Call it dominance. Call it revenge. Call it a transcendent performance from Summer Smith.
However you decide to label it, the Hermleigh softball team earned the right to be called Class 1A state champions Wednesday afternoon after overpowering D’Hanis for a 9-0 victory at the University of Texas’ McCombs Field.
It’s the Lady Cardinals’ first state softball championship, and it comes almost a year to the day since Hermleigh suffered a 6-2 defeat against the Cowgirls in last year’s title game.
A fifth-inning single that didn’t even leave the infield.
That was the only hit Coahoma ace Hannah Wells surrendered Wednesday afternoon during a Class 3A state semifinal against Emory Rains.
Wells’ domination in the circle combined with Baylor Wright’s RBI single in the second inning were the difference as the Bulldogettes kept their state championship hopes alive with a 1-0 victory at the University of Texas’ McCombs Field.
Como-Pickton struck for three runs against Stamford in the first inning Tuesday night in their Class 2A state semifinal.
With ace Mattison Buster hitting her spots, that was more than enough run support for the Lady Eagles, who picked up a 7-1 victory at McCombs Field in Austin.
Como-Pickton (38-2) advances to face Weimar in the 2A championship set for 7 p.m. Wednesday, while the Lady Bulldogs (27-7-1) had their successful season end in the semifinals for the second straight year.
Hermleigh is once again a victory away from its first state softball title.
The Lady Cardinals broke open a scoreless Class 1A state semifinal with a seven-run fifth inning, claiming a 9-3 victory over Dodd City on Tuesday afternoon at McCombs Field in Austin.
And once again, D’Hanis will be standing in Hermleigh’s way of a championship. The two teams will meet at 4 p.m. Wednesday in a rematch of last year’s 1A title game that the Cowgirls won 6-2.
A week.
That’s how long the Coahoma softball team took off after last year’s heartbreaking 6-5 loss to Hallettsville in the Class 3A state championship game.
The Bulldogettes returned to work over the summer with one goal — making another trip to Austin and taking care of unfinished business. They haven’t relaxed much since.
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Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Stamford-Forsan softball regional championship playoff (92 images)”
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Wylie-Argyle baseball regional semifinal playoff (114 images)”
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Albany-New Home baseball regional semifinal playoff (108 images)”
Sophomore left-hander Gabe Elms delivered a complete-game gem and his lineup gave him eight runs in the first three innings as the Stephenville baseball team cruised to a 9-2 win over Midland Greenwood in the second game of a best-of-three Region I-4A semifinal series.
That win, combined with a gritty 6-3 victory in Wednesday’s opener, completed a sweep of the Rangers, advancing the Yellow Jackets to the Region I-4A finals for the third consecutive year.
Saturday’s game, which was delayed by thunderstorms in the Abilene area, marked the 16th consecutive victory for SHS, which will take a 27-12-1 record into next week’s series against Canyon Randall (35-3).
The Stamford softball team is headed back to the Class 2A state tournament for the third consecutive year after routing Forsan 15-1 in Game 2 of the Region I-2A championship series Saturday at Abilene Christian University’s Poly Wells Field.
Leading 4-0 after five innings, the Lady Bulldogs exploded for five runs in the sixth and six more in the seventh to turn a competitive ballgame into a blowout and make an easy winner out of freshman ace Emma Follis, who held a potent Lady Buffalo lineup to just one run on four hits in the victory.
The win, which came after thunderstorms delayed the game’s start by about an hour and a half, improved coach Sean Slavin’s squad to 27-6-1 on the season, while Forsan saw its campaign end at 28-10.
COAHOMA — Hannah Wells tossed a five-inning no-hitter and was 2 for 3 with an RBI to help Coahoma to a 10-0 win over Lamesa in Game 1 of their Region I-3A championship series on Friday at CHS.
With Wells dominating in the circle, the Bulldoggettes steadily pounded away at Lamesa, bringing home two runs apiece in the first and second innings, one in the third, four in the fourth and the mercy rule clincher in the fifth.
The Bulldoggettes (33-3) can clinch their second straight trip to the state tournament with a win in Game 2, slated for 1 p.m. Saturday in Lamesa. Game 3 (if necessary), will begin 30 minutes after Game 2. Lamesa fell to 23-6 with the loss.
The Argyle baseball team used a big inning to pull away from Wylie for the second time in as many days Friday at Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field. Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, this time it was season-ending.
After riding a five-run sixth to a 7-1 win in the opener of the best-of-three Region I-5A semifinal series Thursday in Southlake, the Eagles did their biggest damage early in Friday’s Game 2, plating five runs in the second inning to set the tone for an 11-3 victory in the series clincher.
The loss ended the Bulldogs’ campaign at 23-13-1 — in the region semifinals for the third consecutive year. Coincidentally, each of those previous runs ended — like this year’s — with a Game 2 loss at ACU.
SOUTHLAKE — It seems counterintuitive to classify a 7-1 defeat as “one that got away,” but what transpired as Argyle took down Wylie on Thursday night in the first game of a best-of-three Region 1-5A semifinal baseball series was just that.
And that. And that. And that some more.
While the exclamation point on the Eagles’ victory was supplied by Argyle’s best-struck ball of the evening — a bases-clearing double in the sixth inning by second baseman Colton Roquemore — balls that weren’t struck at all did just as much to put the Bulldogs in an 0-1 hole in the series and needing a victory at 1 p.m. Friday at Abilene Christian University to keep their season alive.
Wednesday night, Brock baseball coach Kobe Page lamented the fact that his squad only put up two runs in the final six innings after starting fast in a 7-1 series-opening win over Shallowater.
Thursday was a polar opposite.
After rough at-bats by Tyler Moody, Ian Fuchs and Sawyer Strosnider in the first inning, the rest of the lineup picked them up. And from there, the Eagles went on to eliminate the Mustangs with an 11-1 win in Game 2 of the Region I-3A semifinal series at Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field.
The Albany baseball team struck the first blow in its Region I-2A semifinal series against New Home, using a Zane Waggoner home run to kick start a four-run fourth inning and rally past the Leopards for a 5-2 win in Game 1 on Thursday at Abilene Christian High School.
Prior to Waggoner’s big fly, the Lions had tallied just one hit against New Home starter Ashton Lucio, taking a 1-0 deficit into the bottom of the fourth. But that hit opened the flood gates for coach David Fairchild’s squad, which went on to outhit the Leopards 9-3 in the victory.
Five of those hits came during the fourth-inning outburst, which made a winner out of ace Cole Chapman, who relieved starter Tyler Chapman in the second inning and delivered 5.2 innings of two-run baseball to get the Lions off to a winning start.
ABILENE — A six-run first inning, backed by solid pitching from freshman Emma Follis was enough to give the Stamford Lady Bulldogs a 6-1 win in Game 1 of their Region I-2A championship series with Forsan at Abilene Christian University on Thursday.
Madi Woolf was 2-for-3 with a grand slam homer and Laylonna Applin was 1 for 2 with a two-run homer to lead Stamford (26-6-1), which can clinch its third straight trip to the state tournament with a win in Game 2 slated for noon on Saturday at ACU. Game 3, if needed, will follow 30 minutes after Game 2.
Forsan (28-9) was led by Madi Roach, who was 2-for-3 with an RBI and K’Leigh Williams, who was 2-for-3 with a double.
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Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Brock-Shallowater baseball regional semifinal playoff (141 images)”
When Westyn Balch takes the mound for Thursday’s regional semifinal series opener against Ropes, he’ll feel right at home.
The Hawley junior is no stranger to setting the tone in a Game 1. Balch has victories over Coleman, Christoval and Stamford this postseason, compiling a 1.87 ERA with 22 strikeouts in 15 innings.
Hawley coach Jamie Seago knows he has three quality starters he can rely on. It’s one of the reasons the Bearcats (23-9) are still playing.
And he also knows what to expect from his left-hander every time out.
Stephenville ace Luke Heller struggled to find a groove, and his lineup never really got comfortable at the plate against Midland Greenwood pitchers Jaxon Ramos and Ty Presley on Wednesday in Game 1 of a best-of-three Region I-4A semifinal series at Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field.
But that didn’t keep the Yellow Jackets from grinding out a 6-3 victory over the Rangers to extend their win streak to 15 games.
Despite an uncharacteristically laborious start by Heller and a four-hit effort at the plate, SHS (26-12-1) scraped across four runs in the fifth inning to a spur a come-from-behind win and put itself in position to go for the sweep when the series resumes Saturday afternoon back at ACU.
ABILENE — A big first inning, a major scare and six innings of smooth sailing summed up Brock’s 7-1 rout of Shallowater in Game 1 of a Region I-3A semifinal on Wednesday.
Cam Harris was 3 for 4 with a double and two RBIs and Ian Fuchs tossed six innings of four-hit baseball to lead Brock, which coasted after a five-run first inning at Abilene Christian University. The Eagles did, however, have to hold their breath in the second inning after Fuchs’ foot slipped off the first base bag while trying to beat out a throw to first.
The incident saw Fuchs fall to the ground in agony, after which his heavy limp to the Brock dugout immediately spawned activity in the Eagle bullpen. Fuchs, however, wasn’t finished. He managed to limp to the bullpen where he threw well enough to return to the game. He worked through the sixth, held Shallowater to one run and collected the win with one inning of relief help from Harris.
FORSAN — For months, Forsan softball coach Shanna Taylor wrestled with the idea of stepping down from a labor of love.
An 18-year journey that included more than 300 career victories and two state championships (2009 and 2010) had reached a crossroads: Should she continue on, or call it a career and enjoy some quality time with her family?
Eventually, she chose the latter — a decision she was comfortable with, but not without a degree of sadness as her Lady Buffaloes began what she knew would be her final season on the diamond. A season, as fate would have it, that has been extended to this week’s Region I-2A championship series where her Lady Buffaloes (28-8) will face off with area power Stamford (25-6-1) with the winner advancing to the state tournament.
Game 1 is slated for 5 p.m. Thursday at Abilene Christian University. Game 2 will begin at noon on Saturday at ACU, with Game 3 (if needed) following 30 minutes after Game 2.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS WEDNESDAY NIGHT PODCAST: Hermleigh softball coach Sammy Winters joins the show.
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Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Stamford-Hawley baseball regional quarterfinal playoff (86 images)”
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Digital photos, prints and keepsakes may be purchased by clicking the link below. The “BigCountryPreps.com” watermark will be removed from all purchased photos.
Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Forsan-Bangs softball region semifinal playoff (81 images)”
A five-run first inning sent all the momentum to the Stamford dugout, and the Lady Bulldogs never let it go, cruising to a 13-2 win over Colorado City on Saturday at the Abilene High softball field to clinch a sweep of their Region I-2A semifinal series with the Lady Wolves.
After Thursday’s Game 1 saw SHS grind out a 2-0 win that was competitive throughout, coach Sean Slavin’s team jumped on C-City early in Game 2, building a 9-0 lead before the Lady Wolves finally got on the board.
The Lady Bulldogs scored in four of their seven trips to the plate, plating at least two runs on each occasion to give starter Emma Follis far more run support than she would need. The victory earned Stamford (25-6-1) a trip to next week’s Region I-5A championship round, where it will face off with Forsan at a time, date and place to be determined.
ABILENE — For the second time in as many games, the Hawley Bearcats used an overwhelming offensive effort to defeat Stamford and sweep their Region I-2A quarterfinal series.
Pounding out 13 hits at McMurry University on Saturday, the Bearcats eliminated Stamford with a 11-7 win in Game 2. Kason O’Shields was 3 for 5 with three RBIs and Will Scott was 3 for 4 with a double to lead Hawley (22-8) which had opened the series with a 14-4 win on Thursday.
With the win, the Bearcats advance to their fourth regional semifinal under 12th-year coach Jamie Seago. There, they will face Ropesville Ropes at a site and time to be determined.
MIDLAND — Abilene High’s bid for its first trip to the state tournament since winning the Class 4A championship in 1956-57 came to an end Saturday afternoon at Christensen Stadium.
After getting a brilliant start from Brady Bennett in Friday’s 1-0 nine-inning thriller to open their Region I-5A quarterfinal series, the Eagles saw Lubbock Cooper take an 11-0 Game 2 win before claiming the winner-take-all finale 8-0.
Abilene High had just one hit in Game 2 before being held to four hits in the series finale.
MIDLAND — The Wylie baseball team entered Saturday’s Region I-5A quarterfinal Game 2 against Lubbock Monterey having won seven of its last eight contests with timely hitting and masterful pitching.
A seventh-inning rally for a 4-2 win in Friday’s series opener meant that Wylie could give the ball to staff ace Sam Walker in Game 2 with a chance to close out the series and advance to the Region I-5A semifinals.
Walker cut through the Plainsmen lineup with ease as the Bulldogs beat Monterey 4-3 at Ernie Johnson Field on Saturday afternoon.
For 5½ innings Friday at Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field, it looked as though the Stephenville baseball team was headed toward its first loss since early April.
Trailing District 6-4A rival Graham 5-1 in Game 2 of their Region I-4A quarterfinal series and struggling to get anything going against Steers ace Noah Jilek, the Yellow Jackets and their 13-game winning streak were in serious peril.
But after recording just three hits through the first five innings against Jilek, coach Justin Swenson’s team exploded for 10 hits during a nine-run sixth to flip the script in what would eventually be a dramatic 10-7 win. The victory, the Jackets’ 14th in a row, clinched a series sweep and earned SHS a spot in next week’s region semifinals against the winner of Canyon and Midland Greenwood.
IOWA PARK — Sawyer Strosnider admitted he didn’t get all of the ball during his first home run in Friday night’s Game 2 against Holliday.
But the Brock junior left no such doubts in his next at-bat, smashing a two-run homer that broke a tie game in the fourth inning.
Strosnider’s knocks were two of the 10 extra-base hits Brock collected in a windy 20-7 victory that advances the Eagles to the Region I-3A semifinals.
Photos by Khloe Scott, HubCityPreps.com
MIDLAND — Abilene High right-hander Brady Bennett had his first no-decision of the season while turning in his best start of the year Friday as the Eagles outlasted Lubbock Cooper 1-0 in nine innings at Midland College to open their best-of-three Region I-5A quarterfinal series.
Hours later, across town in Midland, the Wylie baseball team completed a 4-2 win over Lubbock Monterey in Game 1 to take an early lead in its region quarterfinal series as well.
That put both the Eagles and Bulldogs in position to advance to next week’s Region I-5 semifinals with one win Saturday, when their respective series resume back at the same sites.
ABILENE — Less than 24 hours after posting a combined 29 runs and more than 30 hits, the Forsan and Bangs softball teams produced a near polar opposite of the 16-13 FHS win in Game 1.
Friday at Abilene Christian University, the same two teams, with the same two pitchers in the same venue locked horns in a 1-0 Forsan win in Game 2 which ended the series and pushed the Lady Buffaloes into the Region I-2A championship. There, they will meet either Stamford or Colorado City at a sit and time to be determined.
The difference, according to Forsan pitcher Maddie Roach, may not be what you would expect to hear. Coming off a rough outing in Game 1 that saw her allow 13 runs on 16 hits, Roach spent much of Game 2 smiling, laughing and even dancing a bit to tunes being played over the PA while she was on the field.
“I think it’s because I kept a good attitude today,” said Roach, who delivered seven straight empty frames on Friday. “And there was better music on.”
Junior left-hander Luke Heller was on his game, and the Stephenville lineup supported their ace with plenty of offense, scoring in every inning to top District 6-4A rival Graham 10-0 in Game 1 of a best-of-three Region I-4A quarterfinal series Thursday at Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field.
Heller limited the Steers to just two hits in a five-inning shutout, and the Yellow Jackets bats took care of the rest, following one-run innings in each of the first three frames with bigger numbers in the final two to end the game early by run rule.
With a steady rain falling for most of the evening, Stephenville put constant pressure on Graham, closing an 11-hit offensive effort with a four-run top of the fifth that saw Kyler Bowman triple home a pair of runs before scoring himself on an error and Nate Barry blast a two-out homer to left for the game’s 10th run.
ABILENE — If Game 1 of a Region I-2A softball semifinal between Forsan and Bangs is any indication of what’s ahead, one shouldn’t take anything for granted.
Leading 9-0 heading into the bottom of the second, Forsan blew the lead and eventually fell behind 13-10 only to rally for a 16-13 win in a thriller at Abilene Christian University.
K’Dynce Speck was 3 for 5 with a double, homer and four RBIs and Emma Buske was 2 for 5 with a double and three runs scored to lead Forsan (27-8), which can end the series with a win in Game 2, set for 5 p.m. Friday at ACU. Game 3, if needed, will follow 30 minutes after that.
“That was a really good game,” said Forsan coach Shanna Taylor, who will retire after 18 years at FHS at the conclusion of this season. “Bangs is really scrappy, but our team has a lot of fight in them and a lot of grit, so I was glad to see them come back and fight for that win.”
For the second time this week, Laylonna Applin’s bat in the sixth inning delivered a backbreaking home run.
After doing it in Stamford’s Game 3 win over Cisco on Monday, the senior hammered one out in Game 1 of the Region I-2A semifinal series against Colorado City on Thursday night at Abilene High.
Applin’s blast on Thursday was an insurance run that Emma Follis wound up not needing, but it was the key blow in a 2-0 win by the Lady Bulldogs, who will look to close out the series at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
While the UIL state track meet provides a fun and exciting end to the high school track season every year, giving the best athletes in each part of the state an opportunity to compete against the other top athletes in their classification, we here at Big Country Preps weren’t quite ready to say goodbye to the sport.
We now present our annual All-Big Country Preps Dream Track Meet.
As with our All-Big Country Preps teams for other sports, our Dream Meet is our way of honoring some of best athletes the Big Country had to offer this past school year. But our concept for this is just a little bit different.
Instead of being presented as a team, we’re treating this like a meet with an area-wide field in each event. There are no distinctions made for classification, just a collection of the top performers from across the BCP coverage area.
Without further ado, we present our first All-Big Country Preps Dream Meet boys field. We hope you enjoy reading through our selections.
While the UIL state track meet provides a fun and exciting end to the high school track season every year, giving the best athletes in each part of the state an opportunity to compete against the other top athletes in their classification, we here at Big Country Preps weren’t quite ready to say goodbye to the sport.
After introducing the inaugural All-Big Country Preps Dream Track Meet in 2021, we’ve decided to reprise it this year.
As with our All-Big Country Preps teams for other sports, our Dream Meet is our way of honoring some of best athletes the Big Country had to offer this past school year. But our concept for this is just a little bit different.
Instead of being presented as a team, we’re treating this like a meet with an area-wide field in each event. There are no distinctions made for classification, just a collection of the top performers from across the BCP coverage area.
Without further ado, we present our All-Big Country Preps Dream Meet girls field. We hope you enjoy reading through our selections.
Continue reading “2023 ALL-BIG COUNTRY PREPS DREAM MEET: Girls field”
BEST OF BCP WEDNESDAY NIGHT PODCAST: Former Hermleigh coach Duane Hopper talks about taking Wylie job (originally aired 5-11-22)
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After the first two games of ther Region I-2A quarterfinal series between Stamford and Cisco were decided by identical 3-2 scores, Lady Bulldogs coach Sean Slavin was looking for any kind of spark to set his team on fire in Monday’s series finale.
Slavin had plenty of choices as to what started the fire at Abilene Christian University’s Poly Wells Field, where the Lady Bulldogs hammered the Lady Loboes 17-3, setting up a region semifinals series with Colorado City that will start Thursday night.
The last time the two teams met in the playoffs, Stamford swept the Lady Wolves in the same round on its way to the 2021 state championship.
Our final Big Country Preps Player of the Week for the 2022-23 school year could have gone any number of directions.
We finally settled on Goldthwaite junior Lainey Jernigan, who swept both the girls 2A hurdles titles at the state meet last week.
Jernigan won the 100 hurdles in 14.62 and the 300 hurdles in 44.12. And the good news for GHS fans is, she’s coming back to defend both crowns next year.