Andrew Jackson Academy Takes First Game Of SCISA AA Baseball Finals With 5-3 Win Over Oakbrook Prep Monday

Billy Baker • May 6, 2025

Head coach Jason Mathys with senior captains Jack Walling an Hayden McClung


By Billy G. Baker

Publisher



Ehrhardt—Host Andrew Jackson Academy (13-7) defeated Oakbrook Prep, 5-3 in the SCISA AA semi-baseball finals, behind the solid pitching of freshman Landon Johnson, and the bat of senior co-captain Hayden McClung who went four-for-four at the plate including a double and RBI.


The two teams will meet in game two of the best-of-three series at Oakbrook Prep (located in Spartanburg) on Tuesday. Should AJA sweep the series they would meet the winner of the Lee Academy versus Dorchester Academy, the other two AA semi-finalists. Lee Academy defeated DA 11-1 in Monday action. Should Oakbrook Prep (17-5) win on Tuesday, a third and deciding game will be played in Ehrhardt on Thursday.


After the game, AJA head coach Jason Mathys, a former Iowa State star pitcher who played in the minor leagues with the Yankees after college, told the HSSR, “Landon threw a lot of strikes today, and he only got down with one tough inning in the game, and he came right back out and started throwing strikes again, and I could not be more prouder of his effort today,” said Coach Mathys, in his third season as the head coach. “McClung had four hits today and I felt like we swung the bats better today as a team.


“People ask me what the difference is in our losing season last season, and our improvement this season, and I would have to say it is our pitchers throwing strikes and our speed on the bases,” said Coach Mathys. “Our speed on the bases in this game helped us a lot.”


Coach Mathy’s said that 8th grader Channing Terry will likely get the start for the Warriors at Oakbrook on Tuesday. “He’s just an 8th grader, but he has pitched lights out for us this season,” said the coach. “He is about three-to-one strike-outs to walks and that is super impressive for anyone, especially an 8th grader.”.


Oakbrook Prep head coach Travis Casey is in his 14th season with his team said after the game, “We are truly undecided who we are throwing tomorrow,” said Coach Casey. “It will be a game time decision.”


Coach Casey added, “We left too may runners on base today, and we have to figure out a way to move base runners,” he said. “We struck-out a lot today. Not being able to get timely hits with runners on base has kind of been our Achilles heel all season. I think we left the bases loaded in two innings today, with little run production to show for it.


“They got the big hits when they needed them and we couldn’t advance runners, and that was the difference in the game today,” said Coach Casey. “We are stressing three main things in our game on Tuesday. We want our pitchers to stay ahead; we have to make all routine plays on defense, and we have to battle better at the plate.” 


      AJA got off to a fast start against Oakbrook as McClung, the team’s lead-off batter, ripped a double in the power alley to start the game. A ground-out by Kaiden Kinard advanced the speedy McClung to third and the Warrior’s third batter of the game, Jack Walling, reached base after being hit by a pitch. McClung scored on an RBI ground-out by Walker Terry and one batter later, Walling, it made it 2-0 when he scored after Channing Terry reached on an error.


AJA made it 3-0 in the second inning. McClung had a one-out single, and he scored on a double by Kinard to make it 3-0. The Warriors went up 4-0 in the third inning as Oakbrook brought in pitcher Chandler Campbell in relief of starter Daniel Lloyd who worked the first two innings. Junior Hall Sease had a lead-off single  and he stole second and third base. Sease made it 4-0 on an RBI single by McClung.


  Oakbrook got on the board in the top of the 4th inning. Dallas Collins led off the inning with a walk and he stole second and third. Collins scored after Sam Hatcher reached on a one-out error, to cut the deficit to 4-1. Cade Speaks and Ty Raymond drew walks to load the bases with two-outs. With the bases loaded, center fielder Austin Bright was hit by a pitch to bring in Hatcher to cut the deficit to 4-2.


In the top of the 5th inning, Oakbrook cut the deficit to 4-3 when Collins got a one-out single, stole second and advanced to third when the ball got pass the catcher. Collins was brought in on a nicely executed sacrifice bunt by Bryce Horton.


AJA added an insurance run in the 6th inning. McClung led off with a single and quickly stole second. Kinard reached on a hit-by-pitch. Walling then walked to load the bases. McClung scored on an RBI sac fly by Walker Terry to make the final score 5-3.


One key to the AJA win was Johnson’s great start on the mound. After giving up a lead-off single to Lloyd to start the game, the tall freshman righty fanned the next three batters retiring the side. Johnson added another strike-out in the second inning and had two more strike-outs in the third inning. Johnson finished with 10 strike-outs, allowing just four hits while walking three. Walling came in the 7th inning and earned a save with two strike-outs.   


McClung led AJA at the plate with four hits, one RBI, and four stolen bases. Kinard had a double with one RBI, and Sease had two hits and three stolen bases. Walker Terry scored two runs and Channing Terry had a hit also.


Oakbrook was led at the plate by Ty Raymond, Collins, Hatcher, and Lloyd who each had one hit. Hatcher, Horton, and Bright each had one RBI and Collins added three stolen bases.


Lloyd went two innings on the mound for Oakbrook with one K. Corey Kimbrell went the final four innings, allowing five hits, two earned runs with one K.


AJA is currently led in hitting by Kinard (.458 & 22 RBI’s) along with Walling (.450 & a team leading 28 RBI’s, including 13 doubles and one home run). Next on the Warrior hit index is McClung (.437 & 16 RBI’s) and Channing Terry is the only other Warrior over .300 at .302 with five RBI’s.


Channing Terry (4-0) is the potential starting pitcher for AJA on Tuesday. In 36.2 innings of work this season he has 42 K’s with a 2.29 ERA. The other top pitchers for AJA include Johnson (24.1 innings and 47 K’s) along with Walling (30.2 IP & 37 K’s).


Oakbrook as four starters currently over .300 on the hit index. Hatcher, a freshman first baseman/pitcher, is leading the team (.397 & 29 RBI’s). Collins is next (.361 & 23 RBI’s), followed by freshman Bryce Horton (.323 & 16 RBI’s) and 8th grader Ty Raymond (.316 & 11 RBI’s).


Lloyd and Hatcher have shared the majority of the pitching load this season. Lloyd has pitched 45.2 innings with 53 K’s while Hatcher has spent 37.3 innings on the mound with 43 K’s and he has an ERA of 3.74.

Andrews beats East Clarendon to reach Lower State finals

By Billy Baker • May 21, 2026
Andrews—East Clarendon out-hit Andrews 6-5 on May, 20, on the road in the AA Lower State softball semi-finals, but the Yellow Jackets took advantage of two errors and six walks to come out on top 5-1, as they advance to play Chesterfield on Friday in the Lower state finals. Joy Weisner is the Andrews head coach, and she told the HSSR after the game: “What we have tried to do all season is take advantage of any opportunities a team gives us,” said Coach Weisner. “We hit the ball better today and that is very important.” Andrews last won a state title in 20218. Andrew had five players earning all-region honors. They were center fielder Sarah Jennings, pitcher Addyson Davis, who will also play in the North-South game. Other all-region selections were junior catcher Chloe Skipper who was the Region MVP, senior Addison McCants, Region MVP outfielder Skipper, and talented sophomore shortstop Tori Smith. Andrews lost to Chesterfield 7-3 this past Monday (May 18). “We have to hit the ball better when we go to them this Friday,” said Coach Weisner. “We didn’t hit the ball well at all this past Monday when we played Chesterfield. We hit the ball well today, so we just have to keep that momentum going into Friday. “We have to go to Chesterfield and beat them twice,” said Coach Wesiner. “We have to play some of our best softball this season in order to that, so I hope we are focused. We need to start the game with momentum and end the game with momentum when we play at Chesterfield. East Clarendon (25-8) head coach Jason Newsome closed out his third season in the loss. “I thought our pitcher hung tough (Addyson Davis) today and she is just a freshman and she has been learning by fire all year long,” said Coach Newsome. “She is extremely talented and she is a good pitcher now, but she is going to an even better pitcher in the future.” Coach Newsome. “In the playoffs the margin of error is very thin and the mistakes we made, they took advantage of,” said Coach Newsome. “On the other hand, the mistakes they made, and the opportunities they gave us we didn’t take advantage of them and that was a key in the game. They did a good job of keeping us off-balance.” All region players from EC included: Region POY Peyton Hanniford, Bailey Hicks, Riley Atkinson, Layke Jeffords, and Zoey Culick. The score was tied 0-0 until the bottom of the third when Andrews scored four runs. Karaline Gainey singled to start the inning and was advanced on a sac bunt by Lauren Stump to second. Sarah Jennings next singled to left field advancing Gainey to third. Torian Smith drew a walk. Then Jenna Cook hit a ball deep into the corner down the first base line that resulted in an inside the park grand slam. Andrew added an insurance run in the bottom of the 4thwhen B. Walker singled and advanced on a single by Gainey. Stump was then Hit by pitcher to load the bases. Sarah Jennings then hit an RBI ground out that brought in Walker to account for the Yellow Jackets’ five runs.

Hanahan wins lower state in softball

By David Shelton • May 21, 2026
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Wilson Hall Softball Finishes With 21-7 Record

By Dennis Brunson • May 20, 2026
By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor Sumter – The Wilson Hall softball team came up short of reaching the SCISA AAAA state championship series, which is a goal for everyone at the start of the season. Only two can get there though, so while not fun to come up short, it is bearable. However, the way things went down for the Barons this season didn’t help at all. Wilson Hall just needed one victory on Day 2 of the state tournament at Patriot Park SportPlex in Sumter to punch its ticket to the title series. Instead, the Barons lost to archrival Laurence Manning Academy twice by the scores of 12-0 and 6-4. LMA advanced to the best-of-3 series instead and swept Pinewood Prep to win a third straight championship. In retrospect though, Barons head coach Teresa Alexander finds it hard not to be proud of the season her team had. “The season’s ending didn’t turn out how we had hped, but I’m really proud of the tough schedule we played and the success we had all year.,” said Alexander, who guided Wilson Hall to a 21-7 record. “I’m excited to see this young bunch return with the experience they now have under their belts. But we will truly miss our seniors, Addie Griffin and Marymae Lampron .” The Barons had four players selected to the All-Region 3-AAAA team in Griffin, freshman pitcher Marsha Kate Skey , sophomore shortstop Mary Paisley Geddings and junior catcher Caroline Moorman . Griffin, who played left field, had a .279 batting average to go with an on-base percentage of .423. She had one double, one triple, one home run, 13 runs batted in and 18 runs scored. Skey was a standout in the circle as Wilson Hall’s primary pitcher. Shd had a `1.69 earned run average to go with 115 strikeouts. At the plate, Skey batted .400 with an OBP of .489. She had three doubles, two triples, 17 RBI and 33 runs. Geddings batted .317 with a .406 OBP to go with seven doubles, one triple, four homers, 26 RBI and 28 runs. Moorman had 14 RBI, 17 runs and four doubles to go with a .354 batting average and an OBP of .429. Other returning starters are freshman second baseman Tatiana Erichsen , freshman outfielder Anna Meldrim , sophomore third baseman Lilly Grace Przybyla , freshman outfielder Emmie Williamson and eighth-grade centerfielder Caroline Andrews . Meldrim hit .412 with three homers, 31 RBI and 24 runs, Przybyla hit .373 with 21 runs and 15 RBI, Williamson batted .263 with an OBP of .500, and Erichsen batted .324 with 19 RBI and 23 runs.

Stallions Reach SCISA Class AAA Baseball Title Series In Morris’ First Year

By Dennis Brunson • May 20, 2026
Williamsburg runners makes diving slide for the plate in the playoffs. (Photo by Mara Feagin)

Warlaw’s Lady Patriots Fall 5 Runs Short Of Winning State Title

By Gerald Doolittle • May 20, 2026
Lady Patriots Katherine Trotter, Bailey Sturkie, Ellie Yonce, Taylor Hilll and Brianna McNeill (not pictured) were selected to the North-South All-Star Team!

Wolves Boys’ Track Team Finishes Fourth At AA State Meet

By Rob Gantt • May 20, 2026
By Rob Gantt Special to the HSSR ST. STEPHEN - Timberland High School’s boys track and field team finished fourth in the state Saturday, May 15, at Richland Northeast High School. The Wolves, who finished with 45 points, produced state champions in multiple events. They placed three points out of a tie for second place. Hurdler Malyk Goodman won the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 56.63 seconds and jumper Carter Hawkins soared to victory in the triple jump with a mark of 14.24 meters. Goodman also placed third in the 110-meter hurdles in 14.82 and Hawkins finished second in the long jump with an effort of 6.65 meters.  Timberland’s boys sent three more to the awards podium. Hurdler Day’vian Bennett placed third in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 57.89 seconds. Jumper Antaun Faison finished sixth in the long jump with a mark of 6.51 meters. The boys’ 4x100-meter relay team posted a time of 43.17 seconds to place seventh. For Timberland’s boys, jumper Robert Roberts finished 11th in the triple jump with an effort of 12.11 meters, while the 4x800-meter relay placed 11th and 4x400-meter relay team 13th. The Timberland girls finished 10th in the state and sent quite a few to the awards podium (top 8). Kennahdi Murrell placed third in the 400-meter hurdles, sixth in the 100-meter hurdles and seventh in the high jump. Kemani Lampkin finished fifth in the 800-meter run and Jermanee Washington placed fifth in the 400-meter hurdles. China Greene recorded a sixth-place finish in the 400 hurdles and teammate Kiana Glenn was two spots back in eighth. Tiana Jefferson finished 12th in the long jump and 13th in the 400-meter dash. Zoe Cooper was 13th in the discus. Timberland’s girls placed eighth in the 4x400-meter relay and 10th in the 4x100 relay.

Thomas Heyward Has Good Season In Golf

By David Shelton • May 20, 2026
The THA golf program is relatively new but interest seems to be gaining each year.

Summerville Softball Wins District 3 Title

By Roger Lee • May 20, 2026
Senior Jayden Bennett has had some key turns at bat for Summerville during the playoffs.

Stratford’s Kowlok Repeats As State Champion In Pole Vault

By Rob Gantt • May 20, 2026
Lukas Kowlok headlined by repeating as the state champion in the pole vault soaring over the bar at 4.85 meters.

Tough Loss to Stags in Playoffs Doesn’t Dilute an Otherwise Great White Knoll Softball Season

By Worthy Evans • May 19, 2026
By WORTHY EVANS Contributing Writer Columbia - The pain of falling out of the 5A Division 2 District 4 tournament May 11 was still fresh when longtime White Knoll softball head coach talked about the season the next day.  The Timberwolves (14-13, 7-3) faced Berkeley for the second time in the tournament. The Stags held a 6-3 lead but White Knoll rallied for two runs in the seventh. After Melinda Veler drew a walk, Reginae Porterfield swatted a 1-out double to put runners at second and third. Lillian Priest lined out on the next at-bat, but Berkeley first baseman Emma Drawdy misplayed Adelynn Lewis’ ground ball, enabling Veler and Porterfield to score and cut the Stags’ lead to 6-5. With Lewis on base representing the tying run, Jaida Gray struck out swinging to end the hopes of an upset, and close out an otherwise great Timberwolves season. “It’s hard to shake it off. In the season you go to the next game but at the end of the season you can’t,” said Farr, who watched her team take a 3-0 lead only to be hit with Berkeley’s run in the third and a five-run fourth. “I could see my kids kind of feeling it, you could see it in my kids eyes,” she added. “We’ve got to fight to survive and they rallied around those seniors. They knew their time was coming and for two outs we were down 6-5. And that last pitch, it’s a hard way to go out. We’ve got to regroup and build off of what we did this year.” White Knoll beat Socastee 8-7 May 4 to get into the bracket, then upset Berkeley 3-2 May 6. West Florence , led by phenomenal pitcher Annie Eliason (19-0, 0.00 ERA, 309 strikeouts; who gave up two hits and struck out 20) beat White Knoll 7-0 May 8 to set up the rematch with the Stags. While the season ended on a sour note, there was much to praise about a team that Farr said few people would look to as contenders. After a young Timberwolves team battled through trials and tribulations, injuries and other issues, Farr said she watched her team come together in the second half of region play. “On senior night we really started playing for each other and giving it everything we had,” Farr said. “They worked their tails off to get better every single day and it showed. We have 12 players who fought their hearts out. We got to that fourth game, and our losses were close. We were right there, and it really was just one lucky pitch and that’s how the runs ended up.” White Knoll loses just two seniors in Priest and Gracie Fisher , but those seniors made a huge impact on the team. Priest had three home runs, 11 RBI, 34 hits and a .405 batting average. Fisher batted .311 with a double and 14 RBI. “Those two seniors have left their legacy, and we’ll continue with what they started on this swing upward,” Farr said. “We’re really excited that everyone else is returning.” Among the returners are freshmen Veler and Porterfield, and sophomores Charity West and E.G. Birchmore . Porterfield finished with a .393 batting average and a team-leading four home runs and six triples, six doubles and 20 RBI. Veler had 31 hits and 17 RBI to go with a .360 batting average an a .415 on-base percentage. West hit .323 with 11 hits and 10 runs batted in. “Mindy Veler started out in left field since seventh grade and she’s fantastic,” Farr said. “She’s got speed and runs down everything in the outfield but she’s really a good infielder, can play shortstop without missing a beat. An unbelievably great kid who won’t talk very loud but she’s a leader. “Reginae, that kid is small but she’s strong and compact. She can fly and you can’t get anything past her in centerfield,” Farr said. “Charity has been our DP and catcher. She puts the ball in play and has quality at-bats.” Birchmore caught fire in the circle late in the game and finished the season with a 2.23 earned-run average. She was 3-1 in five appearances. “E.G. is a pitcher and utility player, one of those kids in the past couple of years who was always there,” Farr said. “We didn’t expect her to be our starting pitcher but in the back half of the season she started to pour it on and keep us in games. She’s a battler along with our other pitchers.” The White Knoll baseball team finished 10-14 and 5-5 in Region 4-5A, but had a bounce-back season after going 7-22 and 0-10 the year before. The Timberwolves reached the play-in series of the 5A Division 2 District 3 tournament, but fell two games to zero in the best-of-three series with Lugoff - Elgin . White Knoll fell 4-1 in game one, but rallied for six runs in game two after falling behind 7-0. The Timberwolves had a 4-run rally going on in the bottom of the seventh with two outs and two men on, but a strikeout closed out the game and the season. Senior Dillon Woods led the team with a .465 batting average, five home runs and a .573 on-base percentage. Senior Jean Maldonado batted .364, and junior Tra Johnson batted .329. The team loses six seniors but has plenty of younger hitters, fielders, and pitchers to put together another successful season next year.
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