Category: Softball

by Yale Youngblood, Special to Big Country Preps

FEATURE: Talented, aggressive Bangs softball squad focused on the now heading into postseason play

As the Bangs softball team was putting the finishing touches on an 11-0 blanking of Miles on Friday, coach Leslea Miller could have been tempted to move one eye, at least, to the spot on next week’s calendar that notes the beginning of the UIL playoffs.

She didn’t.

Never mind that the Lady Dragons (23-4 and 14-0) have already clinched a spot and have blitzed through district foes like a tornado, winning all but three games by the run rule. Curiously, Friday’s 11-run triumph didn’t qualify, as it took a five-run seventh inning for Bangs to put the Lady Bulldogs away.

Never mind, also, that Bangs has recorded nine district shutouts, while scoring 191 runs in the process.

And, finally, never mind that the Big Country Preps roster of weekly statistics leaders is a veritable Bangs tribute chronicle.

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by Zach Duncan, Special to Big Country Preps

FEATURE: Young, tight-knit Brownwood softball team excited to make playoff return

At the end of every practice and game, Brownwood’s softball team breaks out shouting the word “family.” 

First-year head coach Cherita Munguia believes that mantra has been an important one for a squad that often starts five sophomores and a freshman. 

“They love each other fiercely and play like a family,” Munguia said. “They’re extremely hungry, are super coachable and have an energy that’s unmatched. It’s been a really exciting journey.” 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie softball locks up No. 2 playoff seed with 9-1 win over Lubbock Cooper on Senior Night

The Wylie softball team wrapped up the runner-up spot in the District 4-5A standings on Friday, pulling away for a 9-1 home win over Lubbock Cooper in the regular season finale for both teams.

Mycala Reed highlighted a three-run second inning with a two-run homer to put the Lady Bulldogs in control early, and pitchers Rylee Moore and Reese Farrar took care of the rest, combining to limit the Lady Pirates to a one unearned run on just three hits.

The victory improved WHS to 26-6 overall and 10-2 in district play, securing the No. 2 playoff seed behind champion Lubbock Monterey and earning a bi-district matchup next week with District 3-5A’s third-place finisher, Plainview. 

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Hamlin snags No. 2 seed with important win over Hawley

HAMLIN — With Stamford clinching the league title on Friday, the only drama remaining in District 7-2A occurred in Hamlin, where the Lady Pipers and Hawley had a second-seed issue to settle in a winner-take-all matchup at Hamlin High.

The Lady Pipers (21-6, 6-2) claimed the No. 2 spot with a 6-3 win behind a solid pitching effort from Zoe Moore, an error-free defense and an 11-hit barrage that saw no fewer than five doubles.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Clyde holds off late Jim Ned rally to end the regular season

TUSCOLA — With two runners on and two outs in the bottom of the seventh, Jim Ned’s Libbie Brnovak stepped to the plate with her squad trailing Clyde 5-1 in the District 6-3A regular season finale on Friday afternoon.

Brnovak ripped a shot into right-center that scored Makenzie Ince and Briana Jones, but she was thrown out at third base on a strong throw by Chasity Davis, and the Lady Bulldogs escaped with a 5-3 win to clinch third place outright.

The Lady Indians, meanwhile, tied for fourth place with Wall but still earned a playoff berth by virtue of their sweeping the Lady Hawks in the opening week of district play.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Stephenville softball avenges loss to Brownwood with win at BHS

BROWNWOOD — Just three days after a 4-2 home-field loss to archrival Brownwood, the Stephenville Honey Bees came to BHS on Friday seeking a little payback in a District 6-4A rematch.

Mission accomplished. 

Helped by a gritty pitching performance from Presley Gaitain and a three-run third inning, the Honey Bees (15-11, 3-3) held on for a 5-3 win, keeping them in solid contention for a No. 2 playoff seed. 

Making multiple switches to her batting order, Stephenville coach Kady Crow threw caution to the wind prior to gametime and the gamble paid off. 

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: AHS softball beats Coronado as Bane earns 100th career win

About the only thing that didn’t go right for the Abilene High softball team on Friday night was when the Lady Eagles attempted to dump a water cooler over coach Jenna Bane’s head following the game.

Senior Devany Chacon hit a two-run home run as the Lady Eagles sent their five seniors (four players and a manager) out with a 13-0 win over Lubbock Coronado in their final home game wearing black and gold.

The win was also the 100th of Bane’s seven-year coaching career.

Continue reading “GAME STORY: AHS softball beats Coronado as Bane earns 100th career win” →

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: Snyder baseballer edges Snyder softballer for top spot

It’s difficult to trump a no-hitter, though Snyder’s Ava Aviles came close last week. 

Aviles, who threw back-to-back two-hitters for Snyder softball, is our first runner-up to her classmate, Player of the Week Ty Davis and his first career no-hitter. 

Davis earned a 13-2 five-inning win over Levelland last week, holding LHS hitless in the mercy rule win, finishing with five strikeouts. 

“Ty has continued to improve on the mound and has given us some excellent innings this season, none bigger than last Tuesday with his no-hit performance,” Snyder coach Shane Stewart said. ” I am proud of him and looking forward to watching him mature as a pitcher and a young man.”

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: O’Brien’s seventh-inning homer spoils strong AHS effort in 4-2 loss to Monterey

The red-hot Abilene High softball team found itself a strike away from knocking off first-place Lubbock Monterey on Thursday at the AHS softball field. But an 0-2 single by Makayla Perez extended the game for Rylee O’Brien, who sent the first pitch she saw over the fence in left to lift the Lady Plainsmen to an improbable 4-2 victory over the Lady Eagles.

Perez’s home run spoiled what had otherwise been a remarkable performance for Abilene High starter Diana Silva, who shut out Monterey (24-4-1 overall, 9-0 in District 4-5A) through the first five innings and allowed just three hits through the first six.

The gut-wrenching loss dropped AHS to 22-5 on the year and 6-3 in District 4-5A action, pushing them a half-game behind Wylie () for third in the league standings. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Freshman pitcher Reyes bears down, AHS hitters come through in 9-5 win over Cooper

Already trailing crosstown rival Cooper 2-0 and staring at a bases-loaded, no-out situation in the top of second inning, Abilene High pitcher Avah Reyes found herself in quite a jam Tuesday evening at the AHS softball field.

Entering the night tied with idle Wylie for second place in the District 4-5A standings, the Lady Eagles needed the freshman to dig deep and keep them in the game until their bats could come around. 

With her back against the wall, Reyes did exactly that, following her third of 10 strikeouts with back-to-back comeback grounders to escape the inning unscathed, allowing her lineup to score eight unanswered runs in a 9-5 win. The victory — the fifth in a row for the 22-4 Lady Eagles — improved AHS to 6-2 in league play heading into big matchup with first-place Lubbock Monterey on Thursday.

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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 Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Big innings, Silva’s gem spark Abilene High to 11-3 win at Wylie

Behind an outstanding pitching performance by junior Diana Silva and an aggressive effort at the plate and on the basepaths, the Abilene High softball team picked up a big District 4-5A win over Wylie on Friday at Bulldog Field.

Fueled by an 11-hit performance off WHS’ pitching tandem of Reese Farrar and Rylee Moore, the Lady Eagles scored two runs in the first and three in the third before breaking the game open with a six-run fifth to pull away for an 11-3 victory and into a second-place tie with the Lady Bulldogs at 5-2 in the 4-5A standings.

That run support proved far more than needed for Silva, who held Wylie to just six hits and two earned runs in a complete-game effort to even the season series against the Lady Bulldogs at 1-1.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Clyde blanks Wall 4-0 behind one-hitter from Bingham

CLYDE — In their uphill climb to snag a playoff spot in the District 6-3A race, the Clyde Lady Bulldogs could ill-afford a loss in Friday’s matchup with Wall at CHS. 

Clyde responded with a 4-0 win over the Lady Hawks behind a one-hit shutout from sophomore right-hander Kaycee Bingham — leaving the door open for CHS (16-8-1, 3-5) to reach postseason play.

The win avenged a 9-8 loss to Wall on the road on Tuesday that saw the Lady Bulldogs commit five errors. Friday’s rematch saw only one Clyde miscue behind Bingham, who coasted through most of the afternoon and retired the last 14 batters she faced in succession. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Bangs southpaw takes this week’s accolade

Bangs southpaw Abby Wolf has thrown so many no-hitters this year, that the subject barely raises an eyebrow. But in consecutive district wins over Coleman and Christoval last week, the sophomore managed to create a stir. 

Missing a perfect game by one hit batsman in a 7-0 win over Coleman, she followed that with three perfect innings in a 15-0 route of Christoval. 

In other words, Wolf tossed nine complete hitless innings last week, along the way walking none and fanning 13. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Sweetwater senior captures five medals and our award

“Damarrius Walker is a very talented young man,” Sweetwater coach Brian Hodnett said. “There isn’t much in track and field that he can’t do!

“We as a staff are excited to see how far he can go this year.”

So is the rest of the area as our Big Country Preps Player of the Week collects the award after scoring 44 points individually at the Hamlin Pied Piper Relays last week. 

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by Brandon McAuliffe

LOCAL ROUNDUP: AHS teams pick up wins; Wylie baseball knocks off Lubbock High

Despite it being the end of spring break, the local baseball and softball teams were busy on the diamonds on Saturday, both in town and in Lubbock.

The six teams from Abilene High, Cooper and Wylie combined to go 3-3 in action.

You can read Daniel Youngblood’s story on Lubbock Monterey’s 6-2 win over Cooper in District 4-5A baseball here.

Meanwhile, Abilene High’s baseball and softball teams, along with Wylie baseball, picked up key District 4-5A wins. Wylie softball dropped a heartbreaker at Lubbock Monterey and the Cooper softball squad dropped a nondistrict game against Wolfforth Frenship.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Hamlin holds off Haskell with homers, big defensive plays

HAMLIN — In the aftermath of Hamlin’s 10-6 win over area rival Haskell in Friday’s District 7-2A softball opener, dissecting what had just taken place was an exercise in answering a key question. 

Yes, the Lady Pipers won, propelled by an eight-run second inning, a solid pitching effort from Zoe Moore and home runs by Samantha Gonzalez and Roxanne Rivera. But what if Haskell (11-8-1, 0-1) doesn’t hit into four inning-killing double plays? 

The answer is that Friday’s matchup could have taken a much different turn at several key points, but Hamlin (14-4, 1-0) was the club that executed at every one of them.

“It’s frustrating, but I think they realize where we can improve and the things we need to work on in order to win a game like this,” Haskell coach Emily Dyes said. “We’ve got some good hitters, but we’ve got to get better defensively and minimize our errors every game.” 

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by Evan Ren

FEATURE: Duniven-Moore combo returns to fuel Hamlin softball

HAMLIN — In 2022, the Hamlin softball team enjoyed what was arguably its best season ever, finishing the year with a 24-7 mark and a loss to Stamford in the Region I-2A championship game. 

The Lady Pipers finished one win away from the first state tournament trip in program history. Understandably, that is a focal point in 2023, and nowhere is that more evident in than in the battery combo of pitcher Zoe Moore and catcher Emily Duniven — a pair of college-bound seniors facing their final opportunity to leave their mark on a burgeoning program. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie softball uses big fourth inning to down rival Cooper 7-4

The Wylie softball team stayed perfect in District 4-5A play Thursday, using a big fourth inning to break a 3-all tie and eventually beat crosstown rival Cooper 7-4 at Bulldog Field.

After scoring one run in each of the first three innings, the Lady Bulldogs erupted for four runs in the fourth — all with two outs — to build a lead they would protect the rest of the way.

The victory improved Wylie to 18-4 overall and 2-0 in league play, while Cooper fell to 1-2 in District 4-5A action with its second loss to a crosstown rival this week.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Abilene High starts fast, pitches well in 8-1 win over Cooper

The Abilene High softball team got a strong pitching performance from Avah Reyes and Diana Silva and took advantage of four Cooper errors Tuesday in an 8-1 win over the Lady Cougars at Cougar Diamond.

The Lady Eagles led 1-0 after an inning, before taking control of the game with a three-run top of the third. That was all the support needed by Reyes and Silva, who combined to limit their crosstown rivals to just one run on six hits in the victory.

The win improved AHS (17-3 overall) to 1-1 in District 4-5A play, while Cooper fell to the same record in league action. AHS had opened district with a 6-4 loss to Wylie last week, while the Lady Cougars opened 4-5A play with an 8-6 win over Lubbock Cooper.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: Lopez’s walk-off ninth-inning homer gives Lady ‘Horns crucial win over Brock

EARLY — It took nine innings and more than two hours to come to a conclusion, but Tuesday’s District 8-3A softball showdown between Early and Brock lived up to its expectations. 

With the score knotted at 2-2, Early’s Teagan Lopez drove a pitch from Melanie Middleton over the fence in dead center to drive home Jordan Simmons with a game-winning two-run walk-off homer in a 4-2 victory at EHS.

With the win, Early (13-2, 3-0) takes possession of first place in the district race while Brock (8-10-1, 2-1) slips off the pace by a game. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Fincannon fires perfecto and no-hitter to take this week’s award

You know you’re on a roll when you throw a no-hitter and it’s your second-best performance of the week. 

That was the case for Hico junior pitcher Kiersten Fincannon, not only threw a no-hitter in a 24-0 win over Meridian, but also tossed a perfect game in a 22-0 rout of Itasca. 

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Hamlin lefty takes this week’s award

Softball tournaments can distort the significance of pitching accomplishments due to inning caps or time limits, rendering perfect games or no-hitters into half-versions of their true selves. 

However, there is no denying that tournaments are work, especially for pitchers, and our Big Country Preps Player of the Week, Hamlin southpaw Zoe Moore, earned the accolade with a 4-0 record in the Wichita Falls Sunrise Optimist Tournament last week.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Big Spring senior chalks up four victories and our weekly award

It’s always a good sign early in the season when you’re getting good pitching against quality competition. And in the case of the Big Spring Lady Steers, the numbers in the circle thus far are downright encouraging. 

Courtesy of senior Alexcia Munoz, the Lady Steers are off to a 5-1 start, including a 4-0 mark from Munoz in last week’s Abilene Icebreaker tournament.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Hawley’s O’Shields takes this week’s award

While Hawley’s Kason O’Shields is better known for his prowess on a football field, the HHS senior is actually a remarkable all-around athlete who is capable of having an impact in a variety of different sports. 

This week is a prime example of that, as O’Shields takes our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award for the week ending February 18. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps Preseason Softball Position Rankings: Utility Players

After recognizing the top pitchers, catchers, infielders and outfielders that the Big Country softball scene has to offer, we close our position ranking series with a celebration of versatility.

For the final installment in our five-part series, we take a look at the top utility players, ranking our top-10 multi-position standouts with some others to watch in 2023.

We hope you’ve enjoyed reading through these lists and encourage you to come back next week when we’ll feature the top baseball players in the Big Country.

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