Barnwell overcomes early 5-run deficit to pick up 15-9 baseball win over Woodland

Charleston – Playing in a conference that includes two of the state’s powerhouses, wins can be hard to come by for the Ashley Hall soccer team. Add in a difficult slate of non-region games against bigger public schools, and the Panthers certainly have to scratch and claw for whatever success comes their way. The 2024 regular season is complete and Ashley Hall’s record of 7-10 does not look that bad in its totality. Coach Christian Alcantara has seen his team improve and develop throughout the spring with only three seniors in the starting lineup. The only goal remaining for this season is to earn a spot in the SCISA AAAA state playoffs. Getting a postseason win would cap off the season. “This group has a solid balance of skill, athleticism, and experience and we expect that to help us reach the second round of playoffs this year,” the coach reports. Four of Ashley Hall’s losses came to state powers Pinewood Prep and Porter-Gaud, losing twice to each program. The region foes played each other for the state title last season and Pinewood Prep has won the last two state titles. The Panthers also lost to three SCHSL Class AAAAA programs, falling to Spartanburg, Stratford and Cane Bay, and suffered another loss to AAAA public school Bluffton during the regular season. The three starting senior leaders this spring are forward Martha Rivers, defensive back Anna Strickland, and goalkeeper Abby White. Joining Rivers up front as offensive threats are junior Kate Coker and sophomore Catherine Clark. Anchoring the midfield area are juniors Iris Steigman and Dia Timko, along with freshman newcomer Molly Mettler. Joining Strickland as a leader in the back are three eighth-graders – Gray Phillips, Annie Morrison and Wells Phillips. Timko and Catherine Perkins also perform key roles as defenders. Lynden Taylor and Eliza Willis are two newcomers that have been able to contribute this spring.

Holly Hill – While playing a schedule consisting mostly of bigger schools, the early season record for the Holly Hill Academy baseball team was nothing to brag about. However, things have turned around considerably for the 2024 Raiders and a strong finish has them contending for the SCISA Class A state title. The Raiders opened the playoffs with a two-game sweep of Laurens Academy in a best-of-three series. The wins pushed the overall record to 10-6 and the Raiders have advanced to the semi-final round, which begins on May 6. “We played a pretty tough schedule, several AA schools, and some of those are playing still,” head coach Andy Green said. “I was never worried about the record. I just wanted us to get better each week and be playing our best baseball at the right time. I like to the fact that we seem to be peaking at the right time.” The sweep of Laurens Academy pushed Holly Hill Academy’s winning streak to six games. That included a win over AA Dorchester Academy, a team in the mix for the AA state title. Green says his team is not one that hits homers out of the park but has been efficient at manufacturing runs. The pitching, he says, only needs a few runs to give the Raiders a chance to win. Anchoring the pitching staff are juniors Ashton Soles and Mason Connor, a transfer from nearby Branchville High School. Soles has been one of the top hurlers for the last three seasons while Connor has come in and provided several quality starts. Senior Mason Rudd would be a third option on the bump but Green prefers to use Rudd at his best position, catcher. Rudd is the lone senior among the starting lineup this spring. Freshman Tyler Green is starting at first base and provides offense in the middle of the lineup. Junior Mason McGriff is starting at second base while Connor is the regular shortstop and a sterling defensive performer. Junior Jody Gilliam is starting at third and has been a solid performer after not playing baseball for a few years. Junior Jonathan Boyd leads the team offensively with a .480 batting average while patrolling left field. Soles plays center when not pitching with Braden Mizzell filling in when Soles is on the mound. Freshman Parker Kizer starts in right field. Should the Raiders advance to the state championship series the likely opponent will be perennial contender Richard Winn. “I like our chances with the way we are playing and with our mindset right now,” Green said.

LMA's Ian Harris, Wyatt Powell win classes in speed and strength state competition

By Billy G. Baker Publisher Barnwell — A year later, the Barnwell Warhorses (20-2) softball team, enters the Class AA softball playoffs on May, 1 better prepared, having closed out the 2024 regular season with four wins in five days against Aiken, Williston Elko, Silver Bluff and Branchville . Barnwell will host Lake Marion On May, 1 in the first game of the AA playoffs. The Warhorses are in District 7 along with Andrews and North Central . Branchville will host Green Sea-Floyds on May, 1 and they are in District 7 that also includes Johnsonville and Charleston Science & Math . After the win over Branchville head Barnwell coach Mike Beasley told the HSSR , “Last year we only played 14 games prior to the playoffs starting and this year we have already played 22 games going into the playoffs,” said Coach Beasley. “This is by far my best record as a coach going into the playoffs and I am not sure how many 20-win softball seasons Barnwell has had over the years either. “Our motto, we recently came up, with is that “We start together and we finish Together”,” said Coach Beasley who will serve as a head softball coach in the North-South all-star games scheduled for Lexington High May, 29-20. “Last year we had some rain-outs and played very few games after Spring break so this year we beefed up the back end of our schedule. We feel battle tested and more prepared entering the playoffs last year. We are hoping to avoid an early exit in the playoffs this year like what happened last year.” Branchville is coached by former two-time HSSR all-state performer Kristen Hicks when she played at Bamberg-Ehrhardt High. “This was a great tune=up for us for the playoffs,” said Coach Hicks. “We probably will not face a pitcher like Devore until we get deep in the playoffs and that is our goal. We always play Barnwell two or three times a season and our games with them are always within one to three runs of each other. “We like to play a very competitive schedule and we are excited to have been back-to-back region champions,” said Coach Hicks. “We feel pretty good about our pitcher ( Kylie Starns ). I call her our Bulldog. She has good velocity and a good curve ball. She has matured a lot and she finally understands it is okay to walk a few people as well as hanging it over the plate. She’s our team leader and she is going to USC Union to play next year.” Devore now has 191 strike-outs on the year entering the playoffs. The 3-1 win over Branchville, to close out the regular season on April, 26, was a true pitcher’s duel between Barnwell junior Jaidyn Devore and senior Kylie Starnes of the Jackets. Devore had 16 strike-outs and allowed on only one hit and one walk in pitching all seven innings. Starnes had 10 strike-outs but she gave up six hits, walked three batters and hit two others, and these free passes gave Barnwell the edge in the very competitive game. Barnwell took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning after freshman Laney Grubbs walked and advanced to second on a single by Bre’anna Buckmon . A power alley double by Devore brought in both Grubbs and Buckmon. In the top of the fourth Branchville scored their only run of the game. Cadence McAlhaney reached on an error and moved to second on the bad throw. She advanced to third on a passed ball and scored on the only RBI single of the game by sophomore Anna Win Berry. Barnwell added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth after Starns had struck-out the first two batters. Right fielder Kendall O’Berry ripped a double to the fence and scored on an RBI single by Tamirah Williams . In the final two innings Devore fanned five of the six batters she faced. Through 20 games, Devore was Barnwell’s top hitter at .614 with 26 RBI’s, 8 doubles, three triples and one home run. Devore is 14-1 in the circle to date with a 0.75 ERA. Abigail Corley is next on the hit index at .457 with 14 RBI’s, three triples and one home run. Buckmon, an outstanding senior catcher is batting ,382 with 15 RBI’s, three doubles and two triples, will be playing in the North-South all-star game hosted at Lexington High May 29-30. Other top Warhorse hitters include Grubbs at .358 including 15 RBI’s and a home run. Senior left fielder Kahmiyah Williams is batting .308 with 10 RBI’s and a triple and senior Janicka Jenkins is hitting .300 with five RTBI’s and two doubles. Junior utility performer Tierra Arnold is at .296 with 20 RBI’s including three doubles and two home runs. Junior third baseman Brooklyn Gordan is also at .296 with 9 RBI’s and five doubles. O’Berry is at .250 with 9 RBI’s. For Branchville the top hitter to date is Berry at .349 including 14 RBI’s. Starns will also be on the North-South team as a pitcher. In 78.2 innings of work she has 106 K’s and a 1.44 ERA.

Irmo – The 2024 state championships for SCHSL lacrosse were decided on Apr. 27 at Irmo High School with former state champions returning to glory. Former state champion Chapin beat Fort Mill, 13-4, in the Class AAAAA girls championship contest. Wando, which won a state title two years ago, won it’s seventh overall as they knocked off defending state champion Nation Ford, 17-7, for the AAAAA boys title. Bishop England won its seventh title in eight years with a 22-2 victory over Riverside in the AAAA girls final, while Lucy Beckham’s boys won their third straight title with an 8-3 win over Greenville. Chapin beats Fort Mill, 13-4, for AAAAA girls lacrosse title; first since 2019 Chapin (18-2) won its first title since 2019 and did so in dominating fashion all season. The Eagles knocked off two-time defending state champion Wando in the Lower Sate finals. Chapin also defeated Fort Mill during the regular season. The best AAAAA player in the state, Ava Grace Collins, tallied three goals to give her 95 goals on the season. “This feels so amazing, to be able to accomplish this with my best friends,” Collins said. “We have been working so hard for this. It feels surreal. Just so proud of every player because they work so hard too.” Brooke Holmes also scored three times, all in the first half, while Jules Brown scored four times in the second half. “After we beat Wando we knew that we could win today,” Brown said. “We came into this game really confident because we had beaten them in season. Confidence came a very long way for us this year. We knew that if we played the way we played on Tuesday (vs. Wando) we were unstoppable. We finally did it.” Fort Mills’s Cece Shia, a freshman, scored three goals for the Yellow Jackets (13-6). Fort Mill opened the scoring with an early goal but Chapin had the answer, many answers in fact. The Eagles scored 10 unanswered goals, taking a 7-1 halftime lead. Fort Mill scored a goal in the third and another in the fourth but could not contain Chapin’s offensive attack as Brown scored three times in the final period to put the contest on ice. “These girls have worked so hard for this, for four years, and to see it come to fruition is amazing,” Chapin coach Raven Thomas said. “We knew we were state champions as soon as the open season started. We purposely played the toughest schedule we’ve ever seen so that every game would be just as hard as the state finals. “We’ve been cut short so many times before there was nothing that was going to get in this team’s way today, We went out to win every quarter.” Bishops dominate Riverside in AAAA girls finale, 22-2 Bishop England was denied an opportunity to win a seventh consecutive state championship by the SCHSL in 2023 and left no doubt in 2024. The program was found to have used an ineligible player early last season, leading to five forfeits of wins. Bishop England did not lose a game on the field but the forfeits ultimately left the Bishops out of the state playoffs last spring. The forfeits also ended a 98-game winning streak, a streak that extended to 117 straight contests with the perfect 19-0 season. “We would have won it last year, I truly believe that,” Bishops coach Jeff Weiner said. “We were really good and we returned nine seniors this year. We certainly felt we were the best team in the state and we played all the good teams. This team simply refused to lose. Their work ethic and focus has been amazing.” Seniors Bo Rosato and Izzy Woods led the offensive onslaught with six and five goals, respectively. Woods, Rosato and fellow senior Nini Clarke scored early goals to put the pressure on Riverside. The Warriors tallied their lone goal of the first-half late in the first quarter but Bishop England ran off 10 straight goals for a commanding 13-1 advantage at the half. Bishop England allowed just two goals per game this season and goalie Lizzie Tompkins and her defensive mates in the back were again dominant. “Defense was our calling card all season,” Weiner said. “Best defensive team I’ve coached.” Weiner left his seniors on the field for the duration of the contest, giving them a chance to soak up the victory that they missed last season. “They earned the right to be on the field when the buzzer sounded,” the coach said. “It was a fitting end for them. They are a remarkable group.” Rosato, who will attend John Hopkins University in the fall, says Saturday is a day she will never forget. “This is really special, more special than the previous ones,” she said. “We came in very confident. We never get too cocky. We stay focused and we stay together. We were ready to go today.” Riverside coach Thomas Riley says his team ran into a better team. Riverside finished 17-3 this season. “It’s our third appearance in four years,” Riley said. “It’s a honor and a privilege to coach these girls in this game. What coach Weiner has done with that program is incredible. “We were loose. Just a matter of being able to hold on to the ball, which we didn’t do. It all starts with winning the draw and we had a lot of trouble with that today.” Wando captures eighth state title with win over defending champions Wando won its eighth state title in boys lacrosse, avenging a loss to Nation Ford in the finals last season. Offensive balance was again the key to success with several players scoring multiple goals in a 17-7 win. Connor Carretta led the way with four goals. Luke Moore and Connor Bennett each tallied three goals while Sean Carroll, Harris Beck and Bragg McConnell each scored two goals. “The good start was the key to game, that was our game plan, to jump on them,” Wando coach Lance Renes said. “Our objective was to get a jump on them and never stop. “We don’t focus on payback. We just focus on the task at hand. We have a lot of respect for their program but this was all about us.” Wando wasted no time taking control of the game, scoring three goals in the first four minutes for an early lead. After Nation Ford cracked the scoreboard, the Warriors went on a 5-0 run and led 8-1 after the first quarter. “We knew we had to jump on them really quickly,” Moore said. “Momentum is everything in state championship. It was good to get up early and we kept the momentum throughout the game. We were not going to lose this game.” Nation Ford rallied to tighten the game at 11-6 but the Warriors had an answer and put the game away with a solid fourth quarter. “We were a hard team to defend. The offense is well-rounded,” Renes said. “When you have that much have strength, it’s very tough. That speaks to our culture and how we like to play team lacrosse.” Nation Ford coach Cory Turner lost eight seniors from last year’s championship team but the Falcons got hot late in the season to earn another trip to the finals. “Wando is too good. If you get burned they are going to expose you. They did that today,” Turner said. “They have a great program. I would expect next year we will be right back in the thick of things. I really like what we will have coming back. This was our rebuilding year. We knew that. We put it together late and were able to get here. Eventually, next year, it will pay off.” Lucy Beckham sends coach to new job with third straight title Lucy Beckham coach Parker Ferrigan has coached his last game at the program he started in 2021. Ferrigan went out in style with a third consecutive state title and the Bengals did not lose to an in-state school over the last three seasons. “Our team was so dedicated and so focused on winning this for coach,” senior Ryan McCarthy said. “He did so much for all of us and he started the program from scratch. We all owe him a lot and we’re glad we could do this for him.” Ferrigan is headed to a new coaching position in Tennessee but watched his 2024 team close out a season that almost wasn’t. Due to an offseason rules violation, Lucy Beckham was initially banned from postseason play by the SCHSL. The school won an appeal before the state’s appellate panel in February and had their postseason opportunity reinstated, though they did suffer other sanctions. “I think we are grateful that we had an opportunity to finish with everything that was going on,” Ferrigan said, “I think it made us appreciate everything a lot. Everything we went through brought us together and made us stronger. Really proud of these guys.” The championship contest was competitive throughout but Lucy Beckham never trailed. Sophomore Nolan Elwood scored two first half goals and Colton Bennett added a score to put the Bengals up 3-0 midway through the second period. After Greenville scored to cut the lead to 3-1, the Bengals scored twice in the final two minutes on goals by McCarthy and Web Perry. Perry’s crucial goal came with less than a second remaining in the first half. Each team scored once in the third period with Griff Berry giving the Bengals a 6-2 lead moving into the fourth quarter. The Raiders got a goal from Capers Gross to make it 6-3 but Beckham’s Austin Constable answered to make it 7-3 with 8:03 remaining in the contest. Two minutes later Wyatt Coombs made it 8-3. “I don’t think many people in the state expected us to come out and fight like hell,” Greenville coach Andrew Tillman said. “Our kids played hard. We believed in ourselves and believed in the type of team we were. Offensively, we missed some shots that we normally don’t but you have to credit Lucy Beckham’s defense. They’re a quality team.”

Championship series in all four classes set for May 13, 14 and 16

Stallions eighth-grade pitcher Abby Ward sets school record for strikeouts in a season

Molly Jones wins 4 events for girls; Hugh Humphries, Tucker Burnette lead boys

Tigers, Wildcats open state playoffs on May 1