Coastal Preps Fall 2023 Midseason Award Nominees

September 25, 2023, 1:56 pm | by Tim Hower

We’ve reached the midway point of the season in boys soccer, football and volleyball, and numerous area players and coaches are off to a fantastic start. It’s now up to you to decide the best of the best in several categories.

A link to vote for the honors is at at the bottom of the post. Voting will remain open until 11:59 p.m. Sunday and results will be posted the following day.

BOYS SOCCER

Offensive Player of the Year

Junior forward Clark Beery, Hoggard: Has found the back of the net a team-high 10 times and added one assist for the Vikings, who are off to an 8-1-1 start.

Senior forward John Franck, New Hanover: Through 11 matches, Franck leads the Wildcats with 31 points on 12 goals and seven assists. He’s scored eight times in four Mideastern Conference matches.

Junior midfielder Cam Steven, Cape Fear Academy: Steven has finished with at least one point in eight of the team’s 10 matches. He currently has eight goals and 10 assists.

Defensive Player of the Year

Sophomore defender Cameron Berry, Ashley: Berry is not only a talented defender, he’s also excellent on set pieces. That’s evident by his eight assists and two goals for the 8-2-2 Screaming Eagles.

Sophomore goalkeeper Will Kaplan, Cape Fear Academy: Has allowed only seven goals in 607 minutes (0.92 goals against average). Kaplan has made 29 saves in nine matches.

Senior defender Conerly Preston, Hoggard: Preston is the anchor of one of the area’s top defenses, which has allowed only seven goals in 10 games. He has also scored twice and dished out a pair of assists.

Newcomer of the Year

Sophomore midfielder Isaiah Jumansingh, Hoggard: In his first season at the varsity level, Jumansingh has six goals and one assist in 10 contests.

Freshman goalkeeper Layton Ohmer, North Brunswick: Is averaging 5.9 saves (65 saves in 11 matches) and has a goals against average of 2.29.

Sophomore goalkeeper Dallas Story, Ashley: Story has allowed only two goals in 360 minutes for a 0.44 goals against average. He’s also made 23 saves in nine games.

Coach of the Year

Dwight Findlay, Hoggard: Has the Vikings sitting an 8-1-1 overall and 3-0 in Mideastern Conference play. Findlay recently earned his 100th career victory.

Nick Gigliotti, Ashley: The third-year coach has the Screaming Eagles in mix for the MEC title after finishing fifth a season ago. Ashley is 8-2-2 overall and 2-1-1 in league play.

Brian Kurtz, Coastal Christian: Kurtz is in his first year as the Centurions’ coach, but he’s already made an immediate impact. Coastal Christian is 6-5 overall (all five losses to public schools) and 5-0 in the Coastal Plain Independent Conference.

FOOTBALL

Offensive Player of the Year

Senior running back Masion Brooks, East Bladen: Averaging an area-best 144 rushing yards per game. Brooks currently has 67 carries for 720 yards and 10 TDs.

Junior quarterback Eli Hebron, Topsail: In his first year as the full-time starter, Hebron has accounted for 14 touchdowns (12 passing and 2 rushing). He has completed 69 of 116 passes for 958 yards and only 1 interception. The junior also has 64 carries for 198 yards.

Junior wide receiver Hampton Roderick, Laney: Roderick has been the favorite target of first-year starting quarterback Kolbe Little. The talented junior has hauled in 28 catches for 452 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Senior quarterback Hudson Wilharm, Hoggard: Has completed more than 66 percent of his passes (62 of 93) for 924 yards and 11 TDs with only one interception for the Vikings, who are 4-1. Wilharm also has also found the end zone twice with his feet.

Defensive Player of the Year

Senior linebacker Jaquan Bowen, Laney: Through five games, Bowen has 28 tackles, including 3 for loss. He also has 19 quarterback hurries, 1.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble and 3 fumble recoveries.

Senior linebacker Alex Gibson, New Hanover: The anchor of the New Hanover defense has a team-high 40 tackles, including 11 for loss. He also has 4 sacks, 1 interception, 1 fumble recovery and 1 blocked field goal.

Senior lineman Austin Hobson, Topsail: Has been a disruptive presence up front for the Pirates, who are allowing 16.8 points per game. Hobson has 47 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, 5 forced fumbles and 3 fumble recoveries.

Senior linebacker Reagan Printy, Hoggard: Leads all area players with 70 tackles (14 per game). Printy also has 5.5 tackles for loss, 1 forced fumble and 1 interception for a unit that has allowed only 75 points in five games.

Newcomer of the Year

Junior running back Jaelan Brewington, Ashley: Through five contests, the first-year starter has 59 carries for 423 yards and 5 TDs.

Sophomore running back Jaquell Davis, West Brunswick: It has been a tough season for the winless Trojans, but one bright spot has been the play of Davis. He has 81 carries for 455 yards in five games.

Junior linebacker Rylan Edwards, Hoggard: Took over at middle linebacker and has been a force by making 60 tackles, including 5.5 for loss. Edwards has 2.5 sacks and 1 forced fumble.

Sophomore wide receiver Damarion Smith, Topsail: The speedy wide receiver has found the end zone six times already this season. Smith has 17 catches for 289 yards.

Coach of the Year

Dante Lombardi, Ashley: The second-year coach has already led the Screaming Eagles to their first three-win season since 2018. The program went 3-33 from 2019-22. Ashley scored a school record 62 points in a Week 2 win at East Carteret.

JP Price, Whiteville: Price has the Wolfpack rolling again, as they are 4-1 with the only loss coming to 2A state champion favorite Clinton. Now in his sixth season, Price has led Whiteville to at least nine wins in every full-length season.

Craig Underwood, Hoggard: After suffering a tough-season opening loss to unbeaten Cleveland, Underwood has guided the Vikings to four straight victories. Hoggard has outscored its opponents 186-75.

LaMonte Williamson, West Columbus: Under Williamson’s guidance, the Vikings got off to a 3-0 start for the first time since 1985. The team is currently 4-1 overall and 1-0 in the Waccamaw Conference, and has outscored its opponents 171-35.

VOLLEYBALL

Offensive Player of the Year

Senior right side Mia Elder, Hoggard: The hard-hitting Anderson (S.C.) commit has 141 kills for the Mideastern Conference leading Vikings. Elder has a hitting percentage of .282.

Junior outside hitter Ryan Lambert, Topsail: Is hitting .215 with teams highs in kills (158) and aces (39). She has put down at least 10 kills in half of the team’s 14 matches.

Junior outside hitter Elsa Southerland, Coastal Christian: Southerland has put down 130 kills while hitting .219. She’s also served 33 aces and won 83 service points.

Defensive Player of the Year

Senior outside hitter Carolina Bariglio, Cape Fear Academy: Bariglio does it all for the Hurricanes, and could easily be on the offensive player of the year list as well. She currently leads the team with 229 digs (4.4 per set and 12.7 per match).

Sophomore middle blocker Vayda LeQuire, Ashley: The 6-foot-2 multi-sport standout has been a force at the net. She has 32 blocks in 14 matches.

Senior libero Chloe Maughan, Hoggard: Leader of the Hoggard defense has 194 digs in 51 sets (3.8 per set and 10.2 per match).

Newcomer of the Year

Sophomore setter Sarah Brannin, Ashley: In her first year on the varsity level, Brannin has handed out 198 assists. She also has 99 digs, 27 aces, 20 blocks and 14 kills.

Freshman outside hitter Grace Johnson, Southeastern Homeschool: Johnson is hitting .263 with 97 kills, 93 digs and 21 aces for the Cardinals, who are 11-2.

Junior outside hitter Addie Norman, Hoggard: Transferred to Hoggard from Southeastern Homeschool and has made an immediate impact by hitting .258 with 118 kills and 16 blocks.

Coach of the Year

Melissa Batts, Southeastern Homeschool: The Cardinals are 11-2 with victories over Cape Fear Academy and Wilmington Christian Academy (twice). The team recently won the 5A bracket at the HSPN East Coast National Tournament in Gatlinburg, Tenn.

Emily Coleman, Hoggard: After finishing as Mideastern Conference regular season co-champions last fall, the Vikings look primed to run the table in league play this season without dropping a set. Hoggard is currently 9-1 overall and 7-0 in the MEC.

Georgia Davis, Coastal Christian: Replacing long-time coach Dudley Raye was never going to be easy, but Davis has kept the Centurions playing at a high level. Coastal Christian is 18-4 overall and 4-0 in the Coastal Plain Independent Conference.