By Bob Sutton
Special to The Alamance News
Shaniya Paylor was pleased to have a final opportunity to represent Southeast Alamance in girls’ basketball.
Paylor played in Monday night’s North Carolina East-West All-Star Game in Greensboro.
“I’ve never been in an All-Star game this big,” Paylor said.
Paylor was the first-ever Southeast athlete to participate as a North Carolina East-West All-Star. The next night, classmate Abby Stad-nicar was in the girls’ soccer event.
“It’s a big deal and we’re female athletes,” Paylor said.
Paylor, who was a spark for Southeast’s 2025 state championship before remaining in that role for the runner-up team in March, committed to play for Division II Wingate in college. That opportunity was finalized shortly after the end of the high school season.
The guard had interest from a variety of Division II and III colleges.
“It seems like where I fit in and I could see myself growing with them,” Paylor said of Wingate, where she intends to major in criminal justice.
The three school years at Southeast, which opened in the summer of 2023, came after her freshman year at Southern Alamance.
“Watching myself grow on and off the court,” Paylor said.
Paylor, 18, said she’ll miss playing in front of the home crowds at Southeast, which grew by her senior year as the Stallions were part of several notable showdowns.
Southeast made a quick rise to statewide prominence.
“I think we even surprised ourselves, Paylor said.
Even though her last game for Southeast didn’t end favorably for the previously undefeated Stallions in a 59-56 loss to North Lincoln, it was all part of the experience.
“I was happy to be back in the same place,” he said. “I ended my high school career at least in the championship.”
Paylor was part of another close game this week in the East-West All-Star Game. She was on the West, which fell 85-82 to the East.
She came off the bench to score four points and pull in three rebounds in about 16½ minutes.
Paylor had a basket with more than three minutes to play during the West’s fourth-quarter rally.
Fayetteville Sanford’s Ameya Brown was the Most Valuable Player with 17 points for the East, which has won the girls’ basketball matchup in four consecutive years.
Boys’ basketball
Dionte Neal of Reidsville hit the game-winning 3-point shot in the West’s 102-101 victory against the East in Monday’s nightcap.
Colby Elliott of Williams scored 14 for points for the West team, which came back from a 12-point, fourth-quarter deficit.
Elliott shot 6-for-10 from the field and went 2-for-2 on free throws across slightly more than 19 minutes off the bench as the third-leading scorer for the West. He also contributed two assists and two steals.
Braylon Taylor of Salisbury led the West with 28 points, while Shimere Garris of Washington had 24 points for the East. Also among the East’s scorers was Cam Fowler of Northwood with 15 points
Girls’ soccer
In Tuesday night’s action at Truist Point in High Point, the East team posted a 5-1 victory against the West team, which was coached by Western Alamance’s Camden Brooks.
Alison Thomas of Western and Abby Stadnicar played for the West team.
Thomas recorded an assist on Sydney Treanor’s goal, which pulled the West to within 2-1 in the opening minute of the second half. Trea-nor is from Hough.
Boys’ soccer
In the nightcap at Truist Point, Fernando Hernandez of Southwestern Randolph scored two goals to lift the West to a 3-1 victory against the East.
Brian Villanueva-Her-rera of Western Ala-mance was a replacement player for the West team. He logged 21 minutes as a substitute.
Cheerleading
Southern Alamance’s Vivian Barg and Destiny Bowman were North Carolina East-West All-Star cheerleaders.
Selections are made by the North Carolina Cheerleading Coaches Association.
The cheerleading squads cheered at the basketball games and had halftime performances.
