Region play kicks into high gear with big games in all 5 classifications

Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor • October 9, 2025

Top game has AAAAA Division I No. 1 James Island visiting DI No. 4 Summerville

       Sumter – No intriguing matchups where a smaller classification team gets a shot at one of the big boys, no non-region showdowns between teams in the same class and no games between teams from different associations.

 

           Well, there is one this week, but you get the idea.

 

           The South Carolina High School League football season is in the part of the schedule where each games matters: it’s region play. These are the games that determine who the few schools are that don’t make the state playoffs, who wins region titles and who is seeded where in the playoffs.

 

           In AAAAA, Region 8 has a massive midseason showdown as James Island visits Summerville. James Island is 6-0 and ranked No. 1 in the High School Sports Report AAAAA Division I poll. The Green Wave is 5-1 and ranked fourth. Both won their region openers.

 

In Region 1, Greenville visits Greenwood. Both teams are 5-1, but Greenville, ranked fifth in the Division 2 poll, is 3-0 in region play. Fourth-ranked DII Greenwood is 2-1, so it needs a victory to stay in the hunt for the region title.

 

           In Region 2, Byrnes will visit Gaffney. Both teams are 4-2 and ranked ninth, Byrnes in the DI poll and the Indians in the DII poll. However, Gaffney is 3-0 and Byrne is 2-1 in region play.

 

AAAAA juggernaut Dutch Fork will visit 5-1 White Knoll. The Silver Foxes, ranked second in Division 1, are 4-1. White Knoll is ranked fifth in DII. Both won their Region 4 openers.

 

           Region 7 will have Stratford visiting Lucy Beckham. Both won their region openers. Stratford, 5-1, is ranked sixth in DI while 4-1 Lucy Beckham is the DII No. 8.

 

                       The driver’s seat will be up for grabs in Region 1-AAAA when Fountain Inn visits Wren. Both are 4-2 and won their region openers. Wren is ranked 14th in the AAAA poll. In Region 6, Bishop England will visit May River. The Battlin’ Bishops will try to stay in the hunt for the region crown after getting hammered by Hilton Head Island. Both teams are 5-1 with Bishop England ranked 11th and May River 14th.

 

                       In AAA, there are four games involving ranked teams. Region 2 will have 10th-ranked and 4-1 Christ Church visiting No. 14 Powdersville, which is 4-2. In Region 4, undefeated and No. 5 Newberry will travel to No. 12 Fox Creek. Newberry is 7-0 while the Predators are 5-1 after dropping a 21-13 decision to No. 8 Orangeburg-Wilkinson last week.

 

           Waccamaw, 5-1 and ranked 13th, will play at 6-0 and No. 4 Loris. Both won their Region 5 openers. Defending state champion and current No. 2 Oceanside Collegiate Academy will play at 5-1 and No. 14 North Charleston. The 5-2 Landsharks and North Charleston both won their Region 6 opener.

 

           The path to a region title in AA will really start getting laid out this weekend. Defending state champion and 12th-ranked Clinton will play at No. 6 Chesnee. Both won their Region 1 openers, the Red Devils improving to 4-3 and Chesnee to 4-2.

 

           Pelion will visit Saluda with at least a share of first place going to the winner. Both are 4-2 with Saluda ranked ninth and Pelion 14th. The Region 3 title will basically be on the line when fifth-ranked Fairfield Central visits No. 13 Chester. Fairfield Central is 5-2 and Chester 4-3.

 

           In Class A, defending lower state champion Cross will play host to upstart Scott’s Branch in a key Region 5 matchup. The fourth-ranked Trojans are 6-1 while No. 13 Scott’s Branch is 5-1. Lee Central visits Lewisville in a key Region 2 game. Both teams are 3-3 after winning their region openers. Lewisville is ranked 14th while the Stallions are 15th.

 

           There is a top 10 matchup in Region 6 between No. 3 Carvers Bay and 10th-ranked Lake View. Carvers Bay is 7-0 and 2-0 while Lake View is 3-2 and 1-1.

 

THURSDAY

SCHSL

5A

Region 5

Westwood at Spring Valley

 

4A

Region 3

York at South Pointe

Region 4

Brookland-Cayce at Aiken

Region 5

South Florence at Lakewood

Wilson at Lower Richland

 

SCISA

11-Man

Hammond at Augusta Christian

 

FRIDAY

5A

Region 1

Easley at Mauldin

Greenville at Greenwood

J.L. Mann at Hillcrest

Woodmont at T.L Hanna

Region 2

Byrnes at Gaffney

Dorman at Spartanburg

Eastside at Riverside

Wade Hampton at Boiling Springs

Region 3

Fort Mill at Northwestern

Indian Land at Catawba Ridge

Rock Hill at Nation Ford

Region 4

Chapin at Lexington

Dutch Fork at White Knoll

Irmo at River Bluff

Region 5

Ridge View at Lugoff-Elgin

West Florence at Blythewood

Region 6

Myrtle Beach at Conway

North Myrtle Beach at Socastee

St. James at Carolina Forest

Region 7

Berkeley at Goose Creek

Stratford at Lucy Beckham

Wando at Cane Bay

Region 8

Ashley Ridge at Stall

Fort Dorchester at West Ashley

James Island at Summerville

 

4A

Region 1

Emerald at Westside

Fountain Inn at Wren

Laurens at Southside

Region 2

Daniel at Travelers Rest

Greer at Blue Ridge

Seneca at Berea

Region 3

A.C. Flora at Richland Northeast

Lancaster at Dreher

Region 4

Gray Collegiate at Airport

Gilbert at Midland Valley

Region 5

Crestwood at Hartsville

Region 6

Bishop England at May River

Colleton County at Beaufort

 

3A

Region 1

Crescent at West-Oak

Pendleton at Walhalla

Region 2

Carolina High at St. Joseph’s

Christ Church at Powdersville

Southside Christian at Palmetto

Region 3

Chapman at Mountain View Prep

Broome at Union County

Region 4

Keenan at Silver Bluff

Newberry at Fox Creek

Region 5

Dillon at Aynor

Georgetown at Marlboro County

Waccamaw at Loris

Region 6

Oceanside Collegiate at North Charleston

Orangeburg-Wilkinson at Hanahan

 

2A

Region 1

Blacksburg at Landrum

Clinton at Chesnee

Region 2

American Leadership Academy at Strom Thurmond

Batesburg-Leesville at Ninety Six

Pelion at Saluda

Region 3

Columbia at Mid-Carolina

Fairfield Central at Chester

Region 4

Chesterfield at Andrew Jackson

Region 5

Hampton County at Lake Marion

Whale Branch at Edisto

Region 6

Andrews at Woodland

Philip Simmons at Burke

Timberland at Academic Magnet

Region 7

Atlantic Collegiate Academy at Lake City

East Clarendon at Kingstree

Manning at Mullins

 

1A

Region 1

Calhoun Falls at Abbeville

Ware Shoals at McCormick

Whitmire at Dixie

Region 2

McBee at C.A. Johnson

Lamar at Great Falls

Lee Central at Lewisville

Region 3

Blackville-Hilda at Wagener-Salley

Calhoun County at Hunter-Kinard-Tyler

Ridge Spring-Monetta at Williston-Elko

Region 4

Allendale-Fairfax at Ridgeland

Denmark-Olar at Hardeeville

Region 5

Baptist Hill at Branchville

St. John’s at Bethune-Bowman

Scott’s Branch at Cross

Region 6

Carvers Bay at Lake View

Green Sea Floyds at Hannah-Pamplico

1A VS. INDEPENDENT

Clear Dot Charter at Academic Magnet

 

SCISA

11-Man

Andrew Jackson Academy at Thomas Heyward

Bethesda at Dillon Christian

Carolina Academy at Calhoun Academy

Clarendon Hall at Dorchester

First Baptist at Hilton Head Christian

Florence Christian at Camden Military

Greenwood Christian at Thomas Sumter

Heathwood Hall at Ben Lippen

John Paul II at Hilton Head Prep

Laurence Manning at Cardinal Newman

Lee Academy at Williamsburg

Northwood at Porter-Gaud

Orangeburg Prep at Northside Christian

Patrick Henry at Colleton Prep

St. John’s Christian at Pee Dee

Trinity Collegiate at Wilson Hall

SCISA VS. GEORGIA

Towns County at Spartanburg Christian

8-Man

Christian Academy at Laurens Academy

Cross Schools at Cathedral

Holly Hill at The King’s Academy

Jefferson Davis at Palmetto Christian

Newberry Academy at Wardlaw

Richard Winn at W.W. King

Saluda wins AA upper state; Summerville, St. James claim AAAAA series openers

By Staff reports • May 26, 2026
Roundups on each game as well as scores and schedules for each title series available here

Whitimire scores on walk-off strikeout in bottom of seventh to beat Lewsville 2-1 and win Class A softball upper state title

By Billy G. Baker Publisher • May 26, 2026
Wolverines begin play in first ever state championship series on Tuesday at Hannah-Pamplico at 6 p.m.

Latta can clinch Class A baseball state title with win over McBee at home on Tuesday

By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor • May 25, 2026
James Island after third straight state title as it travels to Dorman in AAAAA Division I opener Tuesday

Summerville-Byrnes rematch for AAAAA Division I softball state title begins Monday in Duncan

By Dennis Brunson hssr.com Associate Editor • May 25, 2026
AAAAA Division II series begins as well while AA and Class A upper state tourneys conclude

James Island beats River Bluff 3-1 to win AAAAA Division I baseball lower state title

By Billy G. Baker Publisher • May 24, 2026
Trojans after third straight state title beginning on Tuesday on the road against Dorman

Southside beats Gray Collegiate 3-0 to win AAAA boys soccer state championship

By Worthy Evans Special Contributor • May 24, 2026
Tigers' Erik Martinez scores two second-half goals to spur victory

Hanahan beats Aynor in if game to claim AAA Lower State softball title

By Rob Gantt Special to HSSR • May 23, 2026
Hawkettes will face either Crescent or Belton-Honea Path for state title next week

Just Might Be Time To Write A Memoir Book After 40 Years Of Fun & Hard Work

By Billy Baker • May 23, 2026
Billy Baker's been on a 40-year pursuit to discover the South Carolina’s best high school athletes and recognize their achievements in this unique statewide prep sports only publication. 

Could South Carolina Have Two Prep Baseball Players Both Go In The First Round? (Highly Likely)

By Billy Baker • May 23, 2026
Christ Church's senior SS/3B Bo Lowrance (6-5,200) with a 6.6 time in the sixty and he can move left or right with same dexterity plus he is currently batting .433 with 39 RBI’s, including 12 home runs and three triples.

Dillon Christian School’s Lila English Named “NETC” Female Student Athlete of the Month

By Larry Gamble • May 23, 2026
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.”
More Posts