Thursday, October 1, 2026
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Cherryville, NC (WNN) - As students and teachers are settling into their classroom routines, student athletes and coaches are settling in on the court and the field. Many of the fall sports teams have begun their seasons, with a few more to begin soon. The current culture in Ironmen athletics is always about improving and continuing to build character. So far, there has been some early success and some near misses. Each team has represented their school and community well as they strive for successful seasons.
New head soccer coach Brandon Shull continues to translate his success from wrestling and tennis to soccer. This team is showing tremendous determination and promise. They have already matched the total wins from last season and only need one more victory to check that goal off their list. Coach Shull has his team believing in themselves, and their competitiveness has been evident in recent matches.
This week didn’t yield the desired number of wins, but the team has continued to improve. The first match this week was at Langtree Charter on August 17. The Lions defeated the Ironmen 2-0. Goalie Ethan Johnsen had a good performance with 6 saves out of 8 opponent shots on goal and 2 goals against. Langtree’s defense held Cherryville (1-1) to just 2 shots by Cole Kelly and 1 by Trever Dalton. Alejandro Lopez and Kaden Fonseca led the undefeated Lions (3-0), each scoring 1 goal. Aiden Gathering made 2 saves.
The second match of the week was on August 18 at Maiden against the Blue Devils (2-2). Cherryville (1-2) lost this match by a score of 2-1. Once again, Ethan Johnsen did a good job of defending his team’s goal. He allowed just 2 goals off 12 opponents’ shots and recorded 10 saves. Seth Locklear scored a goal for the Ironmen off 1 shot, and Izaiah Mercado also took a shot. The Blue Devils were especially strong on defense. Daniel Ventura Mejia led with 12 steals and took 3 shots. Alston Crouse added 8 steals. Isaiah Groves scored both goals for Maiden, finishing with 5 shots. Edwin Daggenhart gave up 1 goal and made 3 saves on 4 opponent shots on goal. Cherryville will open its conference schedule at home against West Lincoln on August 26 at 6 pm in Rudisill Stadium.
Former assistant coach, Bella Andersen, made her head coaching debut at home on August 20, 2026, at the Donna Lavery tennis courts in Cherryville. Last year, the Lady Ironmen went 5-7 overall and finished 5th in the Southern Piedmont 2A/3A/4A Conference. The six top returners are all seniors and hope to use that experience and team chemistry to improve their record this season. Making a return for their final season are: Morgan Wray, Laney Spangler, Bailey Bryant, Maddie Avery, Ava Freeman, and Laney Jones. The first 4 out of 5 matches will be on their home court to help in their quest.
First up for Bella’s girls was a non-conference match against Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy. Coach Andersen has been pushing the team hard in practice to help them reach their full potential, while also allowing them to enjoy themselves while playing. This approach helps them remain relaxed during a match and react more instinctively to the changing dynamics of a set.
Although they performed competitively, they still fell a little short, losing 6-3 to begin their season. The results were; Abby Crawford (TJ) defeated Morgan Wray (C) 8-0, Lana Evans (TJ) defeated Laney Spangler (C) 8-1, Kaia Walker (TJ) defeated Bailey Bryant (C) 8-1, Ady Gales (TJ) defeated Laney Jones (C) 9-7, Elena McGinnis (TJ) defeated Maddie Avery (C) 8-4, and Ava Freeman (C) defeated Camille Hodge (TJ) 8-3. In doubles, the team of Lana Evans and Kaia Walker (TJ) defeated Morgan Wray and Laney Spangler 8-3, Bailey Bryant and Laney Jones (C) defeated Elena McGinnis and C’Niya Brooks (TJ) 8-5, and Maddie Avery and Ava Freeman defeated Mia Kinmon and Grace Perison (TJ) 8-1. The Lady Ironmen will have 2 non-conference matchups this week, both at home in Cherryville. August 26, Ashbrook comes to town, and on August 27th, Cherryville will host Piedmont Community Charter. Both matches will begin at 4:30 pm.
New head coach Matt Powers came into the season with some big shoes to fill. Following the record-setting performance of recently retired Coach Leigh Kiser is no easy feat. During her tenure, she built a strong foundation and culture of winning. Add to that the loss of a big portion of the starting lineup. Coach Powers had an excellent non-conference record but found the conference opener against West Lincoln just a little tougher on August 18. Although the Lady Ironmen fell to the Lady Rebels 3-1 at home, the team played competitively for every point, took no plays off, and showed much energy and enjoyment. Powers has begun to pull this team together.
Each set was highly competitive, with several ties and lead changes. There were only a few one-sided point runs in either set. In set 1, West Lincoln started strong, but Cherryville battled back to make it close as the Lady Rebels took this one 25-17. Set two was back and forth most of the way with West Lincoln once again coming out on top, this time 25-21. Facing what could be the final set and a shutout, the Cherryville ladies played gritty and focused. They stopped several comeback attempts from the Lady Rebels and held on to win 25-21. The fourth set, Cherryville came out with renewed energy. The set was another back-and-forth battle, and a few missed opportunities gave West Lincoln a 25-17 victory, ending the match. The Lady Ironmen have two upcoming conference matches this week: the first on August 25th at home in Nixon Gym against East Gaston, and the next on August 27th at home in Cherryville against Highland Tech. The Lady Ironmen are currently 2-1 overall and 0-1 in the conference.
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