From staff reports
Catawba’s football team plays host to old SAC rival Carson-Newman today at 1:30 p.m., while Livingstone celebrates homecoming with a 1:30 p.m. game against CIAA foe St. Augustine’s.
Carson-Newman (2-2, 1-2) has had some extra time to prepare as it last played in a Sept. 27 loss to Wingate.
The Eagles are still coached by legend Ken Sparks (301 victories) and are still dangerous.
Carson-Newman moves the ball with a split-back veer offense that has cranked out 321.5 rushing yards per game. Brandon Baker averages 100 yards per game on the ground.
Catawba (3-2, 1-1) could be 5-0 with a few breaks and has the league’s best defensive numbers. Catawba allows 17.6 points per game and it has produced eight interceptions, six fumble recoveries and 15 sacks.
Catawba cornerback Jumal Rolle is having an incredible year with four interceptions and three blocked kicks.
Catawba had been by far the toughest team in the league to run on, yielding just 71.8 yards per game on the ground.
Carson-Newman has dominated the all-time series and leads it 35-9-1. Sparks is 28-5 against the Indians, while Catawba coach Chip Hester is 2-8 against the Eagles.
Catawba will honor its 1946 and 1947 championship teams today, and eight of the 10 survivors from those Tangerine Bowl winners are expected to attend.
Catawba also will honor baseball slugger Jerry Sands in by retiring his jersey.
• Sands finally became an official member of the Boston Red Sox on Thursday.
He was part of a major trade between the Red Sox and L.A. Dodgers in August.
Sands owns a chunk of the Catawba record book, although he played only three seasons before entering the draft in 2008.
Sands broke the school marks for career homers (61) and walks (132). He set a single-season record with 85 RBIs in 61 games in 2008.
•Livingstone (2-3, 2-0 CIAA) is tied for first in its division with national power Winston-Salem State.
The Blue Bears have won two straight, outscoring Lincoln at home and surprising Virginia Union on the road.
Freshman QB Drew Powell leads the Blue Bears. He’s accounted for 19 touchdowns, throwing for 15 and rushing for four. Powell is passing for almost 300 yards per game.
Anthony Holland is second in the CIAA in receiving with 442 yards and four TDs.
Javon Williams has balanced LC’s high-octane offense wth 435 rushing yards.
St. Aug’s is 3-2 and 1-1 in the CIAA. The Falcons, who beat Wingate, aren’t far from being 5-0. They lost 24-21 to New Haven and lost 23-21 to CIAA rival Elizabeth City State.
St. Augustine’s QB Teddy Bacote is seventh in the CIAA with 1,058 passing yards and has thrown for nine TDs.
St. Aug’s Linebacker Chaz Robinson leads the league in tackles.
College volleyball
Setter Nicole Barringer (South Rowan) led Averett to a 3-2 win against Bridgewater. With the score 18-all in the fift set, Barringer had a kill for the lead and shared a block to end the match. Barringer finished with 44 assists, nine digs and three kills.
•Lenoir-Rhyne’s Kayla Morrow (South) had five kills as the Bears swept Limestone. Morrow had four blocks and three kills in a 3-1 SAC win against Carson-Newman.
•Guilford setter Taylor Whitley (Carson) had 45 assists, 19 digs and five kills in a 3-2 win against Meredith on Thursday.
• Junior Shanna Stewart (Carson) was one of the standouts for Johnson & Wales in a win against Surry CC.
• Hollins setter Lela Moore (West Rowan) had 32 assists and 13 digs in a 3-1 loss to Roanoke.
College golf
Centre College’s Catherine Parks (Salisbury) shot 80 at Danville Country Club and made the all-tournament team in the Centre Ladies Invite.
• Winthrop’s Allison Lee (Salisbury) shot 80-77-76 – 233 in the Starmount Forest Golf Tournament in Greensboro and tied for 54th.
Prep golf
Salisbury shot 127 but lost to defending 3A champ Ledford 118-127 in girls golf.
The match was played at the Country Club of Salisbury, the Hornets’ first home match there in more than 10 years.
Isabella Rusher led the Hornets with a 38. Grace Yatawara (44) and Madeline Hoskins (45) were the other scorers.
Lexi Kershaw (37), Morgan Brock (39) and Megan Holbrooks (42) were scorers for the Panthers.
Prep volleyball
In South Rowan’s 25-16, 25-16, 22-25 and 25-7 NPC win against East Rowan, Tiffany Brooks had 13 kills and six blocks.
Lynsey Corriher had eight kills, Emma Pope had seven, and Lauren Register had six.
Pope had 25 assists.
Pope had 27 digs. Other leaders in digs were Brooks (13), Corriher (12), Katherine Starnes (10) and Caroline Hubbard (nine).
Prep cross country
West Rowan’s girls had a score of 34 and won a meet at West Iredell. Other team scores were Carson (39) and North Iredell (56).
West Rowan’s Josie Heglar won in 21:02. Other top runners for the Falcons were Hannah Allison (second, 21:16), Sami Brassara (third), Kayla Blackburn (11th) and Meghan Sloop (18th).
Carson’s top runners were Mackenzi Bauer (fourth), Sarah Safrit (sixth), Kylie Cox (seventh), Cierra Josey (10th) and Caitlyn Blais (12th).
• Carson won the boys race with a score of 19. Other team scores were West Rowan (47), North Iredell (76) and West Iredell (116).
Carson’s Zachary Marchinko was the individual winner in 16:25. Other Carson scorers were Kyle Gillis (second, 17:14), Chris York (fourth), Nick Thornton (fifth) and Daniel Sherer (seventh).
West Rowan scorers were Cody McNeely (third), Jacob Fleming (eighth), Nick Waldo (15th), Wood Poteat (16th) and Joseph Ward (17th).
Middle school softball
West Rowan Middle beat Corriher-Lipe 6-2.
Mandy Timmerman struck out 10 and also led the Bulldogs’ offense with a double and a triple.
Emy Spry, Parker Greene, Savannah Cline, Khara Fesperman and Morgan Corriher had hits for the Bulldogs.
West plays at Mooresville on Tuesday.
• Meagan Kepley hit an inside-the-park homer in Erwin’s 19-2 win against North Rowan Middle.
Kepley had two hits. Micah Furr struck out seven and limited the Mavericks to one hit.
Furr and Madison Hunter were defensive standouts for the undefeated Eagles (9-0).
Youth baseball
The Rowan Rangers 14U baseball team went 4-0 and won rings in the Nations Baseball Fall State Championship held in Gastonia and Charlotte.
The Rangers rallied to beat the Mooresville Legends 5-4 and beat the Charlotte Megastars to advance to the semifinals.
The Rangers won 8-1 against Mooresville in the semifinals. The Rangers beat the South Charlotte Braves 10-0 in the championship game, with Jace Parrish pitching a no-hitter. The Rangers had great pitching from Trevor Atwood, Harrison Smith, Brett Graham, Brandon Walton and Parrish.
Offensively, the Rangers were led by Walton, Smith, Graham, Atwood and Jonathan Luther.
Other team members include Levi Dixon, Josn Roberts, John Yang, Bailey Jones, Cody Larue and Alex Yang.
Coaches are Scott Graham, Alan Walton and David Dixon.