From staff reports
Armstrong Atlantic edged Catawba’s volleyball team 25-23, 29-27, 25-23 in the Southeast Regional final to earn a trip to the Elite Eight.
Catawba ended its season at 22-11 after reaching a regional final for the first time.
Catawba’s Melissa Griffith, Mai Zoua Lo and Megan Courson were named all-tournament.
Griffith, a senior, had 15 kills and eight digs. Lo had 19 digs, and Courson had 30 assists and 10 digs.
Mackenzie White (Carson) made eight digs for the Indians. Senior Melissa Powers had nine kills and seven block assists.
Armstrong Atlantic is 28-6.
– Catawba plays today
Catawba’s men’s basketball team takes a 3-0 record into today’s 2:30 p.m. tipoff against St. Augustine’s (1-2) at Charlotte’s TWC Arena.
The Catawba-St. Augustine’s game will be followed by an NBA evening game between the Charlotte Bobcats and Philadelphia 76ers.
The Indians notched their third straight victory Saturday with a 101-91 decision over Queens in Charlotte. Dominick Reid led the Indians with 21 points. Antonio Houston had 18, and Rob Fields followed with 17.
Catawba plays in the OrthoCarolina Classic Saturday and Sunday at Wingate.
* Catawba’s women play in the Catawba Comfort Suites Classic Friday and Saturday. Visiting teams will be Lenoir-Rhyne (2-1), J. C. Smith (2-2) and Virginia Union (2-1).
Junior guards Jami Safrit and Amber Holt lead the Bears, along with post player Denise Moore.
Games are 6 and 8 p.m. on Friday, with Catawba taking on Virginia Union in the nightcap.
Games are set for 2 and 4 on Saturday, with Catawba (3-1) taking on J.C. Smith in the finale.
– Price legend passes
Walter Alexander, 94, died Friday.
When the J.C. Price Hall of Fame commitee announced its inaugural class of honorees, Alexander, one of the early football stars at Price, a school that served black Salisbury students from 1922-1969, was on the list.
He earned the loudest ovation at the inaugural induction ceremony in the summer of 2007.
“There was a lot of talent that came through Salisbury, talent that inspired young people to pursue sports,” Hall of Fame commitee member Rufus Little said, as he introduced Alexander. “This man was before his time, but he could have played at any level.”
Alexander was long retired from athletics but not from storytelling and proved it at that first Hall of Fame induction ceremony.
He earned laughs when he confessed he became a football star when he caught a pass that was thrown in his direction strictly by accident, and he cheerfully recalled Price beat arch-rival Lexington Dunbar so badly, Dunbar’s two best players quit and came over to Price.
– Jones enters Hall
Basketball standout Lola Jones Baker (North Rowan) recently was inducted in the North Greenville Athletic Hall of Fame.
Jones was a junior college all-region pick for North Greenville in 1992. She averaged 15 points and 10 rebounds per game her sophomore year and 12 points and eight rebounds as a freshman.
After two years at North Greenville, Jones starred at Bluefield State (W. Va.) and was a two-time NAIA All-American. She was first team in 1993 and second team in 1994.
Jones was West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year both seasons and twice led the conference in scoring.
Jones averaged 25.5 points and 15.7 rebounds as a junior and 23.8 points and 14.3 rebounds as a senior.
She was named to the WVIAC’s all-time women’s basketball team last year.
Jones ranks sixth in North Rowan history with 1,142 points. She averaged 23.8 points a game in 1988-89, the third-highest mark in school history.
Her 41-point outing against Southwest Guilford in 1989 is the second-highest scoring game by a North girl.
Two of the six 500-point seasons in North history were recorded by Jones, who had 523 in 1988-89 and 503 in 1987-88.
– Winter meeting
West Rowan will hold a parents meeting for winter sports tonight in the cafeteria at 6 p.m.
– Catawba swimming
Catawba picked up wins over Pfeiffer, but lost to Rollins in a men’s and women’s double dual meet on Saturday at Johnson Pool.
The Catawba women topped Pfeiffer 60-35 and lost to Rollins 54-41. The Tribe men beat Pfeiffer 57-38 and lost to Rollins 51-47. The Rollins women beat Pfeiffer 76-19 and the men won 63-32 over the Falcons.
The Catawba women got a win from Meredith Shultz in the 1650 free (19:16.83) Shultz also won the 500 free (5:30.06).
Also earning two wins for the women was Kat Kearney. The freshman took first in the 50 free (25.92) and 100 free (57.10). Katie Huff (North Stanly) claimed a win in the 100 breast (1:09.70).
Catwba’s men took first in three events. Alex Walpole won in the 200 free (1:48.99), while Patrik Drakes won twice, taking top honors in the 100 back (55.23) and the 100 breast (1:01.62).
– College soccer
Lister Warren tapped in the winning goal with 90 seconds remaining in the second overtime as No. 11 Tampa rallied to edge fifth-ranked Tusculum 3-2 Sunday in a D-II national quarterfinal.
– College basketball
Rio Grande’s Doug Campbell (Salisbury) scored 11 points in one game and the Red Storm rolled to the championship in the Turkey Drive Classic at Houghton.
A trip to Hawaii is upcoming for Campbell.
– Overseas basketball
Carlos Dixon (South Rowan) was held to seven points on Saturday but is averaging 12.3 points a game in Argentina.
* Terris Sifford (West Rowan) scored 38 points in a recent outing for his team in Italy.
* Phillip Williams (West) had seven rebounds for his team in Lithuania on Saturday.
* Donte Minter (West) had a huge game Sunday in Portugal. He scored 25 points on 12-for-17 shooting and had 15 rebounds.
* Damien Argrett (South) was held to six points in his game in Poland on Saturday. He averages 8.2.