Nov. 15 Swannanoa Valley Sports Report
Colleges
On Friday, Nov. 16, the Montreat men’s cross-country team will be in Cedar Rapids, Iowa for the NAIA Nationals. They’ll be joined by Lydia Wilson from the women’s side. See this week’s feature for the full story.
On Nov. 9, both the Warren Wilson Owls’ men’s and women’s cross-country teams completed their season at the USCAA Nationals in Virginia Beach. Updates to follow from the meet’s results.
Area college soccer has concluded for the fall. Warren Wilson’s men’s team went 2-10, while its women’s team finished at 7-6. At Montreat, the women’s squad concluded with a 5-7-3 record, and the men at 6-9-3. Sophomore defender Bas Pouls earned second team All-AAC honors for the men’s squad.
Basketball is underway for all four area teams. The Owls women’s team is 0-4 to start the season. Senior point guard Danasia Dumas, featured two weeks ago in "The Black Mountain News," is averaging 23 points per game. Sophomore Danielle Hinkelman is averaging 8.3 per outing. They were scheduled to travel to face Gardner-Webb last Friday, followed by home contests against Milligan on Nov. 10 and Johnson University on Nov.12 in Swannanoa.
The Owls’ men’s team is out of the gate at 2-0 with wins over Hiwassee (W 92-87) and Mid-Atlantic Christian (W 95-91). This week they are on the road at Newberry on Wednesday and travel to Pfeiffer on Friday. Their next home game is Sunday, November 25 against the Apprentice School at 2:00 p.m.
Montreat’s women’s basketball team is 1-2. They dropped two NAIA contests after a season-opening win over Warren Wilson on October 27. Senior forward Jala Daniels is following up a strong 2017-2018 campaign with 13.7 ppg after three games for the Cavaliers. She also is tied for second on the team with 13 rebounds.
Jeron Hemphill is picking right up from an All-AAC 2017-2018 for Montreat this year. The senior is averaging 14 ppg, 6.5 rebounds, and two assists. The Cavs are 2-0 to date, including an important 76-69 conference road victory against Tennessee Wesleyan on November 7. The Cavs return a host of veterans from 2017-2018, when the went 21-10.
Check back for a rolling series of previews of the area’s teams.
High Schools
As reported in this week’s issue, the Owen boys’ soccer team concluded an outstanding season with a second-round NCHSAA playoff loss early last week. The ACA boys’ soccer team had a long 2018 season, concluding with a 4-18 mark. They’ll look to turn things around in 2019.
Owen boys’ and girls’ basketball as well as ACA boys’ and girls’ basketball are about to get underway.
The Warhorses boys’ basketball team is set to open on Tuesday, November 20 at 7:00 p.m. on the road against Erwin. They are rebounding from a 3-22 mark in 2017-2018. The Warlassies concluded last season at 20-7 and as reported begin the 2018-2018 with Rusty Smith at the helm in his first season. They also face Erwin to open their season.