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Michaela Wilson scores Hobbton's first run as Midway's pitcher, Elizabeth McCullen, reaches for the ball thrown by the catcher. (David Johnson/Sampson Independent)
Lady ‘Cats shut out rival Raiders
The Hobbton Wildcats softball team finished their regular season on a high note Friday night with a 9-0 shutout of rival Midway. Wildcat coach Morgan Farroll said, “We played great tonight; everything seemed to go our way when we needed it to. The girls hit the ball well and played great defense; shutting out the Raiders is not easy. They had us in some tight spots tonight and the girls played hard and got the outs we needed to keep it scor...
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Clinton senior Jordan Pietrolja sends a strike across home plate. Pietrolja achieved her 100th strike out for this year's season. (Stephanie Gore/Sampson Independent)
Clinton’s boys, girls get senior night wins
The Clinton Dark Horse varsity baseball team ended their senior night with a 4-1 win against Richlands. Pitching 7 straight innings, Jonathon Wright had 5 hits, struck out 3, and only walked 2. “Wright pitched a great 14 games and only gave up about 1 each game. He’s just a freshman so I’m very proud of him,” Clinton head coach Tracey Thornton stated. Up at bat, Wright was 2 for 3 with 2 RBIs, and Wil Pearson was 2 for 2. “This was a ...
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Midway's #5 tries to slide safely into base during the Raiders' victory over Hobbton Friday night. (David Johnson/Sampson Independent)
Raiders conference champs
The Midway Raider baseball team finished their regular season with a 12-0 victory of the Hobbton Wildcats Friday night at Hobbton. The Raiders scored 8 runs in the second inning and 4 in the fifth. The winning pitcher was Ryan Lee, who threw for 4 innings, giving up 1 hit with 6 strikeouts. Dillion Hardison pitched 1 inning with 3 strikeouts. Taylor Calcutt was 1-3 with 2 runs scored. Heath Smith was 2-3 with 2 RBI’s. Kyle Hawly was 2-4 w...
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Larissa Estrada's family are overcome with emotions as they enter the Hobbton stadium before Thursday's soccer match honoring her by playing the first 10 minutes in total silence. The rest of the crowd were on their feet while the family made their way in, many with wet eyes. (David Johnson/Sampson Independent)
Hobbton Middle wins Silent 10’ game honoring Estrada
Hobbton Middle’s young Lady Wildcats held their last game of the soccer season Thursday afternoon, but it was no ordinary game. This game was dubbed the “Silent 10” in honor of Larissa Estrada, an eighth-grade student who lost her life last December. “The Holy Spirit gave me this idea,” said soccer coach Damon Burnett. “The first 10nminutes would be in silence to honor God and celebrate the life of Larissa. What made this special was that L...
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Union girls shut out L’wood
The Union softball team took the field at home against Lakewood Thursday night for senior night in Spartan Country. Megon Smith did it all, and was able to lead Union to the 10-0 shutout in 5 innings. Union scored 3 runs in the 1st inning, 4 in the 4th inning, and 3 in the 5th inning. Smith’s last swing as a Spartan at home was a walk off, 3 run homer. It was the first ball to ever be hit over the fence at the new UHS softball field. Smith ...
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Lady Leps get road win against Union
Union’s senior night on the soccer field was spoiled by the visiting Lady Leopards, who threw punches early, and took the Lady Spartans out of their game plan. Lakewood won the game 4-1. The Leopards scored 3 goals in the first 20 minutes of play, and the rest of the way Union and Lakewood would each score a goal a piece. The Leopards’ Brittany Andrew controlled the game with her athletic ability, scoring 2 of the first 3 goals for Lakewood...
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Union's Cody Preddy gets a hit during the Spartans senior night win over county rival Lakewood. (Adam Capps/Sampson Independent)
Spartans earn senior night win over Leps
Union has had an ongoing issue of stranding runners on base the last couple of games. This was hardly the case as they hosted Lakewood on senior night Thursday evening. The Spartans struck early, scoring 4 in the first, and never looked back as they went on to defeat Lakewood 12-2 in 6 innings. Ryan Hall pitched the complete game for Union, allowing 2 runs, one hit, walking 6, and striking out 12 Leopard players. Union scored 4 in the 1st...
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Union's Bryson Worley attempts to tag out Raider Heath Smith, who slides safely into second. (David Johnson/The Sampson Independent)
Raiders keep top conference spot with win over Spartans
The Midway Raiders gave their home fans a treat with a win on Senior Night against cross county rival Union, 7-0. The Raiders put two runners across home plate in the 1st inning; 1 run in the 4th inning; and 4 runs in the 6th inning. Bryant Register, a Spartan assistant coach said that despite not scoring a run, the Union team played hard. Tyler Matthis pitched 5 1/3 innings for the Spartans and struck out 3 batters, allowed 6 hits, 7 r...
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Midway's Kaitlyn Jackson waits for the ball at second as Union's Claire Riley makes it safe to the bag. (David Johnson/The Sampson Independent)
Lady Spartans shut out the Raiders in softball
The Lady Spartans went into Raider country and came away with a 0-6 win on an unusually cool evening on May first. “Our defense was really good, we only had 2 errors, and we hit pretty good, with 8 base hits,” Spartan head coach Doug Burley stated. Union senior Megon Smith pitched all the innings and allowed 3 hits, striking out 12 Raiders. Leading hitters for the Spartans include Lauren Preddy, who was 2-3, scoring 2 runs, and 1 walk; ...
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Raider Allie Apperson tries to keep the ball away from this Spartan in a Midway home game on Wednesday. (David Johnson/The Sampson Independent)
Lady Raiders fight for win over Union
Despite tough play by the Lady Spartans, Midway’s soccer team got the 4-0 win at home on a windy, cool, rainy Wednesday night. Four different Lady Raiders found the back of the net against Union, who wasn’t able to get the ball past the Raider goalie. For Midway, Manasia Cobb scored at the 16 minute mark; Olivia Davis put it in the goal just five minutes later; then at the 38 minute mark, Jakeish Williams, with an assist by Avery Apperson s...
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Crusaders slip past VCA in 7th inning
Harrells Christian Academy varsity baseball won at Village Christian Academy on Tuesday with a final score of 3-2. The Crusaders jumped on the scoreboard first with a run in the 1st and 2nd innings, but kept VCA off the plate until the 3rd inning. Village tied the game at 2-all until the top of the 7th inning when HCA scored the run that would eventually win the game. Winning Pitcher for the Crusaders was Larry White. He pitched 7 innin...
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1st Flight, 1st Place was HanDee Hugo’s Convenience Stores. Pictured from left, are: Mike Odum, Michael Mason, Paul Uzzle and Dickie Walters. (Courtesy photo)
SRMC Partners for Life Golf Tournament a success
The Sampson Regional Medical Center Foundation held its 10th Annual Partners for Life Golf Tournament last Thursday, April 25. With the forecasted rain holding off, it turned out to be a beautiful day for 120 golfers, organizers said. The 30 teams were golfing for a cause, as proceeds from this year’s tournament will support upgrades to patient rooms on the hospital’s newly separated Surgical Unit. Improvements to the unit will include fres...
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Patriots handle Lady Leopards in softball
The Lady Leopards varsity softball just couldn’t get it done on Senior Night as they faced Pender on Tuesday. The Patriots took home the win, 3-10. “We were a little bit better tonight. We had one inning where we kind of blew up there for a little bit. The girls where able to settle down and play much better,” said a disappointed Lakewood head coach Dave Yarasheski. From the plate for the Leopards, Miranda Lane went 2-4; Ashton Hairr, 1-4...
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Lakewood's Kat Autry, at left, and Monica Pittman, center, keep the ball away from a Pender Patriot. (Savanna Pope/The Sampson Independent)
Lady Leopards escape close one with OT win
The Lady Leopards soccer team battled it out in two over-times for a Senior Night win against Pender on Tuesday. The game was tied 1-1 at the end of regulation play. After two 10 minute halves for overtime Lakewood was up by 2 goals, making the final score 3-1. “We came out a little light, we didn’t really play the way that I know we can until the first overtime. When we actually came out we communicated, we passed, we had a hundred and t...
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From right to left, Griffin Faircloth of Lakewood studies his putt, as Raider Tyler Braun, center, and Union's Evan Johnson, and Trask's Hunter Phillips all wait their turn. (Savanna Pope/The Sampson Independent)
Union conquers all at Lakewood Tri-County match
Lakewood hosted the golf match for all conference teams Tuesday, as Midway, Trask, Pender, Lakewood, Wallace Rose Hill, James Kenan, Hobbton, Pender, and Union played at Lakewood Country Club. Union won the match with a 344 total. Griffin Faricloth of Lakewood and Spartan Evan Johnson tied for medalist honors, both shooting 5 over par 77s. Union’s Tyler Ross shot 79, Brady Roberts shot 93, Alex Maxwell shot 95, Spence Usher shot 103, and Hu...
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Lakewood varsity edges out Patriots for the win
In a fight to the finish, the Leopard varsity edged out the Pender Patriots for a Senior Night win on Tuesday. The game came down to the last inning, and Lakewood was at bat with the bases loaded. Waylon Hewy was at the plate with Austin Tanner edging off of third toward home. The fans were on their feet as Hewy faked the bunt. Hewy racked up the ball count as the Leopard fans got louder and soon it was “ball four take your base,” sending A...
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Surrounded by her family, back from left, father Dan Heinz, sister Anna and mother Kaye, and, front, her golf coach, James Lewis, Allyson Heinz inks the contract that welcomes her to Pffiefer College and the women's golf team. (Sherry Matthews/Sampson Independent)
Heinz signs with Pfeiffer
It was a family affair at Lakewood High School Monday when senior Allyson Heinz signed her name on the dotted line, accepting a one-year scholarship to play with the Pfeiffer University women’s golf team, a dream come true for the Leopard golfer. Surrounded by her parents, Dan and Kaye Heinz, younger sister Anna, her grandmother, aunt, cousins, fellow golf members, and coach James Lewis, the teen grinned broadly as she ceremoniously inked t...
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Leps take first in Tri-County golf match
Every team in the Tri-County conference met at Coharie Country Club Wednesday for the second 18 hole match of the season. This included Midway, Lakewood, Union, and Hobbton from the county. Lakewood won the match with a team total of 380. Lakewood was led by Griffin Faricloth who fired a 78 in the tough, windy conditions on Wednesday. Faricloth remains atop the conference individual standings. Timmy White shot 91 for the Leopards. White str...
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Surrounded by family, friends, and coaches, Union senior Megon Smith, center, signed on to play softball at Louisburg College. Standing from left, are her father, Bryon Smith, brother, Cory, sister, Hanna, grandparents, Judy and Jimmy Smith, and Louisburg Coach Don Stopa. Sitting, from left, are her mother, JoJo Smith, Megon, and Union coach Doug Burley.
Union’s Smith to play softball at Louisburg
Union senior Megon Smith signed an athletic and academic scholarship with Louisburg College this past week, a dream come true for the top-notch pitcher and home-run hitter on both her travel and school softball teams. “I’m so excited,” she said at the signing ceremony in the Spartan media center, surrounded by family, friends, and coaches. “I’ve been dreaming about this since I was 4 years old, because I’ve always wanted to play in college....
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The Lady Leopards track and field team dominated at the Tri-County Championship games for the second year in a row. Their final score was 185, which was 88 points higher than the 2nd place team.
Lady Leps win conference finals
Lakewood girls blew the competition away from the other 7 conference schools claiming back to back Tri County Track and Field Championships. Trask boys also dominated the boys competition winning the boys Tri County Championships. Lakewood and Midway tied for co-runner-up Conference Champions with Union narrowly 1 point behind. In the girls shot put, first place went to Wildcat Jolesa Terry with a mark of 30-08.50. Lakewood took the 2nd...
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Vital Statistics
Building Permits Amaro Lora Rosales, mobile home setup, 980 sq.ft. Robert Earl Butler Jr., residential addition, 952 sq.ft. Timothy and Adrianne Kramer, residential addition, 624 sq.ft. Venture Manor Inc., mobile home setup, 840 sq.ft. Daniel and Mary Ruth Kimbro, new home, 2793 sq.ft. Advance Auto Parts, new store, 9973 sq.ft. Dorothy Daughtry, new home, 1512 sq.ft. Christopher and Serina Tart, residential addition, 1680 sq...
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Courtney Phipps tangles with a Lakewood player for the ball. (David Johnson/The Sampson Independent)
Lady Leopards push past Wildcats
The Lakewood Leopards came to Hobbton Thursday night and went home with another win, 5-2. Hobbton coach Wes Cone said, “We played an incredible game. We had a fourth of our starters on the bench with injuries. It was a fun, tough game. We enjoy playing Lakewood.” There were no stats available from Lakewood. Hobbton will travel to Wallace on Tuesday and Lakewood will celebrate senior night Tuesday as they host Pender.
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Trask overpowers Lady Spartans
Union’s girls fell short Friday night when they tangled with visiting Trask on the softball diamond Friday night and lost 5-2. Union was plagued nearly from the start, allowing 2 unearned runs on 6 errors. Megon Smith was on the mound for Union for the entire 7 innings, allowing 3 earned runs on 5 hits, and struck out 2 batters. Trask was doing a good job of getting the bat on the ball and just simply making things happen. Union, on the oth...
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Casey Hobbs goes after a Lady Leopard in a run down at first base. (David Johnson/The Sampson Independent)
Lady ‘Cats devour Leopards in softball
The Hobbton Wildcat softball team got a shutout over the visiting Lakewood Leopards in Thursday night’s softball action. The final was 11-0, Hobbton. With Thursday’s win, the Wildcats are 9-8 with a 6-6 conference record. Hobbton coach Morgan Farroll said, “The girls played well tonight. We had a season high 12 hits. The defense was good as well. We just need to take how we are playing into next week.” Hobbton had a big fourth inning batt...
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Hobbton Garrett Aman slides into second as Carlon Cannady reaches for the tag. (David Johnson/The Sampson Independent)
Wildcats win fierce fight with Leopards
Hobbton varsity boys grabbed the win in Thursday night’s game against rival Lakewood. It was a hard fought battle to the finish, but the Leopards fell short with a final score of 5-3. It was all tied at 0 until the top of the 5th inning when Leopard Carlon Cannady made contact and sent the ball to right field, bringing home Jayden Herring for the first run. In the 6th inning the game got interesting when Sam Koser got a walk to first base...
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