Daily Archives: 11/17/2015
Goodman to hit the links for College of Charleston
By Lynda Abegg
For The Courier
news@thepccourier.com
EASLEY — Easley High School senior Savannah Goodman signed a letter of intent to play golf at the College of Charleston on Monday in a ceremony in the school’s media center.
Goodman started playing golf with her dad, Scott, at a very young age.
Easley High School senior Savannah Goodman is pictured with former coach Dave Giffin, her father, Scott, sister, Kalie, mother, Susan, and current coach David Beddingfield as she signs with the College of Charleston last week.
“I grew up playing golf, practiced a lot and really enjoy it,” Goodman said.
Goodman’s sisters, Kalie and Kristi, also attended college on golf scholarships.
Goodman, a six-time All-Region and five-time All State selection, recently participated in the prestigious North/South tournament, where she won all of her events.
Former Easley golf coach Dave Giffin, who recently retired after 20 years, said he always referred to Goodman by the nickname “Savvy.” He said she was “not only a leader, but highly competitive, as well as stylish,” adding that he was “extremely proud of her.”
Easley athletic director Gill Payne said the school is proud of all its students, but especially proud of a student like Goodman, who is able to excel at so many levels.
“Savannah is an excellent student, a superb athlete and she will do well at the College of Charleston,” Payne said. “They are lucky to have her.”
Goodman said she met coach Jamie Futrell when she visited the college and is looking forward to working with him. Futrell is in his 20th season as head coach of the College of Charleston’s women’s golf program.
Lodge donates to Humane Society
At Monday night’s Pickens County Council meeting, J.B. Kelley, the vice president of the Fraternal Order of Police Foothills Lodge No. 9, 
presented Humane Society director Samantha Gamble a check for $2,500 to help Jumpstart the addition of a spay and neuter lab.
Pictured, from left are Kelley, Gamble and Lodge treasurer R.A. Gibson.
Vintage Clemson memorabilia available at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church Bazaar
CLEMSON — Holy Trinity Episcopal Church will hold its annual bazaar and artisan market on Saturday, Dec. 5 from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m., in the church fellowship hall, located at 193 Old Greenville Highway across from Clemson University.
New this year will be dozens of vintage Clemson collectibles and memorabilia, including ornaments, decorations, books and prints. Also new is a “Santa’s Workshop,” where little ones can shop for mom and dad.
The bazaar will feature beautifully handcrafted items made by more than 25 talented artisans from around the Upstate and members of Holy Trinity. Examples include jewelry, gift baskets, soaps, quilts, woodworking, scarves, handbags, ornaments, and candles, as well as homemade take-home frozen meals, baked and canned goods and the best lunch in town.
Also available will be the next installment of the stained-glass Christmas ornaments series the Rose Window at Holy Trinity, as well as handmade Christmas stockings that can be ordered in advance.
This event, dating back more than 50 years, is a great opportunity to fellowship and shop for unique Christmas gifts.
Proceeds from the event will be shared among several charities including Family Promise of Pickens, Collins Children’s Home, Our Daily Rest, Safe Harbor, Habitat for Humanity of Anderson, Clemson Free Clinic and tuition grants for the Episcopal Day School.
More information can be found at holytrinitybazaar.org.
CAST plans monthly meeting
CLEMSON — Clemson Area StoryTellers (CAST) Guild will hold its monthly meeting at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 24, at The Arts Center, 212 Butler S., Clemson.
Have stories to share? Come and tell them where you have a captive audience.
You are invited to an evening of family friendly stories, poetry or music. Attend as a listener or a teller — all are welcome.
For more information, visit
explorearts.org, call (864) 855-6396 or email clemsonareastorytellers@yahoo.com.
Soapstone set to host fundraiser at church
PICKENS — Soapstone Church invites everyone to a special fundraiser at the church, located at 296 Liberia Road in Pickens, this Saturday, Nov. 21.
The event will feature fine cooking and will be held from noon-8 p.m.
Visitors will enjoy true Southern cooking, including a fish fry, barbecue and fried chicken with all the fixings right from Mrs. Mabel’s kitchen.
For more information, call (864) 414-8470.
Cannon Auxiliary announces dates for holiday events
PICKENS — The Cannon Memorial Hospital Auxiliary invites local residents to enjoy holiday events.
The Festival of Wreaths Silent Auction will run from Dec. 1-14. The action ends at 1 p.m. on Dec. 14 in the Cannon front lobby.
The Festival of Wreaths open house is planned for Dec. 3 from 5-7 p.m. in the Cannon front lobby.
The Winterfest Christmas Craft Sale will be held on Dec. 10-11 from 8 a.m.-4 p.m
Lions eliminated by South Pointe
By Rocky Nimmons
Publisher
rnimmons@thepccourier.com
Rock Hill — The Daniel Lions ended the season far away from the comforts of home on Friday night, as the AAA playoff schedule forced Randy Robinson’s team make a two-and-a-half-hour drive to Rock Hill to face the defending state champ in round one of the playoffs.[cointent_lockedcontent]
Rocky Nimmons/Courier
Daniel freshman Kiandre Sims was a bright spot in Friday night’s season-ending loss against South Pointe, as he run for 81 yards on 17 carries in his first varsity action.
The Lions played hard against the South Pointe Stallions, but when the dust settled and the smoke cleared, Daniel’s season was over following a 55-28 loss.
The loss was just one more in a year that will be remembered for some close losses, some blowouts and not nearly enough wins as the Lions are traditionally known for. The season is the second in a row that Daniel has bowed out in the first round of the playoffs and only the second losing season recorded in decades for the Columbia blue and gold.
Robinson knew going into the contest that it would be an uphill battle for his big cats and that his team would have play flawlessly to have a chance against the 9-1 Stallions.
But flawless they weren’t, as South Pointe jumped to a 14-0 lead right off the bat and never looked back.
“We could not turn the ball over and beat South Pointe,” Robinson said following the contest. “We could not even slow them down early in the game. It was 14-0 so quick.”
Despite many changes in player positions to increase size in key places, the Lions shot themselves in the foot at crucial moments. The Daniel offense was able to move the ball on the Stallions at times, but could not maintain any consistency.
“I was proud our offense responded with a good drive and got us back in the game have we were down 14-0, and then we gave up the kickoff return for a score,” Robinson said. “Speed is going to show up. We had to play almost a perfect game to win, and we didn’t do that. It was frustrating.”
The game started with South Pointe getting the opening kickoff and marching 62 yards in eight plays. The Stallions nickel and dimed the Lion defense, capping the series with a six-yard pass from quarterback Greg Ruff to wide receiver Quay Brown for the first touchdown of the night with 9:59 to play in the first quarter. B.T. Potter tacked on the point after, giving the Stallions a quick 7-0 lead.
South Pointe stymied the Lions’ offense as soon as it took possession, as Daniel only managed six yards in three plays and Robinson called on Justin Craig to punt the ball away.
The Lions almost caught a break as the kick was fumbled when it was hauled in, but luck was on South Pointe’s side, with the ball bouncing right back to the Stallions. Starting at Daniel’s 44, South Pointe again went to work. This time, however it was a big play on their third snap that set up a score, as Ruff spied Zaylin Burris open and tossed a passed his way, with Burris scampering 49 yards to the Lions’ 2-yard line. Voshon St. Hill took the ball in on the next play. Another extra point by Potter pushed the Stallions’ lead to 14-0.
The Lions offense got on the move when it got the ball back and did manage to push the pigskin 66 yards in 10 plays to paydirt. The drive saw a future star emerge for the Lions, as freshman running back Kiandre Sims made his varsity debut. The young back ran the ball twice on the series for 12 yards, and as the night progressed he mounted 81 yards on 17 carries.
“He’s a hard runner and a hard worker,” Robinson said of Sims. “We have several kids on our JV team that will come up and help us in the future. We decided we needed to get bigger and put Stephon Kirksey out there as a lead blocker and did a good job blocking tonight.”
Ben Batson was the workhorse on the series, passing for 18 yards and running for 27, including the final 14 for the touchdown. Rivers Sherrill added the PAT, pulling the Lions to within a score with 3:13 to play in the first quarter.
The jubilation of the score didn’t last long, as the Stallions answered quick with an 81-yard kickoff return by St. Hill for a touchdown. Potter’s PAT pushed the Stallions ahead 21-7 with 2:57 to play in the first quarter.
At that point, the turnover bug started hitting the Lions. On Daniel’s next possession, the offense looked to be mounting another drive until an errant pass by Batson missed its mark, with Shavares Crockett picking it off and giving South Pointe the ball at the Lions’ 16-yard line. Three plays later the Stallions were in the end zone, as St. Hill found a seam and raced the distance with 11:52 left before intermission. Potter added the PAT for a 28-7 lead, and the rout was on.
“We knew we could not turn it over,” Robinson said. “We worked for two weeks telling them we could not turn the ball over, and we did. You are not going to beat a team that is this talented turning it over.”
The Lions’ offense sputtered and had a three-and-out punting the ball away the next time it had the ball. Daniel’s defense tried to slow the Stallions, but they just had too much horsepower and put together a 47-yard, 11-play series that was capped with a 30-yard field goal by Potter with 6:27 left in the half, making the score 31-7.
After the ensuing kickoff, Daniel produced a hard-nosed 53-yard scoring drive. The drive lasted all of six plays and was helped along by a personal foul penalty on the Stallions on the first snap. The big play of series was a 21-yard pass from Batson to Carter Groomes that got the ball to the South Pointe 1-yard line. Sims went in for the score to give the Lions their second touchdown of the night with 4:11 to play in the half. Sherrill added the PAT, and the Lions trailed by 17 at 31-14.
South Pointe did get into position to try a 36-yard field goal before halftime, but the kick missed its mark.
The second half started with the Lion defense again taking a beating. South Pointe took the opening kickoff and pushed the ball to midfield. On the second play from scrimmage, Ruff decided to scramble, and the signal caller got around the left end and raced 50 yards for a score. Potter tacked on the PAT. With only 30 seconds played in the second half, the Stallions were up 38-14.
The Lions picked up a first down when they got the pigskin back, but that was it, and Craig came on for another punt. The kick was shanked and netted only six yards, giving South Pointe a short field with the ball at the Lions’ 39. Ruff had seen a weakness in the Daniel defense on his last run and decided to go back to it again. On the Stallions’ second play, the quick quarterback took off and went 33 yards for a South Pointe score. Potter added the extra point with 8:04 to play in the third, pushing his team’s lead to 45-14.
The Stallions continued to push the Lion defense and added a 27-yard field goal by Potter on their next possession. The kick pushed South Pointe’s tally to 48 with 2:08 left in the third quarter.
Daniel continued to fight and added one final touchdown on a 17-play, 80-yard drive late in the fourth quarter. The drive would have never happened if not for a fake punt on the series’ fourth play. Jacob Mahoney took a direct snap, facing fourth and three from the Lions’ 27, picking up five yards to keep the drive going. The series was highlighted by a 17-yard pass to C.J. Scott and big runs by both Batson and Sims. The touchdown came as Groomes got the call from a yard out with 6:07 left. Sherrill added the extra point, making the score South Pointe 48, Daniel 21.
The Lions kept fighting and scored again with only 2:08 to play on a 67-yard drive. Batson again went up top and hit Scott for a 61-yard touchdown. Sherrill’s kick made the score 48-28.
The final points of the evening came when the Stallions answered back with a 56-yard, five-play drive that was ended with a 24-yard touchdown run by Steven Gilmore Jr. with only 13 seconds to play. Potter’s kick was true, making the final score 55-28.
“That is a talented group over there, and we established the run at times,” Robinson said. “We had some good throws and completed some passes on the short stuff tonight. Offensively, it was just the turnovers that bothered me.”
The sad truth though was that this was the final appearance of the season and a tough way to go out for the 2015 senior class.
“Any time you lose a group of seniors, it is a sad time no matter what the record is,” Robinson said. “We are going to miss those guys. They worked hard. At the same time, we played a ton of young kids with them, and I hope these young kids take this time and it motivates them in the offseason and they have a better commitment in the off season.”
Even though the year was not up to standards for the Lions, the future looks bright for Robinson’s troops.
“We have to have everybody together,” he said. “It starts in the offseason with weight training. We can’t have them running off here and there and everywhere. These are going to have to make better commitment. I hope the sting of what we did the last couple of games (in lopsided losses to Seneca and South Pointe) will motivate them.
“The JVs had a great year this year, and the middle school went undefeated, so the future is bright. We have some kids working hard in the system and some great coaches in the middle school that have turned that program around. Hopefully that will help us in the future. The small group of seniors we had certainly worked hard to lead us, and we hope next year’s group will do the same. We are going to miss the seniors no matter what the record is. Those guys have been around here for four years. That is always the tough part.”
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Blue Flame season ends against ‘Cats
By Eugene Jolley
Courier Sports
ejolley@thepccourier.com
SENECA — For the second straight season, Pickens had a region rematch in the first round of the state 3A playoffs.
And on Friday night, playing as an at-large team at region champion and undefeated Seneca, [cointent_lockedcontent]the Blue Flame were eventually worn down by the Bobcats in a 42-0 loss.
Tommy McGaha/Courier
Pickens’ Sam Lawson jumps to grab a pass during Friday night’s game at Seneca.
Last season, Pickens lost in the first round at region champion Wren.
Friday night, the Blue Flame held Seneca (11-0) scoreless in the first quarter, picking off two passes. But Seneca converted on six of nine third-down conversions in the first half and took a 21-0 lead into halftime.
“That’s playing really good football right there,” Pickens coach John Boggs said of the third-down conversions. “Not being able to get off the field was obviously the difference.”
Seneca got the ball first, but Robert Jones picked off an Elijah Turner pass. Three plays later, the Blue Flame fumbled it back — the only Pickens turnover in the game.
The Bobcats couldn’t convert on fourth down, as a pass to the end zone was dropped.
Pickens (4-7) then had its best scoring opportunity of the game. Gunner Covey had a 19-yard reception and a nine-yard run followed by a late-hit penalty that had the Blue Flame in business. After reaching the 15, the drive stalled and Matt Gravely tried a 33-yard field goal, but it was blocked by a diving Devin Kendrick with 3:47 left in the first quarter.
Seneca punted on the next possession but did get on the board early in the second quarter. Turner found Andre Wright for a 35-yard scoring strike over the middle with 10:53 left in the half. Hunter Pearson’s kick made it 7-0.
Seneca looked to add more, but Turner’s pass was picked off by Gravely at the Blue Flame 5.
Following a short punt, Seneca did get going again as Turner hit Wright with a quick pass and he took it 30 yards for the score with 4:15 left in the half, making it 14-0.
Seneca began to pull away, scoring with 20 seconds left in the half. Jacory Benson took a draw play the final 15 yards, making it 21-0.
The Bobcat defense held Pickens to just one first down in the final half, and Seneca scored touchdowns on its first three possessions. Braxton Gambrell capped off a drive with a two-yard touchdown run with 7:12 left in the third quarter. Then he had an electrifying 41-yard scoring run, stuttering in the backfield before kicking it into high gear around the right side with 1:49 left in the third quarter.
The final score came when Turner hit Chris Latimer, again with a little quick pass. Latimer scampered and then made one defender miss for a 27-yard score with 7:58 left.
Seneca reached the Pickens 20 before taking a knee on the final three plays of the game.
“We played tough, but we couldn’t generate anything offensively,” said Boggs, in the first season as head coach of his alma mater. “It was real frustrating. We got a few things going early and we couldn’t capitalize with the blocked field goal. If we get points on the board there, it might could have been a little different.
“They’re so deep and talented. We had a few guys banged up and a few guys stretched thin. We had several guys play a bunch of snaps —Renny Coley, Gunner Covey, Tyler Gravely. They may have played about every snap on the field tonight except for a few kickoffs. My hat’s off to Seneca — they are a really good football team. They’re really talented and they’ll go deep in the playoffs and have a chance to win it all. It was a little disappointing to come out tonight like this. We were hoping for a better showing than this.”
Seneca ran 71 plays to only 45 for Pickens. The Bobcats had 635 yards of total offense and held Pickens to 114.
Seneca will host Chapman Friday in the second round of the playoffs.
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Clemson survives scare at Syracuse
Courtesy Clemson
Athletic Communications
news@thepccourier.com
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — A wild first five minutes set the tone for a back-and-forth affair inside the Carrier Dome, but at the end of the day Clemson emerged victorious over Syracuse by a score of 37-27.[cointent_lockedcontent]
Courtesy ClemsonTigers.com
Clemson defensive end Shaq Lawson, a former Daniel High School standout, makes a tackle at Syracuse on Saturday.
The win moved the No. 1 Tigers to 10-0 on the season, giving the program its fifth consecutive 10-win season. Clemson will have a chance to finish undefeated in ACC play this Saturday against Wake Forest.
Sophomore sensation Deshaun Watson was once again brilliant for the Tigers, accounting for a career-high 461 yards of total offense. The sophomore signal-caller threw for 360 and rushed for 101, while tossing two touchdowns and adding a third on the ground. His favorite target was Charone Peake, who had a career-high 120 yards through the air and tied another with seven grabs.
Clemson got off to a fast start on the first play from scrimmage, when Watson unleashed a 64-yard strike to Peake. That put the Tigers inside the 10-yard line of the Orange, and running back Wayne Gallman dashed in on the next play to open the scoring.
Watson made it 14-0 with a quarterback keeper on a zone read following a Syracuse fumble on its first play from scrimmage.
A pair of fumbles erased the good vibes, however, as Syracuse knotted the game at 14 apiece late in the opening quarter.
But Watson settled the Tigers again, throwing beautiful touchdowns to Peake and freshman Deon Cain to help Clemson push ahead 31-17 at halftime.
The Orange closed the gap even further, trailing just 31-24 after the third quarter.
With the crowd at a fever pitch, Clemson faced fourth-and-two on the opening play of the fourth quarter. Gallman took a pitch and ran 14 yards to the left for a first down, setting up the second of Greg Huegel’s three field goals.
The freshman walk-on kicker is a perfect 15-of-15 in ACC games for the Tigers.
Clemson ran out the clock over the final 5:57 of the game, cementing the team’s 19th win over a 20-game stretch dating to last season.
The Tigers will return to Memorial Stadium this weekend to close out the home portion of the schedule. Clemson will take on Wake Forest at 3:30 p.m. in a game that has been designated as Military Appreciation Day. The game, which will be televised on ESPN2, is also designated as a “purple-out,” with fans encouraged to wear purple to the game.
Officials also announced Monday that next weekend’s game between Clemson and rival South Carolina at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia will kick off at noon.
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Winning season for Easley, new coach
Kerry Gilstrap/Courier
Easley’s Caleb Hill sacks Greenwood quarterback Roshun Jackson during the Green Wave’s 29-21 win over the Eagles on Oct. 23.
EASLEY — Led by first-year head coach John Windham, the Easley Green Wave finished the year with a winning season at 6-5, [cointent_lockedcontent]but a 3-4 region finish forced the Wave to miss out on the Class 4A playoffs.
The Wave started the season with a bang, knocking off county rivals Pickens and Daniel in the first two weeks of action.
Tommy McGaha/Courier
Easley’s Will Drawdy tries to shrug off a Wren tackler during their game Sept. 11
When the season began, everyone was eager to see what Windham’s team would look like, and in the annual clash between Pickens and Easley at Green Wave Stadium, they got their chance.
The Green Wave featured a no-huddle spread offense and took down the Blue Flame by a 29-17 final in the teams’ season opener.
“It was a good game,” Windham said. “I give a lot of credit to Pickens. They fought hard.
“I thought we had too many penalties, (but) many of them were aggressive penalties. I was proud of the way we played. We had some critical conversions and big plays that really helped us. I thought our kids fought hard for four quarters.”
Easley senior quarterback Dalton Black was the difference in the game — his third start in the series — finishing 17-of-26 for 290 yards and four scores, with another erased by penalty.
Next up for Easley was a trip to Central to face the Daniel Lions at Singleton Field. In a game that will remembered for years to come, the Wave managed to hold on for a 19-17 win over the Lions on a rare free kick that missed it mark.
The Green Wave faithful breathed a collective sigh of relief as they watched Daniel Lions kicker Rivers Sherrill’s free kick tail off to the left.
The missed kick came on a last-ditch effort by the Lions to squeak out a victory over the Wave, who held on for the win to move to 2-0 on the season.
The kick was the result of a rule that rarely gets used in football. If a team fair catches the ball with time left on the clock, that team has one chance to try a free kick, which looks much like a kickoff from the spot of the catch. If the kick goes through the uprights, that team earns three points, just like a normal field goal.
The Wave produced a dominating first half, taking a 19-7 lead into intermission thanks to some great play-calling by Windham.
The Wave took it to Daniel from the start, picking apart the Lions’ defense with both the run and the pass. On the night, the Wave offense produced 361 yards, much of which came in the first two quarters.
Following the Daniel win, the Wave were flying high at 2-0, but the toughest challenge waited as the Seneca Bobcats were next on the schedule.
The Wave never saw what hit them, and a physically impressive Bobcat team — which is still undefeated after last week’s 42-0 trouncing of Pickens in the opening round of the Class AAA playoffs — laid a shellacking on Easley, posting a 38-0 victory in front of the Green Wave faithful.
In a game that was set to kick off at 7:30 p.m., fans that persevered did not see the opening kick until around 10:30 p.m., all thanks to Mother Nature. A huge lightning storm blew into Easley just before kickoff, and officials delayed the contest as a result.
When play finally began, Easley came out and ran into a buzzsaw, as the Bobcats where clicking on all cylinders from the start. Seneca dominated the game, outgaining the Green Wave 383-171 and jumping out to a 21-0 first-half lead before cruising to the victory.
“They were the more physical team. They were big, strong and fast,” Windham said after the game. “My hat goes off to them. They have a lot of good players. They beat us in every way tonight.”
Next up was a trip to face yet another rival from the AAA ranks, as Windham and the Green Wave traveled to Piedmont to face the Wren Golden Hurricanes.
Easley bounced back from an embarrassing loss against Seneca with a 49-15 shellacking of archrival Wren.
Easley blew into Hurricane country and delivered some lightning of its own, as Black threw for four touchdowns and 282 yards in the win.
After an open week to prepare, Easley went on the road to Laurens next to open its Region I-AAAA schedule, but crucial mistakes plagued the Green Wave in a 27-14 loss.
Easley outgained the Raiders offensively — racking up 434 yards compared to Laurens’ 420 — but four lost fumbles, turnovers on downs and penalties doomed the Green Wave.
In addition to the lost fumbles and turnovers on downs, the Wave were penalized 13 times for 100 yards in the game.
The teams had differing offensive philosophies, as Easley aired the ball out, with Black completing 17 of 33 passes for 368 yards and the Raiders running 43 times for 262 yards, but the crucial mistakes made the difference in the game.
Leading receivers for the Green Wave were Carter Wiles with seven catches for 150 yards, Will Drawdy with two catches for 102 yards, and Bralan Fuller with five catches for 94 yards.
On Oct. 2, Easley and T.L. Hanna battled back and forth all night until a fourth-quarter interception by Hanna’s Jay Lagoon ended the Green Wave’s chances of winning the conference game.
With the 31-24 road loss, Easley dropped to 3-3 on the season, but 0-2 in Region I-AAAA with a visit from undefeated Westside on the docket next.
Although the two teams were rather equal in passing yards, with Easley racking up 303 and Hanna throwing for 280, the Yellow Jackets dominated the ground game, outgaining Easley 190-15.
The Green Wave returned home the next week for a homecoming contest with a very strong Westside Ram team. For a half, Easley hung tough with undefeated Westside, but the Rams’ potent offense and stingy defense was too much for the Green Wave to overcome in the second half in a 39-7 loss.
The loss left Easley with a 3-4 record for the season, but a, 0-3 mark in region play.
The Green Wave finally picked up their first region win of the season the following week, holding off several Woodmont comeback attempts to beat the Wildcats 13-7.
After Woodmont carried a 7-6 lead into halftime, Black and Fuller opened the third quarter with a 56-yard touchdown pass to give the Green Wave a 13-7 lead, and the Wildcats drove to inside the Easley red zone three times in the fourth quarter, but each time Easley turned them away empty-handed.
On Woodmont’s first fourth-quarter possession, Green Wave defenders Ethan Myers and Sean-Thomas Faulkner stuffed Deonte Luster for a loss of two on a fourth-down attempt from the Easley 13-yard line.
The next Wildcat drive ended when Easley’s Kaleb Dicks picked off Hunter King in the end zone, and Ivan Hill later intercepted King at the Green Wave 13-yard line.
Black finished the night just shy of 200 yards passing, while Malaki Robinson led the Green Wave ground game with 64 yards on 13 carries. Fuller was the top receiver for Easley with 159 yards on nine catches.
The Wave made history in week nine when Greenwood came to town, knocking off the Eagles by a 29-21 score.
The win was the first in almost two decades for the Wave over the Eagles. With the win, the Green Wave moved to 5-4 and 2-3 in Region I-AAAA.
Black shined in the game, going 16-of-22 for 346 yards. Drawdy and Derrick Phillips combined to lead the Green Wave on the ground, with Drawdy carrying 14 times for 55 yards and Phillips adding six touches for 53.
The happiness of the huge win over Greenwood didn’t last, as a trip Hillcrest was next on the agenda.
After losing its chance to repeat again as Region I-AAAA champions with a loss against Hanna the week prior, Hillcrest powered its way to a 41-7 win over the Green Wave.
Easley was held to just 16 yards on the ground on 31 carries in the game, while Black finished with 128 yards on a 14-of-22 effort through the air.
The Wave finished the year on the upswing by hosting the Greenville Red Raiders and taking them to the woodshed.
The Wave finished the regular season on a high note on their home turf, giving Windham and the Wave a winning season with a 34-15 victory over Greenville.
The Wave dominated the line of scrimmage, whipping Greenville with their ground game and great offensive and defensive line play. Easley ran the ball 51 times for 263 yards, compared to the Raiders’ 30 rushes for only 114 yards.
Things will look a little different for the Green Wave next season, as they will for most teams across the state, as the new South Carolina High School League realignment will move Easley up to the newly created Class AAAAA.
The Green Wave will be joined in Region I-AAAAA by J.L. Mann, T.L. Hanna, Westside and Woodmont.
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