We have a new independent summer-collegiate team playing out of Albemarle and North Carolina’s Uwharrie Region east of Charlotte: the Uwharrie Wampus Cats.
The Wampus Cats, owned by North Carolina-based Sullimak Entertainment, LLC, also owners of the Carolina Disco Turkeys, will compete against other summer collegiate teams in North Carolina and the surrounding region, as well as several games against their rival Disco Turkeys in a season of 40 games, beginning this May.
All Wampus Cats home games will be played at Albemarle’s Don Montgomery Park, located along U.S. 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 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 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.
Ahead of the season, the Wampus Cats will also be unveiling uniforms, which will draw some inspiration from the 1980s Padres, 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.