11-20-21 roundup: High school football and soccer, College football and basketball, Pro football and basketball

By Richard Walker

Shelby won its third N.C. High School Athletic Association soccer championship in dramatic fashion on Saturday.

Shelby’s 2021 N.C. Class 2A state championship soccer team

After Shelby and Greene Central went 120 minutes of regulation and overtime play with a scoreless tie, Shelby won the championship 5-3 on penalty kicks at Cary’s WakeMed Soccer Park.

Golden Lions keeper Eli Wilbanks, who recorded nine saves, was named championship match most valuable player. Wilbanks also was honored pregame with the N.C. Farm Bureau sportsmanship award.

Greene Central (25-2) outshot Shelby 25-15 for the match.

With the Golden Lions leading 4-3 in the penalty kick shootout, Cade Ledbetter’s shot into the right side of the net was the game-winner after joined the 2009 and 2010 Shelby teams as a N.C. state champion.

Shelby, under veteran coach David Steeves, finished 23-1-2 and was a 12-0 Southern Piedmont 1A/2A Conference champion.

Here’s the N.C. High School Athletic Association title game pairings for games that will all be played at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary:
(Friday)
3A
#21 Western Alamance Warriors (19-5-1) 1, #3 Hickory Red Tornadoes (22-4-1) 0

(Saturday)
1A
#1 Christ the King Crusaders (22-1-1) 3, #1 Voyager Academy Vikings (17-2-3) 0

2A
#4 Shelby Golden Lions (23-1-2) 0, #2 Greene Central Rams (25-2-0) 0 (Shelby won 5-3 on penalty kicks)

4A
#1 New Hanover Wildcats (27-0-1) 3, #8 Hough Huskies (22-4-1) 0

Pro football

Cam Newton is slated to increase his record number of starts as Carolina Panthers quarterback to 132 games on Sunday against Washington.

Newton, who has a 71-59-1 record (including playoffs) as the Panthers starter, will make his start for Carolina since 2019.

The Panthers have had 21 starting quarterbacks in their history. Newton is the all-time winner (71-59-1), followed by Jake Delhomme (58-40), Steve Beuerlein (23-28) and Kerry Collins (22-21).

Since Newton first left the team after the 2019 season, Carolina has started five quarterbacks – Kyle Allen, Will Grier, Teddy Bridgewater, P.J. Walker and Sam Darnold.

Newton enters Sunday’s game with a 4-1 all-time record as a starting quarterback against Washington; Newton has more victories against Carolina’s three NFC South rivals – 9-5 against Tampa Bay, 7-9 against New Orleans and 6-9 against Atlanta.

Here is the Carolina Panthers’ 2021 schedule (with results):

Sept. 12 New York Jets (W 19-14)
Sept. 19 New Orleans (W 26-7)
Sept. 23 at Houston (W 24-9)
Oct. 3 at Dallas (L 28-36)
Oct. 10 Philadelphia (L 18-21)
Oct. 17 Minnesota (L 28-34, OT)
Oct. 24 at New York Giants (L 3-25)
Oct. 31 at Atlanta (W 19-13)
Nov. 7 New England (L 6-24)
Nov. 14 at Arizona (W 34-10)
Nov. 21 Washington, 1 p.m.
Nov. 28 at Miami, 1 p.m.
Dec. 5 BYE WEEK
Dec. 12 Atlanta, 1 p.m.
Dec. 18 or 19 at Buffalo, TBD
Dec. 26 Tampa Bay, 1 p.m.
Jan. 2 at New Orleans, 1 p.m.
Jan. 9 at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m

Pro basketball

The Charlotte Hornets’ longest winning streak in 3 1-2 years was stopped Saturday night in a 115-105 loss at the Atlanta Hawks.

The Hornets (10-8) rallied within four late in the fourth quarter and got a career-high 35 points from Miles Bridges and LaMelo Ball’s third career triple double (15 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists) but it wasn’t enough.

Here is the Charlotte Hornets’ full regular season schedule (with results):

OCTOBER
Wed. 20 INDIANA (W 123-122)
Fri. 22 at Cleveland (W 123-112)
Sun. 24 at Brooklyn (W 111-95)
Mon. 25 BOSTON (L 129-140, OT)
Wed. 27 at Orlando (W 120-111)
Fri. 29 at Miami (L 99-114)
Sun. 31 PORTLAND (W 125-113)
NOVEMBER
Mon. 1 CLEVELAND (L 110-113)
Wed. 3 at Golden State (L 92-114)
Fri. 5 at Sacramento (L 110-140)
Sun. 7 at LA Clippers (L 106-120)
Mon. 8 at L.A. Lakers (L 123-126, OT)
Wed. 10 at Memphis (W 118-108)
Fri. 12 NEW YORK (W 104-96)
Sun. 14 GOLDEN STATE (W 106-102)
Wed. 17 WASHINGTON (W 97-87)
Fri. 19 INDIANA (W 121-118)
Sat. 20 at Atlanta (L 105-115)
Mon. 22 at Washington 7:00
Wed. 24 at Orlando 7:00
Fri. 26 MINNESOTA 7:00
Sat. 27 at Houston 8:00
Mon. 29 at Chicago 8:00
DECEMBER
Wed. 1 at Milwaukee 8:00
Sun. 5 at Atlanta 6:00
Mon. 6 PHILADELPHIA 7:00
Wed. 8 PHILADELPHIA 7:00
Fri. 10 SACRAMENTO 7:00
Mon. 13 at Dallas 8:30
Wed. 15 at San Antonio 8:30
Fri. 17 at Portland 10:00
Sun. 19 at Phoenix 8:00
Mon. 20 at Utah 9:00
Thu. 23 at Denver 9:00
Mon. 27 HOUSTON 7:00
Wed. 29 at Indiana 7:00
JANUARY
Sun. 2 PHOENIX 7:00
Mon. 3 at Washington 7:00
Wed. 5 DETROIT 7:00
Sat. 8 MILWAUKEE 7:00
Mon. 10 MILWAUKEE 7:00
Wed. 12 at Philadelphia 7:00
Fri. 14 ORLANDO 7:00
Mon. 17 at New York 1:00
Wed. 19 at Boston 7:30
Fri. 21 OKLAHOMA CITY 7:00
Sun. 23 ATLANTA 7:00
Tue. 25 at Toronto 7:00
Wed. 26 at Indiana 7:00
Fri. 28 L.A. LAKERS 7:00
Sun. 30 LA CLIPPERS 1:00
FEBRUARY
Wed. 2 at Boston 7:30
Fri. 4 CLEVELAND 7:00
Sat. 5 MIAMI 7:00
Mon. 7 TORONTO 7:00
Wed. 9 CHICAGO 7:30
Fri. 11 at Detroit 7:00
Sat. 12 MEMPHIS 7:00
Tue. 15 at Minnesota 8:00
Thu. 17 MIAMI 7:00
Fri. 25 TORONTO 7:00
Sun. 27 DETROIT 7:00
Mon. 28 at Milwaukee 8:00
MARCH
Wed. 2 at Cleveland 7:00
Sat. 5 SAN ANTONIO 7:00
Tue. 8 BROOKLYN 7:00
Wed. 9 BOSTON 7:00
Fri. 11 at New Orleans 8:00
Mon. 14 at Oklahoma City 8:00
Wed. 16 ATLANTA 7:00
Sat. 19 DALLAS 7:00
Mon. 21 NEW ORLEANS 7:00
Wed. 23 NEW YORK 7:00
Fri. 25 UTAH 7:00
Sun. 27 at Brooklyn 7:30
Mon. 28 DENVER 7:00
Wed. 30 at New York 7:30
APRIL
Sat. 2 at Philadelphia 12:30
Tue. 5 at Miami 7:30
Thu. 7 ORLANDO 7:00
Fri. 8 at Chicago 8:00
Sun. 10 WASHINGTON TBD

High school football

Here are Friday’s full NCHSAA third round playoff results:

(East)
#1 Tarboro (11-1) 42, #8 Perquimans (8-3) 0
#4 Northampton County (10-2) 34, #5 Rosewood (6-3) 16
#6 Pender (8-3) 50, #3 North Moore (10-2) 12
#2 Northside-Pinetown (11-1) 14, #7 Southside (11-2) 7
(West)
#9 Murphy (9-4) 64, #1 Eastern Randolph (10-1) 31
#4 Robbinsville (9-3) 50, #12 North Rowan (8-4) 47
#3 Mitchell (11-2) 38, #6 Thomasville (9-3) 21
#2 Mount Airy (13-0) 44, #7 Starmount (8-5) 7

(East)
#1 Princeton (12-0) 63, #8 Nash Central (7-6) 12
#5 St. Pauls (11-0) 38, #4 Whiteville (11-1) 36
#3 Northeastern (12-0) 57, #11 Washington (11-1) 47
#10 Wallace-Rose Hill (11-2) 21, #2 East Duplin (11-2) 17
(West)
#1 Shelby (12-1) 64, #24 East Gaston (8-5) 15
#4 Reidsville (12-0) 50, #5 Hendersonville (10-2) 35
#3 Maiden (13-0) 32, #6 Salisbury (11-1) 20
#2 East Surry (12-0) 10, #7 Monroe (8-2) 9

(East)
#1 Eastern Alamance (10-1) 43, #8 Westover (10-2) 12
#13 Jacksonville (10-2) 25, #5 Lee County (9-4) 22 (OT)
#6 J.H. Rose (9-4) 20, #3 Seventy-First (12-1) 14
#23 Scotland County (8-4) 29, #2 Northern Nash (11-2) 26
(West)
#16 South Point (10-3) 27, #25 Forestview (7-6) 7
#4 Crest (10-2) 35, #5 North Davidson (8-4) 14
#3 Dudley (12-1) 36, #11 Kings Mountain (10-3) 10
#2 Statesville (12-0) 42, #7 Hibriten (8-4) 0

(East)
#16 Leesville Road (10-2) 28, #25 Knightdale (6-6) 7
#20 Rolesville (8-5) 54, #12 Millbrook (11-2) 48
#6 Cardinal Gibbons (11-2) 29, #3 Cleveland (11-1) 21
#18 Panther Creek (10-3) 35, #7 Hoggard (11-2) 21
(West)
#1 Hough (13-0) 31, #25 Mallard Creek (6-5) 17
#13 East Forsyth (11-1) 14, #5 Glenn (9-3) 0
#3 Weddington (12-1) 34, #27 Cuthbertson (6-7) 21
#10 Julius Chambers (12-1) 28, #18 Porter Ridge (8-3) 10

Here are next Friday’s regional semifinal pairings:

(East)
#1 Tarboro (11-) vs. #4 Northampton County (10-2)
#2 Northside-Pinetown (11-1) vs. #6 Pender (8-3)
(West)
#4 Robbinsville (9-3) vs. #9 Murphy (9-4)
#2 Mount Airy (13-0) vs. #3 Mitchell (11-2)

(East)
#1 Princeton (12-0) vs. #5 St. Pauls (11-0)
#3 Northeastern (12-0) vs. #10 Wallace-Rose Hill (11-2)
(West)
#1 Shelby (12-1) vs. #4 Reidsville (12-0)
#2 East Surry (12-0) vs. #3 Maiden (13-0)

(East)
#1 Eastern Alamance (10-1) vs. #13 Jacksonville (10-2)
#6 J.H. Rose (9-4) vs. #23 Scotland County (8-4)
(West)
#4 Crest (10-2) vs. #16 South Point (10-3)
#2 Statesville (12-0) vs. #3 Dudley (12-1)

(East)
#16 Leesville Road (10-2) vs. #20 Rolesville (8-5)
#6 Cardinal Gibbons (11-2) vs. #18 Panther Creek (10-3)
(West)
#1 Hough (13-0) vs. #13 East Forsyth (11-1)
#3 Weddington (12-1) vs. #10 Julius Chambers (12-1)

College basketball

Gardner-Webb 100, Carver 38: After three straight road defeats against major college competition, Gardner-Webb won in its home opener. Kareem Reid (20 points, 9 rebounds) led six double-figure scorers for the Runnin’ Bulldogs (1-3), who play again at home against Columbia International on Wednesday in their next game.

Northwest Florida 85, Gaston College 70: Dee Merriweather (25 points, 4 steals), Da’marco Watson (18 points) and Damon Davis (13 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists) had outstanding games, but the Rhinos lost at the No. 10 team in the most recent NJCAA poll. Gaston College (6-2) is off until next Sunday at 2 p.m. when it hosts Blue Lights College at North Gaston High School.

Belmont Abbey 85, North Greenville 77: Sean Halloran had 23 points, four assists and four steals as the Crusaders improved to 3-1 overall in their Conference Carolinas-opening victory.

Belmont Abbey women 68, North Greenville 54: Peyton Nation had 20 points and Alexis Schulz 14 as Belmont Abbey won its Conference Carolinas opener at home to improve to 2-1 overall and 1-0 in the league.

College football

Gardner-Webb 35, N.C. A&T 27: Trailing 13-7 entering the final period, Gardner-Webb erupted for 28 fourth-quarter points to finish the season with a 4-7 overall record and 2-5 Big South Conference mark. Runnin’ Bulldogs quarterback Bailey Fisher accounted for four of the five touchdowns (three passing and one rushing) and completed 21 of 31 passes for 259 yards.

Marshall 49, Charlotte 28: Former East Lincoln standout Cameron Dollar caught two touchdowns passes on his “Senior Day” but Charlotte lost to Conference USA rival Marshall in front of 13,211 at Richardson Stadium. Dollar caught four passes for 50 yards for the 49ers (5-6, 3-4), who must win next week’s regular season finale at Old Dominion in order to qualify for a postseason bowl game.

Here’s this weekend’s Carolinas Division I results:

(Thursday)
Louisville 62, Duke 22
(Saturday)
Robert Morris 20, Campbell 17 (OT)
Georgia 56, Charleston Southern 7
Clemson 48, Wake Forest 27
North Carolina 34, Wofford 14
Davidson 45, Drake 14
Furman 41, Samford 34
Gardner-Webb 35, N.C. A&T 27
Coastal Carolina 35, Texas State 21
The Citadel 24, Chattanooga 21
Western Carolina 52, VMI 24
N.C. Central 34, Delaware State 28
S.C. State 31, Norfolk State 21
St. Thomas, Minn. 54, Presbyterian 15
Elon 43, Rhode Island 28
Appalachian State 45, Troy 7
East Carolina 38, Navy 35
Marshall 49, Charlotte 28
N.C. State 41, Syracuse 17
South Carolina 21, Auburn 17

Here’s this weekend’s Carolinas Division II results:

(Saturday)
NCAA Division II playoffs – Bowie State 31, Lenoir-Rhyne 10
NCAA Division II playoffs – Newberry 33, West Florida 30 (OT)