Local sports
FAYETTEVILLE SWAMPDOGS
Where did major league players such as David Aardsma of the Seattle Mariners, Mark Reynolds of the Arizona Diamondbacks and Kevin Youkilis of the Boston Red Sox develop their skills?
Well, for at least one summer they all did so while playing in the Coastal Plain League which, since 1997, has been the summer destination for college players seeking an off-season environment in which to improve.
The Fayetteville SwampDogs plays the home half of its 56-game schedule between late May and early August at J.P. Riddle Stadium, which seats 2,500 fans.
FAYETTEVILLE GUARD
Fast and furious football action played indoors is one of the featured attractions at the Crown Coliseum from March to June in Fayetteville.
That's when the Fayetteville Guard, a professional arena squad, plays its 14-game regular season as part of the American Indoor Football Association.
Many of the Guard players are former high school or college players from the area, including ex-Methodist University All-American Quincy Malloy and Seventy- First High School graduate Ken Brown, among others.
FIREANTZ
Fayetteville has been home to a professional ice hockey team for all but one season since the Crown Coliseum opened in 1997. The FireAntz are charter members of the Southern Professional Hockey League, which will open its sixth season in October.
The FireAntz won the SPHL championship during the 2006-07 season. They got a shot at a second Presidents Cup in 2008-09, but fell to the Knoxville (Tenn.) Ice Bears.
The SPHL lineup for 2009-10 will include the FireAntz, Knoxville and the league's two other original franchises in Columbus, Ga., and Huntsville, Ala. Teams in Biloxi, Miss., Lafayette, La., and Pensacola, Fla., will be new members.
STOCK CAR RACING
The Cape Fear region has an abundance of oval-track activity from mid- March through mid-October.
Hammerdown Speedway, a3/10
For those who prefer their racing on asphalt, there's Dillon (S.C.) Motor Speedway. Rockingham Speedway, a 1-mile former NASCAR track, is home to two ARCA ReMax series races in 2009, as well as the UARA and USA Racing circuits.
HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
Cumberland County achieved a first for the state of North Carolina last year when three of its schools - Jack Britt, Douglas Byrd and Seventy-First - advanced to the football state championship games in the 4-AA and 4-A classifications respectively, with Seventy-First bringing home the state title.