Tom Embrey has been named sports editor of The Pilot.

Editor Steve Bouser announced the appointment Wednesday. Embrey replaces longtime Sports Editor Hunter Chase, who became The Pilot's online editor two weeks ago.

Embrey has served as acting sports editor since then.

"Tom brings a lot of experience to the position," Bouser said. "Hunter is a tough act to follow, but Tom is an incredibly versatile guy. We are lucky to have someone of his caliber on the staff, and we expect great things from the Sports Department under his leadership."

Embrey, who has been a staff writer for The Pilot since moving from McKinney, Texas, in March 2007, has been a staff writer covering education and the villages of Pinehurst and Whispering Pines for the paper.

"He's hardly missed a beat moving from news to sports," Bouser said.

Embrey called the transition to the new job "interesting," adding that Chase and the sports staff have made it a lot easier. He expressed his eagerness to build on Chase's foundation and make the sports pages even bigger and better by improving Web coverage and getting out to a variety of schools and games.

"I am excited," Embrey said. "I think there's a lot of potential here, and the Sports Department still has room to grow. I want to be fair and accurate with everyone and cover all schools and sports to the best of our ability."

Embrey takes over the sports editor job during one of the busier sports summers in recent memory. The U.S. Kids Championship and U.S. Amateur are taking place at Pinehurst Resort within the next month. Sandhills Community College has just recently launched its new intercollegiate athletic program. On top of all that, the fall sports season is gearing up at the local high schools throughout the county.

Embrey plans to create a tabloid Fall Sports Preview to be distributed with the paper before the season begins. It would be the first of its kind at The Pilot.

"We intend for it to be a quality publication," Embrey said.

Contact John Krahnert III at 693-2473 or by e-mail at jkrahnert3@gmail.com