Category: High School

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — With all five starters finishing the game in double figures, Watauga survived the onslaught of a hot-shooting Freedom team in the first half of their Northwestern Conference tournament semifinal, defeating the Patriots, 76-63, to advance to the Feb. 23 tournament championship game against Alexander Central.

Freedom’s Braxton King shot 50 percent from behind the 3-point arc (7-of-14) to record a game-high 23 points, but broad-based scoring from the host Pioneers — especially in the second half and the decisive fourth quarter — proved too much for the Patriots. The Pioneers were led by junior guard Maddox Greene’s team-high 20 points, with key contributions from Josiah Railey (16 points), Jackson Pryor (14), Wyatt Kohout (13) and Cade Keller (10).

The athletic Freedom team — which featured a 15-man rotation even though the starters played the lion’s share of the minutes — shot 58.3 percent (7-of-12) from behind the 3-point arc in the first half to take tense, 32-11 lead into intermission. Watauga edged ahead to close out the third quarter with a tentative, 47-46 lead, then used a combination of pressure defense and up tempo offense to gain separation in the fourth quarter, outscoring their guests, 29-17, in the final frame.

Perhaps the most telling statistic reflecting the oppressive defense brought to the floor by the Pioneers: Freedom committed 22 turnovers on the night, compared to just five by the sure-handed Watauga team.

Railey just missed recording a double-double by pulling down nine rebounds to go with his 16 points, four assists and five steals. Point guard Greene not only had the team high 20 points, but also a game-high eight assists in distributing the ball to his ball-hawking teammates.

When a reporter suggested that Watauga might have been a bit lackadaisical in the game’s opening frame and the first half, head coach Bryson Payne had another perspective.

“I don’t know whether I would call our performance lackadaisical early on,” said Payne. “They were just hitting some tough shots. No. 12, King, hit four threes in the first quarter and three in the second quarter. Some of those shots, when a player is hot, you just live with. I told the guys at halftime to just be consistent. Defend. We just have to hope that someone is not going to make those kind of shots throughout the game.”

In fact, the Patriots made just 3-of-10 from long range in the second half, to reinforce Payne’s halftime message.

“We just tried to stay consistent with our transition offense and, ultimately, that is how we were able to pull away,” added Payne. “I thought Freedom played really well. I don’t think they did a whole lot differently than in the regular season, they just played better, with more confidence. It was a battle. I know we won by 13, but it was closer than that for most of the game. We were never really comfortable until maybe the last 20 seconds.”

Payne admitted to a bit of nervousness when Pryor got into foul trouble in the second quarter.

“You never want to see Pryor have to leave the game and sit because of foul trouble, but I thought Brady (Lindenmuth) came in and gave us some good minutes in relief, especially in starting the second half, clearing the boards,” said Payne.

Railey said afterwards that the Pioneers may have taken Freedom more lightly than they should have.

“I think we underestimated them a bit,” said the junior guard. “We beat them twice in the regular season, so maybe we didn’t think we would have any trouble. At halftime, we said we had to step it up. As far as adjustments, that shooter, No. 12, was really racking them up in the first half so we put Maddox (Greene) on him defensively, to lock him up.”

With the win, Watauga improves to 20-5 overall and 9-1 in conference. They will now play the winner of the other semifinal Alexander Central, on Feb. 23. Tipoff should be approximately 8 p.m., following the women’s final pitting Watauga against Hibriten.

Key Performances

• WAT – Maddox Greene: 20 points, 8 assists, 1 steal, 4 rebounds
• WAT – Josiah Railey: 16 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 5 steals
• WAT – Jackson Pryor: 14 points, 4 rebounds, 1 steal
• WAT – Wyatt Kohout: 13 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
• WAT – Cade Keller: 10 points, 2 assists
• FDM – Braxton King: 23 points
• FDM – Elijah Davidson: 13 rebounds, 5 points
• FDM – Gavin McNaughton: 9 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists
• FDM – Kobe Johnson: 18 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Hibriten freshman Aamori Patterson lit up the scoreboard with 6-of-14 shooting from behind the 3-point line, including four in the first half, while senior teammate Emma Poarch made 16 consecutive free throws in the second half to account for all but two of her 18 points. The dynamic duo helped power the Panthers past regular season co-champions, Ashe County, 66-47, on Feb. 22 in the semifinals of the Northwestern Conference tournament.

With the win, Hibriten will face Watauga in the tournament championship game on Friday, Feb. 23, with tipoff scheduled for 6:30 p.m. in Lentz Eggers Gym.

Poarch, the Hibriten senior guard who head coach Maury Patterson described as the team’s floor leader, recorded a double-double on the evening with 11 rebounds to go with her 18 points. She was on the court for all but two minutes of the 32-minute contest. Patterson, the freshman guard, poured in a game-high 22 points, including 18 of those accounted for by her shooting from long range. Patterson also poached a game-high three steals.

Ashe County came into the conference tournament semifinal heavily favored after embarrassing Watauga in the regular season finale in West Jefferson to share the regular season title with the Pioneers. Hibriten was 5-5 in league play, losing twice to both the Huskies as well as Watauga, but also splitting the home-and-home series with Alexander Central and South Caldwell.

On this night at least, the Huskies could hardly find the bucket, shooting just 29 percent from the field (making just 17-of-58 shots) and good on only 3-of-17 attempts from behind the 3-point arc. Even worse, the shot only 43 percent from the foul line (10-of-23) and committed a whopping 17 turnovers.

Husky guard Lexie Dawson recorded her own double-double in the losing effort, with 18 points and 11 rebounds. Ally Greer pulled down 10 rebounds.

Hibriten head coach Maury Patterson was understandably pleased after the game.

“We worked hard for this,” he said. “Every practice. All credit goes to Jesus Christ and the girls. Emma Poarch is the floor leader and her (success) has come from her tremendous work ethic.”

Patterson’s freshman daughter, Aamori Patterson, was instrumental in helping the Panthers gain separation in the first half with her 3-pointers.

“I started out in one place and knew I really had to pick it up. I really wanted to do my part,” she said afterwards.

Hardly a week removed from surgery to repair a broken nose, by halftime against Ashe County Poarch had discarded her protective gear.

“I could hardly breathe,” she said, before admitting that her free throw performance of 16 straight catching nothing but net resulted from a lot of work. “I shoot a LOT of free throws, every practice.”

Including non-conference games, with the win Hibriten now sports an 18-7 overall record for the season while Ashe County dips to 16-8.

Key Performances

• HIB – Emma Poarch: 18 points, 11 rebounds, 16-of-16 from the free throw line. 3 assists
• HIB – Aamori Patterson: 22 points, 3 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals
• HIB – Karlee Starnes: 9 points, 5 assists, 2 steals
• HIB – Parker Boggs: 9 points, 3 assists
• HIB – Jada Brown: 6 points, 9 rebounds, 2 blocks, 2 steals
• ASH – Lexie Dawson: 18 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists
• ASH – Ally Greer: 10 rebounds, 5 points
• ASH – Abby Sheets: 9 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals
• ASH – Abby Eller: 6 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists
• ASH – Paige Overcash: 9 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — A double-double by Kate Sears (22 points, 10 rebounds) along with key rebounding support by Laney Shook (9) and Kaitlyn Darner (6) allowed host Watauga to turn back a withering attack from Alexander Central on Feb. 21 at Lentz Eggers Gym, 45-42, in the women’s semifinals of the Northwestern Conference tournament.

With the win, Watauga will advance to the Feb. 23 championship game vs. the winner of the Ashe County and Hibriten semifinal to be played on Feb. 22.

Fresh legs may have been to the Pioneers advantage against the Cougars. As the No. 1 tournament seed, Watauga had a bye into the semifinals while Alexander Central played and defeated Freedom the night before in a quarterfinal matchup, winning 53-46.

Against the Pioneers, Alexander Central head coach Jon Presnell went with just a six-player rotation. In one sense it was successful in that the three players who were on the floor for the full 32 minutes of the contest each scored in double figures. Forward Kirstyn Herman recorded a double-double of her own with 12 points and 12 rebounds, while guards Meredith Wike and Malayah Adams tallied 11 and 15 points, respectively.

That said, Watauga head coach Bill Torgerson countered with a much deeper bench, deploying a 9-player rotation. Only three Pioneers were on the floor for more than 20 minutes, including Sears (32 minutes), Darner (28) and Charlotte Torgerson (26). While forward starters Shook and Julie Matheson saw a generous amount of floor time at 16 and 18 minutes, respectively, the Pioneers deeper bench saw strong contributions and floor time from Diane McGlamery, Gracie Lawrence, Blair Haines, and Izzy Torgerson.

“We felt it important to keep as many of our starters’ legs as fresh as possible, knowing that Alexander Central had played the night before and might suffer from a little bit of fatigue,” Torgerson acknowledged after the game. “Our bench players were important for this win.”

It was a see-saw battle throughout the contest, with the favored Pioneers unable to gain much in the way of separation.

“Alexander Central is very well coached, so they always bring a tough test for us,” said junior point guard and playmaker, Sears, after the game. “And that was the case tonight.”

With a one-point lead and nearly three minutes to go in the game, Watauga went into “keep away” mode, passing the ball around and forgoing several clear shots at the basket.

“We wanted them to foul us,” said Torgerson, later.

While the ploy was risky with so much time left, it turned out OK for the Pioneers, made possible by their being one of the better ball-handling teams in the Northwestern Conference, as evidenced by just eight turnovers against the hard-pressing Cougars.

They passed around the perimeter as well as inside and back outside and around again several times without taking a shot, obviously frustrating the Cougars as time clicked off the clock. Under a minute left, Alexander Central was forced to foul and that sent senior Charlotte Torgerson to the line, who promptly dropped two from the charity stripe to give Watauga a 3-point lead. With time winding down, a desperate shot by the Cougars to try and tie the game was rebounded by Darner, who quickly directed an outlet pass to Torgerson, who dribbled out the clock.

While the final scheduled time for the Championship matchup has not yet been announced, it is believed to be Feb. 23 at 6:30 p.m., before the men’s championship final.

By David Rogers. MOORESVILLE, N.C. — Two Watauga High School wrestlers advanced to the North Carolina State Tournament, to be held Feb. 15-17, at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex Fieldhouse. Eight Pioneers qualified to compete in the NCHSAA 4A West Regionals.

In the Regionals’ 165 lb. weight class, No. 3 seeded Palmer Smith advanced to the semifinals with two consecutive falls, but lost by fall in the semifinals match to T C Roberson’s Connor Reese, placing No. 3 for the tournament. The top four in each weight class qualify for the state championship tournament.

To get to the quarterfinals, Smith pinned Matthew O’Dell of Marvin Ridge in Round 1 and Marlon Castro of Mooresville Senior in Round 2. Creed Casner had a little easier route to the semis at 120lbs. , receiving a bye in the first round before losing to LaShaun Going of South Caldwell in the quarterfinals.

Although the No. 3 seeded Casner lost in the quarterfinals to Going, he took a 6-0 decision in the third place match vs. Mooresville Senior’s Landon Neith, the No. 5 seed.

Other Watauga entries:

• 106 lbs. – Bryan Chen lost in Round 1 to South Mecklenburg’s Blake Dover, which relegated the Watauga sophomore to the Consolation bracket, where he lost in the first round to East Mecklenburg’s Edward Mayers.
• 113 lbs. – Liam Perry lost in Round 1 of the Championship bracket to Ian Whitt of Ardrey Kell, 2-1. In the Consolation bracket, he defeated Lake Norman’s Cooper Mathon in a major decision, 13-0; then by technical fall over Lucas Messer of Hopewell; before losing to Olympic’s Cameron Massey, 10-5.
• 126 lbs. – no Watauga entry
• 132 lbs. – no Watauga entry
• 138 lbs. – Ryder Sullivan dispatched Providence’s Lucas Otero by fall in the first round, then lost by fall to McDowell’s Rylan Patterson. In the Consolation bracket, he lost to Mallard Creek’s Isaac Marez, 7-2.
• 144 lbs. – Lucas Bishop lost his first round match to eventual champion Austin Emmert of Mooresville Senior by fall, then dropped his first round consolation match to South Caldwell’s Mason Hollar.
• 150 lbs. – no Watauga entry
• 157 lbs. – no Watauga entry
• 175 lbs. – no Watauga entry
• 190 lbs. – Watauga sophomore Mikey Portante battled fiercely in his first round match, but lost, 15-10, to eventual quarterfinalist, Logan Shoemaker of Alexander Central. He then lost his first round of the Consolation bracket by fall to James Davis, a Charlotte Catholic senior.
• 215 lbs. – no Watauga entry
• 285 lbs. – Watauga’s Eli Greene pinned his Round 1 opponent, Kearon Redfeam of Myers Park, then was outpointed in Round 2 by Charlotte Catholic sophomore Dominic Basrawala, 5-2. Dropped to the Consolation bracket, he was pinned by McDowell’s Edward Cervantes.

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Torrid, second half scoring by two Pioneers broke open a critical Northwestern Conference women’s basketball game on Feb. 13, propelling Watauga to a decisive, 72-52 win over visiting Freedom at Lentz Eggers Gym.

At halftime, Watauga held a tenuous, 25-23 lead over the Patriots, thanks largely to a big first quarter by point guard Kate Sears and forward Laney Shook. While Freedom trailed 16-6 after the first quarter ended, the Patriots battled back, outscoring the Pioneers 17-9 in the second frame to pull within just two points at intermission. Freedom’s Peyton Caldwell accounted for 10 of the visitors’ 17 points in the second period rally.

Watauga gained a degree of separation in the third quarter, with Sears putting the Pioneers on her back, scoring every which way both inside and outside. Three made shots from outside the arc along with 5-for-5 shooting from the free throw line and a short jumper for good measure added up to 16 Q3 points of Sears’ game-high 33 points on the night.

Kate Sears had a big third quarter, Julie matheson in the fourth.

While the Pioneers didn’t exactly stop Freedom’s Caldwell, Watauga’s pressing, defensive scheme limited most of the other Patriots. Freshman forward Cheryllana Cunningham added five points to Caldwell’s seven points in the third frame to help Freedom stay within striking distance, Watauga holding a 46-39 lead as the two longtime NWC rivals readied for the decisive fourth quarter.

Just as Sears had the hot hand in the third quarter for the Pioneers, junior guard Julie Matheson scorched the rim for four 3-pointers in the final stanza, accounting for 12 of her 14 points on the night. When combined with five more points from Sears and four more from Shook on the offensive end during period, the Patriots saw their deficit widening by game’s end.

Watauga head coach Bill Torgerson told High Country Sports after the game that his charges had worked hard in preparing for Freedom.

“We knew we were in for a battle,” Torgerson said. “We squeaked out a win about a month ago at their place, in overtime. The Freedom coaching staff always has their kids prepared and they always have some surprises for us that we have never seen.”

Torgerson added, “A big difference in the second half was that big third quarter Kate had scoring. She really helped us stretch the lead out a bit. Then Julie Matheson caught fire in the fourth quarter in hitting four 3-pointers. It reminds me of the Hibriten game when they were really coming after Kate and Julie knocked down a couple of big shots. She did it again tonight.”

Strategically, Torgerson was quick to point out the impact of broad scoring up and down his roster.

“Laney Shook played a really steady game. Her 12 points gave us another player in double figures and that makes defenses have to think about more than just stopping Kate.”

With the win, Watauga is 19-4 overall on the season, 8-1 in conference play and No. 1 in Northwestern Conference standings — but not by much. Ashe County is just behind at 7-2 and Watauga ends their regular season campaign at the Huskies home court in West Jefferson on Friday, Feb. 16.

“Tonight’s win sets up a big game on Friday, against Ashe County,” said Torgerson. “They are a talented and skilled team. They have rebounding, athleticism, and really good team speed. After the game tonight, we talked about having to come in at tomorrow’s practice with energy and focus up. We have a couple of days practice coming up to prepare.”

SCORING SUMMARY

• WAT – Kate Sears (33 points)
• FDM – Peyton Caldwell (29)
• WAT – Julie Matheson (14)
• WAT – Laney Shook (12)
• FDM – Ava Whitaker (7)
• FDM – Sydnie Demiter (7)
• WAT – Charlotte Torgerson (6)
• FDM – Cheryllana Cunningham (5)
• WAT – Kaitlyn Darner (4)
• FDM – Ava Cooke (4)
• WAT – Diane McGlamery (1)

NWC Standings

1. Watauga (8-1 in conference)
2. Ashe County (7-2)
3. Hibriten (5-4)
4. Alexander Central (4-5)
5. Freedom (3-6)
6. South Caldwell (0-9)

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — A speedy Freedom team may have led (23-20) at the end of the first quarter on Feb. 13 in Lentz-Eggers Gym, but once host Watauga gained the lead in the second period the Pioneers never looked back in the convincing, 83-66 win over the Patriots.

Four Watauga starters posted double figures in scoring, led by Josiah Railey’s 21 points that included 4-for-4 shooting from the charity stripe. Point guard Cade Keller and forward Wyatt Kohout each contributed 17 points, while Jackson Pryor shook off early foul trouble that cost him court time to add 13 points on the night.

Kohout tallied three 3-pointers in the second half, each one a dagger in the hearts of the Patriots’ thoughts of a comeback. Keller and Railey were consistent throughout the contest.

Freedom’s Kobe Johnson poured in a game high 23 points thanks to a big first half when he tallied 17 points. The Pioneers’ defensive adjustments held Johnson to just six points in the second half.

With the win, Watauga (8-1 in conference, 18-5 overall) remained No. 1 in the Northwestern Conference standings, a mere half game ahead of second place South Caldwell (7-1, 16-6). The Pioneers look to claim sole possession of the regular season title on Friday, Feb. 16, when the travel to West Jefferson to face Ashe County (3-5, 8-14). In the season’s earlier game, on Jan. 26, the Pioneers dismantled the Huskies, 78-38, but this regional rivalry has produced upsets in the past.

SCORING SUMMARY

• FDM – Kobe Johnson (23 points)
• WAT – Josiah Railey (21)
• WAT – Cade Keller (17)
• WAT – Wyatt Kohout (17)
• WAT – Jackson Pryor (13)
• FDM – Elijah Davidson (13)
• FDM – King Johnson (12)
• WAT – Maddox Greene (9)
• FDM – Gavin McNaughton (8)
• WAT – Jackson Love (6)
• FDM – Braxton King (6)
• FDM – Amare Williams (3)
• FDM – Max Taylor (1)

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Double- and triple-teaming Watauga’s Kate Sears proved an exercise in futility for the visiting Hibriten women’s basketball team on Feb. 9. Sears defied the blanket coverage and still poured in a game-high 27 points in the 77-55 “Senior Night” win.

And yet, the real difference in this game could just as easily been the performances of the Pioneers left open because of the Panthers’ defensive focus on Sears.

Much of the Pioneers’ damage was from behind the 3-point arc. As a team, Watauga recorded 11 three-pointers (33 points) and only two of them by Sears.

Sears’ backcourt buddy, Charlotte Torgerson, benefited the most with the attention given Sears. The senior guard tallied 19 points on the night, including five from beyond the arc (15 points). Others stepping up included Julie Matheson (7 points, 2 treys), Blair Haines (7 points, 2 treys) and Laney Shook (6 points, 1 trey).

Kaitlyn Darner (6 points) didn’t score any 3-pointers but picked up a trio of layups, often cleaning up errant shots underneath.

Coming off a loss to Alexander Central, the Northwestern Conference’s first place Pioneers needed to get back on track. But, said head coach Bill Torgerson, Hibriten was also trying to record a win after suffering recent losses so could be equally “hungry.”

“Hibriten is a dangerous team,” said Torgerson. “They are really talented and are coming off a couple of losses. We faced the same situation at Alexander Central and we got pushed around a little bit and they seemed more hungry than us. Now that we were coming off a loss, I thought we brought an extra competitive edge that showed in the win.”

As many in the packed Lentz Eggers Gym felt, Torgerson marveled at Sears’ tenacity.

“Kate Sears really took over in that third quarter,” Torgerson observed. “They pretty much had three players on her and she just drove right through the defense and scored anyway. The third (quarter) was a 10-point quarter for her.”

What his other varsity players contributed was not lost on Torgerson, now in his first year as the Pioneers’ head coach.

“We had a bunch of players step up in different moments,” said Torgerson. “When Hibriten was trapping Kate, Julie Matheson hit back-to-back threes and Charlotte Torgerson had five (3-pointers) in the game. So, when those kids step up and hit big shots, it makes opponents have to think harder about doubling Kate.

With the Pioneers now 18-4 overall and 7-1 in Northwestern Conference play, Torgerson was mindful of each remaining game’s importance.

“It was a huge win as far as the goal of winning the conference goes. We had a one-game lead and with Ashe winning tonight, the win tonight allows us to hold on to the lead. Winning the regular season conference title is also important to seeding when it comes to the state playoffs,” noted Torgerson.

Torgerson saved his highest praise for the four seniors on the team.

Watauga has two remaining conference games for the 2023-24 season, on Feb. 13 vs. Freedom and on Feb. 16, at archrival Ashe County.

“I just really admire the character of these four seniors,” said Torgerson. “They are hard workers, really coachable, and set the tone with their enthusiastic attitudes every time we come together as a group. When you get to coach a team with seniors like this, it makes your job a lot easier. They’ve set a great example for our underclassmen and I am so thankful and appreciative for all they have poured into the program. All four of them are an inspiration to me.”

SCORING SUMMARY

• WAT – Kate Sears, 27
• WAT – Charlotte Torgerson, 19
• HIB – Parker Boggs, 14
• HIB – Emma Poarch, 12
• HIB – Aamori Patterson, 12
• HIB – Jada Browm, 9
• WAT – Julie Matheson, 7
• WAT – Blair Haines, 7
• WAT – Laney Shook, 6
• WAT – Kaitlyn Darner, 6
• WAT – Gracie Lawrence, 4
• HIB – Karlee Starnes, 3
• HIB – Addy Healy, 3