As weather wreaked havoc with the first two days of the Abilene ISD Invitational baseball tournament, first-year Wall coach Jeremy Gordon was just happy to get two games in on Saturday.
The fact that he got two solid pitching performances with clutch at-bats in both only made him happier.
Wall shut out Class 6A Copperas Cove 8-0 before downing Class 4A Snyder 7-1 at Cougar Diamond to finish 3-1 in the tournament.
A strong pitching performance by junior Brady Gay and a couple of big innings were enough to fuel the Wylie baseball team past rival Cooper in a 7-1 win Thursday at Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field.
The game, which capped a rain-filled opening day of the Abilene ISD Invitational, saw a venue change and a slight delay due to the storms that blew through Abilene on Thursday. But the clouds and wet weather cleared in time for Gay to toss a six-inning gem that was rewarded with a win when his teammates put up seven runs over the fifth and sixth innings.
The victory improved Wylie (12-0 overall) to 2-0 in District 4-5A play, while Cooper fell to 5-6 on the year and 1-1 in league action.
As if the Big Country’s collection of softball catchers wasn’t already “scary-good,” the area can count a worrisome new addition to its ranks: Colorado City freshman Bryanna Munoz, our Big Country Preps Player of the Week for the week ending March 2.
How’s this for frightening?
Munoz, who was in junior high only a year ago, was an absolute wrecking ball in last week’s Brownfield Tournament, hitting a combined .818 in the event with an 18 of 22 tally at the plate. But that’s not the half of it.
It may be a little too early to label Anson freshman softball pitcher Kayme Elrod as a star in the making. But our Big Country Preps Player of the Week is off to a pretty good start.
Last week her performance was nothing short of startling, both offensively and defensively.
In the circle, Elrod finished with a 5-0 record with a five-inning no hitter, a 0.77 ERA and 46 strikeouts in 27 innings of work.
After recognizing the Big Country’s top pitchers, catchers, infielders and outfielders, we wrap up our baseball position rankings series with the area’s multi-position standouts.
For the final installment in our five-part series, we take a look at the top utility players, ranking our top-10 with others to watch in 2024.
We hope you’ve enjoyed reading through these lists and are as excited as we are that baseball season is underway.
For the fourth installment of our five-part baseball position rankings series, we shift our focus from the infield dirt to the outfield grass.
After highlighting the Big Country’s top pitchers, catchers and infielders earlier this week, we now do the same with the area’s best outfielders, ranking our top 10 with others to watch in 2024.
We hope you enjoy our list.
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: Clyde baseball tournament Day 3 (94 images)”
After ranking the top pitchers and catchers on the Big Country baseball scene the past two nights, we now turn our attention to the infield.
For the third installment in our five-part position rankings series, we list our top-10 infielders in the area with a list of others to watch in 2024.
We hope you enjoy reading through our rankings.
After opening our baseball position rankings series with the pitchers on Wednesday, it’s time to shift our attention to their battery mates.
For the second installment in our five-part series, we celebrate the Big Country’s top catchers, ranking our top 10 with a list of others to watch in 2024.
We hope you enjoy our list.
After kicking off the spring sports season with our softball position rankings last week, it’s time to turn our attention to the the baseball field and the players you’ll be reading about throughout the 2024 campaign.
For the first installment in a five-part series that will cover all position groups on the area baseball scene, we’ll be taking a look at the Big Country’s best pitchers, ranking our top 10 with a list of others to watch this fall.
We hope you enjoy reading through our list.
With National Signing Day taking place on Wednesday, the Big Country, as always, saw a large number of athletes finalize their commitments to compete at the next level.
Headliners among this year’s signees include Albany running back Adam HIll and Hawley receiver Chandlin Myers, both of whom signed early with Texas Tech University.
Stephenville offensive lineman Creece Brister (TCU) and Comanche defensive back Kyler Beaty (Baylor) also inked their letters early. They’re joined Brock offensive/defensive lineman Hunter Fay (Navy) and standout hurdler Dylan Foster (Army) as the top signees in the Big Country Preps coverage area.
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: Clyde-Abilene High baseball scrimmage (91 images)”
If I were to ask one question of every high school coach in America – just one – it would be … why bother?
Yes … why bother?
While that may sound vague to some, it will quickly make sense to coaches and to those who have been paying attention.
Put simply, a once-thankless profession has sunk even lower than that (if that’s possible) – making me wonder if it’s worth the effort.
Blake Sandford has been out of the high school coaching game for a few years since resigning from Early High School in 2019.
Earlier this week, though, he was named the new head baseball coach at Brownwood, replacing Brian Harris, who has taken an administration role within Brownwood ISD.
Sandford, who has spent the past two seasons working with Howard Payne’s baseball team, is eager to hit the ground running with a Lions squad that will feature stars Gavin Brandstetter and Logan Posey next year.
Our All-Big Country Preps softball and baseball teams, released this week, are in place to honor those who achieved the most on-field success in 2023. 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 2023 season.
The players below are listed in no particular order.
Here are our superlative award winners for the 2023 All-Big Country Preps baseball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
Here are our first-team selections for the 2023 All-Big Country Preps baseball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
Here are our second-team selections for the 2023 All-Big Country Preps baseball team. For the rest of this year’s selections, click the links below.
Ladies and gentlemen, we are proud to release our 2023 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.
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: Daniel Youngblood’s top 100 baseball photos for 2023”
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: Evan Ren’s top 100 baseball photos for 2023”
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: FCA all-star baseball game (44 images)”
Due to UIL regulations, photo sales from state championship events are not permitted.
Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Wall-Boyd baseball state championship (64 images)”
ROUND ROCK — It wasn’t the storybook ending Wall was hoping for Saturday at Dell Diamond, but that wasn’t for lack of effort or fight.
After going the first 4.2 innings without a baserunner in their Class 3A state championship matchup with Boyd, the Hawks rallied from a 6-0 sixth-inning deficit to send the tying man to the plate in the top of the seventh. But Wall’s rally — and coach Jason Schniers’ 15-year coaching tenure — ended there as a fielder’s choice grounder and comebacker to the pitcher quelled their comeback hopes in a 6-4 loss to the Yellowjackets.
The defeat ended what was otherwise a dream season for the Hawks — and for Schniers, who announced in March he’d be stepping down to spend more time with family. But despite closing the campaign on a difficult note, the longtime WHS coach had nothing but positive things to say about his team and the year it had.
Due to UIL regulations, photo sales from state championship events are not permitted.
Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Wall-Corpus Christi London baseball state semifinal (110 images)”
ROUND ROCK — It wasn’t the pitching matchup or the pitcher’s duel that many expected when the Wall and Corpus Christi London baseball teams met for their Class 3A state semifinal Friday at Dell Diamond.
Due to apparent injury on one side and uncharacteristic wildness on the other, the teams’ aces combined to last just 2.2 innings, and two squads walked 17 batters between them.
But the Hawks did the better job of pitching out of trouble and capitalizing on their scoring chances offensively, white-knuckling their way to 5-1 win and a state championship date with Boyd, which rallied past Maypearl 8-7 in Friday’s early semifinal.
Heading into Friday’s Class 3A state semifinal matchup with Corpus Christi London, Wall baseball coach Jason Schniers is taking a similar approach to the one he took into last week’s Region I-3A championship series against Brock.
As was the case when the Hawks took on the two-time defending region champion Eagles last week in Abilene, Schniers views his team as the underdog against defending Class 3A state champion London.
But as was also the case before Wall systematically picked apart Brock in a surprisingly dominant series sweep, the longtime WHS coach has the utmost confidence in his young team’s ability to compete with whoever is put up against it.
WALL — Outgoing Wall baseball coach Jason Schniers has reached a difficult crossroads. Only in this instance, his choice of direction has been predetermined.
Wanting to spend more time with his family, Schniers announced in March that he would step away from coaching following the season. But his team hasn’t allowed him to slip away quietly. Heading into this week, Wall (34-6) has qualified for its third state tournament (all achieved during Schniers’ tenure) and will face defending 3A state champion Corpus Christi London in a state semifinal at noon Friday at Round Rock’s Dell Diamond.
The winner will advance to face either Boyd (38-5) or Maypearl (30-9) for the 3A state title at 9 a.m. on Saturday, and as one may suspect, Schniers is now at a bittersweet moment. While his Hawks have reached the state’s biggest stage, the fact that his career will span no more than two additional games is a reality he knew would be difficult to face.
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: Wall-Brock baseball regional championship playoff (228 images)”
On Thursday night, the Wall baseball team rode a fast start and an excellent pitching performance to a 6-2 win over Brock in Game 1 of a best-of-three Region I-3A championship series.
One day later, the Hawks used those same things — in even greater measure — to earn their third state tournament berth since 2017.
WHS followed its three-run first in Thursday’s opener with six first-inning runs Friday, and sophomore ace Luke Kemp backed Kellan Oliver’s complete-game gem with a five-hit shutout as the Hawks cruised to an 11-0 win and an impressive sweep at Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field.
MIDLAND — The Stephenville baseball team had reeled off 17 straight wins to come within one victory of reaching the Class 4A state tournament in Austin.
But on Friday in Midland, the Yellow Jackets saw their memorable run come to an end with consecutive defeats (2-0, 6-0) at the hands of third-ranked Canyon Randall in the Region I-4A title series at Christiansen Stadium.
Having already taken a 1-0 series lead with a 3-2 win over the Raiders in Game 1 on Thursday, the Yellow Jackets were poised to lock up the best-of-three regional title series and had two chances to do it.
Pitching arguably the biggest game of his life to date, Wall freshman Kellan Oliver needed one batter to calm his nerves Thursday in Game 1 of the Region I-3A championship series against Brock.
But after opening his weather-delayed start with a four-pitch walk, the talented left-hander proceeded to stymie a tremendous Eagle lineup in a 6-2 victory for the Hawks.
Oliver, who saw his scheduled 7 p.m. first pitch pushed past 9:30 due to thunderstorms in the Abilene area, limited Brock to six hits and just the one walk over seven outstanding innings to help Wall strike first blood at Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field and pull the Hawks within one win of the Class 3A state tournament.
MIDLAND — Luke Heller and Wacey Dill combined on a three-hitter while Nate Berry and Hayden Rudloff both provided RBI base hits to lift Stephenville to a 3-2 win over Canyon Randall in Game 1 of the Region I-4A championship series at Christiansen Stadium.
The Yellow Jackets took a 2-0 lead in the third inning when Berry singled home KB Bowman and Mason Weyers scored on a throwing error. They later expanded their advantage to 3-0 when Rudloff drove in Berry with a single.
ABILENE — Regardless of outcome, Region I-2A was going to send a solid team to the state baseball tournament. It was only a matter of waiting for the results.
In the end, New Home swept Hawley 5-1 and 12-2 on Thursday at Drigger’s Field at McMurry University, clinching its fourth trip to Rock Rock’s Dell Diamond since 2018.
“I knew from the get-go that this would be a good series because we knew Hawley was a good team,” New Home coach Brady Webb said. “All the teams in Hawley’s district with Albany, Anson and Stamford, can all play.
“The ones that make it into the playoffs all have a shot.”
When it comes to baseball in Region I-3A, the path to the state tournament in recent seasons has gone through one of two programs — the Brock Eagles or the Wall Hawks.
Since BHS was moved into the region in the 2017-18 alignment, those are the only two teams out of I-3A to earn trips to Round Rock, with the Eagles making state appearances in 2018, 2021 and 2022 and the Hawks doing so in 2017 and 2019.
With the two set for a best-of-three region championship series Thursday through Saturday at Abilene Christian University’s Crutcher Scott Field, that trend is already guaranteed to continue in 2023. So, too, is a hyper-competitive rivalry that has now seen the teams meet in five of the past six postseasons — there were no playoffs in 2020 due to COVID — with two series victories on each team’s ledger coming into this year’s games.
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 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.
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: 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.
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: Stamford-Hawley baseball regional quarterfinal playoff (86 images)”