CHAPEL HILL – The Weddington Warriors struck first, and struck often, as they ripped off a 27-14 victory over Southeast Guilford to claim the school’s second state football championship. James Shipley starred offensively and defensively for the Warriors, with an interception and return that set up a fourth-quarter score to go with a 50-yard touchdown pass on a reverse pass and an 8-yard touchdown catch from his receiver spot. With ten receptions for 113 yards, as well as contributions in other areas, he was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.






Southeast Guilford’s opening drive stalled and James Shipley returned the punt to the Falcon 37 yard line, setting Weddington up in excellent field position for their first possession. After a procedure penalty backed the Warriors up five yards, Whitner Litton lofted a pass to Max Brimigion down the left sideline for a 42-yard score to put the Warriors up 7-0 with 9:25 to go in the first quarter.



The Warriors second possession was a bit more of a sustained effort, as they went 64 yards in seven plays capped off by a bit of trickiness. Wide Receiver James Shipley took the reverse handoff and set up to throw long to a wide open Will Shipley who took it the rest of the way 50 yards down the left sideline for a score to go up 14-0 with 2:29 to go in the first quarter.



In the second quarter, James Shipley found the end zone on the receiving end of an eight-yard pass from Litton with 8:52 to play in the half. The PAT was blocked and the Warriors led 20-0. SE Guilford intercepted a screen pass midway through the second, which swung some momentum back the Falcons way. They mounted their best drive, chewing up over five minutes of clock with Ryan Douglas helping power the rushing attack. However, with time winding down in the half the drive stalled and a 44 yard field goal attempt was no good.

3AA Championship Game MVP James Shipley

Southeast Guilford recovered a Weddington fumble in the early part of the third quarter, setting up the Falcons with a short field on the Warrior 36 yard line. Southeast scored four plays later as Douglas rushed across the goal line from 12 yards out to make it 20-7 with 6:42 to go in the third.



The Falcons were intercepted to start the fourth quarter, and James Shipley returned it to the Falcon five-yard line. Two plays later Weddington cashed in the turnover on a Will Shipley one-yard run to go up 27-7 with 11:01 to play. After the two teams traded possessions, Southeast Guilford took a shot deep and Douglas hooked up with Tyler Hoff who took it 83 yards to the end zone to trim the Warrior lead to 27-14 with 6:19 to play.



Douglas was named Southeast Guilford’s Most Outstanding Offensive Player with 126 yards through the air and a touchdown to go with his 86 yards and a score on the ground. Quantez Mansfield was the defensive Most Outstanding Player for the Falcons with six tackles including one sack and an interception from his defensive line spot.



Weddington’s Most Oustanding Offensive Player was Whitner Litton as the quarterback threw for 172 yards and two touchdowns while completing 67% of his passing attempts. The defensive Most Oustanding Player for the Warriors was Eamon Murphy who led the team in tackles with 9 and intercepted a pass, returning it deep into Falcon territory to set up the final Weddington score.





(Story and photos courtesy of the NCHSAA)

The Weddington Warriors are back in the title game for the third time in six years. Coach Andy Capone, in his first year at the helm, has led the Warriors to a 14-1 record. Weddington is led by the dynamic running duo of sophomore Will Shipley and senior Wayne Dixie. These two running backs have combined for over 2,000 yards this season and twenty-eight touchdowns. The Warriors like to throw the ball as well as quarterback Whitner Litton has thrown for twenty-three touchdowns and almost 2,000 yards.



Eamon Murphy has had a great season on defense, amassing over 150 tackles. Alec Mock is right on his tail with 148 tackles, including two forced fumbles. Special teams will be key to the success for Weddington this Saturday. Kicker Ian Williams has plenty of range and can get three points from almost any distance.



Weddington's only loss this season was to Charlotte Catholic who is appearing in the 3A state championship game. The Southern Carolina Conference, which both teams belong to, has routinely been noted as the most difficult 3A conference in the state of North Carolina.



Making their first appearance in a state championship game this Saturday will be the Southeast Guilford Falcons who are also sporting a 14-1 record on the season. While Weddington was able to breeze through the 3AA western region, the Falcons from Southeast Guilford faced a much more challenging road. After squeaking by conference rival Eastern Guilford in overtime in the second round, the Falcons had to take down the rival Dudley in the third round just to meet up with eastern North Carolina power Cleveland in the regional final. Both of those teams were looking for their first berth in a state championship game, but the southeast Guilford Falcons were victorious coming back late when Ryan Douglas found a wide-open Tyler Hoff for a 71 yd game winner.



After a one-point setback to 4A county rival Northwest Guilford in the third week of the season, Coach Kennedy Tinsley‘s Falcons have roared back for eleven straight wins and did it with mostly defense during the regular season. Jalen Stockham has picked off six passes this year and recovered two fumbles, giving an offense that scores more than 30 points a game even more possessions.



Ryan Douglas has been an efficient quarterback, throwing for more than 2,000 yards this season while sophomore running back Jalen Fairley has rushed for over 1,100 yards and scored fifteen touchdowns.



Both teams like to move the chains and get in the end zone frequently so it’s most likely that the game will come down to which defense can get a key stop at the right time.