Goldthwaite 49, Meridian 0 — The Eagles buried Meridian (1-8, 1-5) to remain in contention for the No. 3 seed.
Luke Sanderson rushed for 136 yards and two scores and caught five passes for 89 yards and two more TDs to lead the Eagles.
A win over district-leading Mart (8-1, 6-0) would clinch the third seed next week.
Wortham 42, Goldthwaite 35 — 
Wortham tallied 240 yards passing and 117 yards rushing to hand Goldthwaite a loss.
The Eagles were led by Landry and Luke Sanderson, who rushed for 103 and 102 yards respectively while combining for five touchdowns.
LAST WEEK: 41-10 .803
SEASON TOTAL: 367-108, .772
Football season doesn’t feel complete without at least one visit to Chesley Field in Cisco. And Friday night, the Big Country Preps Game of the Week will stop by for a crucial District 4-2A DI matchup between the Loboes (5-2, 1-1) and Hawley (7-0, 2-0).
For Hawley, a win here will keep open the possibility of an unbeaten regular season. For Cisco, a victory would signal the beginning of a climb back into area prominence.
Big Country Preps is publishing area volleyball statistical leaders each Tuesday at 7 p.m. roughout the regular season.
This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.
Bremond 75, Goldthwaite 47 — A projected shootout between Bremond and Goldthwaite nearly delivered, but a Bremond running game that charted 420 rushing yards spoiied it.
Sam Kasowski threw for 263 yards and five TDs and Terrence rushed for 210 yards and 210 yards to lead the Bremond effort.
It was the third straight win for Bremond (5-2, 3-1) which ramained in title contention with the win.
It isn’t often that a place-kicker nails down our Big Country Preps Player of the Week, but Comanche’s Alex Terrell has done exactly that with a pressure-packed performance in a 13-10 overtime win over Jim Ned in our Game of the Week last Friday.
Aside from hitting a game-tying 30-yard field goal to send the contest into overtime, Terrell connected on a 31-yard field goal in the extra period to give CHS the win.
Goldthwaite 69, Frost 28 — The Eagles rolled up 671 yards in total offense, topped by 300 rushing yards and three TDs from Landry Sanderson.
Luke Sanderson came up big as well, charting 185 rushing yards and three TDs.
Goldthwaite improved to 4-2 overall and 3-0 in league play. Frost dropped to 2-4 and 1-2.
LAST WEEK: 32-12, .809
SEASON TOTAL: 279-91, .757
Now it’s time to get down to business.
With most of the Big Country taking an open date last Friday as a prelude to district play, we now dive headfirst into the games that count the most.
District play opens tomorrow for most leagues in the area, the intensity of which is already tangible.
Can you feel it?
We’ll see you on the road.
Here’s this week’s area picks:
Goldthwaite 61, Hubbard 0 — Aidyn Lee and Hayes Greenway threw for a combined 139 yards and two scores and Goldthwaite (3-2, 2-0) rushed for 212 yards via committee in a blowout win over Hubbard.
The Eagles quickly put the game away, building a 55-0 lead by halftime.
Hubbard dropped to 1-4 and 0-2.
Goldthwaite 41, Chilton 0 — 
The Eagles (2-2, 1-0) pounded out 240 yards rushing, including 112 and two TDs from Landry Sanderson to beat Chilton (1-3, 0-1).
Luke Sanderson was another top contributor, with 90 yards rushing and two scores. Aidyn Lee threw for 62 yards and two more scores.
Chilton was limited to 97 yards in total offense.
Goldthwaite (1-2), Idle — The Eagles enjoyed the night off on Friday but will return to action next Friday when they open district play at home against Chilton.
Bremond (2-1), idle — The Tigers enjoyed the night off on Friday but will return to action next Friday when they open district play at Mart.
LAST WEEK: 47-11, .810
SEASON TOTAL: 141-59, .705
After nosediving in Week 2 with one of the worst pick records I’ve ever had, the column rebounded in Week 3 with an .810 percentage to push my overall tally over .700 again.
As for this week’s Big Country Preps Game of the Week, Mr. Yale Youngblood will be on hand in Tolar to cover Comanche’s road game with the Rattlers in what should be a fun one.
I’ll be heading to Ballinger, where the Bearcats (3-0) will play host to Brady (2-1) in a battle of upstarts.
Let’s dive into this week’s picks:
LAST WEEK: 46-28, .621
SEASON TOTAL: 94-48, .661
Abysmal.
That’s about the only adjective that comes to mind when trying to describe my Big Country football picks, which are off to the single worst start through two weeks that I’ve ever experienced in 18 years of covering area football.
A percentage of .621 after two weeks of play is beatable by throwing darts, flipping coins, or even consulting with your local horoscope page. Yet here I sit, trying to dig myself out of the hole I’ve created. But enough of that, Glen Rose at Brownwood is our Big Country Preps Game of the Week, in a week filled with interesting matchups.
Let’s have a look at them:
Junction 40, Goldthwaite 6 — With every starter back from last year, Junction was expected to take a major step forward this season.
And from the looks of their win over Goldthwaite on Friday, that is apparently the case.
The Eagles (1-0) will play host to an improved San Saba team (1-0) on Friday.
LAST WEEK: 0-0, .000
SEASON TOTAL: 00-00, .000
Week 1 is often loaded with difficult picks and 2024 is no exception.
Our first slate of games this year has a number of contests that could have qualified for the Big Country Preps Game of the Week. But we finally settled on Albany at Stamford for the spotlight.
The two-time defending state 2A DII state champions, minus several key players lost to graduation, facing a Stamford club bringing back most of its skill and a ton of speed.
Goldthwaite coach Andy Howard mentions all the time how success can breed more success.
The Eagles’ success this fall hinges on an offensive line that returns four senior starters looking to return Goldthwaite to the playoffs for the first time since 2021.
Left tackle Jacob Ross, left guard Edmond Martinez, right guard Daniel Barrera and right tackle helped Goldthwaite finish second in Class 2A during the annual state lineman challenge over the summer.
GOLDTHWAITE — Andy Howard saw growth in his second season at Goldthwaite.
After a winless debut, the Eagles won three times last fall and were more competitive in a difficult district.
With 17 starters returning and a drop to Class 2A Division II, Howard is ready to unlock the next stage of his program’s rebuild.
“It’s a process. You’re going to see progress and then there’s days where you feel like you’re not advancing,” Howard said. “You have to stay in it day by day. It’s time for the process to start paying off some more.”
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.
We continue in Class 2A Division II with the Goldthwaite Eagles. On Sunday, we will take a look at the Colorado City Wolves, followed by the Forsan Buffaloes on Monday.
Continue reading “COUNTDOWN TO TWO-A-DAYS: The Goldthwaite Eagles … 37 days to two-a-days”
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: 2024 State LineMAN Challenge (165 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: Hawley 7-on-7 state qualifying tournament (29 images)”
AUSTIN — After area Class 3A and 4A competitors opened the UIL Track & Field State Meet with a combined 10 medals on Thursday, Big Country Preps athletes took partial ownership of the medal stand at Mike A. Meyers Stadium at the University of Texas on Friday in the Class 2A and 5A portions of the event.
Area athletes combined to claim 18 medals on the day, with Hico junior Kaylee Hunt joining Goldthwaite seniors Lainey Jernigan and Hope Hermesmeyer in a dominating performance.
The trio combined for six medals on the day as Goldthwaite, Stamford and Hico all posted top-five finishes in the 2A girls team competition.
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.
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 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.
While no-hitters are fairly common in high school baseball and softball, they generally put you at the top of the list where our Big Country Preps Player of the Week is concerned.
Toss in a solid performance at the plate and you’re looking at a virtual shoe-in for the top spot.
That is the case this week with Jim Ned senior Jake Rushing, who shut out Coahoma last week with a dominating no-hitter that featured 12 strikeouts.
Photos provided by April Wetzig
GOLDTHWAITE — Lainey Jernigan is excited to begin the next chapter of her life as a member of Angelo State’s track team.
But before Jernigan moves on, the Goldthwaite senior still has her sights set on defending her two Class 2A state titles in the hurdles.
“Going out as a double state champion would mean the world to me,” Jernigan said. “It would represent all of my years of hard work, dedication and sacrifice in this sport. It would also mean so much to my teammates, coaches, family and supporters who have been with me every step of the way.”
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.
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.
SAN ANTONIO — The key stat in Friday’s 54-43 Class 2A state semifinal win for Martin’s Mill over Goldthwaite nearly required a double take to spot.
Facing an early 11-4 deficit, the Lady Mustangs used a disciplined, poised offensive approach to rally for the win at the Alamodome, committing a miniscule five turnovers in the process.
It’s been more than 20 years since a Goldthwaite girls basketball team last played in a state tournament.
The Lady Eagles’ opponent for Friday morning’s Class 2A state semifinal, fourth-ranked Martin’s Mill, has closed 17 of the past 19 seasons at state, including each of the last four.
Considered an underdog by many, GHS will be at significant disadvantage to the Lady Mustangs (34-5) where state tournament experience is concerned, a fact coach Angie Hermesmeyer readily acknowledges. But the longtime Goldthwaite mentor feels her team matches up favorably in several other key areas.
To show that, though, the No. 8 Lady Eagles (34-3) will first need to prove they can handle the pomp and circumstance of the state tournament environment, something Hermesmeyer feels could be as big a challenge as the formidable Martin’s Mill squad itself.
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.
BUDA — The eighth-ranked Goldthwaite girls basketball team is headed to the state tournament for the third time in program history and first since 2000, after knocking off archrival San Saba 54-50 in the Region IV-2A championship game Saturday at Buda Johnson High School.
The Lady Eagles, who improved to 3-0 on the season against the No. 19 Lady Armadillos, used a 30-point first half to take a double-digit lead into the break and held off a furious San Saba rally in the final quarter to push their season record to 34-3.
The victory, which followed a 49-31 region semifinal win over Mumford on Friday, earns Goldthwaite a Class 2A state semifinal matchup with No. 4 Martin’s Mill (34-5) next Friday.
Luke Sanderson has always been an all-around standout on the basketball court.
But it wasn’t until the Goldthwaite junior changed his approach that the Eagles could reach their potential.
Sanderson’s growth as a decision-maker and trusting teammate is a crucial reason why Goldthwaite has become a threat when the Region IV-2A playoffs begin this week.