Local Teams Compete In Jim And Eileen Kilbreth 2023 Spartanburg County Cross Country Championship10/28/2023
SPARTANBURG, SC - On a crisp cool morning in October, cross country teams from all over Spartanburg County met at the Milliken Research Center to determine who was the best team and individuals in the county on Saturday.
In the girl's varsity meet, it was the Dorman Cavaliers that won the event just ahead of fellow region team, the Boiling Springs Bulldogs, a finish that was similar to the recent Region II-5A championships where both teams finished in that same order. Dorman was led by Haley Ruth, Elizabeth Ludwick, and Avalie Workman who finished in second, third, and fourth overall on the individual side of the event while Boiling Springs was led by Ainsley Steadings, Alyssa Skory, Bella Johnson, and Elara Taylor who finished in 11th, 14th, 21st and 23rd overall. Elloree Flippin from the Carolina Homeschool team won the individual event with a time of 19:11.96, which was forty-five seconds ahead of second place. After the Cavaliers and the Bulldogs, the finishing order was Carolina Homeschool, Landrum, Byrnes, Spartanburg, Woodruff, Westgate Chrisitan School, Chesnee, and Chapman. Chesnee was led by Lanie Arrowood who finished in 25th place with a time 22:48.40 just ahead of teammate Claire Walker who finished in 30th place with a time of 23:06.54 while Chapman was led by Grace Khlopkov who finished in 35th place with a time of 23:18.30. In the varsity boy's meet, it was the Dorman Cavaliers that won the event as they occupied seven of the top eight spots in the individual side. The Cavaliers were led by Andrew Cleland who won the event in a time of 15:54.18 as he finished just ahead of teammates Tyler Davis, Nathan Edwards, Noah Yarborough, and Miles Brooks. The only runner that kept the Cavaliers from sweeping the top seven spots was Spartanburg's Know Eaton who finished in sixth place with a time of 16:45/26. After the Cavaliers in the team meet, Spartanburg finished in second place followed by Carolina Homeschool, Landrum, Byrnes, Boiling Springs, Chapman, Chesnee, Woodruff, Broome, and High Point. Boiling Springs finished in sixth place and was led by Andrew Cooler who finished in 21st place with a time of 17:37.82 followed by Jake Sapp (31st), Jayden Adams (34th), and Andrew Miller (42nd). Chapman was just behind the Bulldogs with a seventh-place finish led by Thomas Wheeler in 23rd place with a time of 17:40.66 followed by Logan Grooms (37th), Dyllen Kempton (51st), and Dennis Dunagin (59th). Chesnee came away with the eighth-place spot as they were led by Omarion Campo-Rios who finished in 25th place with a time of 17:50.08 followed by Noah Gottschalk (29th), Hudson Jones (35th), and Luke Edmonds (71st). Bennet Salley from Spartanburg won the JV boys' event while Kalli Faulkner who the JV girls' event on Saturday. The next event for the teams will be the state championship events that will be held November 3rd and 4th at the cross country course at Newberry College. 3A and 4A schools will race on November 3rd starting at 9:00 AM while 5A, 2A, and 1A will race on November 4th starting at 9:00 AM. Two local coaches received the honor of being selected to lead the North girls golf team in the upcoming North-South match at the Greenwood’s Country Club.
Boiling Springs head girls golf coach Macy Tate was selected to lead the North team and will be assisted in the event by Chapman head girls golf coach Andy Pitt. Both coaches saw strong improvement from their teams this season as the Bulldogs finished their season in the 5A Upper State tournament and Chapman finished their season with a seventh place finish at the 3A state championship tournament. They will lead a group of strong golfers led by Mauldin’s Olivia Pellerin, who just finished runner-up at the 5A state championship tournament on Tuesday. She’ll be joined by Spartanburg’s Laney Brothers, Nation Ford’s Vivian Harris, Seneca’s Hazel Martin, Aiken’s Kaylee McElwain, Daniel’s Peyton O’Brien, as well as Seneca’s Ashton Moseley and Natalie Turner. The match will be played against the South team on October 27th and 28th at the Greenwood Country Club. BOILING SPRINGS, SC - The Boiling Springs boys volleyball team started their journey to the first possible state championship in the state of South Carolina for the sport with a 3-0 victory over Clover on Monday night.
"Being able to win the match 3-0 against Clover to start the playoffs is exciting," said Bulldogs head coach Rachel Hyatt. "We knew that Clover wasn't a team that would just lay down and go down without a fight. I'm really proud of my guys responding with basically a whole new group from last season." Hyatt, who was celebrating her birthday on Monday, said that the team gave her the best birthday present she could ask for this year. "It feels good for them to get the win on my birthday, and it was a great present," said Hyatt. "They came through for sure with a great present." Boiling Springs started the match with a strong block kill by junior Tim Okhman that t started the Bulldogs on a 9-1 run to start the first set with two kills by Okhman and three kills by Prosper Hawj. They continued the impressive run in the first set taking a 15-2 lead over the Blue Eagles including three straight kills by senior Mark Zdanevich. The Bulldogs kept the pressure on despite a Clover run that cut the lead to 21-10 but three straight ace serves by sophomore Coleman Wheatley gave Boiling Springs a 24-10 lead before Okhman spiked a ball into the middle of the Blue Eagles defense for a 25-12 win in the first set to take a 1-0 lead in the match. "Tim is one of those players I need on the front row at all times but unfortunately that can't happen," said Hyatt with a laugh. "When he goes up there, he's a wall when people hit it back which is why he's leading the nation is solo blocks as he had 94 heading into the match tonight." In the second set the two teams battled back and forth to a 20-20 tie before the Bulldogs scored the final five points of the set getting kills from three sophomores as Antoine Murray, Dylan Booker, and Wheatley scored the final three points of the set with the last coming on a push kill by Wheatley that fell just inside the Clover out of bounds line to take a 25-20 win in the set increasing their match lead to 2-0. Clover got out to a 6-1 lead in the third set as it looked like the Blue Eagles were on their way for to a set win, but the Bulldogs stormed back going on an 11-2 run that included two kills by Zdanevich, a kill by Wheatley, and three ace serves by Hawj to take a 12-8 lead over the Blue Eagles. As the set went on both teams battled back and forth as they were both tied at 24-24 before a violation was called against Clover and then the match ended just the way it started as Okhman spiked a ball into the middle of the Blue Eagles defense as they won the set 26-24 and the match 3-0. Junior Tim Okhman had eight kills as he added to his nation leading solo blocks total going over the 100 blocks mark for the season. Senior Mark Zdanevich led the Bulldogs with nine kills while fellow senior Prosper Hawj added seven kills and 13 assists. Sophomore Coleman Wheatley led the Bulldogs in assists with 15 while junior Brady Gilmore added six digs. Boiling Springs will now move on to a second round playoff match that is scheduled for Wednesday against Byrnes, who the Bulldogs split their matches 1-1 that they played against each other this season. BOILING SPRINGS, SC - With a playoff spot on the line and on the same night they honored their seniors, the Boiling Springs football team put on an impressive performance as they defeated the visiting Spartanburg Vikings 24-17 on Friday night.
"Finally, one of those nights we've had went our way tonight," said Boiling Springs head coach Matt Reel. "Our guys are the definition of perseverance and showing up when things are bad or they're good. Those guys are a special group and deserve this more than anybody. I told them we know where we're at but other people just look at the scoreboard but tonight solidifies what these guys are all about especially with how they responded in the second half of this game." In a pregame ceremony the Boiling Springs community honored seniors Kain Barnwell, Hunter Woodard, Kohen Sloand, Roy Gee, Amayjai Boyd, Kam Foster, Kristion Thompson, Blaine Johnson, Jared Chinloy-Mickens, Jacob Hill, Brason Miller, Jameilion Miller, Calvin Jackson, Chris Mack II, Dekari Sterling, Omar Cotton, Jonte Murphy, JoJo Barrett, and Nyshawn Moore for their contributions to the program, a group that Reel said has been a foundation builder for the future success of the program. "When you come to a new place and take over a program usually the hardest people to covert are your upperclassmen because they've been used to doing something a certain way," said Reel. "This group is different as they were most of our leaders last year and really shown through this year. They've done a tremendous job of leading our program and just being themselves every day. It's a special group of kids who are all in and I told them they're the root of the foundation of what this program is going to be the next 10 to 12 years and we'll look back on this group as the ones that changed things." Once the game began, it was Spartanburg that found the endzone first as sophomore quarterback Trey Burke found wide receiver Justin Rice on a fourth and seven down the left sideline for a 33-yard touchdown to put the Vikings up 7-0 just four minutes into the game but that score was the last time they scored in the first half. After the Vikings score the Bulldogs responded with 24 unanswered points over the rest of the first half which started when they marched the ball 80 yards ending with a three-yard touchdown run to the right front corner of the endzone by junior quarterback Lincoln Huskey to tie the game at 7-7 at three-minute mark of the first quarter. The scoring drive was setup by an impressive 37-yard catch by wide receiver Eli Mobley down the left sidelines to put the Bulldogs into Vikings territory. Boiling Springs after a nice 40-yard punt return down the left side of the field set them up on the Spartanburg 20-yard line, the Bulldogs found the endzone again just four minutes later when Huskey found junior wide receiver Kyle Patterson for a 19-yard touchdown pass to the back of the endzone to give the Bulldogs a 14-7 lead just a minute into the second quarter. On the ensuing Spartanburg possession, the Boiling Springs defense got into the scoring fun as sophomore cornerback Jeremiah Favorite intercepted a Vikings pass before taking it 37 yards down the left sideline for a touchdown to put the Bulldogs ahead 21-7 at the nine-minute mark of the second quarter. The Bulldogs finished up their 24-point run with a 32-yard field goal by junior kicker Michael Dueck with sixteen seconds left in the first half to go up 24-7 over the Vikings. Boiling Springs quarterback Lincoln Huskey finished the first half going nine of 13 for 101 yards and a touchdown along with a touchdown on the ground before having to leave the game before the start of the second half. "He took some big shots tonight but he's probably the toughest player I've ever coached," said Reel. "He's at the top of that list and this week we got to get him and some other guys healed up before we hit this playoff run over the next couple of weeks." In the second half Spartanburg was able to get 10 points on special teams plays over a two-minute period of play as kicker Will Love hit a 34-yard field goal before the punt team blocked a field goal which was recovered and returned for a 12-yard touchdown by junior linebacker Peyton Jones to cut the Boiling Springs lead to 24-17 with 16 minutes to go in the game. After the blocked punt, the Bulldogs got some big plays from their defense to help seal the victory which started with a play that looked like Spartanburg's offense was going to be in Boiling Springs territory, but senior linebacker JoJo Barrett forced a fumble that was recovered by fellow senior linebacker Kohen Sloand to give the Bulldogs the ball back at their own 32-yard line. At the eight-minute mark of the fourth quarter, Spartanburg went for it on a fourth and one but a big play by Bulldogs senior defensive lineman Calvin Jackson and junior linebacker Campbell Johnson stopped the Vikings to deny them a first down. The next play may have been the biggest of the night, as with just under two minutes to go in the game Spartanburg went for it again on a fourth and four from the Bulldogs 44-yard line when senior defensive back Kristion Thompson batted away a Spartanburg pass to the endzone to once again deny the Vikings a score. From that point on the Bulldogs were able to take over the ball and run out the clock to preserve the victory. Eli Mobley led the Bulldogs in receiving yards with two receptions for 49 yards while Kyle Patterson had two receptions for 35 yards and a touchdown while also averaging 41 yards on five punts in the game. Junior Javen Chhim led the Bulldogs in rushing with 43 yards on 14 carries. Spartanburg was led on offense by sophomore quarterback Trey Burke who went 10 of 21 for 127 yards and a touchdown while freshman running back Trenton Lynch led them on the ground with 72 yards on 12 carries. The win over the Vikings marks the Bulldogs first win over a team coached by former Chapman and current Spartanburg head coach Mark Hodge in six matchups. Boiling Springs will be off for the final week of the regular season as they wait to learn their destination to start the 5A playoffs in two weeks while Spartanburg will host Dorman next week in a crosstown rivalry. Click here for more photos from the Boiling Springs win over Spartanburg COLUMBIA, SC - The Boiling Springs volleyball team went on the road to the state capitol to start the 5A playoffs and when the night was over the Bulldogs season had sadly come to an end as they fell to River Bluff 3-0 on Wednesday night.
After an hour and a half road trip, the Bulldogs struggled to get momentum going in their first-round matchup as they fell in the first set 25-16 while falling 25-17 in the second set and having their season come to an end on a 25-16 loss in the third set. With the loss the volleyball team sees their final record being 21-17 overall while finishing third in the region with a 4-4 region record. In their final match for the Bulldogs seniors Karson Browning and Grace Shepherd had good nights as Browning recorded 10 kills and three blocks while Shepherd ended the match with 15 assists, eight digs, four kills, and one block. Boiling Springs sophomore Kennedy Cole ended the match with 11 digs, eight kills, and one ace serve. After the loss the Bulldogs will have to say goodbye to eight seniors as it marks the final match for Autumn Early, Abigail Kanipe, Gracen Bennett, Deanna Falovsky, Aubrey Chang, Karson Browning, Charlotte Hutchins, and Grace Shepherd. It's a group that Bulldogs head coach Allyson Elliot said has meant a lot to her and the program. "We have eight seniors and most of them have been with me throughout the whole time," said Elliot. "I've had a great time seeing them grow as players and as young women. They've been a lot of fun to be around and been a lot of encouragement to my family and myself these last few years and they'll certainly be missed. They've helped build a legacy and tradition that they've passed down to the younger group." Elliot said that the seniors have even continued a unique tradition that was passed on to them from classes before them. "They sing the alma mater every time we come back into the school on the bus every match whether we win or lose," said Elliot. "Some of the seniors started the tradition before them and now they lead the singing of the alma mater each time we come back and some days it's better than others. They have the whole bus singing as we pull back into the high school parking lot and do a little cheer at the end of it." She also said that the group has been a selfless group as even though some haven't gotten the playing time they want, they have been very supportive of their teammates. "It's a great group of seniors and some of them probably haven't gotten to play as much as they'd like to this year," said Elliot. "Even though they haven't played as much as they wanted, they've supported their teammates and to me that shows a lot of character as they don't fight and complain but are excited with the success of the team." While the Bulldogs will miss the seniors, the loss on Wednesday also marked the last game for Coach Elliot as she announced earlier this year that she would retire from coaching at the end of the season. When asked about the possibility of her last game coming up in an interview last week before her last home game, she said she tried not to think about it being the end of her time as the leader of the program but was soaking up every moment. "I've thought about it, but I do my best not to think too much about it," said Elliot. "I don't want to get emotional about it because I want us to finish every match strong for the kids and I've tried to enjoy every moment this season." On a personal note, we at the Boiling Springs Sports Journal want to thank Coach Elliot for her many years of service to the Bulldogs program and the help she has been to us since the beginning of our website. You are one-of-a-kind coach, and we appreciate all of your help and kind words. CHESTER, SC - While the Boiling Springs girls' golf team didn't get to their ultimate goal of a berth in the 5A state championship tournament, they did finish the season on a strong note shooting their best team score of the year at the Upper State tournament held at Chester Country Club on Monday.
The Bulldogs as a team shot a score of 371 finishing in 12th place of the tournament and just four spots from moving on to the state championship tournament, as the top eight move on to the state championship tournament, and they were just nine shots behind Spring Valley who finished just ahead of them in 11th place. Boiling Springs had four of their five golfers finish with a score in the 90's which was led by eighth-grader Ellie Taylor with a score of 91 followed by Sophia Leso (93). Ryanna Douglas (93), and Bella Greene (94). The Bulldogs will return three of those four golfers going into next season. The Upper State tournament was won by Chapin who shot a score of 307 which was two shots better than second place Dorman who shot a score of 309. Chapin and Dorman will be joined by Nation Ford, Fort Mill, Spartanburg, Mauldin, Blythewood, and TL Hanna. Caroline Hawkins from Blythewood won the individual Upper State championship shooting a tournament low score of 66 defeating second place Olivia Pellerin (70) by four shots. Chapin's Mia Andrade (71) and Dorman's Londyn Rath (71) joined both Hawkins and Pellerin as the only four golfers to finish the tournament under par. The 5A girls golf state championship tournament will be held next Monday and Tuesday at the Mid-Carolina Club in Prosperity, SC. GAFFNEY, SC - In a key region matchup for both teams, Boiling Springs and Gaffney met on Friday the 13th with some frighting good defensive performances but it was the Indians that came away with a 17-7 victory over the Bulldogs.
The matchup saw the Indians improve their region record to 2-0 while the Bulldogs region record fell to 0-3, as the loss for the Bulldogs marks their third straight region loss of less than ten points this year and it's something that Boiling Springs head coach Matt Reel says is about not making plays when they need them. "We have to make plays when we get the opportunity to make them," said Reel. "Our defense, especially tonight, has played really well. When you only give up 17 points to a team like Gaffney, there's not much else you can ask from those guys, as Gaffney is a really good football team. Our defense played tooth and nail with those guys tonight and our offense didn't hold up our end which starts with me because I'm the one calling the plays. We just have to make plays." Gaffney got the first points of the game when they tackled a Bulldogs player in their own endzone for a safety to go up 2-0 over Boiling Springs. It was setup after a Boiling Springs defender forced a Gaffney fumble that the Bulldogs recovered at their own one-yard line at six-minute mark in the first quarter. The Indians added the first touchdown of the game with just three minutes to go in the first quarter when quarterback Riley Staton found running back Jaiden McDowell for a 20-yard touchdown the right side of the field to put Gaffney up 9-0 over the Bulldogs. With just over a minute to go in the half, Boiling Springs linebacker Kohen Sloand intercepted a Gaffney pass to give the Bulldogs possession at their own 40-yard line. The Bulldogs looked to have cashed in with the turnover when quarterback Lincoln Huskey found wide receiver Kyle Patterson in the back of the endzone but a referee ruled the ball to be incomplete allowing Gaffney to take a 9-0 lead into halftime. Boiling Springs looked to be marching for another touchdown early in the fourth quarter as they made it inside the Indians 10-yard line, but Gaffney's King Dowdle intercepted the ball to end the Bulldogs drive. Gaffney pushed their lead to 17-0 when Jaiden McDowell ran the ball in from one yard out for his second touchdown of the night with just over five minutes to go in the game. Boiling Springs got on the scoreboard just as the clock went under three minutes to go when quarterback Lincoln Huskey scrambled in from five yards out to cut the Gaffney lead to 17-7 over the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs were led on offense by Huskey who was 19 of 29 for 154 yards while adding 42 yards rushing on the ground, which led the team in both categories. "Lincoln just plays great every week as he's just a competitor," said Reel. "Whether we're playing checkers, lifting, or doing pushups he wants to win. Everything he does, he wants to win at it and when you have a guy like that leading your team, you have a chance to win every time you hit the field. I can't say enough about who he is as a person and a leader, if you don't like that kid then there's something wrong with you as a person." Eli Mobley led the Boiling Springs receivers with three catches for 52 yards which was just ahead of Tristian Horsey-Johnson who had four catches for 43 yards. Krisiton Thompson and Kohen Sloand led the Boiling Springs defense in tackles as each had nine a piece while Sloand added an interception. The Bulldogs defense continued their strong play limiting the Indians offense to only 17 points, a performance that Reel said he took an extra timeout just to thank his defense for their effort. "There's something special about this team and they're going to have something good happen for them before this season is over," said Reel. "I took a timeout there at the end to go out there and tell my defense how proud I was of them and how I saw how hard they were fighting. These kids work so hard, and they keep showing up and will show up again on Monday to get ready for Spartanburg." Riley Stanton led the Gaffney passing attack going 14 of 24 for 158 yards while Jaiden McDowell led the rushing attack with 139 on 20 carries. Boiling Springs will return home for their final regular season matchup of the season as they host Spartanburg, who was off on Friday night, for senior night. SPARTANBURG, SC - The Boiling Springs volleyball team traveled just down Highway 9 to the east side of Spartanburg to finish out region play with a 3-1 victory over the Vikings on Tuesday night.
"It's a good way to finish region play," said Bulldogs head coach Allyson Elliot. "It has been a good season and I think our kids are ready for the playoffs. We're playing well and have everyone healthy right now which hasn't been the case most of the season. I expect them to work hard as we head into postseason play." Spartanburg scored the first point of the first set but that was the last lead they held in that set as Bulldogs Karson Browning quickly gave Boiling Springs a 2-1 lead on a spike to the middle of the Vikings defense. With the Bulldogs leading 8-6, Boiling Springs went on a 4-0 run that included a kill and an ace serve by junior Lauren Kusterer along with kills by Browning and sophomore Olivia Smith to take a 12-6 lead. The Bulldogs went on another run with a 14-8 lead that included two kills and a block from Browning along with kills by Smith and sophomore Kennedy Cole. The Bulldogs used the runs to take a 25-14 win in the first set as the final point was scored when a Vikings serve went into the net. Boiling Springs took a 12-6 lead in the second set which was led by a four point service run by Abigail Kanipe, that included two ace serves, but it was Spartanburg that came back in the set as they outscored the Bulldogs 19-11 from that point to take a 25-23 victory in the set on an ace serve by the Vikings. In the third set the Bulldogs got big contributions from two seniors as they jumped out to a 9-1 lead over Spartanburg. The run was led by senior Grace Shepherd who at one point in the set scored five straight points on two kills and three ace serves while the run also included three kills by Browning to start the set. Boiling Springs kept the hot start going on their way to a 25-11 victory in the third set as Shepherd scored the last point of the set on her fourth ace serve of the set to take a 2-1 lead in the match. "Grace has stepped up this year and really gotten after it," said Elliot. "She's led us as the setter but took over a leadership role on the court when Karson was injured earlier this year. Our seniors have done a great job and they're the ones I expect to step up big when games are on the line." The Bulldogs kept their momentum going into the fourth set as they jumped out to a 4-1 lead over the Vikings. Spartanburg tied up the score at 4-4 before the Bulldogs went on the biggest run of the match. When Boiling Springs took a 5-4 lead, it was then that senior libero Gracen Bennett went on a 10-point service run of her own that included two ace serves along with four kills from Kennedy Cole, two kills by Lauren Kusterer, and a kill by Olivia Smith to push their lead to 14-4 over the Vikings. With the team holding an 18-8 lead over the Vikings, Bulldogs Lauren Kusterer went on a seven-point service run to end the set and the match as the run included three kills and a block by Browning along with kills by Smith and Shepherd. The final point of the match was scored on a spike kill to the left side by senior Deanna Falovsky to give the Bulldogs a 25-8 win in the set and a 3-1 victory in the match. Senior Karson Browning led the Bulldogs with 19 kills, five blocks, and an ace serve and fellow senior Grace Shepherd had 25 assists and five ace serves. Sophomore Kennedy Cole was second in kills on the team with 14 kills to go along with six digs while junior Lauren Kusterer added eight kills along with an ace serve. Senior Abigail Kanipe had three assists to go along with two ace serves to go along with a perfect serve receive. The Bulldogs also got a good game from eighth-grader Carolina Bishop who finished the night with a double-double with 13 assists and 11 digs against the Vikings. Boiling Springs will be back in action on Thursday in a tri-match against Carolina and BHP as they'll honor their eight senior players in a ceremony before the match. The Bulldogs eight seniors are Autumn Early, Abigail Kanipe, Gracen Bennett, Deanna Falovsky, Aubrey Chang, Karson Browning, Charlotte Hutchins, and Grace Shepherd. BOILING SPRINGS, SC - With a crowd of well-wishers on hand, the Boiling Springs boys' volleyball honored five seniors on Monday night as they defeated the visiting Greenwood Eagles 3-0 in their final home matchup of the season. The Bulldogs honored seniors Mark Zdanevich, Eddie Aleskik, Salomon Emurusabe, Prosper Hawj, and Damian Meas in a pregame ceremony before the match to honor their times with the program. "It feels really good to get this win on senior night," said Bulldogs head coach Rachel Hyatt. "We had seen Greenwood at the Byrnes tournament, and they actually won it a few weeks ago. We were a little nervous with what he had seen but I knew we could get the win as our guys have been performing pretty well lately as we won the Silver bracket at the Dorman Invitational this past weekend. It's great to get the win for those five seniors on their final regular season game here at home." Boiling Springs got off to a hot start taking a 1-0 lead when Zdanevich spiked a ball from the left side that landed inside the backline of the Greenwood defense. The Eagles bounced back to take a 7-4 lead over the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs went on a 5-0 run of their own with Zdanevich getting a spike kill before Meas went on a four-point service run highlighted by kills from Hawj and sophomore Antoine Murray to take a 9-7 lead. With Boiling Springs holding a 13-12 lead, they went on another five-point run that was highlighted by two spike kills and two block kills by junior Tim Okhman and an ace serve by Hawj. After Murray got a kill to push the lead to 24-19, the Eagles followed it up with a return shot into the net that gave the Bulldogs a 25-19 lead in the set and a 1-0 lead in the match. In the second set, the Bulldogs fell behind 7-3 before going on another run that saw them tie the set at 9-9 when Zdanevich spiked a ball so hard that it ricocheted off a Greenwood player and hit the rafters in the gymnasium. The Bulldogs got their first lead of the set when Hawj got a kill that landed inside the back left corner of the Eagles defense to take a 12-11 lead and never relinquished that lead on their way to a 25-23 victory, a victory that was won in an unconventional way as the Bulldogs got the game winning point on rotation violation by the Eagles to take a 2-0 lead in the match. Boiling Springs once again fell behind in the third set, falling as far behind as 5-1 before making their climb back in the set. Trailing 15-13 the Bulldogs got back-to-back kills from Zdanevich and Hawj to tie the set at 15-15 before Murray got a kill and Hawj got an ace to take their first lead of the set at 17-16. With the Bulldogs holding a slim 19-18 lead, they got four straight points from three sophomores Dylan Booker, Coleman Wheatley, and Murray all scored points for the Bulldogs to take a 23-18 lead. Booker sealed the match for the Bulldogs when he spiked a ball off a Greenwood player that landed just beyond the net for a 25-22 win in the set and a 3-0 victory in the match. In his final regular season match in front of the home crowd, senior Mark Zdanevich ended the match with a double-double getting 12 kills and 10 digs. Fellow senior Prosper Hawj finished the night with 11 assists. Junior Tim Okhman continued his strong play along the net for the Bulldogs as he recorded seven blocks to add to his season total, as he leads the nation in solo blocks with 62 so far on the season. On senior night, the Bulldogs also got a strong match from three sophomores as Dylan Booker had nine kills, Antonie Murray had five kills, and Coleman Wheatley had another strong night from the setter spot recording 20 assists. Hyatt the five seniors have been key to the success of this year's team after they lost nine seniors last year. "Prosper and Mark are the two seniors I've had for a couple of years and it's going to be really sad for me to see them walk that stage and graduate in May," said Hyatt. "Salomon, Damien, and Eddie have been great additions to the team this year as Eddie came in to play libero, in his first year of indoor volleyball, after being a wrestler the last few years." Boiling Springs will now wait until the end of the week as they wait to find out where they'll be seeded in the upcoming boys' volleyball playoffs, which will award the first ever South Carolina state championship this season. The Bulldogs will look to host a playoff game on October 23rd, which Coach Hyatt said would be a great birthday present for her that day. Lady Bulldogs Golf Qualifies |
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