Month: December 2024

by Brandon McAuliffe

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: Eula girls claim title with pair of top-10 wins

EULA — Since the Eula Holiday Classic expanded to 16 teams for both the boys and girls tournaments in 2005, neither of the Pirates programs had won the tournament title.

That changed on Saturday when the Lady Pirates, who entered the tournament ranked No. 3 in the state in Class 1A, knocked off 10th-ranked Hermleigh 50-41 in a spirited championship match at Mary Mosley Gymnasium.

The win capped off a day that saw Roscoe and Clyde fall in the third- and fifth-place games, respectively, while the Tolar Lady Rattlers won the consolation championship.

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by Daniel Youngblood

STATE FEATURE: Resilient Stamford went down swinging in championship game loss to Ganado

ARLINGTON — After breezing through the first 16 weeks weeks of the season, winning its first 15 games by an average margin of 36.8 points, the Stamford football team found itself in an unfamiliar spot Thursday at AT&T Stadium. 

Facing off with a similarly dominant Ganado squad for the Class 2A Division I state championship, the Bulldogs spent most of Thursday’s game playing catch-up, erasing three deficits in regulation and a fourth in overtime before eventually falling 30-28 in an instant classic.

While the outcome wasn’t the one Stamford or its sea of blue-clad fans were hoping for, the Bulldogs’ resiliency, mental toughness and clutch execution in the face of its first real game pressure of the season left many on both sides — and sidelines — at AT&T Stadium impressed by their efforts. And those same qualities had the Bulldogs’ coach, Wayne Hutchinson, calling them champions despite hoisting the runner-up trophy.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Ganado outlasts Stamford in three-overtime war to claim 2A DI state title

ARLINGTON — After three hours and 10 minutes of struggle, three overtimes and numerous missed opportunities to end the game, the Ganado Indians edged Stamford 30-28 to win the Class 2A Division I state championship on Thursday at AT&T Stadium. 

With the game reduced to alternating PATs, Ganado took the final lead of the game when Offensive MVP Bruce Ullman hit Austen Pena with a two-point conversion pass in the first half of the third OT. 

Stamford had a chance to tie with its final possession, but an attempted reverse pass by Cle’ Whitfield was picked off by Ullman to end the game. 

Ullman led the Indians (15-1) with 172 yards passing and two scores and 48 yards rushing and another TD. Stamford, which got 152 yards passing and two scores from Christian Duran and 89 yards rushing and two scores from Kaston Vega, also closed at 15-1.

“It was a defensive battle from the word go,” Stamford coach Wayne Hutchinson said. “I can’t say enough about our kids. They were resilient, they worked their tails off and it showed in the game today.” 

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by Brandon McAuliffe

STATE FEATURE: Stanaland, Reed cement their legacies in Arlington

ARLINGTON — While both Jayton coach Josh Stanaland and Gordon coach Mike Reed both tried to downplay the achievement, the pair of long tenured Big Country coaches earned legacy wins on Wednesday in the Class 1A state championship games at AT&T Stadium.

Stanaland led the Jaybirds to a 54-8 win over Oakwood to open four days of action at the home of the Dallas Cowboys before the Longhorns hammered Whiteface 70-24 to make it a clean sweep.

It was the first state championship for Jayton since 1985, while the Longhorns went back-to-back. The two squads had a combined seven seniors and are already heavily favored to return to Arlington in 2025.

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by Evan Ren

2024 BIG COUNTRY PREPS MAX EFFORT TEAM: The hardest-working players in area volleyball!

Our All-Big Country Preps Volleyball team, released today, is in place to honor those who achieved the most on-court success in 2024. It is off the court, however, where character, grit

and work ethic are often measured. And it is with our Big Country Preps Max Effort Team that we wish to honor those players who were the hardest-working, best teammates in the

area this fall. 

This team isn’t about who the best volleyball players were.

The Max Effort team honors hustle, discipline, toughness, coachability and selflessness — traits that coaches wish every player had.

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by Daniel Youngblood

All-Big Country Preps Superlatives: Carlton, Jowers, Kemp, Mock and Moore claim top accolades

Here are our superlative award winners for the 2024 All-Big Country Preps volleyball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.

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by Daniel Youngblood

2024 All-Big Country Preps Volleyball Rising Stars Team: The top freshmen and sophomores in the area!

Here is our 2024 All-Big Country Preps volleyball Rising Stars Team, comprised of the top freshmen and sophomores in the area. For the rest of this year’s volleyball selections, click the links below.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Gordon caps off dominant season with second consecutive title

ARLINGTON — Wednesday afternoon was just another ho-hum day for Gordon as the Longhorns held the ball for just 4:09 and ran 16 offensive plays in the Class 1A Division I State Championship game against Whiteface at AT&T Stadium.

Despite the limited offensive snaps, the outcome was never in doubt as Gordon averaged 20 yards per play on its way to a 70-24 win, clinching a repeat as state champions.

Stryker Reed’s 45-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second half ended the game on the 45-point rule.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Jayton ends football title drought with dominant win over Oakwood

ARLINGTON — Colt Gentry had two fumble recoveries for touchdowns and Sean Stanaland accounted for four touchdowns as Jayton claimed its first state football championship in 39 years with a 54-8 win over Oakwood on Wednesday morning at AT&T Stadium.

Gentry recovered an offensive fumble in the end zone on Jayton’s first scoring drive before notching a scoop-and-score with a 73-yard return on the next Oakwood possession as he earned Defensive MVP honors in the Class 1A Division II game.

Stanaland, who threw for 102 yards and ran for 28 more, was named Offensive MVP after the Jaybirds (15-0) had their 13th win this season in a game that ended at halftime.

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by Evan Ren

EVAN REN’S PLAYOFF FORECAST: Stamford, Gordon, Jayton reach Jerry World

LAST WEEK: 3-0, 1.000
SEASON TOTAL: 593-143, .805

And then there were three. 

After 16 weeks of struggle, the Big Country has landed three representatives in Arlington for their respective state championship games. Stamford, Gordon and Jayton have reached Jerry World, beginning play today with six-man action. Stamford will play at 11 a.m. on Thursday. 

That said, it has been a distinct pleasure, as always, to write this weekly picks column and I’m already looking forward to doing it again in 2025. 

Here are my final picks for this year. I’ll see you on the road.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Abilene High boys start fast in dominant win over Wall

After watching the girls basketball team have to hang on for a win over Stephenville in the first game of the night, the Abilene High boys made sure their game would lack the same drama.

The Eagles had 10 different players contribute on the offensive end as they rode a fast start to a 67-35 win over Wall on Tuesday night at Eagle Gym .

Abilene High jumped out to an 8-0 lead and never trailed on its way to pushing its season record to 12-5. The fast start was exactly what coach Justin Reese was looking for as the Hawks had several football players seeing their first basketball action of the season.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Abilene High girls hold off Stephenville in nailbiter

A deflected inbounds pass with just over two-tenths of a second left was all the Abilene High girls basketball team needed to end a season-long four-game losing streak as the Lady Eagles picked up a 44-42 win over Stephenville on Tuesday night at Eagle Gym.

Emily Jordan had a game-high 22 points for AHS to help the Lady Eagles even their record at 10-10 under first-year head coach Alfonzo Franklin.

After the game, Franklin said he was pleased with how his squad battled in a game that never saw either team lead by more than six points. Continue reading “GAME STORY: Abilene High girls hold off Stephenville in nailbiter” →

by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Forsan sophomore snags our final award of the 2024 calendar year

Our final Big Country Preps Player of the Week for 2024 earned it in several ways. 

Forsan sophomore Coy Evans, a multi-talented guard who plays way ahead of the learning curve, takes our accolade after helping the Buffaloes to a 3-1 record and a third-place finish in the Borden County Tournament over the Weekend. 

“He played very unselfish basketball,” Forsan coach Cory Richardson said. “He was getting other people involved and when we needed him to, he stepped up and scored.” 

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by Daniel Youngblood

WEEK 17 FAN POLLS … Pick the state championship game winners!

Each week here at Big Country Preps, we offer fans the chance to pick the winners of all games involving our local and area football teams. The results of these weekly polls, which will close this week at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, will be included in our final Pick ‘Em Panel.

Here are the games for Week 17:

Continue reading “WEEK 17 FAN POLLS … Pick the state championship game winners!” →

by Daniel Youngblood

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: Wylie holds off West Plains to close out Catclaw Classic at 2-1

The Wylie boys basketball team closed out the Catclaw Classic with a hard-fought win, holding off a late rally to defeat Canyon West Plains 45-38 on Saturday afternoon at Bulldog Gym.

Leading 22-15 at halftime, the Bulldogs saw the Wolves narrow the gap to a single point on a pair of occasions in the fourth quarter. But coach Gregg Ruffin’s squad answered the final West Plains push with back-to-back 3-pointers and made all four of their fourth-quarter free throws to create some separation down the stretch.

The victory gave the Bulldogs a 2-1 record at their annual tournament and improved Wylie’s overall mark to 8-6 for the season.

Continue reading “TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: Wylie holds off West Plains to close out Catclaw Classic at 2-1” →

by Daniel Youngblood

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: Wylie splits pair of games on opening day of Catclaw Classic

The Wylie boys basketball team opened the Catlaw Classic with mixed results Friday, falling to Fort Worth Chisholm Trail 49-40 in the afternoon before bouncing back to rout Midland Greenwood 80-35 in the nightcap.

After being outscored 30-17 in the second half of their opener, the Bulldogs dominated their second game from start to finish to take a 1-1 record into Saturday’s Catclaw finale against Canyon West Plains.

Coach Gregg Ruffin’s team, now 7-6 on the season overall, led Greenwood 41-19 by halftime and outscored the Rangers 18-7 in the third quarter to ensure that it would close Day 1 of its own tournament on a winning note.

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by Yale Youngblood, Special to Big Country Preps

GAME STORY: Carthage rides big second quarter to 45-17 win over Brock, ends Eagles run in state semis

Photos by Brian McLean

MCKINNEY — Carthage took advantage of big plays on both sides of the ball to score 31 first-half points en route to a 45-17 win over Brock in a Class 4A Division II state semifinal game Friday night at McKinney ISD Stadium.

An 80-yard fumble return for a touchdown by Bulldog defensive back Daquives Beck started the onslaught midway though the first period. By the time the whistle sounded to end the game’s first 24 minutes, Carthage found the endzone three more times, on a 31-yard dash by speedy running back Kelwin Edwards, on a 10-yard strike from Jett Surratt to Cade Ross, and on a 26-yard flea-flicker pass from Surratt to a wide open Junior Henderson.

To put an exclamation point on the first half, Bulldogs’ kicker Leo Medrano nailed a 30-yard field as time ran out, and Carthage (14-1) was well on its way to a championship game with Waco La Vega, which disposed of Wimberly 62-35 in the other Class 4A DII semifinal. The teams will meet next week at AT&T Stadium in the state championship game, and if the Bulldogs prevail, it will mark a state-record 10th championship for coach Scott Surratt.

Brock finished its season with a 13-2 mark, but, despite the final score, the Eagles were still in the game heading to the fourth quarter after blanking the Bulldogs 7-0 in the period.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Gunter rallies to beat Wall, advances to 3A DII state championship game

ABILENE — Leading 32-17 with 9:43 left in the third quarter of Friday’s Class 3A DII state semifinal with Gunter, the Wall Hawks were clicking on all cylinders. They were in possession of the scoreboard, all of the momentum and were less than two quarters away from a trip to the state championship game. 

Then it happened. 

The two-time defending state champion Tigers reeled off 25 unanswered points to defeat Wall 42-32 at Abilene Christian’s Wildcat Stadium. 

Preston Tarpley threw for 228 yards and three scores and kicked two field goals to lead Gunter (13-2), which advances to face Woodville (13-2) for the 3A DII state title. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Stamford holds on to beat gritty Hamilton, punches ticket to Arlington

MINERAL WELLS — Leading Hamilton 21-0 after three quarters, Stamford appeared well on its way to yet another blowout win in Thursday’s Class 2A Division I state semifinal matchup between a pair of unbeaten Bulldog squads.

That was before a gritty HHS team that had made its name this season with its ability to prevail in hard-fought games battled back with 13 unanswered points to pull within a single touchdown by the 3:53 mark of the final period.

In the end, Stamford survived the challenge, getting a touchdown run from Christian Duran with 1:32 on the clock to put the finishing touches on a 28-13 win. And in that mettle-testing process, SHS earned the program’s eighth trip to a state championship game and first since 2013, when the ‘Dogs capped a streak of three consecutive title game appearances with back-to-back titles in coach Wayne Hutchinson’s first stint with the program.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps’ Pick ‘Em Panel (Week 16)

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 16)” →

by Evan Ren

EVAN REN’S PLAYOFF FORECAST: Stamford, Wall, Brock all one step away from reaching state championship games

LAST WEEK: 5-2, .714
SEASON TOTAL: 590-143, .804

With area six-man teams Jayton and Gordon enjoying a week off after qualifying for their respective state championship games, Week 15 brings us three teams (Brock, Wall and Stamford) from the Big Country Preps coverage area that still have a chance at reaching Jerry World. 

The survivors will join our six-man clubs in Arlington next week on Texas High School Football’s biggest stage. 

That said, let’s dive into this week’s forecast. 

I’ll see you on the road.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wolfforth Frenship tops Wylie 49-32 to snap Lady Bulldogs win streak

Coming off a championship run at the Granbury tournament to improve to 13-2 on the year, the young Wylie girls basketball team ran into a difficult matchup Tuesday against Wolfforth Frenship.

The Lady Bulldogs struggled with the Lady Tigers’ length on both ends of the floor, allowing a combined 34 points — almost all of those in the paint — to the post tandem of Jada Jackson and Kedan Burch in a 49-32 loss at Bulldog Gym.

After a competitive first quarter, Wylie was outscored 33-18 the rest of the way, including an 8-0 Frenship run through the final period, to see a five-game winning streak snapped with the loss.

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by Daniel Youngblood

SIX-MAN REWIND: Gordon, Jayton cruise to state championship games with impressive semifinal showings

The Gordon Longhorns and Jayton Jaybirds have been ranked No. 1 in Class 1A Division I and II, respectively, all year, and both have been popular picks to take home state championships this season.

Last week, both earned the opportunity to compete for a title with impressive state semifinal wins. Gordon stayed unbeaten with a 77-36 win over Abbott, handing the Panthers their first loss of the season, while Jayton throttled Klondike 90-48 to maintain a perfect record itself.

In the only other game involving an area team, Water Valley fell 74-54 to 14-0 Whiteface to narrowly miss out on its own trip to AT&T Stadium in Arlington. 

Gordon and Jayton will now get some extra time to prepare for their championship games, which are slated for Dec. 18. It the meantime, let’s take a look at how the Longhorns and Jaybirds got here. We hope you enjoy this “rewind” and encourage you to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for schedules and results.

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Luft
by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Ira junior takes the spotlight with huge week

Ira junior Hudson Luft had a week that was nothing short of eye-popping — eye-popping enough to earn him our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award for the week ending Dec. 7. 

Luft takes it this time around with a performance that went as follows: 28 points, 10 boards vs. Spur, 18 points, eight steals vs. Eden, 46 points, four steals vs. Loraine, 21 points vs. Robert Lee, 30 points, six steals vs. Roscoe and 24 points vs Winters. 

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by Yale Youngblood, Special to Big Country Preps

GAME STORY: Defending champion Gordon earns return trip to Arlington with 77-36 win over Abbott

GODLEY — Stryker Reed rushed for 186 yards, completed each of his three passes, completed all three of his passes for 97 yards and accounted for two Gordon scores to lead the Longhorns to a 77-36 thrashing of Abbott in a Class 1A Division I state semifinal game Friday night at Wildcat Stadium.

As remarkable as the versatile junior back’s individual effort was, what transpired over the entirety of 40 rain-soaked minutes was even more important. With its 14th straight win since the beginning of the 2024 season, Gordon earned a trip to AT&T Stadium in Arlington in 10 days with a chance to become a back-to-back Class 1A DI champion. The Panthers ended their season with a 13-1 record.

Friday’s game marked the first time all year that the Longhorns had to play a complete four quarters, having entered the contest outscoring opponents 721-48 and seeing all 13 previous tilts called on account of the 45-point mercy rule.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: North Crowley claims title; local teams get mixed results

The 2024 edition of the Raising Cane’s Key City Classic wrapped up with a flourish of great games on Saturday at both Abilene High and Cooper.

The day started with Mineral Wells rallying in the final minute of regulation before taking an overtime win against El Paso Jefferson, saw South San Antonio claim a 44-41 win over Cleburne in double overtime and culminated with North Crowley improving to 2-1 in the championship game of the tournament over the past three years.

For full tournament results, click here.

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by Evan Ren

GAME REPORT: Wall destroys Canadian to advance to 3A DII state semifinals

                                       Landon York

Landon York hit 17 of 24 passes for 348 yards and five scores and Wall rushed for 162 yards via committee as the Hawks routed Canadian 49-3 to take the Region I-3A DII title. 

After Canadian opened the scoring with an early field goal, the Hawks reeled off 49 unanswered points to improve to 13-1.  They led 28-3 at the break and continued to dominate throughout the second half.

“We just played really sharp in all phases from the outset,” Wall coach Craigh Slaughter said. “The past two years we had really fallen behind early (against Canadian) and right away we were playing catch up. 

“This year, they did go out and get three points, but we went right down the field and scored. And from that moment, I thought the kids played with the perfect amount of confidence and moxie.  It was an impressive performance for sure and they really played lights-out.” 

Continue reading “GAME REPORT: Wall destroys Canadian to advance to 3A DII state semifinals” →

by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Brock outslugs Graham in wild, rainy triple-overtime regional championship

Photos by Brian McLean

STEPHENVILLE — It scarcely resembled the trip to the woodshed that Graham gave Brock in a 38-0 rout on Nov. 1. This time around, at cold, rainy Memorial Stadium at Tarleton State University, Brock outlasted Graham 12-10 on Friday in a three-overtime trench war. 

Bryer McDonald scored on a 3-yard two-point conversion run in the third overtime to put Brock up for good (after two OTs, both teams alternate two-point conversions until the game is decided). This was followed by a would-be game-tying pass from Graham’s Ty Thompson that fell incomplete to give the Eagles the Region I-4A DII title. 

Brody Woods rushed for 92 yards and one TD and threw for 121 to lead Brock (13-1) which now advances to face Carthage (13-1) in the 4A DII state semifinals. 

“We’re ecstatic and happy, but my heart breaks for (Graham’s) seniors because I’ve been there before,” Brock coach Billy Mathis said. “But I’m happy for our seniors. We get to play another week. 
“You get down to this time and it’s about guts, it’s about grit, it’s about being unselfish and we made it happen tonight.” 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Stephenville comes up inches short in 42-35 loss to Canyon West Plains

MIDLAND — Between them, the Stephenville and Canyon West Plains football teams amassed more than 750 yards of total offense Friday at Astound Broadband Stadium. In the end, though, the Region I-4A Division I championship came down to the one yard that wasn’t gained.

With his team down by a touchdown with just over a minute remaining and facing a fourth-and-goal situation from the West Plains 1-yard line, SHS’ Ryan Gafford was ruled down just short of the goal line on a quarterback sneak, leaving the Yellow Jackets on the short end of a 42-35 thriller.

That failed conversion all but sealed a matchup between two red hot teams that went back and forth for four quarters and needed all 48 minutes to be decided.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: AHS stuns Richardson Pearce for berth in championship game; Cooper, Mineral Wells go winless on Day 2

On the second day of the 16-team Raising Cane’s Key City Classic, Brooks Reese hit an off-balance, buzzer-beating 3-pointer to send the Abilene High boys basketball team to the championship game with a thrilling 44-42 win over Richardson Pearce that saw the fans storm the court Friday night at Eagle Gym.

Across town, Cooper fell to Lubbock Cooper 46-35 in the quarterfinals before dropping their nightcap 52-34 to Cleburne. Mineral Wells, meanwhile, dropped a pair of games against Midland Legacy (60-36) and Carrollton Creekview (62-47).

For a full listing of Day 2 results and a complete tournament schedule, click here.

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