by Chris Hunt


On Oct. 13, Hough High’s Brianna Bodner won the I-MECK 4A conference girls tennis championship at Mooresville High School and Edgemoor Park.



Bodner defeated Vance’s Alicia Burton and Mallard Creek’s Gabby Lindsey to win Hough’s first individual conference championship. The victory’s even more impressive considering Bodner lost to both competitors in the regular season.



As the I-MECK’s No. 1 seed with an 8-6 record, Bodner will play in the 4A West Regional singles tournament at South Mecklenburg High on Friday, Oct. 22. Bodner’s teammate Morgan Marin finished fifth in the I-MECK 4A tournament to grab the final automatic bid for regionals. Marin (9-6) is the Huskies’ No. 2 player.



Hough’s No. 3 player Courtney Wakeman and No. 4 Jenna Wagner combined to finish fourth in the league’s doubles tournament, qualifying for regionals. North Mecklenburg’s Megan Hornbeck and Jamie Michael also grabbed a regional spot.



Kirk defends I-MECK golf title



On Oct. 19 at Northstone Country Club, North Meck girls golfer Katie Kirk fired a nine-hole round of 32 in the final I-MECK 4A conference event of the year to earn league player of the year honors for the second consecutive season.



Kirk averaged 34.5 strokes per nine holes – eight strokes better than her closest competitor.



In team play, Lake Norman High made up five strokes in the final event to win the conference title by a stroke over Mallard Creek. Lake Norman finished with a total of 863 stokes this season, compared with Mallard Creek’s mark of 864 strokes. Mooresville (909) finished third, while Hough (957) was fourth. Hopewell and North Meck didn’t field enough golfers for at least two matches this season, eliminating them from championships consideration.


Eagles tennis combos win MAC



The SouthLake Christian Academy girls tennis team won its first conference doubles titles in the program’s three-year history.



Eagles Katie Merrill and Alex Weber prevailed in No. 1 doubles at the Metrolina Athletic Conference 2A/3A tournament on Oct. 13. SouthLake’s Kristen Merrill and Miranda Gilkerson won the No. 2 doubles brackets. Players on both teams earned all-conference honors with their respective victories.



“This was a big highlight for our program,” SouthLake coach Darren Moore said. “Doubles is something we concentrate on, so it (was very satisfying to win.)”



SouthLake finished the tournament with 11 team points, second to Matthews Covenant Day’s 16 but more than Metrolina Christian (third place) and Gaston Christian combined. Up next for the Eagles (8-5) is the N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association 2A tournament in Cary Oct. 28-30.



LKN Charter second in league



Lake Norman Charter’s volleyball team finished second in the Piedmont Athletic Conference tournament. The Knights fell to Covenant Classical in the championship match 3-2 (25-10, 25-19, 22-25, 22-25, 15-6). Lake Norman Charter has a 14-4 record, with each loss coming to Covenant Classical.



Lake Norman Charter’s paced by middle hitter Katie Fabian, a co-captain and team leader in kills. Fellow co-captain Katie Sevin and Julia DelValle anchored the back line.



Woodlawn, Davidson Day place at McAlpine



Two Davidson schools competed in a 12-team cross country meet at Charlotte’s McAlpine Park on Oct. 14.



In the boys event, Woodlawn placed second behind Charlotte Latin, while Davidson Day was ninth. In the girls competition, Davidson Day placed fifth, while Woodlawn didn’t have enough runners to post a team score.



The Woodlawn boys were led by senior Sawyer Bowman, who took top individual honors with a time of 16 minutes, 57 seconds.  Freshman David Hager (sixth), sophomore Forrest Daugherty (eighth), sophomore Zack Scott (24th) and senior Terin Patel-Wilson (52nd) rounded out the scoring for the Trailblazers.



In the girls race, Woodlawn freshman Sydney Bowman (11th place in 21:02) edged out Davidson Day freshman Rachel Bringewatt (12th place in 21:09). Woodlawn junior Paulina Campbell finished 16th in 22:18.