Seth Maness and Josh Haley of Pinecrest, and Carson McLean of Union Pines represented the area on the Region 4 team in the baseball tournament for underclassmen. Pinecrest coach Jeff Hewitt was an assistant coach for the East team in the baseball event for senior players.
Union Pines coach Chris Hadlock headed the North boys' squad in the State Games for soccer. His team included Viking players Travis Frazier and Dalton Hadlock, and Coby Kavanaugh of Pinecrest. Marissa Dotson of Pinecrest and Heather Halstead of Union Pines were members of the North girls' team.
The quality of the players was a coaches' dream for Hadlock. He was impressed by how well his team played together after only two, two and a half hour practice sessions.
The North boys defeated the South 3-2 in overtime on Saturday at SAS Soccer Park in Cary. Sunday's match was tied at 0-0 with about four minutes left when Dalton Hadlock received a cross from Sandersons' Will Summey and headed it home for the match winner.
Goalkeeper Frazier tended the net for one half of each match while Kavanaugh operated as a defender.
Dotson was a central defender and Halstead played as a center midfielder, helping the North team win both matches and the gold medal. They were also played at SAS Soccer Park, the home base for the U.S. men's national team last month.
Maness, an all-state selection for Pinecrest, was the starting pitcher for Region 4 in Thursday's opener played at the home of the Durham Bulls minor league team. In four innings, the rising senior allwed no runs and two hits while striking out seven and walking one. Region 6 eventually won the game 2-1 in eight innings.
Patriot teammate, Josh Haley, the only rising junior on the team, started the game in centerfield. He went 2-for-3 with a double as Region 4 picked up its first win in four tries on Sunday.
McLean was the winning pitcher in the 7-3 victory over Region 1 in a gameplayed at Cary Academy. The rising senior allowed one run in four innings while striking out five and walking none. He also saw action at second base and shortstop.
Only wooden bats were used in the competition. Maness also saw action at second base and went 5-for-8 in the tournament with two runs scored and two runs batted in.
