Category: High School

By David Rogers. WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Led by senior Gwen Anderson, Watauga’s women’s indoor track team dominated the distance events on Nov. 22, in the Turkey Invitational at the JDL Fast Track indoor track and field arena. Overall, it was a good showing by both Watauga squads, the women capturing 2nd and the men 5th out of 14 teams entered in the meet.

In addition to Watauga, the schools competing included Albemarle, Ashe County, Atkins, Ben L. Smith, Davie, Dudley, Glenn, Hibriten, Millennium, North Rowan, Parkland, Patrick County (Va.), Reagan, South Garner, and West Stokes.

In the Women’s Division, the Pioneers took three of the top five places in the 1600 meters, with Anderson taking the title and followed by freshman Jane Beach-Verhay in 3rd and sophomore Mia Llibre.

Anderson also won the Women’s 3200 meters event, but Beach-Verhay (3rd) was among a trio of Pioneer freshman who also took 2nd (Sydney Townsend) and 4th (Bailey Collins).

Townsend anchored Watauga’s first place entry in the 4×800 relay, led off by Caroline-Beach Verhay, Anderson, and Jane Beach-Verhay.

Out of 29 athletes competing in the Women’s 500 Meters, Pioneer freshman Hannah Graham finished a respectable tenth.

In the Women’s 1000 Meter Run, Watauga senior Caroline Beach-Verhay, freshman Anna Norris, and sophomore Hadley Carpenter finished No. 6, No. 7, and No. 8 to pick up valuable team points, with 21 athletes competing.

Pioneer junior Olivia Burroughs brought home the pole vault title, while Northwestern Conference rival Myra Capula of Hibriten finished second.

Women’s Team Scores

• 1. Dudley (110)
• T2. Watauga (88)
• T2. Parkland (88)
• 4. Reagan (58)
• 5. Ashe County (41)
• 6. Atkins (37)
• 7. North Rowan (29)
• 8. Albemarle (20)
• 9. Ben L. Smith (19)
• 10. Hibriten (13)
• 11. Davie (10)
• T12. Patrick County (5)
• T12. West Stokes (5)
• 14. South Garner (4)

Hamilton, Sibaja lead Pioneer men

In the Men’s Division, Watauga senior Joshua Hamilton finished just five seconds behind first place winner Justin Powell of Parkland to earn a fourth place finish in the Men’s 500 Meters, with 43 entries competing. Meanwhile the Pioneers finished with two athletes in the top 10 of the 1000 Meter Run, junior Roman Sibaja (5th) and sophomore Jonah Norris (8th), out of 33 athletes in the race. Sibaja also secured a 7th place finish in the 1600 Meter Run.

The Watauga men also showed up well in the 3200 Meters, getting three Pioneers in the top 7, including Elijah Healy (No. 5), Sebastian Afanador (No. 6), and Elias Holland.

Clayo Kulczyk contributed a third place finish in the Pole Vault for to the Pioneer men’s team total.

Men’s Team Scores

1. Parkland (106.5)
2. Reagan (93)
3. Dudley (88)
4. Davie (56)
5. Watauga (48.5)
6. West Stokes (39)
7. Atkins (31)
8. South Garner (25)
9. Glenn (20)
10. Hibriten (17)
11. Patrick County (14)
12. Albemarle (12)
13. Ashe County (10)
14. North Rowan (3)

 

 

 

The Nov. 22 event was the Watauga Indoor team’s first event of the winter season. The team’s coaches include:

•  Head Coach/Jumps: Michael Neff (1st Year)
• Sprints Coach: Kim Kop
• Sprints Asst.: Matt Anderson
• Throws Coach: Adam Gilbert
• Hurdles/Pole Vault Coach: Thomas McDonough
• Distance Coach: Scott Townsend

Distance coach Scott Townsend pointed to Watauga’s youth as representing a lot of promise as the season progresses.

“The season is still very young. We just started training two weeks ago and the Turkey Invitation was our first meet,” said Townsend. “What makes this first meet’s performance particularly interesting is how young so many of our team members are. Two-thirds of the student-athletes competing on our team are underclassmen. And look at all the freshmen. Our top two female sprinters, Leah Gaydon and Ava Doty, are freshmen. Some of our top middle distance runners, Jane Beach-Verhay, Hannah Graham and Anna Norris are freshmen. After senior Gwen Anderson in the 3200, the next three distance runners in the 3200 are freshmen. Anna Koontz is a freshman up and comer in the hurdles. All three of our long jumpers in this meet, Graham, Rylee Mitchell and Lilly Stough are freshmen. Our top triple jump and shot put competitor, Emma Pastusic, is a freshman and she is just making the transition from volleyball. And that is just our Women’s team.

“On the Men’s side, Kees Greene and Evan Burroughs are freshmen showing promise in the sprints. triple jump and the long jump. Greene As he grows into the event, Mason Harris — also a freshman — may become a factor in the longer sprints. For his first 1600 and 3200 meter races as a high school freshman, Elijah Healy did quite well,” added Townsend. “And that youth movement is not even considering our sophomores.”

All of the Watauga Indoor Track and Field team events this winter are on different days at the JDL Fast Dash facility in Winston-Salem. Their next event is Thursday, Dec. 1, the Titan 1 Indoor Meet, 5 p.m. That will be followed by the Dec. 9 (5 p.m.) HOT Santa event, then the Dec. 12 Millennium Charter Invitational and the Dec. 15 DD Holiday Invitational. The team will take almost a month off for the holidays, starting the new year on Jan. 10 with the Spartan Classi.

By David Rogers. SHELBY, N.C. — Down 21 points midway through the second quarter and finishing the first half with a 17-point deficit was hardly a deterrent for Watauga men’s basketball on Nov. 23 against Shelby. The Pioneers rallied to tie the game at 58-58 with under two minutes to go in the fourth quarter, on their way to what earlier seemed an unlikely win against the Golden Lions, 67-59.

Wyatt Keller and Jackson Pryor cleared the board on both ends of the court in the second half, quickly distributing the ball to point guard Maddox Greene to bring upcourt on a fast-paced attack. And that is where Pryor, Keller and Grant Morrison led the charge, offensively.

Pryor scored a game-high 19 points for the Pioneers, with Morrison and Keller adding 15 points and 12 points, respectively.

It was the first official game of the 2022-23 season for the Pioneers, who start the campaign 1-0 with the opening win. In the locker room afterwards, the celebrating Pioneers didn’t have any Gatorade handy but showered head coach Bryson Payne with plenty of water.

The fast pace and the defensive effectiveness start with coaching.

“We don’t care who scores,” said Payne. “I am more impressed by the rebounding, how we play defense, and how we share the ball in getting it to the best opportunity to score.”

In coming back from the 21-point deficit, Payne said the halftime adjustments were relatively subtle.

“I asked the guys what kind of team they wanted to be,” Payne said of challenging the Pioneers’ resilience. “I asked them to do a better job of boxing out under the basket and they did a great job of that in the second half.”

The men’s team will have plenty of time to bask in their first game accomplishments. Their next opponent is on Friday, Dec. 2. a non-conference, regional rivalry game against Avery County at home in Lentz Eggers Gym.

Women’s rally falls short

In the curtain raiser, the Watauga women’s basketball team saw sophomore guard Kate Sears record a game high 16 points against the Shelby women but a fourth quarter rally didn’t quite make up what was a nine point deficit for much of the game in a 39-36 loss to the Golden Lions.

Other scorers for the Pioneers included Brooke Scheffler (8), Caroline Farthing (5), Charlotte Torgerson (3), Julie Matheson (2) and Diane McGlamery (2)

The Golden Lions were led by Ally Hollifield (14), Brooke Hartgrove (8), L. Poston (6), Sydnie Enste (4), B. McEntire (4) and K. Borders (3).

By David Rogers. CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Junior Charlotte Torgerson was perfect from the free throw line — and dropped in four cruise missiles from beyond the 3-point arc — while sophomore Kate Sears scored a game high 25 points (including 11-of-13 from the free throw line) as Watauga ran by Chambers High School (formerly Vance High School), 55-43, on Nov. 18.

Torgerson’s 20 and Sears’ 25 points accounted for all but 10 of the Pioneers’ offensive output, while Kaitlyn Darner added four points and Diane McGlamery, Brooke Scheffler, and Laurel Kiker added a bucket each to complete Watauga’s scoring.

Sears was obviously a focal point of the Pioneer offense in the fourth quarter as the Cougars fouled intentionally in the late minutes. Already with multiple college offers in her pocket (has not committed to any of them), Sears was good on 9-of-10 free throws in just the final stanza.

Opening the season 1-0, Watauga goes on the road again Wednesday, Nov. 23, at Shelby (3:30 p.m.) before another non-conference tilt at the Charlotte Hoops Challenge vs. Myers Park High School, 12:00 noon, on Saturday, Nov. 26, at Harding High School’s Eric T. Ward Athletic Center.

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — A fast-paced opening to the 2022-23 high school swimming season was in the cards for Nov. 16, with swimmers from five high schools competing at the Watauga County Community Recreation Center.

In addition to host Watauga, the non-conference meet included swimmers from Draughn (Morganton), St. Stephens (Hickory), Science Hill (Johnson City, Tenn.) and Avery County.

As the meet was getting under way, Pioneer head coach David Gragg told High Country Sports that the new Rec Center facility has created even more interest in competitive swimming in the region, now that Watauga has a home pool in which to train and host events.

“I almost always had around 30 swimmers before the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Gragg, “but after the Rec Center’s opening, our numbers have almost doubled. Last year, I had about 40, this year we have 55 on the team. I can’t cut anyone because the hardest working athletes are often the up and comers. Having numbers is a nice problem to have.”

In one of the most exciting races of the evening, Watauga’s Ryan Wood came from behind with a strong butterfly leg in 200 IM event to tie Science Hill, Nolan Hill with a time of 2:13.00. Wood trailed Hill by more than two seconds after the backstroke and breaststroke legs, but surged three-tenths of a second ahead after the butterfly leg. During the final freestyle portion of the race, Hill caught and turned slightly before Wood at the end of the first length of the pool, but Wood rallied in the final 10 yards to touch the wall at the same time.

Still only a junior, Wood was a key performer for the Watauga men’s team with his tie for No. 1 in the 200 IM, swimming the breaststroke leg of the Pioneers No. 2 placing in the 22 Yard Medley Relay, No. 2 in the 100 Yard Freestyle, and anchoring the team’s 400 Yard Freestyle Rely entry.

On the Women’s side, a top performer for the Pioneers was junior Lauren Patterson, who swam the breaststroke leg of the team’s winning 200 Yard Medley Relay, place No. 1 in the 100 Yard Butterfly, led off the team’s first place entry in the 200 Yard Freestyle Relay, and finished No. 1 in the 100 Yard Breaststroke.

Another top performer in the women’s division was Virginia St. Clair, finishing No. 4 in the 200 Yard Freestyle, No. 2 in the 100 Yard Freestyle, anchored the Pioneers winning 200 Yard Freestyle Relay team, and anchored the winning Watauga team in the 400 Yard Freestyle Relay.

TOP 5 IN EACH EVENT

Women’s 200-Yard Medley Relay (8 entries)

1. Watauga A 1:55.00 (Cheves, Patterson, Rasco, Elliott)
2. St. Stephens A 2:01.68 (Coburn, Caudle, Gruber, Parmenter)
3. Science Hill A 2:02.99 (Streitz, Miller, Williams, Collins)
4. Watauga B 2:17.22 (Smith, Riddle, Kent, Shuman)
5. Draughn A 2:18.39 (Reasoner, Mull, Wood, Auton)

Men’s 200 Yard Medley Relay (8 entries)

1. Science Hill A 1:46.94 (Huynh, Yepez, Hill, Burnette)
2. Watauga A 1:49.75 (Ross, Wood, Makdad, Ladd)
3. Science Hill B 1:56.03 (O’Connor, Kovac, Chandler, Gerard)
4. St. Stephens A 1:56.71 (J Broos, C Broos, Smith, Noah)
5. Science Hill C 2:04.09 (Jung, Zagolin, Shams, Swartzentruber)

Women’s 200 Yard Freestyle (10 entries)

1. Katie Parmenter, St. Stephens 2:00.49
2. Katelyn Williams, Science Hill 2:02.87
3. Lola Herring, Watauga, 2:08.23
4. Virginia St. Clair, Watauga, 2:10.86
5. Emma Teilhet, Science Hill, 2:18.32

Men’s 200 Yard Freestyle (11 entries)

1. Colin Burnette, Science Hill, 1:54.40
2. Cameron Broos, St. Stephens, 2:01.51
3. Hedrick Noah, St. Stephens, 2:04.02
4. Tyler Gerard, Science Hill 2:12.37
5. Bradu Gerard. Science Hill 2:16.45

Women’s 200 Yard IM (10 entries)

1. Deanna Miller, Science Hill, 2:23.75
2. Blake Streitz, Science Hill, 2:28.85
3. Riley Caudle, St. Stephens, 2:30.11
4. Zoe Coburn, St. Stephens, 2:30.22
5. Elise Rasco, Watauga, 2:33.13

Men’s 200 Yard IM (9 entries)

1. TIE – Ryan Wood, Watauga, 2:13.00
2. TIE – Nolan Hill, Science Hill, 2:13.00
3. Jackson Broos, St. Stephens, 2:20.40
4. Gabriel Yepez, Science Hill, 2:21.06
5. Cooper Wells, Science Hill, 2:23.55

Women’s 50 Yard Freestyle (43 entries)

1. Desi Collins, Science Hill, 27.35
2. Lola Herring, Watauga, 27.61
3. Ava Gruber, St. Stephens, 28.64
4. Annabelle Stewart, Watauga, 29.26
5. Abby Wood, Draughn, 29.38

Men’s 50 Yard Freestyle (34 entries)

1. Logan Smith, Science Hill, 23.37
2. Trey Jensen, Draughn, 23.58
3. Tyler Gerard, Science Hill, 24.71
4. Anson Ross, Watauga, 25:08
5. Wesley Coatney, Watauga, 25:41

Women’s 100 Yard Butterfly (7 entries)

1. Lauren Patterson, Watauga, 59.40
2. Annalee Price, Science Hill, 1:02.94
3. Elise Rasco, Watauga, 1:07.66)
4. Ava Gruber, St. Stephens, 1:08.96
5. Athena Elliott, Watauga, 1:09.49

Men’s 100 Yard Butterfly (8 entries)

1. Nolan Hill, Science Hill, 58.22
2. Daniel Huynh, Science Hill 59.06
3. Anson Ross, Watauga, 1:01.77
4. Michael Makdad, Watauga, 1:02.84
5. Emmet Chandler, Science Hill, 1:05.30

Women’s 100 Yard Freestyle (11 entries)

1. Katie Parmenter, St. Stephens 56.84
2. Virginia St. Clair, Watauga, 58.08
3. Blake Streitz, Science Hill, 1:00.11
4. Emma Teilhet, Science Hill, 1:05.53
5. MK Riddle, Watauga, 1:06.80

Men’s 100 Yard Freestyle (11 entries)

1. Logan Smith, Science Hill, 51.87
2. Ryan Wood, Watauga, 54.24
3. Vaughn Ladd, Watauga, 57.30
4. Gunner Smith, St. Stephens, 57.34
5. Wesley Coatney, Watauga, 57.58

Women’s 500 Yard Freestyle (7 entries

1. Katelyn Williams, Science Hill, 5:36.18
2. Maggie Cheves, Watauga, 5:54.60
3. Desi Collins, Science Hill, 5:56.46
4. Annabelle Stewart, Watauga, 6:23.74
5. Rhyannon Reasoner, Draughn, 6:30.35

Men’s 500 Yard Freestyle (6 entries)

1. Colin Burnette, Science Hill, 5:20.45
2. Cooper Wells, Science Hill, 5:51.03
3. Jack O’Connor, Science Hill, 6:06.39
4. Arden Jackson, Watauga, 7:42.72
5. Bryson Call, St. Stephens, 8:09.64

Women’s 200 Yard Freestyle Relay (11 entries)

1. Watauga A, 1:45.93 (Patterson, Herring, Elliott, St. Clair)
2. Science Hill A, 1:51.34 (Price, Streitz, Culver, Miller)
3. Watauga B, 2:09.89 (Willis, Stewart, Baldwin, Parker)
4. Science Hill B, 2:14.13 (Trinidad, Boyd, Nelson, England_
5. St. Stephens A, 2:14.16 (Lee, White, Yount, Sanderson)

Men’s 200 Yard Freestyle Relay (8 entries)

1. Science Hill A, 1:38.16 (Smith, Gerard, Wells, Hill)
2. Watauga A, 1:44.69 (Allan, Rex, Ross, Coatney)
3. Science Hill B, 1:47.26 (Kovac, Swartzentruber, Chandler, Trinidad)
4. Draughn A, 1:48.52 (Sexton, Abernathy, Stephens, Jensen)
5. St. Stephens, 1:55.94 (Strong, Sanderson, Lee, Burgess)

Women’s 100 Yard Backstroke (9 entries)

1. Maggie Cheves, Watauga, 1:02.37
2. Zoe Coburn, St. Stephens, 1:04.95
3. Annalee Price, Science Hill, 1:09.06
4. Rhyannon Reasoner, Draughn, 1:12.80
5. Sarah Leerssen, Science Hill, 1:16.14

Men’s 100-Yard Backstroke (10 entries)

1. Daniel Huynh, Science Hill, 57.54
2. Michael Makdad, Watauga, 1:06.39
3. Jack O’Connor, Science Hill, 1:07.84
4. Joshua Jung, Science Hill, 1:09.16
5. Arden Jackson, Watauga, 1:21.36

Women’s 100 Yard Breaststroke (9 entries)

1. Lauren Patterson, Watauga, 1:08.92
2. Deanna Miller, Science Hill, 1:14.76
3. Anna Rose Culver, Science Hill, 1:17.53
4. Riley Caudle, St. Stephens, 1:18.33
5. MK Riddle, Watauga, 1:22.76

Men’s 100 Yard Breaststroke (12 entries)

1. Gabriel Yepez, Science Hill, 1:09.40
2. Cameron Broos, St. Stephens, 1:10.78
3. Trey Jensen, Draughn, 1:12.39
4. Joshua Kovac, Science Hill, 1:12.91
5. Paul Gamiel, Watauga, 1:18.08

Women’s 400 Yard Freestyle Relay (9 entries)

1. Watauga A, 3:58.76 (Herring, Cheves, Rasco, St. Clair)
2. Science Hill A, 3:59.20 (Collins, Culver, Williams, Price)
3. St. Stephens A, 4:09.01 (Gruber, Caudle, Coburn, Parmenter)
4. Draughn A, 4:35.80 (Wood, Auton, Mull, Reasoner)
5. Watauga B, 4:42.73 (Freed, Smith, Kent, Stewart)

Men’s 400 Yard Freestyle Relay (9 entries)

1. Science Hill A, 3:34.22 (Burnette, Huynh, Yepez, Smith)
2. Watauga A, 3:43.53 (Coatney, Ladd, Makdad, Wood)
3. St. Stephens A, 3:47.13 (J Broos, Smith, Noah, C. Broos)
4. Science Hill B, 4:10.30 (Gerard, Jung, Wells, Zagolin)
5. Science Hill C, 4:20.96 (Teilhet, Trinidad, O’Connor, Edwards)

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — After dominating league play in the Northwestern Conference during the 2022 season, Watauga saw seven of its Pioneers gain all-conference recognition, the league announced on Nov. 14. Sienna Davidson topped the list as “Player of the Year” while her head coach, Jennifer Pillow, was named “Coach of the Year.”

Conference Champion: Watauga
Player of the Year: Sienna Davidson – Watauga
Coach of the Year: Jenn Pillow – Watauga

All Conference Selections

WATAUGA

Sienna Davidson
Madison Ogden
Amira Younce
Larisa Muse
Alaina Muse

Honorable Mention: Laurel West, Larson Berry

SOUTH CALDWELL

Sydney Austin
Victoria Villacorte
Georgia Reichling

Honorable Mention: Samantha Austin, Hayley Hartley

ASHE COUNTY

Claira Corley
Addison Dollar
Ali Eller

Honorable Mention: Julia Herman, Maleah Lovell

ALEXANDER CENTRAL

Taylor Sharpe
Emmy Rogers

Honorable Mention: Hannah Kilby, Adisyn Eckard

HIBRITEN

Paige Grimbeck
Maddy Reid

Honorable Mention: Natalie Jones

FREEDOM

Ellie Deacon

Honorable Mention: Emily Kania

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Eleven Watauga men’s soccer players were named to the Northwestern Conference “all conference” squad for the 2022 season, the league announced on Nov. 14. Watauga finished as conference champions and special individual recognition went to Kai Suyao as “Defensive Player of the Year.” Hibriten’s Gerardo Rodriguez was named “Player of the Year while Jim Blanton, head coach of Hibriten, grabbed “Coach of the Year” honors.

Player of the Year: Gerardo Rodriguez – Hibriten
Offensive Player of the Year: Andrew Pruette – South Caldwell
Defensive Player of the Year: Kai Suyao – Watauga
Coach of the Year: Jim Blanton – Hibriten

All Conference Selections

WATAUGA

Kai Suyao
Luke Hunter
Ben White
Noah Jamison
Silas Jackson
Kyle Painter
Ayden Johnson
Emmit Coffey
Nathan Bishop

Honorable Mention: Micah Duvall, Keowen Arguello

HIBRITEN

Gerardo Rodriguez
Johnny Pineda
Miguel Ayala
Shane Stevens
Eric Meza
Tyler Roberts
Nick Hawkins
Miguel Garcia

Honorable Mention: Tristan Newcomb, Ammon Blanton

SOUTH CALDWELL

Andrew Pruette
Ricky Flores
Tristan Mearns
Caden Pilato
Zach Gouge
Spencer Richards

Honorable Mention: Paxton Perkins, Jayden Drum

ALEXANDER CENTRAL

Eli Kerley
Cory Mays
Carson Davis

Honorable Mention: Jony Gutierrez, Orlando Castillo

ASHE COUNTY

Dylan Short
Kohn Peterman

Honorable Mention: Montaña Lopez, Michael Acevedo

FREEDOM

Issac Searcy
Cole Johnson

Honorable Mention: Ashton Alva

Final Regular Season Standings 2022

1. 1. Watauga
   2. Hibriten
   3. South Caldwell
   4. Alexander County
   5. Ashe County
   6. Freedom

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Watauga women’s cross country team claimed 10 of 13 all-conference nods, according to the poll released on Nov. 14 by the Northwestern Conference. Gwendolyn Anderson of Watauga was named “Runner of the Year” while head coach Randy McDonough laid claim to “Coach of the Year” honors.

• Champion: Watauga
• Runner of the Year: Gwendolyn Anderson – Watauga
• Coach of the Year: Randy McDonough – Watauga

All Conference Selections

• Gwendolyn Anderson – Watauga
• Brianna Anderson – Watauga
• Savannah Duvall – Watauga
• Katie Deacon – Freedom
• Virginia St.Clair – Watauga
• Andriana Rink – Watauga
• Rachel Cathey – Watauga
• Sullivan McAulay – Watauga
• Sherry Billings – Ashe County
• Janie Beach-Verhay – Watauga
• Sydney Cate Townsend – Watauga
• Leah Kirksey – Freedom
• Sadie Buchanan – Watauga

Final NWC Women’s XC Finish

1. Watauga
2. Ashe County
3. Freedom
4. Alexander
5. South Caldwell
6. Hibriten

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — Will Bradbury led the field frequently during the 2022 season and also heads the Northwestern Conference “all conference” selections, the league announced on Nov. 14. Head coach Randy McDonough was named “Coach of the Year.”

Team Champion: Watauga
Runner of the Year: Will Bradbury – Watauga
Co-Coach of the Year: Randy McDonough – Watauga
Co-Coach of the Year: Joe Cornwell – Alexander

All Conference Selections

• • Will Bradbury – Watauga
  • Collin Anderson – Watauga
  • Rylan Sedlacek – Hibriten
  • Roman Sibaja – Watauga
  • Colby Anderson – Freedom
  • Sam Nixon – Watauga
  • Noah Farmer – Ashe County
  • Thomas Campbell – Alexander
  • Parker Bowman – South Caldwell
  • Elliott Taft – Watauga
  • Jadent Buchholz – Hibriten
  • Zachary Zirkle – Alexander
  • Maxwell DePriest – Watauga

Final NWC Men’s XC Team Standings
1. Watauga
2. Alexander
3. South Caldwell
4. Ashe County
5. Hibriten
6. Freedom

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — After dominating Northwestern Conference play in 2022, and earning conference champion honors, Watauga volleyball also dominated the NWC’s top individual honors and all-conference selections.

• Player of the Year: Caroline Farthing
• Offensive Player of the Year: Brooke Scheffler
• Defensive Player of the Year: Kenzie Baldwin
• Coach of the Year: Kim Pryor

ALL CONFERENCE SELECTIONS

WATAUGA

• • Caroline Farthing
  • Brooke Scheffler
  • Kenzie Baldwin
  • Cam Norris
  • Evie Robbins
  • Faith Watson

Honorable Mention: Sara Marlowe, Kate McCullough

ASHE COUNTY

• • Paige Overcash
  • Emmi Cheek
  • Mallory Bledsoe
  • Lexi Rollins

Honorable Mention: Kirklyn Hudler

ALEXANDER COUNTY

• • Ashlyn Merritt
  • Jenna Hensley

Honorable Mention: Sarah Hollar, Madalyn Motley, Allie Patton

HIBRITEN

• • Katie Story
  • Emma Poarch

Honorable Mention: Parker Boggs, Darby Keen

SOUTH CALDWELL

• • Kadie Becker
  • Kenzie Morgan

Honorable Mention: Keira Reid, Kailey Franklin

FREEDOM

• • Hannah Buchanan

Honorable Mention: Mary Taylor, Ava Whitaker

By David Rogers. BOONE, N.C. — As might be expected of the high school football team that went undefeated in conference play, Watauga dominated the Northwestern Conference “all conference” selections for 2022. Noteworthy among the selections voted on by the conference coaches were senior defensive end/tight end, Isaiah Shirley, who got the nod as “Player of the Year.” Watauga head coach Ryan Habich, who just completed his tenth season at the helm of the Pioneers, was named, “Coach of the Year.”

A complete listing of post-season NWC football honors:

Northwestern Conference Champion: Watauga
Player of the Year: Isaiah Shirley – Watauga
Offensive Player of the Year: Matthew Peterson – Ashe County
Defensive Player of the Year: Dillan Earp – Hibriten
Special Teams Player of the Year: Carson Dyson – Freedom
Coach of the Year: Ryan Habich – Watauga

WATAUGA ALL CONFERENCE SELECTIONS

Will Curtis
Isaiah Shirley
Jackson Pryor
Cole Horine
Carlton Horine
Johnny Miller
Eli Greene
Trey Thompson
Maddox Greene
Jonathan Lutabingwa
Grant Kight
JT Cook
Jackson Lang

Honorable Mention: Morgan Henry, Brody Martin

HIBRITEN

Coby Wilson
Jake Absher
Dillan Earp
Gerard Felder
Jesse Taylor
Gavin Riley
Matt Warhurst
Markle Helton
Silas Patterson
Gabe Suddreth
Avian Williams

Honorable Mention: Chandler Wyke, Elijah Amaya-Perez

FREEDOM

Avery Pollard
Chris Hensley
Nathan Vue
BG Hampton
Demarcus Lowrance
Sacred Baylor
Jaylen Barnett
Julian Castro
Eli Thomas

Honorable Mention: Curt Young, Mikey Cowling

ALEXANDER CENTRAL

Nate Erkman
Garison Millsaps
Mason Chapman-Mays
Tanner Moore
Landon Barker
Thomas Cline
Sawyer Chapman-Mays
Nate Dahlstrom

Honorable Mention: Luke Hammer, Jonathan Specht

ASHE COUNTY

Matthew Peterson
Bryant Blevins
Colin Estes
Blake Peters
Caleb Blackburn
Dillan Borders

Honorable Mention: Ian Graybeal, Manny Olvera

SOUTH CALDWELL

Tyler Eggers
JB Robbins
Kevin Pereira
Suan Moore

Honorable Mention: Sylas Scruggs, J D Page

Final Regular Season Standings

1. Watauga
2. Hibriten
3. Freedom
4. Alexander
5. Ashe County
6. South Caldwell