The 2016-17 sports season has come to a close and the Exchange will be looking back on the top five moments from this past season. It was another busy year for the Fighting Scots and while there were some dark times, the bright spots from each sport and season certainly out shined them.
We will be counting down the top five moments in reverse order each day this week. The No. 3 moment from the 2016-17 season was a joint effort by all three sports seasons — fall, winter and spring — as 50 student-athletes from Scotland High School earned All-Southeastern conference honors.
WHAT HAPPENED
Fall
Football — Sophomore running back Syheam McQueen was named Offensive Player of the Year. McQueen was the Scots leading rusher with 172 carries for 1,323 yards and 23 touchdowns. Head coach Richard Bailey was again recognized by his peers as the SEC Coach of the Year for the fifth consecutive season.
Along with having the Offensive Player of the Year and the Coach of the Year, the Scots had 15 players earn All-Southeastern conference honors and seven players earn honorable mention, the following players were recognized for their work in helping the Scots to a 14-1 overall record and a 6-0 SEC record to earn their sixth straight conference championship.
• All-SEC — Zamir White, Tim Williams, Niga Hailey, Darrian Reeves, Garrett Beach, Amir McNeill, Manny Smith, Octavis McLaurin, T.J. Smith and Karfa Kaba, Chris Williams, Javon Ratliffe and Keante McNair.
• Honorable mention — Sergio Gibson, Redric McLean, Kalish McNair, Donta Green, Alston Smith, Tyler Smith and Grant Ciarrocca.
Cross Country — The Fighting Scots had six runners earn All-SEC honors — Tony Strickland, Zachary Moore, Jaylaan Poe, Daly Marcano and Tyler Sellers. Junior Mylasia Pratt was the lone all conference selection for the Lady Scots.
Girl’s Tennis — Due to Hurricane Matthew, the SEC tennis tournament was cancelled and no all conference honors were given out because the accolades are based on how the players finish in the tournament.
Volleyball — Senior Emma Gray Beacham and juniors Kandon Luquer and Nahir Pegues earned all conference accolades. Beacham led the team in assists with 464, a serving percentage of 93 with 85 service points. Pegues led the team with 18 solo blocks. Luquer had 118 digs, 16 solo blocks and 12 blocking assists.
Boy’s Soccer — Senior McKenzie White and junior Nyjel Collins-Jackson earned All-Southeastern conference honors for the Scots soccer team.
Winter
Boy’s Basketball — Juniors Niem Ratliffe and Justin McRae led the Fighting Scots in a number of categories, which earned them all conference honors. Ratliffe was second in the SEC in scoring with 18.4 points per game and 2.7 steals. Ratliffe led the Scots in scoring with 405 points to go along with 59 total steals and 56 assists.
McRae earned Honorable Mention all-conference finishing fourth in the SEC in rebounds and steals. McRae was the second leading scorer for the Scots with 221 points to go along with 43 steals and 49 assists.
Girl’s Basketball — Senior Khasiya Sellers and junior Amaya Pegues earned all conference honors leading the Lady Scots in scoring. Sellers led the conference with 13.1 rebounds per game, was second in blocks and third in points per game
Pegues led the Lady Scots with 35 assists this season and was the team’s second leading scorer behind Sellers averaging nine points per game.
Spring
Baseball — Fighting Scots baseball team had three all-conference selections — seniors Donta Green and Justin Bowers and junior Matthew Hyatt.
Green, who was also named the Male Athlete of the Year at Scotland High School, was the starting short stop for the Scots this season. He led the team with a .448 batting average and three home runs.
Bowers served as a utility player for the Scots playing first base, third base and pitching. Bowers had a .284 batting average and had one of the Scots six home runs this season. The senior led the team with 21 RBIs and had 11 stolen bases.
Hyatt was one of the starting pitcher for the Scots, before he was sidelined due to a wrist injury. The junior had a staggeringly low 0.66 ERA with four wins and three losses and led the team with 41 strikeouts.
Softball — The Lady Scots softball team had two all-conference selections — juniors Katie Lighhall and Macie Gibson.
Lighthall was the starting short stop for the Lady Scots and ended the year with a team high .456 batting average. The Lady Scots junior also led the team with five stolen bases.
Gibson was the starting center fielder for the Lady Scots and led the team with a .361 on base percentage. Gibson also had the second highest batting average, behind Lighthall, at .343.
Girl’s Soccer — The Lady Scots soccer team had two all conference selections, senior Emma Gray Beacham and sophomore Beatrice Eddy.
Boy’s Tennis — The boy’s tennis team had three players earn all-conference honors, senior Shane Dubbs and juniors Nyjel Collins-Jackson and Sam Poage.
Dubbs finished second in the Southeastern conference singles tournament while Collins-Jackson and Poage finsihed third in doubles.
Track and Field — The Fighting Scots track team had four athletes make all-conference — freshman Tony Strickland, junior Zamir White, senior Octavis McLaurin and junior Brenton Thomas.
Strickland ran the 3200M in 11:13 to finish second at the Southeastern conference championships. White won the 100-meter dash with a time of 10.96 seconds. McLaurin finished second in the shot put with a throw of 43’-9.5”.
Thomas who finished second in the long jump and triple jump also earned all conference recognition. Thomas jumped 21’-7.5” in the long jump and 42’-9.75” in the triple jump.
Boy’s Golf — The boy’s golf team had two athletes earn all conference honors, sophomores Mason High and Nick Thompson. High finished the season shooting an 89 average and Thompson shooting a 91.
WHAT’S NEXT
Scotland High School will join the Sandhills Athletic Conference in the fall along with the five former SEC teams plus Jack Britt and Seventy-First to form the new eight-team conference. Remaining as one of the conference’s top teams will be slightly more challenging with two additional teams and the remaining powerhouse schools of the area.
Amber Hatten can be reached at 910-506-3170.
