South-Carolina
South Carolina Deputy Collides With Hells Angel In Traffic Accident – FITSNews
A freshman deputy of the Laurens County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) bears the blame for rear-ending and hospitalizing an alleged member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club (HAMC), according to law enforcement officers familiar with the incident.
On Wednesday (April 10, 2024), LCSO deputy “B.C.” was traveling northbound on U.S. Route 221 when he purportedly failed to see a 2023 Harley-Davidson CVO Road Glide motorcycle turning into a residential driveway in Enoree, S.C.
“The deputy was hauling ass,” wrote an eye-witness. “His blue lights were off when he struck the biker who was in the process of making a right turn into a driveway … The bike’s turn signal was on when the deputy rear-ended him.”
Damages noted by troopers of the S.C. Highway Patrol (SCHP) indicate that B.C. attempted to avoid the collision by swerving into the motorcycle’s turn path — thereafter broadsiding the Harley and pummeling the 63-year-old rider into a mailbox.
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“The patrol car was damaged from the front left fender to the driver’s side door,” said SCHP master trooper Brandon Bolt, public information officer for Troop Two. “I don’t want to assume or infer … but I will say this: The deputy was charged with going too fast for conditions.”
While SCHP estimates that B.C. struck the motorcyclist at 49 mph, the agency made no mention of the rider’s purported affiliation with HAMC — the largest, most organized, and wealthiest “outlaw motorcycle gang” in the world.
“The bike is probably totaled,” wrote someone familiar with the incident. “The biker is pretty beat up and broke his leg. But he’s doing pretty good considering it could have been so much worse … LCSO is shit and needs to change.”
FITSNews has since reached out to Laurens County sheriff Don Reynolds seeking at the very least some acknowledgment of Wednesday’s collision. Unfortunately, the incumbent sheriff maintained his time-honored tradition of declining to respond to emails from this author.
Frequent readers of FITSNews are undoubtedly aware of our ongoing coverage of LCSO — a dog-killing, dick-pic-disseminating, cover-up-addled, constitutionally challenged department led by a former SCHP trooper who was once accused of threatening to kill his ex-wife.
While the two-term sheriff was not available for comment on his deputy’s purported collision, Reynolds’ sole opponent in the primary election — retired Clinton Police Department (CPD) lieutenant Chris Wilkes — responded to FITSNews over the weekend.
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“Nothing comes as a shock under this administration anymore,” wrote Wilkes on Sunday. “As Sheriff, my first course of action would be to respond to the hospital to speak with the victim, make sure they are okay, and apologize for our negligence. I am so thankful the victim in this incident did not lose their life, and I pray for a speedy recovery.”
With a whopping 128 fatal collisions from 2018 to 2021, Laurens remains the ninth most dangerous county for drivers in the United States, according to a sweeping investigation recently conducted by the Florida-based Law Firm of Anidjar & Levine, P.A.
“The Sheriff’s office only receives driver training once a year; why?” questioned Wilkes. “Deputies drive daily; why are we not training at least every three months? Yes, the Deputy may have been the one who struck the individual, but the blame is on the current administration due to a lack of training.”
On June 11, 2024, GOP voters in Laurens County will choose between Reynolds and Wilkes as their highest law-enforcement officer. The incumbent has abstained from political debates throughout the entirety of his career, and it appears as though his policy remains unbroken.
Of interest? The injured biker’s family tells FITSNews that neither Reynolds nor anyone from his department has reached out following Wednesday’s incident. Our media outlet has since deployed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for B.C.’s body-worn and dash-mounted cameras.
If you know of similar cases that deserve investigative scrutiny, please reach out to the author. FITSNews is not only committed to exposing nefarious activity within government — but steadfast in holding our law enforcement officers as accountable as they hold the public.
This story may be updated.
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY ANDREW FANCHER
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CHRIS WILKES STATEMENT …
(Provided)
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Andrew Fancher is a Lone Star Emmy award-winning journalist from Dallas, Texas. Cut from a bloodline of outlaws and lawmen alike, he was the first of his family to graduate college which was accomplished with honors. Got a story idea or news tip for Andy? Email him directly and connect with him socially across Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
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South-Carolina
Mid-amateur from South Carolina wins Terra Cotta Invitational in Florida
All that separated Connor Doyal from the biggest win of his amateur golfing career was 5 feet of perfectly manicured green on Hole No. 18 at Naples National Golf Club. That plus a super-sized case of the yips.
“My hands were shaking uncontrollably,” said the 26-year-old mid-amateur from Charleston, South Carolina. “But I’ve had some moments like this before, and I think I’ve just learned to let it happen and not fight it. I knew it wasn’t going to be the best stroke of my life, but in the moment, I just had to trust myself to make the putt.”
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Just as he had for much of the third and final round of the 30th annual Terra Cotta Invitational, Doyal delivered, dropping in the putt to win the event by one stroke over 17-year-old junior golfer Dawson Lew of Toronto, Canada.
Connor Doyal, a 26-year-old mid-amateur golfer from Charleston, S.C., celebrates with the trophy after winning the 30th annual Terra Cotta Invitational on Saturday, April 18, 2026.
Doyal, who entered the day two shots behind co-leaders Giuseppe Puebla of Royal Palm Beach and University of Florida senior Parker Bell, shot 5-under 67 to finish 12-under, two shots off the low-scoring record for the 54-hole tournament.
“Honestly, I just hit the ball fantastic start to finish,” Doyal said. “I hit a ton of greens and then the putter started heating up. I woke up feeling good this morning, and I knew I had it in me.
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“Coming down the stretch, I had to battle. I’m just glad it’s over. I mean, the heart rate is still extremely high right now.”
Doyal had seven birdies in his final round, the best of which came on the par-4 No. 14. He used his six-iron to blast his second shot 220 yards to within inches of the cup, setting up a short putt that gave him a one-shot lead over Bell.
Doyal followed with a birdie on No. 15 to up his lead to two strokes, but made things interesting by shorting a putt on No. 17 for bogey.
Playing in a group just ahead of Doyel, Lew missed a 35-foot try for birdie on the par-5 No. 18 a smidge left to finish at 11-under after a final round 68.
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Clinging to that one-shot lead on No. 18, an admittedly amped-up Doyal nearly overshot the green on his third shot from about 80 yards out, the ball settling on the back fringe. He followed with a deft chip, setting up his tournament-winning putt.
“It was a little bit nervy there, but I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Doyal said. “I’m always going to be able to look back at that up and down on 18 and be like I have what it takes when the pressure is on.”
Widely regarded as one of the best amateur events for junior golfers in the country, the Terra Cotta’s field included nearly the entirety of the top 25 in the Rolex American Junior Golf rankings. That included Luke Colton of Frisco, Texas, who was gunning for an unprecedented third consecutive Terra Cotta championship. The 18-year-old Vanderbilt commit came up short in his quest, finishing 3-under and in a tie for 21st place.
“I started off pretty bad, just kind of had a weird first day,” said Colton, who opened with a 2-over 74. “Nothing was going my way. But I was pretty happy with the way I ended it.”
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Colton said the Terra Cotta is one of his favorite events of the season.
“You’ve got a great field and obviously an amazing course,” he said. “I think that’s why everybody wants to come and play at this tournament.”
Another top junior was a late and unreported entry to the Terra Cotta. Charlie Woods, son of golfing great Tiger Woods, got off to a rough start with an opening round 79, but shot a 3-under 69 in the final round to finish in a tie for 42nd place with a 3-over 219.
Among the five Naples-area competitors, former Gulf Coast High School standout and current University of Florida golfer Noah Kent had the best showing. The 20-year-old finished with a 2-over 218 for the tournament, placing him in a tie for 34th. The other local entrants were Spencer Ives (220), Brian Bassett (222), Jack Ryan Donovan (224), and Kaden Latrielle (229).
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Contact Sports Reporter Dan DeLuca at ddeluca@usatodayco.com. For the best sports coverage in Southwest Florida, follow @newspresssports and @ndnprepzone on Instagram.
This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Connor Doyal wins Florida amateur event, Charlie Woods ties for 42nd
South-Carolina
Missouri beats South Carolina in game two
Columbia, Mo. — The South Carolina softball team (25-21, 4-13) dropped the second game of its series at Missouri (24-23, 7-10) 5-0 Saturday night (Apr. 18).
Kai Byars led the Gamecocks with a pair of doubles on the night. It was her second multi-hit game of the season and her first game with multiple extra base hits.
The Tigers scored a run in the third inning without the aid of a hit. They would extend the lead and add four more in the fourth.
Carolina’s best opportunity for a run came in third. Byars doubled to lead off the inning and Shae Anderson followed with a bunt single. A double play on a potential sacrifice fly ended the rally.
Emma Friedel (8-4) took the loss, allowing one run on no hits in 3 1-3 innings. She struck out six and walked three.
The rubber game of the series will be tomorrow at 2 p.m. ET.
South-Carolina
Former Texas guard Jordan Lee transfers to SEC rival South Carolina
Audi Crooks on being in the transfer portal
USAT’s Sam Cardona-Norberg catches up with college basketball star Audi Crooks, who is still looking for her next team.
Sports Seriously
Jordan Lee entered the transfer portal after a breakout season at Texas and the junior guard isn’t going too far. She’s staying in the Southeastern Conference.
Lee announced on Instagram Friday that she’s transferring to South Carolina to play for Dawn Staley after spending the first two years of her collegiate career at Texas under Vic Schaefer. Lee captioned her Instagram post, which featured a video montage of her visit to Columbia, South Carolina, “Feeling cocky.”
Lee was one of four players from Texas to enter the transfer portal after the Longhorns’ second consecutive trip to the Final Four ended in a devastating loss to UCLA. She was named to the All-Region team in the Fort Worth 3 bracket in this year’s NCAA Tournament following her Sweet 16 and Elite Eight performance, where she recorded 22 points, six assists, three rebounds and four steals while also providing strong defense.
After being limited to five starts her freshman year, Lee slid into the starting lineup last season and started a career-high 38 games. She also averaged career highs in points (13.2), assists (2.5), rebounds (2.5), steals (1.5), field-goal percentage (42%) and free-throw percentage (75%), while shooting 34% from 3-point range.
Texas’ Aaliyah Crump, Justice Carlton and Aaliyah Moore also entered the transfer portal. On Friday, Crump announced she’s transferring to Duke, citing her connection with head coach Kara Lawson.
“For me, choosing Duke University goes far beyond one sentence. The moment I connected with Kara Lawson and her coaching staff, I knew I was exactly where I belonged,” said Crump, who averaged 7.9 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game her freshman season at Texas.
Crump continued: “Their dedication and vision for the program is truly special, and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to be a part of it. The connection Coach Lawson and I have built is one of a kind, and I fully trust in her plan for the success of this program. I can’t wait to be coached by genuine people who support my growth not only as a basketball player, but as a person as well.”
Three-time All-American Madison Booker and junior starting forward Breya Cunningham are expected to return to Texas.
Contributing: Mitchell Northam
Reach USA TODAY National Women’s Sports Reporter Cydney Henderson at chenderson@gannett.com and follow her on X at @CydHenderson.
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