To cheers in his Ames, Iowa, high school gym, Harrison Barnes announced he wants to attend the University of North Carolina. That ends one of the most highly anticipated recruiting decisions of all time. Barnes, a 6-foot-6 forward rated No. 1 in the Class of 2010 by scout.com, also considered Duke, Iowa State, Kansas, Oklahoma and UCLA.

His decision followed on the heels of UNC's announcement it signed two student-athletes to National Letters of Intent last week: 6-7 wing Reggie Bullock from Kinston, and 6-4 guard Kendall Marshall from Dumfries, Va. Who attends Bishop O'Connell High School in Arlington, Va. (Current UNC senior Marcus Ginyard played for Coach Joe Wootten at Bishop O'Connell.)

The three signees comprise what many are calling the nation's No. 1 recruiting class.

All-SCAC honors for Parks, Cullen: Two former rivals from Chapel Hill are sharing honors in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference. Both Barbara Parks and Meghan Cullen were named to the league's all-conference team last week.

Parks, a 2009 graduate of Chapel Hill High School, was named the SCAC's Newcomer of the Year as freshman at Centre College in Danville, Ky. Cullen, a graduate of East Chapel Hill, is a senior at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tenn.

Parks, a forward for Centre, finished second this fall in the SCAC in both assists (9) and assists per game (0.53), tied for fourth in points (19) and points per game (1.12). Cullen led the SCAC in saves-percentage (.872) and earlier was named the SCAC defensive player of the week after helping the Lynx capture the league's regular-season crown.

Wrestling at UNC Sunday: The University of North Carolina will host the fourth-annual ACC Challenge today in the Eddie Smith Field House, and some of the nation's top wrestling talent will be on display in Chapel Hill beginning at noon. Joining the Tar Heels in the field of the dual event are No. 20 Virginia, Virginia Tech, No. 16 American, Bucknell and Gardner-Webb.

Each team will wrestle three duals with matches set for noon, 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. Admission is free of charge. Carolina will open versus Gardner-Webb before facing American and Bucknell.

Heels host second round: North Carolina's No. 3-ranked women's soccer team defeated Big South Conference champion High Point 1-0 Friday in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Women's Soccer Tournament on a goal in the 68th minute by Tar Heel freshman midfielder Lucy Bronze.

Carolina will play in the second round of the NCAA Tournament Sunday at 1 pm. at Fetzer Field against the winner of the second first-round game at Fetzer Field Friday night between Georgia and Colonial Athletic Association champion UNC Wilmington.

Orange Hitting Clinic this weekend: The 14th Annual Orange County Fall Hitting Clinic was postponed last weekend because of rain. Veteran baseball coach Dean Dease has rescheduled the clinic for Nov. 21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information about this clinic for student athletes 12-18 years old, contact Dease at 732-6133, ext. 20200.

Six into four(ball): Two Chapel Hill pairs finished in the top 10 of the CGA's recent North Carolina Four-Ball Championship in Buies Creek. Tradd McCrary and Jeff Jamieson carded 67-67-70--204 to tie for seventh and earned $240 in prizes from the Carolinas Golf Association. Ryan Baucom and Pete Seagroves were one stroke back at 11-under with their 69-71-65--205 for $170 in prizes.

Danny Gurley of Chapel Hill teamed with David E aker of Forest City to tie for 18th with a 210 total.

Coaching opportunities in Carrboro: The Carrboro Recreation and Parks Department is currently accepting volunteer coach's applications for its 2009 Youth Baseball (ages 6-15 years old) and Youth Girls Volleyball (ages 10-13) programs.To receive a volunteer coach's application or additional information, please contact the Recreation Department at 918-7364. The initial deadline to submit an application is Friday, Dec. 11.

Sapowski Memorial Tournament starts Friday: The UNC ice hockey team ended a recent three-game road trip with a 7-4 win at Virginia, Charlottesville followed by losses at Virginia Tech in Roanoke and at N.C. State in Raleigh. Leading scorer Kenny Haisfield's hat-trick led the way at Charlottesville.

The Tar Heels will be trying to get back over .500 when they host the annual Jim Sapowski Invitational Tournament beginning on Friday, Nov. 20 at the Triangle Sportsplex in Hillsborough. Teams at the upcoming event include South Carolina, Christopher Newport, Loyola of Maryland, Alabama and Tennessee.

Briefly ... Justin Tucker of Chapel Hill, who participated in the local Carrboro Recreation & Parks Department competition for the NFL Punt Pass & Kick event, has qualified for the regional championships in Charlotte. ... The struggling Carolina Hurricanes have placed goalie Cam Ward on injured reserve with a sliced left leg. The Hurricanes called up defenseman Bryan Rodney to fill Ward's roster spot. ... UNC women's golf coach Jan Mann has announced the signing of three high school student-athletes: Jackie Chang of Arizona, Casey Grice out of Texas and Katherine Perry of Cary, who attended Athens Drive High.