Local crime, high school sports, county politics, events tonight, and business closings — the daily Central Savannah River Area (CSRA) report from HERE Aiken.
From the HERE City State DeskCOLUMBIA, S.C. — Dawn Staley’s Gamecocks open the 2026-27 women’s college basketball season as the No. 1 team in a major national preseason Top 25, ahead of UConn and Southern California. The ranking landed as SEC Tipoff got underway and again lists South Carolina among…
From the HERE City National DeskSAN FRANCISCO — Kristaps Porzingis remains unavailable for Golden State with no return date after missing camp and the entire exhibition slate, then resurfacing at the team building this week. Club officials said Wednesday the 7-foot-3 big man is still dealing with the same undisclosed…
From the HERE City National DeskNEW YORK — League referees are putting flopping at the top of the 2026-27 enforcement list, and a preseason whistle on Knicks guard Jalen Brunson showed how quickly the standard can bite. During a Madison Square Garden exhibition on Oct. 12 against Minnesota, Brunson took…
From the HERE City National DeskBETHANY, Okla. — Southern Nazarene University announced Thursday the death of Crimson Storm safety Tyler Ulrich, a week after he left an away game on a stretcher, and scrubbed this weekend trip to Southwestern Oklahoma State. Ulrich was 21. He went down Saturday in Arkadelphia,…
From the HERE City National DeskLOS ANGELES — Milwaukee finished off Los Angeles, the two-time reigning World Series champs, on Thursday night, taking National League Championship Series Game 4 by a 6-4 score at Dodger Stadium and completing a four-game sweep that sends the franchise back to the Fall Classic…
From the HERE City National DeskDENVER — Wil Lutz drilled a 53-yard kick in overtime Thursday night, and the Denver Broncos escaped with a 17-14 result against Seattle at Mile High Stadium after JaQuan McMillian picked off Sam Darnold on the first sudden-death drive. Seattle opened overtime and faced third-and-7…
From the HERE City National DeskMINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota coach Niko Medved spent more than seven minutes after the Thursday exhibition ripping the NCAA for how it rolled out a five-seasons-in-five-years eligibility model, saying the timing and legal fallout have left hundreds of players and coaches in limbo. Medved said he…
Education
AIKEN, S.C. — Not a single Aiken County public school landed in the bottom tier of South Carolina's newest school report cards, the second year running that the Aiken County Public School District has avoided an Unsatisfactory rating. Five district schools earned the top Excellent mark for 2025-26: Aiken Scholars…
From HERE Lexington
WEST COLUMBIA, S.C. — In West Columbia on Wednesday, School District Two put a film crew veteran, a chorus director nicknamed Mama Maddox and an art teacher who once called her pupils Little Flowers into its Fine Arts Hall of Fame. Leaders marked the occasion at 5 o’clock at the…
Events
AIKEN, S.C. — Young horse fans can paint a model horse of their own for free next weekend when the City of Aiken hosts Breyer Horse Day at its Thoroughbred Racing Hall of Fame and Museum. The event runs from 10:30 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Oct. 24. It is…
Business
AIKEN, S.C. — Community voters in Aiken put SRP Federal Credit Union at the top of two banking categories in the 2026 Best of Aiken honors, naming it Best Bank and Favorite Mortgage Company. The poll is staged each year by the Aiken Standard. SRP grew out of a 1960…
From the HERE City State Desk
SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Seven automotive parts makers in the Upstate will expand to supply Scout Motors, putting more than $82 million into new work and adding about 200 jobs across Spartanburg, Duncan and Piedmont, the automaker announced Wednesday. The plans were laid out at OneSpartanburg Inc., with Gov. Henry McMaster,…
From the HERE City National Desk
BANGKOK — The International Monetary Fund says the world economy has held up better than expected against war, an energy shock and trade fights, but it is warning finance ministers gathered in Bangkok this week that the cushions behind that resilience are wearing thin. In its latest World Economic Outlook,…
Public Safety
AIKEN, S.C. — The Aiken County Sheriff's Office fired Deputy Jake Mele on Oct. 14 after an internal review found he collected pay for an off-duty shift he never worked, the office said in a release. A complaint lodged Oct. 9 alleged Mele signed up for the side job, failed…
Politics
AIKEN, S.C. — Aiken City Council on Oct. 12 walked through a proposal that would create a specialized diversion docket here in 2027 for people without housing who pick up low-level municipal charges. Deputy public defender Nick McCarley of the 2nd Judicial Circuit told all seven council members at a…
From the HERE City State Desk
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Attorney General Alan Wilson, the Republican nominee for governor, rolled out a cost-of-living platform on Thursday that centers on taxes, fuel, insurance and power bills. The biggest promise is to do away with the state income tax while reworking how South Carolina taxes property. Wilson also wants…
From the HERE City National Desk
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump blasted Kyiv for restarting attacks on Russian oil and diesel plants, saying the raids lift world fuel prices after an energy pause he floated last weekend fell apart. Speaking in a Thursday television interview from the White House, Trump said Ukrainian forces have plenty of…
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