Panthers have a new athletic director

Hammond Coach Jon Wheeler, going into his fifth year as head coach of the Skyhawks, celebrating the team's SCISA 4A state championship last fall with family.

 By David Shelton Senior Writer Myrtle Beach – For the most part, the varsity sports head coaching roster at Myrtle Beach High will return intact for the 2025-26 school year. However, two varsity sports will have new leaders when the new year begins as athletic director John Cahill hires new head coaches in volleyball and girls soccer. Taking over the girls volleyball program will be Emma Ann Lay , a former all-region performer and recent graduate of Winthrop University, where she was a member of the volleyball program. In girls soccer, the new head coach will be Levi Gray , who brings a wealth of experience as a club coach and player development director. As for the rest of the varsity staff, returning coaches will again take the reins of their respective programs. Mickey Wilson is set to return for his 17 th season as the head football coach. Wilson has guided the Seahawks to three state championships (2010, 2013, 2018) and two state runner-up finishes (2009, 2019). Wilson has averaged 10 wins per season and 2022 was his first losing season as the Seahawks finished with a 5-7 record. Myrtle Beach has won 10 or more games nine times under Wilson’s guidance. The most successful athletic program, in terms of state championships, at Myrtle Beach is the boys tennis program. The Seahawks won the 2023 state title, going back-to-back with championships. Their bid for a three-peat came up short in a finals loss to Riverside last spring but the Seahawks bounced back with a state title in AAAAA Division II this spring. It was the 13 th state championship for the program. Jeremy Howard is the head coach of the boys tennis team. Susan Sparks is set to return as the girls tennis coach this fall while Meredith Jiorle returns as the girls cross country coach. Jiorle also is the varsity softball coach in the spring. Also in the fall, Katherine Detlaff returns to head up the boys swim program while Kaitlyn Holmes will again coach the girls swim team. Lowell Counce will again coach the girls golf team in the fall as well as the boys golf team in the spring. In basketball, Jennifer Dennison returns as the girls varsity coach, and Eric Lyons returns for his fourth season as the boys coach. Veteran Ken MacIver will continue his efforts with the wrestling program. Veteran Tim Christy is set to return as the head baseball coach next spring. Jason Himmelsbach heads up the boys soccer team. Stephen Nickerson is the boys lacrosse coach. John Sedeska (boys) and Leandra Walcott (girls) will handle track and field.

By David Shelton Senior Writer Charleston – As he takes on a more involved role within the Ashley Hall athletic department, Christian Alcantara is thankful to have the support and commitment from a strong roster of coaches. Alcantara is the Athletic Director for Strategic Program Development and, as a former soccer coach at the school, realizes a strong coaching staff can make his job easier. “Led by Coach Franny Slay , who is in her 41st year of coaching, our coaches' key strength is experience,” he says. “Each of our coaches brings a wealth of expertise as athletes and coaches, with many having collegiate or professional backgrounds. Their diverse experiences are integral to guiding our team to success.” As mentioned, longtime volleyball coach and athletic director Franny Slay begins her 41 st year at the school. Her leadership has guided the athletic program to numerous state championships. In volleyball, Slay has coached 12 state championship teams and has 10 state runner-up finishes. She has accumulated more than 850 career wins. Ashley Hall excels in many other sports with state titles in tennis, cross country and track in recent years. Heading up the tennis program is Charlotte Hartsock while Jeff Word is the cross country coach. Cassidy Rindge is the swim coach and Sarah Schaill directs the successful sailing program. Cyndi Simpson is the equestrian coach and Ellen Reiber is the archery coach. Oliver Vanderhoof heads up lacrosse while Kelly Rogers and Allison Andrews serve the soccer program. Paige Crafton is the golf coach. Alcantara was pleased with the overall competitiveness in athletics in the last school year and looks for even better results in the coming year. “2024-2025 was a year marked by growth and achievement, and we’re committed to making 2025-2026 just as successful. We will remain focused on upholding the core values of Ashley Hall while striving for continuous improvement each day. As we look ahead, we embrace the challenge of a competitive region and are excited for the opportunity to showcase our talent, resilience, and determination,” concluded Alcantara.

Executive Director of the SCACA, Scott Earley spends much of his time traversing the state to listen to concerns from coaches.

By: Gerald Doolittle HSSR Contributing Writer Johnston, S.C. – Wardlaw Academy Athletic Director Kathy James has announced the Patriot coaching slots for the 2025-26 school year. Mark Rodgers will return for his 14 th year to head the Varsity Football team. His coaching record at Wardlaw stands at 103-45. His Patriot teams brought home the Championship trophy in 2012, 2016 and 2017. Rodgers will be assisted by Will Padgett, Lang Rodgers and Mason Burgess. Lauren Williams Givens and Lexi Quarles will coach the Varsity Volleyball teams. The Cheer team will be coached by Ashleigh Forrest and the Cross Country by Amber Weaghington . The Girls Basketball teams will be coached by Kristina Graves and assisted by LeAnne Hillk . The Lady Patriots were SCISA Class A runners-up last season. The Boys Basketball teams will be coached by Austin Spurlock . The Softball program will be coached by Katie Yonce . Her assisted coaches will be David Hill, Taylor Rodgers and Gracie Kervin. Morgan Burgess will coach Baseball.

 By Rob Gantt Special to the HSSR St. Stephen – It was a dream come true for Roger Greene to get the keys to the Timberland High School girls basketball program prior to last season. Greene is still living the dream. This winter, the Lady Wolves will have quite an experienced roster for Greene’s second campaign at his alma mater. “It’s still a dream,” said Greene, a 2007 THS graduate. “It still doesn’t feel real sometimes. When I was in high school, everything was about sports because I played sports. The next best thing is to be able to go into coaching and pour into kids, not just help them become better at basketball but also help them grow as people. At some point the basketball stops bouncing and they have to be ready for the real world. It makes it sweeter that my first job is pouring into the kids here.” Greene’s first squad in 2024-25 got the most out of its talent. Really with only four or five varsity-ready players, the Lady Wolves shared the region title with Burke High School. The Lady Wolves finished 9-1 in league play. “Pretty much nobody gave us a chance at that,” said Greene, who took over for Allen Gethers in the spring of 2024 after serving seven years as an assistant. “With us losing five seniors off a team that lost in the first round (in 2023), nobody’s expecting much if you’re being honest. I think this speaks to the drive they have.” Green emphasizes competition. He drives his players to not just show up and be dialed in on game days. He gets them to compete in practice, the weight room and the classroom. This summer, the Lady Wolves began building the foundation for the 2025-26 season with 10 scrimmage games during five play dates at Williamsburg Academy, Hunter-Kinard-Tyler, Lexington, Brookland-Cayce and Philip Simmons. They went 7-3 against some tough competition. “The biggest thing was us getting better offensively,” Greene said. “We have too much fire power, speed and girls who can do good things for us to only score 40 points a game. We want to be in good shape and play good defense, but you’ve got to be able to put it in the hoop. We had opportunities to beat teams by more last year or win games we lost, but we struggled on the offensive end of the court. The times we got it right it looked really good.” Rising seniors G China Greene , G Zion Priloeau and F Samara Scott will be multi-year starters along with rising junior F Kennahdi Murrell . That group led the Lady Wolves in every statistical category in 2024-25. Greene is filled with optimism about the 2025-26 campaign. “The opportunity to coach at my alma mater is a dream, really,” Greene said. “There’s no better way to start your coaching career than at home. I’m honored. I know the history of the program and the coaches who came before me. It’s a dream come true.”

Thomas Heyward Athletic director Logan Thomas is "excited to have coach Bryan as our head football coach."

Coach Hite Focused On Student Athlete Development At Emerald High By Billy G. Baker Publisher Greenwood — Emerald athletic director Mack Hite is proud to welcome five new head varsity coaches to the Viking’s athletic program for the 2025-26 school year. The new coaches include Emily Shirley to the swim program, Jonathan Bass is the new girls’ soccer coach, Hayden Lawter takes over wrestling, Lauren Boyd is the new tennis coach, and Garrett Jones is the new girls’ basketball coach. “I am excited about all these new head coaches for Emerald,” said Coach Hite. “They bring about expectations and energy that will help build on the great tradition of Emerald athletics.” Coach Hite defines his responsibilities as athletic director at Emerald High in the following six categories: 1. Program oversight & development 2. Athletic Eligibility & Advancement 3. Compliance & Communication 4. Event management 5. Budgeting and Fundraising along with 6. Student-Athlete Development. “I most enjoy number 6, creating an environment that athletes can have the tools they need to reach their dreams and become the best version of themselves before they take on the real world after high school,” said Coach Hite. Two returning head coaches to the school with the most coaching experience are head football coach Tad Dubose who has 33 years of service in coaching and head basketball coach John Mark Scruggs who is well over 20 years. Other returning head coaches to the Emerald for the 2025 26 school year include David Payne with boy’s and girl’s cross country, David Moody with boy’s golf and Kayla Beale is back to coach girl’s golf. Tiara Agnew is back to head coach softball and Coach Hite will continue coaching baseball. Other returning head varsity coaches include: Nicole Shearin -boy’s & girl’s swimming, David Windham -boy’s tennis, Michael Peak is the head trainer, Patricia Wirszyk returns with volleyball, and Willie Rayford is back with the wrestling program and Jake Jenkins will be back at the boys’ volleyball coach. Rounding out the varsity head coaches are Spirit cheer coaches Sidnei Nickles , Cason Wright , and Dominque Wooders . Coach Dubose has seven hard-working assistant coaches helping him with the Viking’s varsity football team. Thomas Dubose is the defensive coordinator who works with linebackers and Garrett Jones is the offensive coordinator who works with quarterbacks. The remaining varsity assistants are Coach Hite with receivers, Barry Kinard coaches running backs, Austin Sargant is with the offensive line and Carson Smith focuses on the defensive line. Coach Dubose works with defensive backs. Cody Cockrell mentors the defensive line. Coach Dubose commented, “We have a great mix of good senior leadership and some talented underclassmen so we are expecting an exciting season,” he said. “Loving each other!”

Dillon Coach Kelvin Roller.