From staff reports
The Rowan Rampage intercepted four passes in the second half, including two by Benji “Creed” Greene, and beat the Thomasville Titans 20-8 in the first round of the CCFL playoffs on Saturday.
It was the first home playoff game in the Rampage’s three-season history.
Third-seeded Rowan (9-2) plays at No. 2 seed Greenville at 7:30 p.m. at Wade Hampton High School on Saturday.
Greenville, which won in three overtimes in the first round, eliminated Rowan from the playoffs in 2007 and also beat the Rampage 28-21 in this year’s regular-season matchup.
D’Andre Hopper was 10-for-14 passing for 212 yards and kicked two PATs to lead Rowan past sixth-seeded Thomasville (6-5) on a slippery field at Knox Middle School.
Rowan scored on the second play from scrimmage when Hopper made a 62-yard connection with James Allen.
Rowan scored again in the first quarter when Antonio Sullivan pulled in a 69-yard pass from Hopper to set up a 5-yard run by Will Evans.
A defensive stand by Rowan, which got stops on third-and-inches and again on fourth-and-inches, kept Thomasville scoreless in the first half, and Rowan seized a 20-0 lead when D.J. Lyles scopped up a Rampage fumble and threw a 46-yard TD pass to Willie Hosch. Hakim Pearce made the block that sprung Hosch for the score.
The second half featured frequent turnovers with a wet ball and a muddy field.
Greene had his two picks, and Rowan also got interceptions from Lionel Vincent and Marty Wooten.
Hosch, Evans and Brandon Walker teamed for 81 rushing yards for the Rampage.
Bobby Lee had six tackles and shared a sack to pace Rowan’s defense, and Steven Blanton racked up two sacks.
The top-seeded Carolina Eagles and the fourth-seeded Iredell Warriors also won in the first round.
– Salisbury soccer
Salisbury’s soccer team will be at home for the second round of the 2A state playoffs on Saturday.
The Hornets have a bye in the first round. Salisbury’s opponent will be determined by a match on Wednesday.
– Monday football
Unbeaten Salisbury will play at Ledford at 7:30 p.m. tonight, and North Rowan is home against Central Davidson at 7 p.m. in CCC makeup games. West Davidson is at Lexington for a key tilt.
– NPC
Undefeated North Iredell swept Lake Norman in the 3A volleyball playoffs to set up a matchup with Hickory for the West championship.
* None of the four Rowan teams qualified for the 3A state playoffs in soccer, but Carson’s tie with second-place Mooresville made the difference in Lake Norman edging Mooresville for the regular-season championship.
* Lake Norman tennis player Kathryn Talbert won the 3A individual state championship.
– Prep cross country
Salisbury’s boys finished eighth in the 2A Midwest Regional at Murray’s Mill on Saturday.
West Stanly, Central Davidson, Ledford and East Lincoln qualified for state competition.
Salisbury’s Nick Summers was one of the top five individuals not on one of the four qualifying teams and will compete in the 2A state meet.
Summers ran 17:56 and finished eighth.
Salisbury’s Philip Tonseth competed with a hip injury and finished ninth, five seconds behind Summers. He just missed the state event. Both Hornets made all-region. Tyler Downs, Forrest Buchanan, and Daniel De Graaf also scored for Salisbury.
West Davidson’s Josh Roberts placed seventh and qualified as an individual for the state meet that will be held Saturday at Tanglewood.
* Gray Stone Day’s boys won the 1A Midwest Regional at Tanglewood.
Dalton Wally (second), Patrick Sullivan (eighth), Kaleb Medlin (10th), Michael Tedeschi (15th) and Mygel Bergstresser (17th) scored for Gray Stone.
Gray Stone’s girls were fifth. Hunter Latimer (fifth) and Janna Featherstone (ninth) qualified for the state meet as individuals.
* In the 4A Midwest Regional, Mount Tabor’s girls finished first and the MT boys were third.
– Catawba volleyball
Catawba picked up two wins on Saturday, beating USC Aiken and Augusta State in a tournament in Augusta, Ga.
Catawba (15-8) swept Aiken 25-14, 25-12 and 25-16. Melissa Powers had 13 kills, and Mai Zoua Lo had 12.
Catawba needed five games to edge Augusta State. Powers had 22 kills and seven blocks. Shay Meeks had 14 kills.
Megan Courson had 87 assists in the two matches, including 53 against Augusta State.
– CIAA football
Elizabeth City State has clinched the Eastern Division championship and will play either Shaw or Fayetteville State in the CIAA football title game in Durham.
Shaw and Fayetteville State are tied at 5-1, but Shaw is in the driver’s seat by virtue of its win over Fayetteville State. Shaw plays J. C. Smith on Saturday.
– McCanless golf
The Ladies group at McCanless staged its annual Member-Member tournament. Beth Calhoun and Beverly Cobb took first place.
Mary Seaford and Phyllis Myers won a scorecard playoff with Liz Murphy and Jan Godwin for second place.
– Barnhardt tourney
The Bradley Barnhardt Memorial Golf Tournament is set for Saturday, Nov. 1, at Crescent. The event features an 8 a.m. shotgun start and Captain’s Choice format. Cost is $50 per person or $200 per team.
Lunch is provided by Gary’s Barbecue.
Sponsorship opportunities are available. Proceeds benefit Duke Cancer Research and Godstock.
Register at www.synergysoccer.org or contact Jamey Basinger at 704-796-1445.