Cheraw grapplers gaining valuable experience
By C.R. Cumbee
Staff Writer
Cheraw—Last season was supposed to be one last hurrah for Cheraw High wrestling coach Brad Porter.  After starting the program and watching after it for 22 seasons he was stepping down.  However, things didn’t work out the way it was planned and Porter is back on the mat again this season.
“We lost a lot of seniors last year and it was supposed to be my last year.  But getting a new coach fell through and I decided to come back for one more year.  I told my wife that if I stick with it this year, it’s going to be hard for me to give it up next year because I’ve got almost everybody coming back,” Porter said.
The Braves have struggled this year with a young, inexperienced lineup that features only two seniors – 119-pound Rashad Hancock and heavyweight Dylan Alford.  Hancock is 30-10 while Alford is 26-6 this season.
“Dylan is more of a vocal leader and Rashad leads by example,” Porter said.
Cheraw is 25-17 with only one meet remaining before the playoffs.  They finished third in the region standings behind Loris and Marion.
One of the more pleasant surprises this winter has been the progression of sophomore Kiante Wingate at 125 pounds.  He has the best individual record on the squad at 35-9.
“He’s been real good on his feet and that’s helped him a lot, but he still has a long way to go.  He’s very strong and he’s got two more years to get even better,” Porter said.
There are also a total of six freshmen in the starting lineup, something that Porter is unaccustomed to.  Trey Cannon is at the 103 pound weight class with Daniel Crawley coming in at 135 pounds.  Josh Hyatt is penciled in at 140 with Billy Thompson at 152 and Charlie Jackson at 189.  215-pounder Quintin Lewis has the best record of all the freshmen with a 24-9 mark.
“We’ve got guys in the lineup that technique wise aren’t bad, but it’s hard for them to compete with upperclassmen.  That’s what’s hurting them right now.  They’ve got plenty of mat time and I’m happy with that, but this has been a learning experience for them,” Porter said.
Along with the two senior starters, there is only a pair of juniors in the lineup.  Darius Little weighs in at 145 pounds while Brad Ratliff is two classes heavier at 160 pounds.
Sophomores Dalvin Peterson (130) and Josh Harrington (171) round out the lineup.  Joseph McFarlin is the only other sophomore that sees significant mat time, splitting reps with Lewis at 215.
“I’ve never had this many freshmen and sophomores have such a big part in the team.  I’m looking forward to the future with these guys,” Porter said.  “I think we’ll be really strong next year, but in two years time I think they’re going to be something else.  If they all stick with it they could end up being one of the best teams I’ve ever had.”
Cheraw closes out the regular season with a quad-meet against Central, Edisto and Chesterfield.  The Class AA playoffs begin Feb. 3.
Contact C.R. at crcumbee2007@hotmail.com.

Boyer looking for improvement in second season
By C.R. Cumbee
Staff Writer
Cheraw  (12/21/09) Cheraw High boys' basketball coach Tony Boyer enters his second season overseeing the program and is very excited about the 2009-10 season.  The Braves are much improved from a season ago when they finished fourth in the region and lost in the first round of the playoffs to Kingstree.  
Early on this year Cheraw is 4-1 after victories over county rivals Central and Chesterfield (twice each).  Their lone defeat was by two points to Class AAA Marlboro County.  The Braves have averaged 78 points per game.
"I think it was expected.  Last year was my first season at Cheraw and they had to get used to the kind of basketball I wanted us to play, an up-tempo game.  With the conditioning and the off-season workouts we had, the kids are in incredible shape and it's helping us do what we want to do," Boyer said.
Only two starters return from last year's squad, with junior Malik Sellers back at guard and junior Demetrius Miller back at forward.  They will be joined in the starting five by junior guard Damorris Jones and senior forwards J'Qwan Toney and Marcellus Dunn.
"What's good about them is that each day they mature more and more.  They're starting to learn the concept of what we need to do to accomplish our goals.  Four of the five games we've played five guys have scored in double digits.  It's not just one guy that's doing everything, it's the entire team.  When you have balanced scoring like that you know you have the makings of a good team," Boyer said.
The Braves also have a lot of depth.  Cheraw will usually play a nine-man rotation, but will sometimes go even deeper.  Guards Malcolm Hunter and Aaron Robinson and forwards Sammy Merriman and Demetrius Holiday have gotten the majority of the reserve minutes, but Dante Avery, Jimmy Holiday, Ivy'on Richardson and Lundon Ellerbe have also seen time on the floor.  Tevin Small is also on the roster but has been out of action with an injury.
"I'm confident in all 14 guys we have.  In game situations I feel good that we can play 10 or 11 of them and not skip a beat," Boyer said.
Cheraw will get its chance to exact some revenge as the Braves get a rematch with Marlboro County next on the schedule.  It will be their last regular season game before the Christmas holidays.  Over the break they will compete in the Hannah-Pamplico tournament from Dec. 28-30.  
With the extended break, the Braves will get a chance to improve some areas that are somewhat hindering them.  They will need to iron the kinks out before they return for the New Year as they face a tall task in the defending Lower state champion.  Once school resumes the Braves will host Mullins Jan. 12 in the region opener for both teams.
"We still need to work on our decision making.  We do some really good things, but then we do something that is unacceptable, like making a bad pass or not boxing out on rebounds.  Just the fundamental things," Boyer said.

Braves travel to Manning for third round of playoffs

By C.R. Cumbee

Staff Writer

Cheraw (11/17/09) Once again it is late November and the Cheraw football team is deep into another playoff run.   After making four consecutive state championship games, the Braves came up short with a third round loss last season.  

This year they have once again made it to the third round and will take on another Region 7-AA opponent.   This time it will be Manning, who upset Burke, 64-36, last Friday.   Cheraw will travel to take on a Monarch team that is 9-3 overall.

"Manning is very impressive.   They're extremely talented and are very well-coached.   The key for us is to be able to control the ball and keep it away from them.   It's just a matter of us being able to block their front," head coach Johnny White said.

Maybe the biggest challenge for the Braves will be limiting the Manning offense.   The Monarchs rolled up an amazing 633 rushing yards against Burke.   Running back Marcos Pearson carried 42 times for 328 yards and four touchdowns.   Cheraw's front four will have to fill gaps and keep the big plays at a minimum.

"Offensively they're very explosive.   They've got a lot of talent and do a lot of things.   They execute well and they've been putting up a bunch of points on people.   They definitely have us concerned on both sides of the ball.   We realize we have our hands full," White said.

The Braves entered the postseason as a number two seed after finishing behind Dillon in region play.   Cheraw ended the regular season with a 6-4 record but is playing its best when it matters most.

Two weeks ago the Braves defeated Waccamaw, 34-7, in a first round playoff game.   Cheraw jumped out to an early lead and built on it until they were up 34-0.   Chad Wilkes rushed for 176 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries.   He also threw a touchdown pass.  

Malcolm Hunter also threw for a pair of scores, one to Xavier Taylor and the other to Marcellus Dunn.   Dunn caught two passes for 43 yards with two touchdowns.

"In the first half we left a couple opportunities out there where we could have scored and we didn't.   Overall we played pretty well against Waccamaw," White said.   "Our defensive front played well and did a good job of getting to the ball carrier.   We just tried to focus on being aggressive."

Last Friday the Braves traveled to Silver Bluff to take on the Region 5 champion Bulldogs.   Cheraw took advantage of their opportunities early and built a two touchdown cushion at halftime.   After giving up a pair of scores in the second half, the Braves had to make a final defensive stand to secure the win.

"We got a real big play at the end of the first half to go up 20-7.   The offensive line controlled the line of scrimmage and we did a good job of moving the ball in the first half.   They got the ball back down 26-21 and drove down to our 39-yard line, but we had two big plays in a row on defense to get the ball back and run the clock out," White said.

Once again it was Wilkes who led the offense in rushing, this time with 111 yards and a score on 15 carries.   Sammy Merriman also ended up over the century mark, gaining 108 yards on 20 carries with three touchdowns.   Durrell Hawkins added 64 yards on 16 attempts.

Defensively the Braves caused five turnovers, which was the difference in the game.   Demetrius Miller had a pair of interceptions and Javarus Jackson also picked off a pass.   Jonathan White and Ivy'on Richardson each recovered a fumble.

Braves look to make history this week against Dillon

By C.R. Cumbee

Staff Writer

Cheraw (10/28/09) It has become a tradition to watch the Cheraw football team struggle out of the gate only to gain momentum as the season wears on.   It also seems that every year the Braves find themselves in a matchup with Dillon to determine the region champion.  

That has once again been the case in 2009 as Cheraw started 0-3 before churning out six straight victories, including the last four in conference play.   They will put their 4-0 region record on the line this Friday when they travel to Dillon to face a Wildcat team who also boasts a 4-0 mark.  

The biggest obstacle for the Braves is that the game is in Dillon, a place no Cheraw team has ever traveled to and come away with a victory.

"Our players and coaches have a lot of respect for the Dillon program.   All the success we've had against them the past few years has been at home.   Now we're trying to accomplish something that no Cheraw team has ever done," head coach Johnny White said.

Both teams lost a large amount of their respective starters after last season and were unsure of how good they could be.   It turned out that although some of the players changed, the results remained the same.

"We've both lost a good bit of our teams, but I'm sure by this time they've got a lot of guys in there that they had a lot of question marks about at the beginning of the year.   We've got the same thing.   There are a few guys that we weren't sure if they were going to be able to contribute but they've really come on.   It ought to be a real good game," White said.

If Cheraw intends to make history, they're going to need everyone to be on the same page and contribute on both sides of the ball.

"Their defense has given up fewer points in the region than ours has and they've scored a few more points than we have against the region opponents.   We're going to have to be more productive," White said.

As for the turnaround from the beginning of the year to now, White attributes the change to both the natural maturation of the players and the switch from the spread offense back to the wishbone the Braves traditionally run.

"I guess it's probably a little bit of both.   Our players have matured some but we've been able to simplify some stuff and do a few things differently as far as formations go.   I think it's a combination of both," White said.

Cheraw still has a lot of athletes, including backs Sammy Merriman, Chad Wilkes and Darrell Hawkins.   They will be the key cogs if the Braves want to make a deep run in the postseason.

"I'm still concerned about our consistency of play.   We've shown flashes of outstanding play on both sides of the ball, but we haven't been able to put a whole game together.   We haven't done a good job of playing well on both sides of the ball in the first half yet.   We've played some pretty good second halves, but consistency is the main concern," White said.

Braves make it two in a row, take on Mullins next

By C.R. Cumbee
Staff Writer
Cheraw - The Cheraw football team seems to be finding their groove after winning their second straight game, 33-7, over Providence Christian (N.C.).  The Braves got big efforts from Chad Wilkes and Darrell Hawkins, who both scored two touchdowns each.
    "Anytime you're able to get a couple of wins under your belt creates a little enthusiasm and confidence, and I think our guys really needed that.  We've played some tough opponents and you just try to find a way to win.  Sometimes that solves a lot of problems.  Now we can start building our team," assistant coach David Byrd said.
    The coaching staff has watched several key players step up in the past couple of weeks, but still feel like every player is doing his part.  Wilkes, Hawkins, Sammy Merriman and Jonathan White have been part of that group.
    "It's been a good team effort.  With us being more in the wishbone has helped us and the offensive line has done a good job lately blocking for the backs.  Defensively it has been a great effort from the linebacker spots and the defensive line.  It's really been a team effort to get us back to the point where we can get to .500," Byrd said.
    The Braves will try to add to their winning streak this week when they take Mullins.  It will be the conference opener for both teams.
    "Mullins seems to be a well-coached team.  Coach (Miles) Aldridge has done a good job and we have a lot of respect for him as a coach.  They have some weapons on offense that will present some problems for us.  We know it will be a challenge and we look forward to a tough battle.  Hopefully we can continue to get better and get back on track like we're used to," Byrd said.