Conway, SC – March was a busy month around Atlantic Collegiate Academy athletics. The Armada saw its boys' basketball team capture the school's first team state title while the baseball, softball, boys' and girls' soccer teams got their second seasons started. The Armada also launched into its first season of boy's golf.
 
Here is a sport-by-sport recap of Armada Athletics during the month of March.
 
Boys' Basketball
 
Ranked No. 1 in Class AA from the very start of the season, the Armada did not let the weight of expectations slow their march through the season and into the state tournament. After earning three lopsided home tournament victories to close February, the Armada took to the big stage in Florence to open March.
 
ACA captured the Lower State title with a hard-fought 45-40 victory over Andrew Jackson on March 4 and then returned to the Florence Center four days later to dispatch High Point Academy 58-52 to win the state title. The Armada closed the year on a 15-game win streak, posting a 24-3 overall record.
 
In the programs' first two years, the boys' basketball team has won 44 games against just five losses.
 
Coach Tanner Massey will have some rebuilding to do for next season after the graduation loss of six seniors – guards Jaylen Bellamy and Carter Davis, swingman Justin Bellamy, forwards CJ Hemingway and Jamie Brooks as well as center Chris Toone.
 
The Armada will not, however, be starting from scratch. Anton Daniels will be returning at point guard after a stellar freshman season and he will be joined by forwards RJ Vereen and TJ Wilson, guards Seeger Medalie and Majeah Lee, swingman Jayden Bellamy and others along with members of the junior varsity squad that posted a 15-1 record this past season.
 
After the season, Brooks, was named to the All-State team and joined Hemingway and Jaylen Bellamy on the All-Region squad. Massey was the unanimous selection for Region Coach of the Year and Bellamy was named the State Championship Game MVP.
 
At the postseason team awards banquet Brooks was named the team MVP with Jaylen Bellamy was selected as the Offensive Player of the Year and Justin Bellamy was named the Defensive Player of the Year and also earned the Coach's Award. Hemingway was presented with the Scholar-Athlete Award by Director of Athletics William Payne.
 
 
Girls' Soccer
 
The first of the spring sports to get started, coach Jordin Anderson's squad opened the month with a 3-2 victory over Philip Simmons before having consecutive scheduled matches postponed in the middle of the month, giving the Armada a three-week break following that opening victory.
 
When they finally were able to get back on the pitch, the Armada showed the time off had not been time away, blasting region foe Marion High by scores of 9-0 and 10-0.
 
After just three matches, juniors Micah Davis and Eden Maxwell both have four goals and three assists while freshman Ainsley Maxwell has four goals and two assists. Senior Avery Zygo has chipped in with three goals and two assists while freshman Brianna Dixon has three goals and three assists.
 
Eden Maxwell leads the team with 30 steals while junior AJ St. Clair has 18 and freshman Skylar Stoogenke has 13. Senior Mackenzie Teixeira has played every minute in goal, having faced just 13 shots on goal, making eight saves while allowing just two goals.
 
The girls will be busy during the first two weeks of April with matches scheduled against region foes Lake City (April 1 & 4) and Manning (April 8 & 11) as well as a second match against Philip Simmons on April 10.


 
Softball
 
The ACA softball team was the next to begin spring competition. The Armada got off to a slow start, dropping four of five games in the Pee Dee Pitch Off in Florence to start the season, but earned a 13-0 victory over Franklin Road Academy from Nashville on March 12 to notch their second straight win.
 
The momentum didn't carry over, however, as the Armada dropped its next five games before closing the month with victories over Eastlake North High from Ohio and regional foe Marion High.
 
Despite a 4-9 overall record so far, the Armada is 1-1 in region play with eight of their next nine scheduled games against region opponents, starting this week with games against Lake City this afternoon and again on Friday.
 
Freshman Lauren Wallace leads the Armada with a .428 batting average in 31 plate appearances. She has also driven home a team-leading 12 runs. Sophomore Sophia Ioviero is tied second on the squad with 11 hits, including three doubles and four triples.
 
 
Baseball
 
The Armada baseball team had a dramatic start to the season, dropping an extra-innings game to defending AA state champion Oceanside Collegiate 13-12. They followed that with a run of three consecutive wins before dropping a pair of games to out of state teams.
 
ACA opened region play with a dominant 11-1 victory over Marion and then closed the month with a 12-2 victor over the Foxes to improve to 5-4-1 on the year, including a 2-0 mark in region play.
 
The schedule for April will focus on region competition, with some out of state opponents mixed in. Like the softball team, the baseball squad opens the month tonight against Lake City before playing against the Panthers again on Friday on the road.
 
Senior Justin Sheffield is leading the Armada with a .429 average through 10 games. He has scored a team-high 12 runs, driven in seven and has also stolen seven bases. Senior catcher Coleman Strickland is also having a good year at the plate, batting .400 with a pair of doubles.
 
On the mound, junior right-hander Andrew Larsen has a 1.54 ERA in four games pitched. He has struck out 22 of the 54 batters he has faced so far. Freshman Gavin Street has also pitched well with a 0.64 ERA and 21 strikeouts against just 39 batters faced. The Armada has posted a team ERA of 3.99 so far this year.
 
The ACA JV baseball team has also gotten off to a good start with a 4-3 record through the first month of the season. They open April at home tonight against Johnson Central High from Kentucky.
 
 
Boys' Soccer
 
Like the girls' team, the ACA boys' soccer team had its opening month of play impacted by early cancellations. The Armada played its first game on March 19, downing Thomas Sumter Academy 10-0 behind three goals from sophomore Andrew Morgan. Senior Ty Ackerley and freshman Cameron Lyons added two goals each in the game while senior Brayden Lilly pitched a shutout in goal, making saves on the only two shots against him.
 
The Armada faced a stiffer challenge two night later at Philip Simmons. The Iron Horses scored three first half goals to build a lead ACA was unable to overcome. Sophomore Jackson Guyton scored the only ACA goal on an assist from senior Mason Kendig in the second half.
 
ACA opened region play with matches against Marion on March 25^th and against on the 28^th. Both games ended in 6-0 Armada victories. Five different players scored in the opening match off three assists from Kendig and two from Ackerley with freshman Wilder Sauls denting the net twice. Lilly was credited with four saves in his second shutout.
 
Two nights later it was Ackerley and Lyons with two goals and one assist each while Kendig added a goal and two assists. Lilly earned his third clean sheet, recording three saves in the process.
 
ACA's next six games are in region play, starting tonight against Lake City. The Armada will close the regular season on April 30 at Legion Collegiate Academy in Rock Hill.
 
 
Boy's Golf
 
The fledgling ACA boys golf team opened its first season by playing in the Qualifier for the Anderson Brothers Bank Tournament. The Armada finished 16^th of 18 teams in that event and failed to qualify for the main tournament.
 
The squad found a victory in its first match-play event, downing Trinity Collegiate Academy 178-181 on March 18. The teams were scheduled to play again yesterday, but the match was rained out.
 
Sophomore Nick Tarbert was the low scorer for ACA in the match against Trinity with a 37 over nine holes at the Florence Country Club. Other scores for the Armada included junior Carson Bailey with a 42, freshman Kevin Black, Jr., with a 49, sophomore Ryan Lee with a 50 and freshman Ollie Pearce with a 51.
 
The Armada is scheduled to return to action tomorrow afternoon against Oceanside Collegiate Academy at the Wild Wing Golf Club in Conway, weather permitting.
 
 
About Atlantic Collegiate Academy: Atlantic Collegiate Academy (ACA), located in Conway, S.C., serves high school students in a safe, small and family-centered setting. Our students seek the opportunity and challenge of rigorous curriculum, high academic standards and elite athletics while also earning up to two years of college credit. ACA serves students in grades 9-12 using an honors curriculum in 9th and 10 grades with a dual enrollment curriculum in 11th and 12th grades. Learn more about ACA by visiting our website at AtlanticCollegiate.Academy and by following us on social media on Facebook, Instagram and X.