May 7, 2014

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Public speaks on Sunday alcohol sales

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Backcountry returns to Sumter County A2 Museum

Compton denied bond

BY BRISTOW MARCHANT bmarchant@theitem.com (803) 774-1272 Allowing Sumter restaurants to serve alcoholic drinks on Sunday will open the floodgates to allowing liquor sales, increase drunk driving and criminal activity, even pave the way for the legalization of marijuana.

Those were some of the concerns raised by opponents of plans to let city voters decide whether to allow Sunday alcohol sales within the city limits.

Speakers on both sides of the issue made their voices heard during a public hearing before Sumter City Council on Tuesday. Council has been considering allowing the question to go to a public referendum, but did not take a final vote on the matter after the hearing.

Many who spoke against the referendum represented churches with a moral objection to the change. About a dozen “concerned clergy” in the audience stood when called upon by Rev. Marion H. Newton, pastor of Jehovah Missionary Baptist Church.

“Alcohol and drugs are destroying our community, and this will just open the door for other businesses doing the same thing,” Newton said.

Concerns were voiced that change won’t stop with allowing a drink with dinner. If city council approved the referendum, “it sends the signal that you would go along with the legalization of marijuana,” Newton said. “It is on the way.”

Others touted the benefits of allowing seven-day-a-week alcohol sales.

Bob Smith, chairman of the board of the Greater Sumter Chamber of Commerce, said the Chamber’s support is “purely economical.”

“We hear how important this is to our members. This would mean more revenue to them, and more revenue means more jobs,” Smith said. “Right now, Camden, Florence and Columbia are destinations for our residents on Sundays because restaurants that serve alcohol are open.”

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Jason Dustin Compton, right, who was accused of killing a woman with a hammer this weekend and assaulting two others, listens as Judge George Gibson denies him bond during his hearing on Tuesday. Coroner Harvin Bullock also made an appearance at the bond hearing, expressing his support for the victims and explaining how heinous he thought the crime was.

Magistrate defers decision to circuit court judge

BY TYLER SIMPSON tyler@theitem.com (803) 774-1295 Jason Dustin Compton has been accused of what Sumter County Coroner Harvin Bullock described as “one of the most heinous crimes he has ever seen, beyond compare.”

After his bond hearing Tuesday afternoon, it was clear Compton won’t be leaving jail anytime soon.

Compton, who has been charged

with bludgeoning 44-year-old Tracey Koepfler to death with a hammer Saturday morning, appeared before Magistrate Judge George Gibson at Sumter-Lee Regional Detention Center while the victim’s family looked on. Investigator Wayne Dubose with the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office requested bond be denied on all seven charges, which Judge Gibson granted.

“Because of the nature of the situation, we’re just going to go ahead

and deny them all, put them together and let the circuit court judge handle it,” Gibson said to Compton.

Compton has been charged with murder, two counts of attempted murder, attempted criminal sexual conduct with a minor, first-degree attempted criminal sexual conduct and two counts of kidnapping. According to the initial reports, he assaulted Koepfler with a hammer to

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College caters to ‘CSI’-minded students

BY RAYTEVIA EVANS revans@theitem.com (803) 774-1214 With the help of glamorous cop dramas that invade our TVs, the criminal justice field has quickly become a popular field and program of study on various college campuses. Although “CSI,” “NCIS” and “Law & Order” are exaggerated for entertainment purposes, the arenas of forensics and criminal justice have continPHOTO BY RAYTEVIA EVANS/THE SUMTER ITEM ued to grow over the past deAmanda Braxton, a student at Central Carolina Technical College, cade. spends time in the school’s law library at the Legal Studies Center on “I think a lot of the stuSouth Main Street. The criminal justice field has continuously grown dents’ interests may be comover the past 10 years, with students choosing to study to become ing from TV shows,” said lawyers, forensic lab techs, investigators and police officers.

Chris J. Hall, criminal justice

technology program director for Central Carolina Technical College. “They see the CSIs and other shows on TV and they become interested in criminal justice and forensics.”

CCTC student Dominique Johnson, 19, said she originally wanted to be a veterinarian, but confirmed Hall’s statement saying she became interested in the program because of television.

“At first I wanted to be a vet, but I couldn’t stomach some of the things I would have to do,” Johnson said. “’So I did become interested in forensics because of TV, and I saw that and thought, ‘That’s

something I would enjoy doing.’”

Hall said TV “sensationalizes the glamorous part of this job, and what students don’t see or realize is that there is also a lot of paperwork.” But programs like CCTC’s are cropping up at various colleges and universities to accommodate the growing interest among college students.

Despite various statistics that show the increase in college tuition over the past few years and the ubiquitous issue of student loans for collegeeducated Americans, students are not letting the numbers

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LOCAL & STATE BRIEFS FROM STAFF REPORTS

Conroy book signing in Camden on May 15 Books on Broad will host Pat Conroy for a book signing at 3 p.m. Thursday, May 15. Books on Broad is located at 944 Broad St. in Camden.

The event is free and open to the public. A full selection of Conroy’s books in paperback and hardback will be available for purchase and autographing. Books on Broad accepts pre-orders by phone at (803) 713-7323 or online at www.booksonbroad.com/patconroy.

Senate considers plan with education increases COLUMBIA — The South Carolina Senate is taking up a budget plan which expands 4-year-old kindergarten and school reading initiatives but de-prioritizes money to local governments.

Senators began explaining Tuesday the Finance Committee’s $7 billion spending plan for state taxes.

Like the House plan, it provides $30 million for reading coaches in elementary schools, an additional $4.5 million for summer reading programs and $30 million for school technology. Those were part of Gov. Nikki Haley’s suggestions.

The Senate added $24.5 million to expand full-day 4-year-old kindergarten to 14 more districts. That was possible partly through a $16 million cut to money aiding cities and counties, which could be restored later. It’s near the top of a list of items the budget could fund if the state’s economic advisers adjust their revenue projections.

Oakland Primary purchases district’s 1st digital library

BY RAYTEVIA EVANS revans@theitem.com (803) 774-1214 Oakland Primary School students are learning how to read in a totally different way. The school, through a Department of Defense STEM Grant, has purchased the first digital library in Sumter School District. The grant totaled $20,000 and was also used for an after-school STEM program that includes robotics and other subjects.

Last week, Oakland officially gained access to the digital library and now owns more than 1,100 books.

By the end of the year, the school will own about 1,500 digital titles. According to Curriculum Coach Bill Austin, the books they currently own are appropriate for all students they serve

at the school from Pre-K to first grade. He said the school wanted to improve the reading program by purchasing the digital library.

There are multiple advantages to having a digital library, including the teachers’ ability to access the books in their classrooms and display them on the electronic boards during lessons. With a conventional library, only one student can check out a particular book if there is only one copy; however, with the digital library, multiple students can read the same title.

“Reading for children comes at different times. They don’t learn at the same pace,” Austin said. “With the digital library, students can read or it will read to them and highlight the words one at a time as it reads.”

Having access to the digital library in the classroom will also broaden the opportunities for teachers to reach students in a different way. Incorporating technology into local schools is an effort that Superintendent Frank Baker has previously said he supports to properly prepare students for the next level and eventually for lucrative careers in the workforce.

Austin said they hope to connect with some local day cares so students can access the digital library after school as well. The school is working on putting together information about the digital library, future plans and how the library can be accessed and improve reading skills and classroom instruction to provide to parents and day care programs.

McKenna Reed recoils from the blast of an antique blunderbuss at the Sumter County Museum’s 2013 Backcountry Homestead.

Re-enactor Frank Holloway gave visitors to the museum’s colonial-era display a chance to fire the rifle. He’ll be back at the museum Saturday for more demonstrations during this year’s Backcountry Springtime celebration.

Lois West, widow of Gov. John West, dies HILTON HEAD ISLAND — Lois West, the 92-year-old widow of former South Carolina Gov. John C. West, has died.

Jack West said his mother died suddenly Tuesday morning at her home on Hilton Head Island.

West said his mother had suffered heart problems. He said a funeral will be held Thursday at 2 p.m. at Bethesda Presbyterian Church in Camden.

Gov. West, a Democrat, served from 1971 to 1975. The Camden native also served as the lieutenant governor from 1966 to 1971. Following his term as governor, West served as the U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia from 1977 to 1981.

U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, who worked for Gov. West, issued a statement mourning her passing, calling her a bright light in the governor’s life.

CORRECTION If you see a statement in error, contact the City Desk at 774-1226 or pressrelease@theitem.com.

SUMTER ITEM FILE PHOTO

Enter Sumter museum’s time machine Saturday

BY IVY MOORE ivym@theitem.com

WANT TO GO?

If your mom has ever gone on a bit about “the good old days,” then Saturday is your chance to find out what her great-grandmother or greatgreat-grandmother might have reminisced about. For six hours on the day before Mother’s Day, the Sumter County Museum invites everyone — not just moms — to “visit” Sumter as it was in the early 19th century.

That means if your mother asked you to do the dishes, you had to get the water from a well and lather up some lye soap she’d made in a big black cauldron over an open fire. The same for washing clothes. Cooking dinner? Chances are it would comprise some kind of wild game or free range chickens

WHAT: Sumter County Museum Backcountry Springtime WHEN: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Saturday WHERE: 122 N. Washington St. PHONE: (803) 775-0908 COST: Admission is free

— when they were necessary, not trendy. Ditto for eggs from those same chickens. And they’d likely be served with some vegetables and herbs from the kitchen garden.

And speaking of open fires, that’s where Deborah Watts, the museum’s Backcountry manager, will be cooking up some of her specialties.

“I’ll be making biscuits, sausage and bacon in the morning, and vegetable stew, chicken-on-a-string, corn fritters and apple or blueberry pies in the afternoon,” she said.

Watts, museum director Annie Rivers and volunteers, many from Sumter High School’s Hands on History class, will be in period costume, demonstrating some of the tasks necessary to sustain a family living in the area’s backcountry 200 years ago.

There will be wood carvers, blacksmiths, spinners and weavers, Watts said, “and we’ll have Frank Holloway back to show and demonstrate his muskets and other weapons from the period.”

In addition, she said, there will be home-churned butter

for the biscuits, fresh-baked bread and other treats.

All the buildings in the Backcountry will be open, including the authentic Settler’s House from about 1812 that once stood near Pinewood.

Fortunately, it was not all work and no play for the settlers’ children, as volunteers will demonstrate with some vintage toys, including Jacob’s ladder, stilts, the Graces (hoops) and more. Visitors to the event will be invited to play with the toys, as well.

Volunteers will also be available in the WilliamsBrice House for self-guided tours and in the Heritage Education Building, where the museum’s gift shop will be open. Admission to the Carolina Backcountry Springtime event is free, and the public is invited.

HOW TO REACH US IS YOUR PAPER MISSING? ARE YOU GOING ON VACATION? 20 N. Magnolia St., Sumter, S.C. 29150 (803) 774-1200 Jack Osteen Editor and Publisher Jack@theitem.com (803) 774-1238 Braden Bunch Senior News Editor bbunch@theitem.com (803) 774-1201 Waverly Williams Sales Manager wwilliams@theitem.com (803) 774-1237

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Monica Lewinsky speaks out on affair with Clinton WASHINGTON (AP) — Monica Lewinsky says there’s no question her boss — Bill Clinton — “took advantage” of her when he was president.

But she says their affair was consensual and if there was any abuse involved, it came afterward, when Clinton’s inner circle tried to discredit her and the president’s opponents used her as a political pawn.

The former White House intern, now 40, writes about her life in the next issue of Vanity Fair magazine, out this month. In released excerpts, she says she’s perhaps the first Internet era scapegoat and wants to speak out on behalf of other victims of on-

line humiliation.

Her willingness to step forward may come at an inopportune time as former first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton considers running for president. Republicans have signaled they don’t consider her husband’s scandal from the late 1990s out of bounds in the realm of 2016-style political dialogue.

Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, a likely GOP presidential contender, answered criticisms of the Republican record on women’s issues by saying in January that the last Democratic president engaged in “predatory behavior” with a woman, Lewinsky, who was 22 when her liaisons with Clinton began in

1995. Clinton’s lies about the relationship contributed to his impeachment by the House in 1998; the Senate acquitted him.

Lewinsky writes that she deeply regrets the affair and made a point of staying silent through several presidential campaigns to avoid becoming a distraction. Now, she writes, it’s time to stop “tiptoeing around my past — and other people’s futures. I am determined to have a different ending to my story. I’ve decided, finally, to stick my head above the parapet.”

Invoking her headwear from endlessly repeated TV clips and the stained garment considered as evidence against

Clinton, she writes: “It’s time to burn the beret and bury the blue dress.”

But these aren’t her first public words on the scandal. Lewinsky broke her silence in 1999 with a blockbuster interview with Barbara Walters, gave several subsequent interviews and cooperated with author Andrew Morton on his book the same year, titled “Monica’s Story.”

“Sure, my boss took advantage of me,” she writes now, “but I will always remain firm on this point: it was a consensual relationship. Any ‘abuse’ came in the aftermath, when I was made a scapegoat in order to protect his powerful position.”

S.C. couple who killed sex offender act out in court UNION, S.C. (AP) — A couple who carried out a plan to kill a registered sex offender and his wife showed little remorse when they were sentenced to life in prison Tuesday, with one shouting: “That’s what child molesters get!”

Initially, Jeremy and Christine Moody apologized to the judge and asked for a 30-year sentence so they could see their children and grow old together. But after Union County Judge Lee Alford handed down the maximum punishment, they shared a brief kiss and then showed how they really felt.

“See you perverts later,” Jeremy Moody shouted at Charles Parker’s family as he walked out of court.

“That’s what child molesters get.”

And as Christine Moody walked in shackles to a police car outside of the courthouse, she told reporters: “Killing that pedophile was the best day of my life.”

The Moodys went to church they day they killed Parker, 59, and his 51-yearold wife, Gretchen. While there, they decided to put into motion plans to kill the mechanic and anyone else in his home.

They drove their car to his house and popped the hood like they were having car trouble. When Parker came out to help, Jeremy Moody pulled a gun and ordered him inside, prosecutor Kevin Brackett said.

The couple then told Parker and his wife exactly why they were going to kill them, Brackett said.

Jeremy Moody, 31, shot the couple, then his 37-yearold wife stabbed them. A surveillance camera on Parker’s land caught them leaving, and deputies recognized Jeremy Moody from the word “skinhead” tattooed on his neck and the “Made in America” tattoo on the side of his head.

Both were convicted of murder, kidnapping and first-degree burglary.

Lawyers said both defendants were sexually abused

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Jeremy Lee Moody and his wife, Christine, smile at each other before they were both sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday in Union. Authorities say Jeremy and Christine Moody killed 59-year-old Charles Parker and his 51-year-old wife, Gretchen Parker, last July, stabbing and shooting them. Investigators said the Moodys are members of a loosely organized online white supremacist group called Crew 41 and decided to kill Parker because he had taken advantage of a disabled woman. as children and that made them want revenge against the type of people who hurt them. They believed they had a divine assignment to kill all sex offenders, said psychologist Harold Morgan, who analyzed Jeremy Moody.

After he was arrested, Jeremy Moody directed investigators to a sheet of paper in his home. He wrote the name and address of another sex offender, telling police he was going to kill that person the next day if he had not been arrested.

Brackett said the Moodys

had no right to act as a judge and a jury after Parker had already served a sentence for taking advantage of a disabled woman.

Outside of reading the 69th Psalm from the Bible and letters from their church members, the couple showed little remorse. They smiled and looked longingly at each other during the hearing. Jeremy Moody smirked as members of the Parker family asked the judge for the maximum sentence. When the judge asked Christine Moody the standard question of whether

anyone offered her anything for plea, she answered “just fame and fortune.”

The couple told authorities they had killed others, but investigators found no evidence of other crimes, Brackett said.

They were members of a loosely organized online white supremacist group called Crew 41.

Defense lawyers pointed out Christine Moody was a breast cancer survivor who underwent a double mastectomy four years ago and Jeremy Moody suffered from schizophrenia and was not

on his medicine when the killings took place.

“He was on his medicine today and look what he had to say,” Brackett said.

Parker’s family didn’t hear Jeremy Moody call them perverts because they were already being taken out of the courtroom. They shrugged off his words outside.

“He got what he deserved.

He would kill again if he was let out,” said Charles Parker’s sister Brenda Franklin. “He can say whatever he wants. He’s dying in prison.”

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Students rewarded for their efforts Lyndsay Krebs, left, junior co-chairwoman of Sumter High School Go Green Week, an International Baccalaureate Creativity, Action, Service program initiative, accepts a $150 check from Robin O’Brien, coordinator of Palmetto Pride grant.

The students formed a team to participate in the Manchester State Forest Clean-up. Prizes were awarded this year to groups with the most people participating.

PHOTO PROVIDED

POLICE BLOTTER CHARGES Clyde Izell Clea, 64, of 2490 North Kings Highway, was arrested at 4:42 p.m. Thursday and charged with distribution of cocaine, possession of cocaine and possession of marijuana at his residence via a search warrant issued by the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office. According to reports, law enforcement searched the residence and found several items containing cocaine residue: a black digital scale, a white coffee cup, a blue-and-white coffee cup, a silver knife and a black and silver fork. Investigators also reportedly found a medicine bottle containing suspected marijuana, a Mentos bottle containing a quantity of suspected crack cocaine, two pipes, two boxes of pure baking soda and two plastic bags labeled “20” and “50.” When asked about the cocaine residue, Clea reportedly admitted the drugs belonged to him and that he had mixed crack cocaine two days earlier. He was arrested and transported to Sumter-Lee Regional Detention Center.

Marysue Laird, 29, of 2145 Rose Drive, was charged with two counts of thirddegree burglary, seconddegree burglary and possession of stolen property; and Raymond Spann, 58, of 2430 Kolb Road, was charged with possession of cocaine, second-degree burglary and third-degree burglary at noon Friday in the 200 block of Livingston Street. According to reports, officers responded to the incident location after receiving information that Laird was removing items from the property without permission. Officers found Laird and Spann in the backyard with a black Honda Civic coupe, which records showed was stolen out of Florence County, and the items inside were identified as the victim’s property. The following items were inside the van: a gasoline container, a Hitachi drill set and jack stands. Both suspects were attempting to load a Honda 3000 generator into the trunk of the car. Spann reportedly attempted to flee the scene, but officers apprehended him shortly afterwards. Officers reportedly located a clear plastic bag of what appeared to be crack cocaine in the driver’s door.

Laird and Spann were arrested and transported to Sumter-Lee Regional Detention Center.

ARMED ROBBERY At 9:59 p.m. Friday, deputies were dispatched to a residence in the 2400 block of Peach Orchard Road in reference to a shooting. Upon arrival, officers spoke with a man who was shot in the left shoulder by an unknown suspect who demanded money. The victim said he arrived home from work, pulled up to the driveway, got out of the vehicle and was walking to the front door when someone walked up to him from the side of the house, shot him and ran back around the residence. The suspect was described as a black male

with a bandanna around his mouth. EMS responded to transport the victim to Tuomey Regional Medical Center.

POINTING AND PRESENTING A FIREARM Officers responded to the 4400 block of Christine Drive at 3:30 p.m. Saturday where a man told them a 27-yearold woman pointed a handgun at him from a silver Ford Fusion while in the roadway. The man was advised to seek a warrant.

STOLEN PROPERTY A 36-inch TV, a 19-inch TV, two collector’s knives, a

Wii gaming system, a karaoke machine, a DVD player, a microwave, a stove and some medication were reported stolen at 3:03 p.m. from a residence in the 1100 block of Cherryvale Drive. The items are valued at $875.

A black 6-by-8 foot metal utility trailer and an orange Husqvarna commercial zero-turn lawnmower were reported stolen at 4:07 p.m. Friday from a residence in the 4900 block of McPhail Street, Dalzell. The items are valued at $3,700.

A tan and gray air-conditioning unit valued at

$2,500 was reportedly stolen between 10:30 a.m.

April 26 and 11:50 a.m. Saturday from a residence in the 80 block of Willow Drive.

A Vizio 32-inch flat-screen TV, an Emerson TV, a Toshiba laptop computer and a Fuji digital camera were reported stolen at 6 p.m.

Sunday from a residence on Candlewood Lane, Dalzell. The items are valued at $1,250.

VANDALISM An unknown suspect fired a BB gun at the driver’s side of a gold 2004 Chevro-

let Malibu and damaged both driver’s side doors sometime before 11:09 a.m. Saturday in the 3500 block of Delaware Drive, Dalzell. Several BB pellets were located on the driveway near the vehicle. The damage is estimated at $1,500.

An unknown suspect scratched all sides of a black 2010 Dodge Vibe and scratched an expletive into the upper left side of the hood between 8:30 and 9 p.m. Sunday on the 400 block of Love Street. The damage is estimated at $1,000.

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King David’s citadel found, Israeli says The fortification was built 800 years before King David would have captured it from its Jebusite rulers. Shukron JERUSALEM — An Israeli says the biblical story of Daarchaeologist says he has vid’s conquest of Jerusalem found the legendary citadel captured by King David in his provides clues that point to this particular fortification conquest of Jerusalem, reas David’s entry point into kindling a longstanding debate about using the Bible as the city.

In the second Book of Sama field guide to identifying uel, David orders the capture ancient ruins. of the walled city by entering The claim by Eli Shukron, it through the water shaft. like many such claims in the Shukron’s excavation uncovfield of biblical archaeology, ered a narrow shaft where has run into criticism. It spring water flowed into a joins a string of announcecarved pool, thought to be ments by Israeli archaeolowhere city inhabitants would gists saying they have ungather to draw water. Excess earthed palaces of the legwater would have flowed out endary biblical king, who is of the walled city through revered in Jewish religious another section of the shaft tradition for establishing JeShukron said he discovered rusalem as its central holy city — but who has long elud- — where he thinks the city was penetrated. ed historians looking for Shukron says no other clear-cut evidence of his exisstructure in the area of antence and reign.

The present-day Israeli-Pal- cient Jerusalem matches what David would have capestinian conflict is also tured to take the city. The wrapped up in the subject. biblical account names it the The $10 million excavation, “Citadel of David” and the made accessible to tourists “Citadel of Zion.” last month, took place in an Ronny Reich, who was Arab neighborhood of JeruShukron’s collaborator at the salem and was financed by site until 2008, disagrees with an organization that settles the theory. He said more broJews in guarded homes in Arab areas of east Jerusalem ken pottery found from the 10th century BC, presumably in an attempt to prevent the King David’s reign, should city from being divided. The Palestinians claim east Jeru- have been found if the fortification had been in use then. salem, captured by Israel in Shukron said he only found 1967, as the capital of a futwo shards that date close to ture independent state.

Shukron, who excavated at that time. He thinks the reathe City of David archaeolog- son he didn’t find more is because the site was in continuical site for nearly two decades, says he thinks strong evidence supports his theory.

“This is the citadel of King David, this is the Citadel of Zion, and this is what King David took from the Jebusites,” said Shukron, who said he recently left Israel’s Antiquities Authority to work as a lecturer and tour guide. “The whole site we can compare to the Bible perfectly.”

Most archaeologists in Israel do not dispute that King David was a historical figure, and a written reference to the “House of David” was found in an archaeological site in northern Israel. But archaeologists are divided on identifying Davidic sites in Jerusalem, which he is said to have made his capital.

Shukron’s dig, which began in 1995, uncovered a massive fortification of five-ton stones stacked 21 feet wide. Pottery shards helped date the fortification walls to be 3,800 years old. They are the largest walls found in the region from before the time of King Herod, the ambitious builder who expanded the Second Jewish Temple complex in Jerusalem almost 2,100 years ago. The fortification surrounded a water spring and is thought to have protected the ancient city’s water source.

BY DANIEL ESTRIN The Associated Press

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Archeologist Eli Shukron walks on Thursday in the City of David archaeological site near Jerusalem’s Old City.

Shukron claims to have found the legendary citadel captured by King David in his conquest of Jerusalem. ous use and old pottery would have been cleared out by David’s successors. Much larger quantities of shards found at the site date to about 100 years after King David’s reign.

Reich said it was not possible to reach definitive conclusions about biblical connections without more direct archaeological evidence.

“The connection between archaeology and the Bible

has become very, very problematic in recent years,” Reich said.

Critics say that some archaeologists are too eager to hold a spade in one hand and a Bible in the other in a quest to verify the biblical narrative — either because of religious beliefs or to prove the Jewish people’s historic ties to the land. But other respected Israeli archaeologists say recent finds

match the biblical account more than naysayers claim.

Shukron, a veteran archaeologist who has excavated a number of significant sites in Jerusalem, said he drew his conclusions after nearly two decades exploring the ancient city.

“I know every little thing in the City of David. I didn’t see in any other place such a huge fortification as this,” said Shukron.

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WHO: Spread of polio a world health emergency

BY MARIA CHENG AP Medical Writer LONDON — For the first time ever, the World Health Organization on Monday declared the spread of polio an international public health emergency that could grow in the next few months and unravel the nearly three-decade effort to eradicate the crippling disease.

The agency described current polio outbreaks across at least 10 countries in Asia, Africa and the Middle East as an “extraordinary event” that required a coordinated international response. It identified Pakistan, Syria and Cameroon as having allowed the virus to spread beyond their borders, and recommended that those three governments require citizens to obtain a certificate proving they have been vaccinated for polio before traveling abroad.

“Until it is eradicated, polio will continue to spread internationally, find and paralyze susceptible kids,” Dr. Bruce Aylward, who leads WHO’s polio efforts, said during a press briefing.

Critics, however, questioned whether Monday’s announcement would make much of a difference, given the limits faced by governments confronting not only polio but armed insurrection and widespread poverty.

“What happens when you continue whipping a horse to go ever faster, no matter how rapidly he is already running?” said Dr. Donald A. Henderson, who led the WHO’s initiative to get rid of smallpox, the only human disease ever to have been eradicated.

The WHO has never before issued an international alert on polio, a disease that usually strikes children under 5 and is most often spread through infected water. There is no specific cure, but several vaccines exist.

Experts are particularly concerned that polio is re-

Polio emergency The World Health Organization is sounding the alarm over the spread of polio in Africa, Asia and the Mideast.

Polio cases January 2013 through April 29, 2014:

Syria 36

Afghanistan 17

Pakistan 147 Iraq 1 Nigeria 55

Ethiopia 10 Somalia 194

Equatorial Guinea 3 Cameroon 7 SOURCE: World Health Organization

tion program. U.S. commandos killed the al-Qaida leader in May 2011 in the Pakistani garrison town of Abbottabad.

At the end of last month, there were 68 confirmed polio cases worldwide, compared with just 24 at the same time last year. In 2013, polio reapTHE ASSOCIATED PRESS peared in Syria, sparking fears A Pakistani health worker gives a child a polio vaccine in Lahore, Paki- the civil war there could ignite stan, on Monday. The World Health Organization on Monday said the a wider outbreak as refugees flee to other countries across spread of polio outbreaks in at least 10 Asian countries is becoming an international public health emergency that could grow in the next the region. The virus has also been identified in the sewage few months. system in Israel, the West tants accuse them of spying for Bank and Gaza, although no emerging in countries previcases have been spotted. ously free of the disease, such the U.S. government. Those In February, the WHO found suspicions stem at least partly as Syria, Somalia and Iraq, that polio had also returned to where civil war or unrest now from the disclosure that the Iraq, where it spread from CIA used a Pakistani doctor to complicates efforts to contain neighboring Syria. It is also uncover Osama bin Laden’s the virus. It is happening durcirculating in Afghanistan hideout by trying to get blood ing the traditionally low seasamples from his family under (where it spread from Pakison for the spread of polio, the guise of a hepatitis vaccina- stan) and Equatorial Guinea leaving experts worried that cases could spike as the weather becomes warmer and wetter in the coming months across the northern hemisphere.

The vast majority of new cases are in Pakistan, a country which an independent monitoring board set up by the WHO has called “a powder keg that could ignite widespread polio transmission.”

Dozens of polio workers have been killed during the last two years in Pakistan, where mili-

Kenya 14 AP

(from neighboring Cameroon) as well as Nigeria, Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya.

Officials also worry countries torn by conflict, such as Ukraine, Sudan and the Central African Republic, are rife for polio reinfection.

Some critics say it may even be time to accept that polio may not be eradicated, since the deadline to wipe out the disease has already been missed several times. The ongoing effort costs about $1 billion a year.

“For the past two years, problems have steadily, and now rapidly mounted,” Henderson said in an email. “It is becoming apparent that there are too many problems (for the polio eradication effort) to overcome, however many resources are assigned.”

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THE SUMTER ITEM

Comparison between Holocaust, health care law draws criticism NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A state senator’s blog post likening the insurance requirement under President Obama’s health care law to the forced deportation of Jews during the Holocaust drew swift condemnation Monday from leaders of both parties in Tennessee.

Republican Sen. Stacey Campfield of Knoxville wrote the comment in a post titled “Thought of the Day.” “Democrats bragging about the number of mandatory sign ups for Obamacare is like Germans bragging about the number of manditory sign ups for ‘train rides’ for Jews in the 40s,” he wrote.

State Republican Party Chairman Chris Devaney called the comment “ignorant and repugnant,” and called for an immediate apology to the Jewish community. Democratic Party Chairman Roy Herron called the statement “outrageous, pathetic and hateful.”

State Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey said Campfield’s comments were “extremely insensitive and crossed the line,” while fellow Republican state House Majority Leader Gerald McCormick called them “distasteful and classless.”

Campfield in a phone interview shrugged off the criticism, and said he stands by his comments.

“I think Jewish people should be the first to stand up against Obamacare,” Campfield said. “When you have government deciding who gets health insurance and who doesn’t, what services they get and what services they have to provide, they’re really deciding who lives and who dies.”

“It’s a slippery slope,” he said.

The Anti-Defamation League’s Southeast interim regional director, Shelley Rose, wrote Campfield, urging him to apologize.

“The six million Jewish victims and millions of other victims of Hitler deserve better,” Rose wrote. “Their deaths should not be used for political points or sloganeering.”

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Republican state Sen. Stacey Campfield of Knoxville speaks at a Senate subcommittee hearing in Nashville, Tennessee, on May 16. Campfield was criticized by leaders of both the Republican and Democratic parties in Tennessee on Monday for writing a blog post likening the insurance requirement under President Obama’s health care law to the forced deportation of Jews during the Holocaust.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

A U.S. F-18 fighter jet, left, lands on the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) as a U.S. destroyer sails alongside during fly exercises in the Persian Gulf in February 2012. Iran will target American aircraft carriers in the Persian Gulf should a war between the two countries ever break out, the naval chief of Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard warned Tuesday as the country completes work on a large-scale mock-up of a U.S. carrier.

Iran admiral: U.S. ships are target in case of war TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran will target American aircraft carriers in the Persian Gulf should a war between the two countries ever break out, the naval chief of Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard warned Tuesday as the country completes work on a large-scale mock-up of a U.S. carrier.

The remarks by Adm. Ali Fadavi, who heads the hard-line Guard’s naval forces, were a marked contrast to moderate President Hassan Rouhani’s recent outreach policies toward the West — a reminder of the competing viewpoints that exist at the highest levels within the Islamic Republic.

Iran is building a simple replica of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz in a shipyard in the southern port of Bandar Abbas in order to be used in future military exercises, an Iranian newspaper confirmed last month.

Fadavi was quoted Tuesday by the semi-official Fars news agency as saying the immense size of the U.S. carriers makes them an “easy target.” He said contingency plans to target American carriers are a priority for the Guard’s naval forces.

“Aircraft carriers are the symbol of America’s military might,” he said. “The carriers are responsible for supplying America’s air power. So, it’s natural that we want to sink the carriers.”

The Revolutionary Guard’s naval forces are separate from the main Iranian navy. They are primarily based in and around the Gulf and include a number of missile boats and fast-attack vessels.

The commander said the Guard navy has already carried out exercises targeting mock-ups of American warships. In one case, he said, it took 50 seconds to destroy one of the simulated warships.

Tasnim, another semi-official news agency close to the Guard, reported that “an investigation” has found that the Nimitz-class carriers used by the U.S. could be seriously damaged or destroyed if 24 missiles were fired simultaneously.

An American Navy official in the Gulf was dismissive of the Iranian claims, and of the simulated carrier in particular.

“Whatever Iran hopes to do with the mock-up, it is likely to have zero impact on U.S. Navy operations in the Gulf,” said Cmdr. Jason Salata, a spokesman for the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, which is based across the Gulf in the island kingdom of Bahrain.

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Nigerian girl, 16, describes kidnap

BY MICHELLE FAUL Associated Press Writer LAGOS, Nigeria — The girls in the school dorm could hear the sound of gunshots from a nearby town. So when armed men in uniforms burst in and promised to rescue them, at first they were relieved.

“Don’t worry, we’re soldiers,” one 16-year-old girl recalls them saying. “Nothing is going to happen to you.”

The gunmen commanded the hundreds of students at the Chibok Government Girls Secondary School to gather outside. The men went into a storeroom and removed all the food. Then they set fire to the room.

“They ... started shouting, ‘Allahu Akhbar,’ (God is great),” the 16-year-old student said. “And we knew.”

What they knew was chilling: The men were not government soldiers at all. They were members of the ruthless Islamic extremist group called Boko Haram. They kidnapped the entire group of girls and drove them away in pickup trucks into the dense forest.

Three weeks later, 276 girls are still missing. At least two have died from snakebites, and about 20 others are ill, according to an intermediary who is in touch with their captors.

Their plight — and the failure of the Nigerian military to find them — has drawn international attention to an escalating Islamic extremist insurrection that has killed more than 1,500 so far this year.

Boko Haram, the name means “Western education is sinful,” has claimed responsibility for the mass kidnapping and

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Women attend a demonstration calling for the Nigerian government to rescue kidnapped school girls in Lagos, Nigeria, on Monday. Ruthless Islamic extremist group Boko Haram, which translates to “Western education is sinful,” has claimed responsibility for the mass kidnapping and threatened to sell the girls. threatened to sell the girls.

The claim was made in a video seen Monday. The British and U.S. governments have expressed concern about the fate of the missing students, and protests have erupted in major Nigerian cities and in New York.

The 16-year-old was among about 50 students who escaped on that fateful day, and she spoke for the first time in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. The AP also interviewed about 30 others, including Nigerian government and Borno state officials, school officials, six relatives of the missing girls, civil society leaders and politicians in northeast Nigeria and soldiers in the war zone.

Many spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing that giving their names would also reveal the girls’ identities and subject them to possible

stigmatization in this conservative society.

The Chibok girls school is in the remote and sparsely populated northeast region of Nigeria, a country of 170 million with a growing chasm between a north dominated by Muslims and a south by Christians.

Like all schools in Borno state, Chibok, an elite academy of both Muslim and Christian girls, had been closed because of increasingly deadly attacks

by Boko Haram. But it had reopened to allow final-year students to take exams.

At about 11 p.m. on April 14, a local government official, Bana Lawal, received a warning via cellphone. He was told that about 200 heavily armed militants in 20 pickup trucks and more than 30 motorcycles were headed toward his town.

Lawal alerted the 15 soldiers guarding Chibok, he said.

Then he roused sleeping residents and told them to flee

into the bush and the nearby hills. The soldiers sent an SOS to the nearest barracks, about 30 miles away, an hour’s drive on a dirt road.

No help arrived.

When the militants showed up two hours after the warning, the soldiers fought valiantly, Lawal said. Although they were outnumbered and outgunned, they held off the insurgents for an hour and a half, desperately waiting for reinforcements. One was killed. They ran out of ammunition and fled for their lives.

As dawn approached, the extremists headed for the boarding school.

There were too many gunmen to count, said the girl who escaped. So, even after the students realized the men were Islamic extremists, they obediently sat in the dirt. The men set the school ablaze and herded the girl’s group onto the backs of three pickup trucks.

The trucks drove through three villages, but then the car of fighters following them broke down. That’s when the girl and her friend jumped out.

Others argued, the 16-yearold remembered. But one student said, “We should go! Me, I am coming down. They can shoot me if they want but I don’t know what they are going to do with me otherwise.”

As they jumped, the car behind started up. Its lights came on. The girls did not know if the fighters could see them, so they ran into the bush and hid.

“We ran and ran, so fast,” said the girl. “That is how I saved myself. I had no time to be scared, I was just running.”

A few other girls clung to low-hanging branches and waited until the vehicles had passed. Then they met up in the bush and made their way back to the road. A man on a bicycle came across them and accompanied them back home.

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WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014

THE SUMTER ITEM

COMPTON

COUNCIL

FROM PAGE A1

FROM PAGE A1

the head at a residence in the 4300 block of Bethel Church Road and then assaulted and attempted to force her 14-year-old daughter and a wheelchair-bound 46-year-old woman to disrobe.

Bullock confirmed the cause of Koepfler’s death was blunt force trauma to the head.

“I went to examine the victim at (Tuomey Regional Medical Center) when she was brought in, and it’s just absolutely sickening that somebody would hurt somebody that way,” Bullock said. “You hate to use the word animal, but this is barbaric and completely inexcusable.”

With the exception of saying he had no questions for the judge, Compton remained silent during the bond hearing.

Bullock, who was present during the bond hearing, told the judge he wished to support the family and that he was more than willing to help make sure Compton is “fully prosecuted for his crimes.”

Deputies arrested Compton at the residence shortly after the incident. Sumter County Sheriff Anthony Dennis has said Compton confessed to the killing. Dennis has said that Compton also confessed to using cocaine when deputies arrested him, indicating he was under the influence of the drug during the assault.

Both the 46-year-old and the 14-year-old victims were treated at Tuomey and recently released.

The wording of the referendum would only allow restaurants and bars — businesses licensed for “on-premises” consumption — to serve drinks, not stores that allow carry-away sales of alcoholic drinks. Realtor Mack Kolb said he has tentative agreements with Buffalo Wild Wings and Longhorn Steakhouse to open restaurants in Sumter conditioned on Sunday alcohol sales being allowed.

“They know what this means to them,” Kolb said. “It’s critical that they have this or they will not come to Sumter.”

But opponents argued more revenue for businesses and city tax collectors are not the most important consideration.

“If one person drives drunk after this passes, none of that will matter,” said Tommy Frederick.

Ferdinand Burns called on city council to hold a referendum on keeping the city’s HOPE centers open on Saturdays to give young people somewhere constructive to go.

“Show us a referendum to eliminate kids hanging out at the mall or the parking lot of Wal-Mart,” Burns said. “You are the people’s representatives. Do the right thing for the people of South Sumter.”

The perceived lack of spending on the southside was a common complaint of opponents of the referendum, but council members said they need support from the state and federal governments to be able to beautify the area the way constituents want.

“I know South Sumter,” said Councilwoman Ione Dwyer. “You need to take the church bus to Columbia and let them know what our needs are.”

MATT WALSH / THE SUMTER ITEM

Jason Compton wrings his hands as he is denied bond in magistrate court by Judge George Gibson on Tuesday at Sumter-Lee Regional Detention Center.

The 14-year-old girl was released into the custody of her grandparents. She suffered an abrasion to the forehead after Compton allegedly struck her with the hammer, as well.

Dennis said he spoke with Ko-

FORENSICS FROM PAGE A1 deter them from higher education — but instead are making alternative choices. Some of the students enrolled in the paralegal and criminal justice programs at CCTC with hopes of becoming investigators or lawyers know the field is something that will always be necessary and therefore, a good investment.

Although TV obviously has some influence on students’ decisions to go into criminal justice, many of Hall’s students agree that it’s a lucrative business, and there will

always be a need for people to serve their communities as members of law enforcement — whether they become police officers, forensic lab techs or lawyers. Others, like CCTC student Kristopher House, have been influenced by family members who are already members of local law enforcement.

Like CCTC, Morris College and the University of South Carolina Sumter has recognized the growing interest in criminal justice and forensics programs. In August 2011,

epfler’s family Monday, saying that they were still stunned and upset about the incident.

“They’re dealing with it,” Dennis said. “We are currently trying to get some counseling to help them.”

Morris formally opened its forensics center and graduated 21 of 61 criminal justice students who were enrolled in forensics courses. According to Dr. Jacob Butler, chairman of the Division of Social Sciences for Morris,Morris is “one of a small number of colleges that has a free-standing facility that is exclusively devoted to education and training of students in criminal forensics at the undergraduate level.”

Although USC Sumter doesn’t have a separate program, biology instructor Dan Kiernan said he incorporates a unit in all of his classes on obtaining DNA and finger-

prints from a crime scene.

Multiple classes offered at the university as well as the school’s summer science camp for middle school students also help generate interest in the field.

With 14 criminal justice courses for students to complete, Hall said CCTC provides hands-on opportunities that can “give students the foundation for a bachelor’s” from a four-year institution after completing the program. The school has about 160 students in the program, from which they can go on to earn an associate’s degree.

Gary H. Johnson, paralegal

program manager for CCTC, also said the school’s forensics lab in the new Legal Studies Center on South Main Street will give students more experience with using state-of-the-art equipment to run forensic and drug analyses as part of the curriculum. The school is bringing in equipment in preparation to open the lab for use next school year.

Some of the top jobs that students enrolled in criminal justice programs can pursue after graduation include business intelligence analyst, social worker, chemist, police officer and mental health counselor.

THE SUMTER ITEM N.G. Osteen 1843-1936 The Watchman and Southron

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014 H.G. Osteen 1870-1955 Founder, The Item

H.D. Osteen 1904-1987 The Item

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Margaret W. Osteen 1908-1996 The Item Hubert D. Osteen Jr. Chairman & Editor-in-Chief Graham Osteen Co-President Kyle Osteen Co-President Jack Osteen Editor and Publisher Larry Miller CEO Braden Bunch Senior News Editor

20 N. Magnolia St., Sumter, South Carolina 29150 • Founded October 15, 1894

COMMENTARY

Preference on race nears end

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ast week’s U.S. Supreme Court 6-2 ruling in Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action et al. upheld Michigan’s constitutional amendment that bans racial preferences in admission to its public universities. Justice Sonia Sotomayor lashed out at her colleagues in a bitter dissent, calling them “out of touch with reality.” She went on to make the incredible argument that the amendment, which explicitly forbids racial discrimination, itself amounts to racial discrimination. Her argument was that permissible “race-sensitive admissions policies,” the new name for racial preferences, both serve the compelling interest of obtaining the educational benefits that flow from a diverse student body and inure people to the benefit of racial minorities. By the way, no one has come up with hard evidence of the supposed “educational benefits” that come from a racially mixed student body, and there’s mounting evidence of harm done to minorities through academic mismatching.

Far more important than the legal battles over racial preferences in college admissions is the Walter question of why they are being called for in the first Williams place. The SAT’s purpose is to predict how well a student will perform in college classes.

Blacks score at least 100 points lower than whites in each of the assessment areas — critical reading, math and writing. Asians score higher than whites in math and writing. SAT scores are also reported for Mexican-Americans, Puerto Ricans, Indians and others. Blacks score lower than these minorities, who themselves score lower than whites and Asians.

If we reject the racist notion of mental inferiority of blacks, holding that blacks can never compete academically and that “racially sensitive” college admissions are needed in perpetuity, we must seek an explanation for their relatively poor academic performance. My longtime colleague and friend Dr. Thomas Sowell offers some evidence in a recent column, “Will Dunbar Rise Again?” (http://tinyurl. com/mjt39ks). Paul Laurence Dunbar High School was founded in 1870 as the first public high school in the nation for black students. As far back as 1899, when tests were given in Washington’s four academic high schools, Dunbar students scored higher than students in two of the three white high schools. Over the first several decades of the 20th century, about 80 percent of Dunbar graduates went on to college, a percentage far greater than that of high-school graduates of any race in the country at large at the time. Most blacks went to inexpensive local colleges, but among those who went on to Ivy League and other elite colleges, a significant number graduated Phi Beta Kappa.

At one time, Dunbar graduates were admitted to Dartmouth or Harvard without having to take an entrance exam. One would have to be a lunatic to chalk up this academic success, in the early to mid1900s, to Sotomayor’s “race-sensitive admissions policies.”

The shame of the nation is that poor black children are trapped in terrible schools. But worse than that is that white liberals, black politicians and civil rights leaders, perhaps unwittingly, have taken steps to ensure that black children remain trapped. Sowell says, “Of all the cynical frauds of the Obama administration, few are so despicable as sacrificing the education of poor and minority children to the interests of the teachers’ unions.” Attorney General Eric Holder’s hostility, along with that of the teachers unions, toward the spread of charter schools is just one of the signs of that cynicism. Holder’s threats against schools that discipline more black students than he thinks they should add official support to a hostile learning environment.

The weakening of racial preferences in college admissions can be beneficial if it can focus our attention on the causes of the huge gap in academic achievement between blacks and whites and Asians. Worrying about what happens when blacks are trying to get in to college is too late — as a matter of fact, 12 years late.

Walter E. Williams is a professor of economics at George Mason University. To find out more about Walter E. Williams and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators. com. © 2014 CREATORS.COM

AN OPEN LETTER TO THE EDITOR This is an open letter to Mr. Hubert D. Osteen Jr., Chairman and Editorin-Chief of The Sumter Item. n past editorials, you openly criticized individuals who you believed made racial comments that were dividing our community. Fortunately, freedom of speech is one of our most valuable rights under the U.S. Constitution.

After reading your past editorials, I am aware that you have also shared your opinions on various issues that are happening outside of Sumter County. Therefore, I, along with many other Sumter citizens, want to know your opinion on the following issues: 1. Leaders of the GOP who aligned themselves with the racist Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy. Mr. Bundy feels “Negroes” would be better off as slaves and picking cotton. He also has no respect for the laws of our country and violently opposes them.

2. Mr. Donald Sterling, owner of the Los Angeles Clippers basketball team. Mr. Sterling made racist comments in a recorded conversation telling his girlfriend not to bring black people to games. He also has a history of past racist conduct and behavior.

3. The South Carolina Voter ID Law, now that a federal judge has ruled that the state of Wisconsin’s Voter ID Law is unconstitutional.

The judge ruled that Wisconsin’s law violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. He also noted that Wisconsin could not produce one case of voter fraud. When South Carolina passed its Voter ID Law, our state also could not reveal a single case of voter fraud.

Mr. Osteen, commentaries by other

I

writers in your paper do not relieve you from your journalistic responsibilities as editor of our only local newspaper to respond to current events of national interest. You write about people dividing our community. What about people and laws that are dividing our country?

The ball, excuse the expression, is in your court.

EUGENE R. BATEN Sumter Editor-in Chief Hubert Osteen responds: ene Baten just can’t help himself. Whenever a story pops up in the news involving race, to him it’s a “stop the presses!” moment. He never surprises us. The latest: He’s concerned about a racist rancher in Nevada and a racist billionaire professional basketball team owner in Los Angeles.

Both men made indefensible racial remarks and they both paid for it. The rancher, Cliven Bundy, lost any support he had in his battle against the federal Bureau of Land Management over his resistance to paying for grazing rights on his land. The billionaire basketball team owner, Donald Sterling, was recorded by his girlfriend while unleashing a torrent of racist remarks. She subsequently fingered him by releasing the tape of his diatribe to the press and Sterling wound up being banned for life by the NBA. Both men lost credibility and Sterling for all practical purposes lost his team.

My opinion on the two men’s outbursts: Short of being lined up in front of a firing squad, they should

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apologize — publicly.

As for the S.C. Voter ID Law, I have no problem with that. Most states have such laws. Perhaps because of the law, potential violators are discouraged from fraudulently testing it, regardless of whether or not, as Baten claims, the state could not reveal a single case of voter fraud when the law was passed. Requiring not just voters to produce some identification but also shoppers, airline passengers, bank customers and many, many others is commonplace in this country.

Baten stated in his letter that past editorials “openly criticized individuals who you believed made racial comments that were dividing the community.”

He forgot to identify the “individuals” mentioned in his letter. I’ll save him the trouble. They were Baten and Ferdinand Burns in an editorial that appeared on Aug. 11, 2013. I not only “believed” then they were dividing the community — I continue to believe that. Readers are welcome to study the editorial on The Item’s website in the Opinion section.

Finally, Mr. Baten lectured me about journalistic responsibilities and closed with this:”You write about people dividing our community. What about people and laws that are dividing our country?”

That’s an easy one: I would refer him to the occupant of the White House, his administration, his toadies in Congress and the national press that hears no evil, sees no evil and speaks no evil about the ruling class in Washington.

Thanks for sharing.

An origination question for the ACA

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ASHINGTON — If the president wants to witness a refutation of his assertion that the survival of the Affordable Care Act is assured, come Thursday he should stroll the 13 blocks from his office to the nation’s second-most important court, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. There he can hear an argument involving yet another constitutional provision that evidently has escaped his notice. It is the Origination Clause, which says: “All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other bills.”

The ACA passed the Senate on a party-line vote, and without a Democratic vote to spare, after a series of unsavory transactions that purchased the assent of several shrewdly extortionate Democrats.

What will be argued on Thursday is that what was voted on — the ACA — was indisputably a revenue measure and unquestionably did not originate in the House, which later passed the ACA on another party-line vote.

This case comes from Matt Sissel, an Iowa artist and small-business owner who is represented by the Pacific Legal Foundation, which litigates for limited government. Sissel neither has nor wants health insurance, preferring to invest his limited resources in his business. Hence he objects to the ACA’s mandate that requires him to purchase it or pay the penalty that the ACA daintily calls the “shared responsibility payment.”

In June 2012, a Supreme Court majority accepted a, shall we say, creative reading of the ACA by Chief Justice John Roberts. The court held that the penalty, which the ACA repeatedly calls a penalty, is really just a tax on the activity —

COMMENTARY actually, the nonactivity — of not purchasing insurance. The individual mandate is not, the court held, a command but merely the definition of a condition that can be taxed.

The tax is mild enough to be semivoluntary; individuals are free to choose whether or not to commit the inactivity that triggers the tax.

The “exaction” — Roberts’ word — “looks,” he laconically said, “like a tax in many respects.” It is collected by the IRS, and the proceeds go to the Treasury for the general operations of the federal government, not to fund a particular program. This surely makes the George ACA a revenue Will measure.

Did it, however, originate in the House? Of course not.

In October 2009, the House passed a bill that would have modified a tax credit for members of the armed forces and some other federal employees who were first-time home buyers — a bill that had nothing to do with health care. Two months later the Senate “amended” this bill by obliterating it. The Senate renamed it and completely erased its contents, replacing them with the ACA’s contents.

Case law establishes that for a Senate action to qualify as a genuine “amendment” to a Housepassed revenue bill, it must be “germane to the subject matter of the bill.” The Senate’s shell game — gutting and replacing the House bill — created the ACA from scratch. The ACA obviously flunks the germaneness test, without which the House’s constitutional

power of originating revenue bills would be nullified.

Case law establishes that the Origination Clause does not apply to two kinds of bills. One creates “a particular governmental program and ... raises revenue to support only that program.” The second creates taxes that are “analogous to fines” in that they are designed to enforce compliance with a statute passed under one of the Constitution’s enumerated powers of Congress other than the taxing power. The ACA’s tax, which the Supreme Court repeatedly said is not an enforcement penalty, and hence is not analogous to a fine, fits neither exception to the Origination Clause.

The ACA’s defenders say its tax is somehow not quite a tax because it is not primarily for raising revenue but for encouraging certain behavior (buying insurance). But the Origination Clause, a judicially enforceable limit on the taxing power, would be effectively erased from the Constitution if any tax with any regulatory — behavior-changing — purpose or effect were exempt from the clause.

The Court of Appeals sits six blocks from the Senate, which committed the legislative legerdemain of pretending to merely amend a House bill while actually originating a new one. Across the street from the Senate sits the Supreme Court, where this case may be headed.

Two years ago, the Supreme Court saved the ACA by declaring its penalty to be a tax. It thereby doomed the ACA as an unconstitutional violation of the Origination Clause.

George Will’s email address is georgewill@washpost.com. © 2014, Washington Post Writers Group

EDITORIAL PAGE POLICIES EDITORIALS represent the views of the owners of this newspaper.

COLUMNS AND COMMENTARY are the personal opinion of the writer whose byline appears. Columns from readers should be typed, double-spaced and no more than 850 words. Send them to The Sumter Item, Opinion Pages, P.O. Box 1677, Sumter, S.C. 29151, or email to hubert@theitem.com or graham@theitem.com.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR are written by readers of the newspaper. They should be no more than 350 words and sent via e-mail to letters@theitem.com, dropped off at The Sumter Item office, 20 N. Magnolia St. or mailed to The Sumter Item, P.O. Box 1677, Sumter, S.C. 29151, along with the full name of the writer, plus an address and telephone number for verification purposes only. Letters that exceed 350 words will be cut accordingly in the print edition, but available in their entirety at www.theitem.com/ opinion/letters_to_editor.

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AROUND TOWN The Shepherd’s Center will offer free public information sessions 11-11:50 a.m. each Thursday through May 29 at 24 Council St. Scheduled topics / speakers are as follows: May 8, Ford Simmons of the Sumter County Library will provide tips and tricks on using your personal computer or iPad; May 15, Cpl. Eddie Hobbes of the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office will discuss self-defense awareness; May 22, Cpl. Hobbes will discuss home security; and May 29, Carol Boyd will discuss gardening with herbs.

Free computer classes will be offered from 4 to 6 p.m. every Tuesday and Thursday, May 13-June 5, at S.C. Works, 31 E. Calhoun St. Attendees will learn computer skills, basic emailing, Internet searching and keyboarding skills. Registration is required and space is limited. Call (803) 774-1300.

The Lee County Adult Education 2014 Community Involvement Day Fair will be held from 1 to 6 p.m. today at Lee County Parks & Recreation, 121 E. College St., Bishopville.

The Regional Transit Council will meet from 10 to 11 a.m. on Thursday, May 8, at 36 W. Liberty St. The Northside Neighborhood Association will meet from 5 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 8, at the North HOPE Center.

The One More Effort Federated Club will meet from 5 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 8, at the Birnie HOPE Center.

The Sumter Chapter of the International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP) will meet at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 8, in the Bultman Conference Room at USC Sumter. Administrative professionals are encouraged to attend this meeting. Call Mary Sutton at (803) 938-3760 for information.

The Clarendon County Republican Party will meet on Thursday, May 8, at Cornerstone Free Will Baptist Church, 2116 Greeleyville Highway, Manning. Supper will be served at 6:30 p.m. and the meeting will begin at 7 p.m.

Guest speakers will include: South Carolina Treasurer Curtis Loftis; South Carolina Comptroller General Richard Eckstrom; Pat McKinney, candidate for lieutenant gov-

ernor of South Carolina; Sally Atwater, candidate for superintendent of education of South Carolina; and Republican National Committee representative Hope Walker.

The Downtown Sumter Microbrew Festival will be held from 5 to 10 p.m. on Friday, May 9, at Rotary Centennial Plaza. Visit www.sumtermicrobrewfestival.org for further information.

The Mary McLeod Bethune Section of the Council of Negro Women will meet at 5 p.m. on Friday, May 9, at Morris College.

The Sumter Chapter of the National Federation of the Blind will meet at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 13, at Shiloh-Randolph Manor, 125 W. Bartlette St. Suzie Kearney, management development officer, will speak. Transportation provided within the coverage area. Contact Debra Canty, chapter president, at DebraCanC2@frontier.com or (803) 775-5792 to reserve your gala tables. Call the 24/7 recorded message line at (206) 376-5992 to hear pertinent information.

The Pinedale Neighborhood Association will meet at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 15, at the South HOPE Center, 1125 S. Lafayette Drive. T-shirts for the association will be disbursed. Call Ferdinand Burns at (803) 968-4464.

The Sumter Combat Veterans Group will meet at 10 a.m. on Friday, May 16, at the South HOPE Center, 1125 S. Lafayette Drive.

The Lincoln High School Preservation Alumni Association will sponsor a dinner fundraiser from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, May 16, at the Lincoln High School gym, 26 Council St. Cost is $7 per dinner and includes turkey wing or fried pork chops, rice with gravy, green beans, rolls and a drink. Dine in or take out.

Call James L. Green at (803) 968-4173 for information.

Lincoln High School Class of 1963 will meet at 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 17, at American Legion Post 202, 310 Palmetto St. Plans will be made for the 2015 class reunion, which will be celebrated as the 1960s class reunion of the civil rights era. Call Ferdinand Burns at (803) 9684464 for information.

PUBLIC AGENDA

DAILY PLANNER

THE SUMTER ITEM

WEATHER

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2014

AccuWeather® five-day forecast for Sumter TODAY

TONIGHT

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

Mostly sunny and very warm

Clear

Mostly sunny

Sun and some clouds

Not as warm with sun and clouds

Sunny intervals with a t-storm

91°

61°

92° / 64°

92° / 62°

81° / 62°

84° / 62°

Chance of rain: 5%

Chance of rain: 5%

Chance of rain: 5%

Chance of rain: 15%

Chance of rain: 25%

Chance of rain: 55%

Winds: WSW 4-8 mph

Winds: SSW 3-6 mph

Winds: SW 4-8 mph

Winds: SSW 6-12 mph

Winds: SSW 7-14 mph

Winds: SSW 4-8 mph

TODAY’S SOUTH CAROLINA WEATHER

Gaffney 85/58 Spartanburg 87/58

Greenville 87/58

Columbia 93/60

Temperatures shown on map are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

IN THE MOUNTAINS

Sumter 91/61

Aiken 91/58

ON THE COAST

Charleston 92/63

Today: Mostly sunny; humid in northern parts. High 81 to 91.

Thursday: A full day of sunshine. High 81 to 89.

LOCAL ALMANAC

LAKE LEVELS

SUMTER THROUGH 4 P.M. YESTERDAY

Today Hi/Lo/W 86/58/s 82/61/t 87/70/pc 65/54/t 85/72/pc 69/56/pc 83/69/pc 68/51/pc 91/66/s 69/51/pc 78/63/s 64/53/pc 69/59/c

SUN AND MOON 7 a.m. yest.

357.91 75.39 74.68 97.13

24-hr chg -0.02 -0.16 none +0.07

Sunrise 6:27 a.m.

Moonrise 1:33 p.m.

RIVER STAGES River Black River Congaree River Lynches River Saluda River Up. Santee River Wateree River

0.00" 0.01" 0.59" 12.58" 15.35" 14.94"

NATIONAL CITIES City Atlanta Chicago Dallas Detroit Houston Los Angeles New Orleans New York Orlando Philadelphia Phoenix San Francisco Wash., DC

Full pool 360 76.8 75.5 100

Lake Murray Marion Moultrie Wateree

92° 64° 80° 54° 95° in 1950 43° in 1973

Precipitation 24 hrs ending 4 p.m. yest.

Month to date Normal month to date Year to date Last year to date Normal year to date

Thu. Hi/Lo/W 87/64/s 82/61/c 85/69/t 80/60/c 87/71/pc 72/57/pc 82/71/pc 59/52/r 91/69/s 67/54/pc 84/67/s 63/54/pc 86/63/pc

Myrtle Beach 83/64

Manning 90/60

Today: Sunny to partly cloudy. Winds southwest 4-8 mph. Clear.

Thursday: Mostly sunny. Winds southwest 4-8 mph.

Temperature High Low Normal high Normal low Record high Record low

Florence 90/61

Bishopville 91/61

Sunset Moonset

8:10 p.m.

2:06 a.m.

Full

Last

New

First

May 14

May 21

May 28

June 5

TIDES

Flood 7 a.m. 24-hr stage yest. chg 12 8.14 -0.31 19 4.18 +0.13 14 4.88 -0.39 14 3.79 +0.30 80 77.79 -0.60 24 6.52 -0.05

AT MYRTLE BEACH

Today Thu.

High 3:28 a.m.

4:18 p.m.

4:22 a.m.

5:12 p.m.

Ht. 2.8 2.6 2.7 2.7

Low 10:35 a.m.

10:54 p.m.

11:25 a.m.

11:52 p.m.

Ht. 0.7 0.9 0.7 0.8

REGIONAL CITIES City Asheville Athens Augusta Beaufort Cape Hatteras Charleston Charlotte Clemson Columbia Darlington Elizabeth City Elizabethtown Fayetteville

Today Hi/Lo/W 83/49/s 89/58/s 91/54/s 91/64/s 71/64/c 92/63/s 85/58/pc 88/57/s 93/60/s 89/60/s 71/60/c 85/63/pc 84/63/pc

Thu. Hi/Lo/W 84/52/s 89/61/s 91/58/s 89/65/s 77/67/s 92/65/s 90/59/s 89/62/s 93/62/s 92/61/s 86/63/s 92/64/s 92/64/s

Today City Hi/Lo/W Florence 90/61/s Gainesville 91/61/s Gastonia 86/58/pc Goldsboro 79/64/c Goose Creek 91/63/s Greensboro 79/60/pc Greenville 87/58/s Hickory 82/57/s Hilton Head 84/68/s Jacksonville, FL 91/62/s La Grange 87/52/s Macon 89/56/s Marietta 87/59/s

Thu. Hi/Lo/W 93/63/s 90/65/s 90/61/s 92/63/s 91/65/s 90/61/s 89/61/s 88/59/s 81/68/s 90/63/s 87/58/s 90/60/s 88/63/s

Today City Hi/Lo/W Marion 84/54/s Mt. Pleasant 89/63/s Myrtle Beach 83/64/s Orangeburg 90/60/s Port Royal 89/64/s Raleigh 78/63/c Rock Hill 86/57/pc Rockingham 86/60/pc Savannah 92/61/s Spartanburg 87/58/s Summerville 86/65/s Wilmington 82/65/pc Winston-Salem 80/60/pc

Thu. Hi/Lo/W 87/57/s 89/65/s 84/66/s 91/60/s 87/65/s 90/62/s 91/59/s 93/60/s 90/64/s 90/61/s 84/67/s 91/64/s 89/61/s

Weather(W): s–sunny, pc–partly cloudy, c–cloudy, sh–showers, t–thunderstorms, r–rain, sf–snow flurries, sn–snow, i–ice

TOWN OF LYNCHBURG PLANNING COMMISSION Today, 4 p.m., town hall SUMTER COUNTY VOTER REGISTRATION / ELECTION COMMISSION Thursday, 5:30 p.m., registration / election office, 141 N. Main St.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): Start anew by EUGENIA LAST making wise choices. Get back into shape. Exercise and a healthy diet will lead to the look you want. If you look good, you’ll feel good, and the confidence you project will help you reach your goal.

The last word in astrology

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Don’t let anyone bring you down. Do what suits you and put more time into personal improvements. Nurturing a relationship that means a lot to you will ease your stress and help you feel secure and confident moving forward.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Take on a challenge. Focus on competitive activities that will keep you occupied. Someone you are close TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Think to will cause you grief if you get before sharing your thoughts or into a debate. Don’t jeopardize offering constructive criticism.

Emotions will be easily set off if you your reputation by getting involved in a no-win situation. aren’t careful how you handle sensitive situations. Composure SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): coupled with positive thoughts will Search as you may for the right improve your day as well as your information, you will be led astray. relationships with others.

Concentrate on home, family and GEMINI (May 21-June 20): Getting involved in events or activities that allow you to interact and show others what you’ve got to offer will help you get ahead and make new allies. Show off your skills and offer your services and suggestions.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Don’t fight the inevitable. Go with the flow and make the most of what you have to work with. Focus on self-improvement, not trying to change those around you. Positive support will earn far more respect and recognition then criticism.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): Engage in events that offer knowledge, education or interesting facts about people and places. Short trips will spark your imagination and help you discover talents you didn’t know you had. Enjoy the moment.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Take a moment to go over any concerns or issues you have before taking the plunge and getting involved in something that can be costly emotionally, financially or physically. Networking functions will expand your interests and your circle of friends.

adding to your personal comfort and convenience. Romance will improve your love life. Go over your assets and make minor adjustments.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Stick close to home and work on selfimprovement and nurturing important relationships. Delays and problems will surface while traveling or discussing a situation with opposing individuals. Avoid dealing with authority figures or institutions. Stick to simple alternatives in order to keep the peace.

LOTTERY NUMBERS PALMETTO CASH 5 TUESDAY

POWERBALL SATURDAY

1-3-11-23-26 PowerUp: 2

5-15-16-46-49 Powerball: 26 Powerplay: 4

PICK 4 TUESDAY

PICK 3 TUESDAY

6-6-6-3 and 9-1-5-7

9-2-7 and 1-9-4

MEGAMILLIONS Numbers were not available at press time.

PICTURES FROM THE PUBLIC Amanda Hitchcock took this photo of a beautiful stargazer lily.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): A job change or looking into an alternate way to make your money stretch will help you budget your personal affairs and ease your stress. Put romance at the top of your list and do something that will be sure to please someone you love.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): If you want something, go after it. Taking a proactive approach to health, wealth and legal concerns will help put matters behind you, allowing you to move forward and set new goals. Money will come to you through an unusual source.

HAVE YOU TAKEN PICTURES OF INTERESTING, EXCITING, BEAUTIFUL OR HISTORICAL PLACES? Would you like to share those images with your fellow Sumter Item readers? E-mail your hi-resolution jpegs to sandrah@theitem.com, or mail to Sandra Holbert c/o The Sumter Item, P.O. Box 1677, Sumter, SC 29150. Include clearly printed or typed name of photographer and photo details. Include a self-addressed, stamped envelope for return of your photo. Amateur photographers only please.

SECTION

B

NFL teams ready to take their picks

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014

B2 Call: (803) 774-1241 | E-mail: sports@theitem.com

PREP BASEBALL

Sumter win away from earning District VI title

BY DENNIS BRUNSON dennisb@theitem.com The Sumter High School baseball team is one win away from earning a berth in the 4A state SHUMAKE playoffs lower state tournament.

The Gamecocks want to make sure it takes just one game to get that victory.

Sumter will play host to Summerville in the championship round of the District VI tournament today at Gamecock Field beginning at 6 SUMTER ITEM FILE PHOTO p.m. The Gamecocks are undefeated in the Charlie Barnes and the rest of the Sumter High baseball team have tournament, meaning the Green Wave would one more game to win to be crowned the District VI tournament have to beat them twice to win the district. If champion. SHS hosts Summerville at 6 p.m. today in the championSummerville wins the first game, the deciding ship round, needing only one win to advance. game will be played a few minutes after the

completion of the first.

Sumter head coach Brooks Shumake doesn’t think his team will be taking anything for granted after beating Summerville 11-1 in five innings on Saturday.

“I think my guys are focused, and they understand that Summerville is a better team than the one we saw on Saturday,” said Shumake, whose squad is 22-2-1 on the season.

“Our job is just to go out and compete and try to win the game. We just want to play the best baseball we can.”

The 19-5 Wave advanced to the championship round by beating Aiken 7-6 in an elimination game on Monday in Summerville. Shumake is expecting to see Zach Mosay on the mound for

Passing the Panthers

SEE SUMTER, PAGE B4

Cavs rout Raiders 11-3; host today for 2A title berth

BY EMERY GLOVER T&D Online Editor

clamps with two strikeouts and a grounder to first to come out unscathed.

In the fourth, Kuhn reached on a 2-out infield single and moved to second on McMiking’s single up the middle, but Sears proved equal to the task once again, striking out Dylan Vaughan to keep Pinewood Prep off the scoreboard.

HOLLY HILL — Michael Nelson made his way into the dugout after meeting with his team following the top of the fourth inning.

The Holly Hill Academy baseball head coach adjusted his hat on his way back to the field seeing a side of his team that he didn’t want to see.

“It’s de ja vu all over again,” Nelson, the former Sumter High School baseball player, said before making his way to the coach’s box on the third base side of the field.

That feeling of deja vu came from watching the Raiders surrender five runs on three hits, an error RANKIN and two walks to Robert E. Lee Academy to help the Cavaliers eventually take an 11-3 win in the opening game of the best-of-3 semifinal series in the 2A state playoffs.

“We’ve been hitting the ball lately,” Cavaliers head coach David Rankin said. “Last week, we scored 15 runs in one game, eight in another...all of a sudden, we’re hitting the ball and we’re hitting it hard against good people. We feel good about our bats right now.”

The Cavaliers got going in the first against starter Noah Cason.

Robert E. Lee immediately loaded the bases with a single and two walks before Payton Bramlett smacked a double into right field making it 2-0 Two batters later, a Weston Green sacrifice fly scored Denton Lee, making it a 3-0 game.

The Raiders were able to cut into the Cavaliers’ lead in the bottom of the second. After Middleton Bull reached on an infield error and a walk was issued to Hagen Mott, James Shuler singled to load the

SEE BARONS, PAGE B3

SEE CAVALIERS, PAGE B4

MATT WALSH / THE SUMTER ITEM

Wilson Hall’s Kemper Patton runs to third base during the Barons’ 6-0 victory against Pinewood Prep on Tuesday at Baron Field in the best-of-3 SCISA 3A semifinal series. WH will travel to Summerville today and needs a victory against the Panthers to advance to the state championship series for the second straight year.

Barons need victory today to advance to state finals

BY EDDIE LITAKER Special to The Item John Patrick Sears and Chase Belk combined on a 4-hit shutout, striking out 16, as Wilson Hall’s varsity baseball team downed Pinewood Prep 6-0 at Baron Field on Tuesday in game one of their best-of-3 SCISA 3A playoffs semifinal series.

Sears pitched the first six innings, striking out 13 and surrendering dou-

bles to Mike McCombs and Kris Kuhn and singles to Kuhn and John McMiking for the Panthers’ only hits. McCombs’ double came JONES with one out in the first before Sears rallied to strike out Cody Lewis and Lewis Vaughn to end the frame.

Kuhn’s 2-bagger opened the second, but Sears once again put on the

CLEMSON FOOTBALL

Clemson WR Watkins brings steady approach to NFL

BY PETE IACOBELLI The Associated Press COLUMBIA — Sammy Watkins isn’t worried about how high he’ll be selected in the NFL draft Thursday night, just how he’ll continue to keep improving for the team that picks him.

Watkins has carried a steady approach to football and his performance since he picked Clemson after being one of Florida’s top high school players — and says that won’t change in the pros.

AP FILE PHOTO This past Saturday, Watkins attendClemson wide receiver Sammy Watkins, shown diving between two Georgia Tech deed a high-school fundraiser put together by his agent, Tory Dandy, and fenders, is considered to be a top five pick in the National Football League draft, which signed autographs two chairs down begins on Thursday. Watkins is Clemson’s career leader in receptions (240) and receivfrom South Carolina defensive end ing yards (3,391).

Jadeveon Clowney.

Watkins, considered a possible top-5 selection, has been projected as high as No. 2 to St. Louis.

“I don’t have too much to stay about that,” Watkins said with a smile about possibly being the top pick. “If I go number one, that’s fine. If I go number five, that’s fine. I can only control what I can control and that’s on the field.”

That’s also where Watkins has excelled.

He was a breakout star as a freshman in 2011, helping Clemson to its first Atlantic Coast Conference championship in two decades. He caught 82

SEE WATKINS, PAGE B4

B2

|

2014 NFL DRAFT

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014

THE SUMTER ITEM

Open field for receivers But defensive end is considered top prospect

BY BARRY WILNER

coordinators drool. “I’m willing to go to any team and try and have that instant impact,�

AP PRO FOOTBALL WRITER says Watkins, who bypassed his senior or anyone who believes the home year to enter the draft. run is only a dynamic part of He could go as high as second in the baseball, take a look at this year’s first round, and several teams have shown interest in trading up to that spot, currently NFL draft. owned by the Rams.

Football’s equivalent to the homer, the But Watkins hardly is the only top long pass downfield, is the province of a wideout, and as many as six could get dozen or more college wide receivers, many of whom will be selected early in the chosen on Day 1.

Mike Evans of Texas A&M is another proceedings, which begin Thursday night underclassman who figures to go early. at Radio City Music Hall.

While Johnny Manziel, the 2012 Heisman “Teams can get a receiver everywhere in this draft,� says Bill Polian, who built the Trophy winner and one of the most touted quarterbacks in this crop got most of the Bills, Panthers and Colts into Super Bowl attention with the Aggies, Evans was his teams.

The best of the bunch is Sammy Watkins go-to guy.

Evans is 6-5, 233 pounds and powerful. of Clemson, who has size, speed, agility, He might not be a deep threat like Watkins, dependable hands and that knack for but he’s going to make the difficult catch making the big play that makes offensive

F

First Round (1) Houston Texans (2) St. Louis Rams Jacksonville Jaguars Cleveland Browns Oakland Raiders Atlanta Falcons Tampa Bay Buccaneers Minnesota Vikings Buffalo Bills Detroit Lions Tennessee Titans New York Giants St. Louis Rams Chicago Bears Pittsburgh Steelers Dallas Cowboys Baltimore Ravens New York Jets Miami Dolphins Arizona Cardinals Green Bay Packers Philadelphia Eagles Kansas City Chiefs Cincinnati Bengals San Diego Chargers Cleveland Browns

South Carolina defensive end Jadeveon Clowney. Indeed, teams have been eager for the chance to get him since he was a freshman with the Gamecocks. Houston owns the first pick.

Yet another junior, Clowney gets into opposing backfields so quickly it appears he lined up there. “I don’t know how you can take anybody over Clowney,� ESPN analyst Mel Kiper says. “He’s a once-in-every-20-year guy.�

The major knock against Clowney is that he doesn’t always play hard, and that he coasted last season to avoid getting injured and damaging his draft stock. But he also was facing more than one blocker on every snap. “I think I work just as hard as anybody,�

Clowney says. “If you pick me and pair me with guys, I’m going to try and outwork them also.�

Keep an eye on these players

From Washington Redskins

(3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10) (11) (12) (13) (14) (15) (16) (17) (18) (19) (20) (21) (22) (23) (24) (25) (26)

and use his strength to break tackles.

Other receivers to watch for in the opening round are Southern California’s Marqise Lee, LSU’s Odell Beckham Jr., Oregon State’s Brandin Cooks, and Florida State’s Kelvin Benjamin.

All had eligibility remaining, but all seem ready to sprint their way onto NFL rosters.

NFL draft guru Gil Brandt, who invites players to Radio City for the event, has asked seven receivers to come to New York. He lists eight wideouts among his top 50 available players this year. “Any team looking for a receiver will like this draft,� Brandt says.

Those teams could range from Super Bowl champion Seattle, which lost Golden Tate to Detroit in free agency, to also-rans Tampa Bay and Cleveland.

For the all the riches at receiver, though, the consensus top prospect this year is

AP PHOTO/MIKE STEWART

Jadeveon Clowney, DE South Carolina 6-foot-6; 266 pounds Hometown: Rock Hill, S.C. 2013: Finished last season with 11 1/2 tackles for loss and three sacks; plays with power; blazing fast; could be No. 1 pick Projection: Top 5

AP PHOTO/KEITH SRAKOCIC

Aaron Donald, DT Pittsburgh 6-foot-1; 285 pounds Hometown: Pittsburgh, Pa. 2013: Won Bronko Nagurski Award as national defensive player; Outland and Lombardi awards Projection: Top 10

(1)(33) (2)(34) (3)(35) (4)(36) (5)(37) (6)(38) (7)(39) (8)(40) (9)(41) (10)(42) AP PHOTO/CARLOS OSORIO (11)(43) AP PHOTO/GERALD HERBERT Carlos Hyde, RB Johnny Manziel, QB (12)(44) Ohio State Texas A&M (13)(45) (14)(46) 5-foot-11 3/4; 207 pounds 6-foot-0; 230 pounds Hometown: Tyler, Texas Hometown: Naples, Fla. (15)(47) 2013: Averaged 7.3 2012-13: Won Heisman (16)(48) yards per carry; runs with (17)(49) Trophy in 2012; exciting power, has quick feet and productive player; (18)(50) able to make plays out of and excellent size; good (19)(51) hands and considered a the pocket; athletic and (20)(52) solid blocker competitive Projection: Late 1st Projection: 1st round (21)(53) (22)(54) (23)(55) (24)(56)

New Orleans Saints Carolina Panthers New England Patriots San Francisco 49ers Denver Broncos Seattle Seahawks

NFL Draft No. 1 Picks 7KH ÂżUVW FKRLFH RI FROOHJH SOD\HUV with year, player, team, position and college:

2013: Eric Fisher,

AP PHOTO/MIKE GROLL

AP PHOTO/MARK J. TERRILL

AP PHOTO/LYNNE SLADKY

AP PHOTO/DAVID J. PHILLIP

Khalil Mack, LB Buffalo

Anthony Barr, LB UCLA

Sammy Watkins, WR Clemson

Mike Evans, WR Texas A&M

6-foot-3; 251 pounds Hometown: Fort Pierce, Fla. 2013: Last season had 10 1/2 sacks, three LQWHUFHSWLRQV ÂżYH IRUFHG fumbles, two touchdowns; hard hitter Projection: Top 5

6-foot-5; 255 pounds Hometown: South Bend, Ind. 2013: In two seasons, 23 1/2 sacks; played outside; explosive pass rusher; speed and quickness player Projection: Top 15

6-foot-1; 211 pounds Hometown: Fort Myers, Fla. 2013: Clemson’s career leader in receptions (240); yards after receiving (3,391); big-time speed and good hands Projection: Top 10

6-foot-5; 233 pounds Hometown: Galveston, Texas 2013: In two seasons, 151 catches, 2,499 yards, 17 touchdowns; good size but lacks separation speed Projection: Top 15

Kansas City, OT, Central Mich.

2012: Andrew Luck, Indianapolis, QB, Stanford.

2011: Cam Newton, Carolina, QB, Auburn.

2010: Sam Bradford, St. Louis, QB, Oklahoma.

2009: Matthew Stafford, Detroit, QB, Georgia.

2008: Jake Long, Miami, OT, Michigan.

2007: JaMarcus Russell, Oakland, QB, LSU.

2006: Mario Williams,

AP PHOTO/SUE OGROCKI

AP PHOTO/NATI HARNIK

AP PHOTO/DAVE MARTIN

AP PHOTO/KEITH SRAKOCIC

Justin Gilbert, CB Oklahoma State

Darqueze Dennard, CB Michigan State

Eric Ebron, TE North Carolina

Greg Robinson, OT Auburn

6-foot-0; 202 pounds Hometown: The Woodlands, Texas 2013: Had seven interceptions, returned two for TDs, career six kickoff returns for TDs; good size and closing speed Projection: Top 15

5-foot-11; 199 pounds Hometown: Dry Branch, Ga. 2013: Won Thorpe Award as nation’s best defensive back; four interceptions, 62 tackles, 10 passes defended Projection: Middle of 1st

6-foot-4; 250 pounds Hometown: Newark, N.J. 2013: 62 catches for 973 yards; broke ACC record for yards by tight end; size, speed, quickness and sticky hands Projection: Top 15

6-foot-5; 332 pounds Hometown: Thibodaux, La. 2013: Two-year starter who became a dominant player as a junior; has size, athleticism and power Projection: Top 5

Houston, DE, N. Carolina St.

2005: Alex Smith, San Francisco, QB, Utah.

2004: Eli Manning, San Diego, QB, Mississippi.

2003: Carson Palmer, Cincinnati, QB, Southern Cal.

2002: David Carr, Houston, QB, Fresno State.

2001: Michael Vick,

Houston Texans Washington Redskins Cleveland Browns Oakland Raiders Atlanta Falcons Tampa Bay Buccaneers Jacksonville Jaguars Minnesota Vikings Buffalo Bills Tennessee Titans New York Giants St. Louis Rams Detroit Lions Pittsburgh Steelers Dallas Cowboys Baltimore Ravens New York Jets Miami Dolphins Chicago Bears Arizona Cardinals Green Bay Packers Philadelphia Eagles Cincinnati Bengals San Francisco 49ers From Kansas City

From Indianapolis Colts

(27) (28) (29) (30) (31) (32)

Second Round

Atlanta, QB, Virginia Tech.

2000: Courtney Brown, Cleveland, DE, Penn State.

STATISTICS FROM AP; PAGE DESIGNED AND BUILT BY POSTMEDIA EDITORIAL SERVICES

(25)(57) (26)(58) (27)(59) (28)(60) (29)(61) (30)(62) (31)(63) (32)(64)

San Diego Chargers New Orleans Saints Indianapolis Colts Carolina Panthers San Francisco 49ers New England Patriots Denver Broncos Seattle Seahawks

NOTE: Bold numbers are overall pick position.

Players to Watch Small Schools Jimmy Garoppolo: QB; drawn comparisons to Dallas QB Tony Romo, a fellow Eastern Illinois alum, and isn’t expected to last beyond the second round.

Pierre Desir: CB; 23-year-old Haitian immigrant, husband and father who worked in sewers between stints at two Division II schools, Washburn in Kansas and Lindenwood in Missouri, could go on the second day of the draft.

Terrance West: RB; ran for 2,509 yards and 41 touchdowns last season at Towson; short and powerful.

Billy Turner: OL; played on three straight FCS championship teams at North Dakota State.

Jeff Janis: WR; played at Saginaw Valley State; impressed scouts at the combine with a 4.42-second 40-yard dash after measuring in at 6-3, 219 pounds.

Johnny Millard: LB; played at Cal Poly; is attempting to follow in the footsteps of his father, Keith, a longtime NFL player.

Zach Moore: DL; 6-5, 269-pound pass rusher who had 21 sacks over the past two seasons Larry Webster: DE; 6-6, 252-pound defensive end who had 26 sacks in that span, are in the mix, too.

0LOODUG DQG 0RRUH ZHUH ¿QDOLVWV IRU WKH Cliff Harris Award presented to the nation’s best small-school defender.

Auburn, Bama figure to have big draft presence

BY JOHN ZENOR The Associated Press MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Auburn Tigers will have a significant presence in the NFL draft for the first time since Cam Newton left.

Alabama’s NFL pipeline, meanwhile, is still flowing strongly as ever.

The Tigers’ Greg Robinson is projected as a Top-5 pick on Thursday while defensive end/linebacker Dee Ford is considered a likely late firstrounder. Tailback Tre Mason is expected to follow a round or two later.

It’s another major turnaround for a team that played for a national championship immediately after an awful season. Auburn has had only one player drafted each of the past two years, both third-rounders, since Newton and Nick Fairley went No. 1 and No. 13 overall in 2011.

The renewed draft presence could be a boon, especially in selling the program to recruits. “Recruits want to go places to have a chance to win championships and go to the next level,� Tigers coach

Gus Malzahn said Tuesday. “When you establish yourself as one of those teams, it does nothing but help. “We’ve got a handful of guys that have an opportunity to be drafted.

Some will sign (as free agents). This will be a deep group.�

Nobody’s outdone the Tide in the draft in recent years and Nick Saban’s team could set a program record for most total picks, including projected first-rounders Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, C.J. Mosley and Cyrus Kouandjio and probable early-round pick quarterback AJ McCarron.

Alabama has at least a dozen players deemed candidates to be picked somewhere amid the seven rounds, though some could wind up free agents. The Tide’s previous high was 10 draft picks in 1945.

Alabama has produced 14 firstrounders and 33 overall picks the past five years, while winning three national titles.

Part of the draft depth is because three underclassmen who aren’t projected first-rounders joined ClintonDix and Kouandjio in leaving early.

Eleven of the 13 who previously skipped their senior seasons under Saban have been taken in the opening round.

The only question for Clinton-Dix and Mosley seems to be at what point in the first round they’re picked.

Kouandjio’s opening-round status is less certain, partly because he faced some questions about his surgically repaired knee at the NFL combine.

He has maintained it’s a non-issue.

There seem to be mixed views on McCarron, too, who is projected in the early to mid-round range. ESPN

analyst Jon Gruden said McCarron is a good pick for a team looking at a long-term horizon. “McCarron’s production speaks volumes: 36 wins, four losses, all-time record holder at Alabama in a lot of different categories,� said Gruden, a former Raiders and Buccaneers head coach. “He doesn’t have the flashy statistics that some of the other quarterbacks do because of the system he comes out of. Alabama comes out of a huddle. They only throw the ball 26 plays a game, which is about a 100th in college football. But he takes care of the ball. He has a big-picture understanding of the game. He’s been well-schooled. He’s disciplined. He’s durable. “I don’t think he has tremendous athletic ability. His arm is not off the charts, but he can play quarterback and manage an NFL system.�

McCarron said before the Tide’s spring game that “the whole process has been great. I’m loving it. It’s a lot of traveling, seeing places I’ve never seen before, so I’m having fun with it.�

SPORTS

THE SUMTER ITEM

BARONS FROM PAGE B1 “Sears is a No. 1 pitcher, and you go to your No. 1, and you expect to do better in the playoffs,” said Wilson Hall head coach Tommy Jones, whose team improved to 25-1 on the season. “He just does what he’s supposed to do (as) the senior pitcher. We run him out there and we expect to win. That sounds arrogant, but we feel like he’s done that the whole season long. He’s every bit a blue-chip pitcher.”

Belk came on to strike out the side in the seventh as the two Baron hurlers combined to strike out the final eight Panther batters.

“That builds a little momentum for the pitching staff as a whole,” Jones said of Belk’s mound effort, “because if you’re a one-trick pony and have only one pitcher then it will show up on you. So we have to get these guys in (and) get their feet wet in the tournament. It would have been the easy call to just let J.P. go ahead and cruise, because he was on cruise control, but what happens tomorrow and tomorrow and the next tournament? So we have to think a little bit (ahead).

“Was it a risk in pulling an ace pitcher? I don’t know, maybe so, but Chase Belk’s good, too. So when we drop down to our next pitchers and relief pitchers we feel like we’ve got good quality there, too.”

The Barons gave Sears all the offensive support he would need in the first inning, breaking through against Pinewood Prep starter Kuhn for three runs on a walk and three hits. William Kinney started the rally by drawing a 1-out base on balls, moved to third on a Sears single and scored ahead of Sears on a Kemper Patton single. Patton came home on a clutch two-out William Creech single.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014

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Wilson Hall added two in the second as Andrew Kinney and Robert James reached on an error and an infield single and came around on two infield groundouts and a Sears grounder that handcuffed Pinewood Prep third baseman Brandon Brown.

The Barons’ final run came in the fifth as Patton deposited a Vaughan pitch over the right-center fence .

“If we can stake Sears to three runs in the first inning, we’re feeling like we’re in good shape, and they knew that,” Jones said. “Their strategy was to play infield in early in the game, which is a statement to say, ‘We don’t know whether we’re going to be able to score any runs.’ That first pair of RBIs he (Patton) got was (with) the infield in and they just guessed wrong and he banged it through. ... We did hit the ball in timely situations.”

The Barons travel to Summerville tonight for a 7 p.m start, instead of the previously announced 6:30 start, looking to close out the series in two games. Should the 14-10 Panthers come away with a win, the rubber game would take place at a neutral site on Friday.

MATT WALSH / THE SUMTER ITEM

Wilson Hall senior John Patrick Sears, above, combined with Chase Belk to throw a 4-hit shutout in the Barons’ 6-0 victory against Pinewood Prep on Tuesdy at Baron Field. Sears struck out 13 batters over six innings to pick up the victory. The two teams will meet again at 7 p.m. today with WH needing a victory to advance to the state championship series.

GOLF

TPC Sawgrass tries to get 3 closed greens right

BY DOUG FERGUSON The Associated Press PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Three greens at The Players Championship remained off limits Tuesday to the strongest field in golf, a combination of bad weather in the winter and the misapplication of a lawn product.

PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem said he expects the greens on Nos. 4, 11 and 12 will be fine when golf’s richest tournament begins Thursday, and the warmth and sunshine will only help through the week.

Even so, he conceded that conditions at the Stadium Course on the TPC Sawgrass have not been perfect in the seven years since The Players moved from late March to early May. And while he called it “unlikely,” he did not entirely rule out a return to a late March date if it can’t be figured out.

Complaints have been minimal. Then again, the players were warned last week about a cold, wet winter and the issue with the greens. Some were expecting them to be in far worse condition than they were. Some sections have been sodded and plugged,

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Spectators watch golfers on the 17th green during Tuesday’s practice round for The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Greens Nos. 4, 11 and 12 have been off limits in hopes to repair the holes before Thursday’s tournament. and while there might be cosmetic issues, they appear to be fine.

“When you build a tournament and you’re shooting for perfection — which is what we do — and we have some imperfections, it doesn’t make it any more palatable that the players are being good about it,” Finchem said.

“I mean, we need to fix our greens. And we intend to take

all the steps I just mentioned and some others aggressively next year. So I think we’re going to be fine.

“At the end of the day, if we can’t maintain consistent conditions — and I think they will be competitively fine this week on balance — then we may have to examine the date.”

The grass was overseeded with rye when The Players

was held in March, which is typical for most Florida courses. Finchem said that was easier to manage with the weather. But he said it still took 10 years “to really get it dialed in” for speed and firmness.

The new Bermuda greens were not build until 2007, and a sand cap under the grass on greens and fairways allow the course to be firm after a rain delay.

May typically offers warmer, drier weather, compared with a greater chance for rain in March. Finchem said the problem this year wasn’t just a cold winter, but a rainy winter.

“If we’re doing everything we can and it just is a continuing weather problem that we can’t beat, I suppose we’d rethink the date,” he said.

“But when you’re talking about a perennial problem of three greens which have been stubborn most years since ‘07, I think we’d probably go a different set of greens on those holes, different kinds of

greens. These are small greens. We can make bigger greens and probably not have a problem.”

The three greens that were closed to practice are small and get a lot of foot traffic.

Finchem is hesitant to make them larger to preserve the heritage of the greens and the shots that are played to them. He said the PGA Tour would be inclined to change the nature of the greens before switching the date.

He said he was 90 percent certain the Stadium Course would get a new strain of Bermuda (TifEagle) for the 2016 tournament. Finchem said a few courses in the area use it and it performs well.

Phil Mickelson was among those not concerned.

“I looked at them. They’re fine,” Mickelson said of the three greens closed to practice. “They’re very playable.

Everybody has got to play them. It’s totally fine. Now, they’re not going to be able to be firm and fast like they normally are. They’re softer, a little bit slower, and that’s going to lead to lower scores, but it doesn’t matter. We’re all going to have the opportunity to shoot lower scores.”

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THE SUMTER ITEM

AREA ROUNDUP

Swampcats top Hilton Head Prep in 3A semifinal HILTON HEAD – Laurence Manning Academy’s baseball team defeated Hilton Head Prep 4-2 on Tuesday in the opening game of their SCISA 3A state playoffs semifinal series at the HHP field.

The teams play the second game in the best-of-3 series today in Manning at Tucker Belangia Diamond beginning at 6 p.m.

Russell Thompson pitched six innings to get the victory for the Swampcats, who improved to 15-6 on the season. He struck out six and allowed just four hits. Linc Powell pitched the final inning to get the save.

Tripp Mason led the offense with a double, two runs scored and two runs batted in.

HHP fell to 18-3.

EC WINS DISTRICT

PAMPLICO – East Clarendon High School beat Hannah-Pamplico 11-0 and

7-2 on Tuesday to win the District VII tournament of the 1A state playoffs at the H-P field.

The Wolverines, who are 20-3 on the season, won the tournament after losing to Pamplico 6-3 in the opening game. After winning by forfeit over Allendale-Fairfax on Saturady, EC beat Cross 15-2 on Monday. Dane Smith, Adam Lowder, Peyton Coker and William Ard each had two hits in the game.

The Wolverines will play host to Latta on Saturday in the opening game of the lower state tournament.

Greg McLeod added two goals and an assist for the Gators, who improved to 13-2 overall and 8-1 in Region VI-3A. Gianni Jackson had a goal and an assist while Jonathan Turcios and Blake Carraher both scored a goal.

Ben Busques and Jir Bre Brown both had an assist.

Mike Paterna had seven saves in goal.

GIRLS

LAURENCE MANNING 6

VARSITY SOFTBALL EAST CLARENDON 10

VARSITY SOCCER

HANNAH-PAMPLICO 2

LAKEWOOD 9

TURBEVILLE – East Clarendon High School won the District VII tournament of the 1A state playoffs with a 10-2 victory over Hannah-Pamplico on Tuesday at the EC field.

The Lady Wolverines, the defending

MANNING 1 MANNING – Christian McDonald scored four goals to lead Lakewood High School to a 9-1 victory over Manning on Tuesday at the Manning field.

state champion, are 17-4 on the season.

They will play host to the District VIII champion on Saturday in the opening game in the lower state tournament.

Jessica Welch went 4-for-4 to lead the East Clarendon offense. Jordan Welch was 3-for-4 with two runs batted in, while Leslie Altman and Makayla Anderson were both 2-for-4 with two RBI. Altman picked up the victory in the circle.

CAROLINA 0

MANNING – Laurence Manning Academy defeated Carolina Academy 6-0 on Monday at the LMA field.

Courtney Beatson tossed a 3-hit shutout for the Lady Swampcats.

Maggie Eppley led the offense, going 2-for-2 with two runs batted in and a run scored. Mary Michael Windham had a hit and two RBI.

WATKINS FROM PAGE B1

MATT WALSH / THE SUMTER ITEM

Sumter’s Javon Martin slides back into first base during the Gamecocks’ 11-1 win over Summerville on Saturday in the District VI tournament of the 4A state playoffs. The teams play today in the championship round of the tournament with Sumter needing just one win to win the district.

SUMTER FROM PAGE B1 the Green Wave in the game.

Mosay, a right-hander, tossed a 2-0 shutout against LugoffElgin in Summerville’s opening game.

“He throws about 83, 84 (miles per hour); he’s a good pitcher,” Shumake said of

Mosay. He can throw three pitches for strikes. We just have to go up there and compete.”

Right-hander Phillip Watcher will start on the mound for the Gamecocks. He pitched in last Thursday’s district open-

CAVALIERS FROM PAGE B1 bases for the defending state champions. Two batters later, Nate Bochette’s base hit to left scored Bull making it 3-1. Mott added one more run for the Raiders on a fielder’s choice, slicing the lead to 3-2.

The Cavaliers broke the game open in the top of the fifth. After Cason recorded his third strikeout of the game, a double to left by Green and a walk to starting pitcher Nick Stokes set the table for Harry Cook. The freshman came up with an RBI base hit to right, scoring Green making it a 4-2 game.

Three batters later, the Raiders were unable to get out of the inning after a fly ball in right field was dropped, allowing three more runs to come in. In the next at-bat, Lee provided a ground-rule double over the center field wall, plating Casey Kelley and extending the Cavaliers lead to 8-2.

“This team can hit the baseball,” Nelson said of REL. “We’re just going to have to make plays when they put it in play. We’re not going to strike a bunch of them out. They hit to contact and that’s going to be the key to our success...making plays on defense.”

Robert E. Lee continued to pour it on in the top of the fifth. Following a single by Green, an error in center field allowed Green to score making it 9-2. Stokes, who reached second on the error, later scored in the inning

er, beating Aiken 5-4.

Should a second game be needed, lefty Charlie Barnes will start for Sumter. He was the winning pitcher in Saturday’s game.

The District VI champion will play at home on Saturday against the District V champion in the lower state tournament.

following an errant throw in the HHA infield pushing the lead to 10-2.

The Raiders managed to muster one more run in the bottom of the fifth. A leadoff double by Cason and a walk to Charlie Carpenter gave the Raiders a chance to put more runs on the board. However, the only run Holly Hill would come up with in the inning came on a balk by Stokes allowing Cason to score making it 10-3. Outside of a rough second inning and that miscue in the fifth, Stokes provided the Cavaliers with a much needed boost on the mound.

“I don’t know if we’re stealing one,” said Rankin, who improved to 21-9 on the season.

“We just use him as our No. 3. I don’t want to take anything away from him. He throws a fastball and a curveball for strikes. If you can do that in this league and got any kind of getup on your fastball, you’re the man.”

The 17-6 Raiders now find themselves in a must-win situation today when they head to Bishopville for a 6 p.m. game. Knowing what must be done, the Raiders will look to extend the series behind starter Seth Swank today and force it to a neutral site on Friday.

“We’re definitely confident,” Nelson said.

“That’s our problem probably. We’re too confident. We just expect to win. That’s not a bad thing all the time, but sometimes it is. We didn’t come in focused today and it showed on the field. We’ll just have to regroup and take care of business tomorrow.”

passes for 1,219 yards and 12 touchdowns, earning a spot on the AP All-America team along with several other honors.

Watkins highly anticipated sophomore season was short-circuited before it began with a drug arrest in the spring of 2012. That led to a two-game suspension from coach Dabo Swinney and a season in which Watkins had 57 catches for 708 yards and three TDs. It was a performance that humbled even the mildmannered Watkins, showing him how quickly dreams of success can fall apart.

“It helped me out growing up and trying to become a great man,” he said.

Watkins certainly became an even greater player in his final year with the Tigers.

He set single-season Clemson records with 101 catches and 1,464 yards, and matched his freshman output with 12 touchdowns.

Watkins capped his college career with another record-setting show with 16 receptions for 227 yards and two touchdowns in a 40-35 Orange Bowl win over Ohio State, Clemson’s first-ever win in a Bowl Championship Series game.

As expected, Watkins declared for the NFL draft a few days later and dove headfirst into workouts to prepare for the NFL combine where he put up a quick time of 4.43 seconds in the 40-yard dash. But along with Watkins’ speed comes a power that lets him muscle away from defenders and break into the open field. He showed that from the start of last season with a 75-yard touchdown catch and run in Clemson’s 38-35 win over Georgia in the opener, run-

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ning through one tackler and away from three more.

“It’s just something I’ve always done,” Watkins said.

While several prominent prospects — think Clowney and Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel — have had their games dissected and characters poured over by pro evaluators and media, Watkins has been universally praised for his attitude and ability.

“Sammy, from day one, has been what Clemson coach Dabo Swinney says, a humble superstar,” said Dandy of Relativity Sports.

Former Super Bowl winning coach and current ESPN analyst Jon Gruden agrees.

“I think what sets Sammy apart is his sincerity and passion for the game,” Gruden said last week. “Everyone I’ve talked to has come away very impressed with Watkins’ passion to be great and to put forth a tremendous work ethic.”

Watkins had a full complement of NFL teams on hand in March to watch him work out at Clemson’s pro day and has met individually with several teams, including the Rams who hold the second spot in Thursday night’s opening round.

Watkins had a grin and a few words for the lines of Clemson fans who he met last weekend at Woodruff High with his No. 2 jersey ready for a signature. He understands he’ll be looked at to reach another level in the pros and is ready to make that happen.

“You’ve still got to play football at the end of the day,” Watkins said, “so wherever I go, it’ll be a blessing for me.”

Your community news source

SPORTS

THE SUMTER ITEM

SCOREBOARD

12 innings Milwaukee 8, Arizona 3 Colorado 8, Texas 2 San Diego 6, Kansas City 5, 12 innings

TV, RADIO

TODAY’S GAMES

TODAY

1 p.m. – Major League Baseball: Los Angeles Dodgers at Washington or Arizona at Milwaukee (MLB NETWORK).

2:40 p.m. – International Soccer: Barclays Premier League Match – Manchester City vs. Aston Villa (NBC SPORTS NETWORK).

4 p.m. – College Softball: Southeastern Conference Tournament Game One from Columbia – Mississippi State vs. Kentucky (ESPNU).

5 p.m. – High School Softball: 4A State Playoffs District III Game Six – LugoffElgin at Northwestern (WPUB-FM 102.7).

6:05 p.m. – Talk Show: Sports Talk (WDXY-FM 105.9, WDXY-AM 1240).

6:30 p.m. – College Softball: Southeastern Conference Tournament Game Two from Columbia – Auburn vs. South Carolina (ESPNU).

7 p.m. – Major League Baseball: St. Louis at Atlanta (SPORTSOUTH).

7 p.m. – NBA Basketball: Eastern Conference Playoffs Semifinal Series Game Two – Washington at Indiana (TNT).

7 p.m. – College Baseball: Wofford at South Carolina (WNKT-FM 107.5).

7:30 p.m. – NHL Hockey: Eastern Conference Playoffs Semifinal Series Game Four – Pittsburgh at New York Rangers (NBC SPORTS NETWORK).

8 p.m. – Major League Baseball: Chicago Cubs at Chicago White Sox (ESPN).

9:30 p.m. – NBA Basketball: Western Conference Playoffs Semifinal Series Game Two – Los Angeles Clippers at Oklahoma City (TNT).

MLB STANDINGS

By The Associated Press AMERICAN LEAGUE EAST DIVISION W Baltimore 15 New York 16 Boston 15 Tampa Bay 15 Toronto 15 CENTRAL DIVISION W Detroit 18 Minnesota 15 Chicago 16 Kansas City 14 Cleveland 13 WEST DIVISION W Oakland 19 Texas 17 Los Angeles 16 Seattle 15 Houston 10

L 14 15 17 17 17

Pct .517 .516 .469 .469 .469

GB – – 11/2 11/2 11/2

L 9 15 17 17 19

Pct .667 .500 .485 .452 .406

GB – 41/2 5 6 71/2

L 13 15 15 15 22

Pct .594 .531 .516 .500 .313

GB – 2 21/2 3 9

MONDAY’S GAMES

Minnesota 1, Cleveland 0, 10 innings Toronto 3, Philadelphia 0 Detroit 2, Houston 0 Chicago White Sox 3, Chicago Cubs 1, 12 innings Colorado 8, Texas 2 L.A. Angels 4, N.Y. Yankees 1 Seattle 4, Oakland 2 San Diego 6, Kansas City 5, 12 innings

TODAY’S GAMES

Seattle (F.Hernandez 3-1) at Oakland (Straily 1-2), 3:35 p.m., 1st game Kansas City (Shields 3-3) at San Diego (Cashner 2-4), 3:40 p.m.

Minnesota (Nolasco 2-3) at Cleveland (Salazar 1-3), 7:05 p.m.

Seattle (E.Ramirez 1-3) at Oakland (Leon 0-0), 7:05 p.m., 2nd game Philadelphia (Cl.Lee 3-2) at Toronto (Buehrle 5-1), 7:07 p.m.

Houston (Peacock 0-2) at Detroit (Porcello 4-1), 7:08 p.m.

Baltimore (B.Norris 2-2) at Tampa Bay (C.Ramos 1-1), 7:10 p.m.

Cincinnati (Leake 2-3) at Boston (Peavy 1-1), 7:10 p.m.

Colorado (J.De La Rosa 3-3) at Texas (Lewis 2-1), 8:05 p.m.

Chicago Cubs (T.Wood 2-3) at Chicago White Sox (Joh.Danks 2-2), 8:10 p.m.

N.Y. Yankees (Nuno 0-0) at L.A. Angels (H.Santiago 0-5), 10:05 p.m.

EAST DIVISION

Milwaukee St. Louis Cincinnati Pittsburgh Chicago WEST DIVISION San Francisco Colorado Los Angeles San Diego Arizona

W 18 17 17 16 15

L 14 14 15 15 15

Pct .563 .548 .531 .516 .500

GB – 1/2 1 11/2 2

W 22 17 15 12 11

L 11 16 16 20 19

Pct .667 .515 .484 .375 .367

GB – 5 6 91/2 91/2

W 21 20 18 15 11

L 11 14 15 18 24

Pct .656 .588 .545 .455 .314

GB – 2 31/2 61/2 111/2

MONDAY’S GAMES

NASCAR LEADERS

By The Associated Press

Sprint Cup Leaders Through May 4 Points 1, Jeff Gordon, 347. 2, Matt Kenseth, 344. 3, Kyle Busch, 343. 4, Dale Earnhardt Jr., 328. 5, Carl Edwards, 328. 6, Joey Logano, 305. 7, Jimmie Johnson, 304. 8, Greg Biffle, 300. 9, Ryan Newman, 299. 10, Brian Vickers, 297. 11, Brad Keselowski, 294. 12, Denny Hamlin, 292. 13, Kyle Larson, 286. 14, Austin Dillon, 281. 15, A J Allmendinger, 279. 16, Marcos Ambrose, 268. 17, Paul Menard, 265. 18, Clint Bowyer, 261. 19, Kevin Harvick, 258. 20, Kasey Kahne, 252.

Money 1, Dale Earnhardt Jr., $2,799,753. 2, Brad Keselowski, $2,577,893. 3, Denny Hamlin, $2,401,200. 4, Jeff Gordon, $2,382,113. 5, Joey Logano, $2,293,318.

6, Kyle Busch, $2,114,368. 7, Jimmie Johnson, $2,107,568. 8, Matt Kenseth, $2,028,762.

9, Kevin Harvick, $1,901,923. 10, Greg Biffle, $1,814,683.

11, Paul Menard, $1,800,698. 12, Austin Dillon, $1,711,908. 13, Brian Vickers, $1,659,513. 14, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., $1,648,363. 15, Kyle Larson, $1,613,533.

16, Tony Stewart, $1,603,348.

17, Carl Edwards, $1,601,948. 18, Jamie McMurray, $1,578,368.

19, Clint Bowyer, $1,575,053. 20, Marcos Ambrose, $1,527,933.

NBA PLAYOFFS

By The Associated Press

CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS (Best-of-7; x-if necessary)

Washington 4, L.A. Dodgers 0 San Francisco 11, Pittsburgh 10, 13 innings Toronto 3, Philadelphia 0 Miami 4, N.Y. Mets 3 St. Louis 4, Atlanta 3 Chicago White Sox 3, Chicago Cubs 1,

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NBA PLAYOFF ROUNDUP

Heat trounce Nets MIAMI — Turns out, the Miami Heat can beat the Brooklyn Nets.

And rest hardly led to rust for the two-time defending NBA champions.

LeBron James scored 22 points, Ray Allen added 19 and the Heat stayed perfect in this postseason by beating the Nets 107-86 on Tuesday night in Game 1 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series. It was the first win for Miami in five meetings with Brooklyn this season.

Chris Bosh scored 15 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, Dwyane Wade finished with 14 points and Mario Chalmers had 12 for Miami, which recorded at least one regular-season win against every team except Brooklyn, losing four times by a total of 12 points.

This one was a different story.

Deron Williams and Joe Johnson scored 17 points each for the Nets, who got only eight from Paul Pierce and no points from Kevin Garnett in 16 minutes.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Thursday night.

A 24-9 run in the third quarter blew things open for the Heat, who hadn’t played in eight days after sweeping Charlotte in the opening

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Miami’s Dwyane Wade (3) drives to the basket as Brooklyn’s Joe Johnson (7) defends in the Heat’s 107-86 victory in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series on Tuesday in Miami. round. James finished 10 for 15 from the field and Allen — who had never faced his former Boston “Big 3” compatriots Pierce and Garnett in the playoffs — was 4 of 7 from 3-point land.

MONDAY CLIPPERS 122 THUNDER 105 OKLAHOMA CITY — Chris Paul got the best of Russell Westbrook in a matchup of two of the league’s best point guards.

Paul made a career-high

eight 3-pointers and scored 32 points to help the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Thunder 122-105 Monday night in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal.

Paul, who had never made more than five 3-pointers in a game, also had 10 assists.

Though Paul is a career 36 percent 3-point shooter, he doesn’t usually shoot them so often. Once he started hitting them, he became increasingly aggressive. He made 8 of 9 on the night.

From wire reports

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Miami vs. Brooklyn Thursday, May 8: Brooklyn at Miami, 7 p.m.

Saturday, May 10: Miami at Brooklyn, 8 p.m.

Monday, May 12: Miami at Brooklyn, 8 p.m.

Washington 1, Indiana 0 Monday, May 5: Washington 102, Indiana 96 Today: Washington at Indiana, 7 p.m.

Friday, May 9: Indiana at Washington, 8 p.m.

Sunday, May 11: Indiana at Washington, 8 p.m.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

San Antonio vs. Portland Tuesday, May 6: Portland at San Antonio, 9:30 p.m.

Thursday, May 8: Portland at San Antonio, 9:30 p.m.

Saturday, May 10: San Antonio at Portland, 10:30 p.m.

Monday, May 12: at San Antonio at Portland, 10:30 p.m.

L.A. Clippers 1, Oklahoma City 0 Monday, May 5: L.A. Clippers 122, Oklahoma City 105 Today: L.A. Clippers at Oklahoma City, 9:30 p.m.

Friday, May 9: Oklahoma City at L.A. Clippers, 10:30 p.m.

Sunday, May 11: Oklahoma City at L.A. Clippers, 3:30 p.m.

NHL PLAYOFFS

By The Associated Press

SECOND ROUND (Best-of-7; x-if necessary)

NATIONAL LEAGUE Washington Atlanta Miami New York Philadelphia CENTRAL DIVISION

San Francisco (Lincecum 2-1) at Pittsburgh (Cole 2-2), 12:35 p.m.

N.Y. Mets (Z.Wheeler 1-3) at Miami (Koehler 3-2), 12:40 p.m.

L.A. Dodgers (Haren 4-0) at Washington (Strasburg 2-2), 1:05 p.m.

Arizona (Arroyo 2-2) at Milwaukee (W.Peralta 4-1), 1:10 p.m.

Kansas City (Shields 3-3) at San Diego (Cashner 2-4), 3:40 p.m.

Philadelphia (Cl.Lee 3-2) at Toronto (Buehrle 5-1), 7:07 p.m.

Cincinnati (Leake 2-3) at Boston (Peavy 1-1), 7:10 p.m.

St. Louis (Wainwright 5-2) at Atlanta (Minor 0-1), 7:10 p.m.

Colorado (J.De La Rosa 3-3) at Texas (Lewis 2-1), 8:05 p.m.

Chicago Cubs (T.Wood 2-3) at Chicago White Sox (Joh.Danks 2-2), 8:10 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014

EASTERN CONFERENCE

Montreal 1, Boston 1 Thursday, May 1: Montreal 4, Boston 3, 2OT Saturday, May 3: Boston 5, Montreal 3 Tuesday, May 6: Boston at Montreal, 7 p.m.

Thursday, May 8: Boston at Montreal, 7:30 p.m.

Pittsburgh 2, N.Y. Rangers 1 Friday, May 2: N.Y. Rangers 3, Pittsburgh 2, OT Sunday, May 4: Pittsburgh 3, N.Y. Rangers 0 Monday, May 5: Pittsburgh 2, N.Y. Rangers 0 Today: Pittsburgh at N.Y. Rangers, 7:30 p.m.

WESTERN CONFERENCE

Chicago 2, Minnesota 0 Friday, May 2: Chicago 5, Minnesota 2 Sunday, May 4: Chicago 4, Minnesota 1 Tuesday, May 6: Chicago at Minnesota, 9 p.m.

Los Angeles 2, Anaheim 0 Saturday, May 3: Los Angeles 3, Anaheim 2, OT Monday, May 5: Los Angeles 3, Anaheim 1 Thursday, May 8: Anaheim at Los

NBA AWARDS

Thunder’s Durant wins first MVP

BY CLIFF BRUNT The Associated Press OKLAHOMA CITY — Kevin Durant has plenty of scoring titles. Now, he finally has an MVP trophy to go with them.

The Oklahoma City Thunder star won the NBA’s top individual honor Tuesday, grabbing 119 first-place votes. Miami’s LeBron James, who had won the last two MVP awards and four of the previous five, finished second with six firstplace votes and Blake Griffin of the Los Angeles Clippers was third.

DURANT Durant, a 6-foot-9 forward, won his fourth scoring crown in five years this season by averaging 32 points per game. He helped the Thunder finish the regular season with a 59-23 record, second-best in the league, despite playing much of the season without threetime All-Star Russell Westbrook by his side because of a nagging knee injury.

“He’s been the most consistent guy all season long,” Westbrook said at the end of the regular season. “He’s done a great job

of leading us to where we are now. He’s basically put himself in front of everybody else in the league and shown that he’s the best player in the world.”

James agreed, saying Monday: “Much respect to him and he deserves it. He had a big-time MVP season.”

Durant’s run of 41 consecutive games this season with at least 25 points was the third-longest streak in NBA history. In all, he scored at least 40 points 14 times. He also averaged 7.4 rebounds and a careerhigh 5.5 assists while shooting 50 percent from the field.

“He does everything,” New Orleans coach Monty Williams said. “You just can’t recall a guy that long who can do what he does every single night. Shooting from 30 feet on the floor with confidence and driving to the basket and dunking on guys, and then go post up, and on top of it, a great teammate and good kid.”

Durant moved to the front of the pack while Westbrook was out following his most recent knee surgery. Durant averaged 35 points and 6.3 assists during that stretch as the Thunder went 20-7 and remained among the league’s elite.

B6

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OBITUARIES | SPORTS

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014

MARY L. SINGLETON Mary Louise Singleton, wife of Alvin Singleton, entered into eternal rest on May 1, 2014, at Tuomey Regional Medical Center.

She was born on Jan. 6, 1939, in Clarendon County, a daughter of the late Willie (Anna S.) Marshall Jr. and Georgia Bull Marshall. She was educated in the public schools of Clarendon and Sumter counties and resided in Mayesville with her grandparents, Willie Sr. and Mary Tindal Marshall after the death of her mother. She was a member of Ebenezer AME Church. After establishing residency in New York City, she married her husband of 55 years, Alvin Bobby Singleton. She worked at the World Trade Center.

Survivors include her husband, Alvin Singleton; a daughter, Glendell M. Mayfield of Bronx, New York; a granddaughter, Shameka Mayfield; a stepdaughter, Denise Hilton; two special relatives, Margie M. (Robert) Richardson of Mayesville and Yvonne M. Rogers of Brooklyn, New York; three sistersin-law; three brothers-in-law; a nephew, Thomas C. Howard of Bronx; and a host of other relatives and friends.

Public viewing will be held from 2 to 7 p.m. today at Job’s Mortuary.

The body will be placed in the church at 10 a.m. on Thursday for viewing until the hour of service.

Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday at Ebenezer AME Church, 119 E. Sumter St., Mayesville, with Pastor Phillip L. Washington officiating. Interment will follow at Mayesville Cemetery.

The family is receiving friends at 365 Stillwater Court, Sumter.

Job’s Mortuary Inc., 312 S. Main St., Sumter, is in charge of arrangements.

Online memorials may be sent to the family at jobsmortaury@sc.rr.com or visit us on the web at www. jobsmortuary.net.

LYNN C. RYE Lynn Chapman Rye died on Friday, May 2, 2014, at her home.

Born in Inman, she was a daughter of the late Waddy William Chapman Sr. and Ann Rogers Chapman. Mrs. Rye was a former school teacher at Mayewood School and a retired office manager with the S.C. Forestry Commission.

Surviving are a son, Chris Rye and wife, Angela, of Sumter; a sister, Martha Phifer of St. Petersburg, Florida; and a grandson, Aidan Rye. She was preceded in death by a brother, Dr. Waddy Chapman Jr. Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday in the chapel of Elmore Hill McCreight Funeral Home with Earle Rowland officiating.

Burial will be at 3 p.m. on Thursday at Inman Cemetery in Inman.

The family will receive friends from 10 to 11 a.m. on Thursday at Elmore Hill McCreight Funeral Home.

Online condolences may be sent to www.sumterfunerals.com.

Elmore Hill McCreight Funeral Home & Crematory, 221 Broad St., Sumter, is in charge of the arrangements, (803) 775-9386.

IRENE K. CARROLAN Irene Kathryn Carrolan, age 95, died on Tuesday, May 6, 2014.

You may sign the family’s guest book at www.bullockfuneralhome.com.

Arrangements are incomplete at this time and will be

THE SUMTER ITEM announced by Bullock Funeral Home of Sumter.

home of his grandmother, Rosa Lee Slater, 1391 Herndon Road, Bishopville.

Funeral arrangements are incomplete and will be announced by Williams Funeral Home Inc. of Sumter.

TRACEY Z. KOEPFLER

CAROLYN S. MEELER

Tracey Lee Zielinski Koepfler, age 44, beloved daughter of John Michael Zielinski Sr. and Patricia Ann Hughes Kirk, died on Saturday, May 3, 2014, at Tuomey Regional Medical Center.

Arrangements are incomplete at this time and will be announced by Bullock Funeral Home of Sumter.

JESSIE SLATER III Jessie Slater III, 30, died on Monday, May 5, 2014, at 499 Manville-Wisacky Road, Bishopville.

Born on Sept. 26, 1983, in Berlin, Germany, he was a son of Jessie Jr. and Angela Simon Slater.

The family will receive friends and relatives at the

Carolyn Smith Meeler, 69, wife of Alton S. Meeler, died on Tuesday, May 6, 2014, at her home.

Elmore-Cannon-Stephens Funeral Home and Crematorium of Sumter is in charge of the arrangements.

SHAKIMAH TORRES FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — Shakimah Taherrah Evans Torres departed this life on Wednesday, April 30, 2014, at Mary Washington Hospital in Fredericksburg.

Born on June 25, 1979, in Newark, New Jersey, she was a daughter of Douglas Carter and Juanita Evans.

The family is receiving relatives and friends at the residence of her stepfather and mother, Mitchell Calhoun and Juanita Evans, 6805 Moody Road, Rembert.

Funeral services are incomplete and will be announced by Fleming & Delaine Funeral Home and Chapel.

SPORTS ITEMS

MLB ROUNDUP

USCS to play for Region X title

Braves snap 7-game skid with 2-1 win over Cardinals

KINSTON, N.C. – The University of South Carolina Sumter baseball team will be playing Louisburg College today at 2 p.m. in the championship game of the NJCAA Region X tournament at Grainger Stadium with a berth in the Eastern District playoffs on the line.

BRADLEY The Fire Ants beat No. 1 seed Spartanburg Methodist College 11-2 on Tuesday to advance to the championship round against then unbeaten Louisburg. USCS then beat Louisburg 3-0 to force today’s deciding game.

In the opener, Harper Grier allowed two runs and six hits in 7 2/3 innings to get the victory.

Trevor Bradley led the offense, going 3-for-5 with five runs batted in and a run scored. Anthony Paulsen was 3-for-4 with three runs and an RBI. In the win over Louisburg, left-handed Andrew Reardon pitched 8-plus innings of shutout baseball with Dillon Hodge finishing for the save.

Reardon had seven strikeouts while walking two and allowing nine hits.

Ray Murphy had a double and an RBI, while Taylor Kellner had a hit, a run and an RBI. Ryan Perkins had a hit and an RBI. The Fire Ants are 38-13 on the season.

GOLDEN STATE FIRES JACKSON

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Golden State Warriors have fired Mark Jackson, ending the franchise’s most successful coaching tenure in the past two decades but also one filled with drama and distractions.

General manager Bob Myers thanked Jackson in a statement Tuesday for “his role in helping elevate this

team into a better position than it was when he arrived nearly 36 months ago.” Myers said it was a difficult decision but the Warriors “simply feel it’s best to move in a different direction at this time.”

RAPTORS’ CASEY GETS 3-YEAR DEAL

TORONTO — Dwane Casey never wondered what kind of suitors he might attract after leading the Raptors to a record-setting season and a division title. He already knew he wanted to stay in Toronto.

The Raptors made Casey’s return official Tuesday, announcing a three-year contract extension for the coach whose team won a franchisebest 48 games this season and ended a six-year playoff drought. Toronto lost to Brooklyn in Game 7 of the first round Sunday.

CLEMSON ADDS GUARD FROM SF

CLEMSON — Former San Francisco point guard Avry Holmes has transferred to Clemson.

The school announced that Holmes had signed with the Tigers this week. Holmes is a 6-foot-2 guard from Salem, Oregon, who played two seasons with the Dons. He’ll have two seasons of eligibility left after sitting out next season because of NCAA transfer rules.

POLICE: FSU QB AVOIDED DEPUTY

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston appeared to pause to avoid walking in front of a deputy before leaving a supermarket without paying for crab legs and crawfish, according to a sheriff’s office incident report.

KAHNE CREW CHIEF FINED $25K

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Crew chief Kenny Francis has been fined $25,000 for rules violations during qualifying for the Sprint Cup race

at Talladega Superspeedway.

Kasey Kahne’s No. 5 car failed the minimum weight requirement and he was forced to start in the back of the field for Sunday’s race.

Kahne had qualified 17th before his lap was thrown out.

He finished eighth.

MONDAY NHL PLAYOFFS PENGUINS 2 RANGERS 0

NEW YORK — New York Rangers coach Alain Vigneault finally took a shot at his club’s taxing postseason schedule, but still won’t say his players are tired.

Judging by their effort in their latest loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, he might be right.

The Rangers pressed the pace and widely outshot the talented Penguins, but New York came out on the short end of a 2-0 decision on Monday — their second shutout defeat in two nights.

Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 35 shots one night after making 22 saves at home in a 3-0 Game 2 victory that tied the best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal series.

The Penguins now own a 2-1 lead, have knocked the Rangers back on their heels, and have reclaimed home-ice advantage.

LA KINGS 3 DUCKS 1

ANAHEIM, Calif. — When the Los Angeles Kings are on top of their formidable defensive game, they revel in the silence they can create in a frustrated road arena.

Jonathan Quick made 36 saves, Marian Gaborik scored his third goal in two games, and the Kings beat the Ducks 3-1 to take a 2-0 lead in their second-round series.

From wire reports

ATLANTA — Justin Upton homered and scored the tiebreaking run on Chris Johnson’s eighth-inning single, and the Atlanta Braves beat the St. Louis Cardinals 2-1 on Tuesday night to end their seven-game skid.

J. UPTON Braves righthander Gavin Floyd was impressive in his season debut, allowing one run on six hits in seven innings.

Floyd made his first major league start since April 27, 2013, for the White Sox against Tampa Bay. He had season-ending Tommy John surgery 10 days later, and his comeback included six minor league rehab starts this year.

David Carpenter (2-0) had two strikeouts in a perfect eighth. Craig Kimbrel had two strikeouts in a perfect ninth for his ninth save.

St. Louis left-hander Tyler Lyons allowed only one run on four hits, including Upton’s homer, in six innings.

MARLINS 3 METS 0

MIAMI — Henderson Alvarez pitched a six-hitter for his second shutout this season, and the Miami Marlins won again at home, beating the New York Mets 3-0 Tuesday.

Miami improved to a major

league-best 16-5 at Marlins Park, and is 7-1 on its current homestand with one game left. The Marlins clinched the series and have won seven of their eight home series — they are 2-10 on the road.

Alvarez (2-2) struck out seven, walked none and threw 111 pitches. His only other victory this year was a complete-game 7-0 victory over Seattle on April 19.

PIRATES 2 GIANTS 1

PITTSBURGH — Starling Marte was called out, then ruled safe on a replay review with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, lifting the Pittsburgh Pirates over San Francisco 2-1 Tuesday night and ending the Giants’ six-game winning streak.

AMERICAN LEAGUE INDIANS 4 TWINS 2 CLEVELAND — Josh Tomlin earned his first major league win since 2012, pitching into the seventh inning and leading the Cleveland Indians past the Minnesota Twins 4-2 Tuesday.

Tomlin (1-0) allowed one run and four hits in 6 2-3 innings. He was called up from Triple-A Columbus before the game after missing most of last year while recovering from Tommy John surgery.

From wire reports

CLASSIFIEDS

WEDNESDAY, MAY 07, 2014

THE ITEM

B7

803-774-1234

OR TO PLACE YOUR AD ONLINE GO TO WWW.THE ITEM.COM/PLACEMYAD

CLASSIFIEDS Home Improvements

ANNOUNCEMENTS

H.L. Boone, Contractor additions, painting, roofing, gutters, sheetrock, blown ceilings, decks. 773-9904

Lawn Service

Found: Female fawn pit puppy around Hillcrest Middle School.

Owner call the SPCA 773-9292

J. Thompson Lawn & Garden plus Affordable Rates Licensed & Bonded Call 803-316-1109 or 803-840-7482

Found small white dog on Calhoun St. Call to identify, 803-469-9381

Taylor's Lawn Care Dependable and Affordable Call 803-651-0125

In Memory

Tree Service

For Sale or Trade

Help Wanted Full-Time

Colonial Dark Pine DR set, 64' round table, with lazy susan in center, 8 Captain chairs w/cushions, hutch, also comes with 4ft wagon wheel lamp to match.

Asking $1,250. Call 803-469-6870

FT Unit Manager Position Mon - Fri, 8am to 5pm, Occasional Nights, Weekends, or Holidays may be required.

Participate in On Call Rotation.

Responsible for day to day operations of a 44 bed Skilled Unit. RN preferred but not required. Will consider an LPN with Long term Care, Supervisor or Charge Nurse Experience.

Medicare Experience preferred.

Apply in person to : Covenant Place 2825 Carter Road Sumter, SC 29150 EOE

Golf Car(Club Car)as is $600, Mini Light Bar (amber) $80, 5Pc Solid Wood Bedroom Set $300 Pics avail. upon request by text or email. Call John 803 840-4472

Farm Products

Garage, Yard & Estate Sales

Hudson's Lawn Care, Mowing, Pine Straw, Installation. Licensed and Insured. 803-968-1313

NEED AN ERRAND RUN???

Call Gail at 803-464-8825. Very reasonable rates. Gail's Go For Service

MERCHANDISE

JT's Lawn Care: All your lawn needs, Tree cutting & pressure washing, Senior disc. 840-0322

Rawls Lawncare: Clean up, Trim Shubery, Cut Grass, Pressure Wash & more. Free Estimates.

Lic/Insured. 803-425-4845

Business Services

Free kittens to a good home.

803-983-3264 or 469-6112

Strawberries Richburg Farms HWY 261, Manning, SC 8am-6:30pm M-Sat (803)473-4844

Cooper's Lawn Care General lawn maintenance! Lic. & ins.

Price starts at $30. 803-565-1894

BUSINESS SERVICES

PETS & ANIMALS

Four Seasons Lawn Care Serving Sumter for almost 20 yrs!

Free est. 494-9169/468-4008

Oxendine & Son Lawn Care All your lawn care needs & pressure washing. Call Jonathan 803-565-2160 or Kerry 316-8726.

Alonzo Thompson In Loving Memory 05/07/91 - 02/07/13 If tears could build a staircase, we'd walk right up to heaven and bring you home. We love you but God loved you best. Happy Birthday Alonzo!

Florence, Willie, Marilyn & Zayden

We will be happy to change your ad if an error is made; however we are not responsible for errors after the first run day. We shall not be liable for any loss or expense that results from the printing or omission of an advertisement. We reserve the right to edit, refuse or cancel any ad at any time.

Cats

Lost & Found FOUND: Small dog on Pack Rd. Owner must call to identify. Call 803-565-4388

CLASSIFIED DEADLINES 11:30 a.m. the day before for Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday & Friday edition.

9:30 a.m. Friday for Saturday’s edition 11:30 a.m. Friday for Sunday’s edition.

Sumter County Civic Center Indoor Garage Sale 700 W. Liberty St. Sat., May 24, 2014, 8 AM to 1 PM Free Admission For booth space, Call 436-2271 After 9:00am

For Sale or Trade I buy used Utility and Car trailers.

Call 803-972-0900 Martin's Used Appliance Washers, Dryers, Refrig., Stoves.

EMPLOYMENT Help Wanted Full-Time

Industrial Lab Tech College and/or work exper.

Call Rev @ 775-5308 F/T Service Technician needed for an apartment community located in Sumter. Candidate will handle all phases of maintenance.

Must have a valid SC driver's license and reliable transportation.

On call is a MUST! HVAC and CPO certifications are MANDATORY. Salary negotiable or commensurate with experience.

Full Time Night Shift Supervisor RN preferred but LPN with Long Term Care and/or Charge Nurse experience will be considered.

Occasional Weekends and Holidays may be required. Will be responsible for supervising Licensed Nurses and CNAs in a 44 bed skilled unit along with making rounds in the Assisted Living Department.

Apply in person to: Covenant Place 2825 Carter Road Sumter, SC 29150 EOE

Help Wanted Full-Time Established Heating and Air Conditioning Company looking for an experienced HVAC service technician. Must have experience minimum of 2 years, a valid driver's license, people skills, good personality. Great benefits offered and top pay! Send all responses to P-Box 343 c//o The Item, PO Box 1677 Sumter SC 29151

Help Wanted Part-Time Deliver Phone Books Work Your Own Hours, Have Insured Vehicle, Must be at Least 18 yrs old, Valid DL. No Experience Necessary.

1-800-518-1333 x 224 www.deliverthephonebook.com $$$ AVON $$$ FREE TRAINING! 803-422-5555

Trucking Opportunities F/T & P/T Class-A CDL Drivers needed to work night shifts hauling live chickens and/or protein in Sumter, SC. Must have 2-yrs verifiable experience and good MVR. Local positions, drivers are home daily, and company offers benefits. Call Danny at 803-236-0682

Guarantee 464-5439 or 469-7311

NEWMAN'S TREE SERVICE Tree removal , trimming & stump grinding. Lic & Ins.

803-316-0128

Ricky's Tree Service Tree removal, stump grinding, Lic & ins, free quote, 803-435-2223 or cell 803-460-8747.

STATE TREE SERVICE Worker's Comp & General liability insurance. Top quality service, lowest prices. 803-494-5175 or 803-491-5154 www.statetree.net A Notch Above Tree Care Full quality service low rates, lic./ins., free est BBB accredited 983-9721

CLASSIFIED DEPARTMENT Call, email or fax us today!

FODVVLILHG#WKHLWHP FRP ‡ FAX

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a picture is

worth 1,000 words Include a photo of your item for sale, use up to 7 lines to describe it and run it for 1-week* for only

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CLASSIFIED DEPARTMENT Call, email or fax us today!

classified@theitem.com • (803) 775-1024 FAX

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Businesses and Commercial accounts ineligible. All ads must be prepaid. All advertising subject to publisher’s approval. Special cannot be combined with any other discounts. Other restrictions may apply.

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Trucking Opportunities

Unfurnished Homes

Long Haul flatbed drivers wanted. CDL Class A. 3 years experience and 25 yrs old required with a clean 10 year MVR. Well maintained equipment. Excellent commission based pay.

Steady freight. Call 843-906-7833

503 Church St. 2BR/1BA $375mo. + $375dep. Ref. req.

Call 803-783-4683

Medical Help Wanted

Oaklawn MHP: 2 BR M.H.'s, water/sewer/garbage pk-up incl'd.

RV parking avail. Call 494-8350

RN's And LPN'S needed for 2nd & 3rd shifts. Long term care experience preferred but will train.

Apply in person at 1761 Pinewood Rd Sumter SC 29154 Or Email Resume to roberta.smith@adcarehealth.com Paid vacations & Holidays. Only Serious inquirers need to apply.

Newly Renovated SW 2 BR 1.5 BA C/H/A, appliances, pvt. lot, 803-206-7859.

Physician's Office need Admin staff a& Certified Medical Assistant. Fax resume to 803-774-7004

REAL ESTATE Manufactured Housing

Mobile Home Rentals

Resort Rentals Ocean Lakes 2BR/2BA C/H/A Sleeps 8, near ocean, Call 803-773-2438

Looking for your DREAM HOME? LOW CREDIT SCORE? Been turned down for bad credit?

Come try us, we do our own financing. We have 3-4-5 bedroom homes. Layaway program available. For more information, call 843-389-4215.

Very Nice 4BR DW on 5 ac.

Owner fin. w/large down payment or boat trade. Call 803-236-5953

Building for rent could use for Church or Other. Near Manning on Silver Rd. 803-473-3301

MOTHERS DAY GIFTS $20 & UP! May 8-10.

Call 774-7823, 12:30-5PM 633 Bultman Dr.

Church Building in Mayesville located on Willow St. for rent.

Contact 803-453-5187 or 803-775-3975

RENTALS

Commercial Industrial

Autos For Sale

Building for sale. Must Sell CHEAP!!! Cash! Call Thomas 803-795-9392

SUMMER SALE 200 cars $4,500 or less $$$ CASH $$$ Price is Right Auto Sales 3210 Broad St 803-494-4275

TRANSPORTATION

Miscellaneous

A Guaranteed Credit Approval AUTO LOANS

Autos For Sale 2005 Silver Buick Le sabre Excellent Condition, low mileage, looks great inside and out $5900 Call 803-775-9058

We will arrange financing even if you have been turned down before.

Loans available for no credit, bad credit, 1st Time Buyers & Bankruptcy buyers. No co-signers needed. Call Mr. Ashley Brown at 803-926-3235

Reconditioned batteries $35. Also have lawn mower, truck, 4 wheeler, & marine batteries, starters & alternators. Car dealers/garages ask about special prices.

Auto Electric Co. 803-773-4381

(2) 4BR/2BA (Dalzell, 15S). Easy Financing. 983-8084

Farms & Acreage

Commercial Rentals

Work Wanted

WEDNESDAY, MAY 07, 2014

For Sale By Owner, 10 Acres, 8 miles to Sumter. $55,000. Owner Financing 803-427-3888.

Land & Lots for Sale Minutes Walmart/Shaw, 1 Ac $6,000. 16.2 ac $32,600. Water, Electric, Paved 800-774-5720 5775 Cane Savannah Rd. (Wedgefield). 1+ acre land for sale. Perfect for a new home or future investment. Close to Shaw AFB. 803-983-2261

Furnished Apartments 1bedroom Apt, liv. rm, kit, bath, fully furnished. $475 per month, incl. TV, garbage, water and sewer. Quiet Country Setting. No Smoking, drinking or drugs!

803-481-0015 Excellent for elderly person.

Unfurnished Apartments Senior Living Apartments for those 62+ (Rent based on income) Shiloh-Randolph Manor 125 W. Bartlette.

775-0575 Studio/1 Bedroom apartments available EHO SOUTH FORGE APTS. 1 & 2BR, Water, stove & frig furnished. Linda at 803-494-8443

place my

PETS Puppies for sale...

AD

Unfurnished Homes Ren. 3BR/2BA brick home. All hrdwd, 1,850+ sq ft. $1,050 + dep. Military dis. 803-968-9019 3BR 2BA Pinedale Subdv. $750 Mo + 750 Dep. Call 803-979-0275 or 803-847-2662 3Br home Burgess Ct. $495/mo & 2Br Apt Miller Rd. $395/mo.

774-8512 / 983-5691 3BR/ 2.5BA, 1900 sq ft. $850/mo + dep. Call William Anderson 803-775-0425 Shannon Dr. behind Jehovah Church & Layfette. 3 Br, 1 Ba, completely remodeled, like new!

Fenced yard, den, dining room, C/H/A. $600 sec. dep + $600 mo.

Section 8 welcome! Call Mon - Fri between 9 am - 6 pm 803-316-7958 or 803-773-1838.

ORDER YOUR CLASSIFIED AD ONLINE 24/7.

WWW.THEITEM.COM

Beautiful 6BR/4BA home. 10 mi. from Contential Tire. Den, LR, DR, Lg kitchen w/Island, W/D hook-up.

Featuring hardwood tile and carpet. Over-sized BRs & BAs. Huge fenced yard. Back/front patio. Like new. $1,250/mo + $1,250/dep.

Call 803-316-7958 or 773-1838 between 9am-6pm Mon-Fri.

JOB DESCRIPTION

MEMBERSHIP DIRECTOR

Greater Sumter Chamber of Commerce Sumter, South Carolina The Membership Director will be the central point of contact for all new member initiatives and inquiries. The qualified individual will develop a method of obtaining the required information to recruit and retain members as well as increasing the engagement of existing members in programs, events and initiatives of the Chamber. This requires being knowledgeable and aware of the changes in the business community.

Position: Full Time Education: Bachelor’s Degree Salary Plus Commission: Commensurate with experience and ability Interested parties should e-mail an introductory letter and resume to: chamber@sumterchamber.com.

SECTION

C

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014 Call Ivy Moore at: (803) 774-1221 | E-mail: ivym@theitem.com Clockwise from bottom left: Penelope, Lauren, Ashley and Althea demonstrate the penmanship that won them each first place in their divisions at the state handwriting competition.

Althea writes the phrase required for the handwriting contest: The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. The sentence contains every letter in the alphabet.

4 win state handwriting titles

Penmanship still counts in some S.C. schools

PHOTOS BY MATT WALSH / THE SUMTER ITEM

BY IVY MOORE ivym@theitem.com (803) 774-1221

I

n this digital age, many schools, including public schools in South Carolina, are no longer required to teach cursive handwriting. For some private schools, including St. Anne Catholic School here in Sumter, however, handwriting and penmanship remain an important part of the curriculum in the lower grades. At St. Anne, in fact, anytime students appear to be having difficulty writing legibly, no matter what grade they’re in, they are offered extra help in a special handwriting club.

Four students didn’t need any extra help: They won the South Carolina state championships in the 23rd Annual Zaner-Bloser National Handwriting Contest recently. They are Althea, 4th grade; Penelope, 5th grade; Lauren, 7th grade; and Ashley, 8th grade. The (Catholic) Diocese of Charleston, which comprises all of South Carolina, does not permit the last names of the students to be published.

The students first submitted their handwriting samples to their homeroom teachers, who picked the three best to be sent to St. Anne principal Kristi Doyle; Doyle, with a team, selected one competitor from each grade, K-8, for the state contest. All of the students were required to write

Penelope shows off her penmanship at St. Anne Catholic School last Wednesday. She is one of four St. Anne students who won first place in the statewide handwriting competition sponsored by Zaner-Bloser. the same sentence: “The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.” A popular typing (keyboarding) exercise, the sentence contains all 26 letters in the alphabet.

The St. Anne winners are now waiting to hear how they fare in the semifinals, which will name 18 students at each grade level to compete in the national semifinals; of those 18, nine will vie for the championships in their respective grades.

According to Zaner-Bloser, “Judges

will look for handwriting that appears relaxed and natural, not traced, and must meet the Zaner-Bloser Keys to Legibility: size, shape, spacing and slant.”

What makes the St. Anne four so good at penmanship?

They like to write, all agreed. Many write a lot outside of school.

Ashley, 14, said she tries to keep a journal.

“I like to write,” she said. “I attribute it to my (former) teacher, Miss Lillie Plowden. She’s the reason I have good handwriting, because when you took her tests, she said ‘if your ‘t’s’ aren’t crossed, you lose a point, if your ‘i’ is not dotted, you lose a point, if your ‘a’ isn’t closed at the top, you lose a point.”

“And she would make you write in cursive, no manuscript (printing),” Lauren added. The 12-year-old likes to write short stories.

Ashley said, “We really don’t use computers in class.”

Outside of school, they use email and texting. In school, it’s No. 2 lead pencils.

“I only use good handwriting when I have to,” Ashley admitted. “My handwriting is legible, though.”

Althea, who’s 10, said her parents are “proud of me for winning. They want me to be a doctor, and I’d have to write prescriptions, so if the pharmacist couldn’t read it and gave (a pa-

tient) the wrong medication, that would be bad.”

In addition to the sentence, each competitor had to write a paragraph explaining how handwriting can help you read and write.

Eleven-year-old Penelope said, “If people in class don’t write well, and the teacher can’t read it, you will have to go to handwriting club every Monday.”

The students received medals for their win, and their teachers received cut glass paperweights. The school was given Zaner-Bloser credits for their instructional products. The company is a subsidiary of Highlights for Children, a widely read, longtime, educational magazine and publisher.

The company publishes reading, writing, spelling, vocabulary and handwriting programs.

Penelope, who won previously in manuscript (printing) in third grade, said her medal “is dedicated to my mom. She coached me to do better handwriting.”

Doyle said she finds that having good penmanship “builds on the students’ desire to produce a product they can be proud of. We enter because we think it’s an important competition. The prizes are a nice bonus.”

St. Anne Catholic School, 11 S. Magnolia St., is a private Catholic school serving grades K through 8. For more information call (803)778-1644.

See virtual tour of Swan Lake at spring meeting

BY IVY MOORE ivym@theitem.com (803) 774-1221 When the Friends of Swan Lake Gardens have their annual spring meeting Thursday, May 15, they’ll celebrate “The Magic of Swan Lake-Iris Gardens.” The 5 p.m. meeting will be held at the Swan Lake Visitors Center, when members and anyone interested in joining the Friends are invited to the premiere showing of a narrated photographic tour of the gardens made by Wes and Ruth Ann Bigger.

Wes, the photographer, and Ruth Ann, the writer and narrator, with input from Friends board members, have produced a DVD of scores of pictures that give not just a virtual tour of the gardens, but a brief history, as well.

“It starts with some old photographs from the beginnings of Swan Lake, with Mr. (H.C.) Bland and Mr. (A.T.) Heath,”

PHOTO COURTESY OF WES BIGGER

The late H.C. Bland is featured in the early history of Swan Lake, as he was the first to grow the world famous Japanese irises for which the Sumter Iris Festival is named. He and the late A.T. Heath donated the property that is now Swan Lake’s Bland and Heath gardens.

Ruth Ann said, “and we tell it like a fairy tale: ‘Once upon a time.’ It’s the story of Swan Lake from the start to now.”

The subtitle of the DVD is “A Swan Lake Fairy Tale.”

The story line is based on a presentation Ruth Ann wrote, and all but the earliest photos

were taken by Wes. Both of the Biggers are members of the Friends, and Ruth Ann is also a Sumter Master Gardener. Both have made innumerable contributions, both to the gardens and to the Friends of Swan Lake over the years, Friends president Mary Gene White said.

The Friends of Swan Lake is an organization dedicated to the preservation and improvement of Swan Lake-Iris Gardens. The nonprofit was founded in 2001 by longtime friends Connie Britton, Barbara Gulledge, Mary Catharine Williams and Harriette “Sister” Wimberly. A $25,000 grant obtained through Rep. Murrell Smith, R-Sumter, funded the Friends’ initial project, erecting brick and wrought iron fences bordering the gardens on Liberty Street. Many other projects have been completed since then, funded by Friends’ membership dues, donations and the city’s hospitality tax.

Among the improvements are the specialty gardens, planted and maintained in conjunction with the Sumter Master Gardeners; these include the Chocolate, Butterfly and Sensory gardens. Most recently, the Friends of Swan Lake and the City of Sumter, with

Want to join?

Friends of Swan Lake Gardens P.O. Box 1754 Sumter, SC 29151 Membership dues: $25

donations and volunteer labor, have restored the antique fire truck that sits in the children’s playground at the gardens.

Copies of the DVD can be purchased for $5 during the May 15 meeting and at the Swan Lake Visitors Center thereafter. Funds from sales will be used to support efforts of the Friends in maintaining and improving the gardens.

New members can join the Friends of Swan Lake at any time. Dues are $25 per year.

Members receive the Friends newsletter and are notified of special events, as well as having “the satisfaction of knowing they’re helping continue the beauty and legacy of Swan Lake,” Ruth Ann Biggers said.

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FOOD

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014

THE SUMTER ITEM

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Blackberry-Orange Napoleons are ready in 30 minutes.

Frozen puff pastry makes Mom’s dessert easy

BY ALISON LADMAN Associated Press Writer The secret to this simple Mother’s Day dessert is frozen puff pastry. It is easy to work with and bakes up into a deliciously flaky pastry.

You’ll find puff pastry in the grocer’s freezer section, usually near the frozen fruit and pie shells. Be sure to thaw it completely before trying to unfold the sheets of pastry. You can place the box in the refrigerator overnight, or leave it (unopened) on the counter for about an hour.

We like the combination of blackberries and orange, but feel free to substitute any berry. Blueberries, raspberries and strawberries all would be delicious. This dessert also can be prepped ahead of time. Just bake the pastry squares, then store them covered at room temperature.

BLACKBERRY-ORANGE NAPOLEONS Start to finish: 30 minutes Servings: 9 17.3-ounce package puff pastry (each package contains 2 sheets), thawed 4 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided 2 cups fresh blackberries Zest and juice of 1 orange 16-ounce container mascarpone 3 tablespoons powdered sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Heat the oven to 375 F. Line a baking sheet with kitchen parchment.

Unfold each sheet of puff pastry and lay flat on a work surface. Use 2 tablespoons of the sugar to sprinkle both sides of both sheets of puff pastry. Using a pizza wheel or a paring knife, cut each sheet into 9 squares.

Arrange the squares on the prepared baking sheet, then place another piece of parchment on top of them. Place a second baking sheet on top of that so that the puff pastry is sandwiched between them. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove the top baking sheet and allow the squares to cool completely.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl combine the blackberries with the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and the orange zest and juice. Set aside.

In another bowl, stir together the mascarpone, powdered sugar and vanilla.

To assemble, place 1 pastry square on each serving plate. Top the square with 1 tablespoon of the mascarpone mixture, then 1 tablespoon of the berries. Top with another square of pastry, followed by another layer each of mascarpone and berries. Serve immediately.

Nutrition information per serving: 490 calories; 340 calories from fat (69 percent of total calories); 38 g fat (17 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 65 mg cholesterol; 29 g carbohydrate; 3 g fiber; 10 g sugar; 8 g protein; 290 mg sodium.

A tart that’s part quiche, part lasagna

Surprise Mom with a light but satisfying salmon salad

BY ALISON LADMAN Associated Press Writer

How many breakfasts in bed does it take for a mom to get sick of breakfast in bed on Mother’s Day? I wanted to create a light, yet still filling dish that would work well no matter what time of day it was served — brunch, lunch or dinner. And I wanted it to play nicely with whatever else was served.

The solution was deliciously easy — a salad of shaved fresh fennel and red onion tossed with a light dressing spiked with dill, whole-grain mustard and just a pinch of sugar.

Mom doesn’t like salmon? No worries. Substitute cooked and chilled shrimp. Or go crazy and serve a bit of each.

Lasagna isn’t typically associated with Mother’s Day, but it is the dish that inspired us this year as we searched for a fresh way to offer Mom a delicious brunch.

We took some of our favorite lasagna ingredients — ricotta cheese, spinach, thyme and Asiago cheese — but instead of layering them with noodles, we mixed them together in a rich, but still light tart filling. With a storebought crust, the tart can be in the oven in 20 minutes and on the table 40 minutes later.

And similar to a good quiche, this tart can be served hot or room temperature.

RICOTTA SPINACH TART Start to finish: 1 hour (20 minutes active) Servings: 6 1 package prepared pie dough 1 teaspoon olive oil 1 clove garlic, minced 5-ounce package baby spinach 1 egg 2 cups ricotta cheese 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme Zest of 1 lemon 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

BY J.M. HIRSCH AP Food Editor

SHAVED FENNEL AND SMOKED SALMON SALAD

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Ricotta Spinach Tart is ideal for a Mother’s Day brunch.

1/2 cup grated Asiago cheese Heat the oven to 375 F. Coat an 8-inch tart pan with a removable bottom with cooking spray.

Press the pie dough into the tart pan, trimming any excess.

In a skillet over mediumhigh, heat the oil. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the spinach and cook until completely soft and most the of the liquid has evaporated, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the spinach to a fine mesh strainer.

Using a spoon or silicone spatula, press the spinach to extract any remaining liquid.

In a medium bowl, beat the egg, then add the ricotta, thyme, lemon zest, salt, pepper and spinach. Stir to combine. Spread the mixture in the prepared tart shell and sprinkle with Asiago cheese. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown.

Allow to cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Nutrition information per serving: 350 calories; 200 calories from fat (57 percent of total calories); 22 g fat (10 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 70 mg cholesterol; 25 g carbohydrate; 1 g fiber; 2 g sugar; 14 g protein; 460 mg sodium.

Start to finish: 30 minutes Servings: 4 12 ounces new potatoes, quartered 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided Salt and ground black pepper 1 large or 2 medium bulbs fennel, trimmed 1/2 small red onion 2 tablespoons rice vinegar 2 tablespoons whole-grain mustard 1/2 teaspoon sugar 8 ounces cold-smoked salmon 1 tablespoon lemon juice Chopped fresh dill Heat the oven to 425 F. In a medium bowl, toss the potatoes with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Transfer the potatoes to a baking sheet, then roast until tender and lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes.

Transfer the roasted potatoes to a plate and refrigerate just until

no longer hot, about 10 minutes.

While the potatoes cook and cool, use a mandoline or food processor to shave the fennel as thinly as possible. Do the same with the onion. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, 2 tablespoons of the remaining olive oil, the mustard, sugar and a hefty pinch each of salt and pepper. Add the shaved fennel and onion, then toss until well coated. Divide the mixture between 4 serving plates. Top with the cooled potatoes.

Divide the salmon into thin slices. In a medium bowl, drizzle the salmon with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive and the lemon juice. Gently toss to coat, then season with pepper. Mound a quarter of the salmon over each salad, then sprinkle with fresh dill.

Nutrition information per serving: 280 calories; 150 calories from fat (54 percent of total calories); 17 g fat (2.5 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 15 mg cholesterol; 22 g carbohydrate; 3 g fiber; 2 g sugar; 13 g protein; 870 mg sodium.

THE SUMTER ITEM

FOOD

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014

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Layered vegetable tart has big flavor, few ingredients

BY J.M. HIRSCH AP Food Editor Despite the simplicity of this tart — the only ingredients are three vegetables and a few seasonings — it delivers big flavor in a beautiful package.

The secret is in the layering. Yukon Gold potatoes, onion and butternut squash are sliced paper thin, then arranged layer upon layer in a pan. As you stack, chopped fresh herbs are sprinkled between those layers, then the whole thing is roasted until the vegetables are buttery tender.

The result is a delicious tart that is vegan, yet filling. A mandoline is the best choice for getting the vegetables paper thin. If you don’t have one, use a food processor fitted with the thinnest slicing attachment. And if you prefer, sweet potatoes can be substituted for the Yukon Gold.

ROASTED BUTTERNUT AND HERB TART Start to finish: 2 1/2 hours (30 minutes active) Servings: 6 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 4 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled 1 large yellow onion 1 medium butternut squash, peeled and seeded Olive oil cooking spray Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Coat a deep 7- or 8-inch round springform pan with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, mix together the thyme, oregano, rosemary, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Set side.

Use a mandoline or food processor to slice the potatoes, onion and squash as paper thin as possible.

Keep the vegetables in separate piles.

Arrange a single layer of potato slices, slightly overlapping, over the bottom of the prepared pan. Spritz with cooking spray, then sprinkle a pinch of the seasoning blend over them. No need to season heavily.

Top the potatoes with a few onion slices. The onion will break into thin rounds. This is fine. You don’t need a full layer, just a scattering of slices.

Top the onions with a single layer of butternut squash slices, slightly overlapping. Use your hand to gently, but firmly compress the layers. Spritz the squash slices with cooking spray, then sprinkle a pinch of seasoning over them.

Repeat the layering and compressing in this manner, starting with the potatoes and continuing until the layers reach the top of the pan. You should use all of the potatoes and onion, but may have some squash left. Spritz the top with cooking spray, then sprinkle a bit more seasoning over the top.

Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 30 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned, the sides have pulled away from the pan and a knife inserted at the center passes easily through the vegetables to the bottom.

Remove the sides of the pan and let cool for 5 minutes before cutting into wedges.

Nutrition information per serving: 260 calories; 5 calories from fat (2 percent of total calories); 0 g fat (0 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 0 mg cholesterol; 61 g carbohydrate; 7 g fiber; 6 g sugar; 5 g protein; 500 mg sodium.

Your community news source www.theitem.com

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Yukon Gold potatoes can be replaced with sweet potatoes in this Roasted Butternut and Herb Tart.

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COMICS

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014

BIZARRO

SOUP TO NUTZ

ANDY CAPP

GARFIELD

BEETLE BAILEY

BORN LOSER

BLONDIE

ZITS

MOTHER GOOSE

DOG EAT DOUG

DILBERT

JEFF MACNELLY’S SHOE

‘Twerking’ isn’t dangerous, just the latest fad DEAR ABBY — I’m the happily married mother of two teenage boys. The other day I overheard my older son Dear Abby (age 17) talking with a ABIGAIL friend about VAN BUREN “twerking.” I have never heard of it and now I’m worried. Is twerking a drug term?

Is it similar to “tripping,” “getting high” or “catfishing”?

My 17-year-old is supposed to go to Princeton next year on a sports scholarship, and I’m afraid “twerking” will derail him from his charted path.

Thank you for any advice you may have.

THE SUMTER ITEM

Troubled Mom in Connecticut DEAR MOM — Don’t panic.

“Tripping” and “getting high,” as you already know, refer to altered states of consciousness as the result of using drugs.

“Catfishing” is something else.

It’s pretending to be someone you aren’t, creating a false identity on social media, usually to pursue a deceptive online romance.

The “twerking” your son was referring to is a dance move recently made famous by Miley Cyrus— in which the dancer (usually female) gyrates in a provocative, semisquatting position that involves thrusting hip movements.

DEAR ABBY — Would it be ap-

THE DAILY CROSSWORD PUZZLE

propriate to send my future mother-in-law a Mother’s Day card? I feel it would be a nice gesture to help start the relationship between us.

Nick in Omaha DEAR NICK — I concur. In fact, I suspect it will melt her heart to know you feel that way about her, even before you marry her daughter.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www.

DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

Good advice for everyone -- teens to seniors -- is in “The Anger in All of Us and How to Deal With It.” To order, send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U.S. funds) to Dear Abby, Anger Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. (Shipping and handling are included in the price.)

JUMBLE

SUDOKU

THAT SCRAMBLED WORD GAME

By David L. Hoyt and Jeff Knurek

HOW TO PLAY: Each row, column and set of 3-by-3 boxes must contain the numbers 1 through 9 without repetition.

ACROSS 1 Takes out in an arcade, as bad guys 5 Longtime AFL president Gompers 11 Rank above cpl.

14 Spread unit 15 Really enjoys 16 Quattro meno uno 17 Chinese noodle dish 20 Clothes line 21 Antiquing agent 22 “A Farewell to __” 23 1995 Shania Twain album 27 Lincoln Town Cars, e.g.

30 Highest point 31 “Jeopardy!” name 32 Hanging around 37 Org. for Hawks but not Eagles 38 Whiskas alternative ... or, literally, what’s hidden in 17-, 23-, 47- and 57-Across 40 Pivotal 41 Commonly yellow blooms 43 Clothes line 44 Not quite closed 45 WWII fleet 47 Greeter of new homeowners 52 Missouri

River tribe 53 “Dies __” 54 Deluge refuge 57 Will Schuester portrayer on “Glee” 62 Was tricked by a worm?

63 Pull into, as a motel 64 Late-night rival of Jimmy and Jimmy 65 Pavement warning 66 “__ here”: “Poltergeist” 67 Expel with force DOWN 1 “The Hangover” actor Galifianakis 2 Workout consequence 3 Schoolmarmish 4 “Hold on a __!”

5 Extended attacks 6 Good __: fully restored 7 Start to manage?

8 The Wildcats of the America East Conf.

9 1940s mil. zone 10 Cattle call 11 Back at sea 12 Fairy tale brother 13 High-strung 18 Lyricist Gus 19 Champion skier known

as the “Herminator” 23 Strain 24 Seriously injures 25 Overture follower 26 “Breaking Bad” setting: Abbr.

27 Beach pailful 28 Where Napoleon was exiled 29 Like The Who’s Tommy 32 River through Tours 33 Head-rotating bird 34 Source of much dorm furniture 35 “Groovy!”

36 Fitness centers 38 Magic amulet 39 Mild cheese 42 Gem surface

43 George W., to George 45 Lorre’s “Casablanca” role 46 Certain Afrikaner 47 Areas for development 48 Cybercommerce 49 Numbers game 50 Not macho at all 51 Like a loud crowd 54 “By yesterday!” letters 55 Gad about 56 Had down cold 58 FDR successor 59 Biblical verb suffix 60 Misfortune 61 They may be checked at the door

TELEVISION

THE SUMTER ITEM TW FT

7 PM

7:30

8 PM

WIS News 10 at Entertainment Tonight (N) (HD) 7:00pm Local news update.

News 19 @ 7pm Inside Edition (N) Evening news up- (HD) date.

Wheel of Fortune Jeopardy!: De(N) (HD) cades - Quarter Finals (N) (HD) NatureScene: Expedition EnBanff National dangered species.

Park The Big Bang The Big Bang Theory Howard Theory Hotel tenreturns. (HD) sions. (HD) Family Feud (N) Family Feud (N)

8:30

9 PM 9:30 LOCAL CHANNELS

WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014 10 PM

10:30

(:01) Chicago P.D.: My Way The teams tracks down a cartel leader.

(N) (HD) CSI: Crime Scene Investigation: Dead in His Tracks Present crime ties to past mob heist. (N) (HD) The Middle: Of- Suburgatory: Les Modern Family: (:31) Mixology: Nashville: All or Nothing with Me fice Hours (N) Lucioles (N) (HD) Message ReBruce & Maya (N) Rayna organizes a charity concert.

(HD) ceived (N) (HD) (HD) (N) (HD) Nature: Shark Mountain A dive off NOVA: Why Sharks Attack Hunting Nazi Mega Weapons: Jet Fighter the Central American coast. (HD) instincts of great white sharks. (N) Me262 The most advanced airplane (HD) of WWII. (N) (HD) American Idol: 4 Finalists Perform (N) (HD) WACH FOX News at 10 Local news report and weather forecast.

Revolution: Tomorrowland Truman Law & Order: Special Victims Unit: orders a mustard gas attack. (N) (HD) Reasonable Doubt Child molestation.

(N) (HD) Survivor: Cagayan: Havoc to Wreck Criminal Minds: Angels Team is put (N) (HD) in danger during case. (N) (HD)

11 PM WIS News 10 at 11:00pm News and weather.

News 19 @ 11pm The news of the day.

ABC Columbia News at 11 (HD)

11:30

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12 AM

(:35) The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon Actor Zac Efron from “Neighbors.” (N) (HD) (:35) Late Show with David Letterman Mariah Carey; Rick Harrison. (N) (HD) (:35) Jimmy Kimmel Live Musician Pharrell Williams performs. (N) (HD)

Tavis Smiley (HD)

BBC World News International news.

Two and a Half Two and a Half Men: Mmm, Fish. Men Girlfriend’s Yum (HD) bills. (HD) Arrow: Streets of Fire Slade’s soldiers The 100: Day Trip Clarke and Bellamy Law & Order: Special Victims Unit: Law & Order: Special Victims Unit: raid the city. (N) (HD) prepare for winter by setting out to Fat Teenage girl is assaulted by sib- Deception Child’s painting reveals find supplies. (N) (HD) lings. (HD) dad’s murder. (HD)

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Salem: In Vain (HD) Salem: In Vain (HD) Rules (HD)

First lady, Kellie Pickler both guest star on ‘Nashville’

BY KEVIN MCDONOUGH First lady Michelle Obama and singer Kellie Pickler appear on tonight’s “Nashville” (10 p.m., ABC, TVPG). Whoever thought those two names would be joined in the same sentence?

Rayna performs a benefit at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, for troops and their families, where she is joined by the first lady and the former “American Idol” and “Dancing With the Stars” participant.

Obama has made a number of prime-time television appearances.

She was recently on the season finale of “Parks and Recreation.” As on tonight’s “Nashville,” that guest spot dovetailed with one of her causes, the “Let’s Move!” initiative to get young people exercising. Later this month, she will cameo on the Disney Channel series “Jessie” to raise awareness of the needs of military families.

The use of the first lady on primetime fictional series to promote specific causes is hardly a recent phenomenon. In 1983, Nancy Reagan appeared on “Diff’rent Strokes” to remind its young audience to “Just Say No” to drugs.

Although it’s hard to quibble with the motivation for these brief onscreen moments, questions arise about overexposure — not to mention, sub-par performances. The website complex.com ranked Michelle Obama’s 2012 appearance on “iCarly” as No. 22 on its list of “The 25 Worst Cameos in TV History.” Nancy Reagan’s stint with Gary Coleman and the “Diff’rent Strokes” gang clocked in at No. 16.

Kellie Pickler’s appearance on “Nashville” demonstrates the staying power of certain “American Idol” fa-

vorites. It’s easy to forget that she only got to the top six in 2005 before elimination. Will any of tonight’s “American Idol” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-PG) top-four finalists (Alex Preston, Jena Irene, Caleb Johnson and Jessica Meuse) still be remembered nine years from now?

TONIGHT’S OTHER HIGHLIGHTS • Truman unleashes mustard gas on “Revolution” (8 p.m., NBC, TV-14).

• Oliver rallies the resistance to Slade’s attack on “Arrow” (8 p.m., CW, TV-14).

• A TV producer is accused of molesting his own daughter on “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” (9 p.m., NBC, TV-14).

• Well-planned spontaneity on “Modern Family” (9 p.m., ABC, TV-PG).

• A crime is linked to a vintage mob heist on the season finale of “CSI” (10 p.m., CBS, TV-14).

• News about Pulpo emerges on “Chicago P.D.” (10 p.m., NBC, TV-14).

• Shocking news about Kate reaches Elizabeth on “The Americans” (10 p.m., FX, TV-MA).

• The gang has to prove it’s worthy to adopt a shelter dog on “Hot in Cleveland” (10 p.m., TV Land, TV-PG).

• A casual social media encounter leads to threats and demands for passwords and private information on the third-season premiere of “Catfish: The TV Show” (10 p.m., MTV, TV-14).

CULT CHOICE Humiliated by the school bully (Robert Downey Jr.), outcasts (Anthony Michael Hall and Ilan MitchellSmith) cobble together a synthetic beauty (Kelly LeBrock) in the 1985

NBCUNIVERSAL MEDIA LLC

Truman (Steven Culp) launches a mustard gas attack on the town of Willoughby in an effort to kill Monroe and Miles on “Revolution” airing at 8 p.m. today on NBC. comedy “Weird Science” (9 p.m., BBC America), directed by John Hughes.

LATE NIGHT

Heller appear on “Conan” (11 p.m., TBS) * Arianna Huffington, Kevin Christy, Whitney Cummings and Josh Wolf are booked on “Chelsea Lately” (11 p.m., E!) * David Remnick is on “The Colbert Report” (11:30 p.m., Comedy Central) * Mariah Carey and Rick Harrison appear on “Late Show With David Letterman” (11:35 p.m., CBS) * Zac Efron, Guy Fieri and Sarah McLachlan are on “The Tonight Show” (11:35 p.m., NBC) * Pharrell Williams is on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” (11:35 p.m., ABC) * Sarah Jessica Parker, Anna Wintour, Rich Eisen and The 1975 visit “Late Night With Seth Meyers” (12:35 a.m., NBC) * Tim Meadows and Megan Boone are on “The Late Late Show” (12:35 a.m., CBS).

Seth Rogen is booked on “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart” (11 p.m., Comedy Central) * Paul F. Tompkins and Emily

Copyright 2014, United Feature Syndicate

SERIES NOTES Frankie schedules time for the kids on “The Middle” (8 p.m., ABC, TV-PG) * Tim Meadows guest-stars on “Suburgatory” (8:30 p.m., ABC, TV-PG) * A prostitute killer invokes religious symbolism on “Criminal Minds” (9 p.m., CBS, TV-14) * Clarke and Bellamy provision for the looming winter on “The 100” (9 p.m., CW, TV-14) * Last call feels lonely on “Mixology” (9:30 p.m., ABC, TV-14).

Settlement reached in guardianship of ‘Modern Family’ actress ANTHONY MCCARTNEY AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES — “Modern Family” actress Ariel Winter will keep living with her adult sister after an agreement was reached Monday with the mother of Winter in a longrunning guardianship dispute.

The agreement was reached just before a trial was set to begin on who would care for the 16-year-old actress.

Winter’s mother Chrisoula Workman agreed to drop her objections to the guardianship if her daughter could watch a video montage of family photos before court adjourned.

Superior Court Judge Daniel Murphy agreed, and Winter and her sister Shanelle Gray sat in court and dabbed their eyes with tissues as photos of their childhood played. Winter left court without speaking, but Murphy said it would be up to her to decide whether she would visit with her mother.

Winter has been living with Gray since 2012, when a temporary guardianship was established amid allegations that Workman was subjecting her daughter to physical and emotional abuse.

Another judge previously said an initial report by child protective services found evi-

dence of emotional abuse, but claims of physical abuse were deemed inconclusive. Subsequent reports have not been described in court.

“I have never abused my daughter,” Workman reiterated Monday.

Winter’s father will have control of the actress’ finances and will have to make reports to the court. Murphy said he would retain jurisdiction over the actress and her care until she turns 18.

After the proceedings, Gray and Workman issued a joint statement saying, “The family has moved beyond the conflict.”

The statement said they were working toward reconciliation and thanked well-wishers.

Several supporters of Chrisoula Workman who attended the proceedings applauded the settlement announcement.

Winter, who has been acting since age 7, plays Alex Dunphy on the popular and critically acclaimed ABC series. She also has appeared in movies such as “Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.”

Winter’s brother, actor Jimmy Workman, had asked that the courtroom be closed while the video montage was played, but Murphy refused.

Jimmy Workman, who played Pugsley Addams in “The Addams Family” films, excused himself from the courtroom at one point and wept after Murphy formally granted Gray guardianship of his sister.

Guardianship cases in California are public record.

Gray’s attorneys requested the case and its proceedings be sealed, but a judge has refused.

The case was filed under Ariel’s birth name, Ariel Workman.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

“Modern Family” actress Ariel Winter arrives at the “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” premiere in Los Angeles.

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WEDNESDAY, MAY 7, 2014

THE SUMTER ITEM

Call Rhonda Barrick at: (803) 774-1264 | E-mail: rhondab@theitem.com

Refreshing Watermelon

Delicious dishes for every mealtime FAMILY FEATURES

W

atermelon conjures images of warm weather days, refreshing sweetness and the delightful dribble of sticky juice trickling down your chin. Though it is, indeed, a delicious seasonal snack, watermelon is a healthy treat that can be enjoyed yearround and all day long, too.

These recipes show how easily nutrient-rich watermelon can be incorporated into meals throughout the day, starting with a morning breakfast on the go. Variations on traditional sandwiches, salads and slaws give you more opportunities to explore how watermelon pairs with some of your other favorite dishes.

For these and other recipes featurilang the distinctly crisp flavor of watermelon, visit www.watermelon.org.

BREAKFAST A GO-GO Servings: 1 1/3 cup low fat granola 3/4 cup deseeded watermelon chunks 5 ounces low-fat banana yogurt In tall glass or to-go container, layer ingredients as follows: half each of granola, watermelon and yogurt. Repeat to create two of each layer.

Watermelon Pomegranate Toss Salad

GREEK PITA FLATBREAD WITH WATERMELON Servings: 4 4 wedges seedless watermelon, cut into bite-size pieces 1 cup chicken, cooked and diced 1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped 2 tablespoons Greek yogurt 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt 1 dash cayenne pepper 2 pieces whole pita bread, halved 1/4 cup prepared spreadable herb cheese 4 large lettuce leaves Place sliced watermelon on paper towels to remove excess liquid. Mix chicken, cilantro, yogurt, garlic salt and cayenne pepper. Spread inside surfaces of pita bread halves with herbed cheese and fill each with about 1/4 cup chicken mixture. Top with watermelon and lettuce before serving.

WATERMELON RIND, CARROT AND PINEAPPLE SLAW While half of some fruits are tossed when you throw away the seeds or the peel, all of the watermelon can be used. Save your rinds and make this yummy slaw.

Besides, the rind is packed with citrulline and arginine, two compounds that aid in healthy blood flow.

Servings: 4 one-cup

SELECTING A WATERMELON With a thick rind covering the fruit inside, you may wonder how to choose the best watermelon at the market. Actually, it’s as easy as 1-2-3.

1. Look the watermelon over.

You are looking for a firm, symmetrical watermelon that is free from bruises, cuts or dents.

2. Lift it up.

The watermelon should be heavy for its size. Most of the weight (92 percent, in fact) is water.

3. Turn it over.

The underside of the watermelon should have a creamy yellow spot from where it sat on the ground and ripened in the sun.

WATERMELON POMEGRANATE TOSS SALAD Servings: 4 Dressing 1 cup pomegranate juice 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar 1 1/2 tablespoons orange zest 1 tablespoon agave syrup 1 small shallot, minced 1/8 teaspoon stone-ground mustard

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil Dash of salt and pepper, to taste Salad 8 cups baby spinach (one 6-ounce bag) 3/4 cup diced red onion 2 cups diced watermelon 6 ounces fresh raspberries 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds

Simmer juice in small saucepan over medium-high heat until reduced to about 3 tablespoons and liquid is a thick syrup. Set aside. When cool, add remaining dressing ingredients. Whip; set aside for flavors to blend.

Place watermelon on paper towel to absorb excess fluid. Place spinach in large serving bowl. Top with onion, watermelon, raspberries and pomegranate seeds. Divide onto four salad plates and drizzle with dressing.

Source: National Watermelon Promotion Board

Dressing 1/4 cup fat-free, plain Greek yogurt 1/4 cup low-fat sour cream 1 1/2 tablespoons stone-ground mustard 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice 1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon poppy seeds 2 teaspoons olive oil Salt and pepper to taste Slaw 4 cups grated watermelon rind with fruit and green peel removed 1 cup grated carrot 1 1/2 cup diced fresh pineapple In small bowl, blend together dressing ingredients thoroughly. Set aside.

Place watermelon rind on several layers of paper towels to soak up excess fluid.

In medium-sized bowl, place dressing, rind, carrot and pineapple and toss to thoroughly coat.