Asheboro swimmer Madison Burnette helped the Blue Comets in a relay during the state championships. (Randolph Record file photo)
CARY – Freshman Megan Becker of Asheboro was the runner-up in the Class 3-A girls’ 100-yard freestyle in the state championships Saturday at the Triangle Aquatic Center.
Becker finished the race in 53.57 seconds behind Orange’s Katie Belle Sikes, who set a Class 3-A state meet record of 49.45.
Becker was also fourth in the 200 freestyle in 1:56.40.
Asheboro’s Madison Burnette, Fiona Wolfe-Roberts, Maci Columbia and Becker combined for 10th place in the 200 freestyle relay in 1:48.56.
Ninth in the 400 freestyle relay in 4:01.35.
Indoor track and field
At Winston-Salem, Randleman senior Iniyah Mitchell placed third in the Class 2-A girls’ shot put in the state championships at JDL Fast Track.
Mitchell’s toss of 34 feet, 9 ½ inches was nearly 3 feet farther than the fourth-place mark.
Brecken Snotherly goes up for a shot earlier this season at Trinity. (Randolph Record)
CLIMAX – It’s already an historic season for Eastern Randolph’s girls’ basketball team.
Much of that is coming from senior guard Brecken Snotherly, who racked up a school-record 51 points in Tuesday night’s regular-season home finale against Trinity.
“I was kind of surprised to have that many,” she said. “I would say 25 points was a lot for a game.”
She hit six 3-point shots. That might have been the difference from some of her other games.
“My shot, when you have games that you’re on,” she said.
Snotherly eclipsed her previous best of 43 points last month at Wheatmore.
It’s believed to be the 26th time a girls’ player has reached the 50-point mark in a game in North Carolina High School Athletic Association history. Cedar Ridge’s Amiyah Ware notched 54 points against Western Alamance a few nights before Snotherly’s accomplishment. Only 19 girls have scored 50 or more in the state because a few players have done so multiple times.
Eastern Randolph (15-6, 9-3 Piedmont Athletic Conference) completed its league slate when Snotherly had 28 points in Thursday night’s 62-37 road victory against Providence Grove.
The Wildcats finished second in the PAC and are guaranteed their first winning season in six years. It’s shaping up as the best season since a 26-3 record in 2006-07.
“We’ve been able to click,” Snotherly said. “Everybody gets long and that’s huge for a team.”
During the 72-39 romp past visiting Trinity, Snotherly passed the 2,000-point mark for her career (Winston-Salem Christian and Eastern Randolph).
** Randleman wrapped up its second consecutive undefeated PAC regular season by defeating host Trinity 55-38 as Gracyn Hall had 22 points and 15 rebounds Thursday night.
It was the only game of the week for the Tigers, who’ll have a first-round bye in the PAC Tournament.
“Randleman is tough, but we’re coming for them,” Eastern Randolph coach Jeff Davis said. “They do what they do very well. We’ve got to go that extra mile.”
** Southwestern Randolph’s only game of the week resulted in a 60-55 home victory against Uwharrie Charter Academy. That puts the third-place Cougars (17-7, 7-5) in contention for a 20-win season for the fourth consecutive full season – not counting the pandemic-reduced 2021 season.
** Wheatmore’s Kynnedi Routh tallied 21 points as the Warriors defeated visiting Providence Grove 57-46. The Warriors topped host Uwharrie Charter Academy 42-39 to conclude the regular season.
Eastern Randolph’s Davonte Brooks ties the game with a dunk late in the third quarter at Providence Grove. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)
Wildcats withstand Providence Grove for rare basketball prize
CLIMAX – Eastern Randolph had to make changes to figure out how to topple Providence Grove in Thursday night’s unexpected down-to-the-end tussle in boys’ basketball.
Just mark it up as another accomplishment for this group of Wildcats.
They’re outright Piedmont Athletic Conference regular-season champions, collecting the school’s first league title of any sort in boys’ basketball in seven years and only second regular-season title in 29 years.
“We wanted to bring something back to Eastern Randolph for basketball and not just football,” senior forward Davonte Brooks said. “Now we can be a basketball and football school, not just football.”
The biggest variation of the past couple of months might come in perception considering Eastern Randolph won just eight games last season.
“It’s hard to change someone’s mindset,” first-year coach Johnny Thomas said.
And it was plenty difficult do dispatch Providence Grove, which turned in perhaps its best performance of the season on Senior Night.
Eastern Randolph clung to a one-point lead in the final minute, making three free throws in the last 12 seconds to secure an 88-84 victory against its neighboring rival.
“We got it done,” reserve Mason Briles said, calling it the wildest environment the Wildcats had competed in all season. “It feels great.”
The Wildcats (22-2, 11-1 PAC) will be the top seed and receive a quarterfinal bye in the league tournament next week before a Wednesday night semifinal at home. Eastern Randolph will be the location of the girls’ and boys’ tournament finals Feb. 17.
Brooks scored 30 points and Connor Carter had all 11 of his points in the second half, beginning with a go-ahead 3-pointer at the buzzer to close the third quarter.
“I didn’t want to lose, period,” Brooks said, “especially to PG. After we felt (how it felt) to lose the first two (defeats), we didn’t want another.”
It appeared the Patriots weren’t interested in coming up short again, either.
“All I asked them to do is fight,” Providence Grove coach Wes Luther said. “We’ve had a disappointing season, but the way we played (this game), I’ll take it.”
Sixth-place Providence Grove (7-17, 3-9), which lost by 33 points in the first meeting with Eastern Randolph, went to halftime with a 38-37 lead courtesy of Jacob Grantham’s difficult 16-foot shot at the buzzer. He kept up a personal scoring spree in the third quarter, when the Patriots went up 50-42.
Connor Carter drains a second-half 3-pointer over Providence Grove’s Joseph Coltrane. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)
A Brooks dunk tied it at 60-60 shortly before Carter heated up. He was dialed in from both corners in the fourth quarter, with the Wildcats building an eight-point advantage and later his 3-pointer stretching the edge to 83-78.
Grantham’s two free throws and Zane Cheek’s breakaway layup for Providence Grove – the latter with 51 seconds left – were sandwiched around Brooks’ basket off a rebound before the Wildcats sealed it with free throws.
“It was a great game both ways,” Luther said. “We did hit more shots than we have all year. They kept trying to put us away with big shots. We just wouldn’t go away.”
Eastern Randolph’s Timothy Brower tallied 15 points, Pierce Leonard had 13 points and Nicah Taylor added 11 points. The contributions didn’t end there.
“You’ve got Jani (Norwood) and Will Stalker and those guys in there getting big rebounds,” Thomas said.
Grantham finished with 17 points, Chase Whitaker had 14 and Sakai McKoy notched 13 points for the Patriots, who were last season’s regular-season PAC champions.
Eastern Randolph finished one game ahead of Southwestern Randolph, which snapped the Wildcats’ 19-game winning streak Jan. 31.
“We know everybody is going to come and everybody is going to fight us the best that they possibly can,” Thomas said. “Coming into halftime, my speech to my kids was, of course, very intense.”
So the Wildcats amped up their pressure defense to extend to full court.
As a result, it was a regular season full of rewards.
Megan Becker of Asheboro, shown here last month, is one of the qualifiers for the Class 3-A state championships. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)
GREENSBORO – Asheboro and Wheatmore had swimmers qualify for this week’s state meet after regional competitions late last week.
Asheboro swimming coach Chuck Hinson said the Blue Comets had their largest number of regional qualifiers in program history as the team was entered in 20 individual events and six relays in the Class 3-A Central Regional on Friday at Greensboro Aquatic Center.
Freshman Megan Becker was the runner-up in the 200-yard freestyle in 1 minute, 57.67 seconds and second in the 100 freestyle in 53.87.
Sophomore Maci Columbia qualified for states by placing fifth in the 500 freestyle in 5:39.87 and seventh in the 100 breaststroke in 1:16.83.
The girls’ 400 freestyle relay of Fiona Wolfe-Roberts, Madison Burnette, Columbia and Becker placed third in 4:03.35. The same quartet placed fourth in the 200 freestyle relay in 1:48.99.
On the boys’ side, junior Tyler Smith was sixth in 50 freestyle with a personal-best 23.89.
The Class 3-A state championships will be held Saturday at Triangle Aquatic Center in Cary.
In Class 1-A/2-A girls, Wheatmore sophomore Sydney Hall qualified for the states in the 50 freestyle (26.80) and 100 butterfly (1:06.67) from Saturday’s Central Regional. The Class 1-A/2-A state meet will be held Thursday in Cary.
Booker is a senior starter on another Piedmont Athletic Conference championship team for the Tigers.
Booker, a guard, ranks third in scoring on the team with 8.4 points per game, hitting about 51 percent of her shots from the field. She’s second in rebounding at 5.0 per game.
She’s also in the top three for Randleman in steals and free-throw percentage.
The Tigers, who’ve eclipsed the 20-win mark for the second season in a row, finish the regular season this week. In the PAC Tournament, they’ll have a bye before a home semifinal game Feb. 15.
Booker was an All-PAC selection last spring in softball.
For his first bill filed as a Representative of Moore and Randolph counties, Rep. Neal Jackson is proposing a bill to give public schools greater flexibility with the school year start date. He is pleased to be joined by Speaker Pro Tempore Sarah Stevens, Rep. Donnie Loftis, and Rep. Brian Biggs.
The current statute requires schools start no earlier than the Monday closest to August 26. Rep. Jackson’s bill would allow public schools the flexibility to open as early as August 10 each year. This bill would also allow for flexibility with first-semester testing and would align with college schedules allowing easier transfers for graduating seniors. This school calendar flexibility bill does not dictate the start date local school boards must abide by, but instead gives them the freedom to decide what schedule works best for their community.
Rep. Jackson commented, “This bill is the response of the numerous requests of our local school officials and parents who desire a schedule that works best for our students and their future scholastic goals.”
Rep. Donnie Loftis said, “This bill will provide flexibility for local school districts to coordinate learning that aligns with our Community College system and centers of higher learning. It also provides opportunities for local school districts to complete mid-year testing before the Holiday break.”
Rep. Brian Biggs had this to say, “I am happy to bring this bill to the legislature to ensure the flexibility that the school systems need to be able to best serve our residents. We will continue to champion the needs and rights of our students, parents, and local officials to make the best choices for our school systems.”
ASHEBORO — The Randolph County Board of Commissioners met Monday, February 6, where they were provided updates on two of the county’s major construction projects.
The first item of new business was an update on the Health Department renovations.
“Last summer, you awarded a contract to Smith Sinett Architecture to design a renovation to the health department, which is located at the Ira McDowell Center,” said County Engineer Paxton Arthurs. “Since that time, Smith Sinett has worked to finalize the design and put together the bid documents.”
The current Health Department space is 16,000 square feet, with 35 offices, two dental offices, ten general exam rooms, a pharmacy, a laboratory, and supply storage.
“The building was built in the early ‘80s to the best that we can determine, so it’s about 40 years old,” said Robert Carmac of Smith Sinett. “During that time, it only had some minor renovations. No major renovations, improvements, or reorganizations of the space have happened since then, so it’s badly needed to improve the workflow.”
The new projected site plan will feature three additional offices, an independent dental suite with three additional exam rooms, six additional general exam rooms, additional and organized storage, a dedicated check-in/check-out area, one additional break room, a fitness room, and secured circulation corridors.
The project is split into seven alternative phases, with the base bid coming in at $1.718 million. With all the additions, the construction cost comes out to $2.483 million, and with all the fees added, the total project budget would be $2.895 million.
“One of the reasons we’ve laid this project out the way we did is one: to help with the budget,” Carmac said. “We know that there’s going to be multiple funding sources for this project, so we’ve staggered this into seven alternates to allow budget flexibility and allow this project to come in budget whether we get all seven or just one or two parts.”
According to Carmac, the projected completion date would be April 2024.
After the presentation, the board authorized county staff to advertise the project for bids.
The board was also given an update on the Farm Food and Family Education Center.
“The architects have just completed the design and development phase of the Farm Food and Family Education Center,” said Cooperative Extension Director Kenny Sherin. “The latest estimate actually came down a little bit from the schematic development phase. Several factors, but the architects and engineers have been working very hard to find cost-cutting measures. They were able to reduce the cost down to $28.9 million. We have secured $28.3 million, so we just need an additional $600,000 to meet the current estimate.”
The final action that the board took was the setting of a public hearing as the first step in abolishing and restructuring the final six fire districts in the county.
“Until recently, fire departments in Randolph County had their tax rates capped at a $0.15 rate, and that’s because of how they were formed and when they were formed,” said Associate County Attorney Aimee Scotton. “Based upon needs expressed by several of our fire departments and the expectation that more would need that in the future, we began abolishing the current capped districts and recreating them without the cap.”
The final six districts that will be restructured are the Coleridge-Erect, Fair Grove, Farmer, Julian, Northeast, and Staley Fire Districts.
The new districts will be exactly the same size and area but will give fire departments the option to raise their tax rate if necessary. This decision itself is not a tax increase.
The Randolph County Board of Commissioners will next meet March 6.
ARCHDALE — Jerry Tillman’s influence on state politics had a long-lasting impact that’s bound to extend well past his death.
“He had a huge impact on our area,” state Sen. Dave Craven said. “He was a champion for our community.”
Tillman, a longtime state senator from Randolph County, died Saturday at age 82.
Tillman, a retired teacher, administrator, and coach in public schools, was first elected to the state Senate in 2002. He resigned from the chamber in 2020. He served a total of nine terms and became one of two majority whips in the Senate.
Craven, while in high school, was a page for Tillman in 2005. Fifteen years later, he was appointed to replace Tillman and later elected to the position.
“Jerry Tillman has been good to me through the years,” Craven said. “I can never thank him enough. I want to honor him in any way we can. I want to build on the legacy that he built.”
Tillman’s efforts involved becoming an advocate for Randolph Hospital and North Carolina Zoo.
He was a strong proponent of K-12 schools and a leader on education issues, given his background in the Randolph County School System. During his time in the majority, the legislature overhauled teacher and principal pay scales, resulting in substantial raises.
Senate leader Phil Berger, a Republican from Rockingham County, said in a statement: “Jerry was highly regarded in Raleigh and back in Randolph County for being a dedicated educator and leader. He played a significant role in shaping the policies that made North Carolina the best state in the nation. Jerry was truly larger than life. He was never afraid to share his thoughts on a particular bill and would often lighten the mood by regaling us with tales about music, racing, and baseball.”
Earlier this week, Gov. Roy Cooper ordered all U.S. and North Carolina flags at state facilities to half-staff for two days to honor Tillman.
“Senator Tillman was a dedicated public servant who worked tirelessly for his community for many years,” Cooper said in a statement. “Our prayers are with his family and loved ones during this difficult time.”
During his nine terms in the Senate, Tillman emerged as a chamber leader. He served as Chair of the Senate Finance Committee, Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee on Education, and Majority Whip.
As finance committee chairman, his reputation grew as a lawmaker pushing for lower taxes, Craven said.
“His leadership in the Senate ushered in a new era that transformed North Carolina’s political and economic landscape,” Craven said. “His influence will be felt in Randolph County for generations to come.”
Tillman rose to the No. 4 seat in the 50-member chamber. That was the top spot other than those reserved for specific leadership roles.
“He was as senior as you can be,” Craven said.
Often referred to as “coach” by his colleagues, Sen. Tillman’s love of baseball and music was well known. He would often recite songs to people who stopped by his office.
He also had an interest in NASCAR, creating a longtime friendship with legendary driver Richard Petty of Level Cross.
In his retirement announcement in 2020, Tillman said: “It has been a pleasure serving the people that I have been so honored to represent over the years. My greatest joy in serving has always come from helping people with their everyday needs.”
He took the most pride in the assistance he provided others.
“I’ve been very, very pleased to help people,” Tillman said upon his retirement. “When you can help them, you have a good feeling, and I’ve done that for 20 years. I feel like that it’s time for me to move on and give somebody else a chance to do this work.”
Marlon Morris spent three seasons as Trinity’s head coach. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph record)
TRINITY – Trinity is amid a coaching change for its football program.
Marlon Morris stepped down from his role as head coach after three seasons.
“It was kind of a surprise,” Trinity athletics director Robert Mitchell said. “He decided it was best not to stay as coach.”
Trinity was 9-16 in three seasons under Morris. The Bulldogs had back-to-back 4-6 seasons after a 1-4 mark in the pandemic-reconfigured 2021 spring season.
“We’re going to give it a few weeks and see how the next month goes,” Mitchell said Monday of hiring a replacement. “It’s still fresh now and we want to see what openings we might have (on the school staff).”
Within a few days of word spreading about the vacancy, Mitchell said about a dozen potential candidates made contact with him.
Trinity’s 2023 team could have up to 30 seniors. Mitchell said there were good roster numbers for the junior varsity team last fall.
Morris, also a social studies teacher, was defensive coordinator in 2019 before he was named head coach in March 2020 shortly after the start of the pandemic. The High Point Central alum previously had been on the coaching staff at Ledford.
Morris replaced Brett Andrews, who had been coach for five seasons.
Morris’ first season as head coach was the 2021 adjusted spring season because of the pandemic. Trinity ended a 17-game losing streak that March.
“I think he did a great job during the pandemic,” Mitchell said, “because that was tough for everybody.”
In 2022, the Bulldogs won four of their first five games, but ended the season on a five-game losing streak and were the last-place team in the Piedmont Athletic Conference. Except for a one-point loss to Wheatmore, the other PAC defeats were by 31 or more points.
“It was definitely a rough ending,” Mitchell said.
The problems were compounded by injuries. Senior Dylan Hodges, one of the team’s top two-way players, suffered a broken collarbone in the third game of the season. Injuries mounted, with quarterback Dominic Payne missing the last two games with an ankle ailment.
With changes at Asheboro and Providence Grove, it means three of the seven football-playing schools in Randolph County will be under the direction of new coaches this year.
Southwestern Randolph’s Nathan Ellis goes up for a shot as Eastern Randolph players, left to right, Timothy Brower, Nicah Taylor, Davonte Brooks and Pierce Leonard look on. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)
ASHEBORO – The big upset from last week came with Southwestern Randolph ending the Eastern Randolph boys’ basketball team’s winning streak at 19 games.
The Cougars won 75-66 at home, so that likely will keep the suspense in the Piedmont Athletic Conference going until the final night of the regular season.
Nathan Ellis led the way with 21 points, while teammates Thomas Leal (14 points), Sean Adkins (12), Kearns Trotter (11) and Landon Williamson (10) all scored in double figures.
Second-place Southwestern Randolph remained just a half-game out of first place by topping visiting Wheatmore 54-34 as Adkins posted 16 points Friday night.
Eastern Randolph hadn’t lost since its opener Dec. 2 at Southwest Guilford.
The Wildcats got back on track by winning 89-76 at Uwharrie Charter Academy on Friday night with a boost from Davonte Brooks’ 24 points (after he had 20 in the Southwestern Randolph game). Pierce Leonard, playing against his former school, tacked on 18 points and Timothy Brower had 17 points. These outputs helped overcome 41 points from UCA’s Ashton Troutman.
Eastern Randolph could secure the outright regular-season title by beating visiting Trinity, which remains in contention, on Tuesday night and host Providence Grove on Thursday night. Southwestern Randolph’s lone game this week was set for Tuesday night at UCA, while Trinity is also home vs. Randleman on Thursday night.
** Trinity played just once last week with Dominic Payne and Dylan Hodges each scoring 23 points in a 68-51 victory at Providence Grove.
** Despite 24 points from Tyshaun Goldston, Randleman fell 64-60 at UCA. The Tigers received 22 points from Christian Long in an 82-41 pounding of visiting Providence Grove.
** In the Mid-Piedmont Conference, Asheboro moved closer to clinching a title by defeating visiting Central Davidson 50-47 and topping host North Davidson 55-48. Hakeeme Butler’s 18 points and 20 points, respectively, those games paced the Blue Comets.
Eastern Randolph’s Logan Beaver launches a shot over Uwharrie Charter Academy’s Blakeley Justus last week. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)
Girls’ basketball
Randleman secured the outright PAC championship by defeating host UCA 56-33 as Gracyn Hall tallied 20 points.
The Tigers then won their regular-season home finale by 63-27 against Providence Grove.
** Eastern Randolph won twice, including a 43-34 road victory against host Southwestern Randolph as Brecken Snotherly rolled up 25 points and 11 rebounds. That result avenged a loss from early January.
Next, Snotherly poured in 30 points in Eastern Randolph’s 61-34 victory against UCA. That gave the Wildcats a four-game winning streak entering this week.
Eastern Randolph clinched at least a share of second place in the PAC.
