GAINSWave® Treatment in Clover, SC

The Clover Blue Eagles defeated Woodmont, 31-14, in the opening round of the South Carolina 5A state playoffs Friday night at Clover’s Memorial Stadium.

Clover extended its winning streak to nine, and did so thanks in part to junior running back Landon Stone, who eclipsed 2,000 rushing yards for the year. The Clover back finished the night with three touchdowns. The highlight of the evening was an 82-yard touchdown run off the left side of the line.

The Blue Eagles opened the scoring after Deontae Starr set up the Blue Eagles with excellent field position at the 12-yard line following a 65-yard return of the game’s opening kickoff. Jaylon Hoover finished the drive when he tossed his first touchdown of the night after scrambling and finding Cameron James in the back of the end zone.

Stone’s first touchdown came just a few minutes later on a five-yard touchdown run with 6:02 to play in the first quarter. After the Clover defense forced its third three-and-out in as many possessions, Stone struck again. This time, Stone pulled in an 18-yard touchdown reception to give Clover a 21-0 lead late in the quarter.

Stone’s final touchdown of the night, the 82-yarder, gave Clover a 28-0 lead in the second. When it seemed like the Blue Eagles would pull away, Woodmont fought back. The Wildcats scored just before halftime after sustaining its first extended drive of the ball game. Ezekiel Belcher capped the drive with a 15-yard touchdown run off the left side, and the extra point was blocked.

The Wildcats’ opening drive of the third quarter ended in the same way as their final drive of the first half. This time, Jordan Sink found the end zone for Woodmont. The junior quarterback evaded the Clover pass rush and scrambled around the left side for an 18-yard TD run to further cut into the Clover lead and then added a 2-point conversion by Belcher.

After the Wildcats dominated time of possession in the third, the Blue Eagles got their only points of the second half when Haven Maddox connected on a 40-yard field goal with 6:09 remaining. The Blue Eagles sealed the deal when Brayden Woolbright intercepted Sinks’ deep ball over the middle on the next possession, which allowed the Clover offense to run out the clock.

Clover (9-2) will host Gaffney next Friday night at Memorial Stadium following the Indians’ 49-17 victory over Lexington. Woodmont finishes the season with a final record of 5-6.

Plenty of work remains for the Clover School District to hit its opening date target for a second high school.

For the community, the name, mascot and school colors all must be worked out. For the district, it’s key approvals for the construction site that need to be sorted out.

School district voters approved a $156 million bond referendum last fall to fund a new high school in the Lake Wylie area, off the road that just changed from Daimler Boulevard to Cannonball Run. The planned 2,100-student school would open in 2026.

Mark Hopkins, the district chief operating officer, told the school board Monday night there are several pressing issues that will determine whether the district can hit that mark.

“We’re really backing up against our timeline for a ‘26 opening,” Hopkins said.

Read Next

Education

October 02, 2023 1:42 PM

The high school site still needs U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permits. Hopkins expects feedback in February or March on culvert crossings on the site. The district also needs site plan approval from York County.

The district found out Oct. 18 that its second attempt at a site plan approval was denied by the county. District and county officials met, and a third submission was made Nov. 20. The main issues, Hopkins said, were a traffic impact analysis update and whether the construction plan could avoid the removal of large trees on the property.

“We hope to get some feedback on that in early December, and hopefully that feedback is good,” Hopkins said.

York County Council passed two of three votes needed to remove a requirement from a 2008 land development agreement that otherwise would make the school district connect Cannonball Run to West Liberty Hill Road through its property.

The district delayed bid opening for the site to this Thursday. Hopkins said final approvals from the county would allow a contractor to start moving dirt on the high school site as soon as possible.

All that phase one work involves the high school land. Phase two involves the building.

On Oct. 23, the district began soliciting requests from contractors. Building design is complete and construction cost estimates should be ready in mid-January, Hopkins said.

County approval of the site plan and road connection change, approval of a sewer pump station and markets for both labor and materials are all key questions that need to be resolved if the high school is to open on time.

Read Next

Education

June 29, 2023 11:29 AM

Monday’s construction update follows one earlier this month on school naming and branding.

District public information officer Bryan Dillon updated the board Nov. 13 on a community survey that ran in October to get input on name, mascot and color options. The survey involved the new high school, but also a planned elementary and middle school.

The elementary and middle school surveys collected fewer than 800 responses. The high school survey alone brought in about 1,600 participants.

Dillon presented a list of nearly a dozen high school names that came up most often. Surveys went with Allison Creek, Bethel, Cannonball, Clay Hill, East Clover, Handsmill, Lake Wylie or Wylie, Liberty Hill, Oakridge, Riverside and Roosevelt. There were lots of responses in particular, Dillon said, for Lake Wylie.

“You do see a clear favorite there,” Dillon said.

Allison Creek was another popular name in the surveys.

As for the mascot, surveys went with continuity over creativity. Clover High School, which serves the entire district now, has the Blue Eagle as its mascot.

“Eagles did pop up a lot,” Dillon said. “That came in with some extra comments along with it — we’re all eagles, we’ve always been eagles, we should remain eagles, those sorts of things.”

Golden eagles was the most popular version on the new high school survey. Non-eagle options include gators, hawks and patriots.

“Wylie coyote came up a lot,” Dillon said. “There’s a lot of Roadrunner fans.”

Dillon didn’t break down school color choices from the survey. “Those were all over the place with every imaginable color listed,” Dillon said.

Frequent responses for the new middle school name were Bethel, Central, Elias Hill, Flatrock, Herb Kirsh, Paraham and Roosevelt.

“You didn’t have any one that really stood out the most,” Dillon said.

Eagles, tigers and hawks were among the more popular mascot suggestions.

For the elementary school, popular name suggestions were Allison Creek, Clover, Elias Hill, Flatrock, Iron Hill, Lake Wylie, Lakeside, Laney, Liberty Hill, Mountainview, Nanny’s Mountain, River and Roosevelt. Variations of eagle were most popular mascot picks, along with gators and tigers.

The district now moves to focus groups ahead of formal recommendations to the school board for all three school names, mascots and color schemes in February.

The innovation bus was built by students, and kids using it will learn about science, math, and technology.

CLOVER, S.C. (WBTV) - For the second day in a row, districts across South Carolina are returning to the classroom. Tuesday’s round includes the Clover School District.

Like York District 1, Clover is starting earlier than normal this year, and is giving students two intersession weeks.

District leaders hope the extra weeks off will provide students and teachers with more time to reset during the school year.

In addition to the new calendar, Clover School District is also rolling out a mobile classroom, made from a renovated school bus that has been transformed into an “innovation lab” for elementary school students.

The bus was built by engineering students, and kids using it will learn about science, math, and technology.

District leaders said that knowledge will help students build skills to help them in the workforce.

“Interpersonal skills and working together, and that’s what they’ll do in these escape room type things and in these collaborative learning sessions,” Bryan Dillon of the Clover School District said of what the bus allows for. “[They will also have] the ability to problem solve. So we’re able to help build that in an early level in elementary school.”

The innovation bus will visit elementary schools throughout the district, which is one of the fastest growing in South Carolina, every month.

Beyond elementary school, the district is also working to serve its high-schoolers.

With the district being one of the fastest growing, new schools are on the way.

The district will break ground on a new high school this fall after residents narrowly passed a bond referendum last year. On top of that, leaders decided in late June to move forward with plans to build an eighth elementary school, which should open in 2026.

District leaders said that with each passing year, they look forward to starting off the year on a positive note.

“Overall message you want to send me is that we’re, we’re excited to have you, students,” Dillon said. “We value in Clover School District each child, each day...we’re working, looking forward to having them back in the buildings. Our teachers are excited to engage them. We’ve got some great things happening.”

For those sending their kids back to school in Clover on Tuesday, don’t forget to submit your pictures here for a chance to be featured on WBTV.

Send Us Your Pictures: Enhance those back-to-school photos by downloading this WBTV sign!

Watch continuous live news coverage below:

Copyright 2023 WBTV. All rights reserved.

A family said heavy rains cause grave markers to move at Woodside Cemetery.

CLOVER, S.C. — Family members in Clover, South Carolina said they wanted to bury Laura Dorsey's mother in the main part of Woodside Cemetery but were told the area was full. They ended up buying plots across the street, but because that area slopes downward, they said there are issues with standing water every time it rains.

One family member, Christian Oglesby, voiced his concern about the condition of his grandmother's burial plot.

"I'm from the low country, I'm very familiar with erosion, soil, flooding, I know what this is," he told WCNC Charlotte's Jane Monreal. "I know over time -- it's not going to be this year. It might not be next year. But if nothing is done about this, those caskets will come out of the ground."

For the latest breaking news, weather and traffic alerts, download the WCNC Charlotte mobile app and enable push notifications.

Oglesby's aunt, Laura Dorsey, whose grandparents are also buried in Woodside Cemetery, said her mother always expressed she wanted to be laid to rest there as well. She brought up issues with the town of Clover in 2019.

"It's been a concern from the get-go, at burial," Dorsey said. "Just the flooding, the condition of the gravesite, the area. We couldn't even put her marker down for a while because the flooding was so bad... My mom deserves better and anyone else that's buried at this spot. She was the sweetest person on the planet, and she deserves so much better than what she's getting."

Dorsey said she wants the town, which owns the land, to fix it. Her father, who bought the plot next to her mother, is now in hospice care.

"We definitely don't think anybody else should be laid to rest here," Dorsey said.

Oglesby said on Wednesday morning the area was in decent shape after days without rain. However, he said a summer thunderstorm is all that is needed in order to see the four-year-old ditch is barely effective when it comes to helping alleviate any standing water.

⏯ Subscribe to WCNC Charlotte on YouTube to be notified of new Wake Up Charlotte videos

"We've got photos of the standing water," Oglesby said. "And you can see the red clay deposits on top of the markers after a good rain."

Clover Town Mayor Greg Holmes agreed to meet Oglesby on-site.

"When water gets underneath the casket, it'll eventually rise up out of the soil," Oglesby explained to the mayor. "This ditch doesn't do anything for the cemetery."

Holmes told WCNC Charlotte that hearing directly from the family is an important step in trying to fix the situation.

"I think the purpose of the ditch is to make sure we don't have standing water on any graves," Holmes said. "I think, at the time, when it was first built, we did have standing water. I have yet to hear anything in three years of any standing water."

Holmes also offered an explanation as to why Dorsey's mother's grave marker was on an angle.

"When they don't compact that dirt, over time, they will move," he said.

Holmes said he plans to take any new insight back to the town administrator to see where they go from here. In the meantime, he acknowledged that they need to remove extra materials and the pile of gravel.

Oglesby said he would like to see an outside company do a survey of the area to see what actually needs to be done to deal with stormwater.

CLOVER, S.C. — Unexpected growth led to the decision made by leaders of the Clover School District to send some elementary students to a new school next year.

ALSO READ: Clover School District implements ‘modified’ schedule similar to year-round school

“I have a second-grader so to me, he’s still a little baby and he’s comfortable where he is at,” said parent Holly Bean.

Bean isn’t happy about the decision by Clover Schools to rezone her community.

Her child will be forced next year to move from Bethany Elementary School to Larne Elementary School, which is about seven miles away.

“There was a little bit of sadness pretty much,” she said. “We love Bethany Elementary.”

Bean moved to the western part of Clover three years ago to build a new home in the school district.

She was not alone.

School leaders said Bethany Elementary added about 16 new students over the summer for the past three years, which impacted the student-teacher ratio.

They said the growth in the western part of Clover has been unexpected and difficult to track.

“It’s a very rural area with a lot of parcels popping up here and there, so the growth has been sporadic,” said Bryan Dillon, with Clover Schools.

So, leaders decided to move elementary school students in the small portion of the western district to Larne Elementary.

“I think that’s why a lot of people are upset because Bethany is such a good school,” Bean said.

Bean said she’s coming to grips with the decision, and district leaders provided assurance for parents who are still concerned.

“They’re going to be met by caring and open arms by an administration at whatever school they’re at,” Dillon said.

School leaders also considered leaving things the way they are, but they said that would have had a negative impact on student-teacher ratios.

VIDEO: Clover School District implements ‘modified’ schedule similar to year-round school

Clover School District implements ‘modified’ schedule similar to year-round school

©2023 Cox Media Group