Duke, Featured stories, N.C. State, UNC

Area college football notes: Devils flying high, Renner hot, Davis family likes Heels and Pack

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dukestateunc2On the strength of its 13-10 win over No. 16 Virginia Tech – Duke’s first road triumph over a ranked foe since 1971 – the Blue Devils earned Tostitos Fiesta Bowl National Team of the Week honors as selected by members of the Football Writers Association of America. Led by Walter Camp Foundation National Player of the Week Kelby Brown (Matthews, N.C.), Duke’s defense held the Hokies to a season-low matching 10 points while shutting out Virginia Tech in the first half. Duke has earned FWAA National Team of the Week honors in back-to-back seasons, having received the award after defeating North Carolina 33-30 on Oct. 20, 2012. The Blue Devils also received
the inaugural National Team of the Week award on Aug. 31, 2002.
—Art Chase, Duke Sports Information

Since returning from a foot injury that caused him to miss the Virginia Tech game, QB Bryn Renner (West Spring-field, Va.) has completed 46 of 57 pass attempts (.807) for 524 yards and three touchdowns in games against Miami and Boston College, a pass efficiency rating of 171.78. Renner needs 32 passing yards to move past Georgia Tech’s Reggie Ball and into 20th place in the ACC career passing chart. Renner is one of three quarterbacks in school history with 8,000 career passing yards (8,097). He needs just 17 attempts to reach 1,000 for his career.
—Kevin Best, North Carolina Media Relations

In the Davis household in Raleigh, some colors that usually don’t seem to go well together are blending just fine. Pete and Debbie Davis certainly have a lot of red in their wardrobes, as their youngest son, Drew, is a redshirt freshman defensive end at NC State and they are always in the stands to cheer him on. Their middle child is a
basketball player, and when they go to his games, they have to wear that shade of blue that’s not too popular among State fans. Luke Davis is a junior point guard for the UNC Tar Heels who played in 20 games last season. Davis’ oldest brother also attends UNC, as did his grandfather. Drew grew up pulling for the Tar Heels. Although his allegiance has obviously been reversed, he attends his brother’s games at the Dean Smith Center frequently, which he says is “pretty awkward.”
––Annabelle Myers, NC State Sports Information

Featured stories, UNC

ACC women’s soccer tourney begins Nov. 3 with UNC in unfamiliar territory

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accsoccerAll 14 ACC women’s soccer teams are in action on Thursday, Oct. 31 as teams are contending for the final four spots in the ACC Championship that begins on Nov. 3 on campuses. The semi-finals and finals will be held Nov. 8-10 in Cary.

Virginia has secured the No. 1 seed in the tournament, while Florida State, North Carolina and Virginia Tech have earned home quarterfinal matches. Florida State owns a 28-game home unbeaten streak.

The Tar Heels were the preseason favorites in the conference but have lost three conference games (9-3) and currently stand in fourth.

North Carolina senior forward Kealia Ohai and Virginia sophomore defender Emily Sonnett have been named the ACC Women’s Soccer Co-Players of the Week.

Featured stories, UNC

The foundation of Tar Heels basketball – the Carolina Way – has eroded, ESPN.com says

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carolinawayQuoting a UNC professor who was a student at UNC in the 1980s, ESPN.com indicates that the Carolina Way in basketball has disappeared.

Dr. Rudi Colloredo-Mansfeld said under Coach Dean Smith, Tar Heel basketball was all about sportsmanship and selflessness.

Colloredo-Mansfeld, who serves as the chair of North Carolina’s anthropology department, said he didn’t recognize what the Carolina Way embodied once he returned to Chapel Hill as a professor in 2008.

“When I got back, it was associated with victory, and the thought that we were winning both in the fields and in the classroom,” he said. “It seemed to, at times, be a kind of bragging that was going on rather than an ideal that there was something more important than victory.”

He went on to say, “I feel that what happened to the Carolina Way was we lost sight of what I thought Dean Smith was trying to talk up on the basketball court, that there are more important things than just winning.”

Colloredo-Mansfeld went on to say, “Part of what Carolina Way was, I think, was Dean Smith trying to say again that there’s something more than just the victories here. That spirit is not here. That spirit cannot be here until the administration says there is something more than the success of our revenue sports. When the administration says that, we’ll see again a Carolina Way.”

Assistant basketball coach Hubert Davis acknowledged that things had changed. “We were motivated by ‘we.’ I would say this generation is motivated more on ‘me,'” Davis said. “And I would love that to change.”

To read the entire article, please click here.

Duke, Featured stories, UNC

Duke women ranked second, UNC 11th in women’s basketball poll

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ncaabasketballThe USA Today Sports Top 25 preseason women’s basketball coaches poll has been released, and the ACC leads all conferences with four teams ranked in the top 11. Duke is the highest ranked ACC team at No. 2, while Maryland is ranked No. 6, Notre Dame No. 7 and North Carolina No. 11.

ACC Teams receiving votes include Georgia Tech, Florida State and Syracuse.

The 2013-14 women’s basketball season tips off on Friday, Nov. 8 with nine ACC teams in action.

For more information on ACC women’s basketball, visit theACC.com and follow the league on Twitter: @accwbb.

Featured stories

Area high school football games, predictions for Week 10

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hshelmet10It’s week 10 of the high school football season and while most top spots are secure, there are a number of playoff spots still available. However, there is a tie for first place among four teams playing tonight – Leesville Road, Wakefield and Wake Forest, which plays at Leesville tonight in perhaps the week’s biggest game. That match-up will be broadcast on 99.9 The Fan radio. A couple of other intriguing games include Garner at Knightdale and Holly Springs at Green Hope.

Most games start at 7:30 pm with a few beginning at 7. Try to make a point to get out there and support high school athletics before the season is over. There are a number of local games this week.

Temperatures dip way down into the mid 40s with no chance of rain. My record in picking games last week was a near perfect 16-1 for a season record of 78-26. The only loss was Millbrook’s upset of Wakefield. Below, the predicted winners for this week are in bold.

Local games
Apex at Panther Creek
Athens Drive at Middle Creek
Cary at Fuquay-Varina
Cedar Ridge at Southern Durham
Chapel Hill at Cardinal Gibbons
Charlotte Christian at Ravenscroft
East Chapel Hill at Person
East Wake at Clayton
Enloe at Sanderson
Garner at Knightdale
Holly Springs at Green Hope
Millbrook at Heritage
Northern Durham at Hillside
Wake Forest at Leesville Road
Wakefield at Broughton
West Johnston at Southeast Raleigh

Canes, Featured stories

Gleason activated; Mike Murphy recalled from Charlotte on an emergency basis

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canesThe Carolina Hurricanes have announced that the team has placed goaltender Cam Ward on injured reserve and recalled goaltender Mike Murphy from the Charlotte Checkers of the American Hockey League (AHL) on an emergency basis.

Ward was suffered a lower-body injury 4:07 into the first period of the Hurricanes’ game last night at Minnesota. He is expected to miss three to four weeks.

Murphy, 24, is 1-2-0 with a 3.81 goals-against average in three games with Charlotte this season. The Kingston, Ont., native has appeared in two career NHL games with the Hurricanes, playing for 36 minutes without allowing a goal. Murphy was Carolina’s sixth-round selection (165th overall) in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.

The team has also activated defenseman Tim Gleason from injured reserve. The team also placed Brett Bellemore on injured reserve after the defenseman suffered a lower-body injury in Carolina’s game at Minnesota on Thursday.

Gleason, 30, has yet to make his regular-season debut after suffering a concussion in Carolina’s preseason game on Sept. 21 at Montreal. The Clawson, MI, native is in his 10th NHL season, and his eighth with the Hurricanes, and will play his 600th NHL game with his next game played. Prior to missing the team’s first 10 games this season, Gleason (6’0”, 217 lbs.) had missed just six games in each of the last three NHL seasons. He ranks fourth in franchise history in games played by a defenseman (474), behind only Glen Wesley (913), Adam Burt (626) and Niclas Wallin (517).

The Carolina Hurricanes take on the Colorado Avalanche tonight at the Pepsi Center in Denver (9 p.m. ET, SportSouth, Hurricanes Radio Network). The Hurricanes then will return to Raleigh to host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday at PNC Arena in the first game of a two-game home stand.

– News release

Featured stories, N.C. State

Wolfpack basketball hosting breakfast Saturday

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As a new basketball season at NC State approaches, the Wolfpack is offering fans a chance to get to know the new team over breakfast and a private scrimmage.

Head coach Mark Gottfried’s third Wolfpack team will be hosting an exclusive breakfast at PNC Arena’s Arena Club
Saturday, Oct. 26 beginning at 8 a.m.

The team will serve a breakfast buffet to fans in attendance, followed by a pre-season address from Gottfried at 9:15.
The team will hold an intrasquad scrimmage at PNC Arena at 10 a.m.

Admission is $22 for adults and $10 for youths (ages 5-10). Children younger than five will be admitted for free.
A table sponsor package including eight reserved seats is $300.

To RSVP,statebball call 919-865-1448.

Featured stories, UNC

UNC swimmers and divers earn ACC weekly honors

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uncswimThe North Carolina swimming and diving program earned three ACC swimming and diving weekly awards after its performance this past weekend. Individuals earning awards for the Tar Heels were Stephanie Peacock, Dominick Glavich and Jack Nyquist.

Glavich, who was named the ACC’s Male Swimmer of the Week, won three of his four butterfly races, as Carolina split dual meets with Texas, last year’s fifth-place finisher at the NCAA Championships, and TCU. Glavich had a pair of NCAA “B” qualifying times in the 200 fly, as he won that event in both meets. He posted his fastest unshaved and untapered times in both events, going 1:45.41 in the 200 fly and 48.65 in the 100 fly. Glavich also swam on both relays in each of the meets, helping lead his “B” 400 medley relay to a fourth-place finish against Texas and his “B” 400 free relay to a third-place finish against the Longhorns. Against TCU, he led his “B” 200 free relay to a third place finish and the Tar Heels’ “B” 200 medley relay to a third-place finish.

Peacock, the ACC Female Swimmer of the Week, had a terrific weekend, competing in four meets in three days, leading Carolina against Texas and TCU in dual meet competition and against a field of five other nationally prominent programs in the SMU Swimming & Diving Classic. Peacock won three of her four dual meet events on the weekend, taking the 1000-yard freestyles against both Texas and TCU, as well as the 500-yard freestyle against Texas. She also had a fourth-place finish in the 200 free against Texas, just minutes after finishing the 1000 free. In the SMU Classic, she took a second-place finish in the 500 free in a season best 4:42.55 and placed sixth in the 400 IM with a career best time of 4:15.37. Altogether, she had three NCAA “B” standards on the weekend.

Nyquist, who was tabbed the ACC’s Male Diver of the Week had an excellent weekend of diving competition, as he won three of four diving events in dual meets against Texas and TCU. Against the Longhorns’ powerhouse diving program, which included 2013 NCAA first-team All-America Cory Bowersox, Nyquist finished fourth in the one-meter diving competition. Nyquist won the three-meter diving competition against the Longhorns with a score of 436.58, a score 20.10 points more than the second-place diver. He beat a pair of 2013 NCAA national qualifiers, Cory Bowersox and Will Chandler in winning the event. Nyquist also swept the diving events against TCU, winning the three-meter competition by 99.15 points and capturing the one-meter event by 43.93 points.

– News release

Featured stories

Area high school football games, predictions for Week 9

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hsblackhelmetIt’s week 9 of the high school football season and conference races are taking shape or already determined. Several old rivals play each other tonight – Friday, Oct. 18 – including Apex at Cary, Broughton at Sanderson and Orange at Chapel Hill. Nick Stevens wrote a comprehensive piece about the playoff picture titled, “With four weeks left, bubbles starting to burst.”

Most games start at 7:30 pm with a few beginning at 7. Try to make a point to get out there and support high school athletics before the season is over. There are a number of local games this week.

Temperatures dip down into the low 60s with high humidity but no chance of rain. My record in picking games last week was a solid 12-4 for a season record of 62-25. Below, the predicted winners for this week are in bold.

Local games
Apex at Cary
Broughton at Sanderson
East Chapel Hill at Northern Durham
Harnett Central at Garner
Heritage at Wake Forest
Hillside at Riverside
Holly Springs at Middle Creek
Jordan at Person
Leesville Road at Enloe
North Raleigh Christian at Ravenscroft
Northeast Academy at Cary Christian
Northwood at Southern Durham
Orange at Chapel Hill
Panther Creek at Fuquay
Southeast Raleigh at Knightdale
Wakefield at Millbrook
West Johnston at East Wake

Duke, Featured stories, N.C. State, UNC

Duke favored, Syracuse next in ACC preseason predictions

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dukebballDuke will enter the 2013-14 season as the Atlantic Coast Conference favorite, according to a vote of media in attendance at the league’s annual “Operation Basketball.”

The Blue Devils, who return starting guards Quinn Cook and Rasheed Sulaimon from last season’s 30-6 NCAA Regional finalist, and whose highly-touted group of newcomers includes sophomore transfer Rodney Hood and freshman Jabari Parker, received 50 of 54 first-place votes in a preseason poll of media in attendance at Wednesday’s event.

ACC newcomer Syracuse (three first-place votes) placed second in the voting, followed by North Carolina (one first-place vote) and Virginia.

Notre Dame placed fifth, followed by Pittsburgh, Maryland and Boston College. Florida State placed ninth, followed by NC State, Georgia Tech, defending ACC champion Miami, Wake Forest, Clemson and Virginia Tech.

Syracuse senior forward C.J. Fair, who led the Orange in scoring (14.5 ppg) and rebounding (7.0 rpg) last season, received the nod as ACC Preseason Player of the Year. Fair received 17 votes in the Player of the Year balloting, edging Virginia senior Joe Harris (16 votes) by one. Duke’s Parker, a 6-foot-8, 235-pound forward from Chicago, was the overwhelming choice as ACC Preseason Rookie of the Year on 52 of the 54 ballots cast.

Fair, Harris, Parker, Hood and Notre Dame’s Jerian Grant were selected as the Preseason All-ACC Team.

Duke was picked as an ACC preseason favorite for the 14t time in the 45-year history of the poll and for the 13th time under current head coach Mike Krzyzewski. Duke was last tabbed as the favorite prior to the 2010-11 season, which saw the Blue Devils finish second in the regular-season standings but capture their league-record 19th ACC Tournament title.

With Notre Dame, Pitt and Syracuse joining the ACC last July 1, the conference now boasts 15 members. In addition to an 18-game regular-season conference schedule, the 61st annual ACC Tournament will consist of 14 games and will be played from Wednesday through Sunday (March 12-16). ACC teams open regular-season play the weekend of Nov. 8.

ACC Operation Basketball 2013-14 Preseason Poll
(First-place votes in parenthesis)
Team Points

1. Duke (50) 805
2. Syracuse (3) 753
3. North Carolina (1) 668
4. Virginia 612
5. Notre Dame 608
6. Pitt 477
7. Maryland 473
8. Boston College 457
9. Florida State 334
10. NC State 332
11. Georgia Tech 311
12. Miami 224
13. Wake Forest 220
14. Clemson 141
15. Virginia Tech 65

2013-14 Preseason All-ACC Team

C.J. Fair, Syracuse
Joe Harris, Virginia
Rodney Hood, Duke
Jerian Grant, Notre Dame
Jabari Parker, Duke

ACC Preseason Player of the Year

C.J. Fair, Syracuse (17 votes)

Also receiving multiple votes: Joe Harris, Virginia 16; Rodney Hood, Duke 7; Jabari Parker, Duke 5; Olivier Hanlan, Boston College 3

ACC Rookie of the Year

Jabari Parker, Duke (52 votes)

Also receiving votes: Tyler Ennis, Syracuse 1; No player named on 1 ballot