SPORTS
STORM CENTER: Texas plays classic with Toronto
Wednesday wasn’t the easiest sports day for me – well, from a fan perspective that is.
My first priority was to cover the District 1A-21 cross country meet at Twisted Oaks Golf Club near Amon G. Carter Lake.
That meant only casually glancing to check the score from Game Five of the American League Championship Series between the Toronto Blue Jays and Texas Rangers.
Interestingly enough, junior high school awards were presented just as the seventh inning was about to begin.
Yes, that seventh inning – which spanned 53 minutes inside Rogers Centre, the building formerly known as the SkyDome.
Toronto Blue Jay Jose Bautista said the only time he experienced a seventh inning like that was in winter ball.
The seventh inning had everything a baseball fan could ask for; it was like going to one of the many buffet lines at the Golden Corral.
It was the greatest seventh inning I never saw live – only with accounts through Major League Baseball’s gameday scoreboard service and the radio. I later saw highlights and cobbled together some notes for this piece.
There were questionable umpiring decisions, a benches-clearing incident, errors aplenty, and Bautista’s bat flip heard around the world.
Yes, I became a Blue Jays fan this season, and that’s because Toronto general manager Alex Anthopolous traded for third baseman Josh Donaldson.
Donaldson is my favorite current player in baseball, and he plays the game like my favorite third baseman all time in Michael Jack Schmidt of the 548 home runs and Hall of Fame career.
I know you Rangers are dealing with heartbreak, and I can say I have been there, too. After all, I grew up in Connecticut rooting for the Philadelphia Phillies.
The Phillies have lost the most games in major league baseball, with more than 10,000 of them. They lost several times in the National League Championship Series.
Philadelphia lost to Baltimore in the 1983 World Series after winning the first game. The Phillies lost to the Blue Jays in 1993 as Joe Carter smacked an epic home run off reliever Mitch Williams in Game Six. Read more of this column in the weekend edition of The Bowie News.
Editor’s Note: The Storm Center column is the expressed written views of sports editor Eric Viccaro and not The Bowie News.
Texas Rangers. (Graphic provided by the team and Major League Baseball, used with permission)
In its first match since last year’s state semifinal appearance, Saint Jo hosted Bryson Aug. 11 and took a 25-13, 25-12, 25-21 win over the Cowgirls.
The Lady Panthers lost some talent to graduation but have five seniors ready to have a successful season. Savannah Hil, one of the five, got Saint Jo rolling offensively with a four-point serving string, including a pair of aces. Abby Carter’s kill and Kamron Skidmore’s block helped put the Lady Panthers up 5-2 in game one.
Hadleigh Moore added a four-point string of her own to extend the lead to 10-3. Tatum Morman’s pair, helped by a Hill kill, gave Saint Jo a 14-5 lead. Bryson got within five before a Hill 3-pointer, with help by a Carter kill, put the lead back at 18-10.
After an Olivia Johnson kill broke serve, Jordyn O’Neal served up the final five points, with Johnson providing a kill to move things along.
For further details, pick up a copy of Thursday’s Bowie News.
Despite being the smallest school in the Brock varsity classic volleyball tournament, the Lady Indians finished 4th out of the eight teams there.
After losing to the host team in its first pool play match Aug. 14 18-25, 14-25 and also to Class 3A Wall 12-25, 8-25, Nocona rebounded to close out pool play with a 20-25, 25-23, 25-20 win over Christoval. Sy Parker had 16 kills and 7 blocks in the three matches. Raylea Bowles had 12 kills, 17 digs and served up three aces. Maddyn Bowles had seven kills and 14 digs while Paige Davis had seven kills and 15 digs. Baylee Thomas added 11 digs.
From the setter spot, Kasi Castro had 20 assists, served up five aces and contributed 14 digs. Leah Meekins added 18 assists and six digs during the three matches.
To open Saturday’s bracket play, the Lady Indians posted a 25-18, 18-25, 26-24, 25-19 win over Fort Worth Christian. Castro staked Nocona to a 2-0 lead in game one. Kills by Parker set up pairs of points from Raylea Bowles and Leah Meekins helped Nocona negate an early deficit and take a 10-9 lead.
For further details, pick up a copy of Thursday’s Bowie News.
County football teams had their first scrimmage of the season Aug. 14 with mixed results.
Forestburg hosted Azle Christian and Victory Christian. Under a new system with new head coach Cori Hayes, the Longhorns looked pretty good in the coach’s eye.
“The first team looked good,” Hayes explained. “Overall we need to work on our pace and blocking assignments and blocking assignments. Overall we looked good for the new regime.”
Forestburg hits the road to scrimmage Newcastle Aug. 21.
For further details, pick up a copy of Thursday’s Bowie News.
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