7-17-26 roundup: Pro football, basketball, baseball, auto racing, soccer and rodeo, Legion baseball

By Richard Walker

Cherryville American Legion Post 100 extended its N.C. Area IV championship total to 22 on Friday with a 9-4 win over visiting Shelby in the one-game 2026 N.C. Area IV championship game.

Post 100 improved to 24-5 and will have the No. 1 seed for Area IV in next week’s state tournament that will be played at Gastonia’s Sims Legion Park.

Cherryville has won six of the last nine Area IV titles.

Gastonia (14), Shelby (11), Hickory (7) and Caldwell County (7) trail Post 100 in area titles.

Shelby has finished as Area IV runner-up for a record 11 times. Hickory (9), Caldwell County (8) and Gastonia (7) are next in area runner-up finishes.

In Friday’s game, Cherryville roared ahead with five runs in the first and one in the third and fourth innings for a 7-0 lead. Shelby had a four-run sixth inning to get within striking distance before Cherryville tallied two more times in the bottom of the sixth.

Nate Rollins (3 hits, home run, 1 RBI), Elliott Dellinger (2 hits, double), Beckett Rinkus (2 hits), Kenan Fowler (2 hits, triple, 1 RBI) and Tucker Sigmon (2-run home run) led Post 100’s 13-hit offense. Starter and winner Collin Chapel (5 1/3 innings) and Tyler Gates (1 2/3 innings) combined on the six-hitter.

For Shelby (20-10), Wyatt McSwain (home run) and Brock Melton (RBI triple) led the offense.

Here are the 2026 N.C. Legion state tournament pairings at Gastonia’s Sims Legion Park:

(Friday, July 24)
Game 1- Host/Gaston Braves vs. Area 4 No. 2, 1 p.m.

(Saturday, July 25)
Game 2- Area 3 No. 1 vs. Area 2 No. 2, 10 a.m.
Game 3- Area 4 No. 1 vs. Area 1 No. 2, 1 p.m.
Game 4- Area 2 No. 1 vs. Area 3 No. 2, 4 p.m.
Game 5- Game 1 winner vs. Area 1 No. 1, 7 p.m.

(Sunday, July 26)
Game 6- Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser, 9 a.m.
Game 7- Game 4 loser vs. Game 5 loser, 11:30 a.m.
Game 8- Game 6 winner vs. Game 3 loser, 2 p.m.
Game 9- Game 2 winner vs. Game 3 winner, 4:30 p.m.
Game 10- Game 4 winner vs. Game 5 winner, 7 p.m.

(Monday, July 27)
Game 11- Game 7 winner vs. Game 9 loser, 1 p.m.
Game 12- Game 8 winner vs. Game 10 loser, 4 p.m.
Game 13- Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 7 p.m.

(Tuesday, July 28)
Game 14- Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner, 4 p.m.
Game 15- Game 13 loser vs. Game 14 winner, 7 p.m.

(Wednesday, July 29)
Game 16- Game 13 winner vs. Game 15 winner, 4 p.m.
Game 17 (if necessary)- If Game 13 winner loses Game 16, 7 p.m.

Here’s the Area IV playoff schedule:

Quarterfinals (July 5-9, best of 5)
No. 1 (Cherryville) vs. No. 8 (Hickory)
Game 1- July 5 at Cherryville – C 10-0 in 6
Game 2- July 6 at Hickory – H 3-2
Game 3- July 7 at Cherryville – C 15-5 in 6
Game 4- July 8 at Hickory – C 15-3 (C wins series 3-1)

No. 4 (Caldwell County) vs. No. 5 (Gaston Braves)
Game 1- July 5 at Caldwell County – GBraves 5-4
Game 2- July 6 at East Gaston HS – GBraves 14-9
Game 3- July 7 at Caldwell County – CC 5-4
Game 4- July 8 at East Gaston HS – GBraves 19-5 in 5 (GB wins series 3-1)

No. 2 (Shelby) vs. No. 7 (Gastonia)
Game 1- July 5 at Shelby – S 2-0
Game 2- July 6 at Gastonia – S 11-4
Game 3- July 7 at Shelby – ppd., rain
Game 3- July 8 at Shelby – S 7-6 (S wins series 3-0)

No. 3 (Asheville) vs. No. 6 (Rutherford County)
Game 1- July 5 at West Henderson HS – A 7-2
Game 2- July 6 at Rutherford County – R 2-1
Game 3- July 7 at West Henderson HS – A 20-0 in 5
Game 4- July 8 at Rutherford County – A 10-3 (A wins series 3-1)

Semifinals (July 11-15, best of 5)
No. 1 (Cherryville) vs. No. 5 (Gaston Braves)
Game 1- July 11 at Cherryville – C 12-2 in 5
Game 2- July 12 at East Gaston HS – C 12-5
Game 3- July 13 at Cherryville – ppd., rain
Game 3- July 14 at Cherryville – C 10-0 in 5 (C wins series 3-0)

No. 2 (Shelby) vs. No. 3 (Asheville)
Game 1- July 11 at Shelby – S 3-1
Game 2- July 12 at West Henderson HS – A 7-6
Game 3- July 13 at Shelby – ppd., rain
Game 3- July 14 at Shelby – S 6-3
Game 4- July 15 at West Henderson HS – S 11-6 (S wins series 3-0)

Final (July 17, 1 game)
Shelby at Cherryville – C 9-4

 

 

 

 

 

Junior Legion

The 2026 Junior Legion state tournament pairings at Cherryville’s Fraley Field:

(Saturday, July 18)
Game 1- Area 4 No. 2 Shelby vs. Area 1 No. 1 Wilson, 1 p.m.
Game 2- Area 1 No. 2 Washington vs. Area 2 No. 1 Castle Hayne, 4 p.m.
Game 3- Area 2 No. 2 Beaufort vs. Host/Area 4 No. 1 Cherryville, 7 p.m.

(Sunday, July 19)
Game 4- Shelby-Wilson loser vs. Beaufort-Cherryville loser, 10 a.m.
Game 5- Beaufort-Cherryville winner vs. Washington-Castle Hayne loser, 1 p.m.
Game 6- Shelby-Wilson winner vs. Washington-Castle Hayne winner, 4 p.m.

(Monday, July 20)
Game 7- Game 4 winner vs. Game 6 loser, 10 a.m.
Game 8- Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner, 1 p.m.
Game 9- Game 8 loser vs. Game 7 winner, 4 p.m.

(Tuesday, July 21)
Game 10- Game 8 winner vs. Game 9 winner, noon
Game 11- if necessary, 3 p.m.

Note: Bracket would be altered IF Game 2 loser wins Game 5

 

 

 

 

 

Pro basketball

The Charlotte Hornets 2026 Las Vegas Summer League roster with number, name, position and school/country:

10 Michael Ajayi F Butler
53 Josiah Alick C Nebraska
5 Christian Anderson Jr. G Texas Tech
18 Kylian Boswell G Illinois
12 Terrell Brown Jr. G Washington
17 Wyatt Fricks F Marshall
4 Sion James G Duke
11 Ryan Kalkbrenner C Creighton
20 Max Mackinnon G Louisiana State
25 Cameron Matthews F Mississippi State
33 Liam McNeeley F Connecticut
31 Tidjane Salaün F France
22 Hannes Steinbach F/C Washington
35 Latrell Wrightsell Jr. G Alabama

The Charlotte Hornets 2026 Las Vegas Summer League schedule:

July 9 Orlando Magic W 86-74: Liam McNeeley (28 points) and rookie Hannes Steinbach (15 points, 11 rebounds) led the Hornets, who trailed 54-44 with 6:40 left in the third quarter.

July 11 New Orleans L 91-95: The Hornets’ nine-game summer league winning streak came to an end as the Pelicans rallied from an 11-point deficit with 5:03 to play to take the victory.

July 12 Boston Celtics L 75-87: Liam McNeeley (20 points, 8 rebounds) and Christian Anderson Jr. (13 points) but the Hornets lost for the second straight day.

July 15 Milwaukee Bucks L 91-110: Hannes Steinbach (27 points, 15 rebounds) and Tidjane Salaun (21 points) led the Hornets.

(Consolation)
July 17 Sacramento Kings L 90-92: Hannes Steinbach (22 points, 11 rebounds) led the Hornets, who couldn’t hold onto an 84-81 lead with 4 1/2 minutes to play.

 

 

 

 

Pro football

The Carolina Panthers July 31 Fan Fest schedule:

5:00 pm: Gates open and Team Store
5:30 pm: Pre-practice entertainment begins
6:30 pm: Players begin on-field warmups
7:30 pm: Practice begins
Approx. 8:45 pm: Practice ends and autograph session begins
Post practice: Fireworks and laser show begins
PSL Owners will have access to pre-sale tickets on Thursday, July 9 at 10 a.m., while tickets will go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. on Friday, July 10. Tickets are $5 each, with proceeds benefitting Carolina Panthers Charities.

Here is the Panthers’ full 2026 schedule:

(preseason)
Aug. 6 – Arizona (at Canton, Ohio), 8 p.m.
Aug. 15 – at Buffalo, 1 p.m.
Aug. 21 – at Jacksonville, 7:30 p.m.
Aug. 28 – Houston, 7 p.m.
(regular season)
Sept. 13 – Chicago, 1 p.m.
Sept. 20 – at Atlanta, 1 p.m.
Sept. 27 – at Cleveland, 1 p.m.
Oct. 4 – Detroit, 8:20 p.m.
Oct. 8-12 – BYE week
Oct. 18 – at Philadelphia, 1 p.m.
Oct. 25 – Tampa Bay, 1 p.m.
Oct. 29 – at Green Bay, 8:15 p.m.
Nov. 8 – Denver, 1 p.m.
Nov. 15 – at New Orleans, 1 p.m.
Nov. 22 – Baltimore, 1 p.m.
Nov. 30 – at Tampa Bay, 8:15 p.m.
Dec. 6 – at Minnesota, 4:25 p.m.
Dec. 13 – New Orleans, 1 p.m.
Dec. 20 – Cincinnati, 1 p.m.
Dec. 24-28 TBA – at Pittsburgh, TBA
Jan. 3 – Seattle, 1 p.m.
Jan. 9-10 TBA – Atlanta, TBA

 

 

 

 

 

Pro soccer

The 2026 Charlotte FC schedule:

(6-6-3 record)
Saturday, Feb. 21 at St. Louis (T 1-1)
Saturday, Feb. 28 at L.A. Galaxy (L 0-3)
Saturday, March 7 Austin (W 3-1)
Saturday, March 14 Miami (T 0-0)
Saturday, March 21 New York Red Bulls (W 6-1)
Saturday, Apr. 4 Philadelphia (W 2-1)
Saturday, Apr. 11 Nashville (L 1-2)
Saturday, Apr. 18 at New York (W 2-1)
Wednesday, Apr. 22 at Orlando (L 1-4)
Saturday, Apr. 25 at Nashville (L 2-4)
Saturday, May 2 at New England (L 0-1)
Saturday, May 9 Cincinnati (T 2-2)
Wednesday, May 13 New York (L 0-1)
Saturday, May 16 Toronto (W 3-1)
Saturday, May 23 New England (W 1-0)
Wednesday, July 22 Atlanta, 8:00 PM
Saturday, July 25 at New York Red Bulls, 7:30 PM
Saturday, Aug. 1 at Chicago, 8:30 PM
Saturday, Aug. 15 Columbus, 7:30 PM
Wednesday, Aug. 19 at Toronto, 7:30 PM
Saturday, Aug. 22 DC, 7:30 PM
Saturday, Aug. 29 at Atlanta, 7:30 PM
Saturday, Sept. 5 Houston, 7:30 PM
Wednesday, Sept. 9 at Montreal, 7:30 PM
Saturday, Sept. 12 at Cincinnati, 7:30 PM
Saturday, Sept. 19 at DC, 7:30 PM
Saturday, Sept. 26 Chicago, 7:30 PM
Saturday, Oct. 10 Dallas, 7:30 PM
Wednesday, Oct. 14 at Columbus, 7:30 PM
Saturday, Oct. 17 at Philadelphia, 2:30 PM
Saturday, Oct. 24 at Portland, 10:30 PM
Wednesday, Oct. 28 Montreal, 7:30 PM
Saturday, Oct. 31 Orlando, 1:00 PM
Saturday, Nov. 7 at Miami, 4:00 PM

(U.S. Open Cup)
Wednesday, Apr. 15 Charlotte Independence (W 6-0)
…at Mecklenburg County Sportsplex
Tuesday, Apr. 28 Atlanta United FC (L 0-2)
…at Mecklenburg County Sportsplex

 

 

 

 

 

Pro baseball

Durham 8, Charlotte 2: The Bulls took a 4-1 lead after the second inning and cruised to the win in the opener of the three-game series at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The second game is 6:45 p.m. on Saturday.

Here is the full Charlotte Knights’ 2026 schedule:

(49-44 record, 42-33 1st half, 7-11 2nd half)
-1st half
March 27-29 Durham 3-0 (W 19-2, W 2-1 in 11, W 4-3)
March 31-April 5 at Nashville 1-4 (L 3-7, W 9-3, L 0-4, L 6-7, ppd, L 5-7)
April 7-12 Memphis 3-3 (L 4-9, W 7-3, L 1-4, W 9-8 in 10, L 4-6, W 13-4)
April 14-19 at Jacksonville 2-4 (L 0-3, L 2-3, L 3-5, L 1-4, W 2-0, W 9-4)
April 21-26 Nashville 4-3 (L 1-5, W 9-4, W 3-2 in 10, W 11-9, L 5-12, W 16-6, L 1-5)
April 28-May 3 Gwinnett 3-3 (L 7-10, W 10-9, L 5-9, L 3-4, W 21-1, W 10-9)
May 5-10 at Jacksonville 3-3 (W 5-3, L 6-8, W 16-1, W 8-5, L 5-6, L 1-6)
May 12-17 Norfolk 3-3 (L 6-9, L 8-9, W 4-1, W 4-1, L 10-11, W 15-3)
May 19-24 at Gwinnett 4-2 (W 5-4, W 4-3, L 3-7, W 4-3 in 10, L 1-5, W 3-2)
May 26-31 Jacksonville 3-3 (W 4-0, susp, L 3-6, W 12-5, W 12-4, L 6-15, L 5-6)
June 2-7 at Durham 6-0 (W 6-1, W 18-7, W 11-6, W 4-3, W 7-5, W 12-5)
June 9-14 Oklahoma City 3-3 (L 3-6, L 1-10, W 9-8, W 12-7, L 7-11, W 4-3)
June 16-21 at Buffalo 4-2 (L 5-9, W 5-1, W 4-0, W 10-5, L 2-4, W 5-0)
-2nd half
June 23-28 Rochester 2-4 (L 9-10, W 10-2, W 7-6 in 11, L 2-6, L 1-3, L 4-9)
June 30-July 5 at Memphis 2-4 (L 5-10, W 2-0 in 8, L 6-8, L 3-4 in 11, W 8-6, L 1-2 in 11)
July 7-12 Nashville 3-3 (W 8-2, L 3-6, W 9-2, L 9-11, L 2-4, W 12-4)
July 17-19 at Durham 0-1 (L 2-8)
July 21-26 Norfolk
July 28-August 2 at Nashville
August 4-9 Durham
August 11-16 at Rochester
August 18-23 at Scranton-WB
August 25-30 Memphis
September 1-6 at Gwinnett
September 8-13 Buffalo
September 15-20 at Norfolk

 

Here is the full Gastonia Ghost Peppers’ 2026 schedule:

(45-31 record, 40-23 1st half, 5-8 2nd half)
-1st half
April 21-23 at High Point 1-2 (W 3-1, L 5-6, L 0-5)
April 24-26 High Point 3-0 (W 4-3, W 18-8, W 9-2)
April 28-May 3 at York 4-2 (W 14-2, ppd, W 2-1, W 5-4, L 4-5, W 10-2, L 3-9)
May 5-10 Southern Maryland 1-5 (L 2-3, L 11-18, L 2-12, L 4-5, W 7-3, L 1-14)
May 12-17 at Long Island 3-3 (L 3-6, L 3-11, W 10-0, L 4-6, W 8-6, W 6-5)
May 19-20 Charleston, W.Va. 3-0 (W 9-4, W 6-2, W 9-6)
May 22-24 at Charleston, W.Va. 3-0 (W 17-4, W 8-4, W 12-4)
May 26-28 at Lexington 3-0 (W 10-6, W 3-2, W 3-1)
May 29-31 Charleston, W.Va. 3-0 (W 6-3, W 10-7, W 9-2)
June 2-7 Lancaster 2-4 (W 11-2, L 1-3, W 14-3, L 3-4, L 8-9, L 5-17)
June 9-14 at Lexington 3-3 (L 13-15, L 6-8, W 7-5, L 9-10, W 7-1, W 12-8)
June 16-21 Staten Island 6-0 (W 10-4, W 9-6, W 26-3, W 11-4, W 12-3, W 13-8)
June 23-28 at Lexington 4-2 (W 4-3, W 6-3, W 7-4, W 8-6, L 5-12, L 4-9)
June 30-July 2 Lexington 1-2 (L 7-9, L 1-11, W 14-6)
-2nd half
July 3-5 Charleston, W.Va. 2-1 (L 13-16, W 10-3, W 13-9)
July 7-12 at Hagerstown 1-5 (L 4-13, L 4-14, L 5-6, L 3-10, W 7-3, L 6-13)
July 14-19 Lexington 2-2 (L 2-9, W 16-5, W 12-11, L 0-9)
July 21-26 at Charleston, W.Va.
July 28, 30-31-Aug. 2 Hagerstown
Aug. 4-6 Southern Maryland
Aug. 7-9 at Lexington
Aug. 11-16 at High Point
Aug. 18-23 Charleston, W.Va.
Aug. 25-30 at Southern Maryland
Sept. 1-6 High Point
Sept. 8-10 Lexington
Sept. 11-13 at High Point

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Auto racing

Here is the full 2026 NASCAR Cup Series schedule with race winners in parentheses:

Feb. 4 — Clash at Bowman Gray Stadium (Ryan Preece)
Feb. 15 — Daytona 500 (Tyler Reddick)
Feb. 22 — Atlanta (Reddick-2)
March 1 — Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas (Reddick-3)
March 8 — Phoenix (Ryan Blaney)
March 15 — Las Vegas (Denny Hamlin)
March 22 — Darlington, South Carolina (Reddick-4)
March 29 — Martinsville, Virginia (Chase Elliott)
April 5 — off weekend
April 12 — Bristol, Tennessee (Ty Gibbs)
April 19 — Kansas (Reddick-5)
April 26 — Talladega, Alabama (Carson Hocevar)
May 3 — Texas (Elliott-2)
May 10 — Watkins Glen, New York (Shane van Gisbergen)
May 17 — All-Star Race (Dover) (Hamlin-2)
May 24 — Coca-Cola 600 (Charlotte) (Daniel Suarez)
May 31 — Nashville, Tennessee (Hamlin-3)
June 7 — Michigan (Hamlin-4)
June 14 — Pocono in Long Pond, Pennsylvania (Hamlin-5)
June 21 — San Diego (Corey Heim)
June 28 — Sonoma, California (Shane van Gisbergen)
July 5 — Chicagoland (Chase Briscoe)
July 12 — Atlanta (Blaney-2)
July 19 — North Wilkesboro
July 26 — Brickyard 400 (Indianapolis)
Aug. 2 — off weekend
Aug. 9 — Iowa
Aug. 15 — Richmond, Virginia
Aug. 23 — New Hampshire
Aug. 29 — Daytona, Florida
Sept. 6 — Darlington
Sept. 13 — Gateway in Madison, Illinois
Sept. 19 — Bristol
Sept. 27 — Kansas
Oct. 4 — Las Vegas
Oct. 11 — Charlotte Roval
Oct. 18 — Phoenix
Oct. 25 — Talladega
Nov. 1 — Martinsville
Nov. 8 — Homestead, Florida

 

 

 

 

Rodeo

Professional Bull Riding Unleash the Beast tour schedule for Greensboro-based Carolina Cowboys:

Feb. 1 – Golden 1 Center Sacramento- Austin Gamblers (L 173.90-256.90)
Feb. 21 – Progressive PBR Jacksonville- Florida Freedom (L 158.70-169.25)
March 22 – Ram Trucks PBR Indianapolis- Nashville Stampede (W 88.70- 0.00)
(DNQ for playoffs)

Team Challenge playoff results
March 29 at Albuquerque: Semifinal- (No. 1 Missouri Thunder def. No. 4 Florida Freedom 83.65-0.00)
April 17 at Billings: Semifinal- (No. 2 Austin Gamblers def. No. 3 Kansas City Outlaws 87.10-84.50)
April 26 at Tacoma: Championship- (No. 1 Missouri Thunder def. No. 2 Austin Gamblers 254.75-171.35)

Upcoming events:
Sept. 18-20 – Greensboro First Horizon Coliseum Complex

 

 

 

 

Golf

The Rutherford County Sports Hall Of Fame (RCSHOF), presented by Hardin’s Drug, in conjunction with Golf Sponsors Forest City Honda and Chick-fil-A of Forest City, is pleased to announce that registration is now open for the 2026 T. Max Champion Memorial Golf Tournament.

The tournament will be held on Friday, July 31 at the Apple Vally Golf Course in Lake Luke, with a shotgun start at 9 a.m. Registration fee is $100.00 per player or $400.00 for a team of four and covers the green fee, cart usage and lunch.

First prize for Gross and Net Winners is $600.00 per team. Other prizes will be awarded based on the number of entries. Proceeds from the event go to support the RCSHOF Scholarship Fund and registration deadline is July 21.

For information or to register, please visit the RCSHOF website: https://www.rcshof.org/ or call Randy Page at 828-429-7773.