Here’s a complete rundown of Thursday and Friday’s Class 3A playoff results in the Big Country:
Category: Sweetwater Mustangs
GAME STORY: Vernon ends Sweetwater’s season with 28-9 bi-district win
Photos by Kael Duncan, Special to Big Country Preps
GRAHAM — Sweetwater picked a poor time not to play its best.
The Mustangs got off to a slow start and struggled offensively as Vernon ended their season with a 28-9 decision Friday night at Newton Field.
The Lions (7-4) advance to face Amarillo River Road in the Region I-3A Division I area round, while the Mustangs drop their second straight game to finish at 6-5.
DISTRICT 3-3A DIV. I WEEK 11 REPORT: Jim Ned, Comanche, Breckenridge notch Week 11 wins
Jim Ned 45, Sweetwater 28 — Aiden Ellis rushed for 262 yards and three scores on 43 carries in a bulldozer-like effort for Jim Ned, which rushed for 400 yards as a team.
With the score tied at 21 at the break, the Indians took command with a 24-7 second half.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Stamford, Hawley clash in rematch of last season’s thriller
LAST WEEK: 45-8, .849
SEASON TOTAL: 464-122, .791
The regular season ends Friday night (if you can believe it) and there’s no better way to close things up than with No. 5 Class 2A DI Hawley (9-0, 4-0) at No. 1 Stamford (9-0, 4-0).
The winner will earn the District 4 championship and No. 1 seed heading into the playoffs, so much is at stake.
I’m leaning toward Stamford here for three reasons: First, the overall team speed of SHS is unmatched by anyone in the area.
Secondly, the Bulldogs have an intangible working here — specifically a last-second miracle touchdown scored by Hawley’s
Camden Ables from 45 yards out with 0:47 left in last year’s game.
DISTRICT 3-3A DIV. I WEEK 10 REPORT: Jim Ned, Sweetwater, Comanche win in Week 10
Jim Ned 45, Clyde 6 — 
Aiden Ellis rushed for 159 yards and three scores and Gray Beasley threw for 123 yards and two more TDs to lead the Indians to an important district win.
Jim Ned (6-3, 3-1) remains in district title contention with the win and could potentially win the crown with a win at Sweetwater next week, depending on the results of the Clyde-Comanche game.
DISTRICT 3-3A DIV. I WEEK 9 REPORT: Comanche, Sweetwater and Jim Ned notch wins
Comanche 34, Breckenridge 21 — 
The Indians rushed for 330 yards collectively to improve to 5-3 overall and 2-1 in district play.
Cayden Davis rushed for 121 yards and one score and Ladainian Smith rushed for 101 yards and another TD to lead Comanche.
Breckenridge fell to 0-8 and 0-3.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Loboes play host to Hawley in Big Country Preps Game of the Week
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 Volleyball Statistical Leaders (as submitted by area coaches through Oct. 22)
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.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Albany’s Beal earns this week’s accolade
With the Albany Lions winning last week’s district game with Winters by a score of 60-0, there were ample opportunities for the Lions to produce a Player of the Week-worthy performance.
They found one in senior Branson Beal, who rushed 11 times for 144 yards and five scores. He also caught a 46-yard TD pass to chart six touchdowns on the night.
“He might have the quickest feet of any (player) I have coached,” Albany coach Denney Faith said. “Combine that with great vision it makes him fun to watch.”
DISTRICT 3-3A DIV. I WEEK 8 REPORT: Sweetwater, Jim Ned, Clyde all score wins
Sweetwater 27, Comanche 13 — Uriah Aguilar-Rivera rushed for 121 yards and two scores as Sweetwater captured a crucial win on the road.
The Mustangs (4-3, 2-0) are now tied with Clyde (4-3, 2-0) for the league lead. They will meet on Friday in Sweetwater.
Comanche (4-3, 1-1) was led by Cayden Davis who threw for 116 yards and one score and rushed for 160 yards and another TD.
DISTRICT 3-3A DIV. I WEEK 7 REPORT: Sweetwater, Clyde, Comanche all notch wins in first week of district
Sweetwater 90, San Angelo TLCA 0 — A long night for TLCA got even worse when it was forced into seven turnovers. Six of those giveaways resulted in Sweetwater touchdowns via scoop-and-scores and pick returns.
The Mustangs were led offensively by Caiden Ortiz, who threw for 137 yards and two scores.
Sweetwater improved to 3-3 and 1-0 with the win; TLCA dropped to 0-6 and 0-1.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Comanche plays host to Jim Ned (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)
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:
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Coahoma has planted a Vineyard in its backfield
With the bulk of the area’s football teams taking the night off in a bye week prior to district, the question last Friday was if we could find an ample supply of top games and top performances to cover.
We actually found several — topped by a show-stopping effort by Coahoma’s Jaidyn Vineyard in an unforgettable 71-70 win over Littlefield in our Big Country Preps Game of the Week.
San Angelo Grape Creek 74, San Angelo TLCA 0 — TLCA’s struggles continued on Friday with a loss to cross-town rival Grape Creek. 
BIG COUNTRY PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Graham volleyballer takes Player of the Week with a Noble effort
Overwhelming. If there were a one-word description for last week’s performance by six-foot Graham senior Lillian Noble, that would be it.
Noble, a four-year varsity player who has already committed to Oklahoma Baptist, was far and away the most dominant player in both a 3-1 win over Wichita Falls Memorial and a 3-1 loss to Glen Rose last week.
Her combined totals: 54 kills, 23 digs and 12 blocks — making her the most effective two-way player the area saw on both sides of the net last week.
“Lillian has become a true utility player for us this season,” coach Marci Faulk said. “It’s exciting to see her embrace this new role and have so much success doing so!”
DISTRICT 3-3A DIV. I WEEK 5 REPORT: Comanche, Jim Ned notch impressive wins
Comanche 54, Early 20 
— Cayden Davis rushed for 186 yards, threw for 104 and accounted for four touchdowns to lead Comanche to a win over Early.
The Indians rushed for 403 yards through seven different ball carriers, five of whom scored.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Wall heads to the Mustang Bowl (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country picks)
LAST WEEK: 55-8, .873
SEASON TOTAL: 196-67, .745
How about those apples?
After a pathetic start that saw this column stagger out of the gate with a pick percentage in the low 600s after two weeks, it rebounded with two straight solid weeks, including a 55-8 record last week (.873) to bump its season tally up to .745 four weeks into the season.
Thank the maker. I was beginning to feel a little pressure.
We now move on to Week 5, with a Big Country Preps Game of the Week featuring the Wall Hawks (3-1) at Sweetwater (2-2) in SHS’ storied Mustang Bowl.
Let’s dive in shall we?
Here’s this week’s picks:
BIG COUNTRY PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Ables takes the top spot after big win over De Leon
Hawley’s Keagan Ables is no stranger to the Big Country Preps Player of the Week column — appearing among our top performers multiple times over the last three years.
However, his latest effort to help HHS defeat De Leon 54-21 on Friday, may rank as one of his best.
The Hawley senior connected on 16 of 32 passes for 441 yards and six touchdowns to help Hawley improve to 4-0 on the year.
DISTRICT 3-3A DIV. I WEEK 4 REPORT: Sweetwater, Jim Ned, Clyde score big wins
Lead art provided by Mark Rogers, HubCityPreps.com
Sweetwater 39, Lubbock Estacado 25 — Korda Moore rushed for 160 yards and three touchdowns and Caiden Ortiz threw for 135 yards to lead Sweetwater, which evened its record to 2-2 with the win.
The Mustangs finished with 388 yards in total offense while dropping Estacado to 1-3.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Rattlers play host to Comanche
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:
PHOTO GALLERY: Sweetwater-Seminole football (85 images)
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Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Sweetwater-Seminole football (85 images)”
GAME STORY: Turnovers cost Sweetwater in lopsided loss to Seminole
SWEETWATER — In a sport where games are often decided by just a few plays here or there, a young Sweetwater football team learned on Friday night that sometimes it can be just a singular play that decides a game.
A 60-yard fumble return by Hiram Gaytan kept the Mustangs from driving for a go-ahead score in the second quarter, and it all unraveled from there as Seminole, ranked No. 9 in the state in Class 4A Division II, rolled to a 44-7 win at the Mustang Bowl in Sweetwater’s home opener.
Seminole running back Caton Cramer ran for four touchdowns in the second and third quarters combined as the Mustangs had trouble keeping pace with the Indians fast-paced attack that ran 75 plays — compared to just 61 by the Mustangs.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Glen Rose visits Brownwood (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country 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:
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Abilene High’s Henry takes the top spot
Sometimes, the biggest stage creates the biggest performances.
And in the Big Country, the stage doesn’t get any bigger than the annual Abilene – Abilene Cooper matchup — one of the biggest rivalries in the state of Texas and arguably the biggest in our area (though you may get an argument from Brownwood-Stephenville).
Friday night with much of the city of Abilene paying attention, AHS quarterback Brayden Henry had a memorable night, hitting 15 of 19 throws for 216 yards passing and two TDs.
DISTRICT 3-3A DIV. I WEEK 2 REPORT: Jim Ned, Comanche, Sweetwater earn first wins
Jim Ned 42, Lubbock Trinity Christian 12 — Gray Beasley threw for 165 yards and three scores and rushed for 35 yards and another TD to lift the Indians (1-1).
Also having big nights were running backs Aiden Ellis, who rushed for 100 yards on 14 carries and Jaron Pryor (11 carries, 59 yards, one score).
DISTRICT 3-3A DIV. I WEEK 1 REPORT: Clyde opens with win at Cisco in Big Country thriller
Clyde 43, Cisco 42 — In one of the top games in the area on Friday, Clyde edge Cisco in a shootout, giving the Bulldogs (1-0) the only win of the night for District 3-3A DI.
The Bulldogs overcame a 28-20 deficit heading into the fourth quarter to earn the win.
Clyde will play host to Eastland (1-0) in its home opener next Friday; Cisco will travel to San Angelo TLCA on the same evening.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Albany travels to Stamford in Game of the Week
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.
SWEETWATER FEATURE: Moore spearheads Lucas’ first fourth-year players list with Mustangs
SWEETWATER — If there is one player on the Sweetwater football roster who may best exemplify the long-term growth of coach Russell Lucas’ program, it may very well be senior running back-linebacker Korda Moore.
Moore, who now enters his fourth varsity season, has been through every high and every low of Lucas’ tenure, from the 8-4 in 2021, to the freshman-heavy 1-9 a year later, to last season’s 7-5 mark.
Moore has been in the center of all of it.
“When (Lucas) first got here, everyone was shaky and nervous about it because we had a new coach and a whole new coaching staff,” Moore said. “But once we started to trust what he was saying the program started to change.”
And with Sweetwater expected to be one of the top Class 3A teams in the Big Country this year, Moore begins his final season at SHS as one of the area’s top athletes in Lucas’ first group of fourth-year players.
2024 SWEETWATER FOOTBALL PREVIEW: Mustangs are bigger, faster and more numerous, despite drop to 3A DI
SWEETWATER — There’s plenty of good news in the Sweetwater camp heading into the 2024 season, not the least of which are the nine returning starters on both sides of the ball from last year’s 7-5 playoff team.
Add the fact that starting quarterback Caiden Ortiz is among 23 returning lettermen and that the Mustangs are considerably larger than they’ve been in recent memory and you’ll begin to see why there is a growing optimism at the Mustang Bowl.
A little more? OK.
Now consider that Sweetwater has nearly all of its defense back after dropping from Class 4A DII to 3A DI during the offseason and it’s difficult to not to be curious about this team’s potential.
COUNTDOWN TO TWO A DAYS: The Sweetwater Mustangs … 10 days to two-a-days
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 take a look at the Sweetwater Mustangs.
Continue reading “COUNTDOWN TO TWO A DAYS: The Sweetwater Mustangs … 10 days to two-a-days”
Evan Ren’s 2024 Big Country Preps All-Hustle Team (the hardest-working baseball and softball players in the area)
OTHER 2024 ALL-BIG COUNTRY PREPS TEAMS
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS BASEBALL Superlative Awards (Pitcher of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, etc)
- ALL-BIG COUNTRY PREPS BASEBALL: First-Team Selections
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS BASEBALL: Second-Team Selections (plus honorable mention)
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS BASEBALL: Rising Stars Team
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS SOFTBALL: Superlative Awards (Pitcher of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, etc)
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS SOFTBALL: First-Team Selections
- ALL BIG COUNTRY PREPS SOFTBALL: Second-Team Selections (plus honorable mention)
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.
STATE TRACK ROUNDUP: Stephenville’s Brister, Brownwood’s Hall and Brock’s Foster claim gold medals at 3A/4A meet
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”
GAME STORY: Stephenville evens series with Sweetwater, forces do-or-die Game 3
ABILENE — With their backs against the wall after dropping Game 1 of their best-of-three bi-district series to Sweetwater, the Stephenville Honeybees kept their season alive Friday with a 9-4 win at Abilene Cooper’s Cougar Diamond.
Batting to start the do-or-die Game 2, Stephenville put up two runs in each of the first two innings to build an early lead and answered any attempts at a Sweetwater comeback to pull away in the latter innings and force a deciding third game at 6 p.m. Saturday at he same site.
Mattie-Lynn Dunnam and Presley Gaitan combined to limit the Lady Mustangs to just five hits and got a big game from their lineup, which supplemented seven hits with three walks, two hit batsmen and four Sweetwater errors.
GAME STORY: Ashley, Sweetwater best Stephenville in Game 1 of bi-district series
ABILENE — The Sweetwater Lady Mustangs struck the first blow in their best-of-three bi-district series against Stephenville on Thursday, topping the Honeybees 5-3 at Abilene Cooper’s Cougar Diamond to pull within a win of advancing to the Region I-4A area round.
Sweetwater, District 5-4A’s No. 3 seed, scored two runs in the top of the first to take a lead it would hold the rest of the way, adding a single run in the fifth and two in the seventh to go up 5-1 before Stephenville tried to mount a rally in its final at-bat.
Pitcher Mikayla Ashley was strong in the circle, allowing just one earned run in a complete-game effort to best her counterpart Presley Gaitan and give the Lady Mustangs a chance to close out the series when it resumes at 7 p.m. Friday at the same site.
FINAL Big Country Regular Season Baseball Statistical leaders for 2024 (through April 25)
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.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Eula’s Cauthen takes our weekly award through three sports
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.
REGION I-4A TRACK RECAP: Stephenville boys win team title to headline successful meet for area
LUBBOCK — Big Country athletes made a strong showing at the Region I-4A track meet Friday and Saturday at Lowrey Field, combining to earn 19 medals and 12 automatic bids to the state meet May 2 in Austin.
Between the boys and girls competitions, area entries accounted for eight gold medals, four silvers and seven bronzes, while the Stephenville boys did enough to edge Canyon by two points for the team title.
The Yellow Jackets finished with 59 points, headlined by double gold medalist Creece Brister, who won both throwing events. Brownwood, meanwhile, had the highest girls finish, taking third with 48 points, led by gold medals from Kaya Phillips in the 200 and its 800-meter relay team.
Big Country Baseball Statistical leaders (through April 18)
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.
FINAL Big Country Regular Season Softball Statistical leaders for 2024 (through April 18)
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.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Clyde senior tosses no-no, takes the award
With plenty of competition for the top spot, our Big Country Preps Player of the Week goes to Clyde senior pitcher Trip Ancheta.
When in doubt, a dominating no-hitter is usually a solid choice.
Ancheta did exactly that in a 14-0 mercy rule win over Grape Creek that saw him work all five innings with 11 strikeouts — narrowly missing a perfect game by one walk.
Big Country Softball Statistical Leaders (through April 11)
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.
BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Wall’s Jones takes five district titles and our Player of the Week
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.
