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STORM CENTER: Phipps helps Aggies
Success seems to follow Nocona native Jaxon Phipps wherever he goes.
Phipps was recently a member of the Murray State College baseball team that participated in the National Junior College Athletic Association Division II Tournament at Enid, Okla.
“It was an experience I will never forget,” said Phipps, who was named a second-team all-state shortstop his senior year at Nocona.
The national championship game was set for Friday at David Allen Memorial Ballpark with Illinois-based Kankakee squaring off against Mercer County from New Jersey. Kankakee is favored, already with 53 wins this season.
Murray State, located in Tishomingo, Okla., has a longstanding tradition of good fortune in junior college baseball, and this year’s bunch of Aggies didn’t disappoint.
The Aggies went 49-12, and they were the No. 1 seed heading into nationals. However, that’s when things unraveled for Murray State.
Lansing (Mich.) defeated Murray State 11-9 in the opening round of the tournament, which relegated the Aggies to the loser’s bracket.
Then Phoenix eliminated the Aggies 12-7. In the elimination game, Phipps went 1-for-3 with a two-run double. He also walked one and struck out during another plate appearance.
“It was since Day One in August (2016) to win the World Series,” said Phipps. “Every practice we had, every swing I took and every weight I lifted was to get there. We just came up short.” Read more from this column in the June 3 Bowie News.
Editor’s Note: The Storm Center column is the expressed written views of sports editor Eric Viccaro and not The Bowie News.
Former Nocona standout baseball player Jaxon Phipps produced a .267 batting average and .821 on-base-plus-slugging percentage for Murray State. He played primarily second base for the Aggies. (Courtesy photo from Murray State College, Tishomingo, Okla.)
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Softball Roundup
The Nocona Lady Indians beat Saint Jo at home on Saturday morning.
The Lady Indians won 16-1 after four innings due to run-rule against the smaller school.
Nocona was coming off a competitive loss at Collinsville earlier in the week while the Lady Panthers were hoping to compete after a busy week of their athletes doing everything else besides just softball.
The Lady Indians easily won the first matchup between the teams in March, 19-2 and it was more of the same on Saturday.
Saint Jo struck first to start the game off well. Jordyn O’Neal hit a one out single. Krista Reeves followed with a walk after O’Neal had stolen second base and had advanced to third thanks to an error trying to throw her out. A wild pitch then allowed her to score to put the Lady Panthers up 1-0.
The lead did not last long. Nocona’s first two batters drew walks which set up Abby Hill to drive them both in with a single to right field.
Despite giving up a single and a walk later in the inning, Saint Jo’s defense did not allow another run. A line out and groundout to the shortstop while picking off a runner attempting to steal got the Lady Panthers out of the inning unscarred.
The Lady Indians led 2-1.
That was about as competitive as it got. In the second inning, Nocona’s bats got going. Two singles and a hit batter loaded the bases up with no outs.
Reagan Phipps drew a walk that drove in a run. Hill hit another two RBI single. Skye Kirby followed with a two RBI double.
After the first out, Allie Sutton drove in one run with a single. There was a fly out for out two, before a runner came in to score after a passed ball. Finally, an error allowed two more runs to score on the base paths.
Nocona had scored nine runs and led 11-1 to break the game open heading into the third inning.
Taylor Patrick hit a double, with O’Neal and Reeves following with singles. Unfortunately for Saint Jo, Patrick was thrown out before the hits attempting to steal a base so the Lady Panthers scored no runs from this.
The Lady Indians kept pouring on the runs. Two singles and a walk loaded the bases up with no outs. Tinley Cable then hit an RBI single. Shelby Swell was hit by a pitch that drove in another run.
After two strikeouts, Evelyn Marquez drove in two more runs on a double to put Nocona up 15-1, coming up one run short of ending the game early.
The Lady Indians scored that one run in the fourth inning. After Phipps drew a leadoff walk, Hill hit a triple that drove her in to end the game.
Nocona won 16-1.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the mid-week edition of the Bowie News.
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