Northwood Academy ready to complete the journey

Neill Kirkpatrick Special Contributor • November 21, 2025

Chargers to face Heathwood Hall for SCISA AAAA title on Friday

Summerville – One of the sports cliches you hear is “Worst to First” and it is one that applies to

the Northwood Chargers when you look at where the football program was when head coach

Johnny Waters and his staff took over in 2023.

The Chargers were riding a 29-game losing streak and had not scored 100 points in a season in

three years. However, this was not a new situation for coach Waters as he faced a similar

situation when he took over the head coaching job at First Baptist in 2014. In 2017 and 2018 the

Hurricanes were the SCISA Class AA state champions.

In the Chargers first game under Waters and his in 2023 they ended their 29-game losing steak

by beating Greenwood Christian 28-26. Fast forward and you find the Chargers at 10-1 with a

region championship and the opportunity to win their first state championship since 2014. They

would also be part of the “Worst to First” cliché club.

“We played them my last year at First Baptist and beat them pretty good but I saw a group of

young kids fighting and playing hard until the very last whistle. That was encouraging and I saw

talent on the field but they lacked the fundamental’s. When my staff and I came from First

Baptist we really concentrated on teaching them the fundamental’s and techniques we expected,”

said coach Waters.

Coach continued, “That first summer was huge for us as a program. We approached our 7-on-7

competition with the mindset of winning every game. We needed to teach our kids how to win

because that was one of the biggest issues we had to overcome. Then we were able to end the

losing streak in our first game. We had 1900 people at the game and after the win everyone was

so emotional. The big thing was the kids learned they could win and it got us over the hump

early on in the building process.”

The Chargers ended one of their most successful regular seasons by beating Friday night’s

opponent Heathwood Hall 39-20 to finish the regular season at 9-1 and 6-0 in region play

earning them a region championship and the top seed in the SCISA AAAA playoffs.

Along the way they ended 23 times SCISA state champions Hammond’s 28-game winning streak

but it was the team’s only loss on the season that coach Waters points to as a turning point in

their season. The loss was to North Carolina Independent school Cannon/ Concord Academy 19-

13.

“We learned a lot about our team after we lost that one game. We were reading our press

clippings and listening to everyone outside the program instead of staying focused on what we

needed to do. After that game, the team realized that they had not accomplished anything and

that had to continue to work and get better, “ said coach Waters.


The Chargers have not lost since winning 7 in a row. Included is a 23-10 win over seven-time

defending state champion Hammond 23-10 ending the Skyhawks’ 28-game winning streak.

Coach Waters was excited to earn the top seed in the playoffs but not a fan of the bye week. He

felt sometimes it can take you out of the rhythm you have established during the regular season.

The Chargers took care of business in the semis by beating Porter Guad 34-20 to earn their shot

at the championship.

Heathwood Hall is the only thing standing in the Chargers way of the quest to go from “Worst to

First” and despite defeating them 39-20 just three weeks ago coach Waters knows his team will

have to play four quarters to win Friday night’s battle.

“Heathwood is an outstanding team. We jumped on them early in the last game but we know it

will be different this time. They have a very good quarterback, who can make plays with his feet

as well as his arm. We need to keep him in the pocket. We need to play four quarters of football

for the first time all year to get the win,” said Waters.


Defensively, the Charges have been a hand full for every offense they have faced. They give up

13 points per game and have only allowed 20 points twice during the regular season. Defensive

tackles Hammer White and Garrett Andy have been the first line of defense as they have

controlled the line of scrimmage. White leads the team in tackles for loss (15) and sacks (5.5)

while Andy is second in TFL’s with 10.5 and has three sacks.

At defensive end for the Chargers are Mitchell Lanier and Nate Cross. Cross, just a freshman,

has 9 tackles for loss and four sacks while Lanier has six tackles for loss.

Linebackers Cody McLeary and Dominque Russell have benefited from White and Andy’s

stellar play at the line of scrimmage as they are first and third in tackles. Russel leads the team

with 75 tackles and McLeary has 50 tackles. Russell is also second in sacks with 4.5.

Safety MJ Davis has been a big hitter all season and has shown great instincts in pass coverage.

Davis is second on the team in tackles with 57 and he is second on the team in solo tackles with

31. He also has two interceptions, a fumble recovery and two blocked field goals.

The Chargers defensive backfield is made up of Antwaun Henderson, Quincy Lingard, Jordin

Carter, and Brice Jenkins. Henderson leads the team in solo hits with 31 while Jenkins leads

the team in interceptions with five, four passes defended and fumble recoveries.

The Chargers offense has put up 396 points on the year and scored over 30 points in 8 of their 10

games. They have great balance averaging 222 yards on the ground and 187 thru the air. The

leader of the offense has been junior quarterback Kevin Johnson. He has thrown for 2149 yards

and 19 touchdowns with just five interceptions. He has excellent pocket presence and can by

time in the pocket which he showed on a 50-yard touchdown pass to Jacair Medlock in the

Heathwood Hall contest. Coach Waters says he has next level talent.


The Chargers have three running backs who have rushed for over 400 yards. The work horse has

been Kaven Ford. He has rushed of a team high 1115 yards, averaging over seven yards a carry

and has scored a team high 21 touchdowns. Ford has good vision in the hole and the ability to

take it the distance on every play.

Michael Polite and Carter have provided a change of pace for coach Water’s offense. Polite has

456 yards with five scores while Carter has 560 yards and seven touchdowns. Carter is ultra

quick and is averaging over 13 yards a carry. On the year he has over 900 all-purpose yards.

Leading the receiving corps is Tennessee State commit Ayden Hogan. He leads the team with 66

receptions for 908 yards and 8 touchdowns.

The Chargers have three other receivers that have over 20 catches in Medlock, Scott Geisel, and

Drew Wolfe. Wolfe has 587 yards and is averaging 19.7 yards per catch. He and Medlock both

have four touchdowns while Geisel is second on the team in receptions with 32.

Of course, all of this offensive output is courtesy of the offensive line in left tackle Kaeden

Wagner, left guard Jacob Harrelson, center Kenny Robbins, right guard KJ Burroughs, and

right tackle Brayden Andy. The running game averages over seven yards a carry behind these

road graders.


SCISA Championships

AAAA

Friday

at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium

in Orangeburg

Heathwood Hall (9-3) vs. Northwood (10-1), 7 p.m.


8-Man

Friday

at Greenwood Christian

W.W. King (11-0) vs. Laurens Academy (9-2), 7 p


AA

Saturday

at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium

in Orangeburg

Pee Dee (8-3) vs. Bethesda (11-0), noon


Class A

Saturday

at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium

in Orangeburg

Williamsburg (10-1) vs. Colleton Prep (9-2), 3:30 p.m.


AAA

Saturday

at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium

in Orangeburg

Wilson Hall (11-1) vs. Pinewood Prep (9-3), 7:30 p.m.

Andrews beats East Clarendon to reach Lower State finals

By Billy Baker • May 21, 2026
Andrews—East Clarendon out-hit Andrews 6-5 on May, 20, on the road in the AA Lower State softball semi-finals, but the Yellow Jackets took advantage of two errors and six walks to come out on top 5-1, as they advance to play Chesterfield on Friday in the Lower state finals. Joy Weisner is the Andrews head coach, and she told the HSSR after the game: “What we have tried to do all season is take advantage of any opportunities a team gives us,” said Coach Weisner. “We hit the ball better today and that is very important.” Andrews last won a state title in 20218. Andrew had five players earning all-region honors. They were center fielder Sarah Jennings, pitcher Addyson Davis, who will also play in the North-South game. Other all-region selections were junior catcher Chloe Skipper who was the Region MVP, senior Addison McCants, Region MVP outfielder Skipper, and talented sophomore shortstop Tori Smith. Andrews lost to Chesterfield 7-3 this past Monday (May 18). “We have to hit the ball better when we go to them this Friday,” said Coach Weisner. “We didn’t hit the ball well at all this past Monday when we played Chesterfield. We hit the ball well today, so we just have to keep that momentum going into Friday. “We have to go to Chesterfield and beat them twice,” said Coach Wesiner. “We have to play some of our best softball this season in order to that, so I hope we are focused. We need to start the game with momentum and end the game with momentum when we play at Chesterfield. East Clarendon (25-8) head coach Jason Newsome closed out his third season in the loss. “I thought our pitcher hung tough (Addyson Davis) today and she is just a freshman and she has been learning by fire all year long,” said Coach Newsome. “She is extremely talented and she is a good pitcher now, but she is going to an even better pitcher in the future.” Coach Newsome. “In the playoffs the margin of error is very thin and the mistakes we made, they took advantage of,” said Coach Newsome. “On the other hand, the mistakes they made, and the opportunities they gave us we didn’t take advantage of them and that was a key in the game. They did a good job of keeping us off-balance.” All region players from EC included: Region POY Peyton Hanniford, Bailey Hicks, Riley Atkinson, Layke Jeffords, and Zoey Culick. The score was tied 0-0 until the bottom of the third when Andrews scored four runs. Karaline Gainey singled to start the inning and was advanced on a sac bunt by Lauren Stump to second. Sarah Jennings next singled to left field advancing Gainey to third. Torian Smith drew a walk. Then Jenna Cook hit a ball deep into the corner down the first base line that resulted in an inside the park grand slam. Andrew added an insurance run in the bottom of the 4thwhen B. Walker singled and advanced on a single by Gainey. Stump was then Hit by pitcher to load the bases. Sarah Jennings then hit an RBI ground out that brought in Walker to account for the Yellow Jackets’ five runs.

Hanahan wins lower state in softball

By David Shelton • May 21, 2026
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Wilson Hall Softball Finishes With 21-7 Record

By Dennis Brunson • May 20, 2026
By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor Sumter – The Wilson Hall softball team came up short of reaching the SCISA AAAA state championship series, which is a goal for everyone at the start of the season. Only two can get there though, so while not fun to come up short, it is bearable. However, the way things went down for the Barons this season didn’t help at all. Wilson Hall just needed one victory on Day 2 of the state tournament at Patriot Park SportPlex in Sumter to punch its ticket to the title series. Instead, the Barons lost to archrival Laurence Manning Academy twice by the scores of 12-0 and 6-4. LMA advanced to the best-of-3 series instead and swept Pinewood Prep to win a third straight championship. In retrospect though, Barons head coach Teresa Alexander finds it hard not to be proud of the season her team had. “The season’s ending didn’t turn out how we had hped, but I’m really proud of the tough schedule we played and the success we had all year.,” said Alexander, who guided Wilson Hall to a 21-7 record. “I’m excited to see this young bunch return with the experience they now have under their belts. But we will truly miss our seniors, Addie Griffin and Marymae Lampron .” The Barons had four players selected to the All-Region 3-AAAA team in Griffin, freshman pitcher Marsha Kate Skey , sophomore shortstop Mary Paisley Geddings and junior catcher Caroline Moorman . Griffin, who played left field, had a .279 batting average to go with an on-base percentage of .423. She had one double, one triple, one home run, 13 runs batted in and 18 runs scored. Skey was a standout in the circle as Wilson Hall’s primary pitcher. Shd had a `1.69 earned run average to go with 115 strikeouts. At the plate, Skey batted .400 with an OBP of .489. She had three doubles, two triples, 17 RBI and 33 runs. Geddings batted .317 with a .406 OBP to go with seven doubles, one triple, four homers, 26 RBI and 28 runs. Moorman had 14 RBI, 17 runs and four doubles to go with a .354 batting average and an OBP of .429. Other returning starters are freshman second baseman Tatiana Erichsen , freshman outfielder Anna Meldrim , sophomore third baseman Lilly Grace Przybyla , freshman outfielder Emmie Williamson and eighth-grade centerfielder Caroline Andrews . Meldrim hit .412 with three homers, 31 RBI and 24 runs, Przybyla hit .373 with 21 runs and 15 RBI, Williamson batted .263 with an OBP of .500, and Erichsen batted .324 with 19 RBI and 23 runs.

Stallions Reach SCISA Class AAA Baseball Title Series In Morris’ First Year

By Dennis Brunson • May 20, 2026
Williamsburg runners makes diving slide for the plate in the playoffs. (Photo by Mara Feagin)

Warlaw’s Lady Patriots Fall 5 Runs Short Of Winning State Title

By Gerald Doolittle • May 20, 2026
Lady Patriots Katherine Trotter, Bailey Sturkie, Ellie Yonce, Taylor Hilll and Brianna McNeill (not pictured) were selected to the North-South All-Star Team!

Wolves Boys’ Track Team Finishes Fourth At AA State Meet

By Rob Gantt • May 20, 2026
By Rob Gantt Special to the HSSR ST. STEPHEN - Timberland High School’s boys track and field team finished fourth in the state Saturday, May 15, at Richland Northeast High School. The Wolves, who finished with 45 points, produced state champions in multiple events. They placed three points out of a tie for second place. Hurdler Malyk Goodman won the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 56.63 seconds and jumper Carter Hawkins soared to victory in the triple jump with a mark of 14.24 meters. Goodman also placed third in the 110-meter hurdles in 14.82 and Hawkins finished second in the long jump with an effort of 6.65 meters.  Timberland’s boys sent three more to the awards podium. Hurdler Day’vian Bennett placed third in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 57.89 seconds. Jumper Antaun Faison finished sixth in the long jump with a mark of 6.51 meters. The boys’ 4x100-meter relay team posted a time of 43.17 seconds to place seventh. For Timberland’s boys, jumper Robert Roberts finished 11th in the triple jump with an effort of 12.11 meters, while the 4x800-meter relay placed 11th and 4x400-meter relay team 13th. The Timberland girls finished 10th in the state and sent quite a few to the awards podium (top 8). Kennahdi Murrell placed third in the 400-meter hurdles, sixth in the 100-meter hurdles and seventh in the high jump. Kemani Lampkin finished fifth in the 800-meter run and Jermanee Washington placed fifth in the 400-meter hurdles. China Greene recorded a sixth-place finish in the 400 hurdles and teammate Kiana Glenn was two spots back in eighth. Tiana Jefferson finished 12th in the long jump and 13th in the 400-meter dash. Zoe Cooper was 13th in the discus. Timberland’s girls placed eighth in the 4x400-meter relay and 10th in the 4x100 relay.

Thomas Heyward Has Good Season In Golf

By David Shelton • May 20, 2026
The THA golf program is relatively new but interest seems to be gaining each year.

Summerville Softball Wins District 3 Title

By Roger Lee • May 20, 2026
Senior Jayden Bennett has had some key turns at bat for Summerville during the playoffs.

Stratford’s Kowlok Repeats As State Champion In Pole Vault

By Rob Gantt • May 20, 2026
Lukas Kowlok headlined by repeating as the state champion in the pole vault soaring over the bar at 4.85 meters.

Tough Loss to Stags in Playoffs Doesn’t Dilute an Otherwise Great White Knoll Softball Season

By Worthy Evans • May 19, 2026
By WORTHY EVANS Contributing Writer Columbia - The pain of falling out of the 5A Division 2 District 4 tournament May 11 was still fresh when longtime White Knoll softball head coach talked about the season the next day.  The Timberwolves (14-13, 7-3) faced Berkeley for the second time in the tournament. The Stags held a 6-3 lead but White Knoll rallied for two runs in the seventh. After Melinda Veler drew a walk, Reginae Porterfield swatted a 1-out double to put runners at second and third. Lillian Priest lined out on the next at-bat, but Berkeley first baseman Emma Drawdy misplayed Adelynn Lewis’ ground ball, enabling Veler and Porterfield to score and cut the Stags’ lead to 6-5. With Lewis on base representing the tying run, Jaida Gray struck out swinging to end the hopes of an upset, and close out an otherwise great Timberwolves season. “It’s hard to shake it off. In the season you go to the next game but at the end of the season you can’t,” said Farr, who watched her team take a 3-0 lead only to be hit with Berkeley’s run in the third and a five-run fourth. “I could see my kids kind of feeling it, you could see it in my kids eyes,” she added. “We’ve got to fight to survive and they rallied around those seniors. They knew their time was coming and for two outs we were down 6-5. And that last pitch, it’s a hard way to go out. We’ve got to regroup and build off of what we did this year.” White Knoll beat Socastee 8-7 May 4 to get into the bracket, then upset Berkeley 3-2 May 6. West Florence , led by phenomenal pitcher Annie Eliason (19-0, 0.00 ERA, 309 strikeouts; who gave up two hits and struck out 20) beat White Knoll 7-0 May 8 to set up the rematch with the Stags. While the season ended on a sour note, there was much to praise about a team that Farr said few people would look to as contenders. After a young Timberwolves team battled through trials and tribulations, injuries and other issues, Farr said she watched her team come together in the second half of region play. “On senior night we really started playing for each other and giving it everything we had,” Farr said. “They worked their tails off to get better every single day and it showed. We have 12 players who fought their hearts out. We got to that fourth game, and our losses were close. We were right there, and it really was just one lucky pitch and that’s how the runs ended up.” White Knoll loses just two seniors in Priest and Gracie Fisher , but those seniors made a huge impact on the team. Priest had three home runs, 11 RBI, 34 hits and a .405 batting average. Fisher batted .311 with a double and 14 RBI. “Those two seniors have left their legacy, and we’ll continue with what they started on this swing upward,” Farr said. “We’re really excited that everyone else is returning.” Among the returners are freshmen Veler and Porterfield, and sophomores Charity West and E.G. Birchmore . Porterfield finished with a .393 batting average and a team-leading four home runs and six triples, six doubles and 20 RBI. Veler had 31 hits and 17 RBI to go with a .360 batting average an a .415 on-base percentage. West hit .323 with 11 hits and 10 runs batted in. “Mindy Veler started out in left field since seventh grade and she’s fantastic,” Farr said. “She’s got speed and runs down everything in the outfield but she’s really a good infielder, can play shortstop without missing a beat. An unbelievably great kid who won’t talk very loud but she’s a leader. “Reginae, that kid is small but she’s strong and compact. She can fly and you can’t get anything past her in centerfield,” Farr said. “Charity has been our DP and catcher. She puts the ball in play and has quality at-bats.” Birchmore caught fire in the circle late in the game and finished the season with a 2.23 earned-run average. She was 3-1 in five appearances. “E.G. is a pitcher and utility player, one of those kids in the past couple of years who was always there,” Farr said. “We didn’t expect her to be our starting pitcher but in the back half of the season she started to pour it on and keep us in games. She’s a battler along with our other pitchers.” The White Knoll baseball team finished 10-14 and 5-5 in Region 4-5A, but had a bounce-back season after going 7-22 and 0-10 the year before. The Timberwolves reached the play-in series of the 5A Division 2 District 3 tournament, but fell two games to zero in the best-of-three series with Lugoff - Elgin . White Knoll fell 4-1 in game one, but rallied for six runs in game two after falling behind 7-0. The Timberwolves had a 4-run rally going on in the bottom of the seventh with two outs and two men on, but a strikeout closed out the game and the season. Senior Dillon Woods led the team with a .465 batting average, five home runs and a .573 on-base percentage. Senior Jean Maldonado batted .364, and junior Tra Johnson batted .329. The team loses six seniors but has plenty of younger hitters, fielders, and pitchers to put together another successful season next year.
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