SPORTS
Nocona girls scrape off the Frost 64-37
The Nocona Lady Indians stayed on script and won their area playoff game with ease on Thursday night in Weatherford.
The Lady Indians made quick work of Frost 64-37 to move on in the playoffs as they have their sights on the ultimate prize.
Nocona came into the game as the heavy favorites, rated ninth in the state in 2A in the Texas Association of the Basketball Coaches’ poll with only three losses on the season.
However, it seemed like the Lady Polar Bears might give some kind of challenge for the usual area matchup. Frost had just sneaked into the top 25 in the same 2A poll at 24, having gone 25-7 during the regular season and finished second in its district.
The Lady Polar Bears also were coming off an emotional win in the bi-district round, where they came back from 13 points down entering the fourth quarter to win against De Leon.
Still, Nocona showed there were levels to this type of success.
Both teams started the game pressing the ball on defense, but in different ways. The Lady Indians employed a three-quarters zone trapping style while Frost was trying to play classic man-to-man with some surprise doubles in the back-court.
The first two minutes were sloppy on offense until Nocona scored its first basket. Then the Lady Indians’ defense started forcing turnovers that led to transition opportunities and Nocona was up 10-0 midway through the first quarter.
From there, the game was essentially over.
The Lady Indians led 23-3 heading into the second quarter. Only a couple of late 3-pointers before halftime allowed the Lady Polar Bears to break into double-digits as Nocona was in control 46-10.
The second half saw the Lady Indians really pull back. They stopped pressing and played straight up zone to not pour it on and that allowed Frost to set up its offense. The Lady Polar Bears also used its size advantage to crash the offensive glass at times for second and third chances.
Also in the second half, Nocona started emptying its bench to cycle through all of its players to give them valuable varsity experience with the game already wrapped up.
Frost actually outscored the Lady Indians in the third quarter 10-9, but Nocona still had a comfortable lead 55-20 heading into the fourth quarter.
The final period saw the Lady Indians pull back even more, taking off both of their leading scorers and ball handlers Meg Meekins and Skyler Smith. This is unusual for Coach Kyle Spitzer as he plays both the majority of games no matter the score only unless they are in foul trouble.
Then the final two minutes saw the starting five of the JV team get some varsity experience, doing some things well but also having some tough moments.
Despite getting outscored 17-9 in the fourth quarter, Nocona won easily 64-37.
To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekend edition of the Bowie News.
Saint Jo hosted its own volleyball tournament Sept. 10-12.
In its first match, the Lady Panthers bested Sam Rayburn in a b est-of-three match 2-1 (25-11, 23-25, 25-14.) In the opener, senior Tatum Morman staked the Lady Panthers to a 4-0 lead with help from Kamron Skidmore and Olivia Johnson kills. The Lady Rebels would come back and tie the game at seven.
Savannah Hill’s kill broke serve and allowed Abby Carter to string together seven points. An ace and a Hill kill helped keep the drive alive. Hill later rolled off six points in a row, helped by two aces, to go up 23-10. Sam Rayburn broke serve but Saint Jo finished the game with a single Morman point.
Sam Rayburn came right out of the gate firing in the second game leading 4-0. A single Carter point, thrown down by a Hill block, and Hill’s four-point skein put the Lady Panthers up 8-6. Sam Rayburn tied the game at eight.
For further details, pick up a copy of Thursday’s Bowie News.
Forestburg’s volleyball team gave visiting Chico a solid test Sept. 8, but the Lady Dragons rebounded from a third-set loss to pull out the 3-1 win (25-23, 25-19, 25-27, 25-19).
The Lady Longhorns got out to a quick start with aces from freshmen Madi Wadsworth and Lacie Shotwell staking the squad to a 4-1 lead in game one. Wadsworth later broke a 4-all tie with a kill.
Addy Conway rolled off four straight points, helped by a Wadsworth kill to give Forestburg an 11-9 lead. Chico took a 16-14 lead but a Brenna Briles ace and Jocelyn Rich’s two points forced Chico into a timeout down 17-19.
The respite worked as it would be Forestburg’s last lead of game one, the Lady ‘Horns not having another serving point.
For further details, pick up a copy of Thursday’s Bowie News.
After splitting the first two games with Vernon Northside, Bowie’s volleyball team turned things out and wound with a 3-1 match win (25-17, 15-25, 25-17, 25-17).
Molly Enlow used two aces amidst a four-point string to give the Lady Rabbits a 5-1 lead in game one. Senior KP Rutherford’s pair of points extended the lead to 8-3.
Northside cut the deficit to 10-11 before Rutherford’s kill broke serve.
Bella Culwell’s point, aided by an Ellie Mowery kill, put Bowie up 13-10. Northside tied the game at 13 before Rutherford came through with another pair for a 17-14 lead. Lillie Maddox also had a deuce for a 20-15 lead and force a Lady INdian timeout.
Northside broke serve but a Sophie Maddox block and Lillie Maddox three-point string gave the squad game point at 24-16. The squads exchanged side outs to end the game.
For further details, pick up a copy of Thursday’s Bowie News.
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