SPORTS
Bowie beats Bangs in bi-district
The Bowie Jackrabbits had to fight to the very end to finally defeat Bangs on Saturday in their bi-district playoff series at McMurry University.
The Jackrabbits won game three 8-7 after barely holding off a furious late push from the Dragons. It was the second game of the day after Bowie just came short of a comeback of its own in game two which would have sent fans home early.
The teams first played game one on Friday night. Despite it being the Jackrabbit coaches and players first playoff game, it was Bowie’s day.
Kawlyer Swearingin got the start on the mound and pitched like an ace. Despite facing bases loaded with one out early in the second inning and having two runners on in both the fourth and fifth inning, Swearingin, with the help of an errorless defensive performance, worked his way out to shut out Bangs in a complete game performance.
Edgar Regalado and Logan Hutson drove in runs in the second and third inning. A.J. Whatley drove in another in the fourth inning.
A fielding error from the Dragons allowed Carson Sanders to reach third while driving in a run. A passed ball then allowed Sanders to score as the Jackrabbits led 5-0 after four innings.
The team was not done as Bowie scored four runs in the sixth inning. Swearingin, Cade Thompson and Hutson combined to drive them in to make the final score 9-0.
Hutson led the team with three RBIs. Swearingin allowed only four hits and three walks while striking out 10 batters in the complete game shut out.
Coach Tyler Price was happy overall and felt his team imposed its brand of baseball on Bangs in the best way possible.
Heading into Saturday, the team was feeling confident. Starting the second game, two of the first three batters got on base and in scoring position thanks to fielding errors. When the Jackrabbits failed to score, maybe it was then they should have known the Dragons were not going to make it as easy as the day before.
After failing to score a run in seven innings Friday, Bangs scored the first run when its second batter drove in the leadoff hitter with a double.
A fielding error and a single loaded the bases with two outs later in the first inning, but a passed ball allowed another run to score as the Dragons led 2-0 heading into the second inning.
Hutson tried to fire up his team after the lackluster first inning with a lead off home run to left field. Three fielding errors from Bangs in the next three batters allowed Whatley to drive in a run to tie the game at 2-2.
Despite tying the score and starting the second inning with two outs, the Jackrabbits pitching and defense had a tough stretch to before they got that final out.
Three hits, two walks, a dropped third strike and an error allowed the Dragons to score four runs. Carson Sanders had to come in for relief on the mound to get out three, but not before Bangs lead was 6-2.
The teams exchanged scoreless third and fourth innings despite usually getting one or two runners on base. Both teams left several runners stranded.
A passed ball allowed another run to score for the Dragons in the fifth inning to extend their lead to 7-2 as Bowie’s playing energy seemed sapped by that point by how the game had gone and squandering so many scoring opportunities.
The Jackrabbits had their best chance in the sixth inning as the first three batters got on to load the bases with no outs.
Following a strike out, Sanders drove in one run with a single and Devin Melton followed with a single that drove in two runs to cut the lead to 7-5.
With the team alive again as it attempted another one of its late comeback attempts to close the series, Swearingin was up to bat.
He hit a long foul ball to left field that just cleared the fence. Bangs left fielder made an amazing catch and held onto the ball as he ran into the fence hard.
Sanders was on second base and Jackrabbit fans, coaches and players claimed he tagged up after the catch before advancing to third base. After the umpires got together, they made the controversial call that he was out for out three, angering every Jackrabbit supporter.
Bowie went out and played the only clean inning of defense that game as all three of Bangs batters were sat down to get to the final inning.
Two of the first three batters got on with singles. Kynan DeMoss then drove in a run with a single to cut the lead to 7-6 as the energy was electric as everyone was still mad.
After hitting into a fielder’s choice for out two, there were still two runners on base who were both in scoring position after a wild pitch.
Whatley came up to bat and hit and just needed to find a way on. He hit a slow ball to shortstop. With the Dragons having committed six errors in the game and with Whatley’s speed, there was still a chance.
The ball was fielded cleanly. The throw was on target, but it was not coming in hot. Whatley dived for the bag. The call was close, but Whatley was called out, ending the game. The Dragons won game two 7-6.
Sanders had pitched brilliantly in the 4.1 innings of relief as he allowed only two hits and one walk while striking out four. Too many scoring opportunities were wasted.
To read the end of the story and see how game three went down, pick up a copy of the mid-week edition of the Bowie News.
Jackrabbits
A day after football season ended and the Bowie boy’s basketball team played its first game of the season and is working towards a new goal this season.
The Jackrabbits lost that first game against Sanger on Nov. 9, 70-36 before bouncing back a few days later after some practice to beat Bridgeport on Nov. 12, 56-51.
Bowie comes into this season after falling just short of making the playoffs last season.
The team graduated two of its three double-digit scorers along with an experienced post player from its starting rotation last season.
Rayder Mann is the team’s most proven scorer from last season, but other players will be counted on to step up according to Coach Ryan Dykes, who enters his second season at Bowie.
“Rayder Mann and Bradly Horton will need to be the floor generals for us to be successful,” Dykes said. “Boston Farris will be counted on to be a productive player and Gaige Goodman will need to be a factor in the paint on both the offensive and defensive end.”
In the first game against Sanger, Mann led the team with 13 points while Goodman was second with eight points.
The offense was much better overall against Bridgeport. Horton had 15 points, Mann had 14 points and Farris had nine points as Bowie scored in double-digits in every quarter of the game.
Lady Rabbits
In the second week of the season the Bowie Lady Rabbits had up and down performances.
The Lady Rabbits lost at Bridgeport on Nov. 9, 68-30 but bounced back to win at home on Nov. 12 against Boyd 55-42.
Against Bridgeport, Bowie gave up too many three-pointers on defense as the Sissies made 12 in the game.
It was too much for the Lady Rabbits to keep up with.
Parker Riddle led the team with 14 points while Payton Holt was second with five points.
The offense was more successful overall and balanced against Boyd, pulling away in the second half. Hanna Bell led the team with 13 points while Holt was second with eight points and Lanie Moore had seven points.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekend edition of the Bowie News.
The Nocona Lady Indians won a tough match in the regional semi-finals against Forsan on Tuesday night in Breckenridge.
The Lady Indians won 3-1, but had to come back big time in the fourth set to close out the match and prevent it going to five.
Nocona came in as slight favorites against a 28 win Lady Buffaloes team that had an up and down pre-district schedule before sweeping through 10 district matches and dropping only two sets.
The first two playoff matches for Forsan were won with little trouble against McCamey and Highland Park, not losing a single set.
The Lady Indians were coming off a 3-0 win against Seymour and 3-1 win against Hawley in its first two playoff rounds. Their tougher district and pre-district schedule while having a similar record made them the favorites in the match.
In the first set, the Lady Buffaloes proved those thoughts on paper meant nothing as it went down to the wire. It could have gone either way and dipped into extra-points, but it was Forsan that came out on top 26-24 to take the early lead 1-0.
Nocona rebounded and easily took set two 25-14 to tie the match at 1-1. Set three was competitive, but the Lady Indians had the lead and some wiggle room as they held on to win 25-20 to take the lead 2-1.
The fourth set the Lady Buffaloes were not going away as they got the lead early and were able to keep it throughout most of the set.
It looked like the match was heading towards a fifth set, where anything could happen at that point. Forsan led 23-17 and just needed to win two more points.
Somehow, some way Nocona grinded back. A couple of won points caused a time out from the Lady Buffaloes to try and quell the small momentum. It did not and every point won exponentially grew that momentum until it was a surge.
The Lady Indians eventually tied the score up at 23-23 before winning the final two points Forsan had been unable to win in the last eight serves. Nocona won 25-23 in a much more emotional celebration for a 3-1 victory because of how the last set was won.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekend edition of the Bowie News.
The Saint Jo Lady Panthers secured their third straight trip to the regional tournament on Tuesday with an easy win against Woodson.
The Lady Panthers won in straight sets 3-0 against the Cowgirls as they moved on to the next phase in their plan.
Saint Jo came into the match as favorites, with expectations to get back to the regional tournament before the season even started.
Woodson had some good front court players and had picked up steam during district play to win its district. That didn’t mean the Cowgirls didn’t struggle through its first two playoff matches, taking Richland Springs and Crowell to five sets in their victory.
Also, the teams played earlier in the season during a tournament and the Lady Panthers won 2-0. The fact it was more than two months ago indicated little besides both teams knowing what the other brought to the table.
Saint Jo had only stumbled in its previous match against Perrin-Whitt in the first set, with a lot of uncharacteristic errors.
It was important for Coach Kelly Skidmore to get her team’s mindset right to not give up anything easy since Woodson has proven itself to be feisty in its two five-set playoff wins.
The team took her words to heart and led 5-0 to cool off a hot Woodson crowd that was hoping to root its team to an upset win in a playoff run that was full of excitement so far.
Even with the Cowgirls eventually fighting back, Saint Jo was able to attack Woodson’s serve-receive and win more times at the net with its own impressive front court play.
Knowing also where to hit the ball, avoiding too many dump attacks where Woodson was ready and looking to hit it near the sidelines, also played a factor in the Lady Panthers making it look easy.
Saint Jo won 25-17 to take a 1-0 lead.
The second set proved to be the most competitive of the match. The first 10 points were even, but then the Cowgirls had a 4-1 run to open up a 12-8 lead.
The Lady Panthers battled back and quickly tied the score at 15-15 and then 20-20.
Down the stretch, Woodson had trouble landing its serves while Saint Jo made the Cowgirls work for every point. The execution led to the Lady Panthers winning the close set 25-23 as they took a 2-0 lead.
Even with the lead, it was emphasized to Saint Jo players to not give up an inch since Woodson had shown it could take a mile. While the Cowgirls had not come back from 2-0 in the previous two matches, the fact both went five sets and they would need to do it again if they wanted a chance to win meant the Lady Panthers could not take a breath.
With that in mind, Saint Jo started set three and quickly got out to a 5-0 lead thanks to a string of good serves. That seemed to put Woodson’s energy down, even as the Cowgirls clawed back to within one point relatively quickly 8-7.
Then the Lady Panthers went on a 7-3 run to open their lead to 15-10 and there was no fight left for Woodson. Saint Jo’s lead continued to grow as the end of the match proved near.
The Lady Panthers won the set easily 25-14 and the match 3-0.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekend edition of the Bowie News. For more pictures from the match, click here https://www.dotphoto.com/go.asp?l=bnews1&AID=6870517&T=1
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