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UCA wrestling happy bench 2023

In review: UCA’s state titles highlight top area moments

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Members of the Uwharrie Charter Academy wrestling team celebrate a dual team state championship last winter. (PJ Ward-Brown/Randolph Record)

There were championships and near misses and an assortment of other superlatives associated with the 2022-23 school year for Randolph County high school teams.

Uwharrie Charter Academy racked up a pair of team state championships in Class 1-A.

The Eagles secured the dual team wrestling title and a few months later picked up the baseball crown.

** Eastern Randolph’s boys’ basketball team had its most successful season ever by advancing to the Class 1-A state championship game. Wilson Prep won the game.

Then in baseball, the Wildcats ended up one round away from a spot in the state finals. They were denied by UCA in the West Region finals.

Those might have been surprise postseason runs, but Eastern Randolph’s football success seemed normal. The Wildcats won the Piedmont Athletic Conference, received a first-round bye in the Class 1-A state playoffs and won two playoff games before they were derailed by Mount Airy.

** Wheatmore’s girls’ soccer team also played for a state championship, but its bid to repeat as the Class 2-A titlist was thwarted in the final by Manteo.

** Asheboro’s boys’ soccer team made it to the Class 3-A West Region final, falling to Hickory.

** Randleman’s baseball and girls’ basketball teams both reached the fourth round of the Class 2-A state playoffs. In baseball, the Tigers were the two-time defending state champions.

** Providence Grove’s football team won one game in the Class 2-A state playoffs. That was notable because it was the school’s first victory in a postseason football game.

** In softball, Southwestern Randolph won three games in the Class 2-A state playoffs before a 10-inning loss to West Wilkes. UCA and Eastern Randolph also reached the fourth round in Class 1-A.

Notes of interest

** Brecken Snotherly of Eastern Randolph was the PAC’s Runner of the Year in girls’ cross country, Player of the Year in girls’ basketball and the Most Valuable Track Athlete for PAC girls’ track and field.

** Shortstop / pitcher Tanner Marsh of Asheboro was a top honoree in two sports in the Mid-Piedmont Conference. He was dubbed the Defensive Player of the Year in boys’ basketball and the Player of the Year in baseball as a senior.

** Connor Carter of Eastern Randolph was the state individual runner-up for the past two seasons in Class 1-A boys’ golf.

** Infielder Hunter Atkins of Randleman was the Player of the Year for PAC baseball in 2021 and 2023. He’s heading to UNC Greensboro, though first he’s playing this summer for Randolph County Post 45 in American Legion baseball.

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UCA rolls in Class 1-A wrestling with seven regional champs

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Uwharrie Charter Academy’s wrestling team gathers for a photo after finishing as the runner-up in the Class 1-A dual team state playoffs, falling to Avery County on Feb. 5. A week later, the Eagles were overwhelming champions in a Class 1-A regional.

Seven wrestlers from Uwharrie Charter Academy won individual championships in the Class 1-A regional, which was held Friday and Saturday at Rosewood.

The Eagles soared to the regional championship and built all sorts of momentum heading to the state tournament. Thirteen of the team’s wrestlers will head to states.

UCA’s champions were freshman Brandon Jordan at 113 pounds, junior Aldo Hernandez at 132, senior Byan Lackey at 138, sophomore Carson Robertson at 152, junior Grayson Roberts at 160, senior Doug Bowles at 170 and senior Jaden Marion at 220.

They’ll all be among the top seeds for the state tournament.

Jordan became UCA’s first freshman regional champion.

Bowles moved to 104 career pins, one away from the school record of 105 held by three-time state champion Hayden Waddell.

Bowles’ pins in the regional included a 38-second flattening of Jordan Ruedi of Voyager Academy in the final. His other two matches lasted 51 and 17 seconds.

Bowles and Roberts are both listed with 45-4 records this season. Roberts recorded two first-period pins before a 10-3 decision against Union Academy’s Isaac Williams in the final.

Hernandez is 46-3 and Marion is 30-3.

UCA’s 290 points gave it an overwhelming margin in the team standings. Rosewood was second with 189.

Wrestlers finishing in the top four in the regionals move on to states.

So regional runner-up Ethan Hines (106) and Jaden Maness (182) of UCA will join third-place finishers Jack McArthur (126), Aiden Carter (195) and Jake Morin (285) along with fourth-place finisher Jair Ulloa (145) at the state tournament.

Eastern Randolph will send Adrian Lopez (126) and Bryce Foland (170) to states based on their fourth-place spots in the regional.

The Class 1-A states begin Friday afternoon, while other classes start Thursday at the Greensboro Coliseum. All divisions finish Saturday in the three-day event.

Class 2-A

At Concord, Trinity teammates Spencer May and David Makupson and Providence Grove’s Colton Wood claimed titles in the Midwest Regional at the Cabarrus County Arena.

May, a sophomore, won all three of his bouts at 113, with a pin of Mount Pleasant’s Trent Almond in the title bout to improve to 41-4.

Makupson, a senior with a 46-1 record this season, was 4-0 at 138, including a technical fall in the final against Eden Morehead’s Cole Pritchard.

Wood, a junior, was unbeaten in four matches at 285. He notched three pins and then won by a forfeit in the final.

Trinity has three others going to states. Casey Hohn (152) and Gavin Hardister (182) placed third, while Brayden Hall (106) was fourth. Hardister won the third-place bout against Providence Grove’s Brooks Freeman, also a state qualifier.

Southwestern Randolph will send three to states with Luke White (132) taking third place and Clay Sugg (195) and Jose Flores (220) ending up in fourth place in the regional.

Trinity was the team runner-up with 127 points, behind only Surry Central’s 153. Southwestern Randolph was eighth with 69.5 and Providence Grove was 10th with 63.5.

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UCA gives strong battle, falls in 1-A final

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Uwharrie Charter Academy’s Grayson Roberts works for a takedown against Avery County’s Bradley Parker at 160 pounds Saturday.

GREENSBORO – Uwharrie Charter Academy came within a couple of matches of claiming a state championship in dual team wrestling.

The Eagles rallied at times but ultimately came up short in a 39-30 loss to Avery County in the Class 1-A championship meet Saturday afternoon at the Fieldhouse at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex.

Avery County picked up its second straight state championship.

For UCA, it was a memorable experience.

“I thought the kids performed outside of their minds,” coach Chris Waddell said. “I thought they did great. I wasn’t looking at anybody’s performance with anything but positivity.”

The Eagles won five consecutive bouts to turn a 15-0 deficit into a 24-15 lead. But Avery County countered by winning the next five matches before a forfeit in the last weight class on the docket.

The meet began at the 138-pound weight class, with Avery County winning the first three matchups.

UCA’s run began with Grayson Roberts delivering a 6-4 decision against Bradley Parker at 160. Doug Bowles pinned Seth Blackledge in 5:14 at 170, Jayden Maness flattened Lane Hoilman in 3:34 at 182, Aiden Carter stuck Brandon Cabrera in 2:52 at 195 and Jaden Marion notched a 4-0 decision against Zach Vance at 220.

The only other points for UCA came when Aldo Hernandez was awarded a forfeit at 132 after the team outcome had been determined.

Avery County’s Kenneth Pritz was selected as the meet’s Most Outstanding Wrestler based on a pin of Aiden Allred in 1:33 of the 120-pound bout.

UCA (35-1) could be built for the long haul. There were just three seniors in the 14-wrestler lineup used Saturday.

“One of the funnest teams I’ve ever coached,” Waddell said. “We’re mostly made up of freshmen and sophomores. For them to be in this environment and do what they did was great.”

UCA won four times to advance to the final. That included capturing the East Regional semifinal by 45-40 against Pamlico County on Wednesday and later that day defeating host Rosewood 44-34.

In Class 2-A, Trinity’s title bid ended in the regional final. A 38-33 triumph against Newton-Conover in the West Regional semifinal was followed by a 33-31 loss to host Bandys.

Palma places second in girls

UCA’s Jazmin Palma was the runner-up at 114 pounds in the state girls’ invitational, a two-day event that concluded with Saturday’s finals at the Fieldhouse in Greensboro.

Palma posted three pins to reach the championship match. There, Mt. Airy’s Hope Horan recorded an 11-3 decision against Palma.

Palam advanced by pinning Lumberton’s Teresa Canady, Overhills’ Liliana Lizard and Cherokee’s Jaylynne Esquivel.

Regionals set

Individual regionals will be held Friday and Saturday, with berths in next week’s state tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum up for grabs.

For Class 3-A, Asheboro’s qualifiers will go to the Midwest Regional at Eastern Guilford.

For Class 2-A, entrants from schools in the Piedmont Athletic Conference are assigned to the Midwest Regional at the Cabarrus County Arena.

For Class 1-A, UCA and Eastern Randolph wrestlers head to the East Regional at Rosewood.

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UCA, Trinity open strong in state duals

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Trinity’s Casey Hohn, top, works against West Wilkes’ Holt Hanchey during the first round of the Class 2-A dual team state tournament Monday at Trinity.

Wrestling teams from Uwharrie Charter Academy in Class 1-A and Trinity in Class 2-A advanced through the first two rounds of the dual team state tournament.

UCA and Trinity were both home teams for the first and second rounds Monday.

These teams moved on to third- and potentially fourth-round meets Wednesday. The winning teams from that advance to the state finals. The goal is to make it to Saturday’s championship meets at the Fieldhouse at the Greensboro Coliseum complex.

UCA (33-0) notched victories against Neuse Charter and South Davidson, which reached the second round by topping Bradford Prep. For UCA, it was a forfeit against Neuse Charter, which chose not to compete, and then a 45-36 outcome against South Davidson.

UCA will compete Wednesday against Pamlico County at Rosewood in the third round. The winner stays for a fourth-round matchup against the winner of the Rosewood-Thomasville meet.

Trinity (21-1) had its way by stomping West Wilkes 50-18 and then turning away traditional state power Eden Morehead by 54-21.

Trinity next takes on Newton-Conover, while West Region top seed Bandys and West Lincoln collide in the other third-round meet at Bandys.

Three other teams from Randolph County fell in the first round Monday.

In Class 3-A, Asheboro dropped a 34-31 matchup to West Rowan in the North Henderson gym.

Seven wrestlers for Asheboro won matches, with Xavier Santos (113), Yu Chen (138), Christian Diaz (152), Luke Lambeth (160), Logan Lambeth (182), Eduardo Soto-Canas (220) and Arhman Tyson (285) coming out on top.

The Blue Comets (25-5) had won the Mid-Piedmont Conference regular season, but they stalled right away in the postseason team competition.

In Class 2-A, Southwestern Randolph (14-11) tumbled by a 66-21 score against host Rutherford-Spindale Central.

In Class 1-A, Eastern Randolph (1-19) was drubbed 52-6 by host Pamlico County. The lone winner for the Wildcats was 126-pounder Adrian Lopez. Pamlico County then eliminated South Stanly.

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UCA gears up for more on mats

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ASHEBORO – The Uwharrie Charter Academy wrestling team produced another stellar regular season, but the Eagles will have to wait in their pursuit of a Class 1-A dual team state title.

Under coach Chris Waddell, UCA has run up a 31-0 record in duals. That includes a 6-0 mark in the Piedmont Athletic Conference.

The North Carolina High School Athletic Association postponed the first and second rounds of the dual team tournament until Monday. That decision came after multiple weather-related postponements hit pockets of the state, so this will allow teams to complete more of their regular-season schedules and league tournament action this week.

Teams will be placed on the brackets Friday, pushing the first and second rounds to Monday. The third and fourth rounds will remain on the schedule for Feb. 2. Dual team state championships are set for Feb. 5 at the Fieldhouse at the Greensboro Coliseum complex.

This season’s UCA roster includes 2021 individual state place finishers Byan Lackey, Grayson Roberts and Doug Bowles.

UCA won the dual-team state title in 2019 and was the runner-up in 2020. The Eagles won the team championships in conjunction with the individual state tournaments in 2018 and 2019.

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UCA wrestlers roll up 15-0 record

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LUMBERTON – The Uwharrie Charter Academy wrestling team has reached a 15-0 record after dominating the Lumberton Border Wars on Saturday.

The Eagles won five meets, including a 52-27 victory against host Lumberton in the finals.

Eight UCA wrestlers were undefeated in the dual-meet tournament. They were Ethan Hines, Brandon Jordan, Jack McArthur, Aldo Hernandez, Grayson Roberts, Doug Bowles, Jaden Maness and Jaden Marion.

Plus, Aiden Allred, Carson Robinson, Bryan Lackey and Corbin Grissom posted 4-1 records in the event.

The Eagles topped Fayetteville Byrd 84-0, beat Purnell Swett 75-6, topped South Florence (S.C) 75-6 and whipped West Brunswick 72-9.

 

Trinity Invitational

At Trinity, several wrestlers from Randolph County claimed individual championships, with Asheboro and Southwestern Randolph with two champions each.

Logan Lambeth at 182 pounds and Arhman Tyson at heavyweight were Asheboro’s titlists. Champions from Southwestern Randolph were Luke White at 132 pounds and Jose Flores at 220. Trinity’s Chris Grubb won the 120-pound weight class.

Runners-up included Southwestern Randolph’s Janaksel Perez (106) and Nathan Mabe (152) and Clay Sugg (195), Asheboro’s Xavier Santos (120) and Diego Santos (126) and Eduardo Soto-Canas (220) and Providence Grove’s Brooks Freeman (182).

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Prep Notes: UCA wrestling tourney to focus on veterans

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There are a couple of wrestling tournaments in Randolph County set for Saturday.

Uwharrie Charter Academy will hold the Wounded Warrior Challenge.

The UCA event will offer free admission to veterans. Arrangements have been made for veterans from the Wounded Warrior Project to be present.

During a pause in the competition, a recognition ceremony will be held for veterans.

Champions in each weight class will receive a custom Wounded Warrior singlet from MyHouse, which makes sports gear.

Also, the Wheatmore Warriors Duals will be held. Randleman and host school Wheatmore will be among the in-county entrants for that tournament.

Basketball

The season began last week in the North Carolina High School Athletic Association for those schools without football programs, meaning Uwharrie Charter Academy was in action.

It was a good start for the Eagles. 

On the girls’ side, Gabi Greene’s 18 points propelled a 68-39 victory against Clover Garden.

For the boys, UCA topped Clover Garden 76-22 behind 20 points from Jordan Harrison and 18 points from Alijah Baker.

Next week, all NCHSAA teams will be eligible to begin basketball competition.