Wes Kerr was in The Den to see the Bobcats take on North Myrtle Beach in round 2 of the Class 4A girls playoffs. Bluffton raced out to a big halftime lead and held off a late charge from the Chiefs for a 58-51 win. Tacoya Heyward racked up 25 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 steals and Amirah Brown added 17 points to lead the Bobcats into a third-round matchup with Ridge View on Wednesday in The Den.
The Bobcats are the last girls team standing from the Lowco in the South Carolina High School League playoffs, after Hampton County was bounced by a talented Kingstree squad in round 2.
I made the trek to Estill on Friday for a Class 2A boys clash between Hampton County and Mullins, and it was a back-and-forth battle from the jump, but the Hurricanes held on for a 75-70 win over the Auctioneers, led by 25 points and 15 rebounds from KaVon Chisolm.
Not much rest for the Canes, who welcome Andrew Jackson for a third-round matchup tonight in Estill. The Hurricanes will have to carry the banner for the Lowco the rest of the way, as Whale Branch and Bridges Prep both bowed out of the Class 1A playoffs on the road Saturday.
The SCISA state tournament tipped off this weekend with the girls up first on Friday, and the Lowco ladies had a strong showing. Courtney Campbell poured in 29 points to lead Hilton Head Prep past Carolina Academy in Class 3A, Kamirah Freeman put up 24 points to lead Beaufort Academy past Andrew Jackson and into the second-round in Class 2A, and the Cross Stingrays blew out Wardlaw Academy in their opener in the 1A bracket.
The girls from HHCA, JPII, Patrick Henry and Colleton Prep had first-round byes and will open their postseason tonight, including a rare SCISA playoff game in the Lowco, as Hilton Head Prep plays host to rival HHCA, which opens its bid for a sixth consecutive state title. JPII takes on Florence Christian on the other side of the Class 3A bracket, while Colleton Prep takes on Dorchester, BA faces Cathedral Academy, and Patrick Henry squares off with St. John’s Christian. Cross is back at it Tuesday with a 1A semifinal matchup with Cambridge.
The Lowco boys contingent was thinned out considerably in Saturday’s first round, as four teams from the area entered, but only one advanced. Beaufort Academy held off Marlboro Academy for a 42-36 win to advance to the second round, but John Paul the 2nd, Thomas Heyward, and Cross all made early exits.
The boys get back after it Tuesday, as Hilton Head Prep begins its 3A title defense against Spartanburg Day, while HHCA opens against Greenwood Christian on the opposite side of the bracket. In the 2A bracket, Patrick Henry takes on Andrew Jackson Academy, and Beaufort Academy faces Cathedral.
A whole bunch of Lowco wrestlers punched their tickets to the individual state championships over the weekend – 24 of them, in fact – and that’s in addition to the seven girls who qualified a couple of weeks back.
May River led the way with eight qualifiers Saturday at the Class 4A Lower State qualifier at Hartsville, as Houston Rudisill and Josh Echeverria won their weight classes, and Dillon Seman, Ryan Seman, Marcus Foulk, Kaiden McCallum, Walter Briones, and Will Mauro all placed in the top four to advance. Bluffton’s Gabe Fulton and Oscar Dircio claimed gold and teammates Bradley Denmark and Caleb McTernan joined them in qualifying, while Hilton Head’s Bryce Stephenson was the 106-pound champ and Seahawks Connor Wiendl, Calvin Clayton, and D’vontre Simmons also advanced. Colleton County’s Stephan La Presta also qualified, winning the 190-pound weight class.
At the Class 3A Lower State qualifier, Battery Creek had four qualifiers and all of them claimed gold, as Elmer Linares, Andrew Legree, Gunnar DeGroat, and Le’Roy Tyus all won their brackets, and Beaufort’s Antonio McKnight placed third. And Bridges Prep sent two wrestlers through to the Class 2A/1A state meet with Jeremiah Chavez and Ali Jenkins advancing.
The USCB Sand Shark women did the unthinkable, avenging a 65-point loss at North Georgia last month with a 66-59 victory to give USCB back-to-back PBC wins for the first time. The men went toe-to-toe with the No. 10 team in the nation and pushed the Nighthawks to overtime, but North Georgia escaped with an 84-82 overtime victory.
Justin Jarrett, Lowco Sports
Last Night in the LowCo
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February 2024
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