By Roger Lee Summerville – Pinewood Prep is working to continue the success it had on the baseball diamond last year. The Panthers are out to an 8-4 start with a 2-1 mark in region games. “It’s been a little bit of an up and down season,” Pinewood coach Jay Buddin said. “We’ve lost some games I thought we should have won and won some games that maybe we shouldn’t have. We are reasonably young.” Pinewood beat some good teams early this season. “We got beat by Cardinal Newman, who has a kid who throws really well and is going to Wofford,” Buddin said “We beat Ben Lippen and Hammond, which is always a state powerhouse. We beat First Baptist 17-2 and they turned around and beat us 1-0 the next night but we beat them 21-0 in the third game.” The Panthers’ other losses both came to Trinity Collegiate, which only has one loss this season. Pinewood handed Woodland its first loss of the season March 27 by a 9-0 margin. The Panthers’ other wins came over Dorchester Academy, Laurence Manning and Orangeburg Prep. Pinewood only lost four seniors from a team that set a new school record for wins and advanced to the semi-final round of the state playoffs last Spring. Three of those were pitchers. Dalton Bisbano , a College of Charleston commit who garnered Region Player of the Year honors in 2023, is back. The senior southpaw pitcher and outfielder was 8-0 on the mound last season with a 2.85 ERA and 76 K’s. Others also returned with varsity pitching experience. The Panthers will rely on as many as 12 pitchers this season. Senior right hander Zack Tyler is back after going 4-1 on the hill with a save and 56 strikeouts in 42 innings last season. Senior righties James Peterson , an Alabama State commit, and Zach Marasco have also returned. Junior southpaw Christopher Kabine and sophomores Will Watson, Max Poulakis and Jayden Alexander are challenging for meaningful innings on the bump as well. Buddin says freshman Camden Abernathy has grown considerably and will develop into a good arm. Abernathy and Poulakis are the only new faces in the varsity dugout. Senior Corley Watson took his junior year off for football recruiting but has now returned to challenge for playing time in the outfield as well as at first base. Marasco, junior Drew Hartig and sophomore Carson Good are vying for time at catcher. Junior Finley Taylor and sophomore Grady Fuller returned after making every start at shortstop and second base last year. However, Fuller suffered one of the key injuries the team is dealing with and may miss the rest of the season. “We still have three starters out but we are starting to get healthy,” Buddin said. “Hopefully we can get Dalton back throwing. He has been down a couple of weeks. Will Watson and Chris Kabine are injured be we hope to get them back soon.” Poulakis and Good are also spending time in the hot corner while Peterson, Tyler and senior Tyler Backman combine with Corley Watson to handle first-base duties. Corley Watson, Bisbano and Marasco are all veteran outfielders and Peterson’s speed makes him a good option in the grass.  Through the first 10 games of the season, Peterson is leading the team at the plate with a .480 average and Poulakis has a .444 average. Bisbano, who hit .448 last season, carried a .313 average through those games while Hartig hit .300, Marasco hit .294 and Good hit .242. Will Watson, who had a .473 batting average last season, is expected to contribute more once healed. Pinewood opens the HIT at 5 p.m. April 1 when it plays St. Pius X Catholic School from Atlanta at Summerville High. The winner of the Summerville-Great Bridge, Va. first-round game will then play Pinewood April 2 at Summerville. The Panthers will then turn their focus to closing out their region schedule with a pair of three-game series against Northwood Academy and Porter-Gaud.

By Roger Lee HSSR Contributing Writer Summerville – The Pinewood Prep Boys won twice as many basketball games as they lost this season, but it wasn’t enough to get them the finish they were shooting for. The Panthers finished the season with a 22-11 record. The team was 15-6 when point guard Jonathan Slawson went down with a season-ending foot injury. Pinewood coach Pat Eidson says that was a huge loss. “It’s a lot like a football team losing their quarterback,” Eidson said. “He not only was our team leader but he also was our energy guy. We fought hard to offset his loss but his injury certainly changed our season.” Before the injury, Slawson was averaging 9.2 points, 4.4 assists, 2.9 steals and 2.3 rebounds per game. The Panthers were 7-5 the rest of the way and were eliminated from the playoffs with a 53-47 loss to Trinity Collegiate in the first round. The Panthers returned several starters at the beginning of the season and had good depth so it wasn’t the ending to the season many envisioned. However, while the team will graduate some talented seniors, Slawson and several other key contributors are expected to return for the next campaign. Senior Michael Jones led the team in scoring while freshman Tripp Eidson and senior Za’Qari Heath were the team’s leading rebounders. Sophomore Jayden Alexander moved from shooting guard to point guard and led the team in steals. Jones, Alexander and Eidson were selected to the All-Region team. “ Michael Jones did a great job providing us with consistent scoring and was a much improved rebounder and defender from his junior season,” Eidson said. “ Jayden Alexander was our best on ball defender and seemed to always come up with a big play when we needed it. Tripp Eidson , as a freshman, was huge on the boards and led the team in blocked shots and field goal percentage.” The coach also has high praise for several other members of his team. “Senior Troy Dandridge was our glue guy throughout the season,” he said. “He was such a versatile player we had to have him on the floor. Arden Murray, Briland Morgan and Steele Robinson gave us a lot of valuable minutes this season. Freshman Kais Parris improved throughout the season and should also play a big role on next year’s team.” Jones finished as the Panthers’ leading scorer, averaging 15.6 points per game. Alexander averaged 9.2 points per game while Heath averaged 7.2 and Tripp Eidson averaged 5.7. Murray, Dandridge and Robinson all averaged 3 or more points per game. Alexander averaged 3.2 steals per game and Jones averaged 2. Heath averaged 7.3 rebounds per game while Eidson averaged 6.9 rebounds per game and Dandridge averaged 6.8. Jones and Robinson were also among the team’s leading rebounders. Eidson had 63 blocks this season while Dandridge had 36 and Jones had 24. Other members of the team are Tre Arena, Asa Windham, Terrance Stallworth, Preston Heath, Jason Ochieng and Pascal Ochieng . Lady Panthers The Lady Panthers were eliminated from the playoffs Feb. 16 with a 51-37 loss to Augusta Christian in the opening round. Pinewood finishes with a 3-22 record while Augusta Christian improved to 20-8.

Receiver/defensive back Jack Burnett is one of the play makers expected to return for the Pinewood Prep Football team next season. Photo by Roger Lee

Eagles will face Wilson Hall for state championship on Saturday

Roger Lee Summerville – Pinewood Prep is having a lot of success in the pool this Fall. “As coaches we have been really impressed with how well our teams are doing this season,” Pinewood Prep coach Jessica Archambault said. “To be such a small team, 13 girls and 14 boys, we have held our own against some bigger, and stronger teams.” The Panthers’ swimmers claimed a pair of Top 3 finishes Sept. 23 during the 2023 Wilson Hall Invitational Sept. 23 in Sumter. The Pinewood Girls placed second out of 10 teams while the Pinewood Boys placed third out of 13 teams. Overall, the Panthers’ team placed second. “The work ethic this group has is outstanding and we have seen vast improvement in skills across both groups,” Archambault said. “With no seniors, and some young swimmers, we look forward to the growth we will see in the years to come.” Beckham Touchberry won multiple events and helped multiple Pinewood relay teams to a first place finish. He won the Boys 200 IM with a 2:22.54 time while his teammate, Gabin Moreau (2:42.39), placed fifth. In the 100 Freestyle, Touchberry placed first with a 55.39 time. Trailing in the event were Cameron Thrower (1:02.78) in sixth placed, Hayden Presley (1:07.36) in ninth place and Orren Finch (1:08.67) in 10th place. Chris Kabine won the Boys 200 Freestyle with a 2:06.68 time. Trailing in the event were Carson Good (2:09.97) in second place, Finch (2:31.40) in eighth place and Presley (2:50.67) in 10 th place. Kabine also placed fifth in the 100 Butterfly with a 1:04.94 time while Gabin Moreau (1:14.69) placed eighth. Good also placed fourth in the 100 Breaststroke with a 1:17.62 time. Touchberry, Kabine, Good and Cameron Thrower teamed up to win the 200 Medley Relay with a 1:53.33 time and the 200 Free Relay with a 1:39.54 time. Thrower, Moreau, Presley, and Finch teamed up to place third in the 400 Free Relay with a 4:56.38 time. During the Girls meet, Pinewood’s Marlie Crosby won multiple events. She won the 50 Free with a 26.92 time and the 500 Free with a 6:07.56 time. Amelie Bueno placed eighth in the 100 Free with a 1:14.41 time and 10 th in the 100 Breast with a 1:38.93 time. Pinewood’s Ari Perry , Autumn O’Connor , Emily Petras and Gwyneth Seery teamed up to win the 200 Medley Relay with a 2:29.09 time. Pinewood hosted the 2023 Pinewood Invitational at the North Charleston Aquatic Center Sept. 16. Twelve teams participated in the meet. Porter-Gaud took first place overall with a score of 272 points. Summerville placed second overall with 231 points and Pinewood Prep took third place overall with a score of 99.5 points. The Pinewood Boys placed third and the Pinewood Girls placed seventh.  Panthers Skeet Shooters Pinewood claimed the top two prizes during the National Skeet Shooting Association’s South Carolina State Skeet Championship Sept. 15-17. More than 75 competitors participated. Once all the scores were tallied, two Pinewood athletes were tied for the High Overall. Robert Dudley and Anneleise Phinney both broke 393 targets out of 400. This set the stage for a shoot-off, which Dudley won to be buckled as the SC State Skeet Champion. As the runner-up, Phinney will join Dudley later this month in San Antonio, Texas, to compete in the World Skeet Championship . Panthers Football Pinewood Prep defeated Pee Dee Academy 63-14 to claim its third consecutive victory and improve to 3-3 on the season Sept. 29. The Panthers are 3-0 against SCISA AAA teams. The Panthers use a two-quarterback system. Sophomore Will Watson has completed 47 passes for 726 yards and 10 touchdowns. Junior Asa Windham has completed 17 passes for 365 yards and 4 TDs. Watson also leads Pinewood in rushing, averaging 105.2 yards per game. Grayson Salego averages 66.5 yards and Windham averages 28.3. Terrance Stallworth is the team’s leading receiver and averages 67.7 yards per game. Troy Dandridge averages 61.8 and Jack Burnett averages 36.8. Linebacker Corley Watson is the leading tackler, averaging 9.3 tackles per game. Connor White averages 8.2 and Zack Tyler averages 6. J.T. King has seven sacks on the season while Tyler has 4 and Samuel Gross has 3.