The Carolina Panthers have won the last two NFC South championships but have only one playoff win to show for it. Head coach Ron Rivera wants to change that and lead the Panthers on a deeper playoff run this season. Rivera says the Panthers need to learn to handle the pressure that comes with being favorites and facing opponents' best efforts. The Panthers have a healthy Cam Newton heading into training camp, which is good news as Newton missed time the last two seasons due to injuries.

1. The Associated Press
CHARLOTTE — The Caro-
lina Panthers have won two
straight NFC South champi-
onships and have one playoff
win to show for it.
Fifth-year coach Ron Rivera
would like to change that.
Rivera said if the Panthers
hope to make a deeper run in
the NFC playoffs they’ll need
to learn to handle the inher-
ent pressure that comes with
being the favorites and taking
everyone’s best shot on game
day.
“A lot of it is the expecta-
tions that people have put
out there,” Rivera said. “The
biggest thing we have to do is
maintain our expectations
andwecan’tletoutsideex-
pectations get in our way
and distract us. It comes
back to what
we expect
from us and what we want to
accomplish.”
The good news for the Pan-
thers is they finally have a
healthy Cam Newton heading
into training camp.
The two-time Pro Bowl
quarterback missed most of
the 2014 offseason following
ankle surgery and sat out the
regular-season opener after
fracturing two ribs in the pre-
season. He broke two bones
later in the season after flip-
ping his truck during a two-
vehicle accident less than
two blocks from the team’s
stadium.
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Rockies, Blue Jays
swap shortstops. 5B
Section B
SPORTS
High School
All-Star Games
NFL
NFLBaseball
Hibriten’s
Lewis will
lead West
Freedom’s Fox, Cougars’
Wills to coach top teams
BY CHRIS HOBBS
Record Sports Editor
GREENSBORO — The peers of three
area high school coaches
have recognized their
success, naming them
to coach in North Caro-
lina Coaches Association
(NCCA) events next year.
The NCCA has
announced:
» Clay Lewis, who as
head coach guides a
Hibriten football pro-
gram that has earned
13 straight state playoff
appearances, will be the
West head coach for the
2016 East-West All-Star
game in Greensboro in
July.
» Amber Fox, who has coached Free-
dom’s girls to 20 or more wins for seven
straight seasons and in eight of the last
nine, will be North Carolina’s head girls’
basketball coach for the 2016 North
Carolina-South Carolina basketball
game in March.
» Ed Wills, head coach of five of Al-
exander Central’s 11 boys’ basketball
teams that won 17 or more games since
1972-73, will be an assistant coach for
theWest boys’ game next July.
Lewis is about to begin his sixth sea-
son as Hibriten’s head coach. His teams
there are 43-21 and have extended the
Panthers’ string of consecutive non-
losing seasons to eight by going 6-5 last
season.
He became Hibriten’s head coach in
2010 after former Panthers quarterback
Chuck Cannon retired.
See COACHES, Page 2B
’Dads top Legends
From staff reports
LEXINGTON,Ky.—Hick-
ory pitcher Nick Gardew-
ine struck out seven and
was bolstered by a 10-hit
offensive performance as
the Crawdads knocked off
the Lexington Legends, 6-
2, in South Atlantic League
action Tuesday night.
The Crawdads (62-38,
18-14 second half) won
their sixth straight and
completed a four-game
sweep of the Legends (44-
55, 13-16).
Gardewine went five
innings, allowing four
hits and just one run to
improve to 6-7.
Yunior Marte gave up
six hits and four earned
runs in 3 2/3 to take the
loss.
Hickory had four players
with two hits apiece in the
win.
Designated hitter Jose
Cardona went 2-for-5 with
two RBIs.
Edwin Garcia, Luke
Tendler and Juremi Profar
each drove in one run.
The Crawdads are off to-
day and start a four-game
home series Thursday
against Hagerstown.
CRAWDADS 6
LEGENDS 2
South Atlantic League
Female coach embraces new roleFrom staff reports
TEMPE, Ariz. — Jen
Welter accepts the title of
trailblazer, embraces the
chance to be a role model
forgirlsand,perhapsmost
of all, can’t wait to get be-
yond the hype and on to
work when the Arizona
Cardinals open training
camp this weekend.
It’s only a six-week in-
ternship coaching inside
linebackers for the Car-
dinals, through train-
ing camp and the four
preseason games.
Nonetheless, it marks
another barrier broken
for women in sports.
The 37-year-old Wel-
ter appeared at a news
conference at Cardinals
headquarters Tuesday
and gave all the credit
for her hiring to Bruce
Arians, saying the
coach’s “heart made this
happen.”
Team President Michael
Bidwill said the move
has the enthusiastic sup-
port of the organization,
which has long been
known for hiring minori-
ties for management po-
sitions. Bidwill said he
spoke Monday night with
NFL Commissioner Roger
Goodell, who congratu-
lated the Cardinals on the
move.
Known as Dr. Jen back
in Texas,Welter has a PhD
in psychology as well as
a season as a player on
a men’s team, the Texas
Revolution of the Indoor
Football League.
There are a lot of people
who are better than her at
the X’s and O’s of football,
she said, “but the heart
factor, the intelligent
player factor, the being-
the-person-with-the-mo-
tor-who-won’t-quitfactor,
those are things I know I
can add to.”
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Arizona training camp coach Dr. Jen Welter and head coach
BruceArians address the media at a news conference.
Suspensionupheld?
» NFL Commissioner
Roger Goodell makes
decision on Tom Brady’s
“Deflategate”appeal. 4B
See CARDINALS, Page 4B
Running back
Jonathan Stewart
(top), receiver Kelvin
Benjamin (from left
to right), linebacker
Luke Kuechly and
quarterback Cam
Newton hope to bring
the Panthers their
third consecutive NFC
South title.
Panthers look for NFC South
3-peat, deep postseason run
ON THE PROWL
See PANTHERS, Page 4B
2015 PRESEASON SCHEDULE
DAY DATE OPPONENT TIME
Fri. Aug. 14 at Buffalo 7:00 p.m.
Sat. Aug. 22 vs. Miami 7:00 p.m.
Fri. Aug. 28 vs. New England 7:30 p.m.
Thur. Sept. 3 at Pittsburgh 7:30 p.m.
» See complete schedule inside today’s Scoreboard, 2B.
GRAPHIC BY MATT SMITH/
HICKORY DAILY RECORD
Lewis
Fox
Hickory records
sixth straight win