Morganton trio receives college basketball offers
Patton boys basketball player Nathan Waters and Freedom girls players Cynica Caldwell and Ava Cooke all picked up offers to play collegiate basketball over the past week.
Waters
Cooke
Caldwell
The Waters news came March 14 via a Facebook post from Waters’ travel team, the North Carolina Spartans. The post reads, “Congrats to Nathan Waters on recently receiving offers from both Pfeiffer and William Peace.”
Lady Patriots head coach Amber Reddick on Facebook announced her two seniors’ offers. She posted March 16: “Congratulations to Ava Cooke for receiving an offer to continue playing basketball at Greensboro College! We are so proud of you.” The Caldwell news followed via a March 17 Reddick post: “Congratulations to Cynica Caldwell for receiving an offer to continue playing basketball at Montreat College! We are proud of what you have accomplished.”
Waters averaged 14.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, a county-best 4.8 assists, and 1.4 steals per game this past winter, notching two triple-doubles as he was named a back-to-back all-conference and first-team all-county performer. The left-hander also drained 52 3-pointers, finishing second in program history in rebounds and made 3s, third in assists, and fourth in points.
Caldwell posted averages of 10.8 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.6 spg, and 1.4 apg as a senior en route to first-team all-county honors, while Cooke was named all-conference and second-team all-county after averaging 8.0 ppg, 6.2 rpg, and leading FHS with 10 blocked shots.
Pfeiffer finished the 2025-26 season with a 17-9 overall record, reaching the title game of the NCAA Division III USA South Conference tournament. Also members of the USA South, Raleigh-based William Peace finished 9-16 overall this past season.
The NAIA member Montreat women posted an 11-17 overall mark, while D-III USA South member Greensboro finished 10-16.
13 local all-conference wrestlers, swimmers
The Northwestern 6A/7A Conference recently announced its all-conference wrestling and swimming teams, and the Western Piedmont 3A/4A Conference recently announced its all-conference wrestling team, with 13 total Burke County athletes being selected.
Freedom’s Nicholas Chiota, Sean Causby, Brayden Cullen, Rex Jones, and Jeffrey Gomez-Andres were named All-NWC swimmers, with Chiota and Causby earning recognition in three different events and Cullen doing so in two events.
St. Stephens’ Logan Kelly and South Caldwell’s Peyton Felts were named boys and girls swimmer of the year, respectively, while Saint’s LeeAnn Privett was named boys coach of the year and also split girls coach of the year honors with David Gragg of Watauga.
In wrestling, the Patriots were represented on the All-NWC squad by Xander Vue, Izick Thao, and Ethan Yang. Saint’s Tommy Kishpaugh won the lower weights wrestler of the year award, and the upper weights wrestler of the year honor was shared by Saint’s Micah Geoghegan and South’s Mario Quivera. Saint’s Billy Baker was NWC coach of the year.
And in the WPC, Draughn’s Teaghann Hensley, East Burke’s Daniel Cook, Cody Bryant, and Tucker Chapman, and Patton’s Cavan Sullivano were named all-conference wrestlers. Zakary Bloom of West Caldwell was boys most outstanding wrestler, Destiny Fidel of East Rutherford was girls most outstanding wrestler, East Rutherford’s Beth Bridges was girls coach of the year, and Hibriten’s Josh Woodruff and R-S Central’s Rich Cox shared boys coach of the year honors.
NOTE: The remaining all-conference prep winter sports lists involving Burke County schools — All-Catawba River 1A/2A/3A Conference basketball and swimming — will be announced as they are released by the school or conference.
Jillings
Jillings on another U.S. Development team
Valdese native and current Hickory High School junior Piper Jillings was recently named to the U.S. Girls Olympic Development Program (ODP) National Select Team.
Jillings, a University of South Florida soccer verbal commit who is a past all-state selection in the sport, was one of just 18 players across the nation to be selected to the prestigious squad.
The U.S. team is currently in Italy until March 23 to train with professional academies Inter Milan and ACF Fiorentina while competing on the international stage against top youth talent from around the world.
It’s Jillings’ second selection to a U.S. ODP squad as she also played on the U-15 team two years ago in Costa Rica.
Jillings, who was also part of Hickory’s volleyball state title team this past fall, recorded 23 goals and 19 assists as a Red Tornadoes freshman before tallying 29 goals and 35 assists last spring. Her Hickory squad sat at 7-0 overall through Tuesday.
Maiden, Queen’s Grant among state champs
Two teams that ended Burke County squads’ playoff basketball runs and two more squads with whom county teams share conferences ended up reaching last week’s NCHSAA state title games at LJVM Coliseum in Winston-Salem.
The Queen’s Grant boys — who are members of the Catawba River 1A/2A/3A Conference (CRC) alongside NCSSM-Morganton — finished a 35-3 season as they cruised to the 2A championship with a 77-43 victory over Warren County.
Also members of the CRC, the Thomas Jefferson boys reached the 1A championship but fell to Vance Charter, 79-54. Of note, NCSSM-M topped Thomas Jefferson in both teams’ conference opener.
Also winning state titles locally were the Maiden girls (4A), who ended East Burke’s run in the third round, as well as the North Lincoln girls (5A). The Kings Mountain boys, who eliminated Freedom in round two, reached the 6A title game but fell by one point in overtime as they fell just shy of a first hoops state crown all-time.
Other notable state champs included the Cherokee girls (2A), who three-peated as they set the all-time state title game margin of victory record in a 76-15 win over Pamlico County, as well as the Hunter Huss boys (5A), North Mecklenburg girls (7A), West Charlotte boys (8A), and Mallard Creek girls (8A).
Local running events the next three weekends
Warmer weather means running season is back in Burke County, and there are three local 5Ks upcoming — one on each of the next three Saturdays.
After the South Mountain 5K, 10K, and Fun Run today (March 21) — a benefit for South Mountain Baptist Camp — the Burke Sunrise Rotary Club’s Strides for STRIVE 5K will take place on March 28, followed by the Running For Restoration 5K on April 4.
The local Rotary’s STRIVE (Students Taking a Renewed Interest in Education) race will run through the campuses of Western Piedmont Community College, NCSSM-Morganton, and the North Carolina School for the Deaf. The STRIVE program targets students in the bottom third of the class who are willing to work hard to increase their GPAs in order to continue their education after high school.
Cost is $35 (or $30 for ages 20 and younger), and registration is available through race day. The race will begin at 8 a.m., and a post-race breakfast will be served. To register or for more information, visit shorturl.at/NXOL0.
The Running For Restoration 5K, whose mission is to raise awareness for the humane treatment of incarcerated people in North Carolina, will take place at McGalliard Falls Park in Valdese beginning at 9 a.m.
The course starts with a slope and some large rock stairs, goes across a suspension bridge, then follows the Valdese Greenway on a gravel path, out and back. Registration is $40 in advance or $45 on race day. To register or for more information, visit shorturl.at/LJsbl.
