The year in area sports started with big news with the hiring of a new football coach at a historic program, and it continued with several individuals and teams claiming state championships.<\/p>\n
There were even more events that made the 2025 local sports scene special. Here is a look at the area\u2019s most memorable sports moments of the year in order of when they happened:\u00a0<\/p>\n
Garvey named Southwest coach<\/p>\n
After three years as the JV coach, former Southwest High football standout offensive lineman Zach Garvey was named the Stallions\u2019 varsity coach in January.<\/p>\n
He replaced Charlie Dempsey, who stepped down in December. Garvey is a 2013 Southwest graduate who was a senior captain for the Stallions when they won their fourth state title in 2012. He returned to his alma mater six years ago as part of the coaching staff.<\/p>\n
Jacksonville wrestling regional runner-up again<\/p>\n
For the second consecutive year, the Jacksonville High boys\u2019 wrestling team fell to Union Pines at home in the NCHSAA East Regional final in February.<\/p>\n
The Cardinals ended the dual-team season at 25-4 while also placing high in several competitive tournaments. Jacksonville advanced to the regional final earlier in the day by defeating Person 38-30.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Swansboro\u2019s Hucal captures another swim title<\/p>\n
Swansboro junior Trevor Hucal repeated as state champion in the 100-yard breaststroke during the NCHSAA swimming and diving championships at the Triangle Aquatic Center in Cary in February. Hucal ended with a time of 56.85 seconds. Hucal won his first title in 59.43.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Croatan\u2019s Bowen is state champion again\u00a0<\/p>\n
Croatan senior Madison Bowen won her third state title when she captured the 200-yard freestyle in 1:52.39 in the NCHSAA swimming and diving championships at the Triangle Aquatic Center in Cary in February.<\/p>\n
It was the second consecutive 200 freestyle title for Bowen, who also placed second in the 500 freestyle later in the competition.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jacksonville\u2019s Gholston takes indoor high jump crown<\/p>\n
After placing second in the state outdoor high jump competition the previous year, Jacksonville senior Lauryn Gholston won the event in the NCHSAA Indoor Track & Field championships at JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem in February. Gholston recorded a height of 5 feet, four inches.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Croatan\u2019s Guerrero earns indoor title<\/p>\n
Croatan senior Noah Guerrero won the 1,000-meter title in the NCHSAA Indoor Track & Field championships at JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem in February.<\/p>\n
It marked another crown for Guerrero, who also won the 1,600 title during the previous outdoor state championships. He also helped his 4×800 relay team win the indoor title.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Swansboro\u2019s Yesunas wins pole vault<\/p>\n
Swansboro senior James Yesunas won a second state pole vault title, this time recording a personal best 14-6 in the NCHSAA Indoor Track & Field championships at JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem in February. Yesunas won the pole vault in the previous year\u2019s state outdoor meet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Swansboro wins appeal<\/p>\n
Under the leadership of Principal Dr. Helen Gross, Swansboro High School\u2019s realignment appeal won via an 18-0 vote by the NCHSAA\u2019s board of directors in March.<\/p>\n
The previous realignment draft sent 6-A Swansboro into the Big Carolina 6-A\/7-A Conference with Jacksonville, White Oak, J.H. Rose, D.H. Conley, South Central and New Bern. Winning the appeal sent the Pirates to the Coastal 5-A\/6-A Conference with Croatan, Dixon, Havelock, Northside, Richlands and West Carteret.<\/p>\n
Gross cited safety concerns, missed instruction time and parents\u2019 difficulty supporting their children during away games as reasons for the appeal.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Swansboro basketball advances to final four<\/p>\n
The Swansboro boys\u2019 basketball team advanced to the NCHSAA East Regional final with a 75-43 home win over Person in the fourth round in March.<\/p>\n
The win sent the Pirates to the state\u2019s final four at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem. Swansboro fell 78-65 to Southern School of Energy & Sustainability in the regional final to end 25-2.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Former East Duplin coach Hunter joins hall<\/p>\n
The late Jerry Hunter, a former East Duplin coach and athletic director, was named to the NCHSAA Hall of Fame Classic of 2025 in March.<\/p>\n
Hunter, who passed away in 2011 at 60, was a teacher, coach and athletic director at the school from 1975 to 2011. The induction ceremony was held in August.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Swansboro embraces boys volleyball<\/p>\n
Swansboro became Onslow County\u2019s first public high school to have a boys\u2019 volleyball team in March. The Pirates finished their inaugural season 10-3.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Onslow Early College named NCHSAA member<\/p>\n
In April, the NCHSAA unanimously approved Onslow Early College as a new member for the 2025-2026 school year.<\/p>\n
The Owls fielded boys\u2019 and girls\u2019 cross country and girls\u2019 tennis in the fall, boys\u2019 and girls\u2019 wrestling in the winter and will have boys\u2019 and girls\u2019 track & field and boys\u2019 tennis in the spring.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Track & field teams win regionals<\/p>\n
The Croatan boys\u2019 and girls\u2019 teams, the East Duplin girls\u2019 squad and the Lejeune girls\u2019 squad took first place in the NCHSAA East Regional track & field championships in May.<\/p>\n
The Lejeune girls won the 1-A East title with 144 points, 64 ahead of second-place Pamlico, at Northside-Pinetown.<\/p>\n
The Croatan boys scored 119.5 points, 28.5 ahead of South Central, while the Croatan girls scored 83, six ahead of second-place Northside, as both Cougars\u2019 teams won the 3-A East Regional title at Hunt.<\/p>\n
The East Duplin girls won the 2-A East Regional title at Kinston with 74 points, 11 ahead of Manteo.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Croatan\u2019s Guerrero wins again<\/p>\n
Noah Guerrero added to his trophy case in May when he won his second consecutive 1,600-meter title in the NCHSAA outdoor track & field state championships at the Marcus T. Johnson Track and Field at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro.<\/p>\n
Guerrero crossed the finish line in 4 minutes, 14.88 seconds, ahead of North Bumcomb\u2019s Michael Ferguson, who ran 4:16.98, and Western Harnett\u2019s Ethan Rich, who ended in 4:19.22.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Northside\u2019s Daniels claims title<\/p>\n
Northside senior Kaydance Daniels was the only Onslow County athlete to win an individual NCHSAA outdoor track & field title when she captured the long jump crown in May at the Marcus T. Johnson Track and Field at North Carolina A&T University in Greensboro.<\/p>\n
She accomplished the winning distance with a personal best 18 feet, 10.5 inches on her sixth and final attempt, outscoring Fike\u2019s Jewel Brewington at 17-10.25 and Franklin\u2019s Laura Covarrubias at 17-6.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Northside 4×100 also wins gold<\/p>\n
The Northside girls\u2019 4×100 relay team of Taylor Cooper, Cheyenne Walker, MaCaela Claxton and Kaydence Daniels also won a title in the state track & field meet in 48.29 in May.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Byrd steps down at Richlands<\/p>\n
Pat Byrd announced in May he had stepped down as Richlands High football coach after five seasons. He was 25-21, tied for the fourth-most victories by a coach in team history, and he also guided the Wildcats to three consecutive winning seasons.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Croatan boys’ lacrosse wins state\u00a0<\/p>\n
Junior Dain Sparks scored the winning goal off an assist from senior Matej Roth with 20 seconds left to help Croatan defeat Lake Norman Charter 13-12 in the NCHSAA 1-A\/2-A\/3-A state championship game at Durham County Memorial Stadium in May.<\/p>\n
It marked the first state title in boys\u2019 lacrosse history for the Cougars, and it came against the three-time defending champion. Senior goalkeeper Graham Myers was named the state final Most Valuable Player.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Ospreys complete second season<\/p>\n
The Jacksonville Ospreys summer collegiate baseball team completed its second season 20-14 in the regular season and advanced to the division final of the Old North State League playoffs in July.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hall leaves Southwest for Liberty<\/p>\n
Breon Hall was named boys\u2019 basketball coach at Liberty Christian Academy in Richlands following a three-year tenure with at Southwest that saw the Stallions go 62-21 and win three conference titles.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Monk takes over Southwest<\/p>\n
Brandon Monk, a 2012 Southwest graduate and former basketball standout, was named the Stallions boys\u2019 basketball coach in August.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jacksonville graduate plays for Philippines national team<\/p>\n
Azumi Oka, a 2024 Jacksonville graduate who helped the Cardinals win the state title as a senior, played for the Philippines women\u2019s national soccer team during the 2025 ASEAN Serenity Cup in Vietnam in August.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lejeune sports paused\/returns<\/p>\n
During the government shutdown in October, school extracurricular activities, including sports, were paused since they are considered nonessential.<\/p>\n
That meant Lejeune High athletics were paused during the shutdown. Less than a week later, the Mid-Atlantic District of the Department of Defense Education Activity said it had \u201creceived direction allowing extracurricular activities, including athletics and after-school clubs, to be considered excepted activities during the current lapse of appropriations.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jacksonville’s Pearson scores six touchdowns<\/p>\n
Jacksonville junior Amari Pearson rushed for 331 yards and six touchdowns on just 16 carries to lead the Cardinals to a 67-34 Big Carolina 6-A\/7-A Conference victory at New Bern in October.<\/p>\n
Former Jacksonville coach Miller named to hall<\/p>\n
It was announced in October that former Jacksonville soccer coach Dave Miller would be inducted into the North Carolina Soccer Hall of Fame during a ceremony Jan. 24 at Piedmont Hall at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex.<\/p>\n
Miller coached Jacksonville\u2019s boys\u2019 squad for 22 years and the girls\u2019 team for 24, retiring in 2023 with an 810-230-79 overall mark as coach. He was 397-115-31 on the boys\u2019 side, winning state titles in 2005 and 2012, and reaching the final in 2006, 2008, 2013 and 2022.<\/p>\n
Richlands soccer wins conference title<\/p>\n
A 1-0 win over Dixon and a 4-1 victory over Northside in October gave the Richlands boys\u2019 soccer team the Coastal 5-A\/6-A Conference title, the Wildcats\u2019 first league crown since they shared one with Swansboro in 2006.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Gulat scores seven touchdowns to lead Dixon to historic win<\/p>\n
Dixon senior JJ Gulat rushed for 429 yards and seven touchdowns on 36 carries to lead the No. 18 Bulldogs to their first playoff victory in program history with a 58-50 double overtime win at No. 15 Rockingham in the first round of the NCHSAA 5-A playoffs in November.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Croatan\u2019s Boucher also scores seven<\/p>\n
Croatan junior Andrew Boucher rushed for 197 yards and seven touchdowns on 15 carries to lead fourth-seeded Croatan past No. 20 Seaforth 49-13 in the second round of the 5-A playoffs in November.<\/p>\n
The win sent the Cougars to the third round for the first time. One week later, junior Kannon McBride\u2019s 32-yard field goal with 12 seconds left have Croatan a 22-21 win over Havelock.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jacksonville, Northside play in regional<\/p>\n
Both the Jacksonville and Northside football teams advanced to the East Regional finals with home fourth-round wins late November.<\/p>\n
The Cardinals defeated Union Pines 34-7 while the Monarchs downed Rocky Mount 21-6.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The year in area sports started with big news with the hiring of a new football coach at…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":99839,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[116,118,117,110],"class_list":{"0":"post-99838","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-jacksonville","8":"tag-jacksonville","9":"tag-jacksonville-headlines","10":"tag-jacksonville-news","11":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99838","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99838"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99838\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/99839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}