SPORTS
Basketball Roundup
Saint Jo boys
The Saint Jo boy’s basketball team picked up two big wins for itself on Friday and Saturday against Boyd and Bryson.
The Panthers beat the 3A Yellowjackets 49-42 while beating the Cowboys 40-30.Saint Jo was able to hang around Boyd in its home opener for most of the game. Only in the fourth quarter did the Panthers take their first lead, but the Yellowjackets were not just going to let them keep it.
The game was tied 42-42 in the final minutes when Chance Bennett scored to put Saint Jo up. Clutch free throws from Kile Thurman after that iced the game to give the Panthers the win. Bennett led the team with 19 points.
The next day at Bryson was not the best offensive performance for the Panthers. Fortunately, Saint Jo’s defense did well enough to allow the team to get the win.
Brice Durham led the team with nine points and three 3-pointers while dishing a couple of assists and drawing a key charge. Collin Thomas was right behind him scoring eight points off the bench all in the fourth quarter when the team needed it the most.
Prairie Valley girls
The Prairie Valley Lady Bulldogs picked up a big win at home on Friday against Perrin-Whitt.
The Lady Bulldogs won 54-35 in a game where the team showed great improvement on offense.
“This was a great team effort,” Coach Jeanie Carpenter said. “I saw some great teamwork in this game. We passed the ball well, we were able to find the open player and connect. Our defense is a strength this season and with our quickness we are able to create some fast break opportunities. It definitely helps to have multiple players putting points on the board, and not relying too heavily on any one individual.”
Prairie Valley boys
The Prairie Valley Bulldogs lost a close one at home Friday night against Perrin-Whitt.
The Pirates won 55-50 as mental mistakes down the stretch cost the Bulldogs.
Perrin-Whitt led for most of the game. Prairie Valley was able to hang around for most of the game thanks to its long-range shooting, making 11 3-pointers in the game.
The Bulldogs took the lead in the fourth quarter, but two starters fouled out. This allowed the Pirates to take the back the lead as bad decision making down the stretch was the difference.
Isaac Yeargin led the team with 26 points while making seven 3-pointers. Tyler Winkler was second with 16 points. Konner Ritchie led the team with 13 rebounds and six assists to go with six points.
Saint Jo girls
The Saint Jo Lady Panthers lost games to Victory Christian Academy and Bryson on Friday and Saturday.
The Lady Panthers lost to the Lady Patriots 40-21 on Friday and 28-18 against the Cowgirls on Saturday.
The team had stretches in both games where the offense struggled to score any points to keep pace. The transition to the man-to-man defense seems to have kept Saint Jo in these games, but having scoreless quarters going forward, it is going to be hard to win.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the mid-week edition of the Bowie News
With the baseball and softball seasons over for the area 1A schools, district awards have been released.
Listed below are those earned honors on the field and in the classroom for Saint Jo and Bellevue.
Softball
Saint Jo
Honorable mention
Utility player: Taylor Patrick; Catcher: Jordyn O’Neal
Baseball
Superlatives
Offensive MVP: Devin Stewart, Saint Jo
Newcomer of the Year: Bryce Ramsey, Bellevue
Pitcher: Trent Gaston, Saint Jo
Outfielder: Jayden Curry, Saint Jo
Second team
Pitcher: Charlie Barclay, Saint Jo
Infielder: Brycen Bancroft, Bellevue; Sam Martin, Saint Jo
Outfielder: Rylan Forrester, Saint Jo
Catcher: Charlie Evans, Saint Jo
Utility: Logan Hoover, Saint Jo
DH: Amzy Barclay, Saint Jo
Honorable mention
Cody Gaston, Saint Jo; Xander Joyner, Saint Jo
To see academic awards from Saint Jo players, pick up a copy of the weekend edition of the Bowie News.
Eldon Van Hooser is leaving Forestburg better than he found it.
The head boy’s basketball coach is retiring after more than 30 years, spending the last five at Forestburg.
Van Hooser did not come to this decision because of a lack of fire or feeling tired after decades in the profession. He had to for family reasons.
“My wife has MS (multiple sclerosis) and it’s a disease where you have trouble standing and walking and she needs help,” Van Hooser said. “I am able to so I am going to step away from teaching and coaching to be there for her.”
Van Hooser was hired in 2019. Along with being the boy’s basketball coach, he also was the football team’s defensive coordinator.
There were some lean years for Forestburg on the boy’s athletic side, with numbers being low and the available athletes being mostly underclassmen.
For two years, the Longhorns’ boy’s basketball team won few games and one of those seasons saw the team field five players on the high school team.
“One of those years we had COVID-19 and the other we had five kids,” Van Hooser said. “It was very rough. After that we worked with the kids and we had a good freshman group coming up. Next year they are going to be seniors.”
That group has helped to turn the program around. Last year the young Longhorns team contested for a playoff spot and just barely missed it finishing fifth in the district.
This season, that same group took a leap and finished second in district with a record of 7-5.
Despite losing its last two regular season games in dramatic fashion heading into the playoffs, the team stepped up in the bi-district game.
Playing against an athletic Newcastle team, Forestburg led for most of the game.
Unfortunately, the previous game against Bellevue saw the Longhorn team blow the lead late in the fourth quarter against a hard pressing style team and they were suffering the same fate against the Bobcats down the stretch.
Fortunately, Forestburg held on just enough to win 53-46. It was the first boy’s basketball playoff win in nine years for Forestburg.
“It was huge for our program,” Van Hooser said. “This new year we will have new goals. The new coach will have some goals of his own, but I set some for the team and think that we have come a long way.”
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekend edition of the Bowie News.
The Bowie sports banquets was on Monday night. Olivia Gill and Tucker Jones were named Jackrabbit and Lady Rabbit of the year. Pick up the mid-week paper for all of the sports team awards and pictures.
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