Category Archives: Sports
Devils beat Pendleton
By Bru Nimmons
Staff Reporter
bnimmons@thepccourier.com
LIBERTY — After falling behind early, the Liberty High School boys’ basketball team looked to be in big trouble on Friday night against the Pendleton Bulldogs.
However, the standout play of senior point guard Bradyn Moss and junior forward E.J. Stafford turned things around in a hurry, as the Red Devils fended off the Bulldogs in a 58-51 win.
“This is a great win for us,” Liberty coach Jonathan Dilworth said. “We got after it
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Despite hot start, Liberty girls fall against Bulldogs
By Bru Nimmons
Staff Reporter
bnimmons@thepccourier.com
LIBERTY — In the midst of a five-game losing streak, the Liberty Red Devil girls’ basketball 
team seemed poised to turn things around on Friday night.
The Red Devils jumped out to a hot start and held a 23-22 halftime lead over Pendleton — which sits at second place in the region standings. Liberty just couldn’t hold on though, turning the ball over in droves as the Bulldogs pulled away for a 52-39 win.
“In the second half we really went back into some old habits,” Liberty head coach Gregg Thomas said. “We were throwing the ball away with some
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County players honored for success on hardwood
By Bru Nimmons
Staff Reporter
bnimmons@thepccourier.com
COUNTY — The Tri-County Tip Off Club announced its December Players of the Month recently, with many of Pickens County’s best being featured.
The awards, which are given to the best high school basketball players in Anderson, Oconee and Pickens counties, were given to players from all four of the county’s schools.
Kicking off the list were two selections from Daniel High School in Sincere Hicks and Bobby Taylor. Hicks is averaging more than 11 points a game for a Daniel girls’ team that has recently found its stride and is sitting atop the region standings with a 5-0 Region I-4A record. Meanwhile, Taylor has been the engine behind the Lion boys’ (18-5, 4-2) success this year, scoring 16.6 points per game.
Elsewhere in the county, Skylan Swindoll was named to the team from
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Lady Flame take first region win
PICKENS — The Picken High School girls’ basketball team captured its first region victory last week with a win over the Lady Mustangs of Palmetto High School in a game played in the friendly confines of Peggy Harden Anthony Gymnasium in Pickens.
“A very exciting and fun win for us,” Blue Flame coach Rikki Owens said of the 49-39 victory. “We executed our offense, and everyone contributed to the success. We are improving every
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Local football standouts announce college picks
By Bru Nimmons
Staff Reporter
bnimmons@thepccourier.com
COUNTY — With National Signing Day this week, many of the county’s top athletes are preparing to take the next step in their academic and athletic careers, and three of Pickens County’s top senior football players cemented their plans with commitments over the past
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Daniel girls still perfect in region play
By John Robert Ayers
Courier Sports
news@thepccourier.com
CENTRAL — The Daniel girls’ basketball team continued its string of domination in region 
play with a hard-fought 40-17 win against Pickens on Friday night.
Kaylee Gillespie scored 10 of the Blue Flame’s 17 points to lead all scorers, while Lani Carter was the top scorer for the Lions with nine points in the game.
“Even though we are losing, we are losing pretty,” Pickens coach Rikki Owens said. “We work hard, we don’t give up. I was proud of their energy, and they didn’t let the refs get into their
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Lions take care of Pickens
By John Robert Ayers
Courier Sports
news@thepccourier.com
CENTRAL — With both teams reeling in region play, the Daniel High School boys’ basketball 
team got back on track in a big way with a 64-39 win over county rival Pickens on Friday.
Brenton Benson led the Lions in scoring, finishing with 20 points in only three quarters of play. Benson also finished the game with 10 rebounds, eight of which came on the offensive side of the floor. Jake Alexander led the Flame in scoring, finishing with 11 points.
“We didn’t start the region how we wanted to start, but we’re on the way to bouncingYou must be logged in to view this content.
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Liberty squads drop region matchups against Powdersville
By Bru Nimmons
Staff Reporter
bnimmons@thepccourier.com
LIBERTY — While it’s still early in the region slate for the local high school basketball teams, 
the standings are starting to take shape.
Each win or loss has started meaning more and more as teams turn their eyes toward the inevitable goal of the playoffs, and for the Liberty Red Devils, losses in both the boys’ and girls’ games against Powdersville on Friday night have them on the edge of contention.
After starting off on the wrong track, the Liberty girls managed to cut into the Patriots’ lead on Friday night. Nothing went right for the shorthanded Red Devils after that,
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Food drive winners
Every year during basketball season, the Pickens Recreation Department sponsors a canned food drive to benefit Gleaning House Ministries. As an added incentive, the rec department awards a pizza/ice cream party to the team that collects the most cans. This year’s winning team was a 9-10 boys’ team coached by Molly Harned and AV Arnold. Team members include Isaac Arnold, Landon Blanton, Abram Harned, Jackson Holder, Christian Mullins, Vonn Mabina, Tucker Mulkey, Connor Porter and Kyler Wilson.
Signups ending soon for soccer, volleyball
PICKENS — Registration will close Friday for the spring soccer and volleyball seasons at the Pickens Recreation Center on Sangamo Road in Pickens.
For soccer, the following coed age divisions are offered — 5-6, 7-8, 9-10 and 11-12. Depending on the size of leagues, the 9-10 and 11-12 divisions may have to be combined.
For volleyball, the age divisions will be 7-9, 10-12, 13-14 and 15-17.
Following registration, a skills/evaluation day will be held for each age division in
