By Thomas Grant Jr.
Gray Collegiate Academy saw its quest to reach the Class 4A final end Friday at 2-time defending champion South Florence.
The Bruins defeated the War Eagles 55-14 in the Lower State final. The loss snapped a 9-game winning streak by Gray Collegiate, which finished the season with a 11-3 record.
South Florence jumped out to a 21-0 lead before freshman quarterback Xavier Wright hit J.P. Sweatt for a 19-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter.
The Bruins responded with 34 unanswered points before senior Tyler Waller threw a touchdown pass to Corey Gleaton in the fourth quarter.
South Florence will face South Pointe in the Class 4A title game at noon Saturday at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium in Orangeburg.
BASKETBALL
Gray Collegiate boys basketball rebounded from last week’s “Showdown at Shandon” loss to top-ranked Ridge View with two straight wins over out-of-state opponents.
It was the Thanksgiving Hoopfest in Dallas, Texas. The third-ranked War Eagles opened with a 75-61 win over Houston out of Germantown, Tenn.
Jayden Rowe scored 17 points; Luis Echeverria had 16 points and Kennesaw State signee Levi Ball finished with 14.
The next day, Gray Collegiate defeated St. Michael’s 72-59.
Through the first week of the regular season, Gray Collegiate girls had a 2-2 record. After dropping the season-opener 72-22 to Goose Creek, it posted wins over James Island (62-33) and River Bluff (60-43).
Transfer Aneya Britt averaged 28.5 points and 11.5 rebounds in the two victories.
The victory over River Bluff advanced the Lady War Eagles to the final of the Bronze Bracket of the She Got Next Tournament. Despite 24 points and 11 rebounds from Britt and 18 points from Alexis Gartman, they were defeated 60-55 by Military Magnet.
New coaches
The Brookland-Cayce boys’ basketball team is off to a 2-1 start under new head coach Larry Davis. The Bearcats have wins over Legion Collegiate (76-34) and Orangeburg-Wilkinson (67-64).
The Lady Bearcats are 2-3 under first-year head coach Terrance Gibson. It opened the season with a 46-37 win over Legion Collegiate as Tionna Goodwin had 24 points.
Brookland-Cayce rebounded from a 44-30 loss to Heathwood Hall with a 51-48 overtime victory over Orangeburg Prep. Kamryn Etheridge had 14 points and Goodwin added 13 against the Lady Indians.
The Lady Bearcats entered Tuesday’s game against River Bluff looking to snap a 2-game losing streak.
Following the departure of Jordan Leath to River Bluff, Northside Christian Academy hired Jamal Brown as its girls basketball coach. The Lady Crusaders opened the season with two straight wins before dropping a 41-39 contest to Mountain View Prep.
Kaleigh Howell is averaging 12 points and seven rebounds per game and Jubilee Beckwith is at 8.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.3 steals a contest.
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