7-5-26 roundup: Pro football, basketball, baseball, auto racing, soccer and rodeo, Legion baseball, College athletics

By Richard Walker

The Atlantic Coast Conference has announced the dates and locations for its 27 ACC Championship events for the upcoming 2026-27 academic year.

“We are looking forward to another incredible year in the ACC and are dedicated to providing first-class championship events for student-athletes, coaches, programs, alumni and fans,” ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips said in a news release. “We appreciate our schools that will serve as hosts for ACC Championships in 2026-27 as well as the terrific neutral-site partners that will create unforgettable championship moments for schools.”

As previously announced, the 22nd annual ACC Football Championship Game returns to Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte for the 16th time in 17 years. Kickoff is scheduled for Saturday, December 5, at noon, moving the championship game from its traditional Saturday night window for the first time since 2020.

The 2027 ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament will celebrate its 50th year on March 3-7 at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte and returning to the Queen City for the first time since 1999.

The 2027 T. Rowe Price ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament returns to First Horizon Coliseum in Greensboro, North Carolina, from March 9-13, marking the 30th time that the tournament will be played in Tournament Town.

The 2026-27 championship schedule concludes May 25-30, with the 2027 ACC Baseball Championship at Durham Bulls Athletic Park in Durham, North Carolina. It marks the 15th time the tournament will be played in Bull City.

The ACC sponsors 28 sports, with 15 women and 13 men. No Power 4 conference sponsors more than 28 sports or 15 women’s offerings. ACC Volleyball determines its champion based on regular season results.

The 2026-27 ACC Championships Schedule:

M/W Cross Country – Oct. 30, 2026
Host: Virginia Tech
Buford Meredith Cross Country Course (Blacksburg, Va.)

ACC Field Hockey – Nov. 3, 4 & 6, 2026
Host: University of North Carolina
Karen Shelton Stadium (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Tournament Format: Eight-team bracket

ACC Men’s Soccer – Nov. 4, 8, 12 & 15, 2026
First Round and Quarterfinals: Campus Sites
Semifinals and Final: First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park (Cary, N.C.)
Tournament Format: 15-team bracket (No. 1 seed receives a first-round bye; Seeds 2-8 host first-round games; No. 1 seed and top remaining seeds in each bracket host quarterfinal games)

ACC Women’s Soccer – Nov. 8, 12 & 15, 2026
First Round: Campus Sites
Semifinals and Final: First Horizon Stadium at WakeMed Soccer Park (Cary, N.C.)
Tournament Format: Six-team bracket (No. 1 & 2 seeds receive a first-round bye)

ACC Football – Dec. 5, 2026 (Noon ET)
Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, N.C.)

ACC M/W Swimming & Diving – Feb. 16-20, 2027
Greensboro Aquatic Center (Greensboro, N.C.)

ACC M/W Fencing – Feb. 20-21, 2027
Host: Stanford University
Maples Pavilion (Stanford, Calif.)

ACC M/W Indoor Track & Field – Feb. 25-27, 2027
The TRACK at New Balance (Boston, Mass.)

ACC Women’s Basketball – March 3-7, 2027
Spectrum Center (Charlotte, N.C.)
Tournament Format: 15-team bracket (Seeds 5-9 receive first-round bye; Seeds 1-4 receive double-bye)

ACC Wrestling – March 6-7, 2027
Host: University of Pittsburgh
Victory Heights (Pittsburgh, Pa.)

T. Rowe Price ACC Men’s Basketball – March 9-13, 2027
First Horizon Coliseum (Greensboro, N.C.)
Tournament Format: 15-team bracket (Seeds 5-9 receive first-round bye; Seeds 1-4 receive double-bye)

ACC Gymnastics – March 20, 2027
First Horizon Coliseum (Greensboro, N.C.)
Championship Format: Six teams qualify (Seeds 5-6 compete in the first session; Seeds 1-4 compete in the second session)

ACC Women’s Golf – April 15-18, 2027
Sedgefield Country Club (Greensboro, N.C.)

ACC M/W Tennis – April 20-25, 2027
Cary Tennis Park (Cary, N.C.)

ACC Men’s Golf – April 22-26, 2027
Maridoe Golf Club (Dallas, Texas)

ACC Women’s Lacrosse – April 28, 30 & May 2, 2027
American Legion Memorial Stadium (Charlotte, N.C.)
Tournament Format: Eight-team bracket

Allstate ACC Men’s Lacrosse – May 7 & 9, 2027
American Legion Memorial Stadium (Charlotte, N.C.)
Tournament Format: Four-team bracket

Allstate ACC Softball – May 12-15, 2027
Host: Clemson University
McWhorter Stadium (Clemson, S.C.)
Tournament Format: 12-team bracket (Single elimination; Seeds 1-4 receive a first-round bye)

ACC M/W Outdoor Track & Field – May 13-15, 2027
Host: Florida State University
Mike Long Track (Tallahassee, Fla.)

ACC Rowing – May 14-15, 2027
Lake Wheeler (Raleigh, N.C.)

ACC Baseball – May 25-30, 2027
Durham Bulls Athletic Park (Durham, N.C.)
Tournament Format: 16-team bracket (Single elimination; Seeds 5-8 receive first-round bye; Seeds 1-4 receive double-bye)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Legion baseball

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 – Cherryville 10-0 in 6: Starter and winner Tyler Gates (4 innings) and reliever Eli Webb (2 innings) combined on the shutout and Nate Rollins hit a two-run home run for Cherryville.

Game 2- July 6 at Hickory
Game 3- July 7 at Cherryville
Game 4 (if necessary)- July 8 at Hickory
Game 5 (if necessary)- July 9 at Cherryville

No. 4 (Caldwell County) vs. No. 5 (Gaston Braves)
Game 1- July 5 at Caldwell County – GBraves 5-4: Brandon Washington (2 hits, home run, 3 RBIs), starter and winner Cooper Royster (6 innings, 3 strikeouts) and reliever Canton Bare (1/3 inning, 1 strikeout, save) led the Braves.

Game 2- July 6 at East Gaston HS
Game 3- July 7 at Caldwell County
Game 4 (if necessary)- July 8 at East Gaston HS
Game 5 (if necessary)- July 9 at Caldwell County

No. 2 (Shelby) vs. No. 7 (Gastonia)
Game 1- July 5 at Shelby – Shelby 2-0: Starter and winner Max Davis (2-hitter as pitcher, 3 strikeouts as pitcher, 2 hits, stolen base), Lathan Peeler (2 hits, double) led Shelby and Blake Mitchell (7-hitter, 0 earned runs) led Gastonia.

Game 2- July 6 at Gastonia
Game 3- July 7 at Shelby
Game 4 (if necessary)- July 8 at Gastonia
Game 5 (if necessary)- July 9 at Shelby

No. 3 (Asheville) vs. No. 6 (Rutherford County)
Game 1- July 5 at West Henderson HS – Asheville 7-2
Game 2- July 6 at Rutherford County
Game 3- July 7 at West Henderson HS
Game 4 (if necessary)- July 8 at Rutherford County
Game 5 (if necessary)- July 9 at West Henderson HS

Semifinals (July 11-15, best of 5)
No. 1-8 winner vs. No. 4-5 winner
No. 2-7 winner vs. No. 3-6 winner

Final (July 17-22, best of 5)
Semifinal winners

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Junior Legion

The Area IV junior legion playoffs:
Area IV playoffs:
Quarterfinals (July 1-3, best of 3)
South No. 1 Burns vs. North No. 4 South Caldwell
Game 1- July 1 at Burns – SC 7-0
Game 2- July 2 at South Caldwell – Burns 2-1
Game 3- July 3 at Burns – SC 6-3 (SC wins 2-1)

North No. 2 R-S Central vs. South No. 3 Cherryville
Game 1- July 1 at Cherryville – C 10-0 in 5
Game 2- July 2 at R-S Central – C 13-0 in 5 (C wins 2-0)

North No. 1 North Wilkes vs. South No. 4 Gaston Braves Red
Game 1- July 1 at North Wilkes – NW 7-5
Game 2- July 2 at East Gaston – GB 10-0 in 5
Game 3- July 3 at North Wilkes – NW 13-3 in 5 (NW wins 2-1)

South No. 2 Shelby vs. North No. 3 Asheville
Game 1- July 1 at Shelby – S 6-4
Game 2- July 2 at North Henderson – A 12-2 in 6
Game 3- July 3 at Shelby – S 5-4 in 8 (S wins 2-1)

Semifinals (July 5-7, best of 3)
North No. 4 (South Caldwell) vs. South No. 3 (Cherryville)
Game 1- July 6 at Cherryville
Game 2- July 7 at South Caldwell
Game 3 (if necessary)- July 8 at Cherryville

North No. 1 (North Wilkes) vs. South No. 2 (Shelby)
Game 1- July 5 at North Wilkes – Shelby 6-1
Game 2- July 6 at Shelby
Game 3 (if necessary)- July 7 at North Wilkes

Final (July 9-11, best of 3)
Semifinal winners

N.C. state tournament (at Cherryville Fraley Field):
July 18-23

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pro basketball

Here’s the Charlotte Hornets’ 2026 Las Vegas Summer League roster with name, position and school/country:

Michael Ajayi F Butler
Josiah Alick C Nebraska
Christian Anderson Jr. G Texas Tech
Kylian Boswell G Illinois
Terrell Brown Jr. G Washington
Wyatt Fricks F Marshall
Sion James G Duke
Ryan Kalkbrenner C Creighton
Max Mackinnon G Louisiana State
Cameron Matthews F Mississippi State
Liam McNeeley F Connecticut
Tidjane Salaün F France
Hannes Steinbach F/C Washington
Latrell Wrightsell Jr. G Alabama

The Charlotte Hornets 2026 Las Vegas Summer League schedule:

July 9 Orlando Magic (7:30 PM ET, Prime)
July 11 New Orleans (4 PM ET, ESPN)
July 12 Boston Celtics (5 PM ET, ESPN2)
July 15 Milwaukee Bucks (7:30 PM ET, Prime)

 

 

 

 

 

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 football

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 baseball

Charlotte 8, Memphis 6 (on Saturday): Ryan Galanie (3 hits, double, 2 RBIs) led the Knights in the fifth game of the series.

Memphis 2, Charlotte 1 (11 innings on Sunday): The host Redbirds won in the 11th inning in the finale of the six-game series. After a day off, the Knights begin a six-game home series against Nashville at 7:04 p.m. on Tuesday.

Here is the full Charlotte Knights’ 2026 schedule:

(46-41 record, 42-33 1st half, 4-8 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
July 17-19 at Durham
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:

(42-24 record, 40-23 1st half, 2-1 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
July 14-19 Lexington
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
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.