Photo courtesy Earl Vaughan, Jr. of the Fayetteville Observer
FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – NCHSAA Hall of Famer and long-time Cape Fear High School softball coach Doris Howard made a rare trip out to the softball field this weekend to support the Cape Fear Colts in game three of their Eastern Regional Finals series against D.H. Conley on Saturday.
Howard had a 41-year career as a teacher and coach in Cumberland County, retiring after the 1987-88 season. She posted a 533-231 record in women’s basketball. She also was head coach in tennis and softball during her tenure at Hope Mills, Central and Cape Fear High Schools, piloting the Colts to the 1978 state softball championship. Howard’s team made the state finals three consecutive years, compiling a 123-13 mark over a six-year period in softball.
This year’s Colts have much of the same magic as Howard’s team, as they clinched a State Championship berth Saturday night with a 1-0 win in game three of the Eastern Finals over D.H. Conley. Howard briefly met with the team after their victory.
Cape Fear heads off to the NCHSAA 4A Softball State Championship Series Friday, June 3rd, where they’ll meet West Forsyth in a best-of-three series. The 4A State Championship series will be held at NC State University’s Dail Softball Stadium. Cape Fear is making their second appearance in the State Championship series since the format changed to a best-of-three series in 2012. Game one between Cape Fear and West Forsyth is scheduled for 8 p.m. Friday with Game two scheduled for 2 p.m. on Saturday.
2016 NCHSAA SOFTBALL STATE CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE
1A Championship: 1 Princeton vs. 5 North Stanly
Dail Softball Stadium at NCSU, Raleigh
Game 1: June 3rd – 6:00 PM | Princeton – Home Team
Game 2: June 4th – 11:00 AM | North Stanly – Home Team
Game 3: June 4th – 5:00 PM | Princeton – Home Team
2A Championship: 2 South Granville vs. 4 West Lincoln
UNCG Spartan Softball Stadium, Greensboro
Game 1: June 3 – 6:00 PM | South Granville – Home Team
Game 2: June 4 – 11:00 AM | West Lincoln– Home Team
Game 3: June 4 – 5:00 PM | South Granville – Home Team
3A Championship: 1 C. B. Aycock vs. 5 Enka
UNCG Spartan Softball Stadium, Greensboro
Game 1: June 3 – 8:00 PM | C. B. Aycock – Home Team
Game 2: June 4 – 2:00 PM | Enka – Home Team
Game 3: June 4 – 8:00 PM** | C. B. Aycock – Home Team
4A Championship: 1 Cape Fear vs. 10 West Forsyth
Dail Softball Stadium at NCSU, Raleigh
Game 1: June 3 – 8:00 PM | Cape Fear– Home Team
Game 2: June 4 – 2:00 PM | West Forsyth – Home Team
Game 3: June 4 – 8:00 PM** | Cape Fear – Home Team
**Game will be moved to 5:00 PM if the other series at the site does not reach Game 3.
