From staff reports
A crew of par-breaking teams will be favored to decide the championship of the annual Labor Day Four-Ball Memorial Golf Tournament at the Country Club of Salisbury.
After two rounds of qualifying, 14 teams already have posted sub-par scores. The final round of qualifying is today.
Defending champions Mallory McDaniel and Richard Cobb will be seeded No. 1. That leaves 15 spots to be filled in the championship flight.
The father-son team of John Kyger and Johnny Kyger took the lead for the qualifying medal with a five-under-par 66 on Saturday.
The Kygers used an eagle on No. 3 hole and five birdies to post their score. They shot 33 on both nines.
Michael Dorsett and Keith Dorsett followed at 67. They had five birdies.
Two teams ó Wally Eidson-Nelson Poole and Dusty Holder-Ryan Honeycutt ó posted 68s.
Posting 69s were Adam Jordan-Mark Davis, Jim Hubbard-John DeRhodes, and Eric Mulkey-Terry Mulkey.
In case of a tie for spots in the championship flight, a playoff will be held.
n Rowan Rampage: 5-0
D’Andre Hopper threw three touchdown passes and the Rowan Rampage defense forced five turnovers in a 27-6 Central Carolina Football League victory over the Carolina Bulldogs from Indian Land, S.C., on Saturday.
League-leading Rowan (5-0) couldn’t get untracked in a scoreless first half at Knox Middle School, but a hit by Demetrius Brown and a recovery by Rusty Donnell on an onside kick to start the second half got the Rampage rolling.
Backs Willie Hosch and Will Evans keyed a drive that Hopper finished off with a 20-yard scoring pass to Hakeem Pearce to break the ice.
Corby Jones forced a fumble that was recovered by D’Aaron Cole to set up the Rampage’s second score. Hopper cashed in with a 36-yard strike to James Allen for a 13-0 lead.
After the Bulldogs got within 13-6, Jones made his second interception of the day. That led to another Hopper-to-Pearce connection for a TD.
A big rush by Marcus Lawing hurried the Carolina quarterback into throwing an interception to James Porter to stop a drive by the Bulldogs. Then Trent Edwards, who had already forced a fumble, sealed victory with a 56-yard return of a pick for a TD.
Hopper finished 13-for-19 for 166 yards and kicked three PATs. Hosch rushed for 88 yards, and Pearce had three catches for 72 yards.
Jones stood out on defense while Brown was a terror with three tackles on special teams.
The Rampage is off next Saturday and travels to Statesville to face the Iredell Warriors Sept. 6 before returning home against the Catawba Valley Hornets on Sept. 13.
n SAC cross country
Catawba’s women were picked seventh and the men eighth in the SAC cross country preseason poll.
Mars Hill’s men and Wingate’s women were picked to finish first.
Catawba’s Maleah Cole was named to the preseason All-SAC first team.
n Prep cross country
East Rowan’s boys cross country team finished ninth in the Providence Invite held at McAlpine Greenway on Saturday.
South Rowan’s boys placed 11th. A.L. Brown was 12th, and Davie County was 23rd.
A.L. Brown’s Larry Scaggs finished 15th in 17:05 to top area runners.
East Rowan’s Ross Oden topped county runners. He was 17th in 17:12.
South’s Michael York was 31st in 17:29.
East’s Cole Honeycutt was 38th in 17:57, while South’s Taylor Kowalczyk was 43rd in 18:03, and South’s Dalton Johnson was 60th in 18:19.
n Davie’s girls were 13th, East was 14th, South was 19th, and A.L. Brown was 20th.
South’s Emily Kinney was the top Rowan runner, finishing 38th in 21:44. East’s Taylor Arey was 41st in 21:52. Davie’s Caitlin Tutterow was 48th in 22:11.East’s Kristen Hatley was 61st in 22:48.
Green Hope won both meets.
n The Pre-County Meet will be held at Dan Nicholas Park on Tuesday. The boys race is at 5. The girls start at 5:45.
n Minor leagues
Jerry Sands (Catawba) hit his 10th homer for the Gulf Coast Dodgers in an 11-2 victory against the Cardinals on Friday.
n Spencer Steedley (East Rowan) pitched three shutout innings in relief for Fort Myers in a 4-1 loss against Clearwater on Saturday.
n Intimidators win
Jordan Danks hit a grand slam to lead the Kannapolis Intimidators to an 8-2 victory over Greensboro on Saturday.
Adam Bowling earned the win for Kannapolis (32-27).
n Cystic Fibrosis event
The second annual “Saving Grace” Cystic Fibrosis Golf Tournament will be held at Corbin Hills on Saturday, Oct. 25, at 1:30 pm.
Team “Saving Grace” is holding the tournament to raise money for research to find a cure for cystic fibrosis.
Team “Saving Grace” was established in honor of 6-year-old Grace Hodge, who is one of 15 children in Rowan County that suffers from CF.
All proceeds go directly to CF Foundation, with over 90 cents of each dollar going to fund research.
The format is Captain’s Choice, $50 per person or $200 per team.
Lunch is included in the entry fee.
Ships are welcomed. Please contact Susan Linza at 704-636-2530.
n West baseball camp
West Rowan’s Labor Day Baseball Camp will be held Sept. 6 from 9-12 for ages 7-13.
Hitting and defense will be the topics. The cost is $35. Make checks payable to West Rowan Baseball. Call coach David Wright at 704-278-9233 to register or e-mail wrightdc@rss.k12.nc.us.
n ASU basketball
Appalachian State men’s basketball games against Kentucky and Texas will be televised this winter.
ASU’s first-ever meeting with Kentucky, will be carried on Dec. 20 by Fox Sports Net. That game will be played at Freedom Hall in Louisville.
The Apps will ring in the New Year in front of a national audience at Texas on ESPNU on Jan. 2.
n Youth football
Rowan County Youth Football League has announced registration sites and times for the upcoming season.
Players and cheerleaders must attend Rowan County schools and be in grades 3-6.
n Monday, Aug. 25, 6-8 at Knox Middle
n Tuesday, Aug. 26, 6-8 at Erwin Middle
n Wednesday, Aug. 27, 6-8 at West Rowan Middle
n Thursday, Aug. 28, 6-8, at South Rowan Highn Saturday, Aug. 30, 9-12, at North Rowan Middle (final registration)
Playing sites will include the West, North and Carson high school fields. There is no increase in registration fees.
Visit the league Web site at www.rcyfl.org for more information.