Category: Cisco Loboes

by Brandon McAuliffe

STATE TRACK ROUNDUP: Stamford girls claim share of Class 2A team title

AUSTIN — After a slow start in the field events on Friday saw the Big Country net just four medals, things heated up in the evening session when the track events got rolling.

Big Country athletes picked up 10 medals under the lights at Mike A. Meyers Stadium at the University of Texas, giving the area 14 for the day.

On top of that, the Stamford girls team finished in a three-way tie with Refugio and Panhandle with 32 points to claim a share of the state championship. Goldthwaite’s girls finished three points back in fourth.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Cisco rallies to take Game 1 of quarterfinal series with Stamford

Stamford’s Emma Follis delivers a fifth-inning pitch in Thursday’s regional quartfinal game with Cisco in Brownwood.

BROWNWOOD — It took seven innings and a lot of patience, but the Cisco Lady Loboes managed to do what few would have predicted on Thursday at Brownwood High School. 

Trailing 2-0 to Stamford early on, Cisco rallied to win Game 1 of a Region I-2A quarterfinal series, 3-2, defeating a team that is coming off back-to-back trips to the state tournament. 

Hannah Rogers tossed a complete game five-hitter and Angie Espinoza was 3 for 4 with two RBIs to lead Cisco (19-8), which can close out the series if it defeats Stamford in Game 2, slated for 4 p.m. Saturday at Early High School. 

Game 3, if needed, will follow 30 minutes after Game 2. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

REGION II-2A TRACK RECAP: Albany, Cisco go 1-2 in boys race; Stamford shares girls title

SPRINGTOWN — Big Country athletes made a big showing at the Region II-2A track meet, collecting a combined 37 medals and clinching 28 state berths over the two-day event at Porcupine Stadium.

 Along the way, Albany and Cisco went 1-2 in the boys team race, while Stamford shared the girls team title with Era and Hamilton.

The Albany Lions had the highest point total of any program, boys or girls, collecting five medals on the way to 70 points, while the Cisco boys followed closely behind with 67 points. Stamford finished third in the boys team race with 64 points,  while the girls earned 56 points to finish in a three-way tie atop the team standings.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Haskell, Cisco split first two games of bi-district series

ANSON — The first two games of the Region I-2A bi-district softball matchup between Cisco and Haskell were anything but pretty.

Over the course of five hours, the two teams combined for 29 runs, 32 hits and 27 errors as they split the first two games of the best-of-three series at Anson on Thursday night.

Haskell took the opening game 8-7 in eight innings before the Lady Loboes bounced back with a 14-0 win in the second game.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Chapman helps Albany clinch District 8-2A title with 10-0 Senior Night win over Cisco

ALBANY — Senior Cole Chapman pitched five shutout innings and delivered a pair of hits, including a two-run triple in the second, to fuel the Albany baseball team to a 10-0 Senior Night win over Cisco on Tuesday at the Albany Lions Baseball Field.

Behind Chapman’s efforts, AHS (9-1 in league play) claimed its eighth consecutive win to clinch the outright title in District 8-2A and take a 17-2 overall record into the playoffs next week.

The Lions, who topped Cisco 4-0 the first time the teams met on April 4, took advantage of 10 walks and a pair of Loboes errors in Tuesday’s rematch, scoring in each of the first four innings before capping the run-rule victory with a single run in the sixth.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Phillips takes yet another Player of the Week award

Clyde’s Payton Phillips is no stranger to our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award. She’s no stranger to gold medals either. 

And for the third time since last year, the CHS senior has captured our weekly accolade — this time with an armful of hardware. 

In her latest performance, Phillips won four separate district championships and took silver in a fifth at the District 6-3A track meet. 

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Lady Tigers rally to top Cisco in high-profile nondistrict matchup

CISCO — Two very likely playoff teams got a sneak preview of what postseason competition will be like in a nondistrict softball game on Tuesday. 

Trailing 6-3 after three innings, the Hico Lady Tigers rallied for a 9-6 win at Cisco in a battle of two clubs who are both chasing potential district championships — Hico in District 12-2A and Cisco in District 8-2A. 

Kiersten Fincannon was 4-for-4 with a double, a homer and six RBIs to lead Hico (14-8), which outscored Cisco 6-0 over the final four innings to get the win. Fincannon also went the distance in the circle, scattering eight Cisco hits and overcoming five errors committed behind her to get the win. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Albany’s Chapmans share this week’s award

It’s not often that a Big Country baseball team charts two no-hitters in the same week. But when two pitchers with the same last name are charting the no-nos it’s about as common as the planets aligning. 

That was the case last week with the Albany Lions, who in sweeping Haskell (15-0) and Stamford (11-1) saw Cole and Tyler Chapman (non-siblings) post back-to-back no-hitters. 

Cole, a senior, blanked Haskell in four innings of work in a mercy rule win, fanning six.  Three days later, Tyler got into the act in a five-inning run-rule win with 12 Ks.

They now share our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award — another rarity.

“We were very proud of our pitchers last week,” Albany coach David Fairchild said. “Both pitchers were in control and in command of their pitches.” 

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Stamford girls stop Cisco in District 10-2A tiebreaker behind 28-point night from Applin

CLYDE — Having split their two regular season meetings and ending in a first-place tie, it was time for the Cisco and Stamford girls basketball teams to settle the issue on Friday in a District 10-2A tiebreaker for the No. 1 seed. 

By night’s end, it was Stamford leaving the Clyde gym with the league title, behind a 28-point effort from Laylonna Applin in a 58-52 win. Deavine Hoadley tossed in 11 points and Lainee Lefevere added 10 more to help the Lady Bulldogs improve to 29-4 overall. 

Cisco (25-7) was led by Brooklyn Hurtado with 14 points and Brayley Brunson with 10.  The Lady Loboes were hurt by 15 Stamford steals and more than 20 turnovers, yet still managed to give themselves a shot at winning the game in the fourth quarter.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Big first half fuels Hawley boys past Cisco, to top of District 10-2A standings

HAWLEY — Hosting Cisco with sole possession of the District 10-2A lead on the line, the Hawley boys basketball team rode a dominant first half to a 65-51 win Monday at Bearcat Gym. 

The Bearcats outscored the Loboes 31-13 in the first 16 minutes and stretched their lead to 19 points on two occasions in the third quarter before holding off a furious Cisco rally over the final quarter and a half. 

The victory, which followed a 60-41 Cisco win in the girls game, improved the Bearcats (10-4 overall) to 8-1 in 10-2A play, while the Loboes fell to 19-6 on the season and 7-2 in district action. That gives Hawley a one-game lead on CHS and Albany (11-3, 7-2) with three league games remaining.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Eula’s Gray tops 1,500-point mark, claims this week’s award.

Eula’s Clayton Gray, our Big Country Preps Player of the Week for the week ending Feb. 4, earned the accolade on two fronts. Not only did he post big numbers in consecutive wins over Moran and Rising Star, but he also reached an impressive milestone in the process. 

To begin with, the junior guard chalked up 29 points, six boards and four blocks in a win over Moran. He also tallied 43 points, eight boards and four steals in a win over Rising Star.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Cisco’s Landenberger catches fire, takes this week’s award

 If you haven’t heard of Cisco’s Gavin Landenberger yet, that’s understandable. He and his talented brother, Aiden, were move-ins from Mississippi late last year and weren’t eligible to play varsity ball at CHS. 

Now freely able to play, the siblings are making up for lost time and Gavin is currently making enough noise to draw attention from the entire area. 

Named as our Big Country Preps Player of the Week, the senior guard absolutely went off last week, beginning with a 28-point night in a win over Albany. He followed that three days later with 32 points in a come-from-behind win at Stamford.  The latter saw him hit four straight-3-pointers in an 18-point third quarter. 

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Stamford girls force first-place tie with win over Cisco, Landenberger shoots the lights out for CHS in the nightcap

STAMFORD — A pair of area rivals clashed twice on Friday as the Cisco girls and boys basketball teams paid a visit to Stamford for an important varsity doubleheader in District 10-2A. 

The Stamford girls rallied to take the opener, 33-29 to force a first-place tie in the league race. The Cisco boys returned the favor, rallying from a 25-18 halftime deficit behind a brilliant performance from Gavin Landenberger to beat the Bulldogs 59-51 and remain in the district title hunt. 

The Loboes remained within a game of first place behind league-leading Hawley with the win.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Cisco’s Landenberger captures this week’s award

A limited number of minutes, if the numbers compute correctly, can figure strongly in our selection of Player of the Week. 

That is the case with this week’s winner, Gavin Landenberger of Cisco, who opened the week with 29 points, five boards, three assists, and five steals in a win over Haskell last Tuesday.

However, what sealed the deal for the senior guard, was a 20-point, four-rebound, five-assist and five-steal game he charted in a win over Hamlin — numbers he posted in only 18 minutes of playing time.

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by Zach Duncan, Special to Big Country Preps

FEATURE: Cisco’s Fox a top threat from beyond the arc, but is an underrated defender

Justice Fox enjoys letting it rip from 3-point range. 

But the Cisco senior’s favorite part of the sport doesn’t have anything to do with shooting the basketball. 

The 5-foot-8 shooting guard takes a lot of pride in her defense for the Lady Loboes, who are ranked No. 19 in the latest TABC rankings. 

“I love offense, but I honestly would have to say defense is what I like better,” Fox said. “I just love getting to help my team with the defensive side of the game. I usually guard some really good athletes, and when I guard them well, it just makes me feel confident on how I defend.” 

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Cisco routs youthful Hamlin twice to sweep varsity doubleheader and remain in district title contention

CISCO — With very young, inexperienced Hamlin basketball teams coming to town on Friday, the Cisco girls and boys took advantage of the opportunity to strengthen their positions in District 10-2A with a pair of lopsided wins. 

The Lady Loboes opened the evening with a 67-20 win over HHS, after which the Cisco boys handed the young Pied Pipers a 90-25 blowout in Game 2 of a varsity doubleheader. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Munday’s Bowman takes our final accolade of the year

NOTE: This will be our final Player of the Week column for 2022. It will return on Monday, Jan. 9. 

It’s always a significant accomplishment to chart a double-double. But when one averages a double-double over the course of five straight games, you begin to put a blip on the area radar screen.

Munday senior Jaxon Bowman did precisely that last week, helping the Moguls to a 5-0 record and the tournament championship at Blackwell. Aside from averaging 11.2 points per game, the senior grabbed a whopping 13 boards per contest to along with a combined 12 steals as Munday improved to 12-2.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Comanche standout Glasgow takes top spot

Consistency and versatility always score big in our Big Country Preps Player of the Week column. 

Add a few extras to your stat sheet and play well over several games and you’ll generally end up at or near the top of our weekly list. 

That is precisely why Comanche sophomore guard Kinsey Glasgow has earned our Player of the Week award for the Week ending December 3.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Hawley dominates Cisco, advances to 2A DI state semifinals

ABILENE — It was not only billed as a rematch of a superb Big Country Preps Game of the Week from Week 11, but also of a nail-biting Region I-2A Division I title game last year.  Cisco and Hawley had produced back-to-back classics and the entire Big Country was expecting to see another one.

Unfortunately, Hawley never received the memo. 

Rather than producing another dogfight, Hawley dominated the Loboes on Friday, handing Cisco a 40-7 loss at Wildcat Stadium. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYOFF FORECAST: Nine BCP teams still alive as we enter December

LAST WEEK: 11-1, .916
SEASON TOTAL: 529-120, .815

As December football arrives so will nine — count’em, nine — Big Country Preps teams retain a playoff pulse and are still hopeful of winning a state championship.

Wylie, Brock, Wall, Cisco, Hawley, Albany, Westbrook, Benjamin and Loraine will all take the field this week.

Not too shabby.

Also doing pretty well: this column, which hit with 91-percent accuracy last week despite a difficult slate of games to pick.

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

Here’s this week’s forecast: 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Albany’s Chapman takes the top spot

Having fought his way through a mid-season injury, Albany quarterback Cole Chapman is back in form. 

Our Big Country Preps Player of the Week was the dual threat we’ve grown accustomed to seeing on Saturday, leading the Lions (11-2) to a 35-18 whipping of formerly unbeaten Wink in the Region II-2A Division II semifinals. 

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Long, Huston, Gayle lead Cisco to regional finals

COLORADO CITY — A week of uncertainty of when the game would be played due to a forecasted winter storm that was going to stretch from the Panhandle to the Permian Basin didn’t impact the Cisco football team on Friday afternoon.

Playing in a steady rainfall, the Loboes knocked off New Deal 33-14 in a Region I-2A Division I semifinal game nobody was sure would be played until the Lions were able to get on the road to Colorado City’s Wolf Stadium on Friday morning.

Cisco now awaits the winner of Saturday night’s tilt between Hawley and Sonora to see who it will face for the Region I championship.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Wylie QB Long leads another thrilling comeback to claim award

With the Wylie football team’s season on the line, facing a 40-30 deficit with less than six minutes remaining, the Bulldogs needed an epic comeback to rally past Colleyville Heritage on Friday at Grapevine’s Mustang-Panther Stadium.

Fortunately for coach Clay Martin’s squad, their senior quarterback has made a habit of leading those this year.

After throwing just his sixth interception on a fourth-down play midway through the final quarter, KJ Long was given new life when his defense forced and recovered a quick fumble. He made the most of it by leading a pair of quick scoring drives — the last to put the Bulldogs 43-40 with three seconds left on the clock — to fuel his team to a wild 50-40 area-round win and earn this week’s Big Country Preps Player of the Week award.

Continue reading “BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Wylie QB Long leads another thrilling comeback to claim award” →

by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Cisco girls open Pug Parris Classic with win over Cooper

Kyla Speights gave the Cooper girls basketball team a 3-0 lead early against Cisco as both teams began the Pug Parris Classic at Cougar Gym on Thursday night, but the Lady Loboes rebounded quickly on their way to a 52-34 win.

Braley Brunson and Brooklyn Hurtado led Cisco with 16 and 11 points, respectively, while Speights’ 14 points led the Lady Cougars.

Having scrimmaged each other already, both coaches knew what they would get from the other squad.

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by Evan Ren

CLASS 2A BI-DISTRICT REPORT: Cisco, Forsan, Hawley, Bangs, Coleman, Albany, Santo all advance to area round

REGION I-2A DIV. I 

Cisco 55, Reagan County 0 — The Loboes dominated Reagan County, rolling up 555 yards in total offense, of which 378 were on the round. 

Hunter Long and Trent Huston combined for 263 yards rushing and four touchdowns to lead Cisco (9-2), which led 42-0 at the break.

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