UWHARRIE WAMPUS CATS UNVEIL TEAM NAME AHEAD OF FIRST SEASON

New collegiate wood-bat team to begin play this summer at Albemarle’s Don Montgomery Park

ALBEMARLE, NC (1/31/23) -- The Uwharrie Wampus Cats, a new summer collegiate baseball team coming to Albemarle and North Carolina’s Uwharrie Region, are excited to introduce their team branding package, as they prepare for their inaugural 2023 season. The team’s primary colors are yellow, brown and orange, with the team mascot’s head logo figuring prominently in the branding.

The Wampus Cats, owned by North Carolina-based Sullimak Entertainment, LLC, will compete against some of the best summer collegiate wood bat teams in North Carolina and the surrounding region, with marquee matchups set with the Boone Bigfoots and Wilmington Sharks, as well as several games against their rival, Winston-Salem’s Carolina Disco Turkeys, in a season of roughly 40 games, beginning in May.

All Wampus Cats home games will be played at Albemarle’s Don Montgomery Park, a ballpark located along Highway 52 near the city’s downtown. Games will include in-game entertainment, a wampus cat mascot, concessions and beer. Ahead of the season, Albemarle Parks & Recreation and the team will be working to make upgrades to the facility, including adding home-plate area and picnic seating and improvements to the concession stand and restrooms.

The team’s logo is a wampus cat -- a cryptozoological creature that like the bigfoot is thought by some to inhabit North Carolina’s Uwharries. The Wampus Cats are very different from other regional cat mascots (Davidson Wildcats, Western Carolina Catamounts, Carolina Panthers, etc.) in that the design leans heavily into mythology. This particular new spin on the wampus cat is a cat that appears somewhat mischievous, like a trickster from folklore, but also endearing in his rule-breaking down to his beard stubble and is not scary for kids. The team identity also will features several complimentary and alternate logos that pay homage to the Uwharrie region of North Carolina and its lakes. The team also has released two t-shirts and a dad hat, all now available at the team's website wampuscatsbaseball.com.

Ahead of the season, the Wampus Cats will also be unveiling uniforms, which will draw some inspiration from the 1980s Padres, like the color scheme suggests, and will also allude to other some of the style choices of classic Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates teams. The team will also be introducing a mascot that will be named by fans.

The Wampus Cats are all about having a good time with friends and family in a safe, welcoming environment featuring competitive wood-bat baseball. Their roster will include college players, honing their skills over the summer months. And much of the roster will include players with connections to the area and North Carolina. Tickets start at $7 and will go on sale soon.