#15: Marion girls basketball team wins the 2A state championship
The Lady Swamp Foxes guided by head coach Leon Sturkey won their first state championship since school integration. Marion beat Pendleton 58-54 to win the class 2A state title. Genieka Brantley led the way with a double-double -- 12 points and 12 rebounds for the lady Swamp Foxes.
#14: Gary Gilmore wins 800th career game
Back on may 14th, the Chanticleers defeated Charleston Southern 9-1. Gilly now has more than 800 total wins in a career spanning 20 seasons. Coastal finished the season with a trip to the NCAA regional tournament before bowing to the North Carolina Tar Heels. Gilmore earned Big South coach of the year honors for the 6th time -- his teams have won the Big South tournament 10 times with nine trips to the NCAA regional tournament.
#13: CCU basketball's 10-2 start to the 2009/10 season
The Coastal Carolina men's basketball team got off to their best start in more than a quarter of a century. Cliff Ellis's Chants won ten of its first 12 games and even got a vote in the top 25 USA Today coaches poll. Coastal at one point had a rating percentage index or RPI, among the top 50 in the nation. During the first 12 game stretch -- CCU's top star Joe Harris eclipsed the 1,000 point mark and became the school's all time leading rebounder and shot blocker. One of Coastal's two losses came against 4th ranked Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium on national television.
#12: Mark Martin wins Southern 500
50-year old Mark Martin outdueled Jimmie Johnson to take the checkers in the Southern 500. Martin would go on to win five races in 2009 and finish second in the chase for the championship by just 141 points.
#11: Myrtle Beach loses ACC baseball tournament
The ACC post season baseball tournament is awarded to Myrtle Beach back in May. The games were to be played at BB&T Coastal Field, but less than one month later -- the ACC pulled the plug following pressure from the NAACP and their ongoing boycott against the state of South Carolina for flying the Confederate flag on statehouse grounds. The ACC announced they moved the ACC baseball tourney to North Carolina from 2011 through 2013.
#10: Robert Ayers drafted in the first round by the Denver Broncos
Robert Ayers out of Marlboro County high school is taken in the first round of the NFL draft by the Denver Broncos. That makes him the second former WPDE all-zone selection to be a first rounder -- Lawrence Timmons is the other. Ayers biggest NFL play to date is a fumble return for a touchdown on Monday night in a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
#9: Waccamaw wins WPDE Zone Cup
The Waccamaw Warriors sports program wins the Zone Cup for an unprecedented third time. The Zone Cup is awarded to the area's best overall sports program. in 2009. Waccamaw was led by their state champions in boys tennis and golf, plus a state final appearance by the softball team.
#8: Kristy McPherson's big year on the LPGA Tour
Former Conway high and Gamecocks star Kristy Mcpherson had her best season yet on the LPGA tour. McPherson finished second at the LPGA's top event -- the Kraft Nabisco Championship. In fact, Kristy finished in the top ten at three of the LPGA's four majors. She capped off her year by playing on the Solheim Cup team representing the USA in a win over Europe.
#7: Surfside Beach wins Dixie Youth World Series
A group of 11 & 12 year old kids from Surfside Beach won the Dixie Youth Majors World Series. The Surfside Beach District 11 all-stars traveled to Laurel, Mississippi and rallied from seven runs down in the final inning of the title game to beat North Carolina. A parade was held in their honor as Surfside completed a dream season on the baseball diamond.
#6: Dillon wins second straight 2A football title
Dillon beat Central of Pageland 21-20 highlighted by a Jabo Lee 61 yard touchdown run. Head Coach Jackie Hayes and the Dillon Wildcats finished their season with a record of 13 & 2.
#5: Albert Haynesworth signs $100 million dollar contract with the Redskins
Former Hartsville star Albert Haynesworth leaves the Tennessee Titans to sign the richest contract in NFL history for a defensive player. The Washington Redskins inked big Albert to a seven year 100-million dollar deal. The 6-foot-6 320 pound all-pro defensive tackle has recorded more than 30 tackles with four sacks so far this season with the Redskins.
#4: South Carolina beats rival Clemson 34-17 on the gridiron
College football braggin' rights go to the South Carolina Gamecocks in 2009. Stephen Garcia threw three TD passes to lead the Gamecocks to a 34-17 win over clemson. The South Carolina defense held Clemson and their star CJ Spiller to less than 50 yards rushing -- ending Spiller's chances at winning the Heisman Trophy. Spiller did take the opening kickoff back 88 yards for a touchdown to set a new NCAA record with 7 kickoffs returned for touchdowns in his career. Spiller would finish 6th in the Heisman balloting. Clemson went on to make an appearance in the ACC title game and earned a spot in the Music City Bowl. The Gamecocks will play in the Papajohns.com bowl January 2nd.
#3: Dustin Johnson's big 2009 on the links
PGA golfer Dustin Johnson won the AT&T Pebble Beach pro-am by four shots in a rain-shortened event. It was Johnson's second win on tour. The former Coastal Carolina All-American made 20 of 25 cuts this season winning just under 3-million dollars in 2009, Johnson finished 14th in the Fed-Ex Cup points standings. He checked in as the third longest driver on tour averaging more than 308 yards a poke.
#2: Everett Golson wins second WPDE Zoneman Trophy
A 16-year old phenom wins the Zoneman Trophy for the second year in a row. Myrtle Beach high quarterback Everett Golson was voted the area's top high school football player by area coaches and members of the media. Golson led the Seahawks to an appearance in the class 3A state finals. He also tied a state record for touchdown passes in a single game with eight against North Charleston in a playoff game. Perhaps most impressive of all was his touchdown passes to interception ratio of 47 to 3.
#1: Lawrence Timmons wins a Super Bowl ring
Former wilson high linebacker Lawrence Timmons wins a Super Bowl ring with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Timmons made 4 tackles on the world's biggest stage helping the Steelers to their sixth Super Bowl title in a 27-23 win over the Arizona Cardinals. Timmons has continued his excellent play at inside linebacker this season with more than 60 tackles including six sacks and four forced fumbles for the Steelers defense.
