Carolina Academy Basketball Enters Region Play

Carolina Academy Basketball Enters Region Play

By David Shelton

Senior Writer

Lake City – Basketball season has entered the final drive and the boys and girls teams at Carolina Academy are hoping to finish strong and earn playoff berths.

Both teams are under the .500 mark but have competed well. Each is capable of posting wins down the stretch if they can put it all together over the last four weeks of the season.

The boys team is more senior-laden than the girls team. In fact, the girls roster does not have any seniors or juniors on it.



Seniors on the boys team are Cohen Filyaw, Walker McCutcheon, Cole Tanner, Lane Edwards, Hendley Campbell, Chandler Prosser and Ryan Cox. The other two players are junior Ryker Rhodes and sophomore Tanner Floyd.

Making up the girls roster are sophomores Emma Amos, Lauren Sims, Ella Ham, Ella Cumbie and Sarah Garris; and freshmen Paisley McCutcheon, Natalie Braveboy, Kaylie Lyerly and Kiki Hanna.

Amos is the team’s leading scorer, averaging about 13 points per game. Sims averages in double figures in rebounds and McCutcheon adds about 10 points per game.

Lyerly and Hanna were members of the state championship girls tennis team this past fall. Sims, Amos, McCutcheon, Braveboy and Ham were members of the volleyball team that made the state playoffs this past season.

The fall sports season was highlighted by a state championship in tennis, while the volleyball and football teams made the state playoffs as well.

The girls tennis team won their second straight SCISA Class AA state championship, defeating Lowcountry Prep, 6-0, to claim the top prize. Carolina Academy finished the season with a 12-4 record.

The Bobcats were led by three seniors at the top of the singles lineup. Carlie Anne Smith  was the No. 1 singles player for the second straight season.

Blythe Smith played the No. 2 singles position and Savannah McCutcheon played No. 3 singles.

Freshman Kaylie Lyerly played in the fourth spot and freshman Madelyn Matthews played No. 5. Freshman Scarlett Evans played No. 6 singles with Kiki Hanna and freshman Mary Kearsten Hanna also getting some time.

Meanwhile, the volleyball team participated in the SCISA state tournament but came up short in their bid for a state title. The Bobcats finished the season with nine wins.

Seniors leading the way this season included Abby McCutcheon, Alana Altman. Raeley Frye and Jennifer Vargas. The rest of the roster is of junior varsity age but that youth is showing a lot of growth.

Sophomores included Lauren Sims, Emma Amos, Lindsey Ward, Abby Walker and Ella Ham. Rounding out the roster were freshmen Paisley McCutcheon and Natalie Braveboy; and eighth-grader Ella Grace Johnson.

The football team closed its regular season with wins over Thomas Heyward (30-27) and Lee Academy (34-23), which evened their 2025 regular season record at 5-5. That was good enough to earn a spot in the state playoffs where they faced a rematch with Thomas Heyward in the first-round game on Nov. 7. The two wins at the end snapped a four-game losing streak and sent the Bobcats into the postseason with a lot of confidence. However, Thomas Heyward got some revenge with a playoff victory.