SPORTS
Nocona softball loses tough game on road
The Nocona Lady Indians traveled to Henrietta on Friday to take on the Lady Cats.
Henrietta was able to end the game early as it won 15-1.
The Lady Indians led off and Laci Stone was able to hit a single over second base with one out to get on base. Nocona could not follow that up as the next two batter got out to leave Stone stranded at first.
The Lady Cats leadoff batter got on base with a single. After stealing second base, the next batter hit a single that scored the runner, giving Henrietta a 1-0 lead. While the base runner also stole second to get in scoring position, the Lady Indians were able to make the plays in the field to retire the next three batters.
At the start of the second inning, Kycelynn Contreras got on base by being hit with a pitch. Again Nocona had trouble taking advantage of this as the next three batters were retired in order. Contreras was stranded at first base.
Henrietta took advantage of every opportunity it had in the second inning.
Six base hits and three walks led to eight runs scored as the Lady Cats led 9-0 after two innings.
The Lady Indians could not respond as all three batters were retired in order to start the third inning. Henrietta’s offense kept rolling, putting up five runs on four hits, three walks and a hit batter. The Lady Cats led 14-0 as the game advanced to the fourth inning.
Nocona was able to get some things going offensively. Koryahanna Ramsey led off the inning by getting hit with a pitch. Karlee Keck followed with a double in the gap that put two runners in scoring position.
Logan Patterson hit a single, but Ramsey was thrown out at home. After a strike out, the Lady Indians looked like they might squander this opportunity to score. Jenna McBride delivered with a single to left field that drove in run to cut the lead to 14-1 and avoid the shutout.
Henrietta was able to add one more run in response to make the score 15-1. A leadoff single, a steal and a base hit led to the run, but Nocona was able to shut down the Lady Cats after that, retiring three of the next four batters.
Heading into the fifth inning, the Lady Indians needed to score at least five runs to avoid the game ending early due to run rule. Taylor Richards was hit by a pitch with one out to get on base. She stole second base and was in scoring position. Unfortunately the next two batters struck out to end the game. Henrietta won 15-1.
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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