Mia Davidson: This week, Davidson will suit up for Team USA in the World Baseball Softball Confederation Softball World Cup Finals in Castions di Strada, Italy. The Americans will open against Canada on Monday at noon. Davidson continues to play for Denso Bright Pegasus in Japan’s Diamond League, where she starts regularly as catcher. She is hitting .189 with four home runs and 12 RBIs. The second half of the Japanese season starts September 7. The Bright Pegasus went 8-10 in the opening half of its season. After Davidson returns from Italy, she will resume play in Athletes Unlimited to round out the summer. It will be Davidson’s third season with Athletes Unlimited.
Ivy Garner: The North Carolina Courage U-23 women’s soccer team will host the championship game of the United Soccer W League next week at the WRAL Soccer Complex in Cary. On Saturday, the Courage defeated the Tennessee United Soccer Club 2-1 in added extra time during the W League’s semifinals. Garner, who spent her freshman season at Cedar Ridge High School before she transferred to Eno River Academy for her final three years, scored a goal in the quarterfinals against the Long Island Roughridgers, which the Courage won 3-0 on July 7. In the opening game of the W League Playoffs, Garner added another goal as the Courage whitewashed the North Carolina Fusion 7-nil. Garner helped Liberty University win the Conference USA Tournament championship last season, finishing with six goals and four assists in 20 games.
Bryse Wilson: The Milwaukee Brewers continue to lead the National League Central Division with a 54-42 record going into Saturday. They’re four games ahead of St. Louis. After starting games in May and June, Wilson has returned to the bullpen thus far in July. This season, he has a 5-3 record with a 4.12 ERA and 66 strikeouts. On Friday, Wilson threw one shutout inning with one strikeouts in a 5-2 loss to the Washington Nationals. Wilson had a no-decision. On June 25, Wilson earned the win in a game against the defending World Champion Texas Rangers 3-1 at American Family Ballpark. Wilson threw six shutout innings, allowing only three hits and striking out seven. On June 15, Wilson earned a 3-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. In five-plus innings, Wilson allowed three hits with zero runs, six strikeouts and two walks.
Ryan Hench: After redshirting this spring for the University of North Carolina baseball team, Hench is spending this summer playing for the Burlington Sock Puppets of the Appalachian League. Over six games, Hench is 1-3 with a 5.47 ERA with 27 strikeouts and 20 walks. Through July 13, Hench has thrown a team-high 24.2 innings. Hench earned his first win against the Sri-City Coal Cats 2-1 on June 22. He there five innings, striking out eight. He allowed four hits and just one run.
Joey Berini: Last month, Berin’s career with East Carolina came to a heartbreaking end when Evansville defeated the Pirates 6-5 at Clarke-LeClair Stadium in game seven of the Greenville Regional. In his final game with the Pirates, Berini started at shortstop. East Carolina, the #16 national seed, finished the year as the American Athletic Conference regular season champions with a 46-17 record. Berini, whose senior year at Orange was abbreviated to four games because of the COVID-19 pandemic, finished his final season starting all 63 games, one of only five Pirates to play in every game. He hit .225 with four home runs and 36 RBIs. In his ECU career, Berini won four AAC regular season titles.
Dante DeFranco: In its first season in the AAC, the Charlotte 49ers baseball team finished 27-37. They were eliminated by Florida Atlantic in the AAC Tournament in Clearwater Florida in May. DeFranco, who played there years at Cedar Ridge before transferring to Orange for his senior year, hit .259 in 55 games this season. He had one home run and 18 RBIs.