The Lady Knights won the Southern Piedmont Conference title, finished second in the 1A/2A West Regional and qualified for this coming Monday and Tuesday's state tournament in Southern Pines.
That's not bad for a program in its second year, and one that began with only two experienced golfers.
"To go that far that fast, we're really proud of them," said LNC coach Greg Murphy.
The Knights wrapped up the SPC title with a win at River Run last Wednesday. Maegan Ports, the SPC Player of the Year, shot a low round 43 to lead the way in the nine-hole match.
"She's a great player," said Murphy. "Very, very steady, doesn't make a lot of mistakes."
The Knights totaled 148 strokes, 15 better than second-place North Lincoln. LNC's Kaelyn Pack and Brittany Buckstad joined Ports on the all-conference team.
Monday was a tough day for all the golfers in the 1A West Regional at Kings Mountain's Woodbridge Golf Club, but LNC's Ports, Pack and Kayla Thomas totaled 305 strokes in the 18-hole event to finish 23 shots behind champion Hendersonville. Finishing in the top four qualified LNC for the 36-hole 1A/2A State tournament at Longleaf Golf and Country Club.
Three Eagles picked for Oasis Shrine Bowl
SouthLake Christian's football team had three players chosen for the Oasis Shrine Bowl, the maximum allowed from one school in the private school all-star game between North and South Carolina.
Eagle linemen Taylor Jurney, Troy Lowden and Scott Richardson will represent SouthLake in the Nov. 25 game at Charlotte Country Day.
Lowden is primarily an offensive lineman, starring at the center position. Richardson is the team's leading tackler with 57 tackles. Jurney is second on the team with 48 stops, but leads the team in sacks with 15. Richardson has 11 sacks.
Davidson Day's first-ever representative in the game is linebacker/center Tre Hunt. Hunt is the Patriots' team leader in tackles (110) and sacks (4.5). He had 17 tackles against Charlotte Latin last Friday. As the team's center, he routinely snaps the ball to quarterback Will Grier, who stands eight yards behind the line of scrimmage.
LNC continues to win
Lake Norman Charter's soccer team added wins over West Lincoln and North Lincoln this week in the Southern Piedmont Conference and will likely finish second in its first year in the league, a game behind East Lincoln.
LNC, ranked fifth in the state among 1A public schools, defeated North Lincoln 5-2 on the road Monday. Lawson Owen scored two goals for LNC, while Frank Silva added one. Zach Quest and Evan Lucas scored on penalty kicks for LNC.
The win followed a 2-1 victory over West Lincoln last Wednesday. Quest and Tommy Mikuleza scored LNC's goals, while keepers Christian Hall and Silva combined for the shutout.
The Knights (14-3-2 overall, 9-2 SPC) were to close the regular season Wednesday at home against Highland Tech.
Pats finish 13-4-2
Davidson Day's soccer team wrapped up the season with a 4-1 loss to Caldwell Academy in the first round of the state playoffs this week. The Patriots, seeded 10th for the playoffs, closed the season 13-4-2.
DDS finished the regular season 11-2-2, advanced to the final of the Southern Piedmont Athletic Association tournament and lost 1-0 in overtime to Gaston Day prior to entering the state playoffs.
LNC wins tennis titles
Lake Norman Charter's tennis season ended Tuesday with a 5-1 loss to East Wilkes in the second round of the 1A state playoffs, but 2011 will go in the books as a successful campaign for the Knights.
LNC (11-3) earned the Southern Piedmont Conference's top seed in the 1A playoffs and beat Pine Lake Prep 5-1 in the first round. And the Knights swept the individual championships in SPC play.
"I think they all work together," said coach Cynthia Kmidowksi. "We're lucky to have some depth."
Knights Mallory Warren and Leanne Smithers combined to win the SPC doubles crown, while Sravya Uppalapati, who has played No. 1 all year for the Knights, won the SPC singles title.
"She's consistently dedicated and hard-working beyond what we're doing in team workouts," said Kmidowski. "She's working to make herself a better player."
Uppalapati, Smithers and Warren participated in regional competition last weekend, but did not advance.
— Staff
