HAYESVILLE
Senior Games next weekend
The 2024 Cherokee/Clay County Senior Games will kick off at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 20, at the Clay County Recreation Center, 333 Ball Park Drive.
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The opening day ceremony will kick off the almost month-long Senior Games. Following the opening-day ceremony, the games will officially begin. The fun walk, football throw, softball throw, basketball shooting, shot put and discus will take place at 10:45 a.m. afterward.
The rain date is 2 p.m. Sunday, April 21. After the opening day kick-off, the games will get in full swing Monday, April 22, with table tennis and a 10-kilometer road race.
Details: Call Terence Faries at 727-470-7947 or visit cherokeecountyseniorgames.org.
HIWASSEE DAM
Eagles going the distance
Hiwassee Dam’s track and field team will not put fear into any school. At most, the team has maybe six athletes competing in only a handful of events.
However, if you are a male long-distance runner, the navy-blue Eagles uniform is the last thing you want to see.
The reason for that is Ethan Russell. He has yet to lose in any long-distance event, which includes 800-meter, 1,600m and 3,200m events,
The closest anyone has got near him is 1.5 seconds. He finished third in the state last year is the 800m, 1,600m and 3,200m events and is ranked first in western North Carolina in those events so far this year.
MURPHY
Firecrackers seek players
The Firecrackers NC 14u softball team is seeking four more players to complete their roster for the season. They are preferably seeking one pitcher, two experienced infielders and one outfielder.
They will play a competitive schedule with Top Gun, PGF, USSSA and more. Firecrackers NC 14u (birth years 2010 and 2011) is a travel softball team based in Murphy and serving the tri-state area.
Firecrackers NC will be holding practice at 3 p.m. Saturday at Murphy Middle School. Anyone interested is invited to attend.
Details: Call coach Kristie Oliver at 828-541-1219.
WILMINGTON
UNCW adds Murphy star
Former Richmond forward Torin Rogers of Brasstown has transferred to UNC Wilmington, the college announced Thursday.
Rogers made 54 appearances in two seasons with the Spiders. A total of 29 came last season on the way to their first Atlantic 10 Championship and trip to March Madness as the No. 10 seed.
While with the Lady Bulldogs, she was a McDonald’s All-American nominee, Smoky Mountain Conference Player of the Year, All-Conference player and helped lead the team to its 1A state championship in 2021. She was also a part of the 1,000-point club during her high school career and was a two-sport athlete, playing goalkeeper on the Murphy girls soccer team.
Rogers will return to her home state to play for the Seahawks during the 2024-25 basketball season.
PEACHTREE
April Fool’s Day indeed
The American Championship Wrestling Federation event, “April Fools Massacre,” scheduled for Saturday has been canceled due to renovations at the Peachtree Community Center not being finished.
ACWF’s next event will be in May, pending the completion of the renovations. At April’s event, The American Outlaws were scheduled to defend their tag team titles, as well as fan-favorites Men of Honor were set to be in action.
Details: Visit the ACWF Murphy NC Facebook page.
BLAIRSVILLE, Ga.
Dogs’ golf leads SMC
The Murphy golf team keeps on their winning ways as they finished first in another Smoky Mountain Conference tournament over Andrews and Cherokee. Murphy finished 39 strokes better than their nearest competitor.
Murphy finished at 162 strokes, followed by Cherokee at 201 and Andrews at 217. Conner Golden, who led all golfers, shot a 37, followed by his brother, Brady Golden at 39, Andrew Barolet at 42, Will Joyner at 44 and Xander Wachacha at 46. The only golfers from another team that finished in the top five from another team was Dante Taylor of Cherokee who tied with Wachacha at 46 strokes.
RALEIGH
Betting will not help all
Despite having successful athletics programs, N.C. State and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill are excluded from getting money generated from mobile sports betting.
Per House Bill 347, $300,000 of tax revenue generated from mobile sports betting has been allocated to benefit the athletic departments of 13 N.C. universities. The exception to that is schools with athletic budgets of more than $100 million, which includes N.C. State and UNC-Chapel Hill. N.C. State’s athletic budget is $102 million, while Chapel Hill’s is $122 million.
The 13 universities that will receive funds to support their athletic departments are Appalachian State, East Carolina, Elizabeth City State, Fayetteville State, N.C. A&T, N.C. Central, UNC Asheville, UNC Charlotte, UNC Greensboro, UNC Pembroke, UNC Wilmington, Western Carolina and Winston-Salem State.
GLENDALE, Az.
Madness In March
Connecticut is the 2024 NCAA men’s basketball national champion. The Huskies defeated Purdue 75-60 on Monday night.
Both teams came into the tournament as the No. 1 seed in their respective region. UConn was the betting favorite coming into the game at -300.
The South Carolina Gamecocks remained undefeated to win the 2024 NCAA women’s basketball national championship with their 87-75 win over Iowa. Iowa star Caitlin Clark led both teams with 30 points. South Carolina (38-0) became one of ten teams from five different universities to achieve a perfect season.
With the conclusion of the college basketball season, college hoops fans can look ahead to transfer portal moves and the NBA draft, which is June 27.
CHARLOTTE
Panthers get defense help
The Carolina Panthers have taken advantage of free agency with big additions on the defensive side. Last season, the team struggled on both ends on the field, which was evident with its 2-15 record.
Their biggest signing was former No. 1 overall draft pick Jadeveon Clowney. The linebacker signed to a two-year, $20 million contract.
The Panthers also acquired guard Robert Hunt from the Dolphins and signed him to a five-year, $100 million contract with $63 million guaranteed. They added another guard in Damien Lewis, who had a 97.2 percent pass block efficiency rating last season with the Seattle Seahawks.
The Panthers also added former Broncos linebacker Josey Jewell, who in 2022 had a career-high 128 tackles. Since safety Vonn Bell was released by the Panthers, they could have found a replacement in former Rams safety Jordan Fuller. Fuller had three interceptions, eight pass deflections and three forced fumbles last season. He was also a two-time captain, so his leadership will be crucial.
The Panthers will look to continue signing players to build the team around former top draft pick Bryce Young. New head coach Dave Canales gives Panthers’ fans hope as they build the team for next season with hopes of success.
Compiled by Sports Editor Cannon Crompton.