Dorchester Beats Lee 9-5 to Win SCISA AA Baseball Crown

By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor Orangeburg – The Orangeburg Preparatory School girls track and field program has now started putting state championship rings on the other hand. The Indians won their sixth consecutive state championship on May 1, winning the SCISA Division II crown at the Orangeburg Prep Athletic Complex . Orangeburg Prep head coach Brooks Smith said bringing home state title trophies never gets old. “tt’s always nice to win,” Smith said. “This one was a little tougher for as coaches because we knew we had a strong team. It was hard for us to lose on paper, so that made it more stressful for us as coaches whereas we were able to use the underdog role the last couple of years.” The Indians won with 130 points with First Presbyterian of Shannon Forest finishing second with 112. Spartanburg Day School was third with 91while Thomas Sumter Academy finished fourth with 40 and Greenwood Christian School fifth with 28. Orangeburg Prep used its depth to pick up the victory as 13 athletes scored points. The Indians were led by junior Mary Legare Delaney , who was the high point scorer in the state meet for the second consecutive year. Delaney won two events and finished second in two others to score 36 points. She won the 400-meter dash in a time of 1 minute, 00.48 seconds and won the long jump with a distance of 17 feet, 1 inch. She finished second in the 200 in 26.61 seconds and second in the triple jump in 33-05. “Mary Legare brings a lot of points to the table,” Smith said with a laugh. “She’s just such a competitor. She trains hard and expects to go out and win.” Smith said Delaney’s victory in the 400 along with sophomore Naomi McCutchen’s fifth-place finish were pivotal in Orangeburg Prep coming away with a comfortable victory. “When we were trying to figure out who to put where, we the 400 is where we decided she needed to be,” Smith said of Delaney, who owns the school record in the 400 but didn’t run it as much this year as in years past. “The coaches said, ‘We need you there.’ We have a vigorous 400-meter program that we do. “Picking up 12 points (10 for Delaney and 2 for McCutchen who also had a fifth-place finish in the javelin at 88-09)) in that event was huge. It took the pressure off of when it came to the final even of the 4x4(00-meter) relay.” Freshman Blakely Garrick had the Indians’ other first-place finish. She won the 400 hurdles in 1:09.80. She finished second in the 100 hurdles in 17.88 and fifth in the triple jump at 29.05 1/4 to finish with 20 points. Sophomore Gee Gee Riley finished second in points with 22. She finished second in the 400 hurdles (1:10.31) and third in both the long jump (16-02 7/8) and the triple jump (31-08). She also ran a leg on the second-place 4x100-meter relay team (52.53) along with seventh-grader Carson Cue , McCutchen and junior Emmaline Dangerfield . “Gee Gee is like our Swiss Amry knife,” Smith said. “We’ll try her at one event this week and have her in our back pocket when we might need her for something else.” Morgan Newsome was the lone senior to score points. She finished second in the pole vaul with a height of 08-06. Eighth-grader Jordyn Baldwin was fourth at 06-11 7/8 and freshman Ella Sarvis was fifth (06-11 7/8). Eighth-grader Kennedy Lawtson finished third in both the 100 hurdles (18.15) and the 400 hurdles (1:14.19. Cue finished fifth in the 800 run (237.22). The 4x400 relay team of McCutchen, eighth-grader Erika Martin , Lawton and Cue finished second (4:26.16) and the 4x800 team of Cue, Laston, eighth-grader Delilah Howe and eighth-grader Hannah Bair finished third (11L01.56). Smith said the secret to Orangeburg Prep’s success is how it works together as a unit. “There is no doubl that this is a team that works together,” he said. “These girls all pulled for each other, believed in each other and helped each other out.”jUNI LIVINGSTON, WILLIAMS, JUDY BASDEBALL ALL-REGION Junior Marshall Livingston , junior Maxx Judy and sophomore Cholly Williams were selected to the All-Region 1-AAA baseball team. Livingston led the Indians in hitting with a .360 batting average. Judy finished with a .325 average and Williams finished at .320. After losing its entire starting lineup from last year’s AAA state runner-up team, Orangeburg Prep finished the year with a 13-13 record. The Indians went 1-2 in the state tournament. They lost to Hilton Head Prep , the team they lost to in the championship series, 5-0 in their first game. Orangeburg Prep rebounded to beat Patrick Henry Academy 5-4 in an elimination game. Freshman Cam Jolley hit the first pitch in the bottom of the seventh inning for a game-winning home run. The Indians were eliminated with a 4-3 loss to Spartanburg Christian Academy . SCHURLKNIGHT, LAMBRECHT, HARTZOG SOFTBALL ALL-REGION PICKS Senior shortstop Prestan Schurlknight , senior catcher Hannah Lambrecht , junior second baseman Calee Hartzog and sophomore pitcher Natalie Hall were named to the All-Region softball team. Schurlknight, who will be playing collegiately at Lander, was chosen as the Co-Region Player of the Year. She finished with a .521 batting average. Lambrecht batted .491, Hartzog hit .449 and Hall batted ,421, Orangeburg Prep finished the season with an 11-14 record. The Indians went 1-2 in the state tournament. They beat Spartanburg Christian 10-6 in the opener before falling to now 5-time state champion Pee Dee Academy 12-2 in five innings and fell to Williamsburg Academy 8-7.

By Rob Gantt Special to The HSSR HANAHAN - Making solid contact at the plate and, with it, winning games has become contagious for Hanahan High School's softball team. The Hawkettes completed a dominant run through the district tournament Wednesday, May 13, with a 10-0 victory over visiting Georgetown High School . Hanahan took control from the outset, plating eight runs in the bottom of the first inning. The Hawkettes, who won for the 11th time in 12 games, finished off the victory by mercy rule with single runs in the fourth and fifth innings. "We've been talking about it since Friday, that we need to get right on it from the start," Hanahan coach Katrina Bezdek said. "I think it took us a little bit more time in our other games because we hadn't played for a while. Now that we're playing more consistently, they were really fired up. They jumped on it first thing." The Hawkettes, who have tallied 60 runs in their past five games, recorded six hits in their initial set of hacks. Infielder Camryn Fowler sparked the scoring with a RBI single. After going up 3-0 on a wild pitch and fielder's choice groundout, Hanahan pitcher Maggie Priddy dropped a RBI single into shallow right field to make it 4-0. Outfielder Briar Mros and infielder Dria Tolbert then connected on two-run triple to make the home team's advantage a very comfortable 8-0. "That first inning, it felt like it was everyone pretty much," Bezdek said. The uprising was plenty of run support for Priddy, who hurled a one-hitter for the Hawkettes with five strikeouts. "We decided to go with Maggie because they hadn't seen her yet, and I thought she threw really, really well," Bezdek said. "She was hitting her spots. She was moving the ball, and then our defense backed her up." First baseman Aubrey Cribb singled in Hanahan's ninth run in the bottom of the fourth inning and Tolbert ended the game with a RBI double in the fifth inning. Mros, Tolbert and Riley each collected two hits for Hanahan. Mros scored three times from the leadoff spot. The Hawkettes also blanked Marlboro County (14-0) and cruised by Georgetown (12-5) in their first two district games. The postseason district title was the eighth for Bezdek. Hanahan (19-6) hosts Dillon High School in the first game of the Lower State tournament Friday, May 15. "It feels like every year we play Dillon," Bezdek said. "They're always good competition. The way we're playing right now, I feel like our confidence is growing. That's going to be the key going into the next round." Dillon secured its district crown with a 3-0 win over Waccamaw Wednesday. The Wildcats (14-12) also knocked off Battery Creek (8-0) and Silver Bluff (9-6) in their district.

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Swampcats complete a three-peat in SCISA AAAA softball.

Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor Walterboro – It’s official. The Pee Dee Academy softball program can now say it has been able to bear the title of state champion for the past half decade. The Golden Eagles won their fifth consecutive state crown on Tuesday, beating Colleton Prep Academy 8-1at the CPA field to sweep the best-of-3 SCISA AAA championship series. PDA, which beat the War Hawks 10-0 in five innings on Monday in Mullins , finished the season with a 28-2 record. This is the ninth straight season Pee Dee played in a state title series. It also claimed a championship in 2017. In Monday’s win, senior Maddie Coward tossed a 1-hit shutout. Coward, who has started in the circle for each of those five title teams, struck out nine, walked one and hit a batter. She threw 52 pitcheas, 43 for strikes. Pee Dee scored two runs in the first inning, one in the second, three in both the third and fourth and closed it out with a run with one out in the fifth. Dinah Johnson had a 2-run single in the first inning, while Lilly Grace Rowell had a sacrifice fly that scored Carly Carroll in the second. e The Eagles scored three runs in the third before Addison Hasty had a 2-run double in the fourth followed by an RBI double by Azeleigh Arnette to make it 9-0. The game-ending run came on a triple by Careoll Hasty and Arnette both had two hits to lead PDA’s 8-hit attack. Coward added a double, and Rowell had a single to go with her sac fly. Carroll and Johnson had the other hits. Carolina Academy beats The King's Academy 8-7 to force deciding game in AA Carolina 8 The King’s Academy 7 Florence – Carolina Academy kept alive its hopes of defending the SCISA AA title with an 8-7 victory over The King’s Academy on Tuesday at the TKA field. The deciding game in the best-of-3 series will be played at Florence Christian School on Thursday beginning at 7 p.m. Raeley Frye and Ella Ham did the work in the circle for the Bobcats, who improved to 15-10. Ham smacked a home run, while Paisley Coker had two multiple-run hits. Addison Bescher had 12 strikeouts in the circle for the Lions. Bescher also had 12 strikeouts and allowed just two hits in The King’s Academy’s 5-2 Game 1 win on Monday in Lake City . TKA head coach Jennifer John said Emma Atkinson had a great game catching Bescher, and that Emma Taflinger , Scarlet Rose Rivers and Chloe Ritter backed her in the field with great catches.

By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor Winnsboro – It wasn’t an easy path, but Holly Hill Academy is the 2-time defending SCISA Class A softball state champion. The Raiders tied the game in the top of the sixth inning and then scored four runs in the seventh to defeat Richard Winn Academy 12-8 on Tuesday at the RWA field to sweep the best-of-3 series. “I’m worn out,” said a happy HHA head coach Kally Knigh t. “We had two crazy games (winning the opener on Monday 11-8), and it was wild on Saturday (in the state tournament. I’m just proud of this team and the way it battled and fought back, really all season long.” Holly Hill tied the game at 8-8 in the sixth. Senior Shelby Hinson came on in relief of starting pitcher Taylor Wright in the bottom of the inning and held the Eagles scoreless the rest of the way. Senior Kinlee Steigler had the go-ahead double in the 4-run seventh. Wright was 2-for-3 with three rusn batted in. In the circle, she worked into the sixth before being relieved by Hinson, who got the victory. Senior Kayley Bell was 2-for-3 with a triple. On Monday, Hinson got the victory as well. She started and worked the first four innings, allowing two hits and one earned run. Wright worked the final three innings, giving up three hits and three runs while earning the save. Milly Kate Prescott led the offense, going 4-for-4 with three RBI. Senior Abbigail Burleson had a hit and three RBI. Freshman Kaila McLean and sophomore Megan Guzzi led Richard Winn, both going 2-for-4 with an RBI. Freshman Hayley Ann Prevatt was intentionally walked five times.

Pee Dee, Laurence Manning, Holly Hill softball, Calhoun baseball win titles on Tuesday.

Calhoun Academy wins first baseball title since 2016 Lee, Marlboro force deciding games; Hilton Head Christian, Cardinal Newman rained out Kingstree – Calhoun Academy won its first SCISA baseball state championship since 2016 by beating Williamsburg Academy 6-4 in eight innings on Tuesday at the WA field to sweep the best-of-3 AAA title series. The Cavaliers finished the season with a 26-1 record. The Stallions closed out with a 20-4 record. Lee Academy 5 Dorchester 3 Bishopville – Lee Academy kept alive its hopes of defending its AA state title with a 5-3 victory over Dorchester Academy on Tuesday at the LA field to even the best-of-3 series at one game apiece. The third and deciding game is scheduled to be played on Thursday at Laurence Manning Academy’s Tucker Belangia Diamond beginning at 7 p.m. Andrew Bowers picked up the victory for the Cavaliers, who improved to 18-5. Landon Olson led the offense, going 3-for-4 with two doubles. The Raiders won the opening game on Monday in St. George by a 6-2 count. DA is 11-15. Marlboro Academy 13 W.W. King 7 Bennettsville – Marlboro Academy evened the best-of-3 Class A title series with a 13-7 win over W.W. King on Tuesday at the MA field. The deciding game will be played on Thursday at Wilson Hall’s Tommy Jones Field in Sumter at a time to be determined. Landon Edge was the winning pitcher for the Dragons, who evened their record at 11-11. Nolan Caulder was 2-for-4 with two runs batted in to lead the offense. Elizabeth Sheppard had five stolen bases. Tucker McGinty and Casen Buzhardt both had a hit and two RBI for King, which finished with eight errors. Greyson Rikard was 2-for-4. The Knights won Monday’s opener in Batesburg by a 9-3 count. WKA scored five runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to break the game open. Elijah Hutto picked up the win, striking out eight in six innings. Hutto was also 2-for-2 with a double, and Rikard also had a double. Edge and Matthew Taylor both had two hits for Marlboro. Colson Smith pitched five innings, allowing two earned runs. Hilton Head Christian vs Cardinal Newman rained out Bluffton – The second game of the AAAA state championship series between Hilton Head Christian Academy and Cardinal Newman scheduled for Tuesday at the HHCA field was postponed due to rain. The game has been rescheduled for Wednesday with a 7 p.m. start. The Eagles are after a third consecutive state title. They opened the best-of-3 title series with an 11-5 win in Columbia on Monday. Slaide Burd hit the first pitch of the game for a home run and Hilton Head Christian rolled from there. It finished with 11 hits led by by Chip Hetzel , who was 3-for-4 with a double, a run scored and an RBI. Jackson Richardson had two hits with three RBI and two runs, Roman Colella had two hits, one a double, with two RBI and a run, and Will Mahl had two hits and two runs. Burd finished with the homer, two runs and an RBI, and Dylan Gehm had a home run and three RBI. Eli Morgan scored twice. Tucker Nelson got the win, scattering six hits over six innings. He allowed four runs while striking out eight and walking two. The 16-11 Cardinals finished with seven hits. Will Spotts and Dylan Williams both homered for their lone hits. Williams had three RBI. Chaplin Cox had a hit, a run and an RBI, while Sam Realman and Connor Catteneo both had a hit and a run. Connor Hooks had a hit.

A.C. Flora captures the Class AAAA boys state championship title at the Cayce Tennis Center.