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Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Abilene High-San Angelo Central football (66 images)”
Category: Abilene High Eagles
DISTRICT 2-5A DIV. I WEEK 1 REPORT: Abilene High, Tascosa and Amarillo High triumphant in openers
Abilene High 42, San Angelo Central 14 — Brayden Henry ran for 176 yards and two touchdowns while also adding a punt return score for the Eagles in a season-opening blowout of the Bobcats.
Ethan Joyner also ran for 75 yards and a TD for AHS, which used a 65-yard fumble return score by Jayden Starks to erase an early 7-0 deficit before scoring 28 unanswered points over the middle two quarters.
GAME STORY: Henry leaves his mark as AHS opens season with big win over San Angelo Central
After seeing his junior year end with a torn ACL last October, Abilene High quarterback Brayden Henry returned to the field on Friday night at Shotwell Stadium and led the No. 9-ranked Eagles to a 42-21 win over San Angelo Central in the season opener for both squads.
Henry ran for a pair of touchdowns and added the go-ahead score with a second quarter-punt return for a touchdown as he accounted for 283 total yards in the win.
The senior was excited to be back on the field and having the ability to play a pivotal role in the win.
PHOTO GALLERY: Abilene High-Wylie football scrimmage (32 images)
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EVAN REN: Top games worth traveling for during the 2025 football season
Got the truck started yet?
Ready to jump on one of those farm-to-market roads to watch high school football into the late hours on a Friday night?
You’re not alone.
And, as tradition would have it, I tip my cap to those of you who will be hitting the trails each week in search of pigskin. My method: a preseason menu of sorts.
Each week for the next 11 weeks, Big Country Preps will be searching for its Game of the Week, and we’re already looking ahead. We now present our preliminary list of Big Country Games worth traveling for, but keep in mind: the following list is subject to change as surprises and disappointments emerge.
And as we all know … surprises and disappointments always emerge.
So, without further delay, here is our list of Big Country games worth traveling for in 2025.
I’ll see you on the road.
ABILENE HIGH FEATURE: Undersized LB Shaw brings heart, playmaking ability to Eagles ‘D’
Over the years, it has not been uncommon for the Abilene High defensive staff to turn undersized players with big hearts and high motors into outstanding linebackers or safeties.
Few players in AHS history have fit that profile better than senior outside linebacker Trae Shaw.
Standing just 5-foot-8 and weighing in at 165 pounds, Shaw isn’t your prototypical linebacker by any stretch of the imagination. But he fits the overachieving Eagle prototype to a T, and coach Mike Fullen, who was a longtime defensive coordinator before taking over the program in 2019, has no problem whatsoever working with players like that.
2025 ABILENE HIGH FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Experienced Eagles poised for another successful season
Last year, Abilene High overcame the growing pains of a youthful defense to go 8-4 and claim a shared championship in District 2-5A Division I.
This season, with that defense mostly intact and many of the offensive weapons that helped them average 47.8 points per game a year ago, the Eagles are hoping to put an even stronger product on the field.
AHS coach Mike Fullen, who has led his team to the playoffs each of the past five years, including district title runs the last two, isn’t getting real specific in his projections for this team. But the team’s general goals and expectations are proof enough of the confidence the Eagles take into the year.
COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: The Abilene High Eagles … one day to two-a-days
Football is just around the corner, and we at BigCountryPreps.com are committed to bringing you the information you need to prepare for your favorite team’s season.
We’ll be releasing our Big Country Preps Preseason Football Preview, the most comprehensive look at the upcoming Big Country football season anywhere, on Wednesday, Aug. 20. But you won’t have to wait until then to sate your gridiron appetite.
Leading up to the first day of fall football practice on Aug. 4, we’ll be spotlighting each 11-man team in the area and posing some of the key questions they’ll face in 2025 as part of our annual “Countdown to Two-a-Days” series.
Today, we take a look at the Abilene High School Eagles.
Evan Ren’s 2025 Big Country Preps All-Hustle Team (the hardest-working baseball and softball players in the area)
OTHER 2025 ALL-BIG COUNTRY PREPS TEAMS
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS BASEBALL Superlative Awards (Pitcher of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, etc)
- ALL-BIG COUNTRY PREPS BASEBALL: First-Team Selections
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS BASEBALL: Second-Team Selections (plus honorable mention)
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS SOFTBALL: Superlative Awards (Pitcher of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, etc)
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS SOFTBALL: First-Team Selections
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS SOFTBALL: Second-Team Selections (plus honorable mention)
Our All-Big Country Preps Softball and Baseball Teams, released Saturday and Sunday, respectively, are in place to honor those who achieved the most on-field success in 2025. It is off the field, however, where character, grit, and work ethic are often measured. And it is with our Big Country Preps All-Hustle Team that we wish to honor those players, male and female, who were (simply put) the hardest-working, best teammates in the area this spring.
This team isn’t about who the best baseball and softball players were.
The All-Hustle team honors effort, discipline, toughness, coachability and selflessness — traits that coaches wish they had in every player and upon which championships are built.
It is for that reason that this team is largely selected by area coaches and described in their own words.
Big Country Preps is now honored to present these individuals to you — the best team players (boys and girls) that the Big Country had to offer during the 2025 season.
The players below are listed in no particular order.
2025 All-Big Country Preps Baseball Team: First-Team Roster
Here are our first-team selections for the 2025 All-Big Country Preps baseball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
2025 All-Big Country Preps Baseball Team: Second-Team Roster (w/ honorable mention)
Here are our second-team selections for the 2025 All-Big Country Preps baseball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
2025 Big Country Preps Rising Stars Baseball Team
Ladies and gentlemen, we are proud to release our 2025 All-Big Country Preps baseball teams.
Here, you will find our Rising Stars Team honoring the top freshmen and sophomores in the Big Country.
For the rest of this year’s baseball selections, please click the links below.
2025 All-Big Country Preps Softball Team: First-team Roster
Here are our first-team selections for the 2025 All-Big Country Preps softball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
- Superlative Award Winners (Pitcher of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, etc.)
- All-Big Country Preps Second-Team Softball Selections (w/ honorable mention)
- All-Big Country Preps Rising Stars Team (the best freshman and sophomores in the area!)
- Big Country Preps All-Hustle Team (To be released Monday night)
2025 All-Big Country Preps Softball Team: Second-team Roster (w/ honorable mention)
Here are our second-team selections for the 2025 All-Big Country Preps softball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
- Superlative Award Winners (Pitcher of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, etc.)
- All-Big Country Preps First-Team Softball Selections
- All-Big Country Preps Rising Stars Team (the best freshman and sophomores in the area!)
- Big Country Preps All-Hustle Team (To be released Monday night)
2025 Big Country Preps Rising Stars Softball Team
Ladies and gentlemen, we are proud to release our 2025 All-Big Country Preps Softball teams.
Here, you will find our Rising Stars Team honoring the top freshmen and sophomores in the Big Country.
For the rest of this year’s softball selections, please click the links below.
- Superlative Award Winners (Pitcher of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, etc.)
- All-Big Country Preps First-Team Softball Selections
- All-Big Country Preps Second-Team Softball Selections
- Big Country Preps All-Hustle Team (To be released Monday night)
PHOTO GALLERY: Abilene High-North Richland Hills Birdville softball region semifinal playoff (84 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.
GAME STORY: Birdville uses fast start to even series with Abilene High
North Richland Hills Birdville made an emphatic statement in the first inning on Friday night to ensure that the Abilene High softball team wouldn’t get any more Maiya Magic at Hogan Field.
A night after the sophomore stole third and scored to give AHS a walk-off win in the opener of a best-of-three Region I-5A Division I semifinal series, the Lady Hawks evened the series with an 11-1 victory.
Game 3 will be at 1 p.m. Saturday, and the winner will earn the right to face Aledo for a berth in the state semifinals.
GAME STORY: Gritty Abilene High Lady Eagles open region semifinal series with walk-off win over Birdville
GRAHAM — During her time at Abilene High, coach Jenna Aguirre’s teams have won a lot of games with gritty — often excellent — pitching and an aggressive, opportunistic playing style on offense.
On Thursday, the Lady Eagles followed that same familiar formula to a 6-5 walk-off victory over North Richland Hills Birdville in Game 1 of their Region I-5A Division I semifinal series with the Lady Hawks.
Junior starter Avah Reyes bent at times in the circle against an explosive Birdville lineup that put near constant pressure on her throughout the game, but she never broke. And her lineup gave her just enough run support, winning the game on a throwing error in the bottom of the seventh after the Lady Hawks had scored three runs in the top of the sixth to knot the score at 5.
SIGNING DAY: Eight Abilene High athletes make commitments official at super-sized ceremony
Eight Abilene High athletes made their college commitments official on Wednesday during a Signing Day ceremony at Eagle Gym, capping a week of signings that began Tuesday when Eagle football players Bryson Perez and Dristain Payne solidified their commitments to Hardin-Simmons University.
Kinzley Cantu (softball; Hardin-Simmons), Mason Murray (cross country/track; Baylor University); Jazlyn Ortiz (cross country/track; Franciscan University of Steubenville), Keeley Aston (soccer; Seminole State College), Laly Dehoyos (cheer; Hardin-Simmons), Rylan Stokes (baseball; McMurry University), Camp Churchill (baseball; McMurry) and John Alcantar (cross country/track; Western Texas College) all took part in the event, signing letters of intent in front of friends and family who packed the gymnasium’s lower level.
That group gave AHS 11 signings in a two-week span, after tennis player Allie Dunn committed to Hardin-Simmons last week.
SIGNING DAY: Abilene High pair makes Hardin-Simmons decision official
Abilene High seniors Bryson Perez and Dristian Payne were key parts of the Eagle football program over the past four years and the pair will both continue their playing careers on the north side of town after making their college commitments official to Hardin-Simmons University on Tuesday afternoon.
AHS coach Mike Fullen was effusive in his praise of what the pair brought to the Abilene High program over the past four seasons and said that he’s excited to watch them progress.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Gordon’s Stryker Reed takes our final accolade of 2024-25 school year
As our tradition dictates, we close the books on our Big Country Preps Player of the Week on the first Monday following the UIL State Track and Field Championships in Austin.
And more often than not, our final award of the school year goes to someone who scored big at the state capital.
This year is no exception, with Gordon’s Stryker Reed taking the award after helping GHS win the boys team state championship, setting two individual state records and helping to set a new relay mark in the process.
AREA BASEBALL STAT LEADERS (Final stat report for 2025)
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through May 1.
Statistics are from throughout the Big Country Preps circulation area as submitted by coaches. These lists will be continually updated as we receive more submissions.
If your favorite team is missing, please give your head coach a friendly reminder to check his email for our weekly stat request or send Evan Ren a note at Evan.Ren@BigCountryPreps.com.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Brock’s Mylee Cedillo takes this week’s accolade with two doses of late-game heroics
If one is to play the role of hero, there’s not a better time to do it than in postseason play in your senior year.
Brock’s Mylee Cedillo lived that experience — not once, but twice in last week’s uber-intense bi-district series with fifth-ranked Levelland that saw the Lady Eagles edge the Loboettes 2-1 and 7-6 in 13 innings.
It all began Friday night in Game 1, with Levelland pitcher Aubrey Rivas carrying a no-hitter and a 1-0 lead into the seventh inning. Cedillo responded to the pressure with an RBI double to drive home both Lily Springstead (who walked) and courtesy runner Emily Faddis (running for Ali Coleman who reached on an error) to give Brock a 2-1 win.
GAME REPORT: Cooper outlasts Abilene High for 2-0 win to take season series, top playoff seed
After grinding out a gritty 3-1 win over Abilene High on Tuesday to kick off its final home-and-home series of the District 4-5A season, the Cooper baseball team won another pitcher’s duel over its crosstown rival Friday, edging the Eagles 2-0 at Blackburn Field.
Playing AHS with the season series and their district’s top Division I playoff seed on the line, the Cougars broke a scoreless tie with a pair of runs in the top of the fifth inning, and the pitching duo of Brady Henderson and Alejandro made those hold up with a combined four-hit shutout.
Henderson pitched the first five innings for Cooper, allowing just two hits and two walks with six strikeouts, before handing the game over the Ibarra, who navigated the final two frames for the save.
Final Area Softball Stat Leaders (through April 24)
Here are the area’s softball statistical leaders through April 24:
Statistics are from throughout the Big Country Preps circulation area as submitted by coaches. These lists will be continually updated as we receive more submissions.
If your favorite team is missing, please give your head coach a friendly reminder to check his or her email for our weekly stat request or send Evan Ren a note at Evan.Ren@BigCountryPreps.com.
Area Baseball Stat Leaders (through April 24)
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through April 24.
Statistics are from throughout the Big Country Preps circulation area as submitted by coaches. These lists will be continually updated as we receive more submissions.
If your favorite team is missing, please give your head coach a friendly reminder to check his email for our weekly stat request or send Evan Ren a note at Evan.Ren@BigCountryPreps.com.
GAME STORY: Pitching, defense key Cooper to 3-1 win over crosstown rival Abilene High
The Cooper baseball team didn’t generate a lot of offense Tuesday night at Cougar Field, but it was enough to hand crosstown rival Abilene High a 3-1 loss thanks to a strong pitching performance by Jeron Flores and Johnathon Rico and some excellent defense played behind them.
The two CHS pitchers combined to limit the Eagles to just two hits, putting out what few fires they encountered to keep the Cougars in the hunt for District 4-5A’s No. 1 playoff seed in the large school division.
The Coogs, who improved to 18-8 overall and 5-6 in district play with Tuesday’s win, will meet up with Abilene High (17-9-1, 6-5) again on Friday at Blackburn Field with the season series between the two teams on the line. The winner will take the No. 1 seed in the Class 5A Division I playoffs while the loser will take the No. 2 seed.
LOCAL TRACK ROUNDUP: Wylie’s Washington earns silver in boys triple jump to punch ticket to state meet
LUBBOCK — Wylie senior Andre Washington is headed to the state track meet after taking silver in the triple jump over the weekend at the Region I-5A meet at Lowrey Field.
Washington jumped 46 feet, 10½ inches to finish less than a foot behind event winner Taniela Ake O’Neal of Argyle (47-9½) and punch his ticket to Austin.
That effort, which accounted for eight of Wylie’s 12 team points, headlined all local performances at the meet, which also saw the Abilene High girls earn 11 points.
PHOTO GALLERY: Coahoma-Abilene High softball (75 images)
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Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Coahoma-Abilene High softball (75 images)”
GAME STORY: Coahoma breaks state record in playoff tune-up win over Abilene High
The Coahoma softball team has been on a historic run since beating Bryan Rudder 5-0 on March 4, 2023.
Thursday night, the Bulldogettes etched their name in the history books with a 6-1 win over Abilene High at the AHS softball field — the 84th consecutive game they have gone without a loss.
Coahoma is 83-0-1 during the streak, with the lone tie coming earlier this year in a 2-2 decision in four innings in a tournament game against Lubbock High. With the record in hand, Coahoma coach Alex Orosco said that the team has been focused on doing things right daily and that allows for records to be broken.
GAME STORY: Cantu’s fifth-inning homer lifts Abilene High to 3-1 win over Wylie
With both the district championship and playoff seeding already locked up before the first pitch of Tuesday night’s softball matchup between the Abilene High and Wylie, neither team stood to gain or lose a whole lot from the game’s outcome.
But for those in attendance at the AHS softball field, it wasn’t hard to see how much the contest meant to both teams.
Less than three weeks after the Lady Eagles and Lady Bulldogs battled to a 1-0 AHS victory in the first of two matchups between the squads, the two teams put on another show Tuesday, with a two-run home run by Kinzley Cantu in the fifth inning serving as the difference in a 3-1 Abilene High win.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Wall’s Jones takes the award with spectacular effort at area meet
The best way to describe the area meet performance of our Big Country Preps Player of the Week (Wall’s Briggs Jones) is to simply let his coach, Craig Slaughter do the talking.
“He ran a blistering 10.41 to set a school record and win the 100 meters,” Slaughter said. “He broke his long jump record with a jump of 23-11.5. I only let him jump twice because he was running out of room in the pit and I need that dude cranked up this week.
“Then he destroyed his triple jump record with a jump of 48-7.25
LOCAL BASEBALL ROUNDUP: Cooper, Wylie secure shutout wins in district; AHS edges Wall in nondistrict play
Abilene High, Cooper and Wylie all came away with victories Friday on a night of action that saw the Cougars and Bulldogs score district wins over Wichita Falls Legacy and Wichita Falls Memorial, respectively, and the Eagles go out of district to claim a 4-2 home win over Class 3A power Wall.
Both Cooper and Wylie rode pitching gems to shutout wins, as Brady Henderson pitched six dominant innings to fuel the Cougars to a 5-0 triumph over the Leopards and Brady Gay went the whole way for the Bulldogs in a 4-0 victory over the Mavericks.
Abilene High, meanwhile, used a four-run first inning and a strong mound effort of its own by sophomore Gavin Colley to edge the Hawks and complete a perfect day for Abilene’s three largest high schools.
LOCAL SOFTBALL ROUNDUP: Cooper rallies for Senior Night win, Abilene High locks up district title
The Abilene High and Cooper softball teams both came up with big wins Friday night, as the Lady Eagles clinched the outright District 4-5A championship with a 16-0 road rout of Wichita Falls Legacy and the Lady Cougars rallied at home for a 3-2 walk-off win over Wichita Falls Memorial on Senior Night.
AHS scored 10 first-inning runs in its victory, the Lady Eagles’ ninth in a row, while Cooper broke up a perfect game in the sixth before rallying from a run down in the home half of seventh to snap a two-game losing skid.
Friday’s results improved Abilene High to 15-7 overall and a perfect 7-0 in district play, while Cooper (14-12 on the year) moved to 4-3 in 4-5A action.
PHOTO GALLERY: Abilene High-Wylie baseball (63 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: Abilene High-Wylie baseball (63 images)”
GAME STORY: Ace Reyes, hot bats fuel Abilene High to run-rule victory over rival Cooper
Hosting rival Cooper with a chance to lock up at least a share of the District 4-5A championship, the Abilene High softball team took care of business Tuesday, using a five-run bottom of the third to break open the game on its way to a thorough 11-1 victory.
Junior ace Avah Reyes limited the Lady Cougars to a single run on two hits and a pair of walks, and her teammates gave her ample support, following the third-inning outburst with another five spot in the fifth to end the game early.
The victory — AHS’ eighth in a row — improved the Lady Eagles to 6-0 in district play, giving coach Jenna Aguirre’s squad (14-7 overall) an opportunity to lock up the outright 4-5A title on Friday, when they hit the road north for a matchup with last-place Wichita Falls Legacy.
GAME STORY: Wylie races out to early lead, earns crucial win over Abilene High
After getting rained out on Friday and Saturday, the Abilene High and Wylie baseball teams finally were able to meet on the diamond for their District 4-5A rubber match on Monday at Bulldog Field.
While the Eagles stayed with their original plan of starting Connel Colley on the mound, the Bulldogs decided to turn to Dylan Regala, a sophomore who hadn’t pitched in exactly one month.
It was Regala who pitched well enough to earn the win as the Bulldogs claimed the season series with a 6-3 decision in a game that saw the two squads combine for 16 walks and five hit batters over nearly three hours of action.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Cisco junior takes the top spot with no-hitter
While no-hitters are fairly common at the high school level, the bulk of them are of the five-inning variety — ending early while locking down a mercy rule win.
Going the full seven innings without allowing a hit, however, is much less common. And in the case of Cisco junior Case Williams, his seven-inning no-no in a 2-0 win over a good Coleman team last Tuesday secured our Big Country Preps Player of the Week for the Week ending April 5.
