HSSR Class A Football Ranking - (Entering Week 12 of Season, 11-14-2025) 1. Bamberg-Ehrhardt 11-0 (597-49) 2. Abbeville 9-2 (480-129) 3. Carvers Bay 10-0 (319-113) 4. Cross 9-1 (364-53) 5. HKT 9-2 (502-136) 6. Lamar 9-2 (401-277) 7. Johnsonville 8-2 (282-169) 8. Ware Shoals 10-1 (398-164) 9. Latta 8-2 (348-185) 10. Lewisville 7-4 (371-189) 11. Scott’s Branch 8-2 (316-183) 12. Blackville-Hilda 6-5 (182-209) 13. Lake View 5-4 (187-146) 14. CA Johnson 6-5 (258-331) 15. Wagener-Salley 5-6 (153-300) By Billy G. Baker Publisher Moncks Corner — There were no major upsets at the top of the Class A food chain in the first round of the playoffs on November, 7. Now that there are 16 schools left hoping to punch their tickets to the gold medal round, the winning margins are going to tighten up, and round two games should be much more competitive. The goals of the 16 teams left are all the same; be 1-0 every week and eventually punch your team’s ticket to the Class A gold medal round scheduled for 4 p.m. on Friday December 5 at South Carolina State University. (Be there and bring the whole town with you!) In the first week of the playoffs the HSSR number two ranked Abbeville (9-2) defeated Great Falls 63-0, and the “A” will now host Trent Usher’s Lewisville Lions team after the Lions drilled Whitmire 62-0 in the first round. These two teams met later in the playoffs last year with the Panthers winning easily. Abbeville will be seeking their 14 th overall state title this season. The Panthers earned number 13 last December in a 58-20 win over Cross . Last year’s Panther team was comprised of 27 seniors and this year’s team came into the 2025 season much younger but still loaded with home grown athletes. After his team’s season opening 42-0 win over Southside Christian , Coach Nickles told the HSSR, “We have a chance to be a really competitive football team. We have to keep working and improving. We’ll see how it goes.” Jaden Baylor took over the QB duties for Abbeville this season and he has improved with each game. Darius Riley is the team’s work horse at RB, and he started off the season with tackle breaking touchdowns runs of 71 and 67 yards in the season opener. Cole Driggers is a leader at left tackle in the offensive front. Top ranked Bamberg-Ehrhardt (11-0) has the distinction of being the most productive scoring offense in Class A, so far this season (597 points) and they also have the best scoring defense (49) in the state entering the playoffs. The Raiders will host Latta this week as a double-digit favorite. Latta advanced with a 34-14 win over Baptist Hill . Corey Crosby is in his 5 th season as the Raiders head coach and his team has now won 16 straight region games. His career record at B-E over this five- year period is 52-11 and the Raiders came into the 2025 season with 15 returning starters. A few impact B-E players include senior all-state WR Marcus Cann (6-2, 195) who is also a topflight DB. OL is one of the strengths of the team and three returners from last season have literally road graded the competition. They are center Michael Manigault (6-0,265), LG Jaden Moody (6-0,255), and junior RT Simeon Bamberg (5-11, 195). Carvers Bay is 10-0 and by Shrine Bowl OL Zyon Guiles (6-5, 295) who is committed to South Carolina. The Bears will host region rival Lake View this week in round two. They defeated Lake View 32-7 on October 10, but most observers feel like this game will be more competitive. The Bears advanced in round one with a 59-0 win over Allendale-Fairfax last week while the Wild Gators beat Hardeeville 28-6 to advance. In upper state Class A this week, Blackville-Hilda will host CA Johnson after getting by eliminating McCormick 15-0 last week. CA Johnson advanced on a 12-0 win over Calhoun County . Number five HSSR ranked HKT (9-2) HKT would love to be the Cinderella of Class A and claim the glass slipper at SC State in December. They eliminated Lee Central 56-14 in the first round and they are now ready to host a talented number 8 ranked Ware Shoals this week in one of the most competitive round two games in Class A. Ware Shoals advanced with a dominating 38-0 win over Ridge-Spring-Monetta last week. Number six Lamar (9-2) advanced with a 49-0 win over Calhoun Falls and the Silver Foxes will host Wagener-Salley this week, an upset winner over Dixie , 14-9 in round one. Remaining games amongst Lower State Class A teams include number four Cross (9-1), led by USC bound Caden Ramsey (6-5,200), hosting Bethune-Bowman . Cross had a bye in round one while Bethune-Bowman shut-out Ridgeland 38-0. Johnsonville and Scott’s Branch are teams with state championship experience, and the Flashes of Ken Cribb will travel to the Santee Lakes area this week in a game that should go down to the wire. Johnsonville advanced with a 48-14 win over Branchville while Scott’s Branch moved on with a 32-14 win over Hannah Pamplico .

Lake View's Jalen Clark.

Abbeville Head Coach Jamie Nickles led the Panthers to a state football title last fall, his ninth as the school’s head coach.

Cross Coach Shaun Wright optimistic about this upcoming season.

 By David Shelton Senior Writer Abbeville – Another successful year in sports at Abbeville High was celebrated by the athletic department at the recent all-sports banquet. Abbeville spent the 2024-25 school year in Class A, dropping down from Class AA. The Panthers won a state championship in football and was the state runner-up in boys basketball. Abbeville was competitive in most of the other sports, contending for several region championships. Here is a rundown of the top athletic performers from the last school year. The male athlete of the year was Karson Norman and the female athlete of the year was Brittany Gordon . Gage Evans received the “All About the A” award and Ziya Watt received the Panther Pride award. Boys basketball coach Doug Belcher was the coach of the year and Bobby Patterson was sponsor of the year. Brooke McCall was named volunteer of the year. Gordon was the most valuable player in girls tennis. Micayla Rodgers earned the team award while Lillie Stone was the rookie of the year. Demarcus Leach was the MVP in football and Brody Graham received the team award. Kadon Harrison received the comeback player of the year for football. The MVP in varsity volleyball was Jaylin Vickery and Kaylee Bundrick received the team award. Ella Atkins received the All-In award. Colton Busbee was the MVP in boys cross country and Kylee Jo Price was the MVP in girls cross country. Bruce Davenport earned the team award for the boys team while Megan Wachs earned the team award for the girls team. Nykeis Brown received the 110 percent award for the boys team and Ansley Smirz received the award for the girls team. Jayden Baylor was the MVP in boys basketball and Jamarion Williams received the team award. Darius Riley was most improved and Jaylen Baylor was top defensive player. Andleyah Sanders was the MVP of the girls team and Anacia Dawson received the team award. The MVP in wrestling was Carter Eby and Collins Brown received the team award. Breakout athlete was Brice Williams. Kylie Jo Price was the MVP in girls wrestling and Brittany Gordon earned the team award. Cecelia Cramer received the comeback award. In softball, Audrey Graham was the MVP and Bella Evans earned the team award. Jocelyn Foster was the offensive player of the year and Maddie Beiler was the defensive player of the year. Norman was the MVP in boys track and Josh Hill received the team award. Nykeis Brown received the 110 percent award. Tielle Killingsworth was the MVP in girls track and Summer Brooks-Smith received the team award. She’Miah Cobb received the coach’s award and Zyteria Hudson received the 110 percent award. Gage Evans was the MVP in boys golf and Carter Beiler earned the team award. Most improved player was Dylan James . Cameron Allen was the MVP in boys soccer and Bryce Williams received the team award. The Excellence award went to Parker Henderson . Megan Wachs was the MVP in girls soccer and Miranda Stoll received the team award. Maddie Wachs was the rookie of the year and Ruthie New was most improved. Adam Beiler was the MVP in varsity baseball. Dayne Botts received the team award and Lohen Nickles received the Silver Slugger award. Ben Overholt was the defensive MVP.

By David Shelton Senior Writer Abbeville – A spring break trip to Myrtle Beach helped the Abbeville High baseball team take a break from the regular season with plenty of sun and baseball. The Panthers used the trip to see different competition, from out-of-state, winning one of four games but competing well. Now it’s back to work in the regular season and the Panthers are looking forward to being a factor in the Class A state playoffs later this month. Abbeville sports an 11-4 overall record coming out of spring break, this after a 7-0 start. “Expectations are high,” coach Daniel Little said. “We have a chance to be in the hunt. This team will be good enough to compete with any team on the schedule, if we bring our best effort and attitude. We will face some major competition, especially in the playoffs, so we hope to be at our best in the end.” Many of this year’s starters are third-year starters and several are having a good season offensively through 15 games. One of the top returning leaders is catcher Ben Overholt , back for his third season in the lineup. He hit .324 with 11 RBI in the first 15 contests. Senior outfielder Lohen Nickles is setting the pace offensively, hitting .452 with 14 runs batted in. S enior leftfielder Dayne Botts is hitting .344 with nine RBI. Junior Grady Overholt is hitting .400 and senior Adam Beiler is hitting .355 with 16 RBI. Beiler also is one of the top pitchers with a 1.67 earned run average in 29 innings. Overholt also rates as one of the top pitchers. Trey Deason also has been solid on the mound while hitting .300 with 11 RBI. Staten Rice is hitting .308 with nine RBI and Easton Townsend is hitting .290 with 13 RBI. Jake Clemmons has posted a .312 batting average through 15 games. Abbeville’s softball team began the 2025 season with seven consecutive losses, then rebounded to win seven straight games heading into spring break. The Panthers will be headed for the state playoffs but where they finish in the region standings is yet to be determined. Handling most of the pitching this spring is Maddie Beiler , who also plays at third base. Mayson Ashley and Reese Jones also have been in the circle. Kaylee Bundrick has played shortstop and catcher this season with Audrey Graham also seeing time at both positions.  Bella Evans plays second base and Jocelyn Foster is at first base. Working in the outfield are Ella Atkins , Nadia Kimsey , Ny Jackson and Lillie Stone. Rylee Tiller is a utility player. The boys soccer team went 4-6 in their first 10 contests, winning two of their first six region matches. Senior Cameron Allen t allied 20 goals and four assists in those first 10 games. Junior Parker Henderson had six goals and seven assists while freshman Carter Oberholzer had six early goals. Sophomore Yenqui Ortiz chipped in four goals early on.

By David Shelton Senior Writer Summerville – When the SCHSL realigned schools in South Carolina, several schools were moved into different classifications. The process had a substantial effect on Class A and those changes affected baseball. Private schools such as Southside Christian, St. Joseph’s and Christ Church were moved out of Class A where they pretty much dominated in recent years. Another move was Abbeville’s move from Class AA to Class A. Abbeville’s program has been a solid contender in the AA ranks forever and many felt the move to Class A made the Panthers an automatic favorite. Abbeville began the 2025 season ranked No. 1 by several ranking entities. Coach Daniel Little has a veteran squad returning and certainly should be a strong contender for the Class A state title. However, while Little feels he has a contending team, he is not putting the cart before the horse. “A lot of people were talking about how Class A was maybe weakened by the schools getting moved out but I’ll be the first to say there are still a lot of very good baseball programs in Class A,” Little said. “When you look around the state, there are several teams that should be considered favorites. Lewisville, McBee, Lake View, Latta, all those teams are very good. Class A still has quality baseball.” Little’s Panthers won 13 of their first 17 games this season with three losses coming to out-of-state schools over spring break. Little’s roster this spring has nine seniors. Most of the team got involved in the program in Little’s first season and experience and familiarity is a key strength this spring. “I pretty much started with most of these guys and they are the first four-year group I’ve had,” the coach said. “Expectations are high. We have a chance to be in the hunt. This team will be good enough to compete with any team on the schedule, if we bring our best effort and attitude. We will face some major competition, especially in the playoffs, so we hope to be at our best in the end.” Many of this year’s starters are third-year starters. One of the top returning leaders is catcher Ben Overholt , back for his third season in the lineup. Senior outfielders Lohen Nickles (center) and Tyrique Cunningham (right) are back, as is senior leftfielder Dayne Botts . Senior Justin Oglesby is an offensive leader at first base. The top two pitchers are senior Adam Beiler and junior Grady Overholt. Sophomore Trey Deason has also pitched. The Lewisville Lions will challenge Abbeville in the Upper State. The Lions are 13-4 overall this season. Second baseman Bryson Shaver and outfielder Jon Seegars are two of the leaders offensively. Gavin Reynolds and Elisha Baker are two of the key arms on the mound. Baker also catches. Shortstop Silas McFadden is another key contributor offensively. Lake View coach Kip Herlong was more than 600 career wins and eight state championships so one would expect the Wild Gators to be in the hunt. Lake View plays in perhaps the most competitive region in Class A with the likes of Latta and Johnsonville also being ranked teams statewide. Senior Kason Herlong leads the Wild Gators offensively and on the mound. Herlong is hitting .489 while posting a 0.78 earned run average. Chase Price has been equally effective on the mound with a 1.25 ERA. Other key offensive players include catcher Braden Borders , first baseman Chris McGill and second baseman Ian Capps , all seniors as well. Latta and Johnsonville are battling Lake View for the region six title and that race will come down to the very end. Latta (10-7, 5-2) is being led by Seth Minshew’s .600 batting average and three homeruns. Logan Byrd is hitting .382 and BW Berry adds a .354 batting average. Johnsonville (10-4, 7-2) has two hitters with batting averages over .600 in senior catcher Landyn Cribb a nd sophomore infielder Jackson Eaddy . Sophomore Larkin Powell also is a key offensive performer while Gavin Marlowe anchors the pitching staff. The McBee Panthers also is in the contender category. McBee is 11-2 and has a balanced team of hitting and pitching. Among the key performers this season are middle infielder Colton Wallace , pitchers JJ Melton and Landon Tedder , outfielder Chris Stone and first baseman Hayden Griggs. Other teams t hat could make a run include Lamar, Ware Shoals, Bamberg-Ehrhardt and Dixie. Class A Top 10 (Apr. 13) 1. Abbeville 2. Lewisville 3. Lake View 4. McBee 5. Latta 6. Johnsonville 7. Ware Shoals 8. Lamar 9. Dixie 10. Bamberg-Ehrhardt

By David Shelton Senior Writer Abbeville – When he accepted the position of head coach just after the Covid year, Abbeville’s Daniel Little created a vision of winning championships. Not only region or district titles. Little is aiming to bring Abbeville’s program its first state title. Little is a 2004 graduate of the school and guided Landrum to the AA state title in 2019. He knows what it takes to win and he is in the right place to make a run in 2025. While Abbeville has not won a state championship in baseball, the program has been a consistent winner and a consistent title contender. The culture of winning was established by Little’s former coach, state Hall of Famer Mark Smith. “Tradition really helps,” Little said. “Our kids grow up around here expecting to win. No challenge is too big for these kids. They love to compete. “The foundation of what I do is based on the things that coach Smith built and instilled in me as a player. As I have coached, I have some things that I have learned and incorporate into what we do, but the basic foundation is the same. Throw strikes, play good defense, and try to get timely hits. Those things never change.” Little’s roster this spring has nine seniors. Most of the team got involved in the program in Little’s first season and experience and familiarity is a key strength this spring. “I pretty much started with most of these guys and they are the first four-year group I’ve had,” the coach said. “Expectations are high. We have a chance to be in the hunt. This team will be good enough to compete with any team on the schedule, if we bring our best effort and attitude. We will face some major competition, especially in the playoffs, so we hope to be at our best in the end.” Abbeville has opened the 2025 season with a 7-0 record. They are ranked No.1 or No. 2 in Class A, depending on the ranking. Many of this year’s starters are third-year starters. One of the top returning leaders is catcher Ben Overholt , back for his third season in the lineup. Senior outfielders Lohen Nickles (center) and Tyrique Cunningham (right) are back, as is senior leftfielder Dayne Botts . Nickles has two homers early on this season. Senior Justin Oglesby will see time at first base and is an offensive leader as a third-year starter. Senior Thomas Ferguson is a newcomer who will figure into the outfield rotation once he acclimates from basketball. While several arms will log time on the mound, the top two pitchers are senior Adam Beiler and junior Grady Overholt. Both also will see time in the middle of the infield. Sophomore Trey Deason will pitch and play some at third base. Easton Townsend , another senior, will work at third and will be a designated hitter. Other roster members include Staten Rice, Jake Clemmons, Bradean Randall , and Logan Overholt. Little expects Ware Shoals and Dixie to be among the threats to win the region title. As far as teams in the Upper State that the Panthers will have to deal with are Lewisville, Lamar and McBee, among others. “We have our work cut out for us and we take nothing for granted,” the coach said.

Vikings claim first championship in program history in head coach Hercules Davis' final game