Feb. 14 Swannanoa Valley Sports Report
High Schools
The Owen Warlassies’ basketball team picked up its fourth win of the 2018-2019 campaign when it defeated West Henderson on Feb. 6, 67-59. Owen had a final regular-season game set against Madison on Monday where they’ll try to upset the Patriots at home.
The Warhorses’ boys’ basketball team was 5-17 with two games left on their season slate. They also had a home date set for Monday against Madison, followed by a game on Feb. 13, against Erwin to close out the regular season.
On Feb. 8, the ACA Lions’ boys basketball team faced Carolina Day, with the results of the game not yet in as of press time. The squad was 16-10 overall heading into that game as the Lions proved the Valley’s top high school basketball team this winter.
The ACA girls’ team closed out their regular season with a 10-11 mark on Feb. 4. Check back for details on the NCISAA Carolina Girls Basketball Conference postseason.
Colleges
Montreat’s men’s lacrosse team dropped its 2019 opener against Brevard last Wednesday, 17-10. The game against the Tornados was the first in a string of six-straight NCAA opponents for the NAIA Cavaliers that continued with Charlotte’s Queens University last Saturday. Queens is one of the top NCAA DII teams in North Carolina.
In the opener, senior John Ferris led all Montreat (0-1) scorers with three goals and one assist. Sophomore Cody Bischoff added two goals and an assist, while Chris Jackson rounded out the team’s attack unit scoring with one goal and two assists. Middie Josh Brown paced both teams with nine groundballs and added a goal. Senior Tracer Leonard caused two turnovers and picked up two ground balls for Montreat.
The Cavs women’s team opens this Saturday when it hosts Brenau (Ga.) in Black Mountain at 1 p.m. The team is directed by Kylie McMinn, a former player and the daughter of program founder, Will McMinn. Saturday’s game is a long-awaited return to action for the squad, which did not field a team in 2018.
Warren Wilson College broke the seal on its new men’s and women’s tennis programs when it traveled on Friday to Banner Elk to face Lees-McRae. Check back for updates from those matches. The Owls were scheduled to host Johnson University (Tenn.) on February 19 in the home opener for the men’s and women’s programs.
After dropping a road decision to Johnson & Wales (N.C.) on Feb. 2, and snapping a six-game win streak, the Warren Wilson Owls’ women’s basketball team rebounded with a convincing 112-52 rout of Mid-Atlantic Christian on Feb. 8. The victory saw ample subbing by the Owls, and Kalie Mayo took advantage of additional court time by scoring 14 points with 6-9 shooting from the floor. The team drew to an even 12-12 record with a game scheduled for Monday against Toccoa Falls (Ga.) in Swannanoa and two more games on the regular-season schedule following that contest.
The Owls’ men’s team started February with a three-game winning streak before dropping a 99-80 road decision to Clinton College. Heading into a Saturday matchup with Crown College (Tenn.) they were 10-16 with two regular season games remaining.
As of last Saturday, the Montreat Cavaliers’ men’s team was 18-5 overall and ranked #18 in the country in the NAIA’s Division II. They fell in a 72-62 decision to Allen University on February 6 and were scheduled to return to the court on February 9 at the AAC’s Bluefield. As of last Saturday, they remained a half-game ahead of Union College (Ky.) in the conference with a 15-4 mark. Circle Saturday, Feb. 16, on the calendar as the two rivals are set to face each other at 4:00 p.m. at McAlister Gym.
The Montreat women’s basketball team was 11-14 as of last Saturday, and traveling to Bluefield to face the Rams in a key game in deciding their 2019 postseason fate as they were on the bubble of the eight-team AAC tournament field. Check back next week for results from that game.