Whale Branch Early College High School Athletic Director Carlos Cave has been named the 2014 Athletic Director of the Year for Class A by the South Carolina Athletic Directors Association.

Beaufort High School’s Jerry Linn was named Class AAAA Regional Athletic Director of the Year, while Hilton Head Island High’s Joe Monmonier was named Class AAA Regional Athletic Director of the Year.  All three recognitions were announced last Wednesday at a state awards breakfast in Charleston.

Cave was singled out among 52 high school athletic directors across the state in Class A. During Cave’s three years as athletic director, student athletes at four-year-old Whale Branch Early College High have put together a string of successes:

• The boys basketball team has won the 2014 Lower State championship, and played in the state championship game, for the past two years.

• The girls basketball team has won the regional championship for the past two years.

• The boys track and field team won the 2012 Class A State Championship in 2012 and brought home individual state championships in 2013.

• Wrestler Max Ford has won back-to-back state championships in the heavyweight division.

• The volleyball team won the 2012 regional championship.

“To have accomplished so much in such a short period of time says a lot about Mr. Cave’s leadership,” said Superintendent Jeff Moss.  “The future of Whale Branch athletics certainly looks bright.”

School Principal Priscilla Drake said that Cave’s strong organizational skills had been a major asset for the school’s athletic program, particularly in meeting the district’s new 2.0 minimum GPA requirement.  In 2011, Beaufort County became one of only two districts in South Carolina to raise its academic participation standard from merely “passing” to a minimum grade point average of 2.0.

“Nine out of 10 student athletes here have met the new higher standard in its first two years,” Drake said, “and I attribute a lot of that to Mr. Cave’s efforts to monitor students’ academic performance and make sure they get extra help if they need it.”