By Kathy Blake
Harry Adams started a girls AAU basketball league in Mount Holly in 1995. He was coaching at Mount Holly Junior High and wanted some of his athletes to play at the next rung, so he combined some of his team with girls a friend coached in Charlotte.
Someone donated jerseys.
“I wasn’t aware how much it cost. We just jumped into it,” he says.
The team played a Regionals in North Wilkesboro, the first step toward the state tournament in Raleigh and national championships. It didn’t go well:
“I talked to a guy who ran the Wilkes Diamonds program, and he explained that this is a whole different level.”
Adams wasn’t going to let history repeat.
He found gyms to practice in – Mount Holly and Stanley schools, the Mount Holly city gym and, through a friend, Temple Baptist Church in Gastonia. He reworked his program and coached AAU for 25 years.
He won three national championships.
Along the way, he also coached girls basketball at Mount Holly and Stanley middle schools, varsity girls at Gaston Day and Gaston Christian, and basketball, baseball and football at Mount Holly Junior High.
Now, at age 71, his work as a coach and his contributions to the town have Adams being honored in the Mount Holly Sports Hall of Fame with the Community Spirit Award.
“It’s really humbling. In my life, you never think something like this could happen and you never know when you start how things will work out, how God will make it work out,” he says, “but you do what you do, and that’s where my heart was.”
Adams sees his athletes as people first, ballplayers second.
“If you can look in a mirror and say ‘I did my best,’ that’s good enough for me as a coach. I was able to win with a lot of kids with that presentation, and I was genuine with it. And that’s the winning piece, when they know you’re real,” he says. “Kids are smart and they can see through the fluff, but when you come in the gym every day and they see you’re the same person, they will play their hearts out for you.”
Actions may speak louder than words, but words can be influential and powerful.
Listen to some philosophies from Adams.
On coaching:
“It’s something that I think has to be a God-given gift to work with kids like that because you have to be committed and you have to give up a lot in order to do it. I got gratitude out of seeing kids get better. They come out and try to get a grasp of what’s going on, but if they work hard they can get better. Oh, they may not be the best, but if you love what you do, you can get better.”
On being a leader:
“Everybody who came into our program, I sat with the parent and the child and said this is a team organization, and all our players are not on the same level but we play as a team. If you have any questions, don’t ask anyone else, ask me. I tell them that so there wouldn’t be any junk, and I was able to be successful. I know how things can be when you deal with kids, so everything went through me. You want to blame someone? Blame me. And it works.”
On players who aren’t their team’s best:
“It’s a learning tool for them. Be patient. Great athletes are easy to coach, but when a kid comes along who isn’t that great, it’s a lesson. I pride myself in trying to get that kid to grow as an athlete and as a person. You don’t just throw that kid out and get someone better to play, you develop that kid.”
On player mistakes and last-second losses:
“I can’t tell you how many times, in a critical game… A kid knows when they should have done something and it didn’t work out, and you have to let them know it’s not the end of the world and that’s not what this is about. You have to leave it where it is, because there’s another game tomorrow and you might hit the winning shot. This is a team thing. No one’s going to blame you because you missed the last shot. That’s not what defines you.”
On education:
“You can’t play for me unless you have an A-B average. Education is important. If you don’t have grades, you can’t go anywhere with a sport. I put that out in front of my parents and my kids, and a lot of parents didn’t like it, but I think education is important. Only a very small percentage become professional athletes.”
One season, he says a team missed going to a championship because of a missed layup:
“In that split second, when you find out it didn’t happen, you think it’s going to stay with you until next year when you come back. But you have to take that, along with the glorious parts, and learn from it. We didn’t play win-at-all-costs. It’s about winning and learning about life. That’s the important part. Because, after basketball there is life. When basketball is over, you have to start living life.”
His AAU team was headed to Tampa for the National Championships in 2006 when Adams hurt his back doing landscaping at his home. His son took him to a doctor, who told Adams not to get on the airplane.
“I coached from a chair the whole time, and we won the national championship that year. I was in the chair, and the kid hit the winning shot, and I came out of that chair and was jumping up and down. It was one of the highlights of my career, seeing those kids win on a big stage. It was just the adrenaline that got me up. My assistant coach, he was 6-foot-7 and I’m 5-foot 6, and he set me right back down. For a group of girls from a small town to go down there, where people didn’t give them a chance .. and we won.”
Adams graduated from Mount Holly High in 1971.
He and his wife, Rita, have two sons, Marquis and Terrell, and he coached them when they played youth basketball and football, in addition to his work with AAU and schools.
This July, he retired. Some former players still come visit him. He says he gets wedding invitations, and baby announcements, in the mail.
“It’s a real blessing,” he says, “when you see the kids again and they acknowledge what you did for them. It’s so gratifying. You can’t put a price on it.”
Harry Adams
1995-2020: Mount Holly Stars AAU girls basketball
2005: 11-Under AAU Division II National Champion
2006: 11-Under USSA National Champion
2007: 12-Under USSA National Champion
Public schools:
2011-2012: Gaston Day School (24-3)
2010-2011: Gaston Day School (14-8)
2008: Gaston Christian School (12-2)
2003-2004: Stanley Middle School (2004 – 12-0, county champions)

The 2022 Mount Holly Sports Hall of Fame banquet will be held on August 20 at the Mount Holly Municipal Complex at 6pm. Doors open at 5. Tickets are available at Moose’s Pharmacy and David’s Detailin, and online at FameTotheName.org.

Gaston College didn’t have to look far for its new cross country coach.
The Rhinos, whose 2021 cross country team was the school’s first athletic team in 50 years, have hired title-winning South Point High coach Kody Kubbs as their second head coach.
Kubbs replaces Jamie Rosser, who in May was promoted from Gaston College’s associate basketball coach and head cross country coach to head basketball coach.
Kubbs, 37, has guided Belmont Middle School and South Point High School to cross country, basketball and track championships during his 16-year Gaston County coaching and teaching career and will remain at South Point as a teacher and boys basketball head coach.
“The idea of getting college experience, building a program and getting the support Gaston College is giving to athletics is really attractive for me,” Kubbs said. “There’s a real buy-in to the athletic program from the school administration and the resources they’ve provided.”
A 2003 graduate of Watkins Memorial High School in Pataskala, Ohio, Kubbs came to North Carolina after graduating from Ohio Northern University in Ada, Ohio, in 2007.
His impact on the Belmont Middle School program was immediate as his first Wildcats basketball won the 2008 conference regular season title and his first girls track team won its division title.
After four years at Belmont with one Gaston County basketball title, three girls track division titles and two boys track division titles, Kubbs was hired as South Point’s boys basketball coach and, two years later, became the Red Raiders’ boys and girls cross country coach.
Over the last 12 years at South Point, Kubbs has become the winningest basketball coach in Red Raiders’ history with 133 victories. He also guided the school to its farthest playoff advance in school history in 2017 and its first regular season boys conference title in school history in 2018.
In cross country, Kubbs’ teams have won two boys conference championships and three girls conference championships and he has been honored as his league’s coach of the year five times. The three girls titles have come in the last four seasons.
His goal at Gaston College is to help the Rhinos become a competitive force in the National Junior College Athletic Association’s Region 10.
“I’m excited about what the program can be,” Kubbs said. “We’ve got two coming back from the first team. Since I’ve coached in the area during the last 10 years and have a lot of connections, I know there’s some really talented runners in this area.
“We’ve got to get them to come out and keep running in college.”
Kubbs’ returnees from Gaston College’s 2021 team are Victoria Perez, a 2020 graduate of Gastonia’s Highland Tech, and Rein Norton-Small. Perez was the Rhinos’ individual medalist in all four meets last fall.
Kubbs is looking to field a roster of 10 to 12 runners - five is necessary for Gaston College to have a team score - and has already worked on arranging a schedule that will start in early September. As a second-year program, the Rhinos will be eligible to compete for NJCAA national and Region 10 honors.
“It’s going to be a challenge to get the program off the ground,” Kubbs said. “But with the talent in the area, I’m excited about what we can do and the possibilities of it.”

This year’s Montcross Area Chamber of Commerce Golf Outing is partnering with Cramerton and their Historical Society to host the Cramerton Legacy of Golf Tournament on July 29, 2022, at the Cramer Mountain Club.
The format this year allows for two groups of 72 golfers to participate with both an AM and an afternoon shotgun start.
If you are interested in being a sponsor, review your opportunities for this year’s inaugural event at the website, www.cramertongolf.com.
If you have questions, please call the MACC at 704-825-5307. You can also email: marc.jordan@montcrossareachamber.com, miranda.wood@montcrossareachamber.com or Doug Glenn with the Cramerton Historical Society, dglenn717@gmail.com.

The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) announced the 2022 Division II ITA Scholar-Athletes and All-Academic Teams recently with the Belmont Abbey women’s team earning the All-Academic Team distinction. In addition, seven women’s tennis players were named scholar-athletes.
In order to be named an All-Academic Team, programs must have a team grade point average of 3.2 or above (on a 4.00 scale), all student-athletes included should be listed on the institutional eligibility form, and all varsity letter winners should be factored into the cumulative team GPA for the current academic year.
To be name an ITA Scholar-Athlete, student-athletes must have a grade point average of at least 3.5 (on a 4.00 scale) for the current academic year and be listed on the institutional eligibility form. The Crusaders were one of six teams from the conference to earn the All-Academic Team honors and 29 additional student-athletes were named ITA Scholar-Athletes.
Belmont Abbey scholar-athletes include- Lily Aranyos, Carlie Davis, Hannah Farmer, Daniella Galeano, Frankee Hendricks, Reagan Sommariva, Anna Steiner.
Belmont Abbey photo/story

The South Point High Lady Red Raiders soccer team traveled to Lake Norman Charter School last week for the semi-final championship game. When all the kicking was concluded, South Point came up short 5-1. However… the team finished the season 23-1 and they won the Big South Conference Title and they were West Regional Finalists in the 3A state tournament. Great work by the team.

See more photos on page 13
Banner-News June 9, 2022 Issue

Photos by Calvin Craig/Superraiders

By John Wilson
John.bannernews@gmail.com
Honoring those that served is always a noble endeavor.
At South Point High, the Lady Raiders softball team took it the next level during their annual Military Appreciation Day.
For eight years the softball team has taken a few moments before a game to pay tribute to American servicemen, both past and present.
This year the ceremony took place last week before South Point’s game against Kings Mountain.
South Point softball head coach Leah Brooks came up with the format for the event hoping to find a way to teach her players something about military service.
“It’s more than softball,” coach Brooks said. “I’ve always wanted my team to be involved in the community. My brother was in the US Navy and I wanted to teach my girls something about the military.”
Based on the enthusiasm of everyone involved it looks like coach Brooks and the Lady Raiders are really on to something.
The program that South Point put together was truly inspiring.
Veterans in attendance represented all branches of the Armed Forces of the United States.
As part of the program members of the softball team were teamed with a veteran and given a commemorative softball.
The ceremony began with the players and vets lined up along the first base line. One by one the veterans were introduced and brought on to the infield by their player escort. As the vets took the field a brief summary of their service and accomplishments was read out over the stadium’s public address system.
Before long a line of 20 servicemen was arrayed around the infield from third base on to first base.
When the veterans were all in place the United States colors were presented by members of the South Point Navy Junior ROTC.
After the colors were in place the National Anthem and the playing of Taps was performed by softball player Annie Pinto.
Pinto’s performance of the classic military bugle call added to the reverence of the observance.
The ceremony closed with the veterans throwing out the ceremonial first pitch.
The pitch was done in unison with the servicemen tossing their softballs to the players that had escorted them to the field just a few moments before.
After the toss the Lady Raiders returned the softballs to the vets as a keepsake. The softballs all had a handwritten message on them that thanked them for their service.
As the spectators looked out on to the field, they could not help to realize that they were in the presence of living history.
Those being honored represented over 70 years of military service.
The vets gathered in the South Point infield served in various roles ranging from logistics support to infantry. Many saw action in combat zones across the globe from Korea and Vietnam to Lebanon and Iraq.
  One of the veterans on hand for the event was 90-year-old Max Robinson.
Robinson served in the United States Air Force during the post-World War II Occupation of Japan and the Korean Conflict.
As the longest living vet in attendance Mr. Robinson was happy to be a part of the softball team’s effort to honor veterans. In fact, Robinson has participated in every Military Appreciation Day South Point has done since the event’s inception in 2014.
Max Robinson understands the importance of paying tribute to not only those servicemen that were at the stadium, but also those that are no longer with us.
“I’ve been to every one of them,” Robinson said of the program. “I really enjoy it. Some of my old buddies that used to come are now no longer here.”
While this day may have been about honoring the military there was also a softball game.
The Military Appreciation Day was a big success, but unfortunately the Lady Raiders didn’t have a great day on the diamond.
South Point lost to Kings Mountain 19-0.
While the South Point Lady Raiders may not have won the game, they did something even better. They took a moment to give back to the community. And in the process, they touched the hearts of those they chose to honor.

By John Wilson
John.bannernews@gmail.com
For most high schoolers spring break is usually about relaxing a bit and making some memories.
 This year the Stuart Cramer softball team and East Gaston baseball team made some memories they won’t soon forget as both teams walked away with spring break tournament titles.
Stuart Cramer softball won last week’s Toyota of Gastonia Spring Break Softball Tournament held at South Point High School while EG baseball won the Gaston County Easter Baseball Tournament.
The softball tournament got off to a rocky start early in the week when Mother Nature threw the event a curve ball and adjustments needed to be made.
The games were supposed to be held on Monday and Tuesday, but heavy rain on Monday forced the schedule to be moved back a day.
South Point head coach Leah Brooks and her staff didn’t let the weather out do them. As the tournament hosts, the South Point crew did a good job dealing with the delay.
“I think it would be appropriate to give credit to coach Brooks, her players and coaching staff for hosting this,” Cramer head coach James Brown said. “I know they had to move things around because it rained on Monday and I know it’s a lot of work trying to dry the infield.”
While nature did its thing that never damped the mood of the event. Once the action got underway it soon became clear that Stuart Cramer was going to dominate this year.
The Storm won the title by beating South Point 15-3, East Gaston 12-0 and Forestview 5-0 in the final.
In the win against South Point, Hadley Womack took the mound and pitched the entire game giving up only three hits and delivering five strikeouts.
In the East Gaston and Forestview games, Emma Donaldson started and played well.
Donaldson was in total control against the Lady Warriors fanning eight East Gaston batters on her way to pitching a shutout.
Things got a little tougher when the Storm faced off against the Lady Jags in the final.
In that one, Donaldson still came through in the clutch giving up five hits, but also striking out eight Forestview batters.
In recognition of her strong performance, Emma would go on to be named the tournament’s MVP.
While it’s true that Donaldson delivered a stellar performance, what really made this tournament special for Cramer was the fact that players who normally aren’t in the spotlight stepped up big time.
“We had two players, Madison Lee and Addy Marr who got their first career home runs,” Brown said. “Both of those girls also got All-Tournament selections.”
A breakdown of the post-game stats show that Marr and Lee really had a good run.
Marr finished the tournament with three hits and six RBIs while Lee would finish with four hits and six RBIs.
In addition to Marr, Lee and Donaldson receiving accolades, Braley Hamilton was also named to the All-Tournament team as well.
Hamilton wielded a heavy bat all week ending the tournament with five hits.
Across the board, Coach Brown was happy with the way his team performed.
“Everyone contributed both offensively and defensively,” Brown went on to say. “We had a couple of girls really step up on both sides of the ball.”
On the baseball side of things, the East Gaston Warriors won their sixth Gaston County Easter Baseball Tournament title.
The annual classic held at Sims Legion Park has a long tradition dating back to 1987.
The last time the Warriors won the county championship was in 2016.
This year East Gaston got it done playing their version of small-ball. An offensive philosophy that emphasizes placing runners on base and then advancing them into scoring position.
East Gaston got their first win of the tournament on Monday with a big 13-3 blowout of Bessemer City.
Bryce Benson got the start and did a good job in three innings of action. The junior hurler got the win without giving up a run. While facing Benson, Yellowjacket batters only managed two hits.
Benson wasn’t the only EG pitcher to take the mound. Gracen Mahadeo came in relief and did well pitching for three innings.
While Bryce Benson did a good job on the mound, he did even better swinging a bat. Benson went 3-for-3 and led the team in batting.

In the second game of the tournament East Gaston held off a late rally by Forestview to walk away with an 8-4 win. One of the keys to the victory was a strong sixth inning performance where the Warriors scored four runs.
Right hander Elijah Sutherland got the start and managed to hold his own. In well over five innings of play. Sutherland allowed four runs on seven hits. He also struck out four Forestview batters.
Sutherland got a little bit of help toward the end of the game when Dylan Howell came in and pitched for one and one-third innings in a relief role.
In the Forestview game, EG’s top batter was Logan Agosta. Agosta finished the game with a .750 batting average by going 3-for-4.
In the championship game, the Warriors took on a familiar foe when they faced off with the North Gaston Wildcats.
The last time the Warriors and Wildcats played was in March. In that one North Gaston blanked EG 5-0.
In the re-match East Gaston got a bit of payback when Parker Agosta took the mound and decimated the Wildcat batting lineup.
Agosta had a sensational game striking out 11 batters while only giving up one hit and no runs in over seven innings of action.
In addition to pitching well Parker joined his brother Logan Agosta, Dylan Howell, Liam Brady and Daniel McClellan in churning out multiple hits to power the East Gaston offense. In all the Warriors belted out 11 hits.
Winning the county championship is a big deal. Head coach Randy Sellers and his squad did a heck of a job this year.
“I’m very proud of our team’s preparation, focus and play during the tournament,” coach Sellers said. “Their effort and intensity while pulling for their teammates was instrumental in winning the championship.”
This week East Gaston and Cramer will get back to regular season action.
The Warriors have games this week against R-S Central and North Gaston while Cramer plays Ashbrook and Kings Mountain.
See more photos on  page 11
(Banner-News April 28, 2022 Issue)
 

The Belmont Historical Society will be hosting their annual “Living History Day” event  on Saturday, April 30th at the museum, located at 40 Catawba Street, Belmont, NC.
The event will be held from 10:00am-1:00 pm.  The three main museum buildings will be open for touring;  the 1899 Robert L. Stowe Home, the 1899 Free standing kitchen/cooks quarters  and the restored 1930’s textile mill house. On the grounds will be many different exhibitors including: Piedmont Fiber Guild, Military Memorabilia, Basket Weaving: Nancy Duffie, Ancestor: Gary Griffin  from family of the 1916 Flood of Western North Carolina, Local Authors:Dixie Abernathy and Gloria Sloan, Gaston County Beekeepers Association, Children’s activity. The main house will feature new displays Belmont Police Department memorabilia and Carolina Pottery.
Please come and bring the family to learn about Belmont’s past. The event is free.
Included also on the 30th will be a Plant Sale, sponsored by Keep Belmont Beautiful.  Lovely hanging baskets and pots of Supertunia’s. Preorder if interested.  Herbs will be available for sale on day of event.
For more information, contact Elizabeth 704-813-2648.

The South Point High tennis team has a regular season record stretching back to last season of 86-1. Last Friday’s match/ Senior night had the team go up against North Gaston. South Point won 9-0.
The players/ team members in the photo from left to right are-
Ethan Dellinger, Lennon Miller, William O’Connor, Zachary Cunningham, Trey Baker, Cole Miller, Shiv Patel, Wesley Matthews, Garett Ziemer, Aidan Gant, Dylan Nicks, Brandon Cunningham.
Not Pictured - James Dover, Asher Dover, Sean Gore, Eric Sawyer, Head Coach Sean Harmon, Asst. Coach Tom Cox.
The conference championship began Monday in Kings Mtn.

In kindergarten, children are asked what they want to be when they grow up and typically kids say they dream of becoming a doctor, astronaut, or President of the United States. While Seth Eaves’ classmates had hopes of saving lives or making history, Seth had his eyes set on a different path. Seth dreamed that one day he would be holding a microphone on TV and talking about his favorite thing- sports.
Over the years that dream never faded, and to reach his goals Seth enrolled at Gaston College to study Broadcasting and Production Technology. Things have come full circle for Seth as he is now the voice of the Gaston College Rhinos Baseball team as the Public Address Announcer at the newly renovated Sims Legion Park in Gastonia, where the team plays its home games.
This new job with the Rhinos certainly is not Seth’s first time living out his dreams, but he says it has been his biggest challenge to date. He credits Gaston College and his instructors in the Broadcasting and Production Technology program for helping him get to this point in his career. He says Kate Carmody, instructor and program coordinator, taught him everything he knows about broadcast production and what goes on behind the scenes.
 The Rhinos made history during the opening weekend of the newly renovated Sims Legion Park with a no-hitter against Wake Tech Community College. They currently hold a 27-2 record, are ranked number one in the National Junior College Athletic Association Region 10 Conference, and rank in the top five of all three National Junior College Athletic Association polls. For information about the Gaston Rhinos baseball team and other College sports, visit gcrhinos.com.

The Stuart Cramer Storm softball team won their season home opener 5-4 over Cherryville in nine innings thanks to a walk off error in the bottom of the ninth. The game was tied 4-4 in the bottom of the ninth inning with the Storm batting, when a Cherryville error resulted in the game winning run by Stuart Cramer. Stuart Cramer’s Andrea Detweiler went 4-5 at the plate with a single in the third, fifth, seventh and ninth innings and she crossed the plate for the game winning run in the bottom of the ninth. Payton Conroy also hit a home run in the bottom of the fourth inning and solid pitching from the Storm’s freshman Hadley Womack kept the game close throughout. Womack earned the win pitching all nine innings.

By John Wilson
John.bannernews@gmail.com

Will Kelly is one heck of a basketball player. The Stuart Cramer senior will soon finish up his high school basketball career playing in the Carolinas Classic, the North Carolina-South Carolina All-Star game held on March 26th in Wilmington
The road to the all-star game has been an interesting journey for Kelly. However, as it turns out, Will’s journey may be just beginning.
Will Kelly has held a basketball in his hand for as long as he can remember.
“I started dribbling a ball when I was two,” he said.
In his early years Will started out playing rec. ball but was soon convinced to consider other playing options after a conversation with his Pop Warner football coach.
“Coach Bradley talked to me about playing basketball when I was about nine,” Will explained. “So, I started to play travel ball with the Gastonia Lakers.”
Will really enjoyed travel ball. In fact, the more he played the more he found just how much he really liked basketball.
When the time came to go to middle school, Will started playing ball with the Belmont Middle School Wildcats.
After middle school, Kelly started his high school career at South Point before transferring to Stuart Cramer for his sophomore year.
Will played for the Storm his sophomore and senior years. He went to private school for his junior year.
Right from the beginning Kelly stood out as a promising player. He made the South Point varsity roster in his freshman year.
That accomplishment is something that he is very proud of.
“I made varsity as a freshman,” Will said. “Just knowing I could play at that level at such a young age.”
During his time at Cramer Will made a significant impact. He proved himself to be a dynamic player who at times was capable of taking over games. Kelly’s presence on the court greatly contributed to the Storm’s best season ever. In 2021-22 Cramer went 20-7.
While he only played at Cramer for two years,  Kelly set new marks that players in the future may still find hard to match.
 In just two years Will amassed 1,315 points and 408 rebounds. All Cramer records.
Along the way Will has had a lot of positive mentoring and guidance.
But the one person that stands out the most to him is his mother, Becky Gaither.
“I get everything from her,” Will said of his mom. “My hard work, my dedication. She told me at a young age to finish what I start. I’m able to be who I am because of her. That’s why I never quit and I’m as competitive as I am.”
There is little doubt that Will Kelly is a competitive young man. The stats don’t lie. During his time at Cramer, Kelly delivered the goods. However, there is more to this young man, much more.
All someone needs to do is spend a few minutes talking to Kelly and they soon find that his mother gave him far more than a competitive work ethic. It’s obvious Becky Gaither taught her son to not only be a determined athlete, but a decent person. Will Kelly comes across as both humble and polite.
Will’s down to earth and grounded nature is something that Cramer head basketball coach David Sloan immediately noticed.
 “He’s a great athlete,” Sloan said. “But he’s also really a humble young man. He doesn’t act like he knows it all. That type of mentality is contagious. He comes to practice ready to learn. That rubs off on his teammates.”
In the coming weeks Kelly will have some tough decisions to make as he sorts out his future.
As an All-Conference standout who is also under consideration for All-State honors,
Kelly is a top recruiting target.
Will is still sorting out where he wants to go, but he seems to have a good understanding of what he’s looking for in a college.
“I’m hoping to commit sometime after the All-Star Game and make my decision,” Will went on to say.  “I’m trying to find a connection with the coaching staff as well as having a good education and a relationship with the teachers.”
It’s still to early to say where Will Kelly will end up. The college athletics singing process can be maddening as schools compete to sign the nation’s top athletes. Will has had several offers from some solid Division II programs.
With that said, it seems like Will has everything under control. If there is any pressure involved in what college to choose this young man doesn’t show it. He seems to be enjoying the process and taking it all in stride.
In the end Will Kelly will choose the school he thinks is best for him. But no matter where he goes let’s hope that the school that signs him understands that they are getting more than just a good ball player.

Quest Aldridge scored 23 points, hitting 13 of 15 free throws, and No. 2 seed Belmont Abbey used a late run to upset ninth-ranked and top-seeded UNC-Pembroke 79-73 in the championship game of the 2022 Conference Carolinas Men’s Basketball Tournament Sunday afternoon.
The Crusaders (22-9) earned their second straight title and fifth overall by outscoring the Braves 18-7 over the final 4:41.

How It Happened-  Sean Halloran scored 14 points, while freshman KJ Garrett added 13. Chandler Baker also topped double figures with 11 points. Bosko Bojovic and Mario Lacy, Jr., each grabbed six rebounds. The Crusaders had 43 boards as a team, just one less than UNCP. Belmont Abbey shot a season-low 35.4 percent (23 of 65) after hitting 60.8 percent (76-125) the previous two games combined. Belmont Abbey led by five when the Braves went on a 13-3 run to open a 66-61 advantage. A three-pointer by Garrett with 3:50 left tied the game at 66. The Abbey improved to 18-2 when leading at the half. It was a slim 37-36 margin at the break. Aldridge was named the Tournament Most Valuable Player, while Halloran and Baker were also on the all-tournament team.
Belmont Abbey story/photo