Malayia English leading the way for Lady Generals

Two Generals selected to All-Region football team

By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor’ Dalzell – The Thomas Sumter Academy girls cross country program has a rich history of strong teams in SCISA, no matter the classification. This year’s edition added to that legacy in the AAA state meet at the Heathwood Hall course in Columbia on October 26. The TSA boys joined in the fun as well as both teams finished as state runners-up. It was the first ever second-place finish for the boys under head coach Rob Coursey . The TSA girls finished second for the first time since 2021. The Lady Generals finished with 61 points, 14 behind state champion Spartanburg Christian Academy . They were led by senior Kelsey Martin , finishing fourth in the individual competition. Martin finished in a time of 21 minutes, 44.29 seconds. Freshman Skylar Spilker finished 13 th , eighth-grader Annie Boss 14 th and seventh-grader Keira Anderson 16 th, finishing within 0.31 seconds of each other. Spilker finished in a time of 23:16.94, Boss in 23:34.17 and Anderson inn 23:47.00. Senior Abbie Fisher rounded out the scoring lineup, finishing 22 nd in a time of 24:23.73. She was followed by eighth-grader Risden Dunlap in 29th with a time of 25:35.23. Freshman Kenleigh Anderson , who has been battling a knee injury, ran for the first time in several weeks, finishing 49 th in 32:57.70, “This year with the girls we just had so much success,” said TSA head coach Rob Coursey, who just completed his 10 th season in charge of the cross country program. “We had three different No. 1 runners all year in Skylar, AJ Fisher and Martin. “A lot of those girls had to step up. Once Kenley went out and Hannah Burnside (who was unable to run in the state meet) stepped in, we had to adjust. It was good to be able to see. It was just one of those seasons that was collectively good.” Shannon Forest dominated the boys meet, placing all five of its scoring runners in the top eight to finish with 24 points. However, the battle for the runner-up trophy was a tight one. TSA claimed it with 72 points, edging Spartanburg Christian by one point. “I thought we were poised to do something really good,” Coursey said. “It was just doing what we've done all year. It was a nice ending for that group.” Sophomore Nate Livingston crossed the finish line with a time of 17:52.20. Freshman Ty Fisher and eighth-grader Ashton Pierce finished 12 th and 13 th , respectively, with times of 18:44.39 and 18:57.11. Seventh-grader Wyatt Swinehart finished 21 st in 19:21.72 and sophomore Henry Sturkey finished 23rd in 19:42.55. Though unlikely known at the time, Sturkey was in a battle with Spartanburg Christian’s Nelson Abuzeid to determine the second-place team. Abuzeid finished 23 rd in 19:44.44, less than two seconds behind Sturkey. “Before the meet, I told Henry he was going to have to be the guy,” Coursey said. “We knew about our 1-2-3 guys all year. I told him, ‘You’re the guy that’s going to have to step up and be the key for us.’ Sturkey was just that guy.” Eighth-grader Aiden Pierce finished 35 th in 22;21.08. Senior Trent Spilker started the race but was unable to finish due to an injury. Both teams will return all the runners who scored in the state meet.

By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor Dalzell – Gwen Herod has seen the good, not so good and pretty much what she expected from her Thomas Sumter Academy volleyball team this season. “The answer is yes to all of those,” was Herod’s response when asked if her team has played up to, below or above her expectations. “We’ve exceeded it in some cases, come up short in others and met expectations in others.” Herod is hoping the Generals’ start in SCISA Region 1-AAA is the sign of good things to come. TSA opened with a pair of wins, beating Clarendon Hall 3-2 and Calhoun Academy 3-1. “What we lacked early in the year was confidence.” Herod said. “Opening with two wins in the region, I hope that allowed us to gain confidence and roll with it.” Thomas Sumter returned six starters from last season, one which was not successful, according to Herod. “We were very inexperienced,” she said. “We put in a lot of work over the summer, and I felt like we’d have a much better season this year.” Five of the returning starters are seniors in Anna Luzzi, Hannah Burnside , Molleigh Ross , Clara Ann McCaskill and Sylvia Burrows . The other starter is junior Omnaa Patel . The rest of the Generals’ 13-player roster is all juniors – Carolina French , Ronia Sanders , Lucy Gore , Sydnie Shaffer , Samara Word , McKayla Rayzor and Sophia Fackleman . Herod, who has been TSA’s head coach for 14 years, said her favorite thing about this team is its depth. “I’ve got a lot of strength on the bench,” she said. “In the past, I haven’t had the strength that I have on the bench. I attribute that to a lot of the hard work we put in over the summer. Anyone on this team could come in and play at any time.” Thomas Sumter beat Calhoun by the scores of 25-14, 18-25, 25-15, 25-19. The balance Herod speaks of shows up in the statistics. Luzzi had three aces, one kill and three assists, McCaskill had 10 assists, Burnside had six kills and three aces, Rayzor had two kills and two aces, Ross had three kills and six aces, Patel had 14 digs and Burrows had seven kills and four blocks. “I think we have a real chance to make a little run at the beach this year, I really do,” Herod said in reference to the state tournament scheduled for October 18-19 in Myrtle Beach. “There are moments where this team plays beautiful volleyball. The vision of the court continues to get better I know we have the talent to make a run. I hope we can keep working hard.”

Tanner Brunson is new athletic director

By: Gerald Doolittle Goose Creek, S.C . - The South Carolina Independent Schools Association is preparing to open its 55 th football season with a new two-year alignment. Can Hammond (4A), Hilton Head Christian (3A), Bethesda Academy (2A), Patrick Henry Academy (1A) and Jefferson Davis Academy (8 Man) defend their 2023 titles? Hammond will be playing for their 8 th straight title in Class 4A. The top five pre-season ranking for Class 4A : 1. Hammond 2. Laurence Manning 3. Porter-Gaud 4. Northwood Academy 5. Cardinal Newman. Laurence Manning was runners-up to Hammond in 2023. Augusta Christian, Ben Lippen and Heathwood Hall will earn a playoff spot by finishing in the top eight. The top five pre-season ranking for Class 3A : 1. Hilton Head Christian, 2. Wilson Hall, 3. Pinewood Prep, 4. Florence Christian and 5. Trinity Collegiate. Hilton Head Christian defeated Wilson Hall for the 2023 title. John Paul ll, Palmetto Christian and Camden Military will earn a playoff spot if they finish the regular season in the top eight. The top five pre-season ranking for Class 2A : 1. Bethesda Academy, 2. Clarendon Hall Academy, 3. St. Johns Christian, 4. Orangeburg Prep and 5. Pee Dee Academy. Bethesda Academy defeated Williamsburg Academy (now in 1A) for the 2023 title. Greenwood Christian, Spartanburg Christian, Calhoun Academy, Dillon Christian, Thomas Sumter Academy, Hilton Head Prep and Christian Academy all will earn a playoff spot by finishing in the Class 2A top eight. The top five pre-season ranking for Class 1A : 1. Williamsburg Academy 2. Patrick Henry Academy 3. Lee Academy 4. Dorchester Academy 5. Thomas Heyward Academy Patrick Henry Academy defeated Lee Academy for the 2023 title. Colleton Prep, Beaufort Academy, Faith Christian, Andrew Jackson Academy, and Carolina Academy can get playoff spots by finishing in the top eight. The top five pre-season ranking for Eight Man are: 1. Jefferson Davis Academy 2. Holly Hill Academy 3. Richard Winn Academy 4. Wardlaw Academy 5. Laurens Academy W.W. King Academy, Newberry Academy and Oakbrook Prep can earn playoff spots by finishing in the top four of Region One. Cathedral Academy, Cross Schools and Conway Christian can earn playoff spots by finishing in the top four of Region Two. The Kings Academy is a new comer Region Two moving to 8-man play this season.