SCHSL Championship Series got started on Saturday with 12 teams in each category striving to earn a state title. It's looking to be a wet week for most of the state, we'll see how the forecast holds up for these games to be completed. Softball 5/26 - Class 5A Div 1. - Byrnes @ Summerville 5/26 - Class 5A Div. 2 - Catawba Ridge @ St. James 6p 5/27 - Class AAAA - York @ Gray Collegiate 6:30p 5/27 - Class AAA - BHP @ Aynor 6p5/27 - 5/27 - Class AA - Saluda @ East Clarendon 7p 5/27 - Class A - Latta @ Lewisville 6p 5/28 - Class 5A Div 1. - Summerville @ Byrnes 5/28 - Class 5A Div. 2 - St. James @ Catawba Ridge 6p 5/28 - Class AAAA - Gray Collegiate @ York 5/29 - Class AAA - Aynor @ BHP 6p 5/29 - Class AA - Lewisville @ Latta 5/29 - Class A - East Clarendon @ Saluda 7p Game 3s (if needed) on 5/30 Baseball - Games Started Saturday, May 24 th with games 5/27, 5/29, and 5/31 5/24 - Class AAA - Southside Christian 14 , Oceanside 1 5/24 - Class AA - Philip Simons 5 , Batesburg-Leesville 3 5/24 - Class A - McBee 5 , LakeView 3 5/27 - Class 5A Div. 1 - Lexington @ James Island 6:30p 5/27 - Class 5A Div. 2 -Catawba Ridge @ Berkeley 5/27 - Class AAAA - Airport @ Seneca 5/27 - Class AAA - Oceanside @ Southside Christian 5/27 - Class AA - Philip Simons @ Batesburg-Leesville 5/27 - Class A - McBee @ Lake View 5/29 - Class 5A Div. 1 -Lexington@ James Island 6:30p 5/29 - Class 5A Div. 2 -Berkeley @ Catawba Ridge 5/29 - Class AAAA - Seneca @ Airport Game 3s (if needed) on 5/31

By Neill Kirkpatrick Special to the HSSR Mt. Pleasant – Through the first three innings Saturday night’s first game of the AAA championship series was looking like it would a pitcher’s duel between Oceanside Collegiate’s Aiden Culler and Southside Christian’s CJ Aubuchon but that changed in the fourth and fifth innings as Southside Christian erupted for 13 runs to win game one 14-1 in five innings. Game two will be Tuesday at Southside Christian. The Sabres can claim their fourth consecutive state championship with a win. An Oceanside win would force a deciding game three for the AAA state championship. “We swung the bats well tonight. We struggled in the third a bit, made some adjustments in the fourth and were able to jump on them and put seven on the board. They made a few mistakes and we were able to take advantage. I’m just proud of our guys and their approach to the game,” said Southside Christian’s head coach Scott Freeman. Oceanside Collegiate’s head coach Britt Reames said, “I told our guys we have another game so forget this and move on. This was a poorly executed game all around; we didn’t play defense, we didn’t hit, we didn’t pitch. It is hard to win a game when you don’t execute.” The Sabres were able to manufacture a run in the first thanks to a Landshark error. Tyler Bolemon singled up the middle with one out. Bennett Candler came in as a pinch runner and then got caught by Culler on an attempted pick off move, however, first basemen Aiden Brusman threw the ball into left field and Tyler Bolemon ended up on second base. After Culler struck out the next better before Aubuchon singled to right driving Tyler to score the game’s first run. Culler then took over the next two innings as he struck out five of the six batters he faced. The Landsharks had a chance to get on the board in their half of the second as they loaded the bases on three walks with one out. Aubuchon struck out the next batter and then third basemen Cole Atkins made an outstanding play as he dove left and snagged the hard-hit ball and threw it to first for the third out of the inning. The score was 1-0 Sabres heading into the fourth inning as Culler and Aubuchon had settled down to strike out 12 batters between them. In the top of the fourth the state’s top ranked junior player Carson Bolemon led off with a single to left. Carson went to second on wild pitch before Aubuchon walked. Jacob Wiggs singled to drive in Carson. Mike Hotinski walked to load the bases. Atkins kept the inning going as he singled in Aubuchon. Matt Cauthen walked to reload the bases for the Sabres. An Oceanside error scored Atkins before Tyler and Carson Bolemon drove in two runs each with a single and double respectively to give the Sabres 8-0 lead. Oceanside attempted a comeback in the bottom of the fourth as Charlie Johnson led off the inning with a walk and then stole second base. Charlie Becker singled to move Johnson to third before he scored on a fielder’s choice. Aubuchon then got the next two batters with a fly out to center and he struck out his sixth batter. The top of fifth inning started well for the Landsharks, after Wiggs walked he was thrown out attempting to steal by Oceanside catcher Scott Henry. The next hitter struck out for the second out but then disaster struck for the Landsharks. Third basemen Cade Griffith lost a high fly ball in the lights and dropped the ball allowing Reeves Israel to reach base with two outs. Then Landsharks relief pitcher Tyler Mellison could not find the strike zone as he walked six of the next seven batters he faced. During that stretch Cauthen had the only hit for the Sabres. When the dust settled, Sabres had but six more runs on the board to break open the game at 14-1. Southside Christian brought in Chandler to finish the game SC - 1 0 0 7 6 14 OC- 0 0 1 0 0 1

Southside Christian senior Grayson Gibbons wins more gold to close out prep career.

Southside Christian, Oceanside Collegiate lead AAA baseball contenders By David Shelton Senior Writer Moncks Corner – Two programs that have dominated play in other classifications in recent years now sit atop the mid-season rankings of Class AAA. And, while Southside Christian and Oceanside Collegiate are the favorites to reach the AAA state championship series, there are a handful of squads that will make the trek difficult. In the end, however, if the top two teams do advance to the finals we will hear the chatter about private and charter schools once again. Southside Christian played in the Class A state finals four consecutive years, winning state titles in 2022, 2023 and 2024. The Sabres were probably good enough in the last three seasons to win a higher classification and now they get their chance, moving up two classes when the SCHSL realigned the classifications. Southside Christian (16-1, 8-0 region) has arguably the top junior in the state in Carson Boleman , a University of North Carolina commit. Boleman gets it done at the plate (.298, 19 RBI) and on the mound (6-0, 0.00 ERA in 24 innings, 61 strikeouts, five walks). Boleman is as good as any No. 1 starter in any classification but the Sabres also have CJ Aubuchon , who is 7-0 with a 1.50 earned run average. He also hit .412 with 12 RBIs. Will Cauthen is hitting .486 with 15 RBIs and Tyler Boleman is hitting .392 with 12 RBIs. Second-ranked Oceanside Collegiate won the last two state titles in Class AA and won Class AAA in 2022 so the Landsharks are playing for a fourth straight title. Coach Britt Reames took over last season and the program didn’t miss a beat. Several of the main characters return this spring, led by outfielder Andrew Palmer , catcher Scott Henry , and pitcher Charlie Becker . “We have a good group of players but they really work hard to be successful,” Reames said. “This team will come to play, win or lose. That attitude gives us a chance.” The Predators of Fox Creek hope to sneak up on the favorites but that won’t be easy with as good as they are. Fox Creek leads region 5-AAA with an unbeaten record and sit at 12-3 overall. The program also has won a state title in recent years. Caleb Waters is one of the key offensive leaders this season, hitting .513 with 13 RBIs. Bradley Anderson is the ace of the pitching staff with a 1.56 ERA while hitting .405 with 18 RBIs. Devin Hillary is another key performer, hitting .405 with 15 RBIs. Will Fountain has a few wins on the mound with a 1.85 ERA. Hanahan has won the last two AAA Lower State titles but came up short in the finals both times. The Hawks may not be as talented overall as they have been but they will still be a hard out in the postseason. The Hawks are now in the same region with Oceanside Collegiate and those teams will decide the region title after spring break. Hanahan is led by one of the few returning veterans, catcher Hudson Sprovero , who also is one of the best backstops in the state. The No. 1 pitcher when the season started was senior Riley Ballard . Shortstop Bo Brabham and centerfielder Joe Furse are solid table-setters at the top of the lineup. Nolyn Nickels has been a threat offensively and has pitched quality innings. Swansea is 14-3 overall and the Tigers look to make some noise in the postseason. Kreaton Steppe has been a leader offensively, hitting .346 with 18 RBIs. Kendall Wright also has 18 RBIs and Jacob Harper leads the team with 21 runs driven in while hitting .421. J acob Hai r is hitting .444 through the first 17 games. Aynor, Loris and G eorgetown are locked in a battle for the region seven title. Aynor is 5-1 in league play while Loris and Georgetown sit a game back. St. Joseph’s is another team that was bumped from Class A to AAA but the Knights are competing well at 10-5. They will likely finish second in region two to Southside Christian.  Henry Dryden sets the pace offensively, hitting over .400, along with Nolan Green. Liam Okuley has been the top performer on the mound. Class AAA Top 10 (Apr. 13) 1. Southside Christian 2. Oceanside Collegiate 3. Fox Creek 4. Woodruff 5. Hanahan 6. Swansea 7. Aynor 8. St. Joseph’s 9. Loris 10. Walhalla

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Sabres' senior class closes out with 100 victories and 4 title series appearances

Southside Christian is the 2024 Class A Baseball Champions!