FAIRMONT —The Lady Scots softball team defeated the East Columbus Gators in a 10-0 final (mercy rule after six innings) on Tuesday night at Fairmont High School to claim the Robeson County Slugfest Championship. Scotland previously beat Red Springs and Lumberton on Saturday and Monday to make it to the title game and improves to 21-1 overall on the season with 20 consecutive victories. In addition to the team title, three Scots took home some personal accolades as Addison Johnson, Dawson Blue and Avery Stutts were named to the all-tournament team with Stutts taking home MVP honors.

Head Coach Adam Romaine was thrilled with how his group was able to perform against a quality opponent in the Gators. That was especially true when he discussed how East Columbus plays the game a bit differently in their small ball methods, which no team the Scots have faced this year is like.

“East Columbus is a great program, they’re a third, fourth round team in their division,” Romaine said. “We were worried about them coming in because they’re a small ball type team and we have never played a small ball team this year, so we went to practice for an hour and worked on bunt coverage. Luckily Avery came out tonight in a different zone and she allowed the girls not to be able to put the bunt down.”

After a scoreless first inning with just one hit (a one-out single from Blue in the top of the frame), the Scots would grab the lead with three runs in their half of the second. Emily Sampson would draw a walk to start the inning while Kinsey Hamilton followed that up with a double to put runners on second and third with no outs. An error on a fly ball from Addison Lewis and a two-RBI single by Khloe Radford would help provide the runs for the Scots and a 3-0 advantage.

The game would then be uneventful for a bit as both teams went down in order during each half inning until the bottom of the fourth, when the Gators finally got their first base runner on a two-out single from Aleigh Godwin. East Columbus failed to capitalize, however, and remained down by three entering the fifth inning.

Scotland then added onto their lead with two more runs in the top of the fifth. Johnson got the inning started with a leadoff single (advanced to second on the throw) while Dawson Blue drew a walk before they would steal second and third base. Ramsey Hale would drive in Johnson with an RBI groundout while an error on a fly ball from Sampson would allow Blue to score and make it 5-0.

The Scots would proceed to blow the game open with five more runs (all before an out was recorded) in the top of the sixth inning. Khloe Radford hit a solo home run to get the frame started before Johnson reached base safely on a fielding error. A combination of singles from Blue, Stutts and Addison Ratley as well as three walks helped Scotland get the other four runs necessary to win the game after six innings.

Radford led the Scots in RBIs with three while going 2-4 from the plate along with a run scored. Stutts added two RBIs and went 1-4. Johnson and Blue had two hits and two runs scored apiece.

Stutts pitched all six innings and allowed just one hit while striking out 14 batters with no walks. She threw 58 pitches (52 strikes) to the 19 batters she faced.

Scotland will have the rest of the week off before they enter next week’s conference tournament as the No. 1 seed, which will give them a bye into the second round. Their opponent is not known as of this writing.

While winning the Slugfest was a nice confidence boost for Romaine’s team, he is focused on turning the page as the Scots prepare for crunch time of their season with the conference tournament and state playoffs looming. His messaging was simple: take the rest of the week off and enjoy it but be ready to start anew next week.

“The regular season is over so we’re telling the girls tonight put this behind us,” Romaine said. “We’ll start a new season with the conference tournament and take it one game at a time with that and start the process all over again when the playoffs start.”

FAIRMONT —The Scotland baseball team fell to the Purnell Swett Rams by a score of 3-2 in the fifth-place game of the Robeson County Slugfest on Tuesday afternoon at Fairmont High School. The Scots fell in Saturday’s tournament opener to Red Springs before rallying for a 5-3 win over Lumberton on Monday morning.

This was Scotland’s second loss to Purnell Swett this season, having also dropped a 5-0 contest to the Rams at McCoy Field back on Feb. 27. The Scots’ season record is now 12-10 after the tournament results.

The Rams got one run each in the bottom of the third, fourth and fifth innings while the Scots got both of their runs in the top of the sixth frame. The Rams outhit Scotland 5-3 while both teams committed one error over the course of the contest.

Robbie Peed led the Scots in hits with a 2-3 afternoon at the plate and scored a run while Garrett Manning, who was named to the all-tournament team, had the team’s other hit in a 1-2 effort with an RBI and a run scored. Dylan Tilson had Scotland’s other RBI.

Tilson was the team’s starting pitcher and went five innings on the mound while allowing three runs (two earned) and striking out seven Purnell Swett batters (against two walks). Peed pitched one clean inning in relief and had two strikeouts. Tilson threw 92 pitches (53 strikes) to the 23 batters he faced while Peed threw 19 pitches (12 strikes) to four batters.

This contest was the Scots’ last before the conference tournament takes place next week. With four more games still to be played elsewhere in the conference (Pinecrest/Union Pines twice and Southern Lee/Lee County twice) this week, Scotland’s opponent for the tournament opener is not known at the time of this writing. Scotland went 7-5 in conference play this season and sits in the fourth spot of the standings as of now.

FAIRMONT —The Lady Scots softball team beat the Lumberton Pirates by a score of 13-2 (mercy rule after five innings) on Monday afternoon at Fairmont High School to advance to the Championship Game of the Robeson County Slugfest. Scotland beat Red Springs in a 23-0 final during the first round of the tournament on Saturday morning.

The Scots got five of their runs in the top of the first inning, one in the second and seven in the fourth while the Pirates got both of their runs in the bottom of the first. Scotland outhit Lumberton 10-0 while the game totaled six errors (four for the Pirates and two for the Scots).

Addison Ratley led the Scots in RBIs with three while going 1-3 from the batters box with a run scored. Three other Scots had two RBIs: Addison Johnson, Dawson Blue and Kinsey Hamilton. Ramsey Hale and Hamilton were the two Scotland hitters to register multiple hits as they had two apiece.

Avery Stutts pitched all five innings and allowed two runs, neither of which were earned. Stutts had 11 strikeouts against zero walks. She threw 65 pitches (47 strikes) to the 18 batters she faced.

The Scots will face East Columbus on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. The game will take place back at Fairmont High School.

FAIRMONT —The Scotland baseball team used a four-run seventh inning to rally for a 5-3 victory over the Lumberton Pirates in a Robeson County Slugfest contest on Monday morning at Fairmont High School. The Scots snap a two-game losing streak with the victory after falling in their regular season finale to Richmond on Thursday night at McCoy Field as well as in Saturday’s tournament opener to Red Springs.

Head Coach Ricky Schattauer was pleased with the fight his team showed late in the contest after Saturday’s rough loss to Red Springs and rough start to Monday’s contest. Scotland’s ability to rally and earn another game on Tuesday was something he liked to see as things looked bleak for the majority of the game.

“We finally found some barrels, we kind of lacked it on Saturday and lacked it the first six innings of today’s game,” Schattauer said. “We found some there in the seventh and came back.”

After two scoreless innings with just one hit (a single from Robbie Peed in the top of the first), the Pirates would grab three runs in their half of the third frame despite only getting one hit in the inning. Shaun Henderson would draw a leadoff walk and advance to third thanks to a sacrifice bunt from Jayden Graham and a single from Landon Claar.

Brennan Griffin then hit a grounder that resulted in a Scotland fielding error and allowed Henderson to score while advancing Claar to third. Claar would then reach home on a ball not in play while Griffin scored on an RBI groundout from Brody Stueck.

The Scots were able to get a run back in the top of the fourth inning. Garrett Manning would reach base safely on a one-out double before scoring on an RBI single from Blane Callahan that made it 3-1.

After two more scoreless frames in the fifth and sixth innings, Scotland would get to work in the top of the seventh, starting with a leadoff single from Callahan and a one-out single from Jayden Bryant that advanced Callahan to third (Callahan stole second). Callahan would then score on a non-live ball while Bryant would advance to second and third with Dylan Tilson drawing a walk to make it 3-2. A two-RBI single from Connor Sessoms would give Scotland a 4-3 lead before Ayden Odom (pinch runner for Sessoms) would add onto their advantage with a steal of home.

Lumberton would have the tying run on base in their half of the seventh thanks to a leadoff single from Rodney Jacobs and Nolan Groner getting hit by a pitch with two outs. The Pirates couldn’t get any runs across however as the Scots would hang on for the victory.

Sessoms led the Scots in RBIs with two thanks to his single in the seventh inning. Callahan went 2-3 from the plate with an RBI and a run scored. Dawson Williams, Robbie Peed, Manning, Bryant and Tilson each had one hit with the Scots outhitting Lumberton 8-4.

Manning pitched all seven innings and allowed three runs (all unearned) with eight strikeouts against two walks. He threw 97 pitches (65 strikes) to the 29 batters he faced.

Scotland advances to the fifth-place game of the tournament on Tuesday afternoon against Purnell Swett at 1 p.m. from Fairmont High School. The Scots lost their matchup with the Rams this season back on Feb. 27 at McCoy Field in a 5-o final.

Tuesday’s contest will be Scotland’s last before they begin their conference tournament next week. Schattauer views every contest as a playoff game for the Scots at this point in the season as they look to stack as many wins as possible to give themselves the best possible look at the playoffs when the time comes around.

“I told them after Saturday’s game that every game now is playoffs,” Schattauer said. “We have to win as many games as we can so we can get a good seed into the playoffs.”

LAURINBURG —The Sandhills Athletic Conference released their men’s all-conference tennis teams among other awards as well as the final regular season standings from the 2025 season on Monday morning. The Scots had one representative on the list with Jackson Hernandez being named to the all-conference team.

Pinecrest took home the conference championship while Union Pines earned second and were the runners-up. The full standings are below (Hoke County did not have a team):

1. Pinecrest 10-0 conference, 11-2 overall

2. Union Pines 8-2 conference, 11-2 overall

3. Richmond 5-5 conference, 5-5 overall

3. Lee County 5-5 conference, 6-5 overall

5. Southern Lee 2-8 conference, 2-8 overall

6. Scotland 0-10 conference, 0-10 overall

MVP/Player of the Year

Kenan Van Scoyoc-Pinecrest

Coach of the Year

Gail Deese-Pinecrest

All Conference team

-Pinecrest: Kenan Van Scoyoc, Jacob Sumner, Jack Hage, Preston House, Sawyer Dennis and Mason Cromartie

-Union Pines: Lane McPherson, Tucker Lloyd, Dominic Roett, Jace McPherson and Cam Deibel

-Lee County: Nathan Jones and Finley Benton

-Richmond: Jordan Jacobs and Matthew Leggett

-Southern Lee: Kai Williby

-Scotland: Jackson Hernandez

4A Regional Qualifiers

-Singles: Kenan Van Scoyoc (Pinecrest) and Mason Cromartie (Pinecrest)

-Doubles: Jack Hage/Preston House (Pinecrest) and Jordan Jacobs/Matthew Leggett (Richmond)

3A Regional Qualifiers

-Singles: Lane McPherson (Union Pines), Tucker Lloyd (Union Pines) and Finley Benton (Lee County)

-Doubles: Dominic Roett/Jace McPherson (Union Pines), Nathan Jones/Hunter Jackson (Lee County) and Cam Deibel/Sawyer Manning (Union Pines)

FAIRMONT —The Lady Scots softball team dominated their first round Robeson County Slugfest matchup against Red Springs on Saturday morning, winning the contest 23-0 and enforcing the mercy rule after three innings. The game took place at Fairmont High School.

Scotland scored one of their runs in the first inning, 20 in the second and two more in the third. The Scots totaled 15 hits as a team to just one for Red Springs, who committed six errors in the game.

Addison Johnson led the way on offense with a 4-5 day at the plate and six RBIs while also scoring three runs. Dawson Blue went 3-3 with five RBIs, four runs scored and also drew a walk.

Emily Sampson pitched all three innings and allowed just one hit while striking out seven batters and walking just one. She threw 44 pitches (30 strikes) to the 11 batters she faced.

Scotland will next face Lumberton in their second matchup of the tournament on Monday afternoon at 4 p.m. The game will also take place at Fairmont High School.

Baseball falls to Red Springs

The Scots dropped their first round matchup in the Robeson County Slugfest, falling to Red Springs in a 7-2 final on Saturday morning at Fairmont High School. It was Scotland’s second loss in three days after they fell to Richmond on Thursday night at McCoy Field.

Red Springs got one run in the bottom of the first inning, another in the second, two in the third, one in the fourth and two more in the sixth. Scotland got both of their runs in the top of the fourth frame. The Scots outhit Red Springs 10-8 but had trouble overcoming seven errors.

Connor Sessoms was the lone Scot to have more than one hit, going 2-3 batting with an RBI. Dylan Tilson went 1-3 and had the team’s other RBI.

Kaden Hunsucker (1.2 innings), Bryson McCarter (2.1 innings) and Dawson Williams (2.0 innings) split the pitching duties. The three combined for six strikeouts.

Scotland will next face Lumberton in their second matchup of the tournament on Monday morning at 10 a.m. The game will also take place at Fairmont High School.

LAURINBURG —The St. Andrews Knights baseball team beat the Tennessee Wesleyan Bulldogs in a 6-5 final (10 innings) on Saturday afternoon at Clark Field. St. Andrews improves to 24-18 (11-15 in conference games) on the season with the victory while the Bulldogs fall to 35-11 (20-7 against conference opponents) as they see their six-game winning streak come to an end.

The Knights recognized their senior class after the contest on Saturday. Head Coach Andy Fox took a moment to extend his appreciation to the 21 seniors the Knights have even with some of them set to return after the season.

“We got 21 that participated in senior day today,” Fox said. “Those guys have been very instrumental to our program and having a successful program, those guys have had a lot to do with it. We owe this senior class a lot of thank you for what they’ve done for us.”

As far as the game itself, Fox wanted to see how his group would respond after a rough doubleheader on Friday afternoon. Even with the two tough losses, Fox didn’t panic as he knew St. Andrews was capable of competing with the Bulldogs and pointed to game one as evidence.

“The one thing that I took from yesterday was it was a one-run game in the eighth inning of game one yesterday and then they dropped a nine spot on us,” Fox said. “I took a little bit of comfort in that, and I told them yesterday after the game that it was a similar series to Johnson. I challenged them to come out here and play the game like we’re capable of playing, clean baseball and see what happens.”

After two scoreless innings with just one hit (a leadoff single from Kolton Reynolds in the top of the second), the Bulldogs would grab the lead with two runs in their half of the third. Kruise Newman led the inning off with a double and then advanced to third on a sacrifice groundout to the pitcher by Devin Dixon. Kurtis Reid then drew a walk and stole second before Chris Catalano got Tennessee Wesleyan their first run of the game on a sacrifice fly, which would advance Reid to third and allow him to score on a passed ball to make it 2-0.

The Knights were able to to get a run back in the bottom of the third on a leadoff home run by Garrett Wolff. The next two innings were rather uneventful as there were no runs and just two hits, both by the Knights (a single by Aiden Wilson in the fourth and a single by Adrian Ojea in the fifth).

The Bulldogs were able to momentarily restore their two-run advantage in the top of the sixth frame thanks to a one-out solo homer from Josh Shelly. St. Andrews immediately answered back in their half of the inning, starting with consecutive one-out singles from Wilson and Josh Zambito, who both then advanced on a passed ball. Garrett Hamby would then drive in Wilson with an RBI single to make it 3-2.

Despite both teams getting a hit in the seventh frame, neither scored any runs. The Knights were then able to turn the game upside down in their half of the eighth, racking up four hits and scoring three runs to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 5-3 advantage with Cesar Morillo providing the tie breaking two-out two-RBI single.

Tennessee Wesleyan did not back down, getting the two runs they needed to extend the game in the top of the ninth. They only had one hit in the inning (leadoff single from Corbin Shaw) but drew four walks to help get the runs across. Despite St. Andrews getting two hits in the bottom of the ninth and the Bulldogs getting one in the top of the 10th, neither team could take the lead back.

That changed in the bottom of the 10th, with Eric Cantu getting on base with a one-out single in a pinch hitter spot before Kade Bell came in to pinch run for him and stole second base. Morillo would come through again with a walk-off RBI double to score Bell and give the Knights an important victory.

Morillo went 2-6 batting with a team high three RBIs. Hamby went 3-5 to lead the team in hits and added two RBIs. St. Andrews outhit Tennessee Wesleyan 15-7 over the course of the game.

Morillo didn’t shy away from how critical this win was for the Knights as they head toward the home stretch of their season. In regard to his two late clutch at bats, he knew what kind of pitches to expect after seeing a lot of off speed over the course of the series and let his instincts take over.

“That win put us in a good place, we didn’t want to get swept, we needed this win,” Morillo said. “I just told myself I’m a good two-strike hitter, I was sitting on off speed both times and I put a good swing on it to help my team.”

Tyler Barfield started the game for the Knights on the mound and gave them eight innings of three-run ball to earn the win. He had six strikeouts against four walks.

The Knights will wrap up their regular season on the road with a three-game series against Kentucky Christian over Thursday and Friday (doubleheader). Thursday’s game will start at 3 p.m. while Friday’s contests have start times of noon and 2 p.m.

There is a cry being made this morning. And there is a cry coming. One that we all need to be ready for. It is coming as sure as I’m writing this column.

We all know about a cry, especially in a loud voice. It catches everybody’s attention; that’s the purpose of a cry in a loud voice. It is to let somebody know that something is about to happen. The worst or best time to hear a loud cry is at midnight. Why at midnight? Because at midnight it is the quietest time of the 24-hour period.

Most folk are in bed at midnight. Things slow down to a crawl. Some people’s minds are at ease at midnight. Nature takes a turn, the earth keeps right on rotating, the sun, though it is still shining, is hidden from human eyes and the moon overshadows the earth. Certain animals leave their habitat. They venture out into domestic areas. Roosters go to sleep and hens sit on their eggs. Everything quiets down. We lay down to sleep, and we pray to the Lord our soul to keep. Midnight is the time when the hoot owl hoots along with newborn babies who wake up crying.

They are the few that are up at midnight. You don’t hear birds singing at midnight. Choirs don’t rehearse at midnight. You don’t have Sunday School at midnight or even have church at midnight. No one wants to go out and park in the graveyard at midnight. In fact, it is the one place you do not want to be at midnight. It is the time when the unexpected can happen. It is the perfect time for an enemy attack; when the phone rings at midnight, our heart skips a beat. What is wrong?

We ought to thank God this morning because it is at midnight that we are the most vulnerable. I hope we thank him when we wake up in the morning and say our prayers. Most folk are sleep and we are in a comatose state in the very image of death. Anything could happen to us. We are at a disadvantage to our enemies at midnight. To some, the midnight hour is the scariest hour of the 24 hours. There’s something about when the clock strikes 12. No wonder our Lord uses this period to speak to all of us about “a midnight cry” for it is the time when we least expect something to happen.

Today we are talking about the parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13). Five of them were wise, and five of them were foolish. The parable makes it known that they all took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. They that were foolish took their lamps but took no oil with them to light the lamp with. However, the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom delayed his arrival, they all slumbered and slept.

At midnight there was a cry made. Behold, the bridegroom comes; go out now to meet him. Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. But the foolish virgins said unto the wise, give us some of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered and said, “Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you too: but go to them that sell and buy some for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, verily I say to you, I know you not.”

A wedding in that day had two parts. First, the bridegroom and his friends would go from his house to claim the bride from her parents. Then the bride and groom would return to the groom’s house for the marriage feast. When the bridegroom and bride appeared, half of the bridesmaids were unable to light their lamps because they had no oil. “Our lamps are going out!” they cried. But whose fault was that? All they had to do was buy some oil and keep it available. The bridesmaids who had oil were able to light their lamps and keep them shining bright. It was they who entered into the wedding feast and not the foolish girls who had no oil.

Community, the five foolish girls didn’t know when the bridegroom was coming, but they knew he WAS coming! They came with no oil to light the way at midnight. Who does that? One who is careless and unconcerned. One who has fallen asleep on their post. One who has allowed the world to contaminate them. One who has backslidden and wandered away from God and those who have been watered down by Satan. That’s why they are called foolish.

This parable applies to the church today. We don’t know when Jesus is coming. He is the bridegroom, and we, the Christians, are the bride. We KNOW that he is coming and there will be another midnight cry. Friends, that cry could be today!

But it also tells us something else, too. It tells us that everybody who says that they are saved is not saved. Everybody who says they are on their way to heaven is not going. The five foolish girls represent them. Community, let us check our oil. If Jesus came today, would we be ready to meet him at the midnight cry?

LAURINBURG —The St. Andrews Knights baseball team dropped both games of a home doubleheader against Tennessee Wesleyan on Friday afternoon, losing the first game 18-8 and the second contest 16-0. St. Andrews falls to 23-18 (10-15 in conference games) on the season with the two losses while the Bulldogs improve to 35-10 (20-6 against conference opponents) with the two wins (six in a row overall).

In the first game, St. Andrews got one run in the bottom of the first inning, one in the third, four in the seventh and two in the eighth. Tennessee Wesleyan scored one in the top of the third, five in the fifth, one in the seventh, nine in the eighth and two in the ninth. The Bulldogs had 16 hits to 14 for the Knights, who committed one error while Tennessee Wesleyan committed none.

Josh Zambito led the Knights in RBIs with three while going 2-5 from the batters box. Caden Santucci and Aiden Wilson both had two hits, a run scored and two RBIs. Noah Sorrells and Ryan Cleary each had one strikeout on the mound.

In the second contest, the Bulldogs got six runs in the top of the second inning, four in the third, one in the fifth, three in the sixth and two in the seventh. Tennessee Wesleyan outhit St. Andrews 18-6 while both teams committed three errors.

Cesar Morillo led St. Andrews in hits as he went 2-3 from the plate. Santucci, Wilson, Zambito and Michael Royston had one hit apiece. Jonathan Foster pitched four innings in relief and had five strikeouts.

The Knights will look to salvage the series finale when the teams meet at Clark Field on Saturday afternoon with the game scheduled to start at noon. It will be senior day for St. Andrews and their last home game of the 2025 season.

LAAURINBURG — After suffering through addiction, Amber Bullard found herself with a warrant out for her arrest.

“I turned myself in … I did 15 months,” Bullard said.

During this stint, Bullard was contacted by the Scotland County Reentry Program.

“Reentry actually contacted me while I was inside. I got in contact again when I got out,” Bullard said.

Bullard said Reentry helped her get back on her feet, providing her with toiletries and assisting her with job applications and resumes. Bullard said those who worked for the program were also confidants, offering encouraging words concerning her children.

Bullard’s second chance and many others were recognized this week as the Scotland County Reentry Program celebrated Second Chance Day with an event geared towards helping those formerly incarcerated, better their future. Second Chance Day, held in a parking lot on Cronly Street in Laurinburg, brought together vendors that offered resources to justice-involved individuals or information to businesses who wish to partner with the Local Reentry Council.

Bullard spoke during the event and encouraged those who are seeking a second chance to be honest about the issues they face.

“Don’t hold nothing back because this reentry, they are regular people like us, so they understand,” Bullard said. “Don’t hold nothing back. We all make mistakes. We just gotta learn from them,” Bullard said.

Second Chance Day was held in the midst of Second Chance Month. The month aims to highlight the cumulative efforts of reentry professionals, advocates, and volunteers while helping to reduce stigmas and provide formerly incarcerated and justice-involved individuals with increased opportunities and a greater chance of a successful reentry to their communities.

During the event, which was held on Wednesday, Linda Ross, chair of the Scotland County Reentry Program Executive Committee, said a prayer before Scotland County Department of Social Services Director Kimberly McRae read a Proclamation, signed by the Scotland County Board of Commissioners Chairman Tim Ivey, declaring April Second Chance Month.

Typical services offered by reentry include assistance with housing, employment, transportation, substance abuse, obtaining personal documentation and other basic needs, said Social Worker Samira McLaurin.

During the year 2024, the Scotland County Local Reentry Council served 87 participants, with 53 exiting the program successfully, according to McLaurin. Of those assisted, 28 received assistance with housing, 68 received assistance with food, 85 received assistance with employment, 86 were provided toiletries, and 15 were linked to mental health and substance abuse services.

Just this year, out of 11 individuals assisted, nine were able to gain employment, McLaurin said.

“Reentry is vital to coordinate resources in the community for formerly incarcerated citizens that will successfully transition them back into their home communities,” McLaurin said.

North Carolina has 23 Local Reentry Councils that serve justice-involved individuals within 38 counties. Scotland County is among those counties. Originally, the Scotland County Reentry Program was administered under Robeson County as part of a tri-county effort, meaning Robeson County held the money. But towards the end of 2019, the Scotland County program received a grant through the Department of Public Safety to be able to stand on its own. In 2020, the program opened its office and is now overseen by the Scotland County Department of Social Services.

LAURINBURG —The Scotland football team released their schedule for the 2025 season on Thursday night. The team will open their season at home on Friday, Aug. 22 against Dillon and wrap up the regular season at home on Oct. 31 against Cape Fear. They have 10 total regular season games on the schedule (five home and five away).

As a reminder, the conference realignment for the state of North Carolina will go into effect during the next school year. The team’s full 2025 schedule can be found below with conference opponents listed in bold:

-Friday, Aug. 22 vs. Dillon

-Friday, Aug. 29 @ Richmond

-Friday, Sept. 5 @ Ashley

-Friday, Sept. 12 vs. Overhills

-Friday, Sept. 19 @ Pinecrest

-Friday, Oct. 3 @ Gray’s Creek

-Friday, Oct. 10 vs. Terry Sanford

-Friday, Oct. 17 @ Purnell Swett

-Friday, Oct. 24 vs. Lumberton

-Friday, Oct. 31 vs. Cape Fear

Scotland went 7-6 during the 2024 season and advanced to the third round of the 3A NCHSAA state playoffs for the second consecutive season. In addition to their playoff victory over Union Pines, they picked up a playoff victory against Terry Sanford before falling to top seeded Havelock.

PEMBROKE — A new partnership between the McKenzie-Elliott School of Nursing at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke and Scotland Health Care System is providing nursing students with more than just classroom knowledge — it’s providing life-saving skills and a competitive edge through Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) certification training.

This groundbreaking collaboration bridges the gap between academic instruction and clinical readiness by immersing nursing students in high-stakes, real-world emergency response scenarios. The training allows students to build confidence and competence in life-saving procedures, including treating cardiac arrest, stroke and other medical emergencies.

“This partnership is about empowering our students to step into their careers with a deeper sense of readiness and purpose,” said Ronnie Tunstall, director of Pre-Licensure Programs and clinical assistant professor. “By the time they graduate, they’ll already be equipped with certifications that many nurses don’t receive until after entering the workforce.

“We are all thrilled about this new collaboration we are building between the university and the hospitals across the region, and this was a huge first step,” Tunstall said.

Recently, Scotland Health provided a two-day ACLS certification training to 26 senior nursing students, providing them with critical skills and enhancing their clinical experience while preparing them to transition into professional practice. Students learned advanced clinical skills, such as advanced airway management, emergency cardiovascular pharmacology and complex resuscitation. ACLS training is required for registered nurses in critical care units, emergency departments or cardiac care settings.

“The benefit was so rich,” said senior Jessica Stancikas. “Going into the training, I had no clue what we were in for. Afterward, I was so grateful. It gave me a clearer understanding of heart rhythms and medication administration, especially during critical situations, and provided valuable hands-on experience before facing a real-life code situation.”

Senior nursing student Matteo Rojas said the ACLS training has been one of the most rewarding parts of his nursing education.

“It was not only a great learning experience, but it also went a step further by allowing us to apply what we learned to other topics and lessons throughout the semester,” Rojas said.

Rojas added that the training helped make him a more competitive job candidate.

“Being able to tell people we are ACLS certified benefits us as soon-to-be graduates because we will have an edge during the interview process,” he said.

This marks the first collaboration between UNCP and Scotland Health to offer ACLS training. Scotland Health covered the $300 certification and provided resume-building, interview prep, and workplace professionalism workshops.

Rachel Moore, assistant director of Human Resources at Scotland Health, says the partnership signifies the hospital’s investment in UNCP students’ success while addressing the state’s nursing shortage.

“We are excited about this partnership with Scotland Healthcare System and UNCP, specifically with the McKenzie-Elliott School of Nursing,” Moore said. “This is one of our commitments to keeping professional relationships with our institutes of higher learning. For us, we want their graduates to come out as prepared as possible and to do that, we need to keep these partnerships going.

“These partnerships are essential to ensuring our institutes of higher learning are meeting the workforce’s needs, specifically for healthcare, in the area,” Moore said.

LAURINBURG —Bear Hughes provided Optimist scores from games on Thursday in an email to The Laurinburg Exchange. No games will be played next week with the next contests being on Monday, April 28. The results from Thursday are listed below:

Joe Bowen Edward Jones 6u Instructional (Note: Scores are not kept for these games)

Stateline Real Estate played M2 Builders

Canal Wood played Locklear and Son Landscaping

Domino’s 8U Baseball

Lucas Sales and Service def. WKND Warrior 12-4

Leading Hitter for Lucas Sales-, for WKND Warrior- Tripp Taylor

Ned’s Pawn def. General McArthur’s 7-2

Leading Hitters for Ned’s- Levi Deal with a home run, for Gen Mc- Kai

Smithfield 10U Baseball

Doug’s Tire def. Tricoast Mechanical 5-1

Leading Hitters for Doug’s- C Barley and W Scott, for Tricoast- B Norton and P Flowers

Tier One def. Purcell Clinic 11-3

Leading Hitters for Tier One- L Lawson, for Purcell Clinic- H Doude, R Ayers and C Locklear

Realty World 12U Baseball

Did not play

Realty World 8U Softball

Did not play

Edge’s Grading and Hauling 12U Softball

Nic’s Pic Kwik def. Treasure City Pawn 8-1

Leading Hitters Nic’s- Erin Sellers, none for Treasure City

Edge’s Grading and Hauling 10U Softball

Laurinburg Auto Sales def. Be Relentless 15-3

Leading Hitters Lbg Auto- Katelyn McCaskill, for Be Relentless- Maycee McGirt

RAEFORD —The Scotland CoEd varsity track and field team competed in a conference meet on Thursday afternoon at Hoke County High School. The Scots won seven different events in the meet between the boys and girls teams. Scotland, Hoke County and Richmond were the three schools that competed in the meet.

On the girls side, the six events they obtained a first-place finish in were the 100-meter dash, 400-meter dash, 4x100 meter relay (49.26 seconds), 4x400 meter relay (4:12.74), long jump and discus. Angel Scott won the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.47 seconds and the long jump with a score of 16-6.5, Ava Gale took the 400-meter dash in 1:04.49 while Kayla Simmons was the discus victor with a score of 86-10.

On the boys side, they took home the gold in the 110-meter hurdles thanks to Anthony Pate. He won the event with a time of 17.22 seconds.

The two teams also combined for thirteen other top three finishes in various events. They had eight second place finishes and five third place finishes in addition to winning the seven events.

Scotland will next be in action at their conference championship on Wednesday, April 30. The meet will take place in Southern Pines and be hosted by Pinecrest.

Girls soccer at Marlboro County

The Scots headed to Marlboro County for a matchup with the Bulldogs on Thursday night. No score has been reported from the game on MaxPreps as of this writing. Scotland also faced the Bulldogs on Tuesday night, falling in a 3-1 final.

The Scots will next be in action on Tuesday, April 29 in Rockingham against the Raiders. The game will start at 6 p.m. that day.

COLUMBIA, S.C. —The St. Andrews Knights softball team wrapped up their 2025 season with two losses to the Columbia Koalas on Thursday afternoon, losing the first game 4-0 and the second contest 6-1. St. Andrews finishes the season at 3-39 (0-28 in conference games) with the two losses (26 straight overall) while Columbia improves to 18-26 (13-15 against conference opponents) with the two wins.

In the first contest, the Koalas got two of their runs in the bottom of the first inning and the other two in the bottom of the second. Columbia outhit the Knights 4-2 in the game.

Olivia Plybon and Ava McPhillips had one hit apiece. Both went 1-3 from the plate.

Meghan Fritz pitched all six innings of the game. She had one strikeout and threw 85 pitches (58 strikes) over the course of the contest.

In the second game, the Koalas got two of their runs in the bottom of the first and the other four in the fifth while St. Andrews got their lone run in the top of the fourth. Columbia outhit the Knights 9-1 in the game.

Taylor Maynard had the team’s lone RBI in the game. Valentina Jara had the team’s lone hit in the game with a 1-2 effort from the plate while also drawing a walk.

The conference tournament for qualified teams will take place between April 28 and May 2 at Brickyard Ball Fields in Kingsport, Tennessee. Further information about the tournament can be found on the official AAC website.

LAURINBURG — Ed Lemieux, executive director for Habitat for Humanity of Scotland County, presented the program at the Laurinburg Rotary Club this week.

Lemieux shared his years of nonprofit service prior to taking on the local role of Habitat. He also explained how the community can partner to help each other with local housing needs.

Scotland County Habitat for Humanity has built 52 homes over the years, but demands for repairs have become a major focus, according to Lemieux.. In the past, they have completed 250-plus large roof and housing repair projects. In 2024, they completed 17 larger projects, helping many with disabilities.

The local Habitat organization’s major revenue stream comes from its resale store located on McColl Highway. They welcome donations for resale from the attic, seasonal cleanout and downsizing, and offer free pickup of donated goods.

PEMBROKE — In a rare visit to Robeson County, the head of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond met with local business owners and community leaders to gain firsthand insight into the economic challenges facing rural America. The visit offered a “boots-on-the-ground” look at the day-to-day realities shaping small-town economies, from workforce shortages to rising costs.

During his stop at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke, Tom Barkin discussed inflation, workforce development and access to capital, emphasizing the importance of understanding local perspectives to inform monetary policy.

Barkin met with Chancellor Robin Gary Cummings and his leadership team during a roundtable discussion with business and community leaders, bankers and public officials. Earlier in the day, Barkin visited the Lumbee Tribe’s headquarters and met with tribal leaders.

“We were honored to welcome President Barkin and Dr. (Matt) Martin to UNC Pembroke,” Cummings said. “Their visit provided a valuable opportunity to demonstrate the university’s vital role as an anchor institution in southeastern North Carolina.

“From the impact of NC Promise on access and enrollment, to our efforts in strengthening the local health care workforce and economy, our discussions reflected the full scope of UNCP’s commitment to regional progress,” Dr. Cummings said.

“We explored the challenges and opportunities in recruiting and retaining talent, the influence of state and federal policy and our ongoing collaboration with town and county partners to drive economic growth. We were especially pleased to invite community leaders, including members of the Lumberton Rotary, for an opportunity to engage and hear from President Barkin.”

Kyle Chavis, CEO of Lumbee Guaranty Bank, said he appreciated Barkin’s visit, noting the importance of having the Federal Reserve Bank president hear directly from rural communities.

“It is invaluable to have someone of his stature and his position to spend time in our community, hearing from businesspeople, bankers and educators about what is going on in our community,” Chavis said. “He uses that information to go back to the Fed and craft policy, which, in turn, comes back and affects us. I appreciate that he gets out across his district and into the rural communities.”

Barkin frequently participates in listening tours across the Fifth District, which includes North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. Since assuming his role in 2018, he has prioritized engaging directly with communities throughout the district. During a luncheon hosted by the Lumberton Rotary Club, Barkin touched on various topics, including how tariff price hikes, proposed cuts in government spending and energy prices may impact the economy.

“We do learn a lot from being on the ground. There is so much happening in the world today,” said Barkin, who was accompanied by Matt Martin, a regional executive based out of the Charlotte branch and Jim Strader, media relations specialist.

“The opportunity to talk to businesses and consumers and see how the economy has affected them, that’s the key insight we need to bring back to Washington,” Barkin said.

UNCP Trustee Jim Hyler, a close friend of the Fed Reserve president, said Barkin is interested in the economic well-being of everyone, not just people in the more affluent metropolitan areas.

“He is keenly interested in rural North Carolina, and he wants those areas to be successful,” Hyler said. “He understands the significance of UNC Pembroke and what this university means to Robeson County and southeastern North Carolina. He is interested in ways that he, as president of the Richmond Fed, can help and support our mission.”

Lumberton businessman Bo Biggs said the opportunity to host the head of the Richmond Bank shows thoughtful leadership, “especially in recognizing the struggles of rural, low-income communities and his concern for Tier 1 counties where families are working to stretch every paycheck.”

“You can see the Federal Reserve (Bank) is concerned about the economies of counties like ours in contrast with urban counties like Wake and Mecklenburg,” Biggs said. “It is very heartwarming to see people who we might often view as distant or in the white ivory towers on the ground in these communities fighting for economic viability.”

LAURINBURG —The Scotland softball team concluded their 2025 regular season with a 15-0 victory over the Richmond Raiders on Thursday night at Scotland High School. The Scots finish the regular season at 18-1 (11-0 in conference games) with their 17th consecutive win while Richmond finishes 8-13 (5-7 against conference opponents) with the loss. With the win, Scotland won the SAC title for the fourth consecutive year and has gone 47-1 against conference opponents over that span.

“We had a great week this week, big conference wins against Lee and Richmond, and this group of seniors made history here they’re the only class to ever win four straight conference championships,” Head Coach Adam Romaine said. “We were tested Tuesday with Freedom, I’m glad we picked that game up because that’s a playoff mentality game.”

After Richmond went down in order in the top of the first, the Scots would take advantage with two runs in their half of the inning. A leadoff single from Addison Johnson and an RBI triple from Dawson Blue gave Scotland the lead. A one-out RBI single from Emily Sampson would make it 2-0.

After a scoreless second frame, the Scots would blow the game open with an eight-run bottom of the third. They would send 12 batters to the plate and rack up five hits, a walk, a hit by pitch and two fielder’s choice balls en route to the big inning.

Scotland would then complete the mercy rule requirement with five more runs in the home half of the fourth. Kinsey Hamilton got a double to leadoff the inning and scored on an RBI single from Addison Ratley before a one-out RBI double from Ramsey Hale made it 12-0. An RBI single from Johnson, a walk to Blue and a groundout from Avery Stutts that resulted in an error and scored two more runs gave the Scots the needed 15 runs to end the game.

Hale went 2-2 batting with two runs scored and led the team in RBIs with four. Sampson went 2-2 with a run scored and three RBIs while Johnson went 3-4 with three runs scored and two RBIs.

Stutts pitched all four innings and allowed just two hits while striking out 11 batters (no walks allowed). She threw 55 pitches (43 strikes) to the 16 batters she faced.

Scotland will face Red Springs at Fairmont High School on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. as part of the Robeson County Slugfest. A victory would put them against the winner of the St. Pauls/Lumberton game on Monday while a loss would put them against the loser of that contest. All games in the tournament will take place at Fairmont High School.

With the regular season now in the books, Romaine understands that crunch time for Scotland’s championship dreams is around the corner. That said, the one matchup at a time mentality will continue to be the mindset until the end of the season.

“No matter what our record is and anyone else’s record we face from this point on, we’re starting a new season,” Romaine said. “We’re just going to take it one game at a time and not overlook anybody.”

Baseball drops regular season finale to Richmond

The Scots fell to the Raiders in an 11-4 final on Thursday night at McCoy Field. Scotland finishes the regular season at 11-8 (7-5 in conference games) while Richmond moves to 13-7 (8-4 against conference opponents) with the victory. The teams split their two regular season meetings after the Scots took Tuesday’s matchup in Rockingham by a score of 4-2.

Head Coach Ricky Schattauer took a moment after the contest to recognize Scotland’s five seniors, who were honored prior to the game. He was appreciative of what they’ve been able to accomplish in their time with the Scots.

“Our five seniors have taken the lumps that we had last year, turned the page and tried to show the young guys that when you do all the small things right things start working out in your favor,” Schattauer said. “They’ve left a legacy of what this program can become.”

After a scoreless first frame with only one hit (a one-out single by Landon Taylor), Richmond grabbed the lead with two runs in the to of the second. Drew Gause got a one-out single and advanced to second on a fielding error before William Phifer added another single to put runners on the corners with one out. An RBI groundout by Devin Haynes gave the Raiders the lead while a two-out RBI single from Jake Veach made it 2-0.

Despite both teams getting a single in the third inning, no runs were scored. The Raiders would add four runs to their lead in the top of the fourth while sending eight batters to the plate. They would obtain four hits, benefit from a Scotland fielding error and also get a sacrifice fly to score the runs.

The Scots finally got on the board in the bottom of the fourth with Maddox Locklear getting a leadoff single and advancing to second on a Richmond fielding error. After advancing to third on a wild pitch, Locklear would score on an RBI groundout from Kaden Hunsucker to make it 6-1.

Back-to-back two-out walks, a catcher’s interference and an RBI single from Taylor reinforced the Raiders’ lead up to 7-1 in the top of the fifth. Scotland answered with a run in their half of the inning as Blane Callahan, Dylan Tilson and Dawson Williams (two-out RBI) each had singles in the frame.

The top of the sixth saw Richmond add another run thanks to three singles in four at-bats from Caden Nolan, Gause and Phifer (RBI). The Scots again answered with a run in their half of the inning thanks to a leadoff single from Garrett Manning, who would steal second and advance to third on a passed ball before scoring on an RBI groundout from Callahan. Richmond would add three more runs in the seventh frame while the Scots got one.

Williams went 2-4 batting with an RBI and a run scored. Jayden Bryant, Hunsucker and Callahan each had one RBI.

Robbie Peed (3.2 innings) and Tilson (3.1 innings) split the pitching duties. The pair combined for five strikeouts.

Scotland will face Red Springs at Fairmont High School on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. as part of the Robeson County Slugfest. A victory would put them against the winner of the St. Pauls/Lumberton game on Monday while a loss would put them against the loser of that contest. All games in the tournament will take place at Fairmont High School.

Moving forward, Schattauer is focused on finding a way to get hot over the course of the slugfest as well as the conference tournament. Despite Thursday’s tough loss, he feels confident in the group he has and their ability to turn the page in crunch time of their season.

“I’m going to take our Scotland boys over every team in the conference,” Schattauer said. “I think we have the best team when we offensively produce, our goal is to go 3-0 in this Easter tournament and then go 3-0 in the conference tournament.”

LAURINBURG —Two of Scotland football’s premier offensive stars have found college homes for the fall of 2025. Dajuan Gibson (Louisburg College) and Quatavius Everette (Winston-Salem State) signed their papers to play collegiate football on Thursday afternoon at a signing ceremony in the Scotland High School auditorium.

Gibson’s numbers improved during each of his three seasons on the varsity squad, with his senior year stats leading the team in three different areas. He hauled in 47 receptions for 971 yards and nine touchdowns while also adding four carries for 69 yards and an additional touchdown on the ground.

Everette’s best high school season with the team came during his junior year where he caught 41 passes for 755 yards and eight touchdowns. He caught 36 passes for 575 yards and five touchdowns this past season, all of which were second on the team behind Gibson.

The pair were also two of Scotland’s top defenders in 2024 with five interceptions between them (three for Gibson and two for Everette). They were first and second on the team in that area respectively.

Louisburg is coming off of an 8-3 season in 2024, having fallen to the College of Dupage by a score of 31-14 in the NJCAA DIII National Championship. Their 2025 season schedule is not available on their athletics website as of this writing.

Winston-Salem State meanwhile finished 7-3 (5-2 in conference games) in 2024. They compete in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) as a Division II school. Their 2025 season schedule is not available on the athletics website as of this writing.

Scotland went 7-6 overall (3-3 in conference games) during the 2024 season and were able to advance to the third round of the 3A NCHSAA state playoffs for the second consecutive season. In addition to their playoff victory over Union Pines, they picked up a playoff victory against Terry Sanford before falling to top seeded Havelock.

Congratulations to Gibson, Everette and all involved in this incredible accomplishment!

LAURINBURG —Bear Hughes provided Optimist results from games on Tuesday and Wednesday in an email to The Laurinburg Exchange. The results from the two days are listed below:

Wednesday, April 16:

Joe Bowen Edward Jones 6u Instructional (Note: Scores are not kept for these games)

Canal Wood played Stateline Realty

McCarter Electric played Highland Primary

Domino’s 8U Baseball

Gibson Oil def. Harley’s Tuxedo 5-1

Leading Hitter for Gibson Oil- Ayden, for Harley’s- Conner Oxendine

Smithfield 10U Baseball

Earl’s Electric tied Eric Byrd Insurance 6-6

Leading Hitters for Earl’s- Hunter, Mallol and Gunner, for Eric Byrd- Drew, Kolten and Kyson

Realty World 12U Baseball

Did not play

Realty World 8U Softball

Weichert Realtors def. Sheriff’s Dept 15-2

Leading Hitters for Weichert- K Swest and B Priest for Sheriff’s- Dani and Pippi

Hayes Forest Products def. Charlie Wallace State Farm 10-0

Leading Hitters for Hayes- Hayes and Clark

Edge’s Grading & Hauling 12U Softball

Did not play

Edge’s Grading & Hauling 10U Softball

Tier One def. State Line Realty 7-5

Leading Hitters Tier One- Sanchez State Line- Kailyn Driggers

Laurinburg Auto Sales def. Knights of Columbus 7-5

Leading Hitters Lbg Auto- Paislee Connell, Sophia Davis and Ellie Newton all with home runs, Knights of Columbus- Mylann Baucom

Tuesday, April 15:

Joe Bowen Edward Jones 6u Instructional (Note: Scores are not kept for these games)

M2 Builders played PCI

Locklear and Son Landscaping played McCarter Electric

Domino’s 8U Baseball

Harley’s Tuxedo def. Lucas Sales and Service 10-9

Leading Hitter for Harley’s- Johnson for Lucas Sales- Levi

Edward Jones def. WKND Warrior 15-4

Smithfield 10U Baseball

One Hour Heating and Air def. Purcell Clinic 9-3

Leading Hitters for One Hour Harlan Chavis, Wesley Clark, J Woods and K Richardson Purcell- K Thokpan, E Mallol and W Trulen

Earl’s Electric def. Tier One 5-2

Leading Hitters for Earl’s- K Mack and H Lowery, for Tier 1- B Jones and L Lawson

Realty World 12U Baseball

First Bank def. Pizza Inn 10-3

Leading Hitters Pizza Inn Fairley Whitlock, Bryson and Bradly

First Bank- Choce and Cooper

McDuff’s Neighborhood Grille def. Dunbar Insurance 9-8

Leading Scorers for McDuff’s- Bryson and Stew, for Dunbar- Levi

Edge’s Grading & Hauling 12U Softball

Nic’s Pic Kwik def. Scotland Healthcare 12-3

Leading Hitters for Nic’s Queionni Morrison with a home run, Scotland HC- no leading hitters

Treasure City Pawn def. Scotland Healthcare 8-1

Leading Hitters for Treasure City- Emily Dickerson, Scotland HC- Alivia Smith

Edge’s Grading & Hauling 10U Softball

Did not play