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ER boys postgame video at South Stokes

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

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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 Eastern Randolph coach Johnny Thomas said.

Devonte Brooks scored 15 points despite foul trouble, Timothy Brower posted 10 of his 12 points in the second half and Nicah Taylor finished with 11 points in Eastern Randolph’s first road game of the postseason.

“The whole season we have built a foundation where we can play with or without Devonte,” Thomas said.

The Wildcats made enough plays down the stretch. The Sauras missed three potential tying 3-point shots in the final 12 seconds.

Eastern Randolph’s Pierce Leonard makes a steal on Brendon Bradford of South Stokes during Tuesday night’s Class 1-A West Region semifinal. Eastern Randolph’s Timothy Brower, left, and Davonte Brooks also apply defensive pressure. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)

Third-seeded Eastern Randolph (28-2) meets fourth-seeded Bishop McGuinness (25-5), which eliminated top-seeded Mountain Heritage 58-54, on Saturday at a to-be-determined neutral site.

South Stokes (25-5) led 45-36 at halftime.

“It was just a simple adjustment of pride,” Thomas said.

Barry Hairston poured in 23 points for the Sauras.

Bertie (26-4) and Wilson Prep (25-7) will meet in the East Region final.

Girls’ basketball

At Randleman, top-seeded Randleman dropped a 49-42 decision to visiting East Burke in the Class 2-A West Region semifinals.

Gracyn Hall scored 12 points for Randleman (27-2), which led 24-21 at halftime before trailing 33-29 entering the fourth quarter.

With the Tigers facing a 42-40 deficit, East Burke posted the next five points.

Randleman’s Elizabeth York and Audra Petty both notched nine points.

Fifth-seeded East Burke (27-2) takes on third-seeded Salisbury (25-3) in the regional final.

Randleman girls Gracie Beane v Hendersonville Feb2023

Prep girls: Randleman finds right mix in second round; E. Randolph also wins

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Gracie Beane of Randleman makes a pass in the second half against Hendersonville in Thursday night’s Class 2-A state playoffs. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)

RANDLEMAN – A great start and a splendid second-half span were enough to extend the season for Randleman’s girls’ basketball team.

The Tigers did enough in between in the Class 2-A second-round game to defeat visiting Hendersonville 63-54 on Thursday night.

“Give (our players) credit for coming ready to play,” Randleman coach Brandon Varner said. “We did a lot of great stuff.”

That came in large doses in the opening minutes and in a game-deciding stretch in the third quarter.

As a result, Randleman (26-1), the top-seeded team in the West Region, will meet eighth-seeded East Rutherford (27-2), an 88-54 winner against North Stanly, at 2 p.m. Saturday at home in the third round.

“From here on, every team is good,” senior guard Jordan Booker said.

And so are the Tigers, proving so during various situations against Hendersonville (18-10).

The game began with Randleman scoring the first 14 points. With center Graycn Hall picking up two fouls and going to the bench, the lead evaporated and the Bearcats, who went more than six minutes without a point, were within a point in the second quarter. The Tigers kept the lead, heading to halftime ahead 25-23.

But Hendersonville tied the game a couple of times in the third quarter. Then at 35-35, senior Elizabeth York took over.

“I was definitely giving more effort than usual, which is embarrassing to say,” York said. “But I wasn’t going to let this be my last game.”

She scored the next eight points on a field goal, a three-point play and a 3-point shot. Hall added a putback off an offensive rebound before perhaps the most exciting sequence of the game.

Randleman secured a defensive rebound with about four seconds left in the quarter. A couple of passes later, York had the ball and flung up a desperation shot for a crowd-pleasing, unorthodox basket at the buzzer and a 47-37 lead.

It was nearly a no-look shot, though York said she glanced “for a second” toward the basket.

York converted another three-point play early in the fourth quarter and the Tigers eventually went up by 19 points.

“We knew we were the better team,” Booker said. “We had to play together and play like we can and it worked out.”

In the third quarter, Randleman switched from a zone and some specialty defenses to man-to-man. Varner said he liked how the Tigers handled the adjustment.

“These girls are battle-tested and have played a lot of basketball,” he said.

Hall finished with 24 points and York had 22 points. AJ Jackson had 15 of her 22 points in the first half for Hendersonville.

The Tigers also collected a valuable lesson, further understanding to avoid letting up.

“We got too comfortable with our lead,” York said. “It’s going to get tougher and tougher as Coach Varner says.”

So the Tigers know there’s no easy paths to keeping the season alive.

“They’re all good now,” Varner said. “You’ve got to show up and play your best.”

** Shelby 61, Southwestern Randolph 27: At Shelby, the 15th-seeded Cougars (19-9) fell into an 18-2 hole and didn’t recover at No. 2 seed Shelby (25-1) in Class 2-A.

Class 1-A

At Ramseur, Brecken Snotherly scored 27 points and No. 5 seed Eastern Randolph stopped No. 12 seed Rosman 53-40

Kenly Whitaker poured in 17 points for host Eastern Randolph (19-7), which trailed 27-24 at halftime. A 13-3 advantage in the third quarter turned the momentum.

Snotherly, who made three 3-pointers, also had 12 rebounds.

The Wildcats will be home again Saturday against No. 13 seed Robbinsville (19-8), a 71-66 winner vs. fourth-seeded Albemarle.

Rosman finished with a 23-6 record.

** Bessemer City 46, Uwharrie Charter Academy 39: At Bessemer, the visiting Eagles nearly recovered from an early 15-point hole, closing to within 20-19 at halftime, but they couldn’t complete the comeback against seventh-seeded Bessemer City (21-6).

No. 23 seed UCA ended with a 12-16 record.

Randleman girls after PAC Tourney final Feb2023

Randleman girls respond, claim PAC Tournament in overtime

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Members of the Randleman girls’ basketball team gather with the hardware after defeating host Eastern Randolph in overtime. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)

Rally from Eastern Randolph creates drama

RAMSEUR – Randleman’s recovery from a few late-game glitches made the Tigers’ championship that much more impressive Friday night in the girls’ basketball final of the Piedmont Athletic Conference Tournament.

One thing the Tigers weren’t lacking was that internal belief that they would find a way to successfully defend their title.

“Coach (Brandon) Varner told us ‘You’ve worked so hard for this,’ ” senior center Graycn Hall said. “We’re going to show how hard we’ve worked.”

That was just part of the conclusion as the drama unfolded in Randleman’s 57-55 overtime victory against host and second-seeded Eastern Randolph in front of an overflow crowd.

“They earned this,” Varner said of his players. “You play in a conference tournament championship game on their court. We had to earn it and that’s what we should want.”

The regular-season champion Tigers (24-1) didn’t make a field goal in the overtime period, but they drained more free throws and made key defensive stops to come away with the prize they were seeking.

“That’s all I wanted was this tournament,” senior guard Elizabeth York said. “It’s always a bigger win when you win an away game.”

York sank two free throws at the 12-second mark to put the Tigers ahead and added another foul shot in the final second.

Eastern Randolph (17-7) wiped out a nine-point fourth-quarter deficit and scored the first four points of overtime.

“One more basket,” Wildcats coach Jeff Davis said of what was needed, noting that Randleman “is a great defending team.”

Randleman needed the defense because the Tigers had a late stretch spanning the fourth quarter and overtime when they committed four consecutive turnovers, shot an air ball, had a shot blocked and were guilty of another turnover.

Eastern Randolph’s rally consisted of Mackenzie Gee’s 3-pointer, two Brecken Snotherly free throws and Snotherly’s tying fastbreak basket.

Hall countered with a basket on a low-post move before Whitaker hit a runner. York scored on a backdoor play with 41 seconds to go, but another turnover with a chance to seal the outcome nearly doomed the Tigers.

Snotherly was fouled on a 3-point attempt with 6.1 seconds remaining. She missed the first attempt, then drained the next two. That extended the game.

“We dug deep,” Davis said. “We gave everything we had. This is the one that’s going to keep us up at night.”

Kenly Whitaker’s basket off a rebound and Snotherly’s bucket put Eastern Randolph up 53-49.

“We can’t give up,” Hall said. “We were so close. I was trying to keep (my teammates) believing that we’re not losing.”

Trouble brewed for the Wildcats as Logan Beaver and Kenly Whitaker fouled out in Eastern Randolph’s first overtime game of the season.

Randleman didn’t score in overtime until 1:22 was showing on the clock. In a 19-second span, Jordan Booker was good on four free throws to pull the Tigers even.

Hall’s foul shot gave Randleman a one-point edge before Snotherly connected on two free throws with 13.5 seconds to play. York did the rest of the scoring.

Snotherly, who was short on a would-be go-ahead shot in the final seconds of overtime, finished with 27 points despite double- and triple-team schemes to slow her down. She still found ways to create openings for herself and teammates.

“She freelanced a little bit,” Davis said.

Hall racked up 21 points and 21 rebounds, and York and Booker both scored 15 points. The Tigers shot 21-for-24 on free throws.

Beaver added 10 points and Whitaker had nine points for Eastern Randolph.

Randleman has gone two full seasons without a loss in PAC competition.

Randleman girls Elizabeth York v ER 012423

Randleman girls set high bar in PAC

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Randleman’s Elizabeth York looks to go up for a shot against Eastern Randolph’s Logan Beaver. (Scott Pelkey/Randolph Record)

RANDLEMAN – Staying atop the Piedmont Athletic Conference has been a challenge for the Randleman girls’ basketball team.

The Tigers have passed the test and that’s one of the rewarding aspects of another stellar season.

“Right now, everybody is bringing their ‘A’ game against us, but that’s OK,” coach Brandon Varner said.

Randleman withstood threats from Eastern Randolph and Southwestern Randolph during the past week. But it has turned out to be another title season for the Tigers, who are 9-0 in PAC play and 19-1 overall.

So if the Tigers might have looked vulnerable at times, they found the gumption to withstand those situations.

“We’re like their championship (game),” senior Gracyn Hall said of opponents. “Everybody is wanting to beat Randleman because we have that target on our back.”

Randleman’s only regular-season loss in a two-season span came in late December in the final of the Davidson-Randolph Christmas Classic. The Tigers were knocked off by Southwestern Randolph.

But with Friday night’s 55-40 home victory against the Cougars, Randleman made it a sweep of Southwestern Randolph in conference competition and clinched another league championship with three games remaining.

“We’re definitely getting everybody’s best shot,” senior Elizabeth York said. “You learn from it. We didn’t like losing. We had (that defeat) midyear and we don’t want that again.”

Earlier in the week, a 59-54 decision against Eastern Randolph came despite Brecken Snotherly’s 38 points for the Wildcats. York and Jordan Booker each drained a pair of free throws in the last 40 seconds to help the Tigers, who scored the last four points, claim the victory.

Hall ended up with 18 points and 16 rebounds, Audra Petty scored 14 points and York provided 13 points and five assists.

Audra Petty of Randleman looks for a teammate as Eastern Randolph’s Brecken Snotherly defends. (Scott Pelkey/Randolph Record)

A few tight games might be advantageous for the Tigers in the big picture.

“You get the playoff atmosphere,” Varner said. “You don’t want games when you’re blowing everybody out. You get more out of (closer games). We’re like everybody’s Super Bowl right now. You’ve got to battle through that.”

Hall said, “Closer games will end up helping us in the long run.”

Yet a chaotic late-game stretch with Eastern Randolph wasn’t totally ideal.

“I like things to be exciting, but not this close,” York said.

In Friday’s game, York had 18 points and Hall posted 16 points.

Hall and York provide a nice foundation as four-year contributors for the Tigers. Petty, Booker and Gracie Beane are clutch players as well.

“It’s just fun,” Hall said. “We don’t want to let each other down.”

Because some of the Tigers have had key roles for several seasons, opponents are familiar with what Randleman is all about, York said.

“We’ve got experience and everybody is coming for us right now,” Varner said. “Since Christmas, we’ve learned some things about ourselves. It’s character building.”

Randleman is heading for a third 20-win season in four years, the exception coming with a 12-4 record in the pandemic-shortened 2021 season.

And the Tigers are hoping there are more good times to come.

“We don’t always make the best decisions,” York said. “Our effort is what wins the games for us.”

ER Davonte Brooks in hoops Dec2022

Prep Notes: 41-point mark hit twice by area boys; UCA, Trinity wrestlers excel

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Eastern Randolph’s Davonte Brooks goes up for a shot last week against Wheatmore. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)

 

It was a big week for top scorers around Randolph County basketball last week.

Dominic Payne of Trinity and Davonte Brooks of Eastern Randolph were in the same category at times.

Payne poured in 41 points Friday in a 65-64 victory at Uwharrie Charter Academy. On the same night, Brooks posted 41 points in a 99-47 romp at Wheatmore. Teammate Timothy Brower had 28 points.

Wheatmore’s Parker Kines had more than half of his team’s points in that game with 26.

Payne scored 29 points in a 60-48 victory at Wheatmore.

Against Trinity, UCA’s Ashton Troutman racked up 33 points for more than half of his team’s scoring.

Brooks had big effort in a non-conference victory at Burlington Williams with 26 points in the 73-52 result.

Consider those individual totals when also on Friday night the final score of Randleman’s victory at Southwestern Randolph was 34-33.

On the girls’ side, Elizabeth York of Randleman scored 22 points in a 53-40 victory at Eastern Randolph. The Wildcats received 24 points from Kenly Whitaker.

Wrestling

At Asheville, Uwharrie Charter Academy had three individual champions and won the team championship in the Great Smoky Mountain Grapple at the downtown civic center.

Champions for UCA were Ethan Hines (106 pounds), Aldo Hernandez (138) and Lorenzo Alston (145).

Hernandez was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Wrestler, defeating Enka’s Noah Tocaben 12-6 in the final after a technical fall of Hoke County’s Landen Nelson in the semifinals.

Third place went to Jack McArthur (132), Carson Robinson (160) and Grayson Roberts (170). Roberts, a 2022 Class 1-A state champion, dropped a 14-7 decision to Maryville, Tenn.’s Michael Colligan, the eventual runner-up, in the semifinals.

The tournament included teams from multiple states. UCA scored 189 points to runner-up Newton-Conover’s 186.

  • At Indian Trail, Trinity rode the strength of six titlists to a third-place team finish in the Porter Ridge Invitational.

Trinity’s Brayden Hall (113), Spencer May (120), Levi Dennis (126), Charles Schaefer (138), Gavin Hardister (182) and Joey Smith (220).

Edgr Vasquez Mora (106) placed third for the Bulldogs.

Porter Ridge won the team title with 183 points, followed by South Point with 165½ and Trinity with 162½.

Trinity girls hoops Autumn Gentry Dec2022

Prep Notes: Girls’ players Gentry, York hit special marks

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Trinity’s Autumn Gentry takes a shot against East Davidson last week. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)

TRINITY – There were special occasions last week for a couple of area girls’ basketball players.

Senior Autumn Gentry became Trinity’s all-time leading scorer. She scored 14 points against visiting East Davidson to reach the record.

The previous record of 1,252 was held by Jordan Parker.

Randleman’s Elizabeth York, a senior guard, eclipsed the 1,000-point mark for her career.

York had 24 points in a 57-41 victory against visiting Central Davidson in the game when she reached the milestone. Teammate Gracyn Hall, who passed the 1,000-point mark last season, had 21 points.

Randleman got off to an 8-0 start, including last Friday’s 55-39 victory against visiting Wheatmore in the Piedmont Athletic Conference opener. The Tigers were unbeaten in the 2021-22 regular season.

Boys’ basketball

In a rematch of last February’s PAC Tournament championship game, Uwharrie Charter Academy defeated Providence Grove 46-43 on Friday night.

Ashton Troutman scored 27 points for UCA in the league opener for both teams.

Providence Grove was last season’s regular-season champion, though UCA won the conference tournament.

  • Asheboro’s fast start to the season took a sudden detour.

The Blue Comets opened the season with five consecutive victories before last week’s 68-66 home loss to Ragsdale.

“We didn’t make a few plays down the stretch that probably could have made the difference,” Asheboro coach Brian Nance said. “We needed a test.”

Asheboro wiped out a 15-point deficit to take a lead before falling. Jerquarius Stanback had 21 points for the Blue Comets.

A night later, Asheboro dropped a 51-38 decision at Randleman in a non-league rematch from November. Tyshaun Goldston’s 22 points and eight rebounds were tops for Randleman.

  • Give credit to Eastern Randolph for winning different types of games with three home outings last week.

The Wildcats rang up a 94-62 victory against South Davidson and topped Chatham Central 92-91 on back-to-back days last week.

Timothy Brower (21 points) and Nicah Taylor (20 points) led the scoring against South Davidson. Davonte Brooks poured in 37 points against Chatham Central and 30 points against Western Alamance.

Then on Saturday, Eastern Randolph edged visiting Western Alamance 62-49 in a make-up game.

Wrestling

At Lumberton, UCA won five meets in Saturday’s Lumberton Border Duals.

The closest of the results was a 52-9 victory against Carolina Forest (S.C.).

UCA wrestlers who went 5-0 were Caden Bond, Devonte Harrison, Ethan Hines, Aldo Hernandez, Jair Ulloa, Lorenzo Alston, Grayson Roberts and Jaden Maness. Carson Robinson was 4-0.

Athelete-of-the-Week copyYORK

ATHLETE OF THE WEEK: Elizabeth York

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Elizabeth York  |  Randleman, girls’ basketball

York, a junior guard, had three productive games as the Tigers advanced through three rounds of the Class 2-A state playoffs. She averaged 19 points in those games.

It began when York piled up 22 points as Randleman stomped Shelby Burns 64-17 in the opening round.

Next, she compiled 24 points in Randleman’s 64-53 victory against Wilkes Central. York tacked on 11 points in a 63-43 decision against Lincoln Charter.

Those results left the Tigers with a 25-0 record going into a West Region semifinal against Shelby.