LDHS Seniors Nate Campbell and Cam Seay Make History with USC Union Bass Fishing Scholarships
December 16, 2024
Laurens District 55 High School (LDHS) held a signing ceremony on December 12, 2024, in the Lecture Theatre for senior students Nathan (Nate) Campbell and Cameron (Cam) Seay. Nate and Cam signed with the University of South Carolina Union (USC-U) Bass Fishing Team. They are the first two students from LDHS to receive bass fishing scholarships. Laurens County School District 55 (LCSD 55) administrators, LDHS students, LDHS staff, USC Union Outreach & Laurens Campus staff, and the families and friends of Nate and Cam witnessed the event.
The USC Union at Laurens Location provides a cost-effective, accessible, and supportive environment for Laurens County students to begin or continue their education. It’s an excellent choice for those seeking high-quality education close to home while benefiting from the resources of the broader University of South Carolina system. Nate will pursue a degree in Wildlife Biology and hopes to work for the Department of Natural Resources, while Cam will pursue Wildlife Management.
The scholarships that Nate and Cam are receiving are the same athletic scholarships that every athlete on the USC Union campus receives. The perk for Nate and Cam is that with them living in Laurens County, they also qualify for the Laurens County Future Scholarship, and combined with their fishing scholarship, they will attend USC Union tuition-free.
“Joining the Bass Team is a great way to get a quality education debt-free and to be able to fish some outstanding new fisheries around the nation. By choosing USC Union and the bass fishing team, both anglers can enjoy a balance of academic success, personal growth, and extracurricular achievement while laying a solid foundation for their future career paths,” said Coone.
The USC-U Bass Team is currently housed in Clinton at the USC Union at Laurens Campus (the old Bell Street Middle School). The school is renovating the old gym there to be a state-of-the-art boat storage facility for USC-U Bass Team anglers. As members of the team, Cam and Nate will be able to travel and fish new bodies of water across the nation. In the past, the USC-U Bass Team has traveled to New York, Michigan, and Texas to fish.
Coone knows how special it is to have been able to offer the scholarships to Nate and Cam. He said, “It’s a great day whenever we get to keep the connection going between USC Union & Laurens High School. I’m glad to hear that we were able to make history for this. It’s an accomplishment for both Cam & Nate, as well as Coach Adams & Principal Compton.”
Joseph Adams is Nate’s and Cam’s LDHS Anglers Coach and Construction Teacher. He has been coaching for six years and has coached both students for four years. He said, “I’m very proud of Nathan and Cameron for their success at the high school level. I’m excited to see what they do in college. Both students deserve the opportunity they’ve been given. They’ve dedicated so much time and effort to the fishing sport. These kids are special and I’m excited to be part of their journey.”
Adams said that the sport of fishing instills too many values and is too hard to number but to wake up every morning at 2 or 3 AM for tournaments, go out on the water in any temperature or weather, and fish for hours, takes a lot of grit and makes Nate and Cam special.
Nate and Cam are close friends and their parents are excited for them. Nate’s parents are Dana Fuller and Michael Campbell. Dana said that fishing is in Nate’s blood. Nate fished with his father and grandfather and caught his first fish at age two. She said, “To say I am proud is an understatement. Nate has worked so hard and stayed committed and dedicated to his goals. I always tell him to keep his eyes on the prize and he has done exactly that!”
Cam’s parents are Trisha Seay and Mark Seay. Mark said that Cam started fishing before he could swim and fishing has been part of their lives, a tradition passed on from Cam’s grandfather. “We are extremely proud that Cam has stuck out the four years of competing at fishing tournaments and we are over-the-top proud of his accomplishments. We are thankful to the Lord for providing the resources for our families to fish in!”
Nate’s and Cam’s parents are thankful to Coach Adams for supporting their children’s success. His work goes unnoticed in building a phenomenal fishing team and all the logistics work that goes with it, such as registering for tournaments, securing sponsors, and ordering jerseys. Most of all for helping the LDHS Anglers develop friendships and bonds on and off the water.
The district thanks other big supporters of the LDHS Anglers namely LDHS Principal Compton, LDHS teachers Kyle Penland and Anna Sue Crowder, and the following sponsors- Riverside Garage & Tire, Big Air of Laurens, House of Pizza of Laurens, Carolina Family Medicine, Bass Slayer Baits, Parker Land Management Solutions, Skippers on Lake Greenwood, CCI Services, LLC, and Just Bee You.
The LDHS Anglers is a worthy team to support. In Coach Coone’s words, “I might be going out on a limb here, but I don’t think that these two guys will be the last Laurens Anglers to sign with us for Bass Fishing. There are some great young anglers on the LDHS Anglers now that have the potential to fish at the collegiate level.”
The community is encouraged to reach Coach Joseph Adams for sponsorship opportunities. Please reach him at [email protected].
