SPORTS
2021 Year in HS Sports Review

Bowie
To start the year, both of Bowie’s basketball teams made the playoffs. The boy’s team got the unfortunate matchup of state-ranked Peaster that ended its season, but for a team coming off its first non playoff appearance in many seasons the previous year, new coach Andy Atkins and the inexperienced roster pushed the program back to respectability.
The Lady Rabbits again went three rounds deep in the playoffs, punctuated by a dramatic win against Brock, before the mostly senior led crew and Coach Joe Crabb again fell to state power Jim Ned.
The start of some spring season redemption came with the girl’s powerlifting team. The team finished third at the regional meet and had four girls compete at the state meet.
With state being cancelled literally the day before it was supposed to start the previous year, this year was time for redemption. While it was not Jessie Henry, Ashley Aguirre or Kerstin Kindsfather’s day, it was for Chelsea Price. The senior set a new personal record of 980 total pounds and finished second in the 220 pound weight class.
The same could be said for the golf program. The season was cancelled before it could really get underway, but both teams were rolling before then. Despite some key graduations, the team came back stronger than ever under Coach Matthew Miller. Both the boy’s and girl’s teams swept the team district titles and went on to the regional meet.
While the Lady Rabbits season ended there, the boy’s team rebounded from a bad first day to a great second day to finish third and qualify for the program’s first state appearance. The Jackrabbits then did well to finish sixth playing against the state’s best.
Further into spring, the baseball team had barely played a month before the previous year’s season was cancelled.
With new Coach Tyler Price and a team filled with players who had little experience of varsity baseball, the team exceeded expectations by finishing second in district play and beating Bangs in the playoffs. The season came to an end in the area round against state-ranked Jim Ned.
The tennis team sent several players to the regional meet while the boy’s team won the overall district title.
Going into the fall season, the volleyball team was able to finish third in district play and make the playoffs again. Along the way, senior libero Taygon Jones collected her 3,000th career dig. Unfortunately, the Lady Rabbits lost in the first round to Brock.
The boy’s cross country team finished as district runner-up to qualify for the regional meet again, finishing 20th.
Nocona
To start the year, both Nocona basketball teams made the playoffs again. The Lady Indians won their third straight district title and went three rounds deep in the playoffs before losing to Peaster.
The boy’s team again made the playoffs as a fourth seed for the second straight year, but lost its playoff game to state-power Brock.
In the golf program, Laci Stone was able to qualify for the regional tournament individually where she finished eighth overall.
In the fall season, the volleyball team finished district play in fourth place and qualified for the playoffs. Unfortunately, state-ranked Peaster ended the team’s season in the first round.
Both cross country teams ended up qualifying for the regional meet, with the girls finishing second and the boys finishing third at the district meet.
Saint Jo
The Saint Jo program started the year with its boy’s basketball team having a good run. The Panthers finished second in district play and got playoff wins against Bryson and Ector before losing to state-power Graford.
In tennis, Jacqueline Hanna was able to make it all the way to the state tournament competing in the tough girl’s singles division.
The Panther baseball team was able to go three rounds deep in the playoffs before losing to state-power Dodd City.
In track the boy’s team won the district title and the program had a list of kids qualify all the way to the regional meet.
In the fall season, every team did well. The football team won its third straight district title and won its playoff game against Leveretts Chapel. The team lost a tragic game to Coolidge in the area round.
The volleyball team overcame its youth to finish with the co-district title and qualify for the playoffs before it lost to county rivals Prairie Valley.
The boy’s cross country team finally broke through to win the district title while Aubrey Morman qualified for the regional meet individually.
At the regional meet, the team got fifth overall while Collin Thomas and Devin Stewart would qualify for the state meet individually. Thomas would earn his first medal at state while finishing 10th while Stewart finished 80th.
Prairie Valley
In the spring the program had some great individual performances. In track, Mason Allen came out of nowhere to not only qualify for the state meet in the high jump, but jump 6’ 1” and win the bronze medal.
The tennis team also had some athletes reach the state level. The mixed doubles team of Isaac Yeargin and Veronica Gutierrez qualified for the state meet where they lost in the first round.
In the fall season, the volleyball team was able to battle through a tough district to qualify for the playoffs again. Even as a third seed, the Lady Bulldogs were able to win against rival Saint Jo and Evant before falling to district foe Bryson in the third round.
In cross country, both teams were able to qualify for the regional meet with the girls finishing second and the boys third. At regional, the boy’s team finished ninth and the girls 15th, but the programs had something to celebrate individually.
Eli Croxton and Linzie Priddy both qualified for the state meet where Priddy finished 79th and Croxton finished 82nd.
Gold-Burg
The program had its biggest accomplishment in the spring in tennis as the girl’s doubles team of Shadie Whitaker and Kelly Contreras qualified for the state meet. The team won the regional tournament despite not winning the district title the previous week. At state the team was knocked out in the first round.
In the fall season, the football team got a lot of attention. Coach Joe Helms and the Bears built on their success from the previous year and turned in the best season in school history while setting several program firsts: winning nine games, winning an outright district title and beating Lueders-Avoca in the first round of the playoffs.
The ride came to an end in the area round against Gordon, but it was a fun ride for Gold-Burg football.
In cross country, Isaac Renteria exceeded everyone’s expectations by qualifying all the way up to the state meet. He finished fifth at the district meet, 19th at the regional meet and 48th at the state meet.
Forestburg
Playoff appearances did not happen for Longhorn teams and no one qualified all the way to the state meet, but athletes at Forestburg still did well despite the odds. The boy’s track team finished tied for third at the district meet and were only one point behind second place. The girls finished fourth despite only three girls competing. Reagan Ladewign scored in four different events. Several athletes qualified all the way up to the regional meet.
The football season had its host of challenges. With new Coach Greg Roller dealing with a roster full of almost all underclassmen and with depth being an issue that led to one game being cancelled, winning three games is more than impressive.
None more so than the epic seven overtime battle against Vernon Northside on homecoming where the Longhorns came out on top for their first win of the season.
Bellevue
The Bellevue program had several great accomplishments this year. The Lady Eagle basketball team again qualified for the playoffs where they won in the first round against Newcastle before falling to state-power Dodd City.
In track, Sky-Lar Embry won the district title in the 100, 200 and 400 meter races. She was then able to qualify all the way up to the state meet in the 100 meter where she would finish ninth overall.
In the fall in cross country, the girl’s team would return to the regional meet after finishing third at the district meet. At regional, the Lady Eagles finished 16th overall.
To see pictures from every school, pick up a copy of the mid-week edition of the Bowie News.
SPORTS
Baseball Roundup

Nocona
The Nocona Indians ended their regular season with a sweep of Alvord to secure a number one seed heading into the playoffs.
The Indians won 13-6 and 3-1 to earn the top seed in the big school division in the playoffs.
With that much on the line despite already securing a playoff spot the previous week, Nocona had a lot to play for in its final regular season series.
The Bulldogs got on the board first with two runs, but the Indians answered with nine runs in the bottom of the first inning to retake the lead 9-2.
Both teams scored one run in the third inning before Nocona scored three runs in the fourth inning to go up 13-3. Alvord was able to extend the game and avoid getting run-ruled by scoring two runs in the fifth and one in the sixth inning.
The Indian bats were cold in the final three innings, but the defense bounced back to shut out the Bulldogs in the seventh inning to win 13-6.
RJ Walker and Jayce Lehde each drove in three runs to lead the team while Ladon Fatheree and Zyrus Moreno both drove in two runs. Nocona finished with nine hits and drew nine walks during the game.
On the mound, Walker Murphey pitched six innings and allowed six runs (five earned) on 12 hits while striking out one and walking two.
The second game was more a pitcher’s duel that had far less action scoring runs.
The Indians scored first in the second inning with one run, but Alvord tied the game with one run in the fourth inning. Nocona answered with two runs in the fifth inning and held on to win 3-1.
Lehde and Fatheree drove in one run each while Murphey scored the other run on the basepaths thanks to a wild pitch. Nocona had only two hits while the team drew seven walks.
Walker helped carry the team on the mound, pitching the whole game while giving up one run on four hits and striking out 13 batters. The defense committed no fielding errors.
Bellevue
The Bellevue Eagles ended their season on Monday this week, losing some tough games on the way out before closing with a win.
The Eagles lost to Perrin-Whitt 13-1, to Bryson 17-2 before beating Saint Jo 7-2 to end the season on a high note.
Bellevue struggled against the two other 1A teams in its district in its previous matchups as both teams are heading towards the playoffs. Both the Pirates and Cowboys proved it once again in the final matchup on April 22 and Monday before playing a team more on its level.
The Eagles and Panthers were 1-1 against each other this season. Playing after Bellevue’s loss to against Bryson right before on Saint Jo’s home field, the Eagles wanted revenge.
Bellevue got it with a 7-2 win against the Panthers to end both team’s season and this year improve the series 2-1 in the Eagles favor.
River Trail led the team with two RBIs while Hunter Blackburn had a team high two hits.
The team finished with seven hits and drew 10 walks.
On the mound, Bryce Ramsey allowed two runs on nine hits while striking out seven and walking five. The defense committed one fielding error.
Saint Jo
The Saint Jo Panthers had a tough final week to their disappointing season.
The Panthers lost to Bryson 10-4 before losing to Bellevue 7-2 to close out their season.
Saint Jo knew it was out of the playoff hunt and was playing for pride as it hoped to end the season with its head held high.
The Panthers played the Cowboys on April 22 and were put behind the eight ball when Bryson rallied off seven runs in the third inning. Saint Jo closed the game well, but could not overcome that bad inning as it lost 10-4.
Sam Martin, Charlie Evans, Mathew Sampson and Jayden Curry each drove in one run each. Saint Jo had nine hits and drew six walks during the game.
Unfortunately, Saint Jo’s defense allowed 10 hits and nine walks while committing five fielding errors.
The Panthers then waited a week before ending their season on Monday, due to rain causing the game to be rescheduled, against Bellevue. Each team had beaten the other so far this season and with both teams out of the playoffs, it was a game about local pride more than anything.
Unfortunately for Saint Jo, it did not go its way on Monday. The Eagles scored in every inning besides the first and seventh inning while the Panthers only scored in the fourth inning. Bellevue won 7-2.
Devin Stewart led the team with two RBIs on a double he hit. The team finished with eight hits and drew six walks, but it was not enough to hang with the Eagles.
The pitching staff allowed only four hits, but three fielding errors and nine walks allowed Bellevue to rack up the runs.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekly edition of the Bowie News.
SPORTS
Jackrabbits end season with series sweep

The Bowie Jackrabbits finished their season last week with a dominant series sweep against Vernon.
The Jackrabbits won both games by run-rule 13-2 and 11-1 against the Lions.
Bowie came into the week with its playoff hopes shot after splitting with Holliday. The Jackrabbits were playing for pride and knew they had what it took to win decisively against Vernon and made sure to show it.
Game one did not start off great as the Lions scored two runs in the first inning, but Bowie answered with three runs of its own in the same inning, taking the lead 3-2 and never looking back.
The Jackrabbit defense shut down Vernon the rest of the game while scoring three runs in the second and fourth innings and four runs in the third inning.
It was enough to end the game early after four and half innings, Bowie winning 13-2 in its final home game on senior night.
Edmond De Leon led the team with four RBIs while Boston Farris, Trae Seigler and Jorge De Leon each had two RBIs. The team finished with 10 hits and drew seven walks as the team consistently found ways to score every inning of the game.
Farris got the start on the mound and allowed two runs on six hits while striking out seven and walking four during five innings of work. The defense committed no fielding errors.
The second game was on the road, but the Jackrabbits made sure not to start slow like they did in game one. Edmond De Leon blasted a three-run home run in the first inning to put Bowie up 3-0.
After a scoreless second inning, the Jackrabbits scored three runs in the third and fifth innings and two runs in the fourth inning. With the Lions scoring only one run in the third inning, that was all the run support Bowie needed to end the game early again after five innings.
The Jackrabbits won 11-1.
Edmond De Leon led the team with three RBIs while hitting a home run and a triple. Seigler and Austin Cheney drove in two runs. Bowie finished with 10 hits and drew six walks.
On the mound, Seigler pitched four innings and allowed one run (zero earned) on two hits while striking out and walking one batter. The defense committed three fielding errors.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekly edition of the Bowie News.
For pictures from the last home game, click here https://www.dotphoto.com/go.asp?l=bnews1&AID=6874727&T=1
For pictures from senior night, click here https://www.dotphoto.com/go.asp?l=bnews1&AID=6874728&T=1
SPORTS
Saint Jo softball loses to Knox City 21-7 in the playoffs

The Saint Jo Lady Panthers season ended on Thursday night in the bi-district round of the playoffs against Knox City.
The Houndettes won by run-rule 21-7 after six innings, ending the Lady Panthers year since the series was condensed to just one game.
Saint Jo came into the series after winning the district title, but knew Knox City would be tough. Still, the Lady Panthers had played in and won several games with high scores which gave them hope they could hang with whatever the Houndettes to could bring.
Knox City got on the board first, scoring on a three-run triple to go up 3-0. Saint Jo answered in the same inning with Kamron Skidmore driving in two runs on a single to cut the lead to 3-2.
In the third inning the Houndettes drove in five runs on a single, double and home run to increase their lead to 8-2. The Lady Panthers got one run back in the same inning thanks to a fielding error at third base that drove in one run to make it 8-3.
After a scoreless fourth inning, Knox City added to its lead in the fifth inning. A fielding error allowed one run to score and a three RBI triple added three more to make it 12-3.
In the sixth inning, the Houndettes reeled off nine runs to as it looked like the end was near for Saint Jo. Down 21-3, the Lady Panthers needed to score nine runs to avoid getting run-ruled.
Down to the final out, Saint Jo started a two-out rally. An error at short stop resulted in two runs to score. Jordyn O’Neal then ripped off a two RBI triple as the Lady Panthers had more than doubled their score.
Unfortunately that is where it would end. The next batter grounded out for the final out.
Knox City won 21-7.
Skidmore led the team with three RBIs while O’Neal was second with two. The team finished with seven hits and drew two walks, but it was not enough to keep up with the Houndettes who had 13 hits and drew 12 walks. Saint Jo committed two fielding errors.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekly edition of the Bowie News.
For more pictures from the game, click here https://www.dotphoto.com/go.asp?l=bnews1&AID=6874729&T=1
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