Athletic Success Encompasses Many Factors at Colleton Prep
Colleton Prep rising senior Ava Murray batted .543 with six homers, 31 RBIs and 22 stolen bases in her junior season.
By David Shelton
Senior Writer
Walterboro – While the student/athletes put in the hard work and handle the competition aspect of high school athletics, it takes the work and commitment from the community to aid greatly in the process of winning.
Community support is essential to success in high school athletics. That has never been more true at Colleton Prep as it these days.
The school recently held its annual athletic banquet to honor the top performers from the 2024-25 school year. In his address to open the event, Colleton Prep athletic director Greg Langdale made sure to recognize those who operate behind the scenes to make the banquet memorable for the student/athletes.
“I would like to give a special thanks to the parents that helped plan and organize tonight’s banquet,” Langdale writes in his address. “Thank you so much for your hard work.
“I would also like to thank all of the parents and fans that volunteered their time and money to help support our athletes. Our athletics program would not be as successful without your help.”
The banquet highlighted some of the top athletes and performances from the past year. One athlete, wrestler Carter Sims, became the first wrestler in school history to win an individual state championship. Sims won the 165-pound state title at the SCISA state championship meet.
The girls cross country team was recognized for winning the region championship last fall. IN track, Bradley Harrison qualified for the SCISA Division II state meet and posted a ninth-place finish in the triple jump.
Sprinter Magnolia Hailey was the top performer on the girls team.
The baseball and softball teams had several solid performances this spring. Bryce Kinard led the baseball team in hitting with a .448 average. Grayson Martin hit .373 and Fripp Smoak hit .333. The leading pitchers were Nick Martin, Cale Owens and Charlie Walker.
Ava Murray was top player this spring in softball. Murray batted .543 with six homers, 31 RBIs and 22 stolen bases. Elena Mathys hit .447 with three homers and 32 RBIs, while Addison Crosby hit .427. Sydney Stivender hit three homers and had 15 stolen bases, and Brooklyn Whitley had 16 RBIs.
The boys golf team qualified for the SCISA Class AAA state tournament, posting a seventh-place finish in the team standings. Charlie Lamb was the top scorer for the Warhawks, posting a 36-hole score of 173. Blake Spears shot 182 and Jack Broderick shot 183. Tanner Caldwell shot 185 and Madden Lemacks shot 193.
Anne Hatcher White was the leading goal scorer in girls soccer with 12 goals. Kaylin Bishop scored six goals and assisted on five. White also was recognized for scoring 1,000 points in her career.
