History of The Charlotte Royals
In the Spring of 1982, Sgt. Ernie Russ of the Charlotte Police Department asked Rod Seaford, a friend who had coached Ernie's son in a local recreation league, to organize a team to play in the NC 19/u AAU Tournament.
Seaford enlisted Carl Ballard, a teacher at Central Piedmont Community College, and Bruce Kreutzer, varsity basketball coach at Garinger High School. Working through other high school coaches, they invited 50 Mecklenburg County athletes to come out for the team.
As they waited for the first practice, the men wondered whether they would have enough players for a team That worry quickly ended when 36 candidates showed up. It was decided to enter 2 teams, one coached by Kreutzer, the other by Seaford.
Two weeks later, the teams traveled to Winston-Salem to participate in the single elimination tournament. Four hours later, both squads headed home with losses. The Yanceyville Racers thumped Seaford’s “Hornets”. The "Metros" lost a one-point overtime thriller to the Patterson Y from Winston-Salem.
The Hornets were mostly underclassmen, and included seven players from Garinger. The Metros were led by Tony White, Jeff McGill, Chris Brown and current Royals coach, Mike Ward.
There was nowhere else to play, but despite the losses, the players and coaches saw great possibilities, and Seaford and Russ began planning for the next year. In 1983 the club volunteered to serve as tournament host the 19/u tournament in Charlotte. A 17/u team was selected also. That team finished 2nd in the State tournament in High Point, and the 19/u "Metros" finished 2nd in Charlotte. Tony White set a tournament scoring record with 47 points, giving the fans a glimpse of the talent that would make him a 2,000-point scorer at the University of Tennessee.
The club incorporated as a non-profit in 1983 as The Charlotte Amateur Basketball Union, Inc. (CABU). In 1984, the 17/u and 19/u teams each finished 2nd to rivals from Winston-Salem. But in '85, the 17/u "Hornets" won the club's first state championship, defeating the Winston-Salem Club now known as the "Winston Lake Lakers". Players included Maurice Caldwell, Terry Massey, Kevin Reid, Lance Jones, Tony Burris, John White, Roman Phifer and Casey Potts.
The next week the 17-year-old champs advanced in the finals at the 19/u tournament. But there they met their club mates, the Metros. The seniors took the championship behind future NBA guards Haywood Workman and Byron Dinkins (others: Paul Grier, Mike Gurley - head coach at West Rowan High School, and Milton Moore).
The AAU program was growing rapidly. New age divisions were added and additional tournaments sprouted. In 1986 CABU added younger age teams and won state championships in the 11/u, 12/u and 17/u divisions. These teams were also the first club representatives to compete in boys’ National tournaments. When the 17/u team defeated Alonzo Mourning's Hampton, Virginia team at Georgetown, the Charlotte players knew they could compete at the top AAU level.
1st National Championship
Seaford began the NCAAU girls program in 1983 when he organized a 3-team tournament that played at the same time as the boys’ 19/u teams. In '85 the girls "Monarchs" won the first state title for the club. Behind All-American Andrea Stinson, the "Monarchs" traveled to Connecticut and swept the 1986 18/u Girls National Championship. Angie Siefert was the head coach, and she was assisted by Rod Seaford and Barbara Nelson (now head coach at Providence Day School). (Players Andrea Stinson, Rhonda Mapp, Schonna Banner, Kellie Kennedy, Ann Walters, Christa Hill, Tonya Edwards) In 1988 the girls were organized as a separate club. The Charlotte Gems competed successfully for several years. Although CABU has sometimes affiliated with girls’ teams in recent years, the club has elected to concentrate on boys’ teams since 1988. Royals Nickname Selected CABU had given its teams different nicknames during its early years of operation; the 19/u Metros, and 17/u Hornets. In 1988 it was decided that all teams would be known as The Royals, and the club colors of royal blue, orange and white were adopted as well. The distinctive orange and blue is recognized throughout the country as Royals teams have now competed in dozens of National Tournaments in 14 states. Royals Reign Throughout the 1990s and into the 21st century, the Royals established themselves as one of the nation’s top clubs. Four more national championships, frequent state championships, regular Top 10 National placements and numerous other successes, have brought national recognition to the club. The Royals team has played against opponents from 44 states, the District of Columbia, Belgium, The Bahamas, and Russia.