SMITHFIELD – Johnston County Public Schools (JCPS) inducted its 16th class of dedicated athletes, coaches, and support personnel to the school district’s Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday, April 13, 2024 at South Johnston High.
This celebration honors the rich athletic history in Johnston County, and has been in existence since 2007 when the first class of honorees were inducted. It has been the goal of JCPSs to recognize the efforts and accomplishments of these dedicated athletes, coaches, and support personnel.
The 2024 JCPS Athletic Hall of Fame inductees are:
- Chris Archer – Clayton High School – 2x Major League Baseball All-Star
- Neal Lancaster – Smithfield native – Professional Golf Association professional with over 25 top 10’s
- Lynwood McLamb – Four Oaks Middle Faculty – Legacy nominee with 30+ years service
- Anna Raynor Marbry – South Johnston High School – University of North Carolina at Wilmington hall of fame inductee, female track athlete, and multisport athlete
- Coach Pat Smith – South Johnston Faculty – multi state champion baseball coach
Chris Archer began playing sports competitively at a very young age in Clayton. Clayton Civitan was a big part of Archer finding his love for being part of a team and athletics. Archer was an exceptional baseball and football player at Clayton High from 2002 to 2006, and he also played basketball. He fondly thinks of his time as a JCPS student athlete and being a teammate alongside a passionate group of lifelong friends he met on the ball fields of Clayton.
During his senior year, Archer signed a letter of intent with the University of Miami to play college baseball. However, he decided to follow his dreams and was drafted in the 5th round of the 2006 MLB Draft to play for the Cleveland Indians (currently Cleveland Guardians). He also played for the Durham Bulls before making his Major League Baseball debut in 2012 with the Tampa Bay Rays. During his 10+ year MLB career, Archer also played for the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Minnesota Twins, with over 1,300 innings compiling over 70 wins and 1,450 strikeouts. One of his proudest moments was his selection to the 2015 MLB All-Star Game in Cincinnati at Great American Ball Park.
At the time of his induction into the JCPS Athletic Hall of Fame, Archer was the only inductee to be a two-time (2015 & 2017) MLB All Star. In December of 2023, he accepted a position with the Los Angeles Dodgers as a special assistant.
Neal Lancaster was born in Smithfield and has always loved sports. As a student at Smithfield-Selma High he focused his attention on golf and basketball. Mount Olive College offered Lancaster a golf scholarship, and it was there that he realized he wanted to become a professional golfer. He joined the Carolinas Professional Golf Association, and began working at Southern Wayne Country Club in Mount Olive as an assistant pro. Lancaster also started competing throughout the state, soon winning the 1984 Carolinas Open.
One of the highlights of Lancaster’s career is his U.S. Open records. In the final round of the 1995 U.S. Open held at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in New York, he became the first man in the 100-year history of the championship to finish with a nine hole score of 29 strokes.
Lancaster turned his attention to the PGA Tour, and successfully advanced through the 1989 qualifying tournament to secure his position competing on the PGA Tour for the 1990-1991 season. He enjoyed a decades-long career, playing with the best golfers in the world, and eventually competing in over 580 Tour events.
As a current Champions Tour member, Lancaster continues to travel and play a handful of tournaments each year, but is also looking to pass along his passion for golf by teaching.
Lynwood McLamb is a JCPS Hall of Fame Legacy nominee with more than 30 years of service in JCPS. Growing up on a farm in Four Oaks, McLamb attended Four Oaks School from 1949-1961. Voted Male Athlete of the Year his senior year, he played basketball and baseball throughout high school, serving as a team captain for both sports. Additionally, he helped lead Four Oaks School to the County Championships in both sports both his junior and senior years.
McLamb later earned a degree in physical education from Frederick College on an athletic scholarship. He played basketball and baseball for four years. McLamb had immediate success, hitting a home run in his first at bat on the collegiate level.
He returned to Johnston County to teach and coach, and in 1965 he joined the staff of Meadow School, as the junior varsity basketball coach, the varsity basketball assistant coach, and the varsity baseball coach until 1969. That year, he moved to Four Oaks Elementary/Middle School, where he remained for the rest of his career, where he affectionately became known throughout the community as Mr. Mac.
For over 25 years, McLamb was an invaluable part of the school and became indelibly associated with the Four Oaks Cardinals. He was a Physical Education and Health teacher where he often modeled techniques and participated with his students, with many retelling the story that he made over 100 free throws in a row one day at school.
During his tenure, he served as head coach in football, boys’ basketball, baseball, volleyball,
softball, and girls’ basketball. McLamb had an impressive 71% winning percentage, with a record of 290-120, winning 20 conference championships and racking up 32 winning seasons.
The majority of his career was spent with girls’ basketball, where he thrived growing novice skill sets into true athletes. A highlight for those teams was the yearly trip to an NC State Lady Wolfpack basketball game to see female athletes on the collegiate level. Recognized with the Four Oaks Jaycee Young Educator Award in 1971, he was also the Athletic Director, and was a school leader as an Assistant Principal.
Pat Smith is a name that is synonymous with high school baseball in North Carolina. Smith graduated from Robersonville High, helping the team win the State 1A Baseball Championship before going on to play minor league baseball for 5 years. He then attended East Carolina University on a scholarship.
From 1971 until 2017, Smith was a part of four state championships in baseball, two as an assistant coach, and two as a head coach. He is a member of the NC Baseball Coaches Association (NCBCA) Hall of Fame, with an overall record of 525-295. Smith was also named NCBCA Coach of the Year in 1990, NCBCA Region 3 Coach of the Year in 2008, and Conference Coach of the Year 12 times throughout his long career.
In 1988,Smith was hired at South Johnston High as the head baseball coach, and he also served as the head football coach, and indoor track coach during his years at the school. Smith led the South Johnston High baseball program from 1988-2002. His coaching record as head baseball coach was 216-127, winning five conference championships and leading the Trojans to a 25-3 record, and the 3A State Championship in 1990. He left South Johnston High for the head baseball coach at Rocky Mount High, where in 2008, his team won the 3A State Championship. Smith retired from teaching and coaching in 2017.
Anna Raynor Marbry grew up in Benson and graduated from South Johnston High School in 2003. While at South Johnston, Marbry dominated in several sports during her four years. She was All-Conference in volleyball twice, basketball three times, a four time All-Conference selection in softball, as well as the Conference Player of the Year as a senior.
In track and field Marbry was a two-time Conference Most Valuable Player, three-time All-Conference selection, two-time North Carolina High School Athletic Association (NCHSAA) All-State selection, and three time NCHSAA All-Region selection. She was the 2002 NCHSAA State 4A Long Jump Champion and the 2003 NCHSAA State 4A High Jump Champion. As a senior, Marbry was also a member of the Adidas All-American selections, won the Johnston County Track and Field Outstanding Female Performer Award, and the Program Builder Award. She was also a recipient of the Tom Suiter Extra Effort Award and countless other awards during her time at South Johnston.
During her career with the Seahawks, she set ten school records and became the first National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Division I All-American in school history when she finished 11th at the 2005 NCAA Track and Field Championships. A three-time selection as Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) Track & Field Athlete-of-the-Year, Marbry was also named CAA Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2007, and was chosen to the CAA’s Silver Anniversary Team. The three-time CAA champion was an All-East choice three times and earned All-CAA recognition nine times in four events (javelin, high jump, long jump, 100m hurdles).
Marbry participated in the NCAA Championships on three occasions, the USA Championships, and the US Olympic Trials. She also represented the US in international competition earning a silver medal at the 2007 NACAC Games in San Salvador, El Salvador.
In 2008, Marbry graduated from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, with a major in Marketing and a minor in Art. She now resides in Benson with her husband and daughter, Anna owns her own drafting business.
“The Johnston County Athletic Hall of Fame is a great reminder of what mentorship and the whole educational experience in Johnston County can lead to,” Director of Athletics and Driver Instruction Josh Plisko remarked. “ All the people in attendance will agree the communities and schools support helped them in some way become who they are today.”
On Oct. 27, 2014, JCPS established a permanent display of all inductees as a way to say thank you to the individuals who have helped shape athletic history in Johnston County. The Johnston County Athletic Hall of Fame display is located at 211 Rose Street in Smithfield in the JCPS West Campus Building and can be viewed during regular business hours Monday through Friday.
Nominations for possible future inductees can be made through the athletic director at each high school. See all former inductees and past programs HERE.
