Youth was served in the final Player of the Week chosen by the Laurens County Touchdown Club.

Sophomore defensive back Chris Boyd earned the honor for his performance in Clinton High School’s 27-24 loss to Belton-Honea Path in the third round of the Class 3A playoffs.

Boyd amassed 13-1/2 tackles for the Red Devil defense, including a tackle for loss, a caused fumble and an interception. 

 “Chris is only a sophomore but played like a veteran against BHP. He got better every week in the way he prepared as the season went on, and it showed in his play on Friday nights. We look forward to seeing him continue to work and make things happen next season. The future is bright for Chris Boyd,” stated Clinton head coach Corey Fountain. 

Boyd will be honored, among others, on Wednesday, Dec. 13, at the club’s annual banquet at The Ridge in Laurens at 7 p.m. Player of the Week awards this year were presented by Farm Bureau Insurance of Laurens County. 

The featured speaker is be Todd Summers of WSPA-TV 7.

The TD Club will honor its All-County team selection as well as the Coach of the Year, Player of the Year and the Lakeland’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes Character award winners from each high school and Presbyterian College. 

Tickets can be purchased at the Laurens County Chamber of Commerce in advance for $20. 

Clinton put an expected den of players in the Region 4-3A honors, led by Player of the Year Kadon Crawford and Coach of the Year Corey Fountain.

Keegan Fortman was the league’s Special Teams Player of the Year.

Red Devils repping the all-region first team were Crawford, Fortman, Clayton Lawson, Rion Gordon, Nyze Byrd, Ares Jones, Brett Young and Zay Johnson.

Honorable-mention honorees were Chris Boyd, Tushawan Richardson, D.J. Clark and Carson Glenn.

Girls’ basketball opened successfully in Clinton as the Red Devils won their season-opening tournament with a 53-11 victory over York and a 37-21 decision over Chapman.

Clinton raced out to a 14-2 lead in the first quarter against the Cougars.

Bryanna Belton led the Red Devils with 14 points and Zakalia Redd added 10.

Seven other players scored, led by Mylayja Thompson with seven points, and Kemaria Shelton  and Ry’Daijia Mars, each with six.

Chapman, having beaten Batesburg-Leesville in the opening round, couldn’t keep pace with the Red Devils as Belton, who again took the scoring point with 11. Thompson scored eight.

Krislyn Wilder led the Panthers with eight.

Woodruff defeated Laurens, 40-32, in the Wolverines’ Coach Varner Tipoff Classic.

A slow start – Woodruff led 19-4 after a quarter – doomed the Raiders, who closed the margin in the second quarter but could get no closer than four points.

Zoe Dial led all scorers with 19 points for the Raiders (1-3) and made all-tournament.

The Raiders opened with a 62-33 victory over Greer Middle College, then fell to Landrum, 66-29.

Meanwhile, at Spartanburg Christian Academy, Seneca defeated the Laurens boys, 57-46.

Martinez Shaw scored 21 points for Laurens, and Mason Aiken added 11. The Raiders were scheduled to play the host school on Wednesday at noon.

Presbyterian junior guard Marquis Barnett is the Big South Player of the Week. The Saginaw, Mich., products averaged 14.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.3 blocks as the Blue Hose went 3-1.

PC (5-1) has equaled its win total of the entire 2022-23 season.

Winthrop guard Noah Van Bibber was Freshman of the Week.

Bryanna Brady is Big South Player of the Week for the second time in her six-year career at PC.

Brady, of Goodyear, Ariz., scored 40 points and shot 16/24 from the field while hitting 8/10 free throws.

Freshman of the Week was Otaifo Esenabhalu of Longwood.

Don’t look now, but Presbyterian is scheduled to face the top-ranked University of South Carolina women’s basketball team on Saturday, Dec. 16, in Columbia at 1 p.m.

Some say they intend to make a contribution to keep the site alive. Several have done so recently, and I am grateful.

I reckon some just don’t get around to it. I used to list an address to send a check (DHK Sports, P.O. Box 768, Clinton, S.C. 29325). I finally got it through my thick head that not that many people write checks nowadays. For example, me. A more convenient means might be sending a reasonable amount to DHK Sports on Venmo.

Support the advertisers, and help keep the site – the game stories, the blogs, the photos – alive by making a monthly donation via Patreon. The Laurens County site is here. The Furman site is here.

Another way I can make a little is if you purchase my books at MonteDutton.net. They’re quite entertaining in spite of the fellow who wrote them. Two of my novels, Cowboys Come Home and Lightning in a Bottle, are available in audio versions. The latest, The Latter Days, is about baseball.

Photo galleries are posted on Instagram @furmanatt and @laurenscountysports.

Support the advertisers, and help keep the site – the game stories, the blogs, the photos – alive by making a monthly donation via Patreon. The Laurens County site is here. The Furman site is here.

Another way I can make a little is if you purchase my books at MonteDutton.net. They’re quite entertaining in spite of the fellow who wrote them. Two of my novels, Cowboys Come Home and Lightning in a Bottle, are available in audio versions. The latest, The Latter Days, is about baseball.

Photo galleries are posted on Instagram @furmanatt and @laurenscountysports.