SPORTS
Lady Indians beat Windthorst 57-40

The Nocona Lady Indians won possibly their biggest district game of the season as they hosted Windthorst on Tuesday night.
The Lady Indians won 57-40 to stay undefeated on the year against possibly the best team to challenge them in district play.
It was actually the second time the teams have played each other. Back in November the two teams met in the first tournament of the year at Bowie in the championship game. Nocona pulled ahead in the second half to win 64-44, but that win had some disclaimers.
The biggest was the Lady Trojans were coming off winning the state title the previous week in volleyball and came into the tournament with little to no practice time under their belts.
In any sense, nearly two months later and with the stakes higher, it was a whole new ball game for both teams to feel confident heading into the game.
Nocona has yet to lose so far this season and is ranked in the Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Poll at the top of the state in the 2A classification.
Since that loss to the Lady Indians, Windthorst had only one other loss on the year against Paradise in another tournament. The Lady Trojans were ranked 14th in the state in the same poll.
It was a classic contrast of styles matchup as the smaller, faster Nocona team matched up against a tall and big Windthorst frontline that wanted to post up and mash the Lady Indians rebounding the ball.
The first quarter was back and forth. Windthorst was able to get the ball into one of its post players and she did a good job of drawing fouls as Nocona sent aggressive double-teams. This also led to them allowing open shots from the perimeter as the Lady Trojans made two 3-pointers as well.
The Lady Indians initially had to break some back court pressure Windthorst sent at their two lead ball handlers, but they quickly burned that coverage to get them out of it. Some made 3-pointers of their own and, their bread-and-butter, pushing the ball in transition allowed Nocona to take a narrow 13-11 lead heading into the second quarter.
The Lady Indians defense tightened up in the second quarter, fighting to not give up position in the post or allow Windthorst to have such an easy time passing the ball into the post.
When the Lady Trojans did, Nocona scrambled and some aggressive contests were getting called for fouls at a higher clip than the Lady Indians would have liked considering their limited depth on the bench.
Still, Nocona continued to roll on offense. Playmakers Megyn Meekins and Skyler Smith hurt the Lady Trojans hitting ahead outlet passes to Aubree Kleinhans who scored six in the quarter. When that was covered better, Windthorst failed to pick them up and either were able to dribble all the way to the basket while pushing the ball up themselves.
Nocona extended its lead all the way to 27-14 at one point, but Windthorst closed the quarter strong to cut the lead down to 28-20 heading into the second half. Besides the close to the quarter, Nocona’s biggest thing was the eight fouls it committed which could prove to be fatal with a team that usually plays only seven girls.
The Lady Indians continued to execute transition opportunities with roll players leaking out at just the right times. When that was covered, Meekins and Smith found driving lanes converted enough to keep its lead.
Windthorst got hot from 3-point land in the quarter, making four. The Lady Trjoans closed the quarter on an 8-2 run to make the game the closest it had been since the first quarter 40-35 as the game went to the final period.
That momentum the Lady Trojans were building was swept away in the opening half of the fourth quarter as Meekins and Nocona’s defense took over.
The Lady Indians dialed up the pressure on the ball handlers and picked their pockets for steals that led to layups. Meekins, who admitted the team did not have a great shooting game, made back-to-back deep 3-pointers.
Reagan Phipps, who was dealing with foul trouble in the first half, got in on the action by sinking an open 3-pointer as well to provide the only other points in the quarter that was not scored by Meekins.
With 2:44 left in the game, Windthorst still had not scored since the end of the third quarter and Nocona’s lead was up to 55-35. All tension was melted away by then as the Lady Indians coasted to another double-digit win, 57-40.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekend edition of the Bowie News.
SPORTS
Bullfest coming to Saint Jo May 3

Plans for the 20th annual Bullfest in Saint Jo on May 3 are underway as organizers solicit vendors and sponsors.
Bufllfest is a first class event that is kicked off with patriotism followed by mutton bustin’ calf scrambles, wild donkey race, women’s steer scramble and lives music. The bulls and cowboys featured come from across the country to compete in the event.
All concession proceeds benefit the Saint Jo Riding Club Scholarship Fund. Those with questions can contact Johnny Locke at 940-872-0733.
SPORTS
Lady Indians break 17-year playoff drought

The Nocona Lady went 2-1 since last week, securing the program’s first playoff appearance in 17 years.
The Lady Indians picked up wins against Alvord (9-6) and Chico (9-2) while also losing to Muenster (16-1).
Nocona came into the second round of district with a 3-2 district record and losses against the two the teams sitting in first and second place.
The Lady Indians played one of those teams, Muenster, on April 8 and it did not go well.
The Lady Hornets scored 14 runs in the first inning and went on to win 16-1 after three innings due to run-rule.
Reagan Phipps drove in Heidi Atteberry, who had the team’s only hit in the game, but that was the only highlight.
Nocona bounced back on Friday playing Alvord. The Lady Indians had beaten the Lady Bulldogs in the first round of district play 12-6, but knew they had to play well to win since Alvord was not just going to roll over.
The teams changed leads four times in the first four innings, with Nocona scoring four runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to go up 6-5.
From there, the Lady Indians added one run in the fifth inning and two more in the sixth inning after Alvord had scored once as well earlier. Nocona closed things out in the seventh inning, winning 9-6.
Kaitlyn Tiffner led the team with two RBIs. The team had seven players drive in at least one run each, showing off the depth of their lineup. Nocona finished with eight hits and drew four walks while also taking advantage of seven fielding errors from Alvord.
On the mound, Phipps allowed six runs on 10 hits while striking out eight batters. The defense committed one fielding error.
The win secured the Lady Indians a playoff appearance, the program’s since 2008. With it being the team’s senior night, it made it even more special for the team.
Nocona then played at Chico on Monday to try and keep its third place in the district standings.
The Lady Indians scored two runs to start off the game, but the Lady Dragons cut it to one in the fourth inning. The teams exchanged one run each in the fifth inning before Nocona was able to get some distance.
The Lady Indians reeled off five runs in the sixth inning to extend their lead to 8-2. Nocona added one more run in the seventh inning to make the final score 9-2.
The team got RBIs from Skye Kirby, Kylea Wallace, Ashlynn Brown, Tiffner and Phipps.
Nocona finished with eight hits and drew four walks while taking advantage Chico committing five fielding errors.
On the mound, Phipps allowed two runs on five hits while striking out 11 batters. The defense committed zero fielding errors in the game.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekly edition of the Bowie News.
SPORTS
Baseball Roundup

Bellevue vs Saint Jo
The Bellevue and Saint Jo baseball teams faced off last week with both teams needing wins after struggling during district play.
The Eagles won the first game 2-0 while the Panthers won game two 8-6 in comeback fashion as the teams end this season at a stalemate 1-1 in the series.
The first game of the series was at Saint Jo on April 8 and it did not take long for Bellevue to take control. In the top of the first inning, with two runners on base, River Trail hit a single to right field that drove in both base runners. The Eagles led 2-0 at the top of the first inning.
Little did either team know that it would prove to be the only runs scored in the game. Both teams had several more chances, both squandering loaded bases and other opportunities throughout the game.
In the end, the Eagles were able to hold off the Panthers, securing the shut out and getting the low-scoring win 2-0.
Bellevue finished with 12 hits, with three coming from Ryan Jones including two doubles to lead the team. On the mound, Bryce Ramsey pitched three innings and allowed zero runs on two hits while striking out four. Jones, pitched the final four innings, allowing zero runs on six hits while striking out seven. The defense committed no fielding errors.
Saint Jo finished with eight hits and drew six walks, with Sam Martin leading the team with two hits. Trent Gaston pitched the whole game for the Panthers and allowed two runs on 12 hits while striking out seven batters. The defense committed no fielding errors.
There would be a bit more action in the second game on Friday at Bellevue.
The Eagles scored one run in the second inning before Saint Jo matched in the top of the third inning. Bellevue responded with four runs in the bottom of the third inning to take the lead 5-1.
The Panthers responded with three runs in the third inning and tied the score at 5-5 with one run in the fifth inning. The Eagles took the lead back in the bottom of the fifth inning with one run scored to go up 6-5.
In the sixth inning, Saint Jo went up for good when Charlie Barclay hit a three-run home run over the left field fence. The Panthers held on to win 8-6.
Barclay led the team with three RBIs on that home run. Martin had two RBIs as he and Jayden Curry each had two hits to lead the team. Saint Jo finished with nine hits and drew six walks. Brody Morris pitched four innings of relief and allowed one run on four hits while striking out two batters. The defense committed one fielding error.
For Bellevue, Blake Reese and Evan Chavez led the team with two RBIs each. Jones had a team high three hits.
Ramsey pitched five innings and allowed five runs on seven hits while striking out seven batters. The team committed no fielding errors.
Nocona
The Nocona Indians lost their series to Muenster last week as they fight to keep their playoff hopes alive.
The Hornets won 4-3 and 11-0 in the two games, winning in extra innings in walk-off fashion in the first game while the second game got out of hand late in the game.
The Indians were coming off dominant victories against Chico the previous week, but they knew Muenster would be a tough challenge.
The first game was played on April 8 on the road. The Indians took the early lead with one run scored in the first inning. The Hornets took it from them with three runs scored in the fourth inning. Nocona answered with two runs scored in the fifth inning, tying the game up at 3-3.
It was still tied at after seven innings, so the game went into an extra eighth inning. Muenster loaded the bases up with two outs before a single drove in the game winning run. The Hornets won 4-3.
Landon Fatheree led Nocona with two RBIs and RJ Walker had a team high two hits as the team finished with six in the game. On the mound, Walker pitched the full game allowed four runs (two earned) on nine hits while he struck out six batters. The defense committed five fielding errors.
The close loss proved to be crushing for the Indians compared to what happened in game two a few days later.
Muenster scored runs in the second, third, fifth and sixth innings and led 5-0 heading into the seventh and final inning. The Hornets then put the game away as they scored six runs, more than doubling their run total to go up 11-0, which would be the final score.
Nocona again finished with only six hits, but they were not as timely as they had been in game one. Jayce Lehde and Walker led the team with two hits each.
On the mound, Walker Murphey pitched six innings and allowed five runs (four earned) on eight hits while he struck out two batters. The defense committed five fielding errors.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekly edition of the Bowie News.
For more pictures from last week’s series between Bellevue and Saint Jo, click here https://www.dotphoto.com/go.asp?l=bnews1&AID=6874397&T=1
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