Bath
Bath, NC · Sports
The Standard
Mitchell Oakley: Dink Mills a hero for Ayden's young and old alike
In our small town of Ayden in the late 1950s and early 1960s, many of us young boys grew up with a real-life hero in our midst. It wasn’t youth-inspired idolization. Instead, it was respect — respect for a sports hero who set a solid example of how persistence, hard work and discipline equaled success. Our hero, Dennis Erastus Mills, better known in his hero days in Ayden as “Dinky,” died Oct. 6 at age 84. In fact, Dinky made positive impressions everywhere he went. While known as Dinky in Ayden, he also became known as “Dink,” “Coach” or “Mr. Mills” in his career as a football and baseball coach, a teacher and a principal in the Martin County town of Williamston. Even some of us began calling him Dink in his later years. The first time I heard of Dinky Mills was from my father. He and a neighbor, Morris Hines, enjoyed attending Ayden High School football games together. My father talked about how tough this relatively small running back was. He was impressed about how he ran over people. I was finally allowed to see the football team play in 1961. Dinky was a bowling ball on offense.
Rocky Mount Telegram
Northern Nash dominates Hunt in battle for first place in Big East 5A/6A Conference
WILSON — The battle for first place in the Big East 5A/6A Conference wasn’t much of a battle, thanks to a dominating performance by the Northern Nash defense. The Knights stymied Wilson Hunt and quarterback Mez Harris, limiting the Warriors to a paltry seven yards on 31 plays. A 38-point first half prompted the continuous clock in the second half Friday night as the visitors rolled to a 45-0 victory at Warrior Stadium to stay unbeaten in the league (4-0) while improving to 6-2 overall with their fifth straight victory. Hunt dropped to 3-1 in the conference and 7-1 overall. Hunt ran seven plays on its first drive and picked up 24 yards before having to punt. After that possession, the Warriors ran 24 plays and lost 20 yards and only crossed midfield once — and that was on an interception return. Northern Nash drove 81 yards in nine plays for its first score behind the running of Myles Eatmon, Jamarcus Robinson and Jaice Johnson and a 10-yard pass from Johnson to Kamren Freeman. Robinson’s seven-yard touchdown run and a Caleb Walston extra point made it 7-0 with 5:20 left in the first quarter. A three-and-out gave the Knights the
thewashingtondailynews.com
bartonbulldogs.com
Barton women's vollyeball falls to rival Mount Olive on the road, 3-1
MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. - The Barton women's volleyball team (6-15, 4-10) suffered a 3-1 loss to rival Mount Olive (11-12, 7-8) on Saturday morning in a Conference Carolinas match at Kornegay Arena. The Trojans won over the Bulldogs by scores of 22-25, 25-21, 25-22 and 25-19 and swept the season...
WRAL
(14) Eno River volleyball survives first round scare, beats (19) Rosewood in five
HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. — Eno River wasted no time beginning its 2026 N.C. High School Athletic Association 2A state playoff journey with an 11 a.m. start time for Saturday's first round matchup with Rosewood. The morning sunshine paid off for the hosting Bobcats (12-9, 7-5 Triangle North 1A/2A), as the...
WITN
New Bern prevails in late game thriller against D.H. Conley
GREENVILLE, N.C. (WITN) - The New Bern Bears hosted the D.H. Conley Vikings on Friday evening in a late season thriller. The two got off to a heated start, trading tuddys and holding true defensively. They entered half 21-21. The third quarter was dry until a touchdown late from the...
Rocky Mount Telegram
Athlete Spotlight: Antonio Draughn Jr., Tarboro High School
Editor’s Note: This week’s athlete spotlight is Antonio Draughn Jr., a senior running back at Tarboro High School. Tarboro High School’s vaunted ‘Tarboro T” rushing attack has a rich tradition of producing standout running backs over the years – names such as Todd Gurley II, Kelvin Bryant, Tobias Joyner, Shaun Draughn, Mason Satterfield and Kamerin McDowell-Moore are only a few of the best Viking backs in the past 50 years who have made an impact at their high school, in college and throughout the professional ranks. You can now add Antonio Draughn Jr. to that list from what the Tarboro football community fondly refers to as “Running Back U.” Draughn eclipsed the 1,000-yard barrier last week in Tarboro’s 75-27 Eastern Plains 2A/3A Conference win over Farmville Central. Draughn finished with 288 yards and three touchdowns on just 12 carries as the Vikings piled up 593 yards on the ground. Going into Friday’s conference game at Wilson Beddingfield, Draughn – a 5’11,” 200-pound senior, had amassed 1,239 yards and 14 TD on just 119 carries, averaging 10.4 yards per carry and 206.5 yards per game. “This means a lot to me because I know the history of running backs who have
Rocky Mount Telegram
Essentially Sports
College Football Team Overcomes 4th-Quarter Deficit to Win by 13 in Overtime After Late Pick Six
UAB arrived Thursday night searching for answers after a bruising 38-13 defeat at Memphis left the Blazers sitting at 3-3. A response was needed, but their matchup against East Carolina offered little reason for optimism as the clock ticked away. For nearly 58 minutes, UAB found itself chasing the game. A loss looked inevitable until the momentum swung the other way. The Blazers mounted a late turnaround to secure a 30-17 victory, pulling off a win few could have seen coming. Here’s what happened: ECU led with 1:37 left; UAB had no timeouts and hadn’t scored a touchdown all night, just three J...
wbrc.com
Ryder Burton rallies UAB to 30-17 come-from-behind victory over East Carolina in OT
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) - Ryder Burton threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Rod Robinson II in overtime and Delvon Gulley followed with an 80-yard interception return to wrap up UAB’s come-from-behind 30-17 victory over East Carolina on Thursday night. East Carolina (3-3, 1-1 American Conference) used 14 plays to...
WITN
WNCT
East Carolina falls to UAB 30-17 in overtime battle
BIRMINGHAM, AL (WNCT) — UAB defeated East Carolina 30-17 in overtime at Protective Stadium. Pirates received to start the game and established an early lead with touchdowns by Ray Ray Joseph Jr. and freshman Dawson Quarterman, 14-0. Pirates’ defense had 3 sacks and 8 tackles for loss in the first half, and the Blazers got […]
The Daily Reflector
High school football: Rams lead night of key conference wins
LITTLEFIELD — Greene Central turned Friday’s football game on two turnovers — the first resulting in a two-touchdown swing in the first half and the second helping the Rams put the game away late in the third quarter. Greene Central got an interception return for a touchdown, then later turned a fumble recovery into another score two plays later to finish off Ayden-Grifton in a 49-20 victory in an Eastern Plains 2A/3A Conference matchup. “Humongous,” Greene Central coach Jay Wilson said of the interception and subsequent touchdown. “And those are the plays that make football. We tell our guys, ‘Adversity is going to happen, but it’s how you respond,’ and they responded well.” With Ayden-Grifton trailing 21-13 midway through the second quarter, Loyalty Fuller ran around left end for a 15-yard touchdown — only for it to be wiped off the scoreboard by a holding penalty. On the next play, Chargers quarterback Jace Martin was intercepted by the Rams’ Trey Bynum, who went 85 yards in the other direction for a touchdown. What could have been only a one-point deficit — or maybe a tie game with a two-point conversion — with a touchdown for Ayden-Grifton suddenly turned into a
Neuse News Sport
Wayne Christian Survives Ravenscroft Thriller With Game-Saving Two-Point Stop, 32-31
Jamari Hill rushed for 271 yards as Wayne Christian held off Ravenscroft 32-31, stopping a two-point conversion on the game's final drive. The post Wayne Christian Survives Ravenscroft Thriller With Game-Saving Two-Point Stop, 32-31 appeared first on Neuse News Sports .
piratemedia1.com
ECU and Coastal Carolina extend football series through 2034
The Pirates will welcome the Chanticleers to Greenville in 2028 (Sept. 9), 2030 (Sept. 21) 2032 (Sept. 11) and 2034 (TBD). ECU will travel to Conway, S.C., in 2027 (Sept. 25), 2031 (Sept. 13) and 2033 (TBD). East Carolina University and Coastal Carolina University have announced an extension of their...