Category Archives: Sports
Lions torch Pendleton on senior night
By Bru Nimmons
Staff Reporter
bnimmons@thepccourier.com
CENTRAL — The Daniel High School football team hosted its senior night against Pendleton on Friday night, and the senior class stood out from the start in a 56-0 win at Singleton Field.
After many slow starts this season, Daniel head coach Jeff Fruster was happy with how his team came out of the locker room.
“We knew Pendleton was going to present some challenges, but I thought we did a great job of starting the game off fast,” Fruster said.
From the first quarter, it was apparent the Lions (7-0, 2-0 Western 3A) outmanned the Bulldogs (1-7, 0-2), with senior Clay Swinney hauling in a 47-yard touchdown from
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After dropping out of Top 25, Tigers focused on what they can control
By Michael Crouchley
Courtesy The Journal
michael@upstatetoday.com
CLEMSON — Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said in no uncertain terms last week that he wasn’t worried about his team falling out of the AP Top 25.
“That doesn’t have anything to do with us trying to beat Syracuse,” Swinney said. “At all.”
That’s been the general approach for the entire team as it has gone through uncharacteristic struggles early in the season.
Spend any amount of time listening to interviews with Swinney, his assistant coaches or the players, and it won’t
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Lady Blue Flame continue march through region
PICKENS — The Pickens High School Lady Blue Flame volleyball team defeated region opponents Westside and 
Walhalla last week, remaining undefeated in Region I-4A play.
“The Lady Blue Flame looked clean, precise and focused during our matches against Westside and Walhalla,” Pickens coach Rikki Owens said. “We were able to switch the rotations up with different lineups and play through possible scenarios that we could face during playoffs. We handled the situations and
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possible adjustments with confidence and poise and finished the task as a team.”
Against Westside Sept. 28 in the friendly confines of Coach Peggy Harden Anthony Gymnasium on the Pickens High campus, the Lady Blue Flame defeated the Westside Lady Rams in three straight sets. Playing against the Walhalla Lady Razorbacks Sept. 30, also at home, the result was the same, with the Lady Blue Flame prevailing in straight sets.
The Pickens team’s record stands at 24-3 on the season, with all three losses against Class 5A schools. They are 5-0 in region play.
The Lady Blue Flame are scheduled to play a region match this week against cross-county rival Easley High School. The match will be played Thursday at Easley, with the junior varsity match scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m.
On Saturday, the Lady Blue Flame are scheduled to take part in the Woodmont Pink Is Power Tournament at Woodmont High School in Piedmont.
Golf tournament set to benefit Lakes and Bridges Charter School
EASLEY — Lakes & Bridges Charter School’s second annual fundraising golf tournament is set for Monday, Oct. 18.
The captain’s choice tournament will be held at Southern Oaks Golf Club, located at 105 Southern Oaks Drive in Easley. Check-in will begin at 1 p.m., with play set to get underway with a 2 p.m. shotgun start.
The cost for the tournament will be $400 per team and will include green fees, carts, catering and a gift bag.
Entry forms and fees must be submitted by Monday, Oct. 11.
For more information about playing in the tournament or sponsorship opportunities, contact Debbie Vaughn at (843) 343-7458 or dvaughn@labcharterschool.org.
Red Devils take down West-Oak on road for second straight victory
By Clay Hamlett
Courier Sports
news@thepccourier.com
WESTMINSTER — Following a hard-fought 8-7 win over Carolina on Sept. 24, the Liberty Red Devils went into this week looking to continue their momentum with another win as region play began.
They were able to do just that with a 33-21 victory over the West-Oak Warriors to move to 2-2 on the season.
The first two plays of the game were indicative of what was to come, as flags flew with penalties on both West-Oak and Liberty. Overall, Liberty racked up 14 penalties for a total of 119 yards. In a typical game, that would be more than
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Blue Flame drop fourth straight in region opener
By Rocky Nimmons
Publisher
WALHALLA — The Pickens Blue Flame hit the road again last Friday night, looking for their first region win of the 2021 season, but the 
Walhalla Razorbacks had something to say about that, taking a 51-34 victory from the Flame.
Like every game this season, Pickens started out playing tough, even holding a 21-12 lead in the second quarter,
but again this week a second-half defensive collapse cost Chad Smith’s team. Pickens was
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Easley can’t contain Rams in region opener amid miscues
By Eugene Jolley
Courier Sports
news@thepccourier.com
ANDERSON — As good as the Easley Green Wave football team played the previous week in a win at Woodmont, the performance was 
equally bad Friday night in the Region I-4A opener at Westside.
Westside took advantage of special teams issues, converted two interceptions into scores and finished 7-of-7 on
two-point conversions in rolling to the 58-20 win.
How bad were the special teams errors?
Just like the Daniel game, and the second half versus Woodmont, Easley had trouble fielding an onside kick. This one, following the first
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Adjustments key in Daniel’s fourth straight win over rival Seneca
By Bru Nimmons
Staff Reporter
bnimmons@thepccourier.com
CENTRAL — After running through their non-conference slate, the Daniel Lions entered region play on Friday against rival Seneca and 
with just a touchdown lead heading into the fourth quarter, the Lions seemed
like they might be in real trouble for the first time on the short season.
With time winding down in the game, Daniel head coach Jeff Fruster had one message for his team.
“Find a way to finish,” Fruster said. “That’s what good teams do.”
Nobody took that message to heart more than junior running back Chris Edge. After being held to just 12 yards
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Clemson survives last-second drive in win over Boston College
By Michael Crouchley
Courtesy The Journal
michael@upstatetoday.com
CLEMSON — Deep breath, Clemson football fans.
The Tigers pulled out a much-needed victory on Saturday night to bounce back from the previous weekend’s double-overtime loss, handing Boston College its first loss of the season, 19-13.
“We needed a win,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said. “We’ve got a long way to go, but I’m just proud of how our guys responded. I’ve
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Lady Blue Flame take third in tourney, still unbeaten in region
SPARTANBURG — The Pickens High School Lady Blue Flame volleyball team placed third in the prestigious Tournament of Champions at Spartanburg’s Dorman High School over the weekend, taking down several 5A schools along the way.
The Pickens girls also defeated region foes Easley and Travelers Rest last week, remaining undefeated in Region I-4A play.
“What an amazing week Blue Flame volleyball had,” Pickens coach Rikki Owens said. “From the start of the week with sweeping wins over two region teams to facing amazing competition in the Tournament of Champions hosted by Dorman High School. Finishing third overall, we had the opportunity to face several top 5A schools, which allowed us to hone in on weaknesses to fix before we dive into the rest of our regular season and playoffs. We are so grateful for the opportunities and can’t wait to get back in the gym and get better.”
Junior setter/right-side hitter Lauren Dow, senior libero Bailee Earnhardt and senior middle Caroline Lucas were named to the All-Tournament Team at the Dorman tournament.
During the Dorman tournament, the Lady Blue Flame lost the opening match to 5A host Dorman High before running off a string of victories against 5A Rock Hill, Ashley Hall of Charleston, 5A Lexington High, St. Joseph’s of Greenville and 5A River Bluff High of Lexington before losing to 5A Mauldin High in the semifinals.
“We faced incredible competition, and our young ladies fought with much determination and heart as our only losses were to 5A Dorman and Mauldin,” Lady Blue Flame assistant coach Pamela Clarkson said. “This tournament was a valuable opportunity, as it has shown us specific areas to work on as we continue throughout the remainder of our season.”
The Pickens volleyball team downed cross-county rival and region foe Easley at home on Sept. 21 in straight sets. The Lady Blue Flame then traveled to region opponent Travelers Rest Sept. 23 and won another straight-set victory.
Pickens’ record stands at 22-3 on the season, with all three losses against 5A schools. The Flame are 3-0 in region play.
The Lady Blue Flame are scheduled to play two region matches this week at home in the friendly confines of Coach Peggy Harden Anthony Gymnasium. The first was Tuesday against region opponent Westside, with results too late for press time. The second region match of the week will be Thursday evening against Walhalla. The junior varsity match is set to begin at 5:30 p.m., followed by the varsity match.
