golf, girls soccer, softball, boys tennis

Another five sports begin today in the N.C. High School Athletic Association: boys golf, girls golf, boys tennis, softball, and girls soccer.

Below, HighSchoolOT will preview all five seasons with preseason rankings for three of those five sports, and abbreviated watch lists for all of them. The Watch List doesn’t have any effect on our end-of-season all-state teams.

Girls Golf (watch list)

Girls golf is usually played in the fall, and it was in the N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association. But the NCHSAA moved it to run at the same time as the boys golf season due to the coronavirus pandemic.

There are no preseason HighSchoolOT rankings in girls golf, but there will be an inaugural final rankings once the NCHSAA championships have concluded.

Here are 10 girls golfers to watch this year as part of our HSOT Watch List:

  • Maria Atwood, Holly Springs (junior)
  • Gabriela Cruz, Wesleyan Christian (senior)*
  • McKenzie Daffin, Jack Britt (senior)
  • Morgan Ketchum, Reagan (junior)
  • Alexsandra Lapple, O’Neal School (sophomore)*
  • Elizabeth Lohbauer, Cox Mill (junior)
  • Emily Mathews, Eastern Alamance (sophomore)
  • Megan Morris, Panther Creek (senior)
  • Amanda Sambach, Cannon School (senior)*
  • Katherine Schuster, First Flight (senior)

*-already completed season in the fall

Boys Golf (watch list)

As stated above, there are no preseason HighSchoolOT rankings in boys golf, but there will be an inaugural final rankings once the NCHSAA championships have concluded.

The NCISAA season is also in the spring.

Here are 20 boys golfers to watch this year as part of our HSOT Watchlist:

  • Collin Adams, Charlotte Latin (senior)
  • Davis Adams, St. David’s (junior)
  • Jackson Brimfield, Durham Academy (senior)
  • Tyler Dechellis, Clayton (senior)
  • Luke Edwards, Cary Christian (senior)
  • Michael LaSasso, St. David’s (junior)
  • Ben Jordan, Greensboro Day (junior)
  • Andrew Plate, Page (senior)
  • Caleb Surratt, Union Academy (junior)
  • Jackson Van Paris, O’Neal School (senior)

Boys Tennis (rankings, watch list)

The NCISAA boys tennis season is already underway and now the NCHSAA joins in. Last season was stopped after two weeks due to the pandemic.

HighSchoolOT typically does an East & West top 25 in boys tennis, but we do not plan on doing one at this time for NCHSAA teams as there is not a dual-team tennis title scheduled. We will instead do statewide NCISAA rankings: preseason, midseason, end-of-regular-season, and final rankings.

The NCHSAA will only have an individual tournament at the end of the year, and there will be a team champion crowned for that, but our rankings are specifically dual-team rankings.

Here are 10 boys tennis players to watch this year as part of our HSOT Watch List:

  • Wyatt Cannon, Sanderson (junior)
  • Aidan Chung, Carrboro (junior)
  • Foster Evans, Clayton (senior)
  • Chris Hartzell, Ledford (senior)
  • Aryan Malhotra, South Iredell (senior)
  • Aathreya Mahesh, Charlotte Latin (junior)
  • Dennis Perumov, Chapel Hill (senior)
  • Tyler Ramanata, Pine Lake Prep (junior)
  • Joe Wayand, Cardinal Gibbons (senior)
  • Ryan Xiao, Green Hope (senior)

And now here’s the preseason top 25 for the NCISAA.

  1. Charlotte Country Day
  2. Greensboro Day
  3. Charlotte Latin
  4. Durham Academy
  5. Cary Academy
  6. Cape Fear Academy
  7. Carmel Christian
  8. Ravenscroft
  9. Forsyth Country Day
  10. Rocky Mount Academy
  11. Gaston Day
  12. Arendell Parrott
  13. North Raleigh Christian
  14. Wesleyan Christian
  15. Carolina Day
  16. Providence Day
  17. Covenant Day
  18. O’Neal School
  19. Epiphany School
  20. Cannon School
  21. Wayne Country Day
  22. Cary Christian
  23. Gaston Christian
  24. Trinity School of Durham & Chapel Hill
  25. Wake Christian

Softball (rankings, watch list)

The NCISAA softball season is already underway and now the NCHSAA joins in. Last season was stopped after two weeks due to the pandemic. We will be doing preseason, midseason, end-of-regular-season, and final rankings for the East and West.

Here are the preseason rankings

West

  1. Central Cabarrus
  2. South Caldwell
  3. Eastern Randolph
  4. North Davidson
  5. West Stanly
  6. West Rowan
  7. Mooresville
  8. Alexander Central
  9. Forbush
  10. Providence Grove
  11. Hickory Ridge
  12. North Stokes
  13. Parkwood
  14. Crest
  15. Rockingham County
  16. Forbush
  17. Central Davidson
  18. South Stanly
  19. Mount Pleasant
  20. Lake Norman
  21. North Lincoln
  22. Providence
  23. Marvin Ridge
  24. A.L. Brown (Kannapolis)
  25. Myers Park

East

  1. Eastern Alamance
  2. Topsail
  3. D.H. Conley
  4. Fuquay-Varina
  5. Heritage
  6. Holly Springs
  7. Cleveland
  8. Western Alamance
  9. South Granville
  10. Richmond
  11. Cape Fear
  12. Gray’s Creek
  13. Southern Alamance
  14. Clayton
  15. Camden County
  16. Middle Creek
  17. Southern Nash
  18. Jack Britt
  19. Purnell Swett
  20. South Johnston
  21. Person
  22. Clayton
  23. North Johnston
  24. Rocky Mount Academy
  25. Richmond

And now here are 20 softball players to watch this year as part of our HSOT Watch List:

  • Savannah Beaver, Eastern Randolph (senior)
  • Brooke Bowling, South Granville (junior)
  • Kenna Raye Dark, Eastern Alamance (junior)
  • Alanna Deal, South Columbus (senior)
  • Jasmine Fong, Enloe (senior)
  • Sydney Hartgrove, Topsail (senior)
  • Chloe Hatzopoulos, Mountain Island Charter (senior)
  • Mackenzie Hayes, Crest (senior)
  • Kalyn Kyle, Clayton (junior)
  • Kamryn Nash, Camden County (junior)
  • Brantleigh Parrott, Central Cabarrus (junior)
  • Jaden Pone, Gray’s Creek (senior)
  • Kaitlyn Rackard, Union Grove Christian (senior)
  • Emma Rogers, R-S Central (senior)
  • Anna Sawyer, D.H. Conley (junior)
  • Carleigh Simmons, Camden County (senior)
  • Regan Weisner, South Caldwell (senior)
  • Lauren Wiles, D.H. Conley (senior)
  • Emily Winstead, Rocky Mount Academy (junior)
  • Ellen Yang, Salisbury (senior)

Girls Soccer

The NCISAA girls soccer season is already underway and now the NCHSAA joins in. Last season was stopped after two weeks due to the pandemic. We will be doing preseason, midseason, end-of-regular-season, and final rankings for the East and West.

Here are the preseason rankings:

West

  1. Providence Day
  2. Hough
  3. Page
  4. Cox Mill
  5. West Forsyth
  6. Northern Guilford
  7. Providence
  8. Northwest Guilford
  9. Cuthbertson
  10. Myers Park
  11. Marvin Ridge
  12. South Mecklenburg
  13. Reagan
  14. Weddington
  15. Cannon School
  16. Union Academy
  17. Charlotte Latin
  18. Hickory Ridge
  19. Southwest Guilford
  20. Sun Valley
  21. Lake Norman Charter
  22. Forbush
  23. East Forsyth
  24. South Iredell
  25. South Point

East

  1. Heritage
  2. Carrboro
  3. Chapel Hill
  4. Holly Springs
  5. Hoggard
  6. Leesville Road
  7. Apex Friendship
  8. Jordan
  9. Broughton
  10. Cardinal Gibbons
  11. Apex
  12. Pinecrest
  13. Millbrook
  14. Union Pines
  15. Ashley
  16. Terry Sanford
  17. Enloe
  18. Laney
  19. Panther Creek
  20. Wakefield
  21. Franklin Academy
  22. Clayton
  23. Wake Forest
  24. Roanoke Rapids
  25. Eastern Alamance

And now here are 20 girls soccer players to watch this year as part of our HSOT Watch List:

  • Maddy Baucom, Marvin Ridge (senior)
  • Emily Bowbliss, Union Pines (senior)
  • Braelyn Francher, Heritage (senior)
  • Mary Gale Godwin, Charlotte Latin (senior)
  • Anna Hammer, Asheville (senior)
  • Dalia Hernandez, Forest Hills (senior)
  • Emily Hitt, Ravenscroft (senior)
  • Caroline Hunt, Page (senior)
  • Maddie Luckett, T.C. Roberson (senior)
  • Lilly Frances Lobos, Washington (senior)
  • Catherine MacNichol, Roanoke Rapids (senior)
  • Lucy McDaniels, Carrboro (senior)
  • Lauren Montgomery, First Flight (senior)
  • Navia Mosley, Carrboro (senior)
  • Ainsley Norr, Hoggard (senior)
  • Kelly Poole, Cuthbertson (senior)
  • Addie Porter, A.C. Reynolds (senior)
  • Lillie Rusher, Salisbury (senior)
  • Zoe Susi, Wilkes Central (junior)
  • Skyler Walk, Providence (senior)