High school notes: First-year Clover boys’ lacrosse program to host playoff game

The South Carolina High School League’s lacrosse playoffs begin Tuesday night and several local schools host first round matchups.

Clover, in its first season of boys’ varsity lacrosse, drew the No. 4 seed in the Upper State half of the bracket and will host No. 5 Nation Ford at 7 p.m. The Blue Eagles beat Nation Ford 11-8 when the two teams played in the regular season just over a month ago.

Fort Mill, the defending 4A state champs, drew the No. 1 seed in the Upper State and will host Christ Church Tuesday. The Yellow Jacket girls - a No. 3 seed - will also host Greenville-based Christ Church Tuesday. The girls play at 5:30 p.m., followed by the boys at 7:30.

Nation Ford’s girls claimed the No. 2 seed in the Upper State, thanks to a first-ever win over Fort Mill last Saturday. The Falcons will host Dorman Tuesday. If Fort Mill and Nation Ford both win, they’ll meet in the girls Upper State semifinals on Thursday.

Rogers turning heads on EYBL circuit

Indian Land’s Darnell Rogers turned heads over the weekend in the Nike-sponsored Elite Youth Basketball League. The EYBL is the top AAU competition in the country and Rogers is playing with CP3 All-Stars, who include 6-foot-10 Winston-Salem, N.C. product Harry Giles, the No. 2-ranked 11th grade basketball prospect in the country, according to ESPN.

And yet, after this past weekend’s action in Hampton, Va., it’s Rogers - all 5-foot-3 of him - who led the CP3 All-Stars in scoring, steals and 3-point shooting en route to a 4-0 record. He averaged 14 points and two steals and hit 8-of-17 shots from beyond the arc for a 39 percent clip.

Rogers told CityOfBasketballLove.com’s Josh Verlin, “The weekend’s been great, it’s my first time on the EYBL circuit and we’re winning every game, so I’m enjoying myself right now,” he said. “Just trying to pick up some more offers.”

The Herald’s two-time All-Area player of the year said he’s gotten an offer from George Washington, where his father Shawnta starred in the late 1990s.

Region 3-4A softball/baseball standings

Region 3-4A softball and baseball are approaching the final weeks of the regular season. Each sport’s league standings are quite crowded. The top four teams make the postseason.

In Region 3-4A baseball, York is clinging to the final playoff spot with a valuable season sweep of No. 1 Rock Hill in its back pocket. The Cougars have games remaining against Nation Ford, Fort Mill and a regular season finale against Clover on April 25.

Due to rain-outs, Nation Ford has a challenging stretch of six games in 10 days, with five of those contests in region play.

Northwestern continues to top the region softball standings, but that will be tested on Tuesday - possibly - when the Trojans are scheduled to play Clover. The possibly comes from the weather forecast, which doesn’t look promising. Nation Ford, Fort Mill and Gaffney still have plenty left to decide in the No. 3, 4 and 5 positions.

Baseball

Rock Hill 6-3; Northwestern 5-3; Nation Ford 4-3; York 5-4; Clover 4-4; Gaffney 3-5; Fort Mill 2-7.

Softball

Northwestern 6-1; Clover 6-2; Nation Ford 4-3; Fort Mill 5-4; Gaffney 3-4; Rock Hill 2-7; York 1-6.

South Pointe’s Simmons places fourth in long jump at Taco Bell Classic

South Pointe junior Nigel Simmons placed fourth - out of 89 competitors - in the long jump at the Taco Bell Classic last weekend in Columbia. South Pointe was one of a number of local schools that competed in the annual top-notch track and field competition held at Spring Valley, which attracts top talent from across the country.

Simmons’ leap of 22 feet, 9.5 inches helped him reach National Elite status, and was the best finish for any individual competitor from The Herald’s coverage area. Northwestern’s girls’ 4x100-meter relay unit finished fourth out of 40 teams for the area’s best overall finish.

Simmons’ South Pointe teammate, senior Khalil Jackson tied for fifth in the high jump, while Northwestern’s Asia Barnes placed eighth in the girls’ 100-meter hurdles from a field of 80 competitors.

This story was originally published April 13, 2015 at 4:15 PM with the headline "High school notes: First-year Clover boys’ lacrosse program to host playoff game."