From staff reports

Former Catawba slugger Jerry Sands won the RBI title in the Korean Baseball Organization in 2019 and will be playing in Japan next season for the Hanshin Tigers.

Sands, 32, played two seasons in Korea. He had a terrific 2019 season, batting .305 with 39 doubles, 28 homers and 113 RBIs.

Shrine Bowl

SPARTANBURG, S.C. — The South Carolina Sandlappers put together a game-clinching 85-yard touchdown drive late in the fourth quarter and beat the Tarheels of North Carolina, 28-17, in Saturday’s 83rd Shrine Bowl.

Rahjai Harris, who signed with East Carolina, scored the clinching TD.

West Rowan offensive lineman Jonny Hassard was the only local player in the game.

Mason Garcia, headed to East Carolina, threw for 153 yards and ran for 60. He had a rushing TD and a passing TD.

Jalin Hyatt, a Tennessee signee, had six catches for 197 yards and a touchdown and took offensive player of the game honors.

South Carolina rolled up 411 yards of offense.

North Carolina was held to 173 yards.

The win at Gibbs Stadium was South Carolina’s first in the series since 2014.

High school football

Brandon Gentry, who led a turnaround at Northwest Cabarrus, will be the first head coach at West Cabarrus.

The West Cabarrus Wolverines will debut next fall.

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Kenneth McClamrock, former East Rowan head coach, stepped down at Central Cabarrus after three seasons— 4-7, 8-4  and 7-5 — to spend more time with family.

McClamrock’s twin sons are 6-year-olds now.

Local golf

Nick Lyerly (East Rowan, UNC Greensboro) shot  76-70-69-73 and tied for 14th in the South Beach International Amateur, a  golf tournament ranked as the world’s sixth-best amateur tournament.

Lyerly finished at  5-over.

HS boys basketball

North Davidson lost to   North Myrtle Beach, 69-67,  despite 36 points by Jamerien Dalton.

College wrestling

UNC Pembroke’s Brandon Sloop (Carson) won three of his four matches in Las Vegas over the weekend.

College hoops

Markell Johnson  had 11 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists to help North Carolina State beat The Citadel 83-63 on Sunday night.

Johnson grabbed a rebound with 1:57 remaining to reach the triple-double milestone for the Wolfpack (9-3). It was the fourth one in program history.

The point guard found out that he was one rebound away only when N.C. State’s assistant coaches alerted him.

“No matter where it was, I would have dove out of bounds for it,” he said.

Johnson notched the fourth triple-double in program history, joining Julius Hodge and Dennis Smith Jr. (twice) in the exclusive club.