Hanahan's sophomore guard Bri Johnsen.

Loris RB Deuce Stephens

By Rob Gantt Special to the HSSR HANAHAN – Hanahan High School’s football team improved to 3-3 on the season with a 29-28 victory over Andrews High School Sept. 25 in a non-region clash played two days before impacts from Hurricane Helene. The Hawks were set to begin the Region 6-3A slate Oct. 4 against Lowcountry power Oceanside Collegiate , which captured a 2A state title in 2023 before moving up in the 2024-26 realignment. After Oceanside, the Hawks go to Orangeburg-Wilkinson Oct. 11 in their final road game of the regular season. They host North Charleston and Battery Creek and Oct. 25 and Nov. 1. The win over Andrews was the Hawks’ second in a row. Running back Travis Neal continued to make his mark in the ground game, carrying 16 times for 84 yards and two scores (5 and 15 yards). A week earlier, Neal ripped off 120 yards rushing and scored on a 25-yard run in a 23-6 victory at Timberland . Also against the Yellow Jackets, freshman quarterback Tripp Gallus made his second successful start. He connected on 7 of 11 passes for 97 yards and hooked up with talented receiver Dru Goldsmith on a 33-yard touchdown. Goldsmith finished with six grabs and 96 yards versus Andrews. Tre Shepard chipped in a rushing score for the Hawks. In his first varsity start, Gallus hit on 11 of 17 passes for 95 yards and connected with Shepard on a 26-yard touchdown catch. Gallus also got loose down the sideline for a 36-yard touchdown versus the Wolves. Goldsmith hauled in six passes for 55 yards against the Wolves. The Hanahan defensive unit also had a stellar outing against its rival from St. Stephen, producing five takeaways. Antwain Mitchell recovered two fumbles, while Landen Ritchie and Aiden Greenwalt added fumble recoveries. Defensive back Tijae Hartwell snagged an interception for the Hawks. 

Class AAA football looks to be a wide open race in 2024!

Powdersville wins the SCHSL Class AAA Baseball State Title

Southside Christian is the 2024 Class A Baseball Champions!

By Billy G. Baker Publisher Hanahan — One year after being swept in the AAA state baseball championship series against Clinton , Hanahan (30-3) knew it would be important to win game one of the championship series against Powdersville at home on May, 20 and the Hawks defeated the visitors 9-5. Game two now shifts to “home fan” friendly Powdersville on Wednesday, where the Hawks hope to have a sweep of their own after a hard-fought 5-4 loss in game two last season against Clinton. “The first game is very important and we know this from our experience last year,” said Hanahan High head coach Skylar Hunter who played on two Hanahan teams who lost state championship games after losing game one games. “Winning game one is massive. We know first hand about having our backs against the wall with Clinton last year after losing game one. “Now their backs are against the wall,” said Coach Hunter. “With the amount of pressure, we put on teams on the base paths, and in the batter’s box, I like our chances of plating well again in game two. However, Powdersville is a very good team and they will respond. They will be ready for us at home on Wednesday and we expect an electric atmosphere.” Hanahan pounded out 10 hits, scored 9 runs, and only committed one error in the win on Monday. The Hawks were led at the plate by RF Landon Gomes , who went 3-for-4 at the plate along with second baseman Jacob Bunting who went 2-of-4 with two RBI’s. catcher Hudson Sprovero had a hit and three RBI’s and left-fielder Joe Furse was 2-of-4 with an RBI. “We had a lot of quality at-bats tonight starting with sophomore catcher Hudson Sprovero who had two Sac fly’s and drove in a couple runs with a double during the game,” said Coach Hunter. “ Landon Gomes had two doubles in the game, and Joe Furse hit a ball off the wall early in the game to score a run. It was just a bunch of guys putting the barrel on the ball today.” Highly regraded Hanahan sophomore center fielder Sterling Coaxum , a lead-off batter, had a hit and covered a lot of ground in the outfield with his 6.4 speed. Coaxum is a Clemson commitment who earned the Coaches Association AAA Player of the Year honors this season. He came into the first game batting .468 with 10 home runs and 30 stolen bases to his credit. He is considered by many to be the top sophomore player in South Carolina. “I will be honest with you, he might not ever play for Clemson because he could be a high draft choice if he keeps playing like he has for us the past two seasons,” said Coach Hunter. “He’s a special player for sure.” Coach Hunter said the message to his players stays the same. “We want our players to stay relaxed and stay composed with focus,” said Coach Hunter. “We know Powdersville will be ready to give us all they have on Wednesday.” Gabe Dotterweich was the starting pitcher for the Hawks working five innings, giving up six hits, and three earned runs. Porter Sprovero relieved Dotterweich in the top of the 6 th and he worked 1.2 innings allowing no hits and two runs. Riley Ballard came in with two outs in the top of the 7th and forced a pop up for the game ending out. Powdersville scored five runs on six hits and they made two errors. First baseman Braden Williams led the Patriots hit going 3-of-3 with two RBI’s including a third inning home run. Starting pitcher Landon Fowler smashed a home run in three at bats. Center fielder Cotes Reid had a hit and also scored a run. Designated hitter Eli Hudgins also had a hit for the Patriots. After the game Powdersville head coach Wade Padgett , told the HSSR, “We knew they hit the ball well, and you do not win 29 to 30 games if you do not hit well,” said Coach Padgett. “Give them credit they got the hits when they needed them and they came up with some good plays on defense so give them credit for playing well against us. “We didn’t get the result we were looking for in coming down here,” said Coach Padgett. “In that last inning I was proud of how our kids fought for every out and that has been our ammo all season. We are looking forward to getting our chances at home on Wednesday. We will get back to work tomorrow, fix a few things, and hopefully be ready to go on Wednesday. “We have a great community and we expect a huge home crowd behind us on Wednesday,” said Coach Padgett. “At this point we hope the series goes to a third game. If it does, we would play at a neutral site this Saturday but we have to win on Wednesday to have a third game opportunity. We have some work to do before Wednesday.” Powdersville is expected to start veteran Blane Jordan on Wednesday. Hanahan will start Riley Ballard who pitched to one batter on Monday.  Photos Courtesy of Cyril Samonte

Hanahan - In the long and storied history of the state’s oldest spring break high school baseball tournament, the host of the Hanahan Invitational Tournament had never won the championship. That changed on Thursday night. Hanahan High defeated Berkeley, 12-5, to win the Steadman Division of the 54 th annual Hanahan Invitational Tournament (HIT), marking the first time the Hawks had been able to hoist their own trophy. Hanahan overcame an early 4-0 deficit, rallying for their 19 th win in 21 games this season. The Hawks are the top-ranked team in Class AAA and the defending Lower State champions. “I knew this team was special going into it and they played like it,” Hanahan’s first-year head coach Skylar Hunter, himself a Hanahan graduate, said. “I am proud of the way they played. It was definitely a good night. We definitely wanted to win this thing. It was a goal.” Hanahan sophomore centerfielder Sterling Coaxum was the tournament’s most valuable player, belting three home runs, including two grand slams, during the week. Berkeley struck for four runs in the top of the first inning, with Bryson Heath delivering two runs with a double and Gavin Gaskins scoring Heath with a double. Hanahan responded with two runs in the bottom of the inning as Riley Turner and Jacob Bunting delivered run-scoring safeties. Berkeley added a run in the second on Mason Salisbury’s RBI single, giving the Stags a 5-2 lead, chasing Hanahan starting pitcher Porter Sprovero. “If I’m being honest, with our guys, there really was no concern,” Hunter said of the early deficit. “We were playing a little flat so we had to dig into them a little bit, light the fire. They responded.” With his two top pitchers unable to pitch, Cox went with sophomore Keller Wofford on the mound. Wofford pitched admirably in his first-ever varsity start but ran out of gas in the third. He allowed three earned runs in 2 2/3 innings. Hanahan took advantage of two Berkeley errors and posted five runs in the third. Bunting tripled in two runs to trim the deficit to 5-4. Hanahan added three more runs in the frame to move ahead, 7-5. Hanahan put the game away with five runs in the fifth with Hunter Sprovero delivering a key two-run double. “Berkeley has a good team, well-coached, a lot of good kids. I like the fire and the passion they bring. I will take that,” Hunter said. Hanahan has much bigger aspirations this season, mainly winning the state AAA championship. The Hawks lost to Clinton in last year’s finals and have played like a team on a mission all season. Winning the HIT could serve as a way to get into a postseason frame of mind. “There’s two ways to go after this,” Hunter said. “You can use this as a hammock and just lay back and say ‘we did it,’ or you can use it as a spring board and keep moving,” Hunter said. “I know this group and I know they are very hungry. They have a chance to do something really big and I don’t see this group being satisfied.” Berkeley’s Connor Barham had two RBI’s and Gaskins delivered two doubles. Heath also tallied two hits for the Stags. Hanahan relief pitcher Ryan Ballard earned the pitching victory, allowing just two hits with six strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings. Berkeley reached the finals with a 6-3 win over Wando earlier in the day while Hanahan edged McCracken County, Kentucky, 4-3. In the Hatfield Division of the tournament, Great Bridge of Virginia defeated Western Branch of North Carolina, 9-5, in nine innings.

Fort Mill, Catawba Ridge, Hanahan, Gray Collegiate, Southside Christian top polls