The Weddington Warriors wide receiver and defensive back James Shipley is the Tri-W-News Feature Player of the Week for his outstanding performance in the State Title Championship Game.  His heroics made for a significant contribution in the final outcome and helped the Warriors win their second NCHSAA 3AA Football Championship Title 27-14 over Southeast Guilford.

Shipley was both the offensive and defensive star in the biggest game of his young high school football career.  His interception and a return in the fourth quarter set up the teams final touchdown putting the Warriors in excellent field position. The wide receiver connected on a 50-yard touchdown pass on a reverse play and caught an 8-yard touchdown pass reception for another big score.  Overall, the talented athlete had 10 catches for a total of 113 yards, including a total of 186 all-purpose yards, and was named the games Most Valuable Player.

Overall, Shipley accumulated 756 receiving yards on 63 receptions and 9 touchdowns.  He passed for 84 yards on 4 completions and one touchdown.  Also, his contribution on the special teams returning punts and kick-offs accumulated for hundreds of additional all-purpose yardage throughout the season.

Finally, we would like to recognize his brother Will Shipley.  The running back was the rushing touchdown leader in Union County this year with 25 scores on 206 carries for 1368 yards.  He also had 31 receptions for 6 touchdowns totaling 406 yards.

The brother combination, along with the entire Weddington Warrior football team had an awesome run.  We Congratulate all team members on an exciting championship season ending with an incredible 15-1 record and outscoring their opponents in the in the state championships by a margin of 195-46.