Stellar track career coming to a close for Parkland's Williams
BY CRAIG T GREENLEE
FOR THE CHRONICLE
Editor's note: Part of the fol
lowing story was cut off in last
week's paper. We are rerunning
the story in its entirety below.
Miscalculations can prove
costly in a hurdles race. Ebony
Williams of Parkland High
knows all about it. The memory
of last year's disappointment
Class 4-A state outdoor track
championships hasn't been for
gotten.
Coming down the home
stretch of the 300-meter hurdle
finals, Williams had a seven
meter cushion and victory
seemed certain. But with 50
meters to go, she hit the second
to-last hurdle and fell to the track,
crushing her hopes of winning
her first individual state title.
"That's something that I still
haven't really gotten over," said
Williams. "I try not to think about
what happened a year ago. But
here it is a year later, and I'm
hoping that I'll get another
chance to run the 300 hurdles at
the state and have a different out
come. I'm doing everything I can
to make sure that I'm prepared
for it."
Much has happened since that
unexpected ending. Williams has
fortified her reputation as one of
the nation's elites. In the
MileSplit USA rankings, she's
No. 4 in the 100-meter hurdles
(13.69 seconds). Entering the
final days of the track season,
Williams is No. 1 in
the IUU hurdles ana
300 hurdles (43.38
seconds) in the N.C.
Runners state rank
ings.
Williams, a sen
ior, is looking to
close out a stellar
career in grand style
at the state outdoor
championships on
Saturday, May 9 in
Greensboro. To do
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among the top four in her events
at the regional championships on
Saturday, May 2, in order to qual
ify for state.
Assuming she makes the cut,
her story line figures to be one of
the most intriguing for the state
championships. Inquiring minds
want to know if Williams can
match her standout performance
at the state indoor championships
in February.
Williams owned the competi
tion as Parkland's girls won the
team title for the second year in a
row. In the meantime, she won
the 55-meter hurdles and 300
meter dash and ran the anchor leg
on the Mustangs' gold-medal
winning 4x200 and 4x400 relay
teams. For that day's body of
work, Williams was voted MVP
of the state championships.
"That was a shock to
me, saia wmiams, wno
will graduate with a 4.1
weighted grade-point
average. "I never saw it
coming. I broke the 55
meter hurdles record,
which made me No. 1
all-time (in North
Carolina) and I was
named MVP. Looking
back on my whole high
school career, that's
something I'll always
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amazing."
Over the past three seasons,
Williams has bloomed as one of
the most versatile high school
track athletes in the state. During
that span, she's placed among the
top eight in both hurdle events at
state meets (indoors and out
doors). Williams is equally for
midable as a key cog in the sprint
relays. Since her sophomore year,
Parkland has reigned as a two
time national champion in the
4x200 (indoors and outdoors)
and three-time state champ in the
4x400.
"Ebony has broken every hur
dies record at Parkland and she's
played a huge part in helping our
relay teams win championships,"
said Coach Ant wan Hughes. "Not
only is she a great leader, but
she's an outstanding role model,
athletically and academically. All
the girls, especially the younger
ones, look up to her. Ebony has
done a remarkable job."
Williams will end her high
school career as one of the
Triad's most accomplished track
athletes in recent history. Even
though she's won championships
and has a college scholarship to
run track at Clemson University,
staying hungry and motivated has
never been an issue.
"My team keeps me motivat
ed," she said. "We don't run in a
lot of meets in Winston-Salem.
But when we do compete in local
meets like our conference cham
pionships, we want to leave no
doubt that this (Central
Piedmont) is our conference."
In recent years, the domi
nance of Parkland's girls in track
and ' field is undeniable.
Compared to their counterparts,
the Mustangs have proven to be
head-and-shoulders above the
reSt of the pack. As a result,
expectations are sky-high, but
that doesn't mean that Williams
and her teammates take winning
for granted.
"People look at us and say
that we're so good and we make
things look so easy," she said.
"But it's what we do in practice
that makes all the difference. We
train like animals. Coach Hughes
runs us so hard and so much, that
when it comes to competing in a
meet, it's a breeze. That's how
we're able to keep running faster
and keep setting records."
The curtain is getting ready to
close on the high school careers
of Williams and five other
Parkland seniors who will also
run track in college. Nateja Hale
(UNC Asheville), Da Mumford
(Appalachian State), Erin
Morrison (Hampton), Miaysha
Bryant (N.C. Central), Katlin
Sherman (UNC) and Williams
were teammates in summer track
before their arrival at Parkland in
2012.
"What I'll miss most is the
team bond, the chemistry," said
Williams. "I've run with the same
group, of girls since the age of 13.
We've all known each other for
the longest (time). Since I'm
going to a different state for col
lege, I won't get to see every
body. I'll see some of them, but
they'll be running for another
school. So, it's not like we'll be
able to catch-up with each other
like we did when all of us were in
Winston-Salem."
Williams
Rams
from page B1
Connor Andrus followed with
a two-ran homer over the left
centerfield fence to tie the
game at 4-4. Andrus, the
CIAA's Player of the Year, was
voted tournament MVP.
Winston-Salem State got
some timely pitching in the
ninth to help set the stage for
the comeback. Cummings
came in from the bullpen to
eventually put the game away,
but there were some anxious
moments. Cummings pitched
his way out of a potentially
troublesome situation when he
got Alex Garcia out on an out
field fly ball with the bases
loaded
In the WSSU half of the
ninth, Taylor Idol singled up
the middle and stole second.
Des Roberts walked to put run
ners on first and second. Keene
drilled a single to bring home
the winning ran.
Sam Burton pitched 5 2/3
innings and surrendered four
runs on seven hits before his
departure. Eric Corlette held
steady in middle relief and
Cummings shut down the
Falcons to improve his pitch
ing record to 6-3.
"Our seniors are playing
the best ball of their careers
and that's so important at this
time of the season," said
Ritsche. "In those close games,
they've responded. That's
what happened in the first
round against St. Aug's. This
team knows how to win in the
clutch."
Aside from being a five
time automatic qualifier to the
NCAA regionals, Winston
Salem State has cracked the
national rankings on several
occasions in recent seasons.
Given its track record, there's
no denying that Winston
Salem State has arrived as one
ol the premier pro
grams in Division II
baseball. During
the regular season,
the Rams were 15-1
in conference play
and 23-12 vs. non
conference compe
tition.
Ifarto by Craig T. Greenlee
Ken Ritsche, WSSU basebaltcoach
Connor Andrus is the ClAA Player of the Year and
CIAA Tournament MVP.
2015 CIAA Baseball
All-Tournament Team .
Cotton Gutin - Pitcher - (VSU)
Zachery Jordan - Pitcher (VSU)
Aaron Flanagan - Catcher - (CU)
Connor Andrus ? Catcher - (WSSU)
Kyle Cross - First Base - (CU)
Taylor Idol - (Second Base - (WSSU)
Colby Keen/ - Third Base ? (WSSU)
Mate Steg/r - Short Stop ? (WSSU)
Tashaun Taylor - Outfield - (VSU) '
Dylan Dombrowkas - Outfield - (WSSU)
Nick Christopher - Pitt her/Short Stop - (VSU)
Jacob Barber - Designated Hitter ? (WSSU)
Tournament MVP
Connor Andrus - Catcher - (WSSU)
Hamby
from page S7
Hamby, whose home is
Marietta, Ga., is a relative new
comer to the game compared to
most of her peers. She didn't start
to play the game until high school
and she didn't make the cut for
the varsity until her junior year.
Since then, there's been a huge
learning curve and she handled
the transition well.
"Right now, I'd say I'm about
a seven-and-a-half on a scale of
one to 10," said Hamby, who fin
ished her career at Wake as the
all-time leader in points scored
(1301) and rebounds (1,021), "I
think I can be a 10. With my
quickness and versatility, my
game is nowhere near what it can
be."
Hamby's length, combined
with her foot speed and lateral
quickness, make her unique. A
major part of her game is beating
opponents down the floor in tran
sition and finishing strong around
the rim. She's at her best in open
space and she causes match-up
headaches for opponents because
of her ability to score in a variety
of ways. As a passer, she's much
improved due to the frequent
double and triple-teams she'faced
during her senior season.
Much has transpired for
Hamby in four years' time. There
were no lofty expectations for her
as a college rookie. By the end of
her senior season, her prospects
for playing at the next level con
tinued to soar.
"There was no way for any
one to know that things would
turn out the way they did," she
said. "It's been a journey. But
through it all, I've learned
patience. More than anything
else, that's what has helped me to
get to where I am now."
Given Hamby's emergence,
it's hard to believe that there was
a time when she wanted no parts
of basketball. Instead, she
became an accomplished Softball
player. "At first, I didn't like bas
ketball," she recalled. "I played
in the boys and girls club league
in sixth grade and I quit because I
hated it. People kept swinging on
my arms. I tried out in eighth
grade but didn't make the team.
"Basketball was something
I thought I wanted to do, but I
wasn't very good at it. When I hit
that growth spurt, the basketball
coach at my high school told me
1 should come to try-outs. I did
make the team, but not because I
was good, but because I was tall.
That whole year I sat at the end of
bench for the varsity and I played
on the jayvee. But things have
really worked out well for me.
I've grown to love this game and
I enjoy it and what it brings."
i
Photo by Cr*| T UMlee
Dearie a Hamby is Wake's career leader
in points and rebounds.
?r
Softball
from page~E1
able' to make the plays we needed to make at crucial
times."
The Lady Rams opened the game against Chowan
with a quick barrage. Monet Daly scored from third
when pitcher Kayla Robins walked Kat Zimmer with the
bases loaded. Katrina Bartlett stepped up and blasted a
home run to
drive in four
runs -to give
WSSU a 5-0
lead.
It didn't
take long for
Chowan to
answer. With
one out and two
runners on
base, Courtney
Diamond hit a
run-scoring sin
gle. The Hawks
added another
run with the
bases loaded
when Chandler
Bridges scored
from third after
Brook Bowen
was hit by a
pitch. Chowan
forged ahead to
take a 7-5 lead
on Danielle
Baccus' grand
slam.
Down 8
5 entering the
top half of the
fourth innine.
the Lady Rams loaded the bases with singles by
Mercedes Hargett and Anna Marino sandwiched in
between Bartlett reaching base on a fielder's choice.
WSSU regained the lead at 9-8 when Jada Johnson
cleared the bases with a home run shot over the right
field fence.
Chowan tied the game 9-9 in the bottom of the
fourth, when Diamond delivered an RBI-single to score
Bridges. After that, the Lady Rams became their own
nemesis. Errors in the fourth and fifth innings led to
three unearned runs for the Hawks, which proved to be
the final margin of defeat for WSSU.
In five tournament games, the Lady Rams had a
team batting average of .313, averaged 8.6 runs per game
and had 31 RBIs. Individually, Haigett and Kiah Ruffin
were named to the CIAA All-Tournament team.
Hargett, a sophomore pitcher/utility player, show
cased her ability to hit for average (375) and for power
(three home runs and six RBIs). Ruffin, a senior outfield
er who transferred from UNC Greensboro two years ago,
hit .313 for the tournament.
"Although the outcome wasn't what was hoped
for, I saw a lot of positives," said Gray. "It was a week
end of growth for us. With only three seniors and no jun
iors on this team, we had a very young group. They've
gotten better at trusting in the process and learning how
to play for each other and not as individuals trying to do
everything on their own."
Photo by Cnii T. Greenlee
Kiah Rufin made the CIAA's All
Tournament team.
The CIAA
All-Tournament Team
Chandler Bridges (Chowan University)
Jordan Burland-Card (Chowan University)
Cassandra Clayborne (Bowie State University)
Taylor Hamilton (Virginia Union University)
Mercedes Hargett (Winston-Salem State)
Tatyana Jordan (Virginia State University)
Alora Lincoln (Chowan University)
Mar ley Parker (Saint Augustine's University)
Jasmine Rios (Saint Augustine's University)
Kiah Ruffin (Winston-Salem State University).
Hannah Stutts (Saint Augustine's University)
Miranda Zanni (Saint Augustine's University)
Tournament MVP
Miranda Zanni (Saint Augustine's University)
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