State wrestling champ signs with UNC Pembroke

Concord senior Nathanael Torrence signed to continue wrestling at UNC Pembroke Thursday.

Torrence, who won the 3A 145-pound state championship earlier this year, had a standout Spider career. A three year Concord starter, he finished high school with a 139-20 record, including a 72-2 pin record. Torrence qualified to states all three years on varsity, finishing third in the 140-pound class last season.

He was named All-South Piedmont Conference twice and NCHSAA Scholar Athlete three times.

Front row (from left): Sam Helms (step father), Debra Cook (mother), Nathanael Torrence, Mike Torrence (father), Shirley Torrence (step mother); Top row (from left): Concord High principal Carla Black, athletic director George Walker, wrestling coach Michael Carty, assistant coaches Paul Proper and Dave Fowlie. Photo courtesy of CHS.

SPC softball heats up

Five South Piedmont Conference teams are still on the hunt of a conference title.

Central Cabarrus, Cox Mill, Hickory Ridge, Jay M. Robinson and Northwest Cabarrus are all on top of the conference standings. The five teams have three SPC losses each, meaning that any of them can be crowned champions depending on how they perform the last few weeks of the season.

Coming into the week, Hickory Ridge was on top of the standings, but after suffering their third loss to Cox Mill Monday night, things in the conference got more interesting.

Check out tomorrow's Cabarrus News to read about the Trojans' senior class and how big they've come for their team.

Here is the schedule for the last two weeks of conference play:

Today:
Concord @ Hickory Ridge - 5:30 p.m.
Central Cabarrus @ Cox Mill - 6 p.m.
Jay M. Robinson @ Mount Pleasant - 6:30 p.m.

Thursday:
Northwest Cabarrus @ Cox Mill - 5:30 p.m.
Hickory Ridge @ Jay M. Robinson - 6 p.m.
Central Cabarrus @ Mount Pleasant - 6:30 p.m.

May 3:
Concord @ Northwest Cabarrus - 5:30 p.m.
Mount Pleasant @ Cox Mill - 6 p.m.
Hickory Ridge @ Central Cabarrus - 6 p.m.
A.L. Brown @ Jay M. Robinson - 5:30 p.m.

May 4:
Cox Mill @ Hickory Ridge - 6 p.m.
Central Cabarrus @ A.L. Brown - 5:30 p.m.

May 6:
Northwest Cabarrus @ Mount Pleasant - 5:30 p.m.
Jay M. Robinson @ Concord - 5:30 p.m.
Central Cabarrus @ A.L. Brown - 5:30 p.m.

Note: Some teams will play out of conference squads during next week's spring break. For complete schedules, visit your school's website.

Tiger signs to play college soccer

Mount Pleasant's Madison Sapp commited to play women's soccer at Stanly Community College next year. The senior signed in a ceremony at the high school, accompanied by her father, Mack, and mother, April, as well Mount Pleasant assistant coach Kate Williams and head coach Kelly Williams.

Sapp's Tigers are 9-3 (5-3 in the South Piedmont Conference) and will travel to Hickory Ridge tomorrow. The game is at 6 p.m.

(Front row, from left) Mack Sapp, Madison Sapp, April Sapp; (Back row, from left) Assistant girls' soccer coach Kate Williams and head soccer coach Kelly Williams. Photo courtesy of Gary Calamary.

Northwest Cabarrus leads baseball standings

With three games left in the South Piedmont Conference regular season, Northwest Cabarrus is still in first place in conference standings after a win Tuesday against A.L. Brown.

Second-place Jay M. Robinson kept up their pace, defeating Mount Pleasant Tuesday, while third-place Hickory Ridge won their game against Concord.

The Trojans will face the Wonders again Friday before playing an non-conference game against Mooresville. They will close out the regular season with two games against Cox Mill. The path to back-to-back SPC regular season championships looks easy, but Northwest can't get overconfident the next two weeks.

Here are last night's scores and the updated conference standings:

April 12 SPC baseball scores

Northwest Cabarrus 10 - A.L. Brown 5
Cox Mill 10 - Central Cabarrus 7
Robinson 11 - Mount Pleasant 1
Hickory Ridge 14 - Concord 0

SPC baseball standings

Team	SPC wins	SPC losses	Games behind
Northwest Cabarrus	10	1	-
Jay M. Robinson	9	2	1
Hickory Ridge	7	4	3
Mount Pleasant	6	5	4
Central Cabarrus	4	7	6
Cox Mill	4	7	6
Concord	3	8	7
A.L. Brown	1	10	9

Bulldogs continue SPC golf dominance

Trevor Cone led Robinson to another SPC tournament title. Photo courtesy of Col. Dick Heftner.

Jay M. Robinson won the South Piedmont Conference boys' golf tournament title Monday with a team score of 318 at Rocky River Golf Club in Concord.

The Bulldogs were led by Trevor Cone, who shot an 18-hole, two-under-par round of 70. The senior was named SPC Golfer of the Year for the second year in a row. The Bulldogs' coach, Col. Dick Hefner, received conference Coach of the Year honors.

At the tournament meet, Cox Mill (340) was second with Central Cabarrus (348) wrapping up the top three. Wainwright Ritchie finished second individually with a round of 78 followed by fellow Spider Seth Roberts at 79.

With the regular season coming to an end, Robinson, Central Cabarrus, Cox Mill and Mt. Pleasant qualified for May 2's regional meet at Cabarrus Country Club. Ritchie and Roberts along with A.L. Brown's Jared DeVlieger and Andrew Leslie qualified as individuals.

The all-conference team was also announced Monday. Here is a list of the golfers who were honored:

• Jared DeVlieger (A.L. Brown)
• Drew Riley (Central Cabarrus)
• Wainwright Ritchie (Concord)
• Seth Roberts (Concord)
• Eric Baumann (Cox Mill)
• Brandon Cordell (Cox Mill)
• Garrett Ray (Cox Mill)
• Justin Westveeer (Cox Mill)
• Trevor Cone (Robinson)
• Tom Farrell (Robinson)
• A.T. Cashwell(Robinson)
• Andrew Geddes (Robinson)

SPC golf wraps up regular season today

South Piedmont Conference golfers have had a busy week, having three golf meets in as many days.

At Irish Creek Country Club Monday, Jay M. Robinson took top honors with a team score of 161. Cox Mill was second with a 170 while Mt. Pleasant rounded out the top three with a 174. Individual honors went to Trevor Cone (Robinson) and Wainwright Ritchie (Concord). Both golfers carded 39s. Andrew Geddes (Robinson) finished third with a 40.

During Tuesday's action at Skybrook, the Bulldogs continued its run with a team score of 157. Cox Mill was second with a 167 and Central Cabarrus was close behind with a 171. Cone, Ritchie and Geddes finished in the top three spots respectively. Cone finished his round with a one-under par 35, while Ritchied shot a 38 and Geddes finished with a 39.

The SPC will hold its regular season finale today at Green Oaks Golf Course at 3:30 p.m. This match will determine the four teams that will move on to next month's Regional. Heading into the meet, the top four teams in the conference are Robinson, Cox Mill, Central Cabarrus and Mt. Pleasant. A.L. Brown has a chance to break into the top four with a strong finish today.

The SPC Conference Tournament will be at Rocky River Golf Club in Concord Monday at 1 p.m.

We're back!

Sorry for the long period of inactivity! I will be again posting news and links about Cabarrus County sports that I come across on here. I get a lot of information that we can't fit in our papers, so expect regular updates about Concord, Harrisburg, Mount Pleasant and Kannapolis sports.

If you have any information or tips, let me know. Just e-mail me at stovar@newsofcabarrus.com. Look forward to hearing from you!