Hilton Head Christian girls win sixth straight championship

Hilton Head Island Packet High School Sports Super Six!

The latest Hilton Head Christian girls basketball championship came with a bigger crowd than usual. Playing in front of a packed house at USC Beaufort, the Eagles clinched their sixth straight state championship with a 68-44 win over John Paul II on Saturday night.

“So happy for these young ladies,” Hilton Head Christian coach Bobby Thompson told reporters after the game. “They have worked their tails off. Having a target on your back all year. Tough, you know, it wears on you. They came to work every day in practice. They deserve everything they get right now.”

It was HHCA’s second straight title in SCISA Class 3A with the other four coming in Class 2A. The Eagles (17-7) are expected to move to Class 4A next year in SCISA’s realignment for 2024-26.

Saturday’s game was moved from the Sumter Civic Center to USC Beaufort’s Sand Shark Recreation Center because of the proximity of the two schools. John Paul II and HHCA are just 21 miles apart so SCISA Athletic Director Mike Fanning announced Friday that the two schools wouldn’t have to make the trip to Sumter.

The move was a smart one as both teams’ fans packed the gym and provided a fun atmosphere. The matchup was the third between the region foes. HHCA won, 69-50, on Jan. 26 and 49-35 on Feb. 9.

The game was close after the first quarter, with Hilton Head Christian ahead 18-12. But the Eagles outscored the Warriors, 16-5, in the second quarter to lead 34-17. John Paul II got it to within 49-37 with 6:28 in the fourth before HHCA used a 6-0 run to push the lead back up to 55-37.

Three of HHCA’s five seniors led the way in scoring. Mya Hutchinson poured in a game-high 31 points for the Eagles while Devon Yarde had 20 and Morgan Scott scored 13. All three players finished their careers having scored more than 1,000 points.

“You know, this was our last. Me, Devon, Morgan, this was our last high school game. So we’re really going to enjoy this one. It’s really special because it is our senior year,” Hutchinson told reporters after the game.

Brady Mahoney led JPII (18-8) with 15 points and Lillian Termini had 12. The Warriors made it to the championship game by knocking off unbeaten Orangeburg Prep, 46-41, on Thursday at Wilson Hall.