Wednesday playoff roundup: Clinton returns to state tennis finals

The Clinton boys tennis team won the combined Class 3A/2A/1A Upper State Championship with a 4-2 victory over visiting St. Joseph’s Wednesday afternoon.

With the win, the Red Devils advance to the state finals for the second straight year and will once again face Oceanside Collegiate, a 6-0 winner over Waccamaw Wednesday. The state championship is set for 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the Cayce Tennis Center.

Against St. Joseph’s, Clinton swept the top four spots on the singles ladder to top a fourth straight Class 3A team in the playoffs. The Red Devils were also the only public school team left in the Upper State final four. The other three – St. Joseph’s, Christ Church and Southside Christian – are private schools.

Oceanside has won the last five divisional state championships, including wins over the Red Devils in 2025 and 2021.
Here are results from Thursday’s Upper State finals:

CLINTON 4, ST. JOSEPH’S 2
Singles: No. 1 Matthew King (C) def. Whit Wilkins 6-4, 6-2; No. 2 Edwin Orr (C) def. Jeremiah Adams 6-3, 6-2; No. 3 Jacob King (C) def. Hampton Norwood 6-0, 6-2; No. 4 Jake Meyerholtz (C) def. Charlie Walters 6-3, 6-1; No. 5 Alexander Millener (SJ) def. Cooper Stinson 6-2, 2-6 (10-5).
Doubles: No. 2 Brodie Miller and Byron Webb (SJ) def. Malakye Brewer and Ethan Wargo 6-0, 6-3.

Softball

Clinton advances in district

Me-Me Smith pitched a four-hit shutout and drove in six runs as the Red Devils opened the Class 2A playoffs with a 10-0 win Wednesday over Landrum in the playoff opener for both teams.

Clinton, seeded second in District 2, advances in the winner’s bracket and will travel to No. 1 Buford Friday. Buford (14-8) defeated High Point Academy 11-0 Wednesday.

In addition to scattering four hits over five innings in the circle, Smith went 3-for-6 with a pair of doubles and 6 RBI for the Red Devils (16-4). Her bases-clearing double was part of a five-run fifth inning, and she started the scoring with a two-run double in the first.

Lead-off hitter Halleigh Luke went 2-for-3 with two runs scored, and Lila Kuykendall went 3-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored.

Landrum falls into the elimination bracket and will face High Point Academy Friday.

Lamar holds off Saints, 14-11

Thornwell opened the Class 1A softball playoffs Wednesday and came up short against top-seeded Lamar in their District 2 opener.

With the loss, the fifth-seeded Saints (9-11) will play an elimination game Friday at No. 4 Great Falls (6-11), a 13-0 loser to No. 1 Ridge Spring-Monetta Wednesday.

After spotting the Silver Foxes (16-9) a 6-0 lead over the first two innings, Thornwell battled back, cutting the lead to 8-5 and bringing the tying run to the plate in the top of the fifth.

But Lamar answered with six runs in the home fifth to take a 14-5 lead.

Thornwell charged back again, scoring two runs in the sixth and another four in the seventh highlighted by Bre Coats’ inside-the-park home run that also scored Kendra Wilson.

Coats went 3-for-4 with 3 RBI, three runs scored and a triple to go with the homer. Lydia Hefner went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored, and Karson Waters went 1-for-4 and drove in three runs, including a two-run double in the fourth.

Ridge Spring-Monetta will travel to Lamar Friday in the winner’s bracket.