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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Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Wall-Holliday girls basketball area round playoff (58 images)”
ANSON — Wall coach Jerry McSherry knew his squad would have a tough time in Thursday’s Region I-3A area round game against third-ranked Holliday.
While the Lady Hawks struggled offensively, they dominated on the defensive end of the floor in the first half, building a six-point lead at the break.
A much different story unfolded in the second half, however, as the Lady Eagles pulled away for a 46-33 win, ending the Lady Hawks’ season at 28-6.
Everson Armstrong’s junior season was both trying and ironic.
The Wall basketball player ran into a wall early in his first scrimmage. The result was that Armstrong snapped part of his arm, missing the first couple months.
That injury combined with a broken thumb once he returned kept the Wall guard from becoming a dominant force during the 2021-22 season.
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Continue reading “PHOTO GALLERY: Wall-Merkel basketball doubleheader (62 images)”
The Merkel Lady Badgers entered Tuesday’s regular season finale knowing the stakes were clear: beat Wall and get a seeding game with the Lady Hawks or enter the postseason as the No. 3 seed out of District 6-3A.
Wall, meanwhile, knew that a win locked them into the No. 2 seed and would allow a week of rest before starting the postseason.
In the end, it was the Lady Hawks who used a strong defensive effort, including holding the Lady Badgers scoreless for more than 12 straight minutes in the first half, to take a 37-19 win at Badger Gym.
Photos by David Erickson, PressPassSports.com
LUBBOCK — Entering Friday’s Region I-3A Division II title game on a 10-game winning streak, the Wall Hawks were optimistic about their chances against panhandle powerhouse Canadian.
Three hours and three turnovers later, Wall was eliminated by the Wildcats 45-10, ending the Hawks’ season at 11-2.
Camren Cavalier threw for 224 yards, rushed for 100 and accounted for six touchdowns to lead Canadian (12-2), which will face Gunter (13-0) in the state semifinals.
LAST WEEK: 11-1, .916
SEASON TOTAL: 529-120, .815
As December football arrives so will nine — count’em, nine — Big Country Preps teams retain a playoff pulse and are still hopeful of winning a state championship.
Wylie, Brock, Wall, Cisco, Hawley, Albany, Westbrook, Benjamin and Loraine will all take the field this week.
Not too shabby.
Also doing pretty well: this column, which hit with 91-percent accuracy last week despite a difficult slate of games to pick.
That said, let’s dive into this week’s games.
Here’s this week’s forecast:
Having fought his way through a mid-season injury, Albany quarterback Cole Chapman is back in form.
Our Big Country Preps Player of the Week was the dual threat we’ve grown accustomed to seeing on Saturday, leading the Lions (11-2) to a 35-18 whipping of formerly unbeaten Wink in the Region II-2A Division II semifinals.
SWEETWATER — While some may have complained about the cold, rainy weather for Friday’s Region I-3A DII semifinal at the Mustang Bowl, the Wall Hawks had the tools to overcome it.
Using a combination of 331 team rushing yards and a crushing defense, the Hawks (11-1) blew open a 10-0 game with three third-quarter touchdowns and eliminated Idalou 30-0.
WALL — If one examines the statistics of the area’s top high school defenses at this time of year, it is quite common to find at least one or two “stud” tacklers — usually a nasty linebacker with 100 or more stops.
But at Wall, the home of one of the best defenses in Big Country this season, a statistical anomaly is currently taking place. Nobody on WHS’ 2022 roster has more than 66 tackles through 11 played games (plus one forfeit) — a genuine oddity considering how dominant the Hawks have been on that side of the ball.
Instead, Wall is tackling by committee out of its 4-2-5 scheme and doing it quite well, with nine players charting between 43 and 66 stops.
Jim Ned 41, Pilot Point 0 — Troy Doran rushed for 174 yards and two scores to lead Jim Ned to an easy first round win over Pilot Point.
The Indians rolled up 479 yards in total offense en route to the win, overcoming a 3-1 turnover disparity in the process. Leading 14-0 at the break, Jim Ned blew the game open with 27 unanswered points in the second half.
After highlighting the Big Country’s top guards and forwards the past two nights, we now take a look at the area’s best big men.
For the final installment in our three-part boys basketball position rankings series, we rank the Big Country’s top 10 post players.
We hope you’ve enjoyed reading through our rankings, and make sure to check back for all our boys and girls basketball coverage this season.
After kicking off our boys basketball position rankings series on Tuesday with the guards, we now shift our attention to the forwards.
For the second installment in our three-part series, we rank the area’s top-10 players at that position for 2022-23.
We hope you enjoy our list.
With boys basketball season beginning this week, it’s time to shine a spotlight on some of the players you’ll be reading about throughout the 2022-23 season.
For the first installment in a three-part series that will cover all positions on the area boys basketball scene, we’ll be taking a look at the Big Country’s top guards, ranking our top 10 with a list of others to watch this winter.
We hope you enjoy reading through our list.
Wall 54, Brady 10 — The Hawks locked up the district title with a big win at Brady, rushing for 309 yard via committee.
Seven different Wall ball carriers saw action, with four of them reaching the end zone.
After focusing on the top guards and forwards the Big Country has to offer the past two nights, it’s time to shift our attention to the paint.
For the final installment in our three-part position rankings series, we list our top-10 post players for the 2022-23 season.
We hope you’ve enjoyed reading through these rankings, and make sure to come back next week when we’ll feature the top boys basketball players in the Big Country.
After kicking off our girls basketball position rankings series with the guards on Tuesday, we now turn our attention to the forwards.
For the second installment in our three-part series, we rank the area’s top 10 players at that position with some others to watch for in 2022-23.
We hope you enjoy our list.
With the girls basketball season upon us, it’s time to take a look at the local and area players who will be making the biggest impact for their teams during the 2022-23 season.
For the first installment in a three-part series that will cover all positions, we’ll be focusing on the Big Country’s top guards, ranking our top 10 with a list of others to watch this season.
As with any such list, these rankings are subjective. We hope you enjoy reading through our selections.
Wall 10, Early 7 — Gunnar Dillard rushed for 167 yards and on 32 carries and Nathan Pepper rushed for 88 yards and one TD to lead Wall to a difficult win over Early.
The Hawks (8-1, 4-0) now has sole possession of first place with the win, but must defeat Brady (5-4, 3-1) next week to lock up the district title.
Early 69, Grape Creek 0 — Jaxyn Price threw for 244 yards and four scores as Early had an easy time with Grape Creek.
The Longhorns rushed for 194 yards collectively, with four different EHS players scoring rushing touchdowns.
CLYDE — Volleyball is all about gaining, and sustaining, momentum.
With the District 6-3A lead on the line, it was the Wall Lady Hawks who were able to seize momentum early and roll to a 25-19, 25-21, 25-9 win over Clyde on Tuesday night at Bulldog Gym.
Wall scored the first five points of the match, never trailing in the first set, as the Lady Hawks improved to 33-5 overall and 6-0 in district. Including Tuesday’s sweep, the Lady Hawks have won 18 of 19 sets during district play.