Bennettsville — Lila English is a rising senior student athlete at Dillon Christian School, where she has been a cheerleader since the sixth grade. English has also been playing volleyball since the seventh grade, basketball since the grade, and plans to play again in her senior season. Not to mention that she is a sport over achiever, when she started playing soccer as a junior. She plans to enjoy her upcoming senior year, being a multiple sport athlete, while continuing to take NETC online classes to help prepare for college. English said her childhood dream was being a varsity cheerleader. Being a multiple sport athlete just adds to her enjoyment of her school experience. With all the demands of sports, high school academics and the NETC online courses, English says her “time management skills” improved by having to balance preparation for multiple classes, with practices and games each week. After high school, English plans to focus on her studies instead of playing sports at the next level. Currently, she is weighing her options of either attending Clemson University’s Agricultural Mechanization and Business Program , but she is also considering attending the Darla Moore Business School at USC. In the classroom, she carries a 4.2438 GPA and says the NETC courses, “Have opened doors to provide me college level work academic learning experiences that have given me a glimpse of what to expect in the future, when I am actually at college,” she said. For all her athletic and academic accomplishments, English has been chosen the “NETC” Female Student Athlete of the Month.” This honor is bestowed through a partnership between the Northeastern Technical College and “The High School Sports Report” with the publication communicating with athletic directors at high schools in the counties of Dillon, Marlboro, and Chesterfield, where NETC serves the needs of high school students seeking to earn dual credits in various subjects that can be transferred to colleges, after a student’s high school graduation. The NETC is currently offering over 44 online dual credit courses for the 2025-26 school year to students in the three counties they serve. Currently, English is enrolled in dual credit online courses offered by NETC. She started taking classes during her junior year and she completing classes that will fulfill basic requirements for her freshman year at college. She has taken US History, World History, and Medical Terminology to date. English looks forward to going to college and preparing for a career. When asked about the NETC experience, English said “NETC has been great,” she said. “I was worried about starting these courses because I had never done anything like it, but the layout is easy to understand, and my professors were always flexible, and willing to help when I needed it.” Considering she only has two semesters of classes completed, English commented “I haven't taken many classes yet, that could reduce my course load in college, but plan on taking some online courses this summer and again during my senior year.” As a high school student, playing sports year-round, and taking NETC online classes, English had this to say about that challenge. “I have to plan, so there is a balance in everything between school, sports, and life,” she said. “I put together a schedule that enables me to get all the course work completed, so I don’t have to give up on doing other things.  When asked if all this can be stressful, English summed it up this way: “Time management can be hard with multiple games, or assignments due, but pacing myself has always helped,” she said. “I try not to load myself down, and I try to space my work out throughout the week to avoid stressing myself out.” English reflected on favorite memories as a student athlete, “Some of my favorite sports memories happened at practices,” she said. “The hard work behind the scenes with all the fun, smiles, and laughs can’t be beat. A different type of bond is formed within a team where you are pushing others, and yourself to be better while also having fun doing it.”

Bennettsville — Reese Bracey is a senior three-sport athlete at the Dillon Christian School, where he participates in the sports of football, basketball and soccer. He readily admits that football is his favorite sport among the three. He started playing football in the fifth grade, and he has played multiple positions as a receiver, tight end, running back, and also at linebacker. In the eighth grade, he started playing basketball as a small forward. In the ninth grade, he started playing soccer. During his prep school career, he twice earned All-Region honors as a running back in football with over 1,000 all-purpose yards achieved. He has also earned All-Region honors in soccer. Bracey closes his high school athletics having played all three sports in his senior year. He says one lesson being a multi-sport athlete taught him is to be on time. “If you are late to practice, you will have some type of punishment,” he said. “This translates well to schoolwork, when it comes to scheduling, doing, and turning in assignments on time.” In the classroom, he carries a 5.2 GPA, while maintaining his online course load, and participating in sports. After graduation, he plans to attend USC and pursue a career in the medical field. For all his athletic and academic accomplishments, Reese Bracey has been chosen the “NETC” Male Student Athlete of the Month.”  This honor is bestowed through a partnership between the Northeastern Technical College and “The High School Sports Report” with the publication communicating with athletic directors at high schools in the counties of Dillon, Marlboro, and Chesterfield, where NETC serves the needs of high school students seeking to earn dual credits in various subjects that can be transferred to colleges after a student’s high school graduation. The NETC is currently offering over 44 online dual credit courses for the 2025-26 school year to students in the three counties they serve. Bracey is currently enrolled in dual credit courses offered by NETC. He has completed classes in Psychology, Public Speaking, English 101 and 102, plus History 101 and 102. By taking the online courses through the NETC, Bracey says, this, “Helps prepare me for the workload and schedule I can expect with college work once I get to college,” he said. It has taught me always to use any free time to complete assignments. I apply this lesson, whether that be at home, or at school.” When asked about a memorable moment in his sports career, Bracey said, “That was involved a play that I will never forget,” he said. “We made the football playoffs and with our first snap of the game, we scored a touchdown!”

Orangeburg Prep girls came out strong in game one of the SCISA tournament games.

Molly Andrews, Lilli Shooter, Presley McKenzie, Braylin Carter All-Region selections

Holly Andrews leading the way for the Warriors

Dillon Christian girls finish 7-17 By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor Dillon – The season didn’t go quite the way hoped for by the Dillon Christian School girls basketball team. The Warriors finished just 7-17 overall though they did go 4-4 in SCISA Region 3-AAA. That wasn’t enough to earn a berth in the state tournament. Still head coach Kelly McColl was pleased with the development the team showed from beginning to end. “We lost five from our team from last year (which made the AA state playoffs) and two were starters and key players,” said McColl, who just completed her third season as head coach and is assisted by Bridget Elvington and Sidney Harrelson . “We started off out season slow, having to learn each other all over again. They improved greatly over the season and it has been fun to watch. “We moved up to AAA this season so we knew the competition would be tougher, but they have proved they can compete with them. Offensively and defensively, they’ve grown and working more collectively as a team than in past seasons.” The three returning starrers were Lily King , Chloe Powell and Braylin Carter . King, a senior who McColl called her best shooter, averaged 7.5 points per game and led the team in assists. Powell, also a senior, averaged 5.4 points. Carter, a sophomore post player, led in scoring at 12.6 points and was also the leading rebounder. The other two starters were freshman Shelby Dial , who averaged 2.9 points, and senior Molly Andrews , who averaged 1.7 points. Key reserves off the bench were eighth-graders Alyana Locklear ad Fraley Britt . Locklear averaged 4.4 points. The other member of the team was sophomore Lila English .  STONE, OUTLAR BOYS BASKETBALL ALL-REGION PICKS Seniors Thompson Stone and Jackson Outlar were selected to the All-Region 4 boys basketball team. Both also played in the SCISA North-South All-Star Game. Stone led the Warriors in scoring at 20.7 while averaging 4.7 in rebounds, assists and steals. Outlar averaged 20.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 2.9 steals. DCS finished with an 11-16 record but made the state tournament. The Warriors lost to Spartanburg Day School 76-59 in the first round. “Our season this year was derailed a bit by injuries,” said head coach Bo Stone . “We knew going in that depth was a possible issue. We lost starting guard Walker Chavis to a season-ending knee injury five games into the season. Then after Christmas, point guard Thompson Stone missed significant time with high ankle sprains, then went out early in the state tournament with another injury to the other leg. “While he was out, freshman guards McKinnon Sampson , Jordan Blackmon and Gray Easterling filled in admirably, which will help them in the future. With center Jasper McIntyre improving, that gives us four freshmen with significant experience to pair with juniors Reese Bracey and Braxton Cummings .”

Braylin Carter leads Warriors in both scoring and rebounding

Thompson Stone, Jackson Outlar both averaging over 20 points a game