By WORTHY EVANS Contributing Writer Columbia - The Chapin baseball team got the season started with a bang. The Eagles won the IP Classic in Georgetown that played out March 6-9, beating James Island 10-5, Laurens 10-0, T.L. Hanna 8-4, and then beating Daniel 8-6 in the championship game. Senior first baseman Campbell Todd was named tournament MVP, and senior catcher Caden Reeves and senior third baseman/No.1 pitcher Ty Harper made the all-tournament team. Those three seniors lead the Eagles who finished 23-7 last year and look to finish with a run in the playoffs that was longer than last season’s early exit in the district tournament round. “We lost pretty much most of our pitching staff and outfield, all of them signed to play college baseball,” longtime head coach Scott McLeod said. “We’re rebuilding around those three starters, but we really have a good team. We have seven seniors who are good returning guys, guys with a lot of grit and good kids who can play well and pitch. I’m feeling pretty good about the season.” Reeves recently signed to play for Troy in Alabama. “He’s not only a threat with a bat but he’s also a defensive catcher, and I’m a little prejudiced but I think he’s the best in the state,” McLeod said. Harper returns at third and is the team’s ace and Todd returns at first and bats in the middle of the lineup. “Ty was the best pitcher last year and he’s a really good third baseman,” McLeod said. “Campbell’s a big tall kid, hits for average and power.” Senior infielders Bobby Gummere at shortstop and Tillman Scheno round out the infield. “Our infield defense is as good as it’s been, but we’re still putting some pieces together in the outfield,” McLeod said. Pitching is not a worry. Behind Harper on the mound is sophomore lefthander Mac Berry , junior Reese Jolly , junior Griff Harper , sophomore Cooper Derrick and junior Charlie Mejia . “Mac throws really well, as does Griff Harper, who’s a year behind his brother,” McLeod said. “He’s a very solid pitcher who threw well in the classic, along with Cooper and Charlie.” Senior Tyler Graham is the team’s closer. Among others, sophomore Brewer Haggard threw in all four Classic games. “Pitching isn’t an issue, and our infield defense is pretty good, and we can swing it good,” McLeod said. “We’ve just got to figure out the outfield.” The Eagles will find out how they fit in Region 4-5A pretty soon. State champion Lexington looks to return to the final series, while Dutch Fork and White Knoll break in new coaches— Darren Jones for the Silver Foxes and Dolan Crolley for the Timberwolves—look to revitalize those programs. Three teams—Dutch Fork, River Bluff , and the Wildcats—have won state championships since 2019. “Lexington is solid. Brian Hucks always has a good team. They’re always the team to beat in the region, but White Knoll is much improved, and River Bluff and Dutch Fork are good, and Irmo is off to a good start.”

Chapin girls, boys hanging in there By WORTHY EVANS Contributing Writer Columbia - The Chapin girls basketball team (11-13, 3-5 Region 4-5A) has been on the losing end more often than not this season, but it’s not because the Eagles haven’t been working. “I’ll be honest, our schedule has been really tough, filled with Top 10 teams,” head coach Chad Boland said. We’ve played Camden , played (1A No.3) Denmark - Olar twice, (5A Division 1 No.2) Blythewood twice, (5A Division I No.9 ) Dorman once, and that was before a tough region schedule. As far as losses, we’ve had more than we’ve wanted, but we’ve been a little bit more competitive than we have been.” Chapin has just two seniors on the team and a lot of young talent that has kept the Eagles afloat through a difficult schedule. Junior Reagan Haggard is the team’s leading scorer and rebounder, averaging 10.3 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. “Reagan been our leader since eighth grade. I think she’s led us in scoring all four years she’s been here,” Boland said. “She’s an all-around player. She’s played in all five positions, but she needs to be on the wing or in the post. We’ve had her at the point so her stats are a little down, but she can play any position.” Senior guard Brooke Holmes averages 8.7 points and four rebounds per game, and junior center Sami Stephenson , in her third year, averages 6.4 points and 5.5 rebounds and has been effective at getting the ball inside. Another point guard, freshman Mary Ann Woods , has not been a big scorer but she gets the ball distributed well, Boland said. The team’s other senior, guard Keke Wright averages 4.1 points and 2.5 rebounds but is the team leader. “Keke is the heart and soul of the team, very athletic,” Boland said. “She’s our best defensive player.” Some up and comers include sophomore forward Ava Love , and 6-foot sophomore center Atyria Douglas. “Ava really gives us a lift. She plays small forward but she also plays everywhere,” Boland said. “Atyria has taken the biggest leap. She’s only played basketball for a few years but she’s started half our games and has come off the bench. She can move people around the court.” Chapin looks to finish strong against Irmo Tuesday and at White Knoll Thursday, and if the Eagles finish in fourth place they may well get into the postseason. Regardless of how they finish, they have a good chance of getting better next season. “There’s no doubt they should be a pretty good team for the next couple of years, that’s the goal,” Boland said. “Yes, they’re young, but I’m tired of saying that. We’ve lost a couple of seniors every year, and it’s not a lie that we’re young, but it’s time to pick it up.”  The Chapin boys (8-15, 1-6) had already won more games than last year (6-18) at the start of region play. Since January the Eagles have had a rough go and are currently in fifth place, playing Irmo Tuesday and White Knoll Thursday.

Chapin's senior QB Brady Albro.

By WORTHY EVANS Contributing Write CHAPIN – While Region 4-5A contenders Dutch Fork and Irmo were battling for the region championship down I-26 Friday night, another region battle blew up in the fourth quarter at Cecil Woolbright Field. There, fourth-place White Knoll took a 21-7 lead on the Eagles early in the third quarter, but Chapin battled back and eventually defeated the Timberwolves 35-34. Anthony Turnbow scored three touchdowns for Chapin in the second half—a receiving score, an interception return for a touchdown, and a kickoff return for another TD. He had 176 all-purpose yards on the night, from the pick-6, the kickoff return, the touchdown reception, and 37 rushing yards. Besides Turnbow’s effort, Colione Martin rushed 21 times for 132 yards and a score, and quarterback Brady Albro had two interceptions but threw for 159 yards and a clutch TD pass to Turnbow. “Our kids really played really hard, we talked about trusting the process in all phases of the game and they came in together and didn’t give up on each other, which is really good,” Chapin head coach Ryan Cole said. “We had a couple of turnovers we created on defense, which was great, Cole Martin had a really good second half, the linemen tightened down, and Brady led them. I was happy that everybody came together at a time when we needed them to.” That need came after Turnbow’s TD reception and pick-6 tied the game at 21 by the one-minute mark into the fourth quarter. In a fantastic finish, both teams scored four touchdowns within one minute and 20 seconds late in the game. Chapin made it 28-21 on Gavin Stam’s 3-yard TD run at the 4:28 mark. Fifty-five seconds later, Jh’Quez Montgomery broke free for a 62-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 28 at the 3:53 mark. Special teams had a moment over the next minute. Turnbow broke free on his 76-yard return that gave Chapin a 35-28 lead with 3:40 to go. Then White Knoll’s Devin Geronomi took the Eagles kick to the end zone on an 85-yard romp with 3:28 left. Unfortunately for the Timberwolves, the game came down to extra points. Johnny Aguilera , who was 4-for-4 up until that point, missed the point after. Chapin took yet another kickoff, but this time ran out the clock and sealed its first region win of the year. “I’ve told our kids from time to time that I’ve been waiting for them to put it all together,” Cole said. “White Knoll is a good football team and they do some great things, and I’ll be excited to play them again.” Without senior staring quarterback Landon Sharpe , who did not play Friday, the White Knoll offense sputtered in the first quarter. The Timberwolves defense kept Chapin from capitalizing. Geronomi put White Knoll on the scoreboard with a 45-yard interception return at the 9:37 mark of the second quarter. The Eagles answered that pick-6 soon afterward, recovering a Timberwolves fumble at the White Knoll 34-yard line. Six plays later Martin burst into the end zone from two yards out to tie the game at 7. White Knoll had just two first downs in the game with about two minutes left in the first half, but took over the ball at midfield after a Chapin punt. Jhais McKeiver , a sophomore filling in for Sharpe, seemed to find his stride, connecting with Griffin for 11 yards first, then a 38-yard touchdown connection with Griffin 40 seconds before intermission. White Knoll took a 21-7 lead with McKeiver’s 15-yard touchdown pass to Griffin early in the second half, but Chapin awakened a Senior Night crowd with three Turnbow touchdowns and a wild ending. Montgomery finished the game with 103 yards on 19 carries for the Timberwolves. McKeiver threw two interceptions, but the sophomore passed for 173 yards and two TDs. The game’s result puts White Knoll, Chapin, and Lexington in a three-way tie at the bottom of the region standings. All three teams are 5-5 overall and 1-4 in the region. As Dutch Fork (10-0, 5-0) snapped 9-1, 4-1 Irmo’s 21-game regular-season winning streak dating back to October 2022, River Bluff (8-2, 3-2) finished third in the region with a 24-10 victory over the Wildcats. I’m hoping we’re in and I heard a rumor that we’re matching up with White Knoll again,” Cole said. “But we’re just excited to get the chance to play, and if we get the opportunity, we’ll be looking forward to it.”  White Knoll 0 14 7 13 – 34 Chapin 0 7 7 21 – 35 Second Quarter W - Devin Geronomi 45 interception return (Johnny Aguilera kick) 9:37 C - Colione Martin 2 run (Cooper Derrick kick) 4:39 W - Javon Griffin 38 pass from Jhais McKeiver (Aguilera kick) :40 Third Quarter W – Griffin 15 pass from McKeiver (Aguilera kick) 9:01 C – Anthony Turnbow 43 pass from Brady Albro (Derrick kick) 5:24 Fourth Quarter C – Turnbow 20 interception return (Derrick kick) 11:06 C – Gavin Stam 3 run (Derrick kick) 4:48 W – Jh’Quez Montgomery 62 run (Aguilera kick) 3:53 C – Turnbow 76 kickoff return (Derrick kick) 3:40 W – Geronomi 85 kickoff return (kick failed) 3:28 WK CHS First Downs 9 17 Rushes-yds 29-122 38-195 Passing yds 173 159 Att-Com-Int 18-10-2 29-17-2 Fumbles-lost 1-1 1-1 Penalties-yds 7-60 4-20 Punts-avg 6-36. 7 5-26.4 INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS RUSHING W – Jh’Quez Montgomery 20-103, Jhais McKeiver 4-6, Caleb Miller 3-4, Javon Griffin 2-7, James Smith 1-2. C – Colione Martin 21-132, Brady Albro 7-(-13), Anthony Turnbow 3-33, John Rossi 4-37, Gavin Stam 1-3, Team 2-3. PASSING W – Jhais McKeiver 10-18-2. C – Brady Albro 17-29-2. RECEIVING W – Javon Griffin 6-140, Jaylin Prior 2-20, James Smith 1-8, Caleb Geronomi 1-5. C – Khalen Bostic 7-45Stone Ferrey 3-17, Colione Martin 3-26, Connor Finney 2-24, Anthony Turnbow 1-43, Johnathan Sheppard 1-5.

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Hammond staying atop SCISA Class AAAA

Chapin QB Brady Albro

Willie Kennedy from South Florence, MLB with 29 tackles this season.

Chapin – Having worked and learned his craft under some quality mentors, Ryan Cole f eels he is ready for his first opportunity as a high school head football coach. Cole was named earlier this spring as Chapin High’s next coach, replacing Justin Gentry, who retired after 14 seasons at Chapin. Cole was Chapin’s defensive coordinator the last two seasons and seemed a logical fit to carry the torch. “I have been preparing and learning for this opportunity my entire life,” said Cole, who got his first taste of coaching as a graduate assistant at Clemson. “My dad was a coach. It’s in my blood to coach. All I have ever wanted to do is coach football. I have coached middle school ball, jayvee ball, been a position coach and a coordinator. Everything I have done is to prepare myself as a head coach and I am so excited about being the head football coach at Chapin.” Cole has worked under a few high school legends in his career. He spent time at Swansea, guided by championship winning coach Robert Maddox. He also worked at Chapin under Eddie Muldrow early in his career and worked under legend Tom Knotts at Dutch Fork. “I’ve been so fortunate to have worked under some legendary coaches and I have taken something from all of them, including my dad,” Cole said. As a defensive coordinator, Cole was highly energetic, pouring into his defensive players. As a head coach, he says he will still be high energy but will have to tone it down a bit. “I have to learn to pace myself,” he joked. “I have to focus on more things so I have to keep focused on all aspects of the team. One that that won’t change is the way we coach our kids. We are going to coach positively but still hold the kids accountable. We want our guys to be relentless with their effort, on the field, in the weightroom, in the classroom.” Cole has promoted inside linebackers coach Cal Sayger to the role of defensive coordinator while Jody Haltiwanger maintains his role as the offensive coordinator. A couple of new faces on the staff include outside linebackers coach Casey McWethy and inside linebackers coach Grady Sondgeroth. Jacoby Bush is new to the secondary and Andrew Drozdak is new to the offensive line. “Coach Gentry laid a great foundation for this program and my job is to build on what he did,” Cole said. “I am excited. The kids are buying in. They are excited too.” Chapin opens the season on Aug. 23 against Catawba Ridge.