BOILING SPRINGS, SC - The Boiling Springs baseball team opened the first round of the 5A playoffs with a 3-0 victory over Northwestern that was led by a dominant performance from senior pitcher Tristan Smith along with a big hit from his twin brother Ashton Smith on Tuesday night.
Tristan Smith continued his string of strong performances on Tuesday night with arguably his most impressive outing of the season. Smith went six innings without allowing a hit while striking out twelve batters in 92 pitches to pick up the win for the Bulldogs. "Any time you win to start the playoffs, it's a good night," said Bulldogs head coach Jeff Lipscomb. "We can't ask for more than what Tristan gave us tonight. He was pumped up there in the first inning and struggled a little bit but then he settled down and mowed them down after that. That's just kind of what he does every game." Boiling Springs worked the bases loaded in the bottom of the first inning with a hit-by-pitch, an error, and a walk before Luke Compton scored to make the Bulldogs lead 1-0 when Jackson Cole worked a five-pitch walk. The bottom of the fourth inning saw the biggest offensive output of the game when senior Davis Starnes worked a walk before coming around to score on the first hit of the game, when senior Ashton Smith crushed a home run to deep right centerfield giving Boiling Springs a 3-0 lead over the Trojans. "Man, Ashton crushed a slider over the outfield wall for that homer," said Lipscomb. "They got him in his first at-bat on a couple of sliders but he was waiting on it that next at-bat and put a great swing on it to put us up 3-0. That homer helped us relax and more times than not if you have a three run lead and Tristan on the mound you're going to have a good night." Bulldogs' junior pitcher Jackson Cole came on in the seventh inning to replace Smith on the mound and picked up the save as he struck out one while only allowing one hit and no runs. Boiling Springs will now turn their focus to Thursday as they travel to JL Mann in a second-round game with the game slated to start at 7:00 PM as JL Mann defeated Byrnes 10-0 in five innings on Tuesday night. Lipscomb says he knows JL Mann is a good team but says his team will be ready for the challenge on Thursday. "We know the rich history with JL Mann's baseball program and know it's going to be a tough challenge for us," said Lipscomb. "Our guys are playing good baseball though and will be ready to go compete. We know if we win the advantage that gives our team and with our guys you don't have to motivate them, they motivate themselves. We're looking forward to the game on Thursday." The winner of the Bulldogs and Patriots game on Thursday will hold a playoff advantage the rest of the district round of the playoffs, having to be beaten twice at home on Monday. 5A Girls Soccer Playoffs Blythewood 7 Boiling Springs 0 BOILING SPRINGS, SC - In front of a large group of family, friends, and teammates on Tuesday morning, fourteen Boiling Springs athletes signed to continue their careers at the college level next season, bringing the total number of athletes to sign from Boiling Springs this school year to twenty-three.
Boiling Springs softball had three players commit to sign on Tuesday as Kate Philbeck, Adrienne Raines, and Jacie Ross all signed to play softball at the college level next season. Philbeck, who is committing to Converse University, has been a four-year letterman for the Boiling Springs softball team where she has been the starting third baseman the last three seasons coming away with a .940 fielding percentage along with a .361 batting average this past season. She said that the familiarity of Converse, where she plans on majoring in elementary education, was the key factor is making that her home for the next four years. "I've always grown up around Converse as my mom went there as well and after going on a tour with Coach Huff I just fell in love with the program," said Philbeck. "They have a great education program, which I'll be majoring in, and it's super small with a great community which were two of my biggest factors when choosing to go there." Adrienne Raines is committing to continue her athletic career at Erskine College next season after spending the last five years lettering for the Boiling Springs softball team. Raines spent the most of her time with the Bulldogs in the leadoff role where she accumulated a .375 batting average while spending parts of different seasons between shortstop and centerfield. She plans on majoring in early childhood education at Erskine and says that the location along with stability of the program were major factors in her decision. "I liked the school because it's in a small town but on the campus there's so much to do which allows everyone to get to know each other," said Raines. "Coach Hawkins has been there so long that you know the program has stability and know that she'll be my coach the whole time I'm there. She told me that in her whole time as coach there that a player has never left the program which makes you feel good." Jacie Ross, who is a four-year letterman for the Bulldogs and held down the starting second base position the last two years, committed to continue her softball career at Spartanburg Methodist College where she plans on majoring in nursing. As the Bulldogs second baseman this past season she recorded a .902 fielding percentage with thirty put-outs and seven assists while accounting for numerous big hits. Ross will be majoring in nursing at Spartanburg Methodist College and says the closeness of the college was a major part of her decision. "I like it because it's close to home and I still want to be close to my family," said Ross. "The coach is so sweet as well and makes it feel at home when you're there." The Boiling Springs boys' baseball team had two players commit to continue their career at the college level next season as pitcher Tristan Smith committed to Clemson University and third baseman Davis Starnes committed to Limestone University. Smith, who committed to Clemson, is a five-year letterman for the Bulldogs where he has been a pitcher since the eighth grade. Last season Smith, as a junior, was named both All-Region and All-State in a season that saw him go 6-2 on the mound with a 0.75 ERA and 99 strikeouts while batting .380 at the plate with seven home runs. This season so far, he is 5-1 on the mound with a 0.69 ERA and 96 strikeouts with a .351 batting average and two home runs. He said that his decision to choose Clemson, where he plans to major in business, came from his years of being a fan of the Tigers program. "I grew up a Clemson fan and thought it'd be the most comfortable place for me to go," said Smith. "Clemson has always had a great program and I've always looked up to those guys. I can't wait to be a part of the program." Davis Starnes, who committed to Limestone University, is a four-year letterman for the Bulldogs varsity team where he has started at either shortstop or third baseman in all four years. Last season on the region championship team he had a .302 batting average with eight doubles and a home run while this season he has added to those numbers with a .386 batting average with six doubles and three home runs. Starnes, who plans on majoring in business accounting, said the coaching staff was the reason on why he chose the Saints. "The coaching staff there is really amazing and made Limestone just feel like home," said Starnes. "The first time they brought me in I just felt comfortable from the start, and it felt like the place for me to be the next four years." The Boiling Springs boys' lacrosse team, who set school history this year with the team's first ever playoff victory, had five players sign to continue their college careers at the college level next season. Micah Horton, Jordan Reid, and Matthias Oslund all chose to continue their college careers at Emmanuel College next season. Mathias Oslund, who plans on majoring in business at Emmanuel, leaves Boiling Springs as the first ever player to go over 100 career points in the Bulldogs lacrosse program and was recently named the Upper State midfielder of the year. He said the feeling of brotherhood at the school along with going there with two of his current teammates were deciding factors in his decision. "I chose there because when I went there the coaches were great and my family really liked the school," said Oslund. "It was like a brotherhood feeling when I went to visit there, and I get to go down there with my brothers from here which will be great." Horton, who plans on majoring in kinesiology, leaves behind quite a legacy at Boiling Springs in lacrosse as he was named the face-off player of the year this season and last year. In four years of playing the face-off spot he has won 445 faceoffs, which is over 100 more than the next closest person to him on the school's list. He said the small time feel of Emmanuel College along with a chance to build something with his current teammates were key factors in his decision. "It's located just outside of Athens so it's a smaller college that gives the feeling of a bigger college atmosphere," said Horton. "It's a great college atmosphere with an eight to one class size which I think will help me both in school and on the lacrosse field. It's also a newer team so getting the chance to build a younger program with my guys like we did here at Boiling Springs something I can't wait for next year." Jordan Reid, who will major in business with a minor in agriculture at Emmanuel, has played multiple roles in the Bulldogs lacrosse program and according to his coach has been the backbone of the team, on his way to an All-Region honor. He also started all eleven games along the offensive line this past season for the Bulldogs football program. He said that the feeling of family and brotherhood were key in his decision. "When I went there to visit you could just feel the family and brotherhood there," said Reid. "The chance to go play the next four years with these guys beside me was also a great opportunity as well. I'm not into big colleges and the school fits the mold of the type of school I was looking for and it's just beautiful down there." Those three weren't the only ones to commit to the same college as fellow lacrosse players Ashton Scott and William Fish committed to continue their careers at Montreat College next season. William is a four-year member of the Bulldogs lacrosse program and said that he will major in education. He said that the atmosphere around Montreat along with the chance to go play lacrosse with a teammate were key in his decision. "It really gives off a great atmosphere," said Fish. "It's a nice campus situated to itself but then Asheville is only like thirty minutes away, so you get a good mixture of both. It's great also having a teammate going with me so that everything isn't just all brand new." Ashton Scott is a two-year member of the Boiling Springs varsity lacrosse program where he's scored fourteen points and controlled fifty-three groundballs. He said that the chance to go to a Christian school like Montreat, where he plans on majoring in business, was a big factor in his decision and said meeting the coach finalized his decision. "I just love the atmosphere as it's in the mountains and just a great Christian environment," said Scott. "I can't wait to get up there and just be out in nature. The coach has always been there for me as well as he's like a father figure without actually being a father to you." The Boiling Springs boys' soccer team, who just had a big playoff win on Monday night over Spring Valley, had three players commit to play at the college level next season. Jayce Lamb, the goalkeeper for the Bulldogs, signed to continue his college career at North Greenville University next season where he plans on majoring in mathematics. He said that his decision to go to North Greenville was because of the commitment he received from the Crusader's coaches. "The coaching staff made it really easy for me to transition from high school to college," said Lamb. "They stayed with me for a year before I committed and just helped me all the way which made my decision easy at the end of the day." Kailou Touch, a defensive back for the Bulldogs soccer team, signed to continue his college career at Converse University next season, where he plans on majoring in mechanical engineering. He said that the atmosphere at the school along with the coaches were a major part of his decision to commit to the Valkyries. "It's a place that's close to home and has a great atmosphere," said Touch. "The coaching staff is amazing and just a really nice group of people who were very welcoming from the first time I stepped on campus." Boiling Springs soccer midfielder Peyton Pressley committed to continue his career at USC-Upstate next season. He said that his familiarity with the coaching staff made his decision to attend Upstate, where he plans on majoring in secondary education, an easy choice. "The coaching staff has always been pretty close to home with me as I've known most of them for quite a while," said Pressley. "They've given me a chance to develop as a player over the years and when it came down to deciding the choice was pretty simple for me." Boiling Springs cheerleading also had an athlete commit on Tuesday as Olivia Giovanetti signed to continue her career at Coastal Carolina University next season. Giovanetti has been a member of the Bulldogs back-to-back region championship teams (2020 and 2021) and says that her reason for choosing Coastal Carolina was the opportunities she will get there in her chosen major of marine science. "I just really like the environment and the coaches as they were all so helpful there," said Giovanetti. "They have a private island there for their marine biology department which will be very helpful for my major in marine science." COLUMBIA, SC - After competing in a brutal region schedule that saw the Boiling Springs boys' soccer team finish in fourth place of their region, their reward was a road trip to Spring Valley in the first round of the 5A playoffs on Monday.
After a hour trip to Spring Valley, a ride that the Bulldogs had become accustomed to with their region schedule, it was Boiling Springs left celebrating after the fifth overtime period winning in penalty kicks. Boiling Springs took the lead in the first half off a goal from senior Christian Gonzalez to take a 1-0 lead, a lead the Bulldogs took into halftime. Spring Valley, who was the number one seed in the bracket, wasn't going to go away easily though as they recorded two goals in the first sixteen minutes of the half as they held a 2-1 lead with twenty-four minutes to go in the second half. The Bulldogs responded at the seven-and-a-half-minute mark with a goal of their own off the foot of junior Will Poplawski to tie the match at 2-2, a score the game remained at when the whistle sounded to mark the end of regulation. Both teams went scoreless over the first two ten-minute overtime periods and also went scoreless in the two five-minute golden goal overtime periods, leaving the game's outcome in the hands of penalty kicks. In penalty kicks, the Bulldogs hit their first three penalty kicks as the Vikings missed one after a save by Boiling Springs goalie Jayce Lamb, which wasn't his last of the game, and trailed 3-2 before the Bulldogs missed their first shot of penalty kicks. With Spring Valley looking to tie the penalty kick period at 3-3, they were denied when Bulldogs goalie Jayce Lamb made a great save keeping Boiling Springs in the lead of penalty kicks at 3-2. With the Bulldogs steal leading, just one more goal would seal the victory for Boiling Springs and when the penalty shot off the foot of Christian Gonzalez found the back of the net it sent the Bulldogs to the second round of the 5A playoffs. Boiling Springs will now travel to Dorman on Wednesday at 7:00 PM for their second round matchup of the 5A playoffs. CHESTER, SC - With a goal of repeating as the 5A golf state champions, the Bulldogs checked off one of the steps on the road to repeating by winning their second straight Region III-5A championship at the Chester Golf Club on Monday afternoon.
The Bulldogs came away with the championship, their second straight and final in this region for now, after shooting a tournament low score of 305, which was three shots better than second place Nation Ford (308). Boiling Springs was led by Andrew Gregory who shot a score of 72 to finish tied for second place in the region individual standings with Nation Ford's Ben Mills and one shot behind Fort Mill's Cam Baker. With his score of 72, Gregory was named to the 2022 All-Region team where he was joined by fellow Bulldogs Clayton Taylor and Walker Ingram. They were joined on the All-Region team by Fort Mill's Cam Baker and Alex Martin, Nation Ford's Ben Mills and Justin Wosje, as well as Clover's Jordan Williams. Boiling Springs with their region championship now qualifies for the 5A Upper State championship tournament that will be held on May 9 at Springfield Golf Club in Fort Mill, SC. Just over a week after taking the Boiling Springs boys' lacrosse team to the most impressive season in school history, including their first ever playoff victory, Bulldogs head coach Justin Mills has stepped down as the leader of the program.
Mills has been the leader of the program for the last four seasons and says that while there’s never a perfect time to step down as a head coach that he just felt that this was the right time for him. ”I think the program is on a great trajectory with a great outlook and now just felt like the right time for me personally to step away,” said Bulldogs head coach Justin Mills. “The game is changing and I think it may be time for someone to come take a look at the program with fresh eyes and with that said I think Tanner is going to do a great job stepping in to this role.” Mills said while he’s stepping away from the head coaching position he stressed to his players when he addressed them last week that it’ll free him up to be able to support them in other areas of their lives. ”The first thing I told our guys was that while I’m stepping away from coaching it now allows me to be at your football games in the fall and at your college games in the spring,” said Justin Mills. “I‘ll now be able to support the guys in their other endeavors outside of just lacrosse as if I had a free minute away from lacrosse now it wasn’t going to be at other events but probably with my family. It now opens up so many doors to support these guys off the lacrosse field and while I’ll miss the coaching, I’m looking forward to the other opportunities.” Coach Mills will be replaced by his assistant coach the past three seasons and his brother Tanner Mills, who will take over as the leader of the Bulldogs program. ”Tanner has been a great asset to our program the last three seasons and will continue to be going forward,” said Justin Mills. “He’s going to do a great job for the guys going forward.” Coach Mills said that he’s proud of the growth of the program in his four years but says he doesn’t measure the growth and success just plainly on wins and losses. ”You can judge success in several different ways as the wins did come and that was really cool,” said Mills. “I know the kids enjoyed the wins but I judged the success of the program by how kids bought into the program during their time at Boiling Springs and how they buy in after they graduate. All of that came into perspective for me at the Dorman playoff game when you looked to your left and right where you see ten to twelve people that graduated years ago at the game. That’s when you start to realize the success of the program and see how people are investing into the program. The wins and awards were just a byproduct of people buying into the program.” Mills said that knowing what his decision was going to be at the end of the season gave him an opportunity to soak in some moments a little more as the season went along, including the playoff win at Dorman. ”For the first ten to fifteen seconds after the Dorman win I just sat there and soaked in the scene as the kids were embracing after the victory,” said Justin Mills. “Before I went to hug my wife or my coaches I just took a second to soak that all in because at that moment I was basically the only person who knew what my decision was going to be and that was the best fifteen seconds, it made the last four years worth all the early morning workouts and late practices.” ”It’s a blessing to have someone you know, love, and trust taking over a program you put so much time into as you don’t always get that opportunity when a successor takes over for you,” said Justin Mills. “We both graduated from schools that weren’t in District Two and it’s great seeing the investment that he has made into the program, which he never had to do, but he did and just fell in love with the kids and the program. I know he’s going to do great and with him there it still allows me to somewhat be involved in the program. I’m proud of him and he deserves this opportunity.” The Bulldogs program will now be under the control of Coach Tanner Mills, who has spent the last three years as the assistant at Boiling Springs, but prior to that he was an assistant coach at Lexington High School as well as the head coach at White Knoll, where he started the program and in his last year there they went undefeated. Mills said that this opportunity to take over the program is something him and his brother discussed a few times. ”We had been talking about this for a little while as he was my assistant at White Knoll before he moved up here and became the head coach at Boiling Springs,” said new Bulldogs head coach Tanner Mills. “Ever since I’ve been up here it’s something we’ve kind of talked about because it sounds crazy but coaching lacrosse has always been more of my thing. He told me this year it was time for him to focus on other areas of his life and I was ready for the opportunity to take over the program.” Mills said that he has always wanted to be a lacrosse coach as he turned down opportunities to play college lacrosse in college to begin his coaching career, which he started as a college freshman as an assistant at Lexington High School. ”When I first sat down after high school I looked at where all my outcomes led and all the roads led to coaching high school lacrosse so I decided to skip the other steps and go ahead and get that part of my life started,” said Mills. “In my freshman year of college I was a varsity assistant and JV head coach at Lexington for two years where we won two region championships before I went to White Knoll as head coach because they were wanting to start a new program. I spent two years at White Knoll where in my final year we went undefeated and it was a great situation but God was calling me back to Spartanburg at which point I wasn’t sure why but here we are today. I feel like this is where I am meant to be.” Coach Mills said that with any brothers you will see some similarities in his approach to leading the team but there will also be some differences in his approach. ”My role as an assistant was to balance out the head coach to even out the team so my role the last three years has been a little different,” said Mills. “My coaching style is a very personal and professional relationship with my players as my objective is to give them the best experience which does involve winning and I do expect to pick up right where we left off this year. I don’t think people should expect a huge change as Justin and I do things differently but at the end of the day the objective is still the same, that the kids are always first and the program is second. That mentality will stay the same as long as one of the Mills brothers is in charge of the program.” Tanner Mills said after spending five of his eight years coaching on the same sideline with his brother, that he won’t be there this season will be a little bit of a change for him this year. “I’ve absolutely enjoyed our time coaching together and feel like over those years have grown closer as a family,” said Mills. “This community has brought us closer together and that’s something I can never pay back to this community. While it’s going to feel strange not having him there, we’ve learned from each other for so long that he’ll still be there in our practice plans, our game plans, and how he approached people but he just won’t be there physically.” Mills said that as a part of his taking on the head coaching role he is going to be a full-in member of the community as he is accepting a position at Rainbow Lake Middle School so that he can be around the kids constantly. ”I’m a very family oriented person and the kids in our program will be a priority for both me and my wife,” said Mills. “We will be very involved in the community as I’m making the change from another district to now taking a job at Rainbow Lake Middle School so the kids will be able to see me a lot more often now. That will also allow a lot more consistency with practice because my schedule is the same as theirs now and I attend church with a lot of these guys so I’m going to have a lot of opportunities to be a part of the kid’s lives.” He said that the accomplishments of this past year’s team has a lot of extra meaning to him because until recently he didn’t realize how long he had know some of these kids. ”The success this year is beyond comprehension which is a compliment to my brother, the parents, and the community as they all put these kids first,” said Mills. “It was a special season from the leadership of the seniors to the commitment from the parents, because the parents buying in made the job for my brother and myself so much better. This senior group was a special group who first started playing lacrosse at the youth league and I didn’t realize it until recently that I was one of the referees for the first ever youth league game in Boiling Springs that was played by a lot of those guys. It brought tears to my eyes realizing how all of this has come full circle.” Mills says that one of his goals as the head coach outside of coaching the varsity team is to continue to build the youth league in the community as it will only lead to more success at the varsity level. ”Building up a good youth program is the most important part of being successful,” said Mills. “My number one priority as head coach is to have a good feeder system to our high school teams and to start with that we’re going to have youth camps this summer. We have to get that youth league successful as it’s what separates a great program from a good team. We’ve had good teams in Boiling Springs but haven’t solidified being a great program until this season. Youth programs is so important and one of the main reasons I took a job at Rainbow Lake Middle School because if we can get those kids there involved in the lacrosse program then we can have a sustainable program for years to come.” Coach Mills said that for parents that are interested in their kids joining the lacrosse program they will be having a youth camp on June 16th - 17th from 8-10 AM and can register at the following link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/18UebYtWknHY6B-Vd6rVhfThTRjPf78ZzeKf2ppzGXyM/edit |
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