Month: October 2024

by Daniel Youngblood

SIX-MAN LOOKAHEAD: Week 10 slate offers scary good time for area six-man fans

Spooky season is nearing its end, but Week 10 will leave fans of Big Country six-man football with a Halloween bag full of king-sized treats.

As you might expect with just two weeks remaining in the regular season, we’ve got a bunch of games with playoff and district title implications. And it’s time to talk about them here.

So take a break from your trick or treating and enjoy this look at the area’s top matchups. And when you’re done reading, make sure to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for standings, schedules and results.

Continue reading “SIX-MAN LOOKAHEAD: Week 10 slate offers scary good time for area six-man fans” →

by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps’ Pick ‘Em Panel (Week 10)

Each week here at Big Country Preps, we’ll post our picks for all of that week’s 11-man games, in addition to the results of our weekly fan polls for each matchup.

For those interested in voting, polls go up on Sunday night each week and close Thursday morning.

Disagree with our picks or the fan poll consensus? Let us know in the comments section below.

Continue reading “Big Country Preps’ Pick ‘Em Panel (Week 10)” →

by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Graham, Brock clash in spotlight game

LAST WEEK: 52-6 .897
SEASON TOTAL: 419-114, .786

With two Friday nights left in the regular season, the Big Country Preps Game of the Week moves north for a game that was circled on our calendars back in August. 

Unbeaten, second-ranked Brock will pay a visit to No. 5 Graham this Friday, with the winner locking down the District 4-4A DII championship. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie can’t close out district sweep, falls to Memorial in three on Senior Night

Hosting Wichita Falls Memorial with a chance to clinch the District 4-5A championship outright, the Wylie volleyball team couldn’t complete a perfect run through league play Tuesday, falling to the Mavericks 25-22, 25-14, 26-24 on Senior Night.

The season split with Memorial dropped the Lady Bulldogs (22-18 overall) to 7-1 in league play, leaving them in a tie with the Mavericks (25-12, 7-1) atop the district standings.

A decision hadn’t been made after the match how that tie would be broken for playoff seeding purposes, but in diagnosing the factors behind Tuesday’s loss — and the potential need for a rubber match — Wylie coach Shay Cox said it came down to a simple lack of consistency.

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by Daniel Youngblood

SIX-MAN REWIND: District title, playoff races get clearer though decisive Week 9 slate

A Week 9 slate that looked light on competitive games on paper yielded very few of them. But the area’s playoff and district championship races continued to take shape through the lopsided results.

We also saw a number of stellar individual performances worth noting as the regular season nears its end. 

With just two weeks left before the start of the playoffs, it’s time to take a look backward at last week’s most important developments. We hope you enjoy reading our Week 9 review and encourage you to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for standings, schedules and results.

Continue reading “SIX-MAN REWIND: District title, playoff races get clearer though decisive Week 9 slate” →

by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Tolar’s Abbie Soileau takes the top spot with record-setting week

Photos provided by Melissa Carroll and Kelly Moody

There’s a great deal of excitement brewing around the Tolar volleyball team heading into postseason play and with good reason. If the Lady Rattlers (28-9, 12-1 District 8-3A) manage to knock off Comanche on Tuesday, they will set a school record for wins in a season. 

Secondly, senior setter Abbie Soileau is dishing assists like they were going out of style — including the 47 she tallied last week in wins over No. 25 Peaster and Early.  That lifted her season total to a Tolar school record 1,032 assists on the year and more 1,700 for her career.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 2-5A DIV. I WEEK 9 REPORT: Abilene High slips past Tascosa; Amarillo High, Caprock earn wins

Abilene High 31, Amarillo Tascosa 29 — Rylan Bradford returned a free kick following an intentional safety 70 yards for a touchdown with eight seconds remaining to lift the Eagles to a wild victory over the upset-minded Rebels and keep AHS alone atop the district standings.

Abilene High, which was outgained 358-303, led 16-7 at halftime and 23-14 early in the fourth quarter, but Tascosa went up 29-23 with back-to-back touchdowns. But following a safety that pulled the Eagles within 29-25, Bradford took the free kick back to the house for the win.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 2-5A DIV. II WEEK 9 REPORT: Cooper pulls away from Legacy; Memorial wins thriller over LCP

Abilene Cooper 45, Wichita Falls Legacy 21 — Leading 24-21 in the third quarter, the Cougars closed the game with 21 unanswered points to pull away for a comfortable win over the Leopards and head into their Week 10 open date in position to extend their 17-year playoff streak.

Cooper (3-6, 2-3), which led 24-14 at halftime, was led by quarterback Austin Cummins, who passed for 210 yards and four touchdowns and ran for 84 yards and an additional score, while Peyton Ewing ran for 90 yards and a TD and Zavian Alexander received for 130 yards and two scores.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 6-2A DIV. II WEEK 9 REPORT: Windthorst rolls past Haskell; Petrolia, Archer City earn shutout wins

Windthorst 55, Haskell 7 — Brock Belcher passed for 90 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 59 yards and an another score to lead the Trojans to a lopsided win over the Indians.

Windthorst (7-1, 4-0) ran for 231 yards as a team, getting productive days from Hunter Anderle (5-71, 1 TD), Tyler Camacho (12-61, 1 TD) and Karson Vieth (3-36, 2 TDs) as well.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-2A DIV. I WEEK 9 REPORT: Coleman knocks off Hico for first win; De Leon, Hamilton cruise

Coleman 14, Hico 6 — The Bluecats were outgained 317-238, but they only allowed one second-quarter touchdown to score their first win of the year in a hard-fought defensive game against the Tigers.

Blaine Bouldin rushed for 94 yards and Anthony Espitia ran for 64 yards and a TD, while Hunter Edington added 76 yards and a score through the air to help Coleman improve to 1-7 overall and 1-2 in district play.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 3-2A DIV. I WEEK 9 REPORT: Stockton leads Forsan past Christoval; Ozona, Reagan County earn wins

Forsan 36, Christoval 15 — Huston Stockton ran for 149 yard and three touchdowns, and Brayden Cervantes added 132 yards and one score on the ground to fuel the Buffaloes to a three-touchdown win over the Cougars.

Forsan, which led 22-15 at halftime before shutting Christoval out over the final two quarters, also got a solid game from quarterback Coy Evans (5-12-0—72, 1 TD passing; 3-23 rushing) in improving to 2-6 overall and 2-1 in district play.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-3A DIV. II WEEK 9 REPORT: Tolar blasts Clifton; Brady routs Early; Dublin earns first win

Tolar 41, Clifton 0 — Peyton Brown ran for 112 yards and three touchdowns, and the Rattlers defense limited the Cubs to just 114 total yards in a dominant effort all around.

Briton Rice added 162 yards and a touchdown passing for Tolar (7-1, 3-0), which got a team-high 64 yards receiving from Noah Yanish. Behind those three, and Brylen Feist, who caught Rice’s TD pass, the Rattlers did all of their scoring in the first half.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 3-4A DIV. II WEEK 9 REPORT: Graham shuts out Mineral Wells; Brock blasts Burkburnett

Graham 37, Mineral Wells 0 — Rylan Monsey ran for 114 yards and three touchdowns, and Ty Thompson added 68 yards and a rushing score of his own to lead the Steers to a shutout win over the Rams.

Thompson also passed for 80 yards, though Graham (7-1, 3-0) gained 210 of its 290 total yards via the rush. Behind that ground attack, the Steers built a 16-0 lead by halftime and put the game away with two unanswered touchdowns in the third quarter.

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by Evan Ren

DISTRICT 4-3A DIV. II WEEK 9 REPORT: Wall, Stanton both claim wins; Coahoma takes the night off

Wall 58, Grape Creek 6 — Landon York threw for 293 yards and four scores and Thomas Leanos rushed for 110 yards and another touchdown to lead Wall to an easy win over San Angelo Grape Creek. 

The competitive phase of this game ended quite early, with Wall building a 28-0 first quarter lead and expanding it to 51-0 by the break. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 1-4A DIV. II WEEK 9 REPORT: Seminole routs Snyder; Greenwood pulls away from Fort Stockton

Seminole 64, Snyder 6 — Wyatt Holmstrom passed for 338 yards and six touchdowns, and Logan McCormick received for 156 yards and two scores to fuel the Indians to a comfortable win over the Tigers.

Seminole (8-0, 2-0) also got productive receiving days from Jared Mendoza (3-80, 1 TD), Stephen Davis (5-56, 1 TD), Jordan Garcia (2-41, 1 TD) and Kalvin Petty (3-35, 2 TDs) in passing for 385 of its 505 total yards.

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by Evan Ren

DISTRICT 4-2A DIV. I WEEK 9 REPORT: Anson, Stamford and Hawley earn wins in Week 9

Anson 45, Olney 0 — Cory Layne Jr. threw for 284 yards and four scores to lead the Tigers to a lopsided win over the Cubs. 

Six different Anson players caught passes on Friday, including three players — Mario Barrera, Malachi St. John and Branson Rister — who caught five apiece. 

Anson improved to 5-3 and 1-2 with the win; Olney fell to 2-6 and 1-2. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 3-4A DIV. I WEEK 9 REPORT: Andrews too much for Steers; Pecos wins OT thriller over Lake View

Andrews 71, Big Spring 14 — JaeSean DeBouse caught two touchdown pass and ran for two more scores as the Mustangs piled up 433 yards rushing in a lopsided win over the Steers.

Behind DeBouse, who ran for 97 yards and received for 41, Andrews (2-6, 1-0) also got a productive rushing games from Anthony Santibanez (8-71), Beau Hudson (4-68), Leeroy Millan (7-53, 2 TDs), Merq Saiz (7-49, 1 TD) and John Brus (6-47, 1 TD) in building a 57-7 lead by halftime.

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by Evan Ren

DISTRICT 3-3A DIV. I WEEK 9 REPORT: Comanche, Sweetwater and Jim Ned notch wins

Comanche 34, Breckenridge 21 — The Indians rushed for 330 yards collectively to improve to 5-3 overall and 2-1 in district play. 

Cayden Davis rushed for 121 yards and one score and Ladainian Smith rushed for 101 yards and another TD to lead Comanche.

Breckenridge fell to 0-8 and 0-3.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME REPORT: Cummins fuels Cooper to big road win over Wichita Falls Legacy

WICHITA FALLS — Austin Cummins passed for 210 yards and four touchdowns and ran for 84 yards and an additional score to lead Cooper to a 45-21 win over Wichita Falls Legacy on Friday at Memorial Stadium.

Needing a win to maintain control of their playoff destiny, the Cougars rallied from an early 7-0 deficit to pull away in the second half for a comfortable victory to improve to 3-6 overall and 2-3 in District 2-5A Division II play.

Leading just 24-21 in the third quarter, Cooper closed the game with 21 unanswered points to put the Leopards away and earn a likely winner-take-all matchup with Amarillo Palo Duro at home in Week 11 for the district’s fourth and final playoff spot.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Hawley dominates Cisco in BCP’s spotlight game

CISCO — A dominating Hawley defensive effort, a sprinkling of Cisco mistakes and one key injury was enough to turn the Big Country Preps Game of the Week into a rout on Friday as the Bearcats handed CHS a 41-0 loss at Chesley Field. 

Keagan Ables threw for 185 yards and Coeyn Lovelady rushed for 142 to lead Hawley (8-0, 3-0 District 4-2A DI), which took the lead on its opening possession and never looked back. 

Cisco (5-3, 1-2), which was limited to just 215 yards in total offense, was led by Dillon Silva and Parker Williams, with 71 and 61 rushing yards respectively. Quarterback Julius Proffitt, who finished with 18 passing yards, was lost to a knee injury early in the second quarter with Cisco trailing 8-0. The Loboes didn’t complete a pass following his departure.

“We came out and executed our game plan,” Hawley coach Mitch Ables said. “The best thing for us was coming out of a physical game like this without having a bunch of injuries. That’s always a plus, but I’m super proud of our kids.” 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Bradford’s late return lifts Abilene High to improbable win over Amarillo Tascosa

Leading Abilene High 29-25 after taking an intentional safety with 24 seconds remaining, Amarillo Tascosa had the District 2-5A Division I-leading Eagles right where it wanted them Friday at Shotwell Stadium.

If the Rebels could hold off AHS for just a few more ticks, they’d score the upset of the year in 2-5A DI and force themselves back into the district title picture in the process.

Instead, they kicked the ball to Ryland Bradford — a mistake that proved fatal in a wild 31-29 win for coach Mike Fullen’s squad. 

Continue reading “GAME STORY: Bradford’s late return lifts Abilene High to improbable win over Amarillo Tascosa” →

by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Zephyr forces eight turnovers, knocks off rival Blanket

ZEPHYR — Friday night’s District 13-1A Division II showdown at Blaine Quirl Stadium between No. 9 Blanket and Zephyr was billed as a heavyweight fight that would come down to the wire.

For half the game, the bitter rivals that have campuses separated by just 11.1 miles via FM 1467 more than lived up to the hype as the sides traded plenty of body blows.

The second half was a much different story, though, as Zephyr forced turnovers on all six Tiger possessions and quickly pulled away for a 58-14 win, marking the Bulldogs’ third straight in the series. It also gives Zephyr 10 straight district wins and puts the Bulldogs in strong position to claim their third consecutive district title.

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by Daniel Youngblood

SIX-MAN LOOKAHEAD: Blanket-Zephyr headlines Week 9 schedule as teams fight for playoff positioning

Coming off a Week 8 schedule that featured a bevy of intriguing matchups and produced a fair number of thrilling outcomes, the Week 9 slate lacks some of that same punch on paper.

But that’s not to say it’s short on interesting — and meaningful — games. In fact, quite the opposite is true.

As we have done on Thursday nights throughout this season, it’s time to take a look at some of the top matchups this week has to offer. And when you’re done reading, make sure to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for standings, schedules and results.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps’ Pick ‘Em Panel (Week 9)

Each week here at Big Country Preps, we’ll post our picks for all of that week’s 11-man games, in addition to the results of our weekly fan polls for each matchup.

For those interested in voting, polls go up on Sunday night each week and close Thursday morning.

Disagree with our picks or the fan poll consensus? Let us know in the comments section below.

Continue reading “Big Country Preps’ Pick ‘Em Panel (Week 9)” →

by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Loboes play host to Hawley in Big Country Preps Game of the Week

LAST WEEK:  41-10 .803
SEASON TOTAL: 367-108, .772

Football season doesn’t feel complete without at least one visit to Chesley Field in Cisco. And Friday night, the Big Country Preps Game of the Week will stop by for a crucial District 4-2A DI matchup between the Loboes (5-2, 1-1) and Hawley (7-0, 2-0). 

For Hawley, a win here will keep open the possibility of an unbeaten regular season. For Cisco, a victory would signal the beginning of a climb back into area prominence. 

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Clyde sweeps Wall on Senior Night to move within a match of first place

CLYDE — When Clyde and Wall first met on the volleyball court in District 6-3A play last month, the Lady Hawks won a five-set thriller at home. That afternoon, all five sets were decided by either two or three points.

The rivals met again Tuesday night as the Lady Bulldogs honored their five seniors and, with former coach Laura Carr watching from the stands, took down their nemesis 25-22, 25-21, 25-17 at Bulldog Gym.

While the sweep was shocking in its own right, it was the way that Clyde finished off the match that was even more impressive. Courtney Freeman’s squad went on a 14-2 run to close out the third set.

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by Evan Ren

Big Country Volleyball Statistical Leaders (as submitted by area coaches through Oct. 22)

Big Country Preps is publishing area volleyball statistical leaders each Tuesday at 7 p.m. roughout the regular season.

This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.

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