Month: June 2021

Orange junior Brendon Worsham has reached the 3A State Wrestling Tournament for the second year in a row. On Tuesday at Eastern Guilford High School in Gibsonville, Worsham defeated Gage Raley 15-3 to officially reach the state tournament. Worsham also reached the 3A Mideast Regional final for the first time his his career after he pinned Northwood’s Cliff Davis in the regional semifinals. Davis jumped out to an early 4-1 lead, but Worsham came back and scored a pin at 3:30. This season, Worsham is 16-3 with seven pins. He has been active through an unusual year. This year, Worsham was the starting left tackle for the Orange football team. He also played cornerback and returned kickoffs. Next week, he will be one of six Orange wrestlers competing in the 3A State Wrestling Championships, which will also be held at Eastern Guilford High School on June 26.

Replacing a legend isn’t easy, even if it has been something fairly common around Orange the past few years.

When Dean Dease retired after 503 career wins at the end of the 2018 season, he figured Walter Williams head coach Jason Knapp would be a fitting replacement. Some of the players who helped Knapp make the transition into his new program were Will Walker, Jordan Underwood and Pierson Kenney, all sophomores making their varsity debuts in March 2019.

It would be a stretch to say that Knapp coached those seniors for three years. Part of what made 2020 so difficult was the time it took away for coaches and players to develop and work together. On March 12, 2020, two days after Orange defeated East Chapel Hill in its Big 8 Conference opener, Knapp had to tell the team that their season was interrupted by the coronavirus pandemic for three weeks. They would never play together again.

Knapp later described that meeting “felt like somebody had kicked me in the gut and ripped my heart out.” It was not an enviable position for any coach, much less someone in charge of the vaunted Orange baseball program just starting their second year. For all of the rigorous day-to-day duties that Dease did in 31 years, he never had to tell a team that their season was suspended because of a worldwide pandemic only three weeks into a campaign. Especially a team that that had Joey Berini as a senior, one year after he was named Big 8 Conference Player of the Year. Whether it was fate or karma, Berini’s final at-bat in an Orange uniform was the first grand slam of his career against East.

So when Asheboro’s Camden Walker scored from first base off a double by sophomore Tanner Marsh in the bottom of the seventh inning to pull out a 5-4 win in the opening round of the 3A State Playoffs on Tuesday night at McCrary Park, there was a combination of shock and sadness in the Orange dugout. Some players were inconsolable.

For Knapp, this was the first Orange class that helped him get indoctrinated to Hillsborough. They made him feel less like an outsider during a time when it was harder to establish his own identity in a program because of the pandemic, where there were no games nor practices.

“Our seniors did a great job leading the way,” Knapp said. “I told them I can’t believe its over. It’s been such a crazy time with COVID. Those seniors have been a staple of the program. They’ve been a cornerstone.”

Each of the Orange seniors ended their careers playing some of their best ball. Walker drew three walks against the Blue Comets. While that runs counter to Walker’s reputation as a power hitter, the bases on balls came at a point when the Panthers trailed 4-0 and needed baserunners. Sure enough, Walker scored the Panthers’ opening run off a double play grounder, and followed with the game-tying run after Asheboro surged to a 4-0 lead.

In his final pitching appearance, Kenney had the longest stint of his career with four innings against Northern Durham on June 10. He left the game with Orange leading 6-4. This season, Kenney went 2-0 and pitched reliably in middle relief stints against Northwood and Walkertown late in the season, each resulting in Orange wins.

The pandemic wasn’t the only thing that worked against Underwood, who entered his ill-fated junior season in 2020 as Orange’s opening night starter against Western Alamance. Underwood developed arm trouble which kept him from returning to the mound to start 2021. For the first half of the season, Kenney took his spot in the rotation while Underwood played first base. Gradually, Underwood became a dependable second starter after sophomore Ryan Hench established himself as Orange’s top man following a 2-hit shutout with 14 strikeouts to beat Chapel Hill 5-0 on May 11.

In Orange’s final four wins, Underwood captured three of them. He threw two shutout innings over Walkertown in a 7-0 victory on May 25. Against Chapel Hill on June 4, Underwood may have had the best performance of his career when he gave up just one hit in five shutout innings. Four nights later in the completion of a suspended game against Cedar Ridge, the Panthers trailed 6-3 and were down to its last strike in the 7th inning before pulling an improbable comeback to win 13-6 after scoring eleven runs in the seventh inning. Underwood replaced Hench and earned the win in relief.

And that wasn’t all. Jaren Sikes, in his first season as a starter, drove in Kenney with an RBI single in the fourth inning to cut Asheboro deficit to 4-2. Sikes would later tie the game with a bases-loaded walk. Tyler Lloyd, in his first varsity season, closed the year with hits in six of his last seven games.

Hench, Jackson Berini, David Waitt, Davis Horton, Conner Funk, Cesar Lozano and Joey Pounds will provide the leadership for Orange next season. But Knapp will always hold a special place in his heart for the seniors that helped make Hillsborough a less strange place to be three years ago.

“I’m going to miss them,” Knapp said. “Will Walker was a big part of that 2019 team. Looking back, I just hate it for them because all of those guys lost a year playing ball for Orange. But that all came back this year and just worked their tales off. I can’t thank them enough.”

ASHEBORO-The double-edged sword of making the state baseball playoffs carries high stakes for seniors.

The highs of pulling off a postseason road win can be the highest imaginable.

A loss means the end.

And when the end comes off a dramatic play in the 7th inning, it feels very sudden and very cruel.

That’s why Tyler Lloyd, Jaren Sikes and Pierson Kenney met at the third base line for a group hug at McCrary Park on Tuesday night. They wanted one final moment together in uniform because they would never experience it again.

Not after Asheboro’s Tanner Marsh struck a 1-1 fastball off the top of the wall in centerfield, deep enough to score Camden Walker all the way from first base for the game-winning run as the Blue Comets defeated Orange 5-4 in the opening round of the 3A State Playoffs on Tuesday night. Asheboro (13-2) will travel to Greenville to face D.H. Conley for the 2nd round on Thursday.

Orange, who conclude the year 10-5, showed grit as they stormed back from a 4-0 deficit to tie the game. Pitcher Ryan Hench finished 2-for-4 with a double. Sikes, in his final game, went 2-for-2 with two RBIs.

“We came out a little nervous,” said Orange Coach Jason Knapp. “I could tell taking infield we were just a little tight. I think Ryan was a little nervous, but he settled in after those first few innings. He was great.”

Ultimately, Marsh was the biggest factor. In addition to getting the game-winning hit, Marsh replaced starter Caleb Walker to start the fifth inning. After some early hiccups, Marsh retired the final seven Panthers to earn the win.

Asheboro has won twelve in a row.

Trailing 4-0 in the fourth inning, Orange loaded the bases after senior Will Walker drew a leadoff walk, Hench doubled to left field and Conner Funk drew a walk. Marsh turned a double play that allowed Walker to score. Sikes hit a hard grounder into left field to bring in Kenney, who was running for Hench, to cut the Blue Comets’ lead in half.

Asheboro head coach Brett Hoogkamp made the daring move to put Marsh, a sophomore, on the mound. Right away, Orange loaded the bases again after Waitt hit a leadoff single, Walker walked and Hench singled to left field. Conner Funk lined a 3-1 fastball to right field to bring in Waitt. Sikes tied the game at 4-4 after he drew a bases-loaded walk.

“It’s always been a timely hit at the bottom of the order that has gotten us going,” Knapp said. “Today was no different. Those guys are aggressive at the plate and they came through for us. Particularly at the end of this year.”

It was also the last offense for Orange this year. After Caleb Walker ran up a short hill behind first base to catch a pop-up fouled off by Tyler Lloyd, Marsh retired Orange in order in the sixth and seventh.

Hench was close to the limit of 105 pitches coming into the 7th inning. Asheboro leadoff batter Alex Martinez drew a leadoff walk, but Camden Walker’s bunt, with two strikes, was fielded by Hench, who threw out Martinez at second. On Hench’s 105th pitch, Marsh sent the ball off the top of the wall and Walker raced around the bases and slid into home plate safely to start a raucous celebration as the Blue Comets continued its season.

With two outs and the bases empty in the bottom of the first inning, Gage Miller lined a single in front of Sikes in centerfield, which delighted the Asheboro fans sitting in the gold seats under a packed grandstand. Walker lined a double off the top of the left field wall that advanced Miler to third. With Connor Adams running for Walker, catcher Avery Jones tore a liner into right field to bring in the opening two runs.

Asheboro sophomore Josh Meadows sent a laser down the 3rd base line to open the second inning. Meadows went to third after a groundout by Camden Walker. Tanner Marsh sent a flair to centerfield to score Meadows and increase the Blue Comet lead to 3-0. Centerfielder Tatum Marsh, Tanner’s older brother, drilled a ball over Sikes’ head all the way to the 400-sign in dead centerfield. Tanner scored while Tatum was tagged out in a rundown.

“When you work so hard as a group, it hurts,” Knapp said. “It’s going to hurt unless you win the last one. That’s our goal every year when we go into the playoffs is to win the last one. Those guys put their heart and soul into it. As a coaching staff, we ask a lot out of our guys. And they give a lot. I love them to death. Our seniors did a great job leading the way. I told them I can’t believe it’s over.”

GIBSONVILLE–In every respect, Orange wrestling has rebounded from its most lackluster season in decades.

Last year, the Panthers finished 2nd in the Big 8 Conference, ending a string of 16 straight league titles. At the 2020 3A Mideast Regionals, they finished 4th in team standings and sent three wrestlers to the state championships.

A year later, Orange finds itself back atop the Big 8, they will send six wrestlers to the state championships and finished near the top of the 3A Mideast Regionals.

On Tuesday afternoon inside a humid Eastern Guilford High School Gymnasium, the Panthers finished 2nd in the regionals with 110 points. Union Pines capture the team championship with 147 points.

Overall, Orange will send Kessel Summers, Hayden Horne, Brendon Worsham, Matthew Smith-Breeden, Dillon Heffernan and Henry Joubert-Stanzel to the 3A State Championships on June 26.

Additionally, Cedar Ridge senior Daina Pritchard reached the state championships for the first time in his career. Pritchard defeated Western Alamance’s Nolan Hogsed 7-3 to reach the semifinals in the 145-pound division. Pritchard, who has won 74 career matches, is 24-3 this season after a 4th place finish in the region.

Of the six Panthers who qualified for the state championships, three reached the regional finals in their respective weight classes. Senior Kessel Summers, who reached the state tournament for the third time in his career, held off Union Pines’ Andrew Clark 8-6 in the 138-pound semifinals. Summers advanced to the regional final for the first time in his career. Western Harnett’s Will Lewis won the regional championship with a pin in 1:40. Lewis, who will make his third state tournament appearance, won the 132-pound championship last year.

Summers is 19-3 this season.

The other two finalists were also the offensive tackles for the Orange football team this past season.

Senior Hayden Horne, who had never started in an individual tournament before Tuesday, finished 2nd at 220 pounds. Horne pinned Northern Durham’s Tyler Kendall in 2:48 to advance to the semifinals. He pinned Westover’s Remington Workman in 1:18 to move on to the finals. Eastern Guilford’s Jacob Vickers pinned Horne in 1:24 for the regional championship, which ended Horne’s undefeated season. He is now 15-1.

At 182 pounds, Brendon Worsham qualified for the state championships for the second straight year. Worsham put away Gray’s Creek’s Gage Ratley 15-3 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals, Northwood’s Cliff Davis had an early 4-1 lead on Worsham. In the second period, Worsham scored a quick trip takedown, landed on top of Davis and pinned him in 3:30. Union Pines Colin Pettine, who came in 3rd at 170 last year, defeated Worsham 12-7 in the final.

The other state qualifiers for Orange ran the gamut in terms of experience. Senior Matthew Smith-Breeden pinned Person’s Landon Lemaire in 42 seconds to earn a spot in the state tournament for the first time at 145 pounds. Later, Smith-Breeden pinned Pritchard in 3:27 to finish third in the region. Smith-Breeden is now 15-7 with seven pins this season.

Senior Henry Joubert-Stanzel finished 3rd at 170 pounds to clinch his first trip to the state championships. Joubert-Stanzel made quick work of Trinity’s Julian Goodman-Hernandez in 31 seconds in the quarterfinals. In the 3rd place match, Joubert-Stanzel defeated Eastern Alamance’s Julian Rodriguez’s 10-0, improving his record to 17-2.

At 113 pounds, sophomore Dillon Heffernan scored a major decision over Gray’s Creek’s Diego Martinez 16-7. Fayetteville Westover’s Dakota Little defeated Heffernan 10-6 en route to winning the regional championship. Heffernan won the 3rd place match over Eastern Guilford’s Adam Salazar 13-0.

Cedar Ridge senior James Rosati-Brown ended his career on Tuesday. Competing at 152 pounds, Rosati-Brown pinned Western Harnett’s Matthew Schneider in 39 seconds. In the quarterfinals, Cape Fear’s Dawson Travis defeated Rosati-Brown 9-4. In most years, there would have been a consolation round that could have led to Rosati-Brown reaching one of the top four spots. Because of the pandemic, this year it was a single-elimination tournament.

Rosati-Brown ends his career with a record of 77-48.

At 120 pounds, Cedar Ridge’s Fernando Martinez faced a tough draw. He opened with a pin of Gray’s Creek’s Cole Burgess in 3:29. Southern Durham’s ShyHeem Davis defeated Martinez 12-4 in the quarterfinals. Earlier this year, Martinez defeated Davis via injury default during a dual meet. Martinez ends the year 21-3. At the end of his sophomore year, Martinez has a career record of 55-16.

Cedar Ridge senior Kady Watkins, who has eleven victories this season, competed in the 126-pound tournament. Watkins will be in the Women’s Invitational Tournament at Glenn High School in Kernersville on Saturday.

Daina Pritchard achieved a goal that he had aimed at for four years on Tuesday. At the 3A Mideast Regional Wrestling Championships at Eastern Guilford High School, Pritchard qualified for the state championships at 145 pounds. Pritchard defeated Western Alamance’s Nolan Hogsed 7-3 to reach the regional semifinals. He finished 4th in the region. Pritchard is now 24-3 this season. He is the first Cedar Ridge wrestler to qualify for the state championships since Darius McLeod in 2019. It has been a whirlwind last five days for Pritchard. On Saturday night, he graduated from Cedar Ridge at Red Wolves Stadium. Now, he will end his wrestling career the way any wrestler would—going for a state championship. While the state championships won’t be held at the Greensboro Coliseum this year, Pritchard will still be among 16 wrestlers going for the 3A 145-pound title next Saturday at Eastern Guilford High School. Pritchard now has a career record of 74-36.

With the academic year now over across Orange County, a return to normal doesn’t seem too far away.

But the peculiarities created by the pandemic will continue to affect the final two weeks of wrestling season. This morning, the 3A Mideast Regionals will take place at Eastern Guilford High School in Gibsonville.

The fact that regionals are taking place on a weekday is strange enough. So is the fact that’s it’s going on at the beginning of summer. It’s the first individual tournament this year for virtually everyone competing. In a standard year, most competitors would have had 4-5 tournament under their belts by now. This year, the closest thing for local grapplers has been tri-meets, consisting of two dual team matches in one night.

Plus, there will be no consolation rounds in the regional championships and the state championships. In 2021, they will be single-elimination tournaments.

In a standard year, those who qualify for the state championships get the reward of competing in the famed Greensboro Coliseum. It’s where Orange’s Payton Wilson won the 220-pound championship in 2017 in a wild finish where he avoided a takedown at the horn to win 4-3 and conclude a 44-0 season. It was the last match Bobby Shriner coached in his legendary Orange career. It’s where Orange’s Josiah Ramirez won the elusive 182-pound championship.

This year, competitors will grow used to Eastern Guilford High over the next 12 days. Not only is that where the regionals are taking place, it’s also the scene of the state championships.

This morning, 13 wrestlers from the Big 8 Conference Champion Orange wrestling team and eight grapplers from Cedar Ridge will start pursuit of qualifying for the state tournament in the regional championships in Gibsonville. The top four finishers will qualify for the state championships, which will be held on Saturday, June 26.

Orange junior Kessel Summers, who won his 100th career match earlier this year, will go for his third trip to the 3A State Tournament. Last year, Summers finished 3rd at 126 pounds with a 14-5 win over Andrew Clark of Union Pines in the consolation final. Summers will compete at 132 pounds and start against Autumn Coles of East Chapel Hill in the 16-man tournament. Summers is 16-2 this year with his only losses coming against 4A opponents last week.

Another Panther going for a repeat trip to the state championships is junior Brendon Worsham. Last year, Worsham finished runner-up in the 182 pound division. He punched his ticket to the Greensboro Coliseum after scoring an 11-3 major decision over Joshua Shorter of Walter Williams to reach the finals. Worsham is the #2 seed and has already received a bye. He will face either Gage Ratley of Grey’s Creek or freshman Chevelle Cade of Fayetteville Westover in the quarterfinals.

Cedar Ridge will have two senior wrestlers trying to reach the state championships for the first time in their careers. At 152 pounds, James Rosati-Brown sports at 21-2 record for the season. His career mark is 76-47. Rosati-Brown opens with Matthew Schneider of Western Harnett.

At 145 pounds, Cedar Ridge senior Daina Pritchard comes in with a 22-1 mark. He has won six consecutive matches. In the opening round, Pritchard will face Khayree Dixon of Northern Durham, which will be the first meeting between the two this year. Pritchard won via forfeit against Northern Durham in a dual match last month.

Cedar Ridge sophomore Fernando Martinez earned a 7-seed in the 120-pound tournament despite an overall record of 20-2. Martinez opens against Cole Burgess of Gray’s Creek. Last year, Burgess competed in the 126-pound tournament. The winner will face Southern Durham’s ShyHeen Davis, who Martinez already defeated via injury default earlier this year. Even with a reduced schedule in 2021 during his second varsity season, Martinez has a 54-15 career record.

Orange senior Henry Joubert-Stanzel has already gained a spot in the second round of the 170-pound tournament. Joubert-Stanzel, who is 15-1 with a team-high seven pins, has gained a bye into the second round. He will face Trinity’s Julian Goodman-Hernandez with a trip to the 3A State Tournament on the line.

Among the most interesting stories to follow will be Orange senior Hayden Horne, who will compete in his first regional championship. Horne is 13-0 with five pins this season. He has already received a bye to the quarterfinals and will open against either Cedar Ridge’s Aiden Kearns or Northern Durham’s Tyler Kendall.

Dillon Heffernan (113), Joshua Dunn (120), Jared Hutchins (126), Avery Clark (138), Matthew Smith-Breeden (145), Samuel Crawford (152), Nate Hecht (160), Elliott Woods (195) and Tyler Larkin (heavyweight) also qualified for regionals for Orange.

Cedar Ridge’s Kady Watkins (126), Mac McGhee (138), and Kaden Tatro (160) also reached regionals. It will be a full week for Watkins. In addition to regionals, she will compete in the 3A State Women’s Invitational Championships at Glenn High School in Kernersville on Saturday morning. Watkins was the first female wrestler in Hillsborough history to compete in a state tournament in 2019.

We journey to women’s golf for this week’s Retro Orange Panther of the Week. Samantha Durham and her sister Sarah both qualified for the 3A Central Regionals at Greensboro National Golf Club last month. In a standard year, Sarah would have competed in the regionals, but after a lengthy rain delay on May 4, the field was reduced from 62 players to 48 and Sarah didn’t make the cut. Over the past year, Samatha and Sarah have grown more serious about golf, but it’s something that runs in the family. Their brother played at Cedar Ridge and attended Campbell University. This season, Samatha Durham had the lowest score on the Panther team. They frequently play at Occoneechee Golf Course in Hillsborough, the home of the Orange and Cedar Ridge men’s and women’s golf teams which has hosted the Big 8 Conference Championships. The Durham sisters look forward to a more traditional schedule when women’s golf season resumes in August.

This week’s Cedar Ridge Red Wolf of the Week is freshman women’s tennis player Cameron Mayhew. Last week, Mayhew reached the 3A Mideast Regionals during the Big 8 Women’s Tennis Tournament inside the Lindsay Linker Tennis Courts at East Chapel Hill High School. Mayhew defeated an opponent from Orange 6-0, 6-0 to move into the third round. This season, Mayhew was the top singles player for Cedar Ridge and had some exciting victories. She defeated Orange’s Morgan Gwinn 6-0, 6-7 (4-7) and 10-5. She also defeated a player from Northern Durham 6-1, 6-0. Mayhew teamed with junior Chloe Patz to comprise Cedar Ridge’s #1 doubles team. Last month, Cameron’s brother, Josh, became the first Cedar Ridge player to ever reach a state singles championship match when he faced Chapel Hill’s Dennis Perumov for the 3A State Title. In addition to tennis, Cameron is a self-taught pianist who comprises many of her own instrumental songs. She will start play in the 3A Mideast Regionals on Friday morning at the Burlington Tennis Center.

Three very different paths to playing college baseball all culminated at the same place.

Just three days before Grady Ray, Bryce Clark and Matt Hughes graduated together inside Cedar Ridge Red Wolves Stadium, they gathered at the new J-Wing to sign their respective letters of intent. Ray will play at Division III Methodist University in Fayetteville. Clark will be at Lenoir Community College in Kinston. Hughes signed with Brunswick Community College in Bolivia, NC.

Both Clark and Hughes will be in Region X of the National Junior College Athletic Association.

The ceremony was held on Wednesday afternoon. Presiding over the event was Red Wolves Athletic Director Andy Simmons along with Principal Dr. Carlos Ramirez.

By the end of the day, Ray, Clark and Hughes played their final game together at Cedar Ridge High against Kernersville Glenn. When Ray took off his uniform for the final time on Wednesday night, it ended four years of service to Cedar Ridge athletics that spanned three sports. He played football as a freshman, but basketball and baseball were his loves. He’s played basketball since he was four years old, and was a member of the varsity Red Wolves for four years. Ray joined the varsity for baseball when Mitchell Frazier was the head coach of Cedar Ridge in 2019, and helped current coach Bryson Massey establish his presence in the program despite an interminable interruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic last year.

Ray, the son of Jennifer and Warren Ray, played for the Sweponsville Sweepers of the Old North State League, a summer collegiate league. He’s also a member of Cedar Ridge’s International Baccalaureate Program and plans to major in, naturally, Exercise Science.

“I really like the school,” Ray said. “I’m really excited to play under Coach (Tom) Austin. Coach Massey was a huge part of this decision. I would talk to him after going to some camps. I looked at some different schools. He really helped me.”

Ray will now be conference rivals with the most successful pitcher in Cedar Ridge history. Phillip Berger, who won a school-record 21 games with the Red Wolves, just ended his sophomore season with William Peace University in Raleigh. Peace and Methodist are both in the USA South Athletic Conference.

Hughes, the son of Greg and Amy Hughes, started on the mound for Cedar Ridge in his final high school game. Like many members of the Class of 2021, Hughes had to deal with losing a substantial amount of time due to COVID-19. His junior season was limited to only two pitching performances. He opened 2021 with arm problems, which hurt Cedar Ridge’s pitching depth. However, he recovered to throw four scoreless innings against East Chapel Hill on June 4 in the most impressive stint of his Red Wolf career. Hughes struck out eight and scattered only one hit. Of 59 pitches he threw, 40 were strikes.

The Brunswick Dolphins, coached by Robbie Allen, was ranked #7 in the final NJCAA Division II Baseball Rankings on May 17. They finished the regular season 35-13.

“They have a winning tradition,” Hughes said. “I look forward to being a great pitcher for them.”

Hughes, who had other offers from various Division II and Division III schools, started playing baseball with the Hillsborough Youth Athletic Association when he was 5. He went on to Stanford Middle School before joining the Red Wolves. He plans to major in Arts.

“I’m going to remember all the great memories and the great teammates I had,” Hughes said.

In his freshman year, Hughes was on a team that went 18-6 and finished second in the Big 8 Conference with a 11-3 record. Cedar Ridge defeated Southern Alamance in the opening round of the 3A State Playoffs in Hillsborough.

Clark, the son of Brian and Stephanie Clark, is a study in perseverance. At the age of 14, his baseball career was at a crossroads when he underwent Tommy John Surgery. It cost him his entire freshman year and a large portion of his sophomore season.

“The doctors asked me if I wanted to quit baseball,” Clark said. “I decided to get the surgery and continue with it.”

Clark, a shortstop, says he didn’t get full strength back in his right arm until this season. He spent three years at Orange, including the 2020 season as the starting second baseman for all of four games before the pandemic. In those four games, he hit .429.

He transferred to Cedar Ridge last summer. Against Orange last month, he became the first player to hit a home run off Ryan Hench, the Panthers’ ace starting pitcher. It was the first run that Hench conceded in four starts.

With the Lenoir Lancers, Clark will play at historic Grainger Stadium, the longtime home of Kinston’s franchise in the Carolina League. He plans to major in Health Science.