Wrestling titles up for grabs this weekend

One of the largest high school sports audiences of the year is expected Saturday for the final rounds of the N.C. High School Athletic Association wrestling championships in Winston-Salem.

The competition begins today with 600 wrestlers at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

There will be more than 1,100 matches today and Saturday en route to crowning 42 different individual champions, 14 each in the 1-A/2-A, 3-A and 4-A classifications.

The championship finals are scheduled for 6 p.m. Saturday.

Durham Riverside's Colton Palmer, who has surpassed the national record for wins in a season with 87, is among the individual favorites in the 4-A 145-pound class.

Cary's 103-pound Joey Farnsworth is 59-0.

REGIONAL BASKETBALL: The NCHSAA Eastern and Western regionals in basketball are scheduled for next week.

The boys Eastern Regional will be held at East Carolina's Minges Coliseum. The girls will play at Greenville Rose High.

The schedule for the boys teams is 2-A on Tuesday; 3-A, Wednesday; 4-A, Thursday; and 1-A, Friday.

The schedule for girls teams is: 3-A, Tuesday; 4-A, Wednesday; 1-A, Thursday; and 2-A, Friday.

All finals are on Saturday.

The Western Regional is scheduled for Joel Coliseum and the coliseum annex on Tuesday through Saturday.

NCISAA BASKETBALL: The N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association basketball tournaments are being played in the Asheville area this week.

The boys and girls finals in 1-A, 2-A and 3-A are scheduled for Saturday at Asheville School.

SMALLING STARTS FAST: Tim Smalling, the Cap Seven 4-A baseball player of the year in 2006, is starting at shortstop for the University of Arkansas, which is ranked No. 6 in the country.

He leads the team in hitting with a .423 average.

TRACK HONOR ROLL: Coaches wishing to submit information to the North Carolina track and field honor roll, a statewide listing of the top 10 boys and girls performers in each track and field event, should e-mail nchonorroll@aol.com.