Following their first meet of the 2020 season, the Cleveland Community College Men’s Cross Country team is ranked 24th in the nation. The polls for week 2 of the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) were released on September 23.

The ranking follows the Yetis first meet of the season held at Montreat College on September 18. According to Coach Steve McCachren, meet results are submitted to the USTFCCCA for review by a panel of coaches who monitor race results and create the poll. The panel considers the final results, the distance, weather, type of course and course conditions.

Members of the Cleveland Community College cross-country team include Noah Lesser from East Lincoln High School, Jonas Guffey and Kinser Hudson from Lincoln Charter School and Madison McCabe from North

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association, in conjunction with Wells Fargo, released the final standings in the 41st annual Wells Fargo Cup competitions for the 2019-2020 academic year. The award recognizes the high schools that achieve the best overall interscholastic athletic performance within each of the state’s four competitive classifications. The 2019-2020 season was cut short, due to COVID-19, and therefore, no spring sports points were awarded in this year’s competition.

Lincoln Charter School won their second 1A Wells Fargo State Cup, sliding past Pine Lake Prep by a 302.5-270 margin in an abbreviated 2019-2020 race. Lincoln Charter teams were the top finishers in 1A for both Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving. They also picked up a state championship in Men’s Cross Country, finished third in Women’s Cross Country, and

When the North Carolina High School Athletic Association announced last month that football would be moved to spring due to the Coronavirus, most of us thought of the move as a good thing.

One, we wouldn’t have to go entirely without a high school football season, and if fans are allowed to be in the bleachers, the schools could still take in some revenue.  

But after the NCHSAA released the playoff guidelines and schedules for each sport for the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year on Tuesday, many are wondering if football in the spring is going to be a good move.

With basketball being played this school year ahead of football, many athletes that play both sports might not get the necessary time in on the

ANDERSON, S.C. — Following up a record first day at the Carhartt Bassmaster College Series on Lake Hartwell, the Catawba Valley Community College bass fishing team added another impressive accolade to its program history — its first-ever national championship berth.

The duo of Jeremy Dellinger and Nathan Smith are ranked second after the three-day tournament in South Carolina, and in the process, have qualified for the 2020 Carhartt Bassmaster College Series National Championship, which takes place on Oct. 29-31 in Leesburg, Fla.

“I felt good about this tournament from the beginning,” said CVCC bass

(AP) — Penn State linebacker Micah Parsons and Oregon tackle Penei Sewell are among 11 players selected to The Associated Press preseason All-America first team who are not slated to play this fall.

The team was selected by 47 AP poll voters, who were asked to consider all Division I players — even those who had already opted out of the season or whose teams had postponed football.

The results show just how much star power will be missing from this pandemic-altered college football season. Twelve second-team All-Americans will also not play in the fall, including quarterback Justin Fields from defending Big Ten

It’s the third Friday in August, and the bright lights that are supposed to be on at high school football stadiums across the state of North Carolina won’t be burning tonight.

Three of the four Lincoln County teams were scheduled to be in action tonight to kickoff the season, with West Lincoln traveling to Draughn, North Lincoln hosting Parkwood and Lincolnton at home against Stuart Cramer.

East Lincoln had an open week scheduled for week one, and was set to host East Rowan next Friday in their season opener.

On Wednesday afternoon, the North Carolina High School Athletic Association laid out a plan to begin prep athletics no earlier than November 4th.

High school football, however, will not begin practice until February 8, 2021 and play a seven-game schedule that would start on February 26.

Per the schedule released by the NCHSAA, cross-country and volleyball will be allowed to begin full practices beginning November 4, and swimming & diving

As a follow up to North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper’s announcement to remain in Phase Two of the state’s reopening plan, NCHSAA Commissioner Que Tucker released the following statement concerning the start of high school sports.

"At his press conference on Wednesday, August 5, 2020, Governor Roy Cooper and his health team extended Phase Two of the state’s reopening plan until at least September 11. Unfortunately, this announcement means that the start of sports for the 2020-2021 school year will be delayed beyond

CHERRYVILLE -- One of Cherryville’s pioneers in recreation was honored Thursday, July 30, in a dedication ceremony at Aaron Moss Park.

Dr. Floyd Wright was the special guest as city officials unveiled a sign proclaiming one of the two ballfields at the park as "Dr. Floyd Wright Softball Field" in perpetuity.

The naming of the facility for Wright recognized the retired educator’s

Former East Lincoln High School standout and East Carolina pitcher/first baseman Alec Burleson has been named the American Athletic Conference Male and Baseball Scholar-Athlete of the Year the league office announced Wednesday morning. He is the second straight ECU baseball player to be the conference’s Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year and will receive a $4,000 scholarship from the conference.

Burleson is one of four ECU students to be chosen as his respective sport’s scholar-athlete of the year along with Dorthea Forbrigd (women’s golf), Megan Pallozzi (lacrosse) and Patrick Stephenson (men’s golf). They will each

On July 23, the North Carolina High School Athletic Association’s Board of Directors voted to provide Phase Two guidance to member schools regarding summer conditioning and workout activities. As always, the NCHSAA suggested that athletic departments consult with the school and LEA administrators relative to local rules and regulations.

The Phase Two guidelines provided by the NCHSAA will go into effect on Monday, August 3.

In many instances, the Phase One and Phase Two guidelines are the same. Below are some of the differences when transitioning to Phase Two, as highlighted by the NCHSAA.

•Sharing of equipment is permissible within small groups/pods.

•Wearing protective equipment remains prohibited.

•Equipment must be disinfected frequently, and it REQUIRES disinfecting prior to use by another pod.

•LAT’s/1st Responders are not REQUIRED; however, as noted in the Points of Emphasis, they should always be included when possible.

Coaches of schools that have not participated in Phase One are strongly encouraged to ensure a gradual return to activities, considering the condition of students who may have been physically inactive this summer. Additionally, it is important that coaches "teach" the daily monitoring protocol and ways that workouts will incorporate the "3 W’s" of mitigating COVID-19.

Due to the extreme heat and humidity we are experiencing, coaches MUST follow the requirements as listed in the NCHSAA Handbook as well as observing the local policies.

The NCHSAA Staff has worked with the Sports Medicine Advisory Committee (SMAC) on recommendations for member schools regarding summer activities that are in alignment with DHHS directives. The Phase Two guidance is intended to help continue or begin to navigate a gradual reopening of high school sports, while helping mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

The NCHSAA Board of Directors understands that implementation decisions schools make this summer regarding sports and other co-curricular activities will potentially impact the upcoming school year. Thus, it is important that everyone adhere to this current guidance.

The Association also said that schools and coaches are reminded that, per NCHSAA policy, participation in summer sports/activities cannot be required.

The NCHSAA Staff, Board of Directors and SMAC all remain committed to administering sports/activities this Fall, provided it can be done safely and in accordance with guidance from the state’s educational and medical partners.

And finally, the NCHSAA press release stated that decisions relative to the September 1 start date will be made later in August.

North Carolina standout linebacker Chazz Surratt has been selected for The Butkus Award preseason watch list. The award honors the nation’s best linebacker.

Surratt, who was named to the Chuck Bednarik Award watch list last week, was a first team All-ACC selection and finished runner-up for ACC Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2019. Surratt led North Carolina and ranked second in the ACC with 115 total tackles last season.

The Denver, North Carolina, native led the Tar Heels with 15.0 tackles for

Six cross-country athletes from North Lincoln High School recently returned from Flagstaff, Arizona after 23 days of high altitude training.

The boys ran in parks and local trails around Flagstaff trying to improve on their endurance. Returning for their senior season at North Lincoln are Jared Campbell, Noah Carter, Miles Phillips, and Jacob Scott. North Lincoln graduates Jason Thomson, who will be attending the University of North Carolina and Alex Wulfhorst, who is headed to the Citadel, also attended.

The North Lincoln athletes joined Dylan Belles, a former East Lincoln High

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Wake Forest redshirt junior wide receiver Sage Surratt was named to the Fred Biletnikoff Award Watch List, as announced by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation last week.

The award is presented annually to the nation’s outstanding college receiver. Last season before a season-ending injury, Surratt was one of 12 semifinalists for the Biletnikoff Award. In those nine games in 2019, he led all Power-5 receivers with 1,001 receiving yards while totaling 11 touchdowns.

During his sophomore campaign, Surratt recorded four games of 150 or more

Less than 24 hours after Governor Roy Cooper had announced the state of North Carolina’s plans for reopening public schools in August, the NCHSAA sent out a statement saying that the high school fall sports season will be delayed until at least September 1.

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association’s Board of Directors approved the rule on delaying the season on Wednesday, along with designating the first five days of the 2020-2021 school year as a "dead period" for all sports, to allow school staff to focus primarily on the start of

North Carolina High School Athletic Association Commissioner Que Tucker held a press conference on Wednesday to update the state’s media on the status of the upcoming fall sports season.

While there was some speculation that Tucker would be laying out the plan for the fall or releasing some pertinent information, the Commissioner began the press conference by saying, "There is no major announcement forthcoming from the Association (NCHSAA) today."

"And to be clear," Tucker said, "we’ll never make a major announcement to

Conditioning workouts resumed this week for local high school athletes, including West Lincoln football players who returned to the daily grind following last week’s "dead period" for the July 4th holiday.

West Lincoln coaches and players are following the guidelines that were issued by the North Carolina High School Athletic Association prior to allowing schools to return to the practice fields.

Players and coaches alike are hoping that the high school football season will get underway later this fall.

With the latest Coronavirus numbers growing daily in the United States and in particular North Carolina, could the high school football season actually be played in the spring?

Some school systems in the state, such as Cabarrus County and Alamance-Burlington, have pushed back their athletic start date until at least July 20, and at this rate there is a good chance the date will be pushed back even more.

Since football brings in the majority of the gate money for the majority of the

Lincoln County athletes are taking a break this week from their daily workouts.

The North Carolina High School Athletic Associations "Dead Period" runs through Sunday, July 5th.

Stadiums and practice fields are all quiet this week before the student-athletes get back to work beginning Monday.

Lincoln County is allowing offseason workouts as long as the schools operate

The upcoming 2020-21 high school sports seasons are scheduled to be the final seasons under the current alignment, meaning that the conferences as we know them today could go away.

Since 2013, all 2A schools in Lincoln County have been paired up with either all or the majority of the 2A schools in Catawba County, making for short travel, good gates and traditional rivalries.

East Lincoln, West Lincoln, Lincolnton, Maiden, Bandys and Newton-Conover have been in the same 2A conference since 2013, and North Lincoln joined

As June starts to wind down, the absence of American Legion Baseball this summer leaves us local sports fans with yet another void in our everyday lives.

The coronavirus has affected us in many ways, and not being able to get out and cover Legion baseball makes this time of year a little dull and boring.

Usually, at this point in the season, the local Legion teams have gotten their rosters in place and are preparing for a run in the Area IV playoffs.

Offseason workouts began for many high school sports in Lincoln County on Monday after the North Carolina High School Athletic Association ended the “Dead Period” that was put in place due to the Coronavirus.

Many guidelines and restrictions were put in place by the NCHSAA that have to be enforced by each school in order to hold workouts, including limitations on gatherings, keeping facilities and equipment clean, staggered entrance and

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association announced Monday afternoon that the Coronavirus dead period is still on schedule to be lifted on Monday, June 15.

If the dead period is lifted on Monday, local school systems would then have to decide what is best for their particular district.     

In an interview with 99.9 The Fan in Raleigh, NCHSAA Commissioner Que Tucker was also quick to make it clear that there will be many restrictions and

This time last year, the North Lincoln Knights were winning their first ever 2A baseball state championship with a two-game sweep of Randleman in the best-of-3 series at UNC-Greensboro.

This season, unfortunately, the North Lincoln baseball team did not get the opportunity to defend its state title, after Covid-19 forced the season to be suspended back on March 13, and eventually canceled the entire season.

“First of all, not getting to play baseball in general was disappointing,” said North Lincoln head baseball coach Jon Carpenter.  “I hate to not see what we

East Lincoln High School has announced the winners of their yearly sports awards for the 2019-20 school year, along with the names of the Athletic Booster Scholarship winners.

Senior Ethan Martin was named the Mustangs’ Male Athlete of the Year.  Martin was a captain on the football team that went 8-4, playing middle linebacker for Coach David Lubowicz.

Martin was also a standout baseball player on Coach Chris Matile’s squad before the Coronavirus brought an early end to the 2020 season.

Taylor Barrineau was named East Lincoln’s Female Athlete of the Year.  Barrineau was a senior captain on Coach Jason Dragoon’s women’s soccer

Earlier this week, the North Carolina High School Athletic Association Board of Directors voted to extend the Covid-19 dead period until June 15, two weeks further than the original expiration date of June 1.

In Tuesday’s online press conference, NCHSAA Commissioner Que Tucker said the plan is to allow all sports to begin off-season training with restrictions to be outlined over the next few weeks.

“The intention is for all sports to be able to resume all activities after the June 15 deadline,” Tucker said.  “There is no reason why there can’t be physical conditioning for all sports. The idea would be to allow opportunities for all

Lincolnton senior shortstop and pitcher E.J. Manjarres has been awarded the 2020 Jonathan Brookins Memorial Scholarship, named for the former Lincolnton baseball player, the committee announced Tuesday.

The $2,500 award honors the memory of Brookins, a pitcher and first baseman on the Wolves’ 1995 state championship team. He was an all-state player as a senior in 1997 and helped lead Cherryville Post 100 to an American Legion baseball state title later that summer. Brookins is also a member of the Lincoln County Sports Hall of Fame.

Manjarres will graduate from Lincolnton High School with a 4.2 GPA and is a

East Lincoln High School’s Derek Martin has been selected as a regional recipient of the Willie Bradshaw Memorial Endowed Scholarship for the 2019-2020 school year.

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association announced the winners of the Willie Bradshaw Memorial Endowed Scholarship on Thursday.  

The Willie Bradshaw Endowed Scholarship provides $750 of scholarship support to selected outstanding Black African American, Native American, Alaska Native, Asian American, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, or Hispanic American student-athletes participating on a sanctioned varsity team

The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) on Tuesday released a set of suggested guidelines for state associations to consider when beginning the reopening of high school athletics across the United States.  

The guidelines pointed out that the NFHS firmly believes that a return to physical activity and athletic competition is necessary for the physical and mental well-being of high school students nationwide.  But it also recognized that not all students will be able to return to athletic activity at the same time in every school, region and state.  

The NFHS also urges that all state associations and organizations engage with

RALEIGH (AP) — North Mecklenburg’s Tristan Maxwell and Newton-Conover’s Chyna Cornwell are The Associated Press men’s and women’s prep basketball players of the year in North Carolina for the 2019-20 season.

George Stackhouse of Fayetteville Westover and Dee Hardy of Fayetteville Smith were selected men’s and women’s coaches of the year in results released Friday. That followed a vote of 15 statewide media members who also selected the AP all-state men’s and women’s teams.

The awards came two months after the coronavirus pandemic led to the

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association announced last week in an email that the dead period that has been in place since March 13 due to Covid-19 will end on June 1.

But before high school athletes can begin summer workouts, state and local leaders must give the ok to do so, and then county and city school systems would also have to give their seal of approval.

The email from the NCHSAA read, “After consulting with superintendents across the state, it was determined that a set date is necessary and important to help ensure that there is consistency as we move towards what is typically