SPORTS
Nocona Indians lose to Childress 53-34
The Nocona boys hosted a tough Childress team at home on Friday and played them tough until the score got away from them.
The Bobcats would end up winning 53-34 in a game that just seemed to gradually get farther and farther away from the Indians as it went along, which was a shame because they started the game so well.
With Childress trying to find driving lanes to the basket or wanting the push the ball in transition, Nocona gave them no opportunity to for most of the first quarter.
The Bobcats scored their first points with two minutes to go in the quarter while the Indians had executed some good plays in the half court to get open shots at the basket as they were up 6-2.
After the first basket went through, the flood gates seemed to come open. Childress started to press more ferociously, forcing turnovers and getting the Indians out of rhythm while the Bobcats were able to score off of the turnovers.
Childress wrestled the lead away from Nocona 12-10 heading into the second quarter.
From there, the Bobcats slowly pulled away. The little ways the Indians were outplaying Childress in the first quarter swung the other way. Offensive rebounds, outstanding hustle, taking care of the ball and great defense. The Bobcats led 27-18 at halftime, but Nocona was still in the game if they could bounce back.
The teams played to a stalemate in the third quarter as neither team could get much going offensively. The Indians could not cut into the lead any while Childress stayed a comfortable eight to nine points ahead throughout the third quarter as the Bobcats led 35-26 heading into the fourth quarter.
It was in the fourth quarter the wheels started to fall off. Players had been snipping at each other during the game, but some players lost their composure their which resulted in technical fouls.
Frustration grew as the lead got bigger from the Bobcats. The final score was 53-34.
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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