bob SuttonSportsAsheboro Zookeepers, Coastal Plain League, College baseball, Hunter Atkins, Korey Dunbar, summer college baseball

James Hankerson Jr. has been active early in the season for the Asheboro ZooKeepers. (Courtesy photo) College summer team looks for right blend ASHEBORO – More winning is one of the objectives for the Asheboro ZooKeepers this year. There have been a few seasons of occupying low spots in the Coastal Plain League standings, but second-year head coach Korey Dunbar said there has been a good tone for the first week of the season. “We definitely want to win,” said shortstop Zach Evans, a rising senior at Lenoir-Rhyne. “There are a lot of people counting on us to win.” Dunbar…

28 May

Marsh receives tourney MVP honor for UNCW

Randolph RecordSportsAsheboro, asheboro baseball, CAA, College baseball, NCAA Tournament, Trevor Marsh, UNCW

WILMINGTON – UNC Wilmington’s Trevor Marsh from Asheboro was the Most Outstanding Player of the Coastal Athletic Association Tournament as the Seahawks repeated as baseball league champions Sunday at Brooks Field. Marsh went 2-for-4 and drove in three runs, including a two with a seventh-inning single that put the Seahawks ahead to stay in second-seeded UNCW’s 6-4 victory against top-seeded College of Charleston. Marsh, a senior center fielder, batted 8-for-13 in the Seahawks’ three tournament games. On Monday, UNCW (39-19) was assigned to the Athens, Ga., site as the No. 2 seed in the four-team, double-elimination NCAA regional. The Seahawks…

13 May

Wingate sweeps series for baseball title in Asheboro

Randolph RecordSportsAsheboro, College baseball, McCrary Park, South Atlantic Conference, Wingate Bulldogs

ASHEBORO – Wingate’s baseball team swept the South Atlantic Conference Tournament championship series at McCrary Park. The Bulldogs secured the automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament with the title. Third-seeded Wingate won the best-of-3 opener by 11-4 against Lincoln Memorial with Sean Barnett homering twice Friday. That was followed by Saturday’s 9-1 romp, Sean Barnett and Brett Adams both driving in three runs. Wingate (33-23), owner of a six-game winning streak, heads to North Greenville (S.C.) for Southeast Region play. The Bulldogs open against Mount Olive, with Georgia College and North Greenville in the other matchup to start…