Dillon Wildcats
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By Billy G. Baker Publisher Moncks Corner - When Oceanside Collegiate used a highly rated junior quarterback. ( Aiden “Laser” Manavian ) to defeat AAAAA power Dutch Fork back in September, the media boys were about ready to phone in to the engraver at the South Carolina High School League to get the Class AAA trophy ready early for the Land Sharks. This reporter was on hand for that mild upset win at Charleston Southern back in September but there is too much football left to be played in Class AAA just to go ahead and give the trophy to the most talented team in AAA in South Carolina. The AAA SCHSL state finals will take place at high noon on Friday December 5 th at South Carolina State University so you AAA fans go ahead and phone in to your boss about having the flu because this is not a Saturday game. Oceanside Collegiate, coached by Brent LaPrad , advanced this week to host Marlboro County by defeating Georgetown 49-15 last week. The Bulldogs, who have an 180- mile ride to Charleston in front of them this week, advanced with a 49-13 win over Swansea. Do not be surprised if the Bulldogs hang around for three quarters against Oceanside but in the final quarter the Sharks should win with their depth numbers. BHP did survive the graduation of all-world running back Maurquise Henderson , and the number one ranked 11-0 Bears advanced with a 56-7 win over Palmetto in round one. Russell Blackstone’s team has been the most offensive productive team at all levels of prep football in SC with a state leading 558 points! (Wow!) Coach Blackston told the HSSR recently, “It sure is good when you can graduate 8,000 yards and 100 touchdowns in Marquise Henderson, that you can still be very good. There are people who thought we were not going to be anything and that’s okay. I knew we had 23 seniors back and six starters back on both sides. We’re where I thought we would be. We had a tremendous Spring and a tremendous summer.” BHP will host Southside Christian this week. The Sabres defeated Chapman 55-18 to advance. Senior BHP QB Noah Thomas is among the best dual threat athletes in the state. By season’s end Thomas should pass for well over 2,200 yards and he will be close to 1,000 yards rushing. His favorite target is junior stud Tajeh Watson Martin . Third ranked Loris (11-0) beat Dillon for the second year in a row and that got the folks around town pretty whipped up for sure. The Lions whipped Battery Creek 49-14 last week to advance. They will host upstart Orangeburg-Wilkinson this week after the 9-1 Bruins beat Keenan 25-12 last week. This game should be a one possession lead for either team well into the fourth quarter. Dillon has won a state title before with three losses, and the Wildcats have a rising star in 9 th grade QB Khayel Fong Talia (6-2, 200) who recently visited Clemson for the Florida State game. This Under Armour Next Level All-American has helped make talented North Carolina WR commitment and Shrine Bowler Zay Robertson the top WR in South Carolina. Robertson has drawn comparisons to former New England NFL receiver Troy Brown who played high school football at Blackville-Hilda . Dillon is also led by Shrine Bowl LB Daniel Capehart and North-South LB Keryien Brown . Dillon advanced in round one with a 49-8 win over Fox Creek and the Wildcats will host Silver Bluff this week, a 34-13 winner over North Charleston . It seems strange that Newberry (11-0) is competing in the playoffs as a lower state team this season but that is the case. Newberry is led by SC tight end commitment Jamel Howze (6-3,215) and they have dominated teams 470-142 this season. Newberry advanced with a 54-14 win over Aynor last week and they will host Hanahan this week. The Hawks advanced with a 38-21 win over Waccamaw last week. In the upper state , Powdersville advanced with a 66-0 win over Carolina , and they will host Pendleton this week. Pendleton advanced with a 24-21 win over Broome last week. Mountain View Prep (MVP) can be a sleeper but an early season loss to Woodruff exposed some of their weaknesses. MVP had a close 28-21 win over St. Joseph’s in round one to advance and they host Crescent this week. The Tigers advanced with a 52-14 win over Union County . Christ Church won Class A titles under head coach Quin Hatfield (a Manning native) in recent years but moved up to AAA with realignment two years ago. The Cav’s advanced with a 42-7 win over Walhalla last week and they will be at Woodruff this week. The 10-1 Wolverines are ranked 5 th by the HSSR this week and they advanced with a 49-7 win over West-Oak . Woodruff is led by a talented 1-2 punch junior pair on offense. QB Connor Davis (6-2, 210) has completed 147-of-242 passes for 1,904 yards and 23 TD’s coming into the game with Christ Church. Junior RB Amari Gibson has gained 1,284 yards on 159 carries and 19 TD’s. This makes Woodruff a very balanced team on offense between passing and running. While Class AAA might look like a BHP vs OC rematch anything can happen, and most teams are just one unfortunate injury away from a course correction so staying healthy is so important.
Dillon's Zay Robertson.
Dillon's WR Zay Robertson in action in 2024.
Keith Coward begins his second year as the athletic director at his alma mater, Dillon High.
Dillon Coach Kelvin Roller.
Dillon rising senior receiver Zay Robertson who caught 63 passes for around 1,000 yards last season. Robertson ran a 4.4 forty at the South Carolina football camp on June, 7th.
By Billy G. Baker Publisher Dillon —Entering the last third of the 2025 baseball season, the Dillon Wildcats baseball team (4-9, 1-7) has been set-back by injuries to key players as head baseball coach Keith Coward continues to work around the situation. “ Hank Grider would be our number one pitcher but he has not thrown yet in a game due to an injury, but he is able to bat and play in the field and we are thankful for that,” said Coach Coward. “We were also counting on the defense of freshman JJ Campbell, who can play second or any position in the outfield, but due to an injury he is being used as a designated hitter.” The leadoff for Dillon is senior Dan Graves who is currently batting .343 with 8 RBI’s. Grider, a junior, bats second and he leads the team at .436 and 14 RBI’s. Junior Jaden Williamson bats in the three hole and he is batting .436 with 8 RBI’s. The clean-up hitter is Austin Miles who is batting .300 with six RBI’s. In the 5 th slot is catcher/first baseman Jamison Pittman who is currently batting .409 with three RBI’s. Cambell, the DH bats 6 th and he is at .300. Freshman Bryson Davis, batting .306 with six RBI’s out of the 8 th spot, provides pitching depth and he usually starts at third base. Eighth grader Aiden McAlister bats in the 9-hole and he is the starting shortstop. “Every team in AAA makes the baseball play-offs and we are hoping Grider can pitch some in the playoffs,” said Coach Coward. “We have seven more games before the play-offs start and our goal is to finish strong and have a good showing in the play-offs.” Dillon will play at Aynor on April 15 th , travel to Marion on the 22 nd , and then host the Foxes the nest day. Aynor comes to Dillon on April, 29. The Wildcats close out the regular season at Latta on May, 1st. Coach Coward is assisted by Coley Bohachic , Steven Reeves , and Austin Moody , Sr.
By Billy G. Baker Publisher Dillon —The Dillon Lady Wildcats softball team (9-11,4-4) has seven middle schoolers on their varsity roster this season, and it easily the youngest team head coach Stevie Grice has worked with nearing the end of his 5 th season as the head coach at the school. “We played Aynor the other night, with all of their six seniors going on to college softball, and our young team is 0-0 with them after four innings,” said Coach Grice. “We did eventually get beat 13-1 but I was proud of how we hung tough with them, only trailing 3-0 after five innings.” Dillon is 4-4 in the region, with two region games left against Marlboro County (April, 29) and at Loris (May, 2). “If are fortunate enough to win those two games there would be a three-way tie for second place in the region behind Aynor,” said Coach Grice. “This would be a great achievement for such a young team. In AAA, we only have 32 teams so every team makes the play-offs.” Dillon’s biggest win of the season was a 6-2 win over Loris on April, 1. “Our sophomore pitcher Zoee Chavis had 10 strike-outs in that game and we only gave up one walk, made just one error in the field with one hit batter,” said Coach Grice. “When we have played games with few walks and errors we have won the majority of those games. “Against Loris, freshman Wanaysia Hughes went two-for-two with three RBI’s to lead us at the plate,” Coach Grice. “ MaKayla Huggins and Makenna Meekins each had two hits in that game and Cierra Grice had a hit, one RBI and a walk. The Loris game was the best we have played all season.” Grice, a PC signee in her sixth season on the Dillon varsity, leads the team with a .561 average including 10 doubles, three triples, and five home runs with 26 RBI’s. Grice recently collected her 100 th career RBI at Dillon in a game against Hartsville . “Cierra has carried us on offense all season and we have played her between shortstop and third base this season,” said Coach Grice. “She is five hits away from having 200 hits in her career at Dillon and she already holds the school record for hits in a career.” Senior catcher McKayla Huggins is committed to Florence-Darlington Tech and she is currently batting .424 with 9 doubles and 22 RBI’s. Junior Makeena Meekins, who bats second in the line - up , starts in center field and she is hitting .382 with six games left in the regular season. After getting past these three veteran players for Dillon, the Wildcats are very young. Chavis bats cleans-up at .259. As the team’s ace pitcher, she is 6-6 with 70 K’s in 63.2 innings of work in the circle. “Zoee Chavis is getting better and better every time she gets in the circle,” said Coach Grice. “She has a nice change-up and curve ball and she is throwing 57-to 59 as a young pitcher. She has a solid future.” Jayla Wright is a 7 th grader starting at first base and she is the team’s back-up pitcher. She has seven RBI’s batting out of the five- hole. Madelyn Willis is an 8 th grader starting at second base while 8 th grader Marsiah Bethea plays in the outfield and she is the team’s designated base runner. Kanyla Tanksley is an 8 th grade shortstop who has started at short, and the outfield, and she is a solid utility performer batting in the sixth spot. Hughes is a freshman starting in right field and she is batting .261 with seven RBI’s. Sophomore Ansley Villagomez starts in left field and she has seven RBI’s. Madelyn Willis is an 8 th grader starting at second base. Other key reserves on the team include sophomore catcher/outfielder Addison Villagomez, Seventh grader Ashlyn Wallace who sometimes starts at second or third base. Seventh grade reserve pitcher Emorie Williamson is 1-0 in the circle and she was the winning pitcher against Knox, Ky earlier in the season with 5 K’s. Sophomore Haiden Eller has started some at first while sophomore Tristen Dove has provided depth at third and first during the season. “I feel like we will have a strong finish to the season and these younger players all have bright futures in the program,” said Coach Grice. “Next season is going to be really interesting for sure.” In Coach Grice’s first season as head coach in 2021, Dillon went 25-10 and played for the state title against Seneca, losing out in the third game of that series. In 2022, the Wildcats were 21-8 and advanced to the Lower State championship game before losing to Aynor. In 2023, Dillon was 21-10 and lost out to Aynor once again in the AAA Lower State finals. Last year the Wildcats went 18-7 and advanced to the Lower State finals, once again, before losing out to Aynor. To date, Coach Grice is 94-46 at Dillon and the future is very bright for the program.
By Billy G. Baker Publisher Dillon —Starting his third season as the Dillon head baseball coach, and first year as the school’s athletic director, Keith Coward feels strongly that things are looking up for the program this season. The Wildcats began the season with a 7-2 win over Carvers Bay before losing to Conway 11-8. In game three of the season Dillon prevailed 10-4 over Green Sea Floyds. In their most recent game, they lost to Lamar 4-0. “Right now, Hank Grider , our best pitcher, is out with an injury and we hope to have him back in the next few weeks,” said Coach Coward. “Hank was all-region two years ago. “ Dan Graves was our all-region center fielder last year and we are glad to have him back,” said Coach Coward. “Hank is the anchor of our pitching and we are at our best when he’s on the mound. Austin Miles has done a good job keeping us afloat until we can hopefully get Hank back. “This is most definitely our most experienced team I’ve had over the past three seasons,” said Coach Coward. “We return 8 starters from last year so we have plenty of familiarity there. We just need to keep working and getting better.” Graves bats lead-off for the Wildcats. In the two-hole is freshman second baseman/outfielder JJ Campbell . When Grider is healthy he bats in the third slot and when he is not on the mound, he is a designated hitter or shortstop. Miles is a middle infielder who bats clean-up. Senior catcher Jamison Pittman is back and he backs in the number five hole. Senior Ryan Carter returns and he plays right field and also serves as the team’s designated hitter. Jaden Williamson bats in the 7 th slot and he is a junior pitcher/first baseman. Freshman pitcher/third baseman Bryson Davis bats 8 th in the order and junior wide receiver football prospect Zay Robertson bats 9 th and can play anywhere in the outfield. Also seeing plenty of action is 8 th grader Aiden Lancaster who is an up-and-coming infielder for Dillon. Dillon has around 35 hits as a team in four games, a vast improvement over the previous two seasons. Robertson has a 1,000 on base percentage and he is batting 1,000 on the season, including a triple. Pittman is at .556 including two doubles after four games. Campbell is hitting .500 with two doubles and four RBI’s. Lancaster is at .500 including one double. Graves has scored seven runs while hitting .438 with four RBI’s and one double. Miles is at .385 with two RBI’s and one double. Before Grider got hurt he was batting .385 with seven RBI’s and one home run. Carter is batting .364 while J. Bohachic is batting .333 with two runs scored. On the mound Miles is 1-1 with a 2.10 ERA. Davis is 1-0 on the bump. Remaining games in the month of March include a home game against Darlington on the 14 th before playing an away region game at Georgetown on the 18 th . Dillon will host Georgetown on the 21 st . Dillon will host Loris on March, 25 and they travel to Loris to close out the month of March on the 28 th .
By Billy G. Baker Publisher Dillon —Starting two 7 th graders, and two 8 th graders, was not in the plans for Dillon head softball coach Stevie Grice as he made plans for the 2025 team. after a 2024 deep play-off run, that saw the Wildcats lose to Aynor , 1-0, in the AAA lower state finals a year ago. “We had three experienced players decide not to return to the program for various reasons,” said Coach Grice, who also runs a very successful summer travel softball program. “In my four years as the head softball at Dillon this is by far our youngest team. “We are very young, and we are making way too many errors right now,” said Coach Grice. “We have had very close games with several teams through five innings, or so, and then we give up four runs in the 6 th inning like we did against Heritage, Tennessee. In our game against Chesterfield , we are winning 4-3 late in the game and then we give up 8 runs, late in the game when we made six errors that contributed to those unearned runs, and we ended up losing 14-4. “Our goal is to keep working hard every day in practice, and control the things we can control,” said Coach Grice. “We must shore up our defense, and work on helping the younger players get more comfortable in competition. I realize, with some player departures we have had to throw some 7 th and 8 th graders in the fire, so to speak. Hopefully, we will be playing our best softball come play-off time.” After 8 games of the season Dillon is 4-4, despite only having two seniors on the team. The Wildcats have wins over Socastee , Wilson Hall , Carolina Academy and St . Johns out of Washington DC. Their four losses have come against SCISA AAAA champion Laurence Manning , East Clarendon , Heritage Hall of Tennessee, and Chesterfield . The team is led by senior “Coach on the Field” Cierra Grice , a four-time HSSR all-state selection who is among the most versatile players in South Carolina. Grice is a signee to the softball program at Presbyterian College where her older sister, Logan , is now playing. Cierra was recruited to college as a third baseman and she is also an excellent catcher. The younger Grice is a six-year member of the team. She is the starting shortstop and currently she is batting 558 including 9 RBI’s and three stolen bases. “No doubt with such a young team Cierra is like our Coach on the Field,” said Coach Grice. “She can play multiple positions and our younger players have relied on her for guidance and even instruction.” The only other senior on the team is all-region returner McKayla Huggins who is catcher batting .450. Huggins, a commitment to Florence-Darlington Tech is a top catcher behind the plate with a 1,000-fielding percentage to date. Junior all-region returner MaKenna Meekins has missed a few games with a minor injury and the speedy center fielder is currently batting .500. When you get past the “Big Three” roll call of Grice, Huggins, and Meekins the youth movement begins. Sophomore Zoee Chavis is the number one pitcher on the staff having to fill the shoes left behind by graduated record setter Paige Sherman who recently got her first win at Lander University, where she is a freshman. Sherman had 704 K’s in her five- year career at Dillon where she won 75 games and compiled a 1.32 ERA. “Zoee is getting better with every outing,” said Coach Grice. “She has a good breaking ball and is working on developing other pitches also. In 22.2 innings in the circle this season she has 25 strike-outs and a 0.78 ERA.” Chavis can play second base when she is not pitching. Haiden Eller is a sophomore part-time starter at first depending on who is pitching . Another sophomore starter is speedy center fielder Ansley Villagomez who is batting .333. Her 9 th grade sister, Addison Villagomez, is a reserve catcher. Kanyla Tanksley , an 8th grade starter in the out-field, who is batting .400 and she leads the team with six stolen bases. Marsiah Bethea is a 7 th grader playing in the outfield and batting in the 8- hole. Ashlyn Wallace is a 7 th grader starting at third base. Freshman Wanaysia Hughes is starting in right field. Jayla Wright is a 7 th grade back-up pitcher. Madalynn Willis , was just pulled up from the junior varsity and she is seeing action at second base. Emorie Willimson is a 7 th grade reserve pitcher and Tristen Dove is a sophomore reserve first-baseman. Dillon will play at Georgetown on March, 19 th , before playing at Green Sea - Floyds the next day. On Friday March, 21 st the Wildcats host Waccamaw Coach Grice is assisted by Will Clark , Twin Lester and Johnna Jones .