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Hurricanes set for rematch with area rivals for region title

By David Shelton

Senior Writer

Charleston – As the state playoffs near, the First Baptist School Hurricanes are set for another run at the Class AA state championship.

First, however, is deciding the region 1-AA championship as the Hurricanes still have a very important game to play against lowcountry and region rival Charleston Collegiate.

In a meeting on January 24th, Charleston Collegiate got the better of the Hurricanes, winning, 62-40, to take control of the region race. Entering the month of February,  Charleston Collegiate was 9-0 in the region while the Hurricanes were a game back at 8-1.

The rematch to decide the region title, and a very high seed in the playoffs, will be on February 14th. If First Baptist does not lose before that, the last game will likely decide the title.

A win over Cathedral Academy on January 31 boosted First Baptist’s record to 18-8 overall this season. The Hurricanes, as usual, played a very competitive non-region schedule, matching up against several schools from the public school ranks.

First Baptist has lost twice to SCISA AAA power Pinewood Prep, once by three points. The Hurricanes also lost games to AAAA public school teams Lexington, Blythewood, Colleton County and White Knoll. Another loss came to AA public school Bishop England, by one point.

Senior guard Nate Jenkins is having an outstanding season to cap his great career. Jenkins is averaging 19.1 points per game, to go with his 7.8 rebounds per game. Jenkins has connected on 90 three-pointers this season while dishing out nearly three assists per game.

Junior guard Bradford Allen is also in double figures, averaging 10.5 points per game. Allen also hauls in 4.2 rebounds per game.

Sophomore guard Shaquille Richardson averages 8.5 points and 2.7 assists per game, while senior post Landon Blakey is averaging nearly seven points and 5.1 rebounds per game.

Another senior, forward Gregory Gilliam, averages 4.5 rebounds per game.

The team has two other seniors that see time off the bench in Michael Bocklet and Banks Reynolds.

Juniors that see time include Chris Bocklet, Travis Graves, Robertson Gramling, Trent Keisler and Lonnie Howard.

Rounding out the varsity roster this season are sophomores Tucker Moring and Will Simmons.

In other news, First Baptist swim coach Sara Kraft and top swimmer Logan Kraft will be honored by the High School Sports Report at the publication’s annual fall sports awards banquet. The event will be held on February 19th in Columbia at the Seawell’s Restaurant beginning at 1:30 p.m.

Coach Kraft will receive the award as the 2011 HSSR SCISA Girls Swim Coach of the Year, while Logan has been named the 2011 HSSR SCISA Female Swimmer of the Year.

 

ck out there for next year and see what they can do.

First Baptist looking to utilize fall break to their advantage

Bryan Dubay
Special Writer
Charleston (10/14/09) -  This coming Thursday and Friday First Baptist will look to use fall break to focus more on the upcoming game against St. Andrews.
    Coach Will McCombs said, "It's going to help a little bit, we will get more stuff down.  We are going to watch more film and get in some chalk talk.  I am excited."  Both teams are looking for their first win.  Coach McCombs said this about St. Andrews, "They are very well coached, and probably the most improved team in the region over the last 4 years.  They are doing good things down there; I have a lot of respect for them."
    However, St. Andrews hasn't been able to get on the winning track this season due to injuries and the loss of a large senior class.  Still, McCombs knows it is an important game, "They play physical, they don't make many mistakes, and they just come after you."
This past week First Baptist was defeated by Thomas Heyward Academy 57 ? 0.  From the start things went wrong.  The first play from scrimmage the Hurricanes fumbled the ball on the option giving Thomas Heyward a short field to work with.  The Hurricanes were unable to recover after that point.  McCombs said, "We got behind early, and it kind of snowballed after that.  Its just we are having one of those seasons.  The guys are trying really hard and their hearts are in the right place, things are just not working out for us."
    Along with the hard work that the boys are putting out on the field, some are making their presences known in the classroom and on campus.  Matthew Thigpen and Robbie Kicklighter are two players who have done really well so far this year in the classroom.  Coach McCombs also mention Matt Burton as being a leader on campus, in the classroom, and also in bible study.
Another student that McCombs mentioned was Lawton Hendricks, a three sport athlete who struggled early on in high school but has turned things around.  McCombs said, "He has been a real success story."  Hendricks has been injured for most part of the season but he is on the road to recovery.
    It will be interesting to see if the extra time off will be the key to this weeks game.