Campus Alert Archive
Wingate

When the Youth Baseball Game on Wingate's Field Got a Shooter Inside His Own Truck

NCshootingemergency notificationmedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

On the evening of June 28, 2024, a man drove erratically down Wilson Street, crashed his pickup into a ditch near Wingate University's baseball field during a youth baseball game, fired multiple shots inside the cab — injuring himself — then jumped the fence onto the field. Wingate issued a campus-wide lockdown via its Bulldog Alerts system around 7 PM EDT that lasted approximately one hour before the all-clear was issued.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
1
Institution
Wingate University
Private Masters · NC
~3,300 studentsWingate Alert (Bulldog Alerts)
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence · 2 verified verbatim

INITIAL ALERTSMS
Verified verbatimQCNews coverage quoting Wingate Alert verbatim264 chars
Urgent Wingate Alert! The lockdown remains in place. Law enforcement is investigating a shooting that took place at the baseball field. One person is in custody. Police confirm that the incident does not involve a member of the Wingate University campus community.
Sent during the active phase of the lockdown, after Wingate Police had isolated the shooter on the baseball field
Notably reassures the campus that 'the incident does not involve a member of the Wingate University campus community' — a calculated decision to reduce panic among students and parents at the youth baseball game
Uses 'Urgent Wingate Alert!' header — Wingate's escalation marker for active-threat messaging
ALL CLEARSMS+55 min
Verified verbatimQCNews coverage quoting Wingate Alert verbatim184 chars
Urgent Wingate Alert! There is no longer a threat to campus. Please stay away from the baseball field as law enforcement continues to investigate. More information will be forthcoming.
Lifts the lockdown but maintains an active perimeter around the baseball field, where Vonegidy was being processed and his disabled pickup remained in the ditch
Uses the phrase 'no longer a threat' — Wingate's standard all-clear phrasing, also used in subsequent May 2025 lockdown
Promises follow-up communication but does not name the suspect (Vonegidy was not identified publicly until July 3)
Context

Background

Around 7 PM EDT on June 28, 2024, a youth baseball game on Wingate University's baseball field was interrupted when a man — later identified as Weston Parker Charles Vonegidy — drove erratically down Wilson Street, drove his pickup truck into a ditch near the field, fired several rounds inside the cab, hurting himself, then jumped the fence onto the field. Parents and children fled in panic. Wingate police and Union County deputies responded quickly; the shooter was apprehended and airlifted to a hospital with his self-inflicted gunshot wounds. Wingate issued a campus-wide lockdown via its Bulldog Alerts SMS system and lifted it about an hour later. Vonegidy, who was not affiliated with Wingate, faced weapons and drug charges. The incident was the second armed-attacker lockdown at Wingate within six months — following the January 12, 2024 knife attack on a student — and reinforced the recurring pattern at the small Union County campus of non-affiliated attackers wandering onto open athletic grounds. A third Wingate lockdown followed in May 2025 over reports of a masked gunman at Helms Residence Hall.
Analysis

Key Findings

Both Wingate Alert messages led with 'Urgent Wingate Alert!' — a consistent escalation marker the school uses for active-threat events
The initial alert explicitly reassured the campus community that the shooter was not affiliated with Wingate, a calculated decision to manage panic at the active youth-baseball event on campus
The shooter's wounds were entirely self-inflicted; no spectators or players at the game were hurt despite multiple rounds fired
This was Wingate's second armed-attacker lockdown of 2024, both involving non-affiliated attackers accessing the open campus
Outcome
The shooter — later identified as Weston Parker Charles Vonegidy, not affiliated with Wingate — was airlifted to a hospital with self-inflicted gunshot wounds and taken into custody. No one at the baseball game was injured. He faced weapons and drug charges.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Wingate University campus safe following shooting lockdown (QCNews)
    qcnews.com
  2. News
    Man hurt by own gun after firing during youth baseball game at Wingate University (WCNC)
    wcnc.com
  3. News
    Officials: Man fires multiple rounds during baseball game at Wingate University (WBTV)
    wbtv.com
  4. News
    Gunfire sends a youth baseball game into a panic at Wingate University (WSOC TV)
    wsoctv.com
  5. News
    Man facing weapon and drug charges in shooting near Wingate University's baseball field (Yahoo)
    yahoo.com
Tags
shootingnorth-carolinaprivate-collegeself-inflictedlockdownnon-affiliated-attackerathletic-venuewingate
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion