BRECKENRIDGE — However far the Breckenridge Buckaroos make it in 2024, a large group of juniors and sophomores will have a huge influence on the outcome.
That’s not necessarily a negative.
“We need to find out early what we can do best,” fifth-year coach Casey Pearce said. “In the past we’ve been able to throw the perimeter screen game and get people into space.
“Whether that will be our M.O. this year, I don’t know yet.”
Given what he’s already accomplished in two years as Coahoma’s starting quarterback, it might be difficult to imagine Boyd Cox making a significant leap in production this season as a junior.
But if you listen to coach Chris Joslin, that’s exactly what he and his Bulldogs are expecting from their talented signal caller.
After watching Cox complete 275 of 498 passes for 4,367 yards with a remarkable 49-to-14 touchdown-to-interception ratio over the past two seasons, Joslin said there’s still potential left to be tapped with his quarterback. And with the experience and knowledge Cox brings into his third high school season, the sky’s the limit for what he and his offensive teammates can accomplish in 2024.
Last year, the Coahoma Bulldogs felt they had a good enough team to make and potentially win a game or two in the playoffs. But by season’s end, they found themselves on the wrong side of the postseason cutoff in a tough Lubbock-area district.
With 20 lettermen back and a move to a new —and likely more forgiving — league, coach Chris Joslin and his squad have every intention of starting a new playoff streak this season.
Coahoma, which has reached the postseason in four of Joslin’s six seasons on campus, graduated just two starters from an offense that averaged 39.5 points per game a year ago. If the Bulldogs can improve upon the 36.5 points they allowed per game last season — a goal they expect to achieve — they could be one of the teams to beat in a District 4-3A Division II lineup that also includes Wall, Merkel, Stanton and San Angelo Grape Creek.
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. 21. 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. 5, we’ll be spotlighting each 11-man team in the area and posing some of the key questions they’ll face in 2024 as part of our annual “Countdown to Two-a-Days” series.
Today, we jump to Class 3A Division II with the Coahoma Bulldogs.
Continue reading “COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: The Coahoma Bulldogs … 22 days to two-a-days”
OTHER 2024 ALL-BIG COUNTRY PREPS TEAMS
Our All-Big Country Preps Softball and Baseball Teams, released Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, are in place to honor those who achieved the most on-field success in 2024. 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 the Big Country had to offer during the 2024 season.
The players below are listed in no particular order.
AUSTIN — Less than 24 hours after surviving an 11-inning state semifinal with Whitesboro that took every ounce of energy his team could muster, Coahoma coach Alex Orosco had a two-fold challenge on his hands.
Not only did his Bulldogettes have to recover quickly to play for the Class 3A state championship on Thursday, but a difficult Grandview team was standing in the way of CHS winning a second straight title.
Somehow, someway, Coahoma met both challenges — finding the energy in sweltering Austin heat to defend its championship with a 3-2 win over the Lady Zebras in eight innings.
Brynn Rodgers was 2 for 4 with an RBI double to drive home Abi Rose for the game-winning run, and Hannah Wells tossed a six-hitter through eight innings to lift the Bulldogettes, who finished their season with a perfect 32-0 mark.
AUSTIN — As courtesy runner Emery Doporto rounded third to score the game-winning run, she was closing the books on one of the most memorable, heart-stopping, exhausting softball games for anyone who participated in it.
For 11 innings and more than 3½ hours, unbeaten defending Class 3A state champion Coahoma fought to overcome a shocking upset bid by Whitesboro, finally putting away the Lady Cats 10-9 at McCombs Field.
Mia Clemmer drove in Doporto with a two-out single in the bottom of the 11th to lift the Bulldogettes (31-0), who advance to face Grandview (32-3) for the 3A state title at 1 p.m. Thursday.
Hannah Wells was 5 of 6 with a homer and three RBIs and Addi Hart was 3 of 5 with two RBIs to pace Coahoma, which trailed 4-1, 5-2, 8-4 and 9-8 before finally getting in the last word.
Most Coahoma softball players only know what it’s like to end their season at the state tournament.
But not four-year varsity stalwarts Karleigh Burt and Brynn Rodgers. They were freshmen when the Bulldogettes lost in the third round of the 2021 playoffs to Jacksboro.
Knowing a trip to Austin wasn’t guaranteed, Burt and Rodgers have worked hard to ensure their senior season ended where they last two have. That’s exactly what’s happened as Coahoma (30-0) will face Whitesboro (32-7) at 1 p.m. Wednesday in the Class 3A semifinals.
GRAHAM – Coahoma is headed back to Austin to defend its Class 3A title.
The Bulldogettes sucked all the drama out of the Region I-3A final with a 12-run second inning in Saturday’s winner-take-all matchup.
Coahoma is headed to the Class 3A state tournament after cruising past the Lady Hawks 12-1 in five innings. The Bulldogettes will play Whitesboro at 1 p.m. Wednesday in the semifinals.
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: Coahoma-Henrietta regional quarterfinal softball game (55 images)”
ABILENE — For the third round in a row, the Coahoma softball team faced a do-or-die postseason situation as the Bulldogettes had another single-game playoff on Thursday evening at Abilene Christian University’s Poly Wells Field.
Coach Alex Orosco’s message to his team, as it has been before all 27 games this year, was to weather the storm early knowing they’d get Henrietta’s best punch and then to wear down the Lady Cats in the later stages.
Coahoma did just that and unleashed an offensive onslaught in the fifth and sixth innings on its way to a 7-0 win in the Region I-3A quarterfinals.
Here are the recaps of the Big Country softball playoff results in the second round of the postseason: Continue reading “SOFTBALL PLAYOFF ROUNDUP: Despite weather, 12 area teams advance to third round with Bangs-Stamford outcome still pending”
CLYDE — Two innings into its one-game Region I-3A area-round playoff with Holliday on Friday at the Hanner Sports Complex, the top-ranked and defending state champion Coahoma softball team found itself in unfamiliar territory. The undefeated Bulldogettes were trailing on the scoreboard.
But down 1-0 heading to the bottom of the third, CHS righted the ship in a major way, putting three runners on in front of Brynn Rodgers, who blasted the second pitch she saw over the fence in center for a grand slam that turned the tide in what would eventually be a 9-3 win for CHS.
Rodgers’ blast, the senior’s first of two home runs in the game, staked the Bulldogettes to a 4-1 lead when play was stopped by lightning in the bottom of the fourth inning. And when the game was finally resumed more than three hours later, Rodgers added a two-run shot in the bottom of the fifth to build a 6-1 lead that proved a far larger cushion than needed with ace Hannah Wells in the circle.
AUSTIN — The UIL Track & Field State Meet kicked off Thursday with Classes 3A and 4A competing at Mike Meyers Stadium on the campus of the University of Texas, and Big Country athletes made their presence felt to start to the three-day affair.
Area competitors didn’t quite match the 14 medals accrued on the opening day of the 2023 state meet, but they still made a solid showing with 10 combined medals.
Headlining the list of medalists were Brock’s Dylan Foster (300-meter hurdles), Stephenville’s Creece Brister (shot put) and Brownwood’s Ike Hall (triple jump), who all left Austin with gold medals. Continue reading “STATE TRACK ROUNDUP: Stephenville’s Brister, Brownwood’s Hall and Brock’s Foster claim gold medals at 3A/4A meet”
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: Bangs, Coahoma bi-district softball games (43 images)”
SAN ANGELO — The Bangs Lady Dragons and Coahoma Bulldogettes both opened their playoff runs with comfortable wins Thursday afternoon, easily dispatching of their opponents in lopsided fashion.
Opening the doubleheader of one-game bi-district playoffs, the Lady Dragons wasted no time in burying McCamey 22-1 win in the day’s early action. And as an encore, the Bulldogettes saw Mia Clemmer hit two home runs, including a walk-off grand slam, as Coahoma hammered Ingram Moore 17-0.
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through April 25.
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.
ABILENE — The Brock boys track team claimed its fourth consecutive region title Monday, headlining a strong showing by area athletes at the rain-altered Region I-3A meet at Abilene Christian University’s Elmer Gray Stadium.
Led by Dylan Foster, who claimed gold medals in both hurdle events, earned bronze in the long jump and ran a leg on Brock’s gold medal-winning sprint relay team, the Eagles finished with 99 points, edging runner-up Holliday by 13 points and topping third-place Wall by 44 points.
The Brock boys scored in 10 events and claimed nine medals on their way to the team championship, capping a meet that saw athletes from the Big Country Preps coverage area combined to earn 32 medals and claim 23 automatic berths to the Class 3A state meet May 2 in Austin.
There is very little that Eula’s Halie Cauthen isn’t good at athletically. Already an Honorable Mention All-Big Country Preps basketball player, the EHS junior showed her full range of versatility last week with three big performances in three different sports.
To begin with, Cauthen opened the week by qualifying for the 1A state golf tournament as an individual at the regional tournament, closing with rounds of 103 and 105.
Then, after playing 54 holes of golf in three days, Cauthen rushed back to compete for the district championship in softball against Cross Plains.
With a game time of 7:30 p.m., she arrived from the golf tournament at 7:25 and went 4 for 4 with three triples, three RBIs and four runs scored to help Eula clinch the district title in a 10-1 victory.
But Cauthen wasn’t finished quite yet.
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: Region I-3A track meet Day 1 (54 images)”
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through April 18.
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.
Here are the area’s softball statistical leaders through April 18.
With the end of the regular season, this will be our FINAL softball leaders posting for 2024.
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.
Here are the area’s softball statistical leaders through April 11.
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.
While we normally try to share the love in our Big Country Preps Player of the Week column, five district titles in one week isn’t easy to sidestep.
And while Wall’s Briggs Jones has already pulled down our award once this year, he earned a second with his showing at the District 6-3A meet in Clyde last week by sweeping the long jump (23-2), the triple jump (44-10.75), the 200 meters (21.92), the 100 meters (10.72) and assisting the 800 relay team to gold with a 1:29.68 split.
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through April 4.
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.
Here are the area’s softball statistical leaders through April 4.
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.
Here are the area’s baseball statistical leaders through March 28.
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.
Here are the area’s softball statistical leaders through March 28.
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.
Scoring and rebounding is only part of the story when it comes to basketball. Behind the scenes and beyond the view of the public, is where character is often measured. And it is with our Big Country Preps Gym Rat Team that we salute the individuals who exude the most of it.
This team isn’t about who the best players are, though some of the area’s top players are on this list.
The Gym Rat team is about effort, discipline, toughness, coachability and selflessness — traits that coaches love above all else and upon which championship foundations are built.
It is for that reason that our Gym Rat team is selected entirely by area coaches, described in their own words. And Big Country Preps is absolutely honored to present these individuals to you — the best “team players” (boys and girls) that the area had to offer during the 2023-24 season.
Players are listed in no particular order.
Enjoy.
Here is our 2024 All-Big Country Preps boys basketball Rising Stars team, comprised of the top freshmen and sophomores in the area. For the rest of this year’s boys and girls basketball selections, click the links below.
Here is our 2024 All-Big Country Preps girls basketball Rising Stars team, comprised of the top freshmen and sophomores in the area. For the rest of this year’s boys and girls basketball selections, click the links below.
Wall junior Briggs Jones may be on the verge of a major breakout season in area track and field.
Our Big Country Player of the Week not only won five medals at the coveted Angelo State Spring Break meet, but he broke two solo school records and helped break a third. It seldom gets much better than that.
Aside from setting school marks in the long jump at 23-9.5 (for gold) and the triple jump at 45-2 (for gold), Jones was part of the 800 relay team’s silver medal performance of 1:28.49 — another Wall school mark.
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: Coahoma-Clyde softball (48 images)”
CLYDE — They are the defending 3A state champion, they are currently ranked No. 1 and when they took the field against highly regarded sixth-ranked Clyde on Tuesday, they were unbeaten.
Roughly 90 minutes and five innings later, the Coahoma Bulldogettes had improved to 14-0 overall and 4-0 in District 6-3A after a 13-0 run rule win at the Hanner Sports Complex.
Hannah Wells tossed a five-inning shutout and was 3-for-4 at the plate with a homer and two RBIs to lift Coahoma, which blew the game open with a three-run second inning and a five-run third.
Big moments attract big-time players and our Big Country Preps Player of the Week, certainly made the most of his opportunity over the weekend.
After scoring nine points, grabbing 11 rebounds and dishing four assists in a state semifinal win over Fayetteville last Thursday, Jayton sophomore Colt Gentry, saved his best for last in a 60-53 win over Benjamin in the 1A boys state title game on Saturday.
Gentry charted a team-high 19 points to go with six boards, four assists, a steal and a block to help the Jaybirds to the state title and earn state tourney MVP honors in the process.
It was his second straight week of huge performances under pressure, the first of which helped the Jaybirds win the regional tournament.
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.
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: Coahoma-Brock girls basketball playoff (70 images)”
EULA — Brock girls basketball coach Alex Stephenson knows that Jacee Riddle has a lethal shot from behind the 3-point arc and has pretty much given her a green light to unleash it whenever she sees an open opportunity.
Against Coahoma in a Region I-3A area round game on Friday night at Mary Mosley Gymnasium, Riddle threw down dagger after dagger in a 58-36 win for the Lady Eagles.
The freshman knocked down eight 3-pointers on her way to a 30-point night, helping Brock earn a region quarterfinals matchup with Wall at 8 p.m. Tuesday at Abilene Christian University’s Moody Coliseum.
Doing a bit of everything is a specialty of Cisco senior guard Cole Thompson, who takes our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award after a pair of big nights in an 88-53 win over Hamlin and a 57-51 loss to Albany last week.
Thompson opened on Tuesday with 29 points, five assists, four steals and three boards in the Hamlin win. He followed that with a near triple-double that saw him tally 16 points, 10 boards, eight assists and two steals against Albany on Friday.