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Lynch selected as one of the
best volleyball players in N.C.
BY RYAN DOWNEY
staff writer
Recently, Hawaii played host to an annual volleyball tournament for the nation’s best and brightest players. Southern Wayne was represented in Hawaii by Shannon Lynch.
Lynch, a 17-year-old-senior at Southern Wayne High School, participated in the tournament sponsored by a group called Tourney Sport USA. Lynch is the daughter of Charles and Marie Burnette of Duplin county and granddaughter Angelo and Marie Genova of Dudley.
The group, which is made up of college athletic coordinators, selects two players from each state based on athletic and academic performance.
Lynch moved to Mount Olive from New York City in 1999. She said it took a while to get used to being here after living in the big city. But at this point, Lynch said she wouldn’t change a thing.
Lynch has played competitive volleyball since she was 12, when she began playing in a youth league. She also started playing basketball and softball in the sixth grade, but said that volleyball is her passion.
“I like volleyball because it is a challenge, said Lynch. “If it isn’t challenging, I’m not interested.”
Lynch had to adjust to her new teammates in Hawaii quickly. She and the other girls on the team didn’t even meet until they got off the plane in Hawaii. The team did well to finish third out of 21 teams.
Lynch has an atypical stature for volleyball. At 5'1", she was the shortest player on her team in Hawaii.
“It’s good to have height in volleyball, but if you are smaller, you can move faster. I have had to work a lot harder because of my height. I lift weights everyday on my legs which helps me jump a little higher.”
Lynch got plenty of chances to see if her conditioning paid off. Lynch got an award as the best setter on her team. The team played three games a day for nine days.
The trip to Hawaii was her first time on a plane. She said she was so nervous she did her best to sleep through the trip. She said her nervousness was only confined to the plane though as she participated in cliff diving along with the much more pedestrian scuba diving, as well as surfing for nearly 20 seconds at a time.
To get to Hawaii she had to fundraise $2,876. Lynch credits Southern Wayne softball coach, Timmy Harrell, the family of close friend Tessa Brannon, and the family of her boyfriend, Brooks Jarnigan, for helping her get the money she needed
Lynch was also surprised to receive a grant from Tri-County Electric Membership Corporation of Dudley.
Lynch not only performs well during competitions, she has a perfect grade point average. She has carried a 4.0 average since the eighth grade.
Lynch’s career highlights include 98 kills in 20 games. She already holds the school record for kills.
This season she is hoping to take what she learned in Hawaii back to her team at Southern Wayne. She wants the team to make the conference playoffs. Once she gets done with volleyball for the year she will move on to another sport.
Besides volleyball, Lynch also plays basketball and softball. One might ask “Doesn’t the frantic athletic and academic pace ware her down?” Not according to Lynch.
“I like to stay active, when I’m not busy I feel like I am wasting my time,” said Lynch.
The fishing report
By Bobby Williams
If you are a die hard flounder fishermen, now is the time to be heading toward your favorite fishing spot. Flounder action has picked up over the past week.
According to several pier operators along the North Carolina beaches, anglers have started catching flounder in the three to four pound range.
Most of the fish have been caught early in the morning. Several pier operators in the Southport area said many of the local morning anglers have had pretty good luck during sunrise. One operator said he thinks it's because the flounder are feeding on schools of finger mullets.
He said he has been able to walk out early in the morning and see several small schools of finger mullet almost washing up on shore. He said most of the local anglers are using a small casting net to catch the bait. He said a three-to-four-inch finger mullet on a flounder rig would lure any flounder in for lunch. Some of the fishermen have used live shrimp for bait. He went on the say that some of the out of town fishermen where using strips of cut catfish for bait.
Some of the local boaters have seen lots of action during the morning at the Cape Fear River, by the jetty. Most of the boaters are dropping anchor and fishing right along to edges of the rocks for flounder. According to one of the local marinas, they weighed three flounder this past Monday. Two of them weight just over five pounds, and the big one weight eight pounds and three ounces. He said all three of these flounder where caught by a couple of guys from Wilson. He said they where using a variety of live bait.
Flounder action seen to be the talk of the town in the Moorhead City and Beaufort areas. During the first part of the week boaters where lined up all along the wall at the State Port. One of the local marinas operator said at one time you could just about walk from one boat to another, they where just that thick. Even though every one wasn't fishing for flounder they where fishing fore whatever would bite. He said this was in no doubt, one of the hottest spot for most flounder fishermen special during the weekend. He said most of the local anglers that live their knows where to find the fish any day of the week. However right now most of them are catching some large flounder back over around the marshes grasses area. He said flounder wasn't the only thing being caught, their has been some real nice speckle trout brought in during the past week by some of the local fishermen.
FISHING REPORT
According to several piers down in the Southport and Oak Island area, the fishing is getting better each day. During the past weekend the pier where pack with fishermen and vacationers mostly sight seers waiting to catch a glance of someone reeling in a fish. About the only thing caught during the weekend where spots, sea mullets, pinfish, flounder and a few pompano during the day time. On Sunday several school of blues and Spanish Mackerel came through during mid morning. Several anglers reeling in several Spanish that weigh between three to five pounds. Several people fishing out toward the end of the pier using silver spoons managed to reel in some chopper blues. Several of the big blues where brought up to the pier house to be weighed, both of them where over five pounds each. He said their was several good strikes made out on the end of pier with the King Fishermen, but nothing was put on the pier. During the first part of the week some of the vacationers got a chance to see several Tarpon jumping out near to end of the pier. On both Monday and Tuesday morning some of the local anglers got a chance to reel in some good sizes flounder and a few Gray trout around sunrise.
Until next time: Gone fishing
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