Prep Talk

Former product headed to Auburn

Former Georgetown basketball player Brendan Knox will continue his career in the Southeastern Conference.

Knox, who spent this past season at Spartanburg Methodist College, committed to Auburn this week. The 6-foot-10, 210-pound post player is scheduled to graduate following summer school and will enroll in August.

Knox, who was the 2006 Toast of the Coast Player of the Year, graduated from Georgetown in 2006. He averaged 15.2 points, 9.6 rebounds and 5.3 blocks per game at SMC this past season.

The athletic Knox played center at SMC this year, but will either need to slide to power forward or gain some weight to play that position in the SEC.

``It’s an athletic conference, so I feel like I’ll fit in there,’’ Knox said. ``I need to gain some weight, because it’s one of the best conferences in the country.’’

Softball player signs letter of intent

Aynor softball shortstop Courtnie Small has signed to play collegiately at Florence-Darlington Technical College. A two-time all-region performer, Small batted .317 and had a .540 on-base percentage for the Blue Jackets this year after missing her junior season due to injury.

Here is a picture from her signing (Click on the image for the full size):

Links of interest

Here are a couple of links of interest I wanted to pass on:

The first is from the Ft. Mill Times. It seems the Ft. Mill School District is discussing forcing its athletes to pay a fee to participate in school-sponsored athletics. That seems like a pretty radical move, considering some potential student-athletes may not have the money to pay the fee, but schools are struggling right now with the rising cost of running an athletic program. Rising gas costs are the biggest problem the schools are facing, and, with all the travel they must pay for, there is no way to really cut back.

The final two are from The State and are about legislation moving through the S.C. Legislature that directly affect prep athletics.

The first is about the bully bill, which could allow athletes to gain immediate eligibility if they transferred to remove themselves from a potentially harmful situation.

The second is about a bill that would require schools to have an automated external defibrillator (AED) and a trained user on campus.

Doctor tells Golson to rest

On my way out of town last Friday, I stopped by Myrtle Beach's spring football game to see how some of the program's younger players were developing.

I saw some explosive potential out of some of the younger guys, especially running back Daiquone Ford, who took a direct snap on the first play of the game and went 80 yards for the opening score in a game that split the program's players in half and played an actual game.

Of course, receiver/tailback Jamere Valentine and defensive end Matt Smith, who are both drawing plenty of college interest, stood out. The crowd of about 200 didn't get a live-action look at quarterback Everett Golson, who did little more than throw some routes.

The rising sophomore was held out for much of spring ball to allow his body to rest. His knees developed some swelling after basketball season, a problem diagnosed by a Charlotte doctor earlier this month as tendonitis. With Golson still maturing, the doctor said that the growth plates in his knees had yet to close and the constant pounding was taking a toll, Golson said.

The doctor told him to take a month off. He will start playing AAU basketball again in July and should be ready for fall football camp in August.

Six area players named all-state

Conway had four baseball players named all-state on Tuesday, twice as many as any other team in Class AAAA.

Senior catcher Mac Doyle, senior shortstop Jeff Caskey and junior pitchers Bobby Watford and Colby Holmes were honored by the S.C. Baseball Coaches Association for their team and individual accomplishments this season. The area had two other all-state performers: Carolina Forest shortstop Ryan Stewart and Aynor catcher William Chandler, who were honored in Class AAA and Class AA, respectively.

Although the Tigers were swept in two games by Boiling Springs in the state championship series, they won the third battle against the Bulldogs. Boiling Springs and Berkeley (two each) had the next highest number of all-state picks in Class AAAA.

``I think it just goes to show that people around the state noticed the accomplishments we had,'' Conway coach Anthony Carroll said. ``Although we didn't win it all, they took notice of what we did do.''

Read the full story in Wednesday's edition of The Sun News.

North-South football moves back to Doug Shaw

The North-South All-Star football game is returning to Myrtle Beach's Doug Shaw Stadium in 2008.

Mayor John Rhodes, S.C. Athletic Coaches Association Executive Secretary Keith Richardson and city Councilman Wayne Gray announced the move in a press conference Tuesday afternoon at the venerable stadium, which is currently undergoing a $4-million facelift that officials hope will transform it into one of the premier prep facilities in the state.

The event moved to Coastal Carolina's Brooks Stadium in 2004, mainly because Doug Shaw had begun showing its age and officials felt that may have had a detrimental impact on the game's viability. Once Horry County Schools and the city of Myrtle Beach struck an accord that allowed construction to begin, city officials sought to return the game to the venue where it was played for 18 years.

Richardson said his organization had no problems with Coastal Carolina, and chose to move the event back to Myrtle Beach in part to honor Doug Shaw, the former coaching legend at Myrtle Beach, who embraced the game in the mid-1980s when it was floundering.

Read the full story in Wednesday's edition of The Sun News.

Links of interest

Just wanted to pass on a couple of links of interest:

The first comes from the Anderson Independent Mail. It announces that T.L. Hanna hired Calhoun Falls's Kenya Fouch as its next head football coach. According to the story, Myrtle Beach coach Scott Earley was a candidate for the position. Earley was involved for more than a month in Spartanburg's coaching search several months ago.

The second story was written by USC beat writer Joe Person with The State. According to the story, Gamecocks football coach Steve Spurrier believes Aynor offensive lineman T.J. Johnson, a USC signee, could contend for the starting spot at center this fall. That's high praise for a player that many believed was a project when he was offered a scholarship.

The third story is from the Roanoke (Va.) Times. It announces that Kelvin Jackson will become the next boys basketball coach at Martinsville (Va.). Jackson, 50, is a native of Georgetown.

That's all for now. If you see any links of interest to the Grand Strand, feel free to pass them on.

Tough end but a fun-filled road

Conway's loss Wednesday in the Class AAAA state baseball championship series means that only one area team is left standing in the postseason. West Brunswick (N.C.) hosts D.H. Conley (N.C.) in the third round of the N.C. Class 3-A baseball playoffs on Friday.

There are no other area teams remaining, although a few tennis players from Waccamaw and Myrtle Beach will compete at this weekend's individual state tourneys. It was definitely a fun ride this spring, although Conway's two consecutive losses were a sad way to end the year for Horry County.

The Tigers had an amazing run that featured 26 straight wins, tied for the fifth longest streak in state history. They should be remembered for the 26 wins and not the two straight losses to end the season. With pitchers Colby Holmes and Bobby Watford returning, the Tigers should be in contention in Region VI-AAAA next season and could make some noise in the postseason if some younger players develop.

What are your thoughts on Conway's season?

12 chosen to all-state teams

Horry and Georgetown counties are represented by 12 players on the 2008 all-state soccer teams chosen by the S.C. High School Soccer Coaches Association.

Waccamaw, which saw both its boys and girls team advance to the Class AA Lower State finals, are represented by a total of seven players. The boys all-state picks are forwards Justin Blomdahl and Miles Clemons, midfielder Rhyne Garrity and defender Michael Gilligan. The girls picks are forwards Callie Dennis and Taylor Player and midfielder Shelby Averett.

Socastee, the Region VI-AAA boys champion, had three representatives, and, not surprisingly, it was the team's deadly triumvirate of scorers: forwards Orlando Clarke and Justin Watson and midfielder Bobby Belair.

Myrtle Beach, Region VI's girls champion and boys runner up, had the other two picks. Defender Gradey Grumman was chosen from the boys team, and defender Michelle DiBartolo represents the girls team.

Blomdahl, Clarke, Grumman and DiBartolo are the only seniors from the area to make all-state, so the quality of soccer along the Grand Strand shouldn't change too much in the coming years. The rest of the area selections are juniors with the exception of Player, who is just a sophomore.

Area all-state selections
Class AA boys
Justin Blomdahl SR F Waccamaw
Miles Clemons JR F Waccamaw
Rhyne Garrity JR M Waccamaw
Michael Gilligan JR D Waccamaw
Class AAA boys
Bobby Belair JR M Socastee
Orlando Clarke SR F Socastee
Gradey Grumman SR D Myrtle Beach
Justin Watson JR F Socastee
Class AA girls
Shelby Averett JR M Waccamaw
Callie Dennis JR F Waccamaw
Taylor Player SO F Waccamaw
Class AAA girls
Michelle DiBartolo SR D Myrtle Beach

To see the entire list of all-state teams, download this PDF file: Download 2008_schssca_allstateteams.pdf

Waccamaw, MB both win tennis state titles

COLUMBIA | Waccamaw and Myrtle Beach cruised to easy wins in the boys tennis state championships Saturday at the Richland County Tennis Center.

Waccamaw beat Christ Church 6-0 to win capture its second straight championship in Class AA. Then Myrtle Beach dominated Clinton 6-0 to win its third straight Class AAA championship. The Seahawks have achieved the threepeat twice this decade.

Read the full story in Sunday's edition of The Sun News.

Click on the pictures for full versions.