Irmo High Field House to Be Named After Phil Savitz

Irmo High School's new field house will be named after boys soccer coach Phil Savitz.

Lexington-Richland 5's board unanimously approved the naming of the athletic facility at its regular meeting Monday night. 

Irmo High's School Improvement Council made the recommendation to the district administration. 

Three people including Thornton Kirby, a former soccer player and president of the South Carolina Hospital Association, and Rep. Chip Huggins (R-Lexington) all showed support in naming the facility after Savitz.

Savitz, who has worked at Irmo High for 33 years, is coaching his last season with the Yellow Jackets. 

Savitz accepted an offer to be the new head soccer coach at Lexington School District 1's new River Bluff High School.

Throughout his career, Savitz has won 13 state championships and became the 17th coach in the nation to get more than 600 wins.

Savitz was inducted into the S.C. Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2011 and was named the Region Coach of the Year 17 times. 

District 5 board members also approved naming Dutch Fork High School's choral suite in honor of Marjorie Turner, a 16-year veteran teacher, and the school's media center after Jimmy B. Taylor, the school's former principal.