by Chris Hunt
On Nov. 12, the SouthLake Christian Academy football team was knocked out of the semifinals of the N.C. Independent School Athletic Association Division II playoffs, falling to Westminster Catawba, 33-15.
Westminster Catawba, coached by former Hopewell assistant Dan Devine, dominated the line of scrimmage, rushing for 242 yards, compared to SouthLake’s 67 yards on the ground. In the final game of his career, SouthLake senior quarterback Sam Remick threw for 199 yards and two touchdowns. He found senior receiver Travis Hallman four times for 87 yards and a score.
The Eagles’ 2010 campaign began and ended with losses to Westminster Catawba, but sandwiched between those setbacks were some remarkable team accomplishments. With an 8-5 mark this fall, SouthLake won more games than it had in the past two seasons, capturing its first playoff victory since 2007, a 48-15 victory over Fayetteville Trinity Christian.
The SouthLake program, which struggled to fill a complete roster in the past, is now overflowing with eager Eagles hoping to make their mark in the future. Those players will no doubt hope to follow in the footsteps of senior standouts such as Remick, Hallman, Charles Hazzard and Bobby Troutman.
Remick finished his remarkable season with 2,390 yards in the air and 20 touchdowns passes. He also scored 13 times on the ground, coming up just 11 yards short of a 1,000-yard rushing season. His favorite target was Hallman, who excelled on both sides of the ball. Hallman was one of Mecklenburg County’s leading receivers, hauling in 48 catches for 1,100 yards and 11 scores. On defense, he made 89 tackles, four sacks and three interceptions. Troutman led the team with 92 tackles and seven sacks, while Hazzard chipped in five sacks from the defensive line.
The graduation of those leaders, especially Remick and Hallman, will certainly impact next season, but SouthLake is still a young team. Just six seniors graced the roster, leaving optimism for the 2011 campaign. Coach Rich Landis will certainly face a challenge finding a new quarterback, but with 32 players returning, the future is bright at SouthLake.
I-MECK 4A releases girls tennis all-conference selections
Three Hough High School girls tennis players made the 2010 I-MECK 4A all-conference squad. The Huskies’ No. 1 seed Briana Bodner, No. 2 Morgan Marin and No. 3 Courtney Wakeman captured all-conference honors. So did North Mecklenburg’s No. 1 player, Jamie Michael.
Bodner may have won the I-MECK 4A singles tournament, but that was not enough to capture the Player of the Year award. That honor went to Mooresville’s Julia Farrell. Her coach Tim Smith won Coach of the Year after leading the Blue Devils to the league title. Other all-conference players were Alisha Burton (Vance), Constance Crisp (Lake Norman), Kelly Henley (Mooresville), Ashlyn Ledford (Mallard Creek), Gabby Lindsay (Mallard Creek), Maggie Siebert (Mooresville) and Morgan Vlaich (Lake Norman).
Ex-Titans Brooks, Downing play in Davidson College season opener
Former Hopewell Titans DéMon Brooks and Jordan Downing played their first games as college freshman. Their Davidson College squad lost its season opener to Pennsylvania, 69-64, in Philadelphia on Nov. 13, but Brooks and Downing made the most of their time on the court.
Coming off the bench, Brooks scored 11 points in nine minutes, including two 3-pointers on as many attempts. Brooks, known at Hopewell for his relentless work on the boards, also had two rebounds and four fouls. Downing played 16 minutes, scoring four points, and grabbing two rebounds and a steal. The Wildcats return to action with three games at the Honda Puerto Rico Tip-Off. Davidson opened the tournament against West Virginia on Nov. 18 at 11:30 a.m. on ESPNU.
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