No. 1 Apex vs Northern Durham (6 p.m.)

No. 2 Green Hope vs Purnell Swett (1 p.m.)

No. 3 Panther Creek vs Broughton (6 p.m.)

No. 4 Cary at Enloe (6 p.m.)

No. 5 Middle Creek at Wakefield (1 p.m.) 

Out of three Tri-Nine girls tennis teams advancing to the 4-A NCHSAA dual-team playoffs, only Green Hope advanced to the second round on Tuesday.

The Falcons (19-2) were  6-0 winners over Wakefield after sweeping all six singles matches. The teams agreed to not play doubles after the match was in hand.

Green Hope will now face East Chapel Hill, the team that bounced Athens Drive (14-9) from the tournament by an 8-0 score. East Chapel Hill defeated Green Hope earlier in the year by a 6-3 margin. That match will take place at East Chapel Hill thanks to conference seeding priority.

Panther Creek (16-4) saw its year end in the first round as well, losing to Durham Riverside by a relatively slim 6-3 margin. It was the first time the Catamounts advanced to the state tournament in the school's short four-year history.

The Tri-Nine Conference, with two automatic berths and two wild-card bids, leads all conferences in the state with four schools in the NCHSAA dual-team playoffs.

Green Hope and Panther Creek, by finishing first and second respectively in the conference, received automatic bids.

Apex and Athens Drive, which split with one another in the conference to tie for third, each received two of the state's three wild-card spots.

Only Green Hope (18-2) will play at home on Tuesday in the first round against Wakefield (11-4). The Falcons have only lost to Broughton and East Chapel Hill this year, and hope a tougher out-of-conference schedule will have them better prepared for the postseason than last year.

Panther Creek (16-3) will hit the road to face Durham Riverside (12-3).

Apex (11-6) has the unenviable task of playing at Broughton (15-0) and Athens Drive (14-8) must play at powerhouse East Chapel Hill (20-2).

The winner of Green Hope-Wakefield will play the winner between East Chapel Hill-Athens Drive. Meanwhile, the winner of Panther Creek-Riverside will play the winner of Apex-Broughton.

Panther Creek co-football captain Aaron Norris had to be carted off the field in Friday's 37-7 win over Sanderson and is done for the year with a broken leg.

Also getting carted off the field for the Catamounts was defensive back Chris Baldwin, although his status for this week's showdown against Fuquay-Varina is not yet known. 

In an e-mail to TCN/SWW Sports, Panther Creek coach Wayne Bragg said that the current quarterback battle between newcomer Kameron Bryant and incumbent C.J. Liley was ongoing. Both players are rising juniors.

Bryant made the Tri-9 honorable mention last year at Green Hope, where he completed 108 of his 227 throws (47.5 percent) for 1,415 yards and eight touchdowns. He's the taller of the two QB's (six-foot-two) and the more mobile, although his rushing numbers (less than 90 yards but three TD's) don't reflect it due to a high amount of sacks on last year's 0-11 Falcons team.

The five-foot-nine Liley, on the other hand, started the final six games of the season for the Catamounts while completing 71 of 129 passes (55 percent) for 651 yards and six touchdowns. 

Bragg added that there is no timetable in place to make a decision by the Catamounts' opener against Leesville Road on Aug. 21

We gave you the breakdown for the northern half of the conference on Thursday, so now it's time to look along Highway 55 and farther south for the rest of the Tri-9 football teams and their schedules for the upcoming year.

The District 7 race is getting more crowded with Jerry Ballan the lone candidate to file today for the school board.

Ballan, a securities principal/certified financial planner, became the third candidate in District 7. It looks like Ballan is positioning himself between Deborah Prickett, a board critic. and Karen Simon, a supporter of school policies.

"I'm not pro-SES (socioeconomic status) but we have to find a way to work around it to find something better," Ballan said. "You can't throw the baby out with the bath water on the first day."

Panther Creek High School graduate Alyssa Bearden, an Charleston Southern signee, is among 32 of the state’s top female soccer seniors who have accepted invitations to participate in the 18th NCCA East-West All-Star Game to be played at UNCG Soccer Stadium on Tuesday, July 21, 2009 (7 p.m. kickoff).

A total of seven Wake County players have been tabbed for the East squad. Lumberton High coach Kenny Simmons will lead the squad.

Panther Creek's new men's basketball coach will be Travis Chapman, Athletics Director Todd Schuler announced today. Chapman spent last year as the team's top assistant coach.