Top prep stories of the year

Magical year for Jaguar hoops

A state championship appearance wasn't a surprise for the Forestview girls basketball team. More like an expectation.

But the Forestview boys? Nobody saw this coming. Not even the coach.

The Jaguars made history by becoming the first public school in Gaston County to send its girls and boys basketball teams to the state title game in the same season.

Both came up short at N.C. State's Reynolds Coliseum but returned to Gastonia long on memories.

The girls finished 27-5 after a 60-58 loss to Greensboro Dudley in the 3A championship game.

The boys wrapped up a 25-7 season after falling to Northern Guilford 66-54 in their final game.

The story didn't end there, though. Northern Guilford later self-reported that it had used an ineligible player, and the N.C. High School Athletic Association subsequently vacated the title. Forestview did not inherit the championship, and Jaguars coach Dan Ghent agreed with that decision.

"You can always put that asterisk there," Ghent said. "We lost but the team that beat us didn't win."

Ashbrook's Boyd starts national recruiting battle, chooses UNC

Ashbrook's Jheranie Boyd quickly rose from a local star to a national recruiting target.

The 6-foot-3, 185-pound wide receiver soaked up the media attention as he entertained offers from some of the nation's top programs.

Boyd had Oklahoma, Illinois, Missouri and North Carolina State on his short list but chose to stay close to home and enroll at North Carolina. Boyd announced his college choice in November through a skit that he organized and staged at Ashbrook Stadium. On signing day in February, he appeared on ESPNU's television coverage with an in-studio interview.

Boyd caught 56 passes for 893 yards and eight touchdowns in his final season, leading the Big South Conference in all categories by wide margins. For his career, he finished second in Gaston County history in receptions (119) and yards (2,370).

He departed for Chapel Hill this past week to enroll in summer school.

East Lincoln Mustangs dominant from start to finish

East Lincoln's record-setting football season was a sign of things to come.

After marching through the Southern Piedmont 1A/2A Conference in football, the Mustangs did the same thing in basketball. Then in baseball and track.

East Lincoln reached the state championship football game for the first time in the school's 42-year history. The Mustangs won a school-record 14 games, losing only their opener and in the 2A state title game (24-7 to Reidsville).

The basketball team followed suit, winning the SPC with a 15-1 record, reaching its first regional final and setting a school record with 27 wins.

The baseball team also went 15-1 in the SPC, winning the title by three games, before being upset in the second round of the state playoffs by Mount Pleasant and finishing with a 22-3 record.

Many of the same athletes who led the football and basketball teams to greatness nearly won a state title in track, placing second at the 2A state meet. Keith Rendleman, top right, was conference player of the year in basketball and most outstanding field athlete in track.

Veteran coaches hang it up
The 2008-09 school year was the last for longtime coaches Marty Hatchell, Mike Mahaffey and Terry Radford.

Hatchell left as Gaston County's all-time winningest basketball coach with a 379-228 record in 24 seasons. He served the past 11 seasons as Ashbrook's boys coach after coaching 13 years at Bessemer City. His record includes one season as coach of the Bessemer City girls.

Mahaffey retired at Bessemer City after 29 seasons as baseball coach and 21 years as athletic director. He led the Yellow Jackets to nine conference titles, one state finals appearance and a 428-271 record.

Radford resigned after 22 years and a 152-364 record as baseball coach at Hunter Huss. He also coached two seasons at North Gaston, going 30-5 and winning the 3A state championship in 1987 after going 16-10 and reaching the 3A West semifinals in 1986.

Record-setters Crumbley, Lowery lead raiders to regional final

Simply put, South Point knows how to win football games.

The Red Raiders enjoyed another deep playoff run last fall, reaching the state semifinals for the third time this decade and first since 2003. South Point finished 13-2 after capturing its second straight unbeaten conference title and eighth league championship in the past 10 years.

Junior fullback Aaron Crumbley rushed for 1,803 yards and shattered the Gaston County record with 39 touchdowns. Senior quarterback Desmond Lowery broke Joe Brown's school career rushing record, finishing with 3,895 yards. Lowery averaged an area-best 124.1 rushing yards per game on his way to 1,738 yards for the season. He later was named North Carolina's offensive MVP of the Shrine Bowl after scoring on a 54-yard run.

Check out Phillip Gardner's blog, Through the Uprights,for more honorable mention stories and to tell us if you think we missed any stories.

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