Category: Cooper Cougars

by Daniel Youngblood

COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: Cooper Cougars

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 Saturday, Aug. 14. 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. 2, we’ll be spotlighting each 11-man team in the area and posing some of the key questions they’ll face in 2021 as part of our annual “Countdown to Two-a-Days” series.

Today, we move to Class 5A Division I with the Cooper Cougars. On Sunday, we’ll wrap up our Countdown series with the Abilene High Eagles.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME RECAP: Cooper sees historic run end with pair of losses to Aledo

STEPHENVILLE — After edging Aledo 8-6 in the opener of their Region I-5A semifinals series Friday, the Cooper Lady Cougars saw their momentum and historic playoff run come to an abrupt end Saturday, falling 15-2 and 10-0 to the Ladycats to close their season at 26-10.

The Lady Coogs, who had won their first seven playoff games by a combined score of 86-39, finally ran out of steam against Aledo, managing just seven hits between their two games Saturday.

Cooper fell behind 15-0 after three innings in Game 1 and saw a six-run third for the Ladycats sink its hopes in Game 2, in which the Lady Coogs were shut out for the first time this season.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Cooper rallies past Aledo for 8-6 win in Game 1 of I-5A semifinal series

STEPHENVILLE — The Cooper softball team extended its playoff winning streak to seven games Thursday, rallying from a fifth-inning deficit to defeat Aledo 8-6 in Game 1 of a Region I-5A semifinal series at the Stephenville softball field.

The Lady Cougars, who came in averaging 13 runs per game in the postseason, got off to a fast start, scoring four runs in the first-inning. But the Ladycats responded with five unanswered runs to take a 5-4 lead after 4½ innings.

It was here, though, that CHS got going again, using a two-out rally to plate three in the bottom of the fifth and hanging on from there to claim its 10th consecutive win.

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by Daniel Youngblood

FEATURE: Cooper softball proud of historic run, but Lady Coogs are not done yet

In reaching the fourth round of the Region I-5A softball playoffs with six consecutive postseason victories, Cooper coach Stacey Herring knew her team had accomplished something pretty special.

She didn’t know just how special, however, until she did a little digging into the program’s history.

As it turns out, the Lady Cougars (25-8) are in the midst of their deepest playoff run since 1996. And while they’re thrilled to stand alone as the most successful CHS team in a quarter-century, they’re not remotely ready call it a season just yet.

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by Daniel Youngblood

SERIES RECAP: Cooper slugs its way to sweep of EP Hanks, continues historic run

FORT STOCKTON — The Cooper softball team continued its historic run Saturday, following Friday’s 9-7 win over El Paso Hanks with a 15-8 victory in Game 2 to sweep the Lady Knights and earn their first trip to the fourth round of the playoffs in 25 years. 

As they have all postseason, during which they’ve averaged 13 runs per game, the Lady Coogs slugged their way to the series sweep, pounding out 29 hits over the two games — including seven home runs in the clincher.

Tied with Hanks at 7-all after five innings, Cooper regained the lead in the sixth before waiting out a three-hour lightning delay to improve to 25-8 and earn a Region I-5A semifinals date with Aledo (25-6), which took down Colleyville Heritage in three game in its region quarterfinal series over the weekend.

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by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL SOFTBALL ROUNDUP: Cooper, Wylie sweep area-round series to advance

ODESSA — The Cooper softball team cruised to a Region I-5A area-round sweep over El Paso Chapin on Saturday at the Ratliff Softball Complex, following Friday’s 15-5 victory in the series opener with a 9-2 win in Game 2.

Leading 3-2 after an inning, the Lady Cougars scored the final six runs to advance to the Region I-5A quarterfinals next week.

CHS had six home runs among its 13 hits, providing ample support for pitcher Summer Simmons, who relieved starter Jahlissah Marquez in the first inning and went the distance for the win.

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by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL SOFTBALL ROUNDUP: Farrar tosses another gem, Wylie blasts El Dorado in series opener

ANDREWS — It wasn’t quite the no-hitter she pitched in the opener of Wylie’s Region I-5A bi-district series against Amarillo High last week, but Reese Farrar was on her game again Friday in pitching the Lady Bulldogs to an 11-0 win over El Paso El Dorado in the first game of a best-of-three area-round series.

The sophomore right-hander allowed two hits and two walks over five shutout innings, striking out five opposing batters in the process, and her lineup staked her to a six-run lead by the bottom of the second inning, giving her far more run support than she would need to secure the victory.

Fueled by a five-run second and a four-run fourth, the Lady Bulldogs were able to close the game out in five innings, putting themselves in position to sweep the series when it resumes at 10 a.m. Saturday with Game 2. Should a third game be necessary, it will be played 30 minutes after Game 2 in Andrews.

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by Evan Ren

EVAN REN: Picking the favorites, dark horses and longshots at the girls state track meet

I don’t care who you are — even if you’re a non-fan when it comes to track and field. 

The excitement of the state meet in Austin will capture your attention if you catch sight or sound of it. It’s inescapable. 

And once per year, it is my pleasure to examine the multitude of Big Country athletes heading to Austin for the event and pick who we can expect to see on the medal stand from our area. 

Let’s begin with the girls side, looking at each event in which a Big Country athlete has qualified for state. 

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by Evan Ren

CAPITAL FARM CREDIT/BCP PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Wylie’s Farrar pitches her way to honor

As a sophomore in her first playoff action, leading a fourth-place team against a district champion, no one would have blamed Wylie pitcher Reese Farrar for having jitters in the opener of her team’s Region I-5A bi-district series against District 3-5A champ Amarillo High.

If she did, she did a darn good job of hiding it.

All the right-hander did was pitch a six-inning no-hitter with 10 strikeouts to lead the Lady Bulldogs to a 10-0 victory in Game 1 and set the tone for a big series sweep, earning our Capital Farm Credit/Big Country Preps Player of the Week honor in the process.

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by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL SOFTBALL ROUNDUP: Cooper pounds three more home runs in 11-6 win, sweeps Caprock

WOODROW — The Cooper softball team followed up Friday’s 19-5 win over Amarillo Caprock with a 11-6 victory in Game 2 on Saturday to sweep its Region I-5A bi-district series with the Lady Horns and earn an area-round date with District 1-5A champion El Paso Chapin.

The Lady Cougars, who pounded five home runs in Game 1, hit three more on Saturday, finishing with 15 total hits as they improved to 21-8 on the season.

Cooper scored four runs in the first inning and six in the third to go ahead 10-0, before Caprock tried to chip away at the lead over the final four innings.

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by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL SOFTBALL ROUNDUP: Farrar no-hits Amarillo in High in 10-0 Game 1 win

WOODROW — The Wylie softball team gave sophomore starter Reese Farrar 10 runs of support Friday in the opener of its Region I-5A bi-district series against District 3-5A champion Amarillo High, but one was all she needed.

Farrar cruised through the Lady Sandies lineup, tossing a six-inning no-hitter with 10 strikeouts to lead the Lady Bulldogs to a 10-0 victory at Lubbock Cooper and put WHS in position to close out the best-of-three series when it resumes with Game 2 at 11 a.m. Saturday.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Thompson’s gem fuels Cooper to 3-1 win over Wylie in 4-5A finale

The Cooper baseball team didn’t have the season it wanted to have in 2021, but the Cougars closed a tough campaign on a high note Friday, scoring three runs in the sixth inning to rally for a 3-1 road win over crosstown rival Wylie in the District 4-5A finale for both teams. 

Senior starter Aidan Thompson delivered a complete-game gem for the Coogs, pitching through a steady drizzle from the fifth inning on, and the CHS lineup took advantage of some shaky fielding by Wylie late in the game to give him all the run support he would need.

The Bulldogs tried to mount their own rally in the seventh, loading the bases with two outs off Thompson, but the tall right-hander forced JT Thompson into a ground out to first on his 96th pitch to secure the victory for Cooper and spoil Wylie’s Senior Night.

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