By Justin Jarrett | LowcoSports@gmail.com
It’s Monday morning, which means it’s time for the Lowco Lowdown, your one-stop quick read to get up to speed on what happened last week on the local sports scene and what to look forward to this week. Here are this week’s hottest sports topics in the Lowcountry, aside from the solar eclipse, of course (please don’t look directly at the sun, or you will no longer be able to read LowcoSports.com):
1. Football, football, football. It’s high school football season, y’all, in the South, no less. Forgive us if we have a bit of a one-track mind for the next few months. And judging by the website traffic, we’re not alone. Week 1 provided plenty of thrills, and we have four Lowco-on-Lowco matchups coming up this Friday, including the first of two Bluffton-May River clashes. Keep an eye out for the announcement of our Week 1 Player of the Week and Unsung Heroes.
2. Sharks on the pitch. Maybe I’m a little biased about this one, given my day job, but I’m excited about the USCB women’s soccer team’s season-opener at 3 p.m. Tuesday against Life University. The Sand Sharks have steadily improved since the program launched in 2011, and there’s some serious talent on this year’s team. Residents of Beaufort and Jasper counties can join the Sand Shark Club at the new Lowcountry level for just $40 and get season tickets to all USCB home events.
3. King of Golf Island. Callawassie Island Club professional Ben Lee shot an impressive 9-under-par over 36 holes this weekend to win the Hilton Head Open at Moss Creek Golf Club. The win basically crowns Lee as the best golfer in Beaufort County, which is saying something, considering the quality of players in the area. New USCB recruit Jack Faraci was second overall and was the low amateur at 5-under.
4. Bobcat Scorcher lives up to its name. I’ve never been 100 percent sure whether the name of the Bobcat Scorcher 5K is derived from the fact that it’s usually run in blistering heat in mid-August, but that was certainly the case Saturday. Almost 300 runners completed the race in brutal heat, and if the name isn’t meant to refer to the weather, it could also be used to describe the winning times. Bluffton runner Seth Tucker won the men’s title in 15:53, and 13-year-old Hilton Head Island resident Sarah Cooke was the women’s winner in 19:18. Nice work on a hot day.
5. Moreno is the man. Budding professional triathlete and all-around good guy Yorlliry “George” Moreno claimed the overall series title in the Charleston Sprint Triathlon Series last weekend. Moreno finished third in the last event of the five-race series, as he coasted through the final race as part of his training for upcoming professional Ironman events.
Also on the radar: Gus Dean moving up ARCA standings; High school sports ramping up
