Category: Wylie Bulldogs

by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL HOOPS ROUNDUP: Cooper boys rout Monterey, claim outright district title

LUBBOCK — Entering Tuesday’s regular-season finale tied with Lubbock Monterey and Wylie for first in District 4-5A, the Cooper boys basketball team needed a road win over Monterey to clinch at least a share of their second league title in as many years. 

Not only did the Cougars get that win, routing the Plainsmen 66-36 on the strength of a big second half, they also got the help they needed from Lubbock Coronado to claim the district championship outright.

While Cooper was knocking off Monterey, Coronado rallied past Wylie 59-55 at home to leave the Cougars alone atop the standings — one game up on Wylie, Monterey and Lubbock Cooper, which all finished tied for second.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME RECAP: Wylie girls’ season comes to end with bi-district loss to Canyon Randall

LUBBOCK — The Wylie girls basketball team saw its season come to an end Monday with a 55-45 loss to Canyon Randall in a Region I-5A bi-district matchup at Lubbock Estacado.

The loss ends a strong stretch for the Lady Bulldogs, who rallied from an 0-3 start to District 4-5A play with wins in five of their last seven district games to reach the postseason. Randall, the District 3-5A runner-up, was the first unranked opponent to beat Wylie during its 5-3 season-ending run.

WHS, which will graduate only one senior, closed its season at 15-18, while Randall (22-12) will advance to take on the winner of El Paso El Dorado and El Paso Bowie in the area round later this week.

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by Evan Ren

CAPITAL FARM CREDIT/BCP PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Wall’s Richardson is in this week’s spotlight

With big numbers spaced over three games, Wall senior guard Jacob Richardson claims the Capital Farm Credit/BCP Player of the Week award for the week ending Feb. 12. 

Helping the Hawks to clinch a District 6-3A title with a 3-0 mark, Richardson poured in an average of 26.7 points in wins over Clyde, Ballinger and San Angelo TLCA. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie knocks off Monterey again, pulls back into first place tie in 4-5A

Hosting Lubbock Monterey with a chance to pull into a tie atop the District 4-5A standings, the Wylie boys basketball team couldn’t have gotten off to a much worse start Friday at Bulldog Gym.

But after allowing the first nine points and falling behind 13-2 less than six minutes into the game, the Bulldogs outscored the Plainsmen 48-22 the rest of the way to earn a big 50-35 win and clinch the season sweep over Monterey.

The victory pulled Wylie into a three-way tie for first in 4-5A with Monterey and crosstown rival Cooper, setting up a big slate of games on Tuesday — the final date of the regular season.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Cooper boys hold off Wylie rally, pull even with Bulldogs in 4-5A standings

Needing a win over crosstown rival Wylie to avoid its fourth loss in five games, the Cooper boys basketball team played about as well as it could for 26 of the 32 minutes Tuesday. But after going up 45-24 with about 5:40 remaining in the game, the Cougars had to stave off a furious Bulldog rally to get out of Wylie’s gym with a 53-48 victory.

Cooper, which still led by 18 with 2:19 to play, saw its advantage trimmed to four (52-48) with just over five seconds remaining. But the Coogs did just enough from the free-throw line in the fourth quarter to avoid collapse and pull out an important District 2-6A win.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie girls pull away from Cooper on Senior Night, lock up third place in District 4-5A

The Wylie girls basketball team overcame a slow start to pull away for a 49-27 win over Cooper on Tuesday, clinching third place in District 4-5A with its fifth win in seven games.

The Lady Bulldogs, who opened league play at 0-3, finished with a flourish, routing their crosstown rival at home one night after locking up a playoff berth with a 38-35 win at Lubbock High.

Sophomores Micayla Reed and Indiah Maroney both had 14 points in Tuesday’s victory, helping to make Kenyah Maroney’s Senior Night a victorious one.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME RECAP: Wylie girls, boys pick up big wins at Lubbock High

Photos courtesy of Katie Perkins, HubCityPreps.com

LUBBOCK — The Wylie girls basketball team went on the road and picked up a huge win Monday, outlasting Lubbock High 38-35 to clinch a playoff berth in District 4-5A. 

The game, which was postponed from Friday due to the snow storm that hit Texas last week, came down to the final minutes. But a layup by sophomore post Indiah Maroney with 1:15 to play broke a 35-all tie and proved to be the game-winning shot as the Lady Bulldogs improved to 14-17 overall and 4-5 in league play.

The victory secured a season sweep of Lubbock High, which came into the game tied with Wylie and Lubbock Coronado for third in the district standings. Monday’s outcome, when combined with Coronado’s 57-42 win over Cooper, puts the Lady Bulldogs in a two-way tie for third heading into their regular season finale against crosstown rival Cooper.

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by Daniel Youngblood

FEATURE: Marked improvement has young Wylie girls in position to reach playoffs

Entering the year with just one senior on her roster and almost twice as many newcomers as lettermen, Wylie girls basketball coach Amy Powell knew this season would be a process.

The fourth-year Lady Bulldogs mentor knew there would be growing pains. She was just hoping her squad would make enough progress by district time to challenge for a playoff spot in a tough District 4-5A race.

After an 0-3 start to league play, things were looking bleak for the Lady Bulldogs. But with a 3-2 record since, including competitive losses to top-20 teams from Lubbock Monterey and Lubbock Cooper, WHS enters the final week of the regular season in control of its own postseason destiny and playing its best basketball of the year.

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by Evan Ren

Big Country Girls Basketball Statistical Leaders (through Feb. 3)

Each Thursday night, Big Country Preps will publish area boys and girls basketball statistical leaders.

This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.

Teams that do not submit their statistics in a given week will not be listed when our stats are posted, but will be added to the lists below as they are received in the coming days. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

UIL REALIGNMENT: Abilene schools avoid surprises, welcome new challenges

While many coaches across the area and state were scrambling Thursday after being thrown a curveball by the University Interscholastic League, the leaders of Abilene’s three largest programs enjoyed a relatively peaceful realignment day, free of any major surprises.

Having learned in December that Abilene High would be dropping to Class 5A Division I and Cooper would be moving to 5A DII,  all AHS coach Mike Fullen and his Cooper counterpart, Aaron Roan, were waiting on was to find out their district. And both landed in leagues they expected.

Abilene High was sent to District  2-5A DI with Amarillo High, Amarillo Caprock, Amarillo Tascosa, Lubbock Cooper, Lubbock Coronado and Lubbock Monterey, while Cooper joins Wylie in District 2-5A DII, along with Amarillo Palo Duro, Lubbock High, Plainview and Wichita Falls Rider.

Fullen, Roan and Wylie’s Clay Martin all ended the day happy with their placement and relieved that their weather-impacted realignment went about smoothly as it could have.

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by Evan Ren

UIL REALIGNMENT: Big Country football landscape will change dramatically

While icy road conditions may have changed the UIL’s method of delivering the news, the results of its biennial realignment still offered the usual mix of surprises on Thursday. 

Held via live feed over the internet, area coaches learned their fate on the web. 

Topping the list of stunners for area teams would be the shift of Brownwood from its centralized home in District 5-4A DI to the far west in District 2.  There, the Lions will join Big Spring, Lubbock Estacado, San Angelo Lake View and Andrews — the last of which will produce a 480-mile round trip.

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by Evan Ren

SIGNING DAY: Eakin, Jones among several high-profile area signees

What appeared to be a slow year for the Big Country on the signing front quickly blossomed into something memorable in 2022. 

With National Signing Day taking place on Wednesday, the Big Country Preps coverage area finished with multiple Division I signees, including several on the gridiron. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

SIGNING DAY: Eight Wylie athletes make college decisions official

One table wasn’t nearly enough for all of Wylie’s signees at the school’s signing day ceremony Wednesday at the Wylie Performing Arts Center. Athletic director Clay Martin needed three to seat the eight athletes who made their college decisions official on National Signing Day.

Five football players, a baseball player, a volleyball player and a track and field athlete all got to sign their letters of intent and be recognized by friends and family, with seven of the eight electing to stay in town and compete for Abilene universities.

Four of the football players — offensive lineman Jaxon Lunsford, tight end Jaxon Rutledge, linebacker Jaxon Camacho and kicker/punter Grayson Bearden — all committed to Hardin-Simmons University, while their teammate X’Zavier Collins, a defensive lineman, signed with Texas Wesleyan University in Fort Worth.

Wylie’s other three signees — volleyball setter Lexi Miller, baseball catcher Nick Sobolewski and discus and shotput thrower Hannah Hutchinson — are all headed to McMurry University.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: No. 8 Lubbock Cooper pulls away late to top Wylie girls, Bulldogs drop heartbreaker

For more than 26 minutes Tuesday, the Wylie girls basketball team played right with No. 8 Lubbock Cooper. But the Lady Pirates outscored the Lady Bulldogs 11-2 over the final 5:51 to pull away for 45-34 win at Bulldog Gym.

Wylie, which came in having won three of its last four games, bottled up a potent Cooper offense for most of the night. But six-point efforts in the first and fourth quarters kept coach Amy Powell’s squad from being able to pull off upset.

Instead, the Lady Bulldogs fell to 13-17 overall and 3-5 in District 4-5A play, setting up a big game at Lubbock High on Friday, weather permitting.

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by Evan Ren

CAPITAL FARM CREDIT/BCP PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Merkel senior takes this week’s award

 

When selecting our Capital Farm Credit/BCP Player of the Week, it’s not entirely about numbers, though that’s certainly a part of it. The quality of the competition counts, as does the importance of the game itself.

And when factoring in all of the above, nobody had a better overall week than Merkel senior Alyssa O’Malley, who has been among the area’s most consistent performers all season. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Reed’s clutch 3 lifts Wylie over Coronado, into thick of District 4-5A playoff race

Mycala Reed’s 3-pointer with just over a minute remaining broke a 48-all tie and proved to be the game-winner for Wylie in a key 51-48 win over Lubbock Coronado on Friday at Bulldog Gym.

The Lady Bulldogs, who led by nine at half, found themselves down five (48-43) with 3:10 remaining in the game. But a corner 3 from Caroline Steadman pulled WHS back within two, before Kenyah Maroney tied the game with a layup.

That — and a couple of big stops on the defensive end — set up Reed’s big shot, which sent the crowd into a frenzy and ultimately pulled the Lady Bulldogs right back into the thick of the District 4-5A playoff race.

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by Evan Ren

CAPITAL FARM CREDIT/BCP PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Strawn’s Rigdon nabs honor with 54-point effort

More often than not, our Capital Farm Credit/BCP Player of the Week has led a winning effort of some sort. But we do make exceptions, and this week’s accolade is an example of that. 

In last week’s 69-68 loss to Huckabay, Strawn freshman (yes, freshman) Grayson “Chaka” Rigdon put forth an absolutely show-stopping performance, dropping 54 points on HHS to go with 14 rebounds, two assists and three steals. This came on the heels of a 24-point, 10-rebound night he had in a 64-41 loss to Lingleville. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Shorthanded Cooper boys, determined Wylie girls score big crosstown wins

Playing shorthanded after seeing its Tuesday game against Lubbock Coronado postponed due to illness, the Cooper boys basketball team put forth a gutsy effort Friday against crosstown rival Wylie, answering every challenge from the visiting Bulldogs on its way to a 54-41 win at Cougar Gym.

The Cougars, who practiced with just five players all week, had just six rotation players Friday. But they did enough without starting point guard Andrew Gonzalez to snap Wylie’s six-game winning streak and extend their own to five games.

Coach Bryan Conover’s squad, which improved to 15-7 overall and 2-0 in District 4-5A with the victory, saw a 30-19 halftime lead trimmed to four twice in the second half — once in the third quarter and again in the fourth. But the Coogs finished each of the final two periods on sizeable runs to put away the upset-minded Bulldogs.

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by Daniel Youngblood

FEATURE: Wylie boys getting healthy, finding stride at just the right time

If you were to have watched the Wylie boys basketball team play at certain points of their nondistrict schedule, you might have had trouble believing that the Bulldogs would be 2-0 in District 4-5A play and hold a share of the district lead in the third week of January.

But taking a snapshot view of coach Gregg Ruffin’s squad at virtually any point in November or December would have left you with an incomplete picture of his team’s potential.

Rocked by injuries and illness for most of their pre-district season, Wylie is only just now putting the team it expected to have this season on the court. And riding a six-game winning streak into Friday’s road matchup with crosstown rival and defending district champion Cooper, the now-healthy Bulldogs are finding their stride at just the right time.

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by Evan Ren

Big Country Boys Basketball Statistical Leaders (through Jan. 20)

Each Thursday night, Big Country Preps will publish area boys and girls basketball statistical leaders.

This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.

Teams that do not submit their statistics in a given week will not be listed when our stats are posted, but will be added to the lists below as they are received in the coming days. 

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by Evan Ren

Big Country Girls Basketball Statistical Leaders (through Jan. 20)

Each Thursday night, Big Country Preps will publish area boys and girls basketball statistical leaders.

This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches.

Teams that do not submit their statistics in a given week will not be listed when our stats are posted, but will be added to the lists below as they are received in the coming days. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie girls pick up much-needed win over LHS to kick off doubleheader sweep

Off to an 0-3 start to District 4-5A play and hosting a quality Lubbock High squad, the Wylie girls basketball team found itself in a near must-win situation Tuesday at Bulldog Gym.

And with their backs against the wall, the Lady Bulldogs responded exactly the way coach Amy Powell had hoped they would.

Following a 16-9 second-quarter run to build a 26-17 halftime lead, WHS used a strong defensive effort to keep the Lady Westerners at arm’s length the rest of the night, scoring a 50-38 win to set the stage for a doubleheader sweep of LHS.

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by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL HOOPS ROUNDUP: Cooper, Wylie boys open District 4-5A play with victories

LUBBOCK — Led by forward Jaelyn Rivera, who dropped a career-high 28 points on Tuesday, the Cooper boys basketball team opened District 4-5A play with a 63-51 over Lubbock High, improving to 14-7 with the victory.

Rivera accounted for 12 of the Cougars’ 25 field goals and went 4 of 5 from the free-throw line to lead a list of three Cooper players in double figures. Jalen Cherry hit four 3-pointers on his way to 16 points while Colin Reed finished with 10.

Continue reading “LOCAL HOOPS ROUNDUP: Cooper, Wylie boys open District 4-5A play with victories” →

by Evan Ren

EVAN REN’S 2021 TRUE GRIT TEAM: The toughest, hardest-working players in the Big Country!

Most high school football teams have that one player acknowledged by the coaching staff as the prime example of what a teammate should be. 

He’s the guy who seldom misses any practice time and is a regular in the weight room. He’s early to arrive. He’s late to leave, takes pride in being coachable but seldom needs direction. 

He always sets the right example for younger players. He doesn’t gripe and, above all else, he’s tough enough to make all the aforementioned traits possible. 

Know someone like that? Here is where they are honored. 

Welcome to Big Country Preps’ “True Grit” team — a collection of area players nominated by their head coaches, who exemplify the character traits football mentors want throughout their roster. 

Not all of them are great players. In fact, many of them will never play a down of college football. But every single one of them is making the most of their high school football experience and has helped those around them do the same.

We are absolutely honored to present these young men to you — the toughest, hardest-working football players the Big Country had to offer in 2021. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Assistant Carroll coaches Wylie boys to come-from-behind win over Aledo

Playing without head coach Gregg Ruffin and assistant Jody Harvey, who were unavailable for Friday’s nondistrict game against Aledo, the Wylie boys basketball team still managed to outlast the Bearcats for a 42-33 victory at Bulldog Gym.

With assistant Seth Carroll stepping in as acting head coach, the Bulldogs overcame a nine-point first half to take control of the game in third quarter, before holding off a late challenge in the fourth to improve to 12-11 on the season.

Wylie, which was was also without guards Dylan Jennings and Kazion Brown, outscored Aledo 19-2 in the the first eight minutes out of halftime to turn a 17-9 deficit at the break into a 28-19 lead by the start of the fourth quarter.

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by Daniel Youngblood

LOCAL HOOPS ROUNDUP: Cooper, Wylie girls fall in District 4-5A openers

The Cooper and Wylie girls basketball teams both opened District 4-5A play with losses Friday, as the Lady Cougars fell 66-50 to No. 8 Lubbock Cooper and the Lady Bulldogs were beaten 58-40 by Lubbock Monterey.

Those results put district favorites Lubbock Cooper and Monterey in a first-place tie with Lubbock High, which downed Lubbock Coronado 49-42 Friday night, while Abilene Cooper, Wylie and Coronado are a game behind in a tough six-team district.

Cooper will travel to Monterey for a difficult road test and Wylie will play at Coronado when league play resumes on Tuesday.

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by Evan Ren

2021 BIG COUNTRY PREPS MAX EFFORT TEAM: The hardest-working players in area volleyball!

While our All-Big Country Preps Volleyball team is in place to honor those who achieved the most on-court success, our “Max Effort” team is something much more uncommon. 

This is a special accolade, which has nothing to do with talent or stats.

It is here where character, grit and work ethic — traits that coaches wish every player had — are recognized. It is here where we honor the best teammates and best citizens that area volleyball has to offer.

It is for that reason that this team is selected by area coaches and described in their own words.

Big Country Preps is now honored to present these individuals to you — the hardest-working, toughest volleyball players in the Big Country. Ladies and gentlemen: Our 2021 Big Country Preps Max Effort Team. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Williams, fast start fuel Abilene High boys to 46-38 win over Wylie

A near-perfect first half was enough for the Abilene High boys basketball team to overcome a rocky final two quarters in a 46-38 nondistrict win over Wylie on Tuesday at Eagle Gym.

The Eagles were outscored by 15 points over the final two quarters, but a 32-9 halftime lead kept coach Justin Reese’s squad from ever being threatened after the break.

The win, AHS’ fifth in its last seven games, improved the Eagles to 6-8 heading into Friday’s rematch with crosstown rival Cooper.

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by Daniel Youngblood

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: Wylie set to host six-team field for round-robin Catclaw Classic

A week after playing in Abilene ISD’s Raising Cane’s Key City Classic, Wylie will host five schools — including Abilene High and Cooper — for its annual boys basketball tournament, the Catclaw Classic.

In addition to the Abilene’s three local schools, Canutillo, Fort Worth Chisholm Trail and Midland Christian will be in action at the Classic, which will have a round-robin format this year.

Here is the schedule for the tournament. Check back throughout the weekend for scores, game recaps and photos from the event.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Wylie boys, girls fall at home to San Angelo Central

It’s not often you leave a 15-point loss feeling better about yourself, but such was the case for coach Gregg Ruffin and his Wylie Bulldogs on Tuesday in their nondistrict matchup with San Angelo Central.

When clock hit zeros and the final buzzer sounded at Bulldog Gym, the scoreboard showed the home team on the wrong end of a 64-49 tally. 

But after watching his young squad push the 10-1 Bobcats to the limit for the better part of three quarters, Ruffin was upbeat about the Bulldogs’ effort and what it might mean going forward.

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by Daniel Youngblood

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: North Crowley tops Eaton for Cane’s Key City Classic title, Wylie drops finale

The North Crowley Panthers completed a perfect run through the Cane’s Key City Classic on Saturday, topping Northwest Eaton 49-41 in the title game to add a championship to the third-place finish they earned in the tournament’s first year back in 2019.

That matchup closed the books on the local tournament, which also saw Lewisville the Colony top McKinney Boyd 46-41 in the third-place game, Round Rock defeat defending Classic champion Fort Worth Wyatt 72-55 in the fifth-place game and San Antonio Harlan take the consolation championship with a 64-49 win over Peaster.

Wylie, the only local team in action on the Classic’s final day, fell to Justin Northwest 50-41 in a consolation game to close out the event at 2-2. Abilene High and Cooper were slated on the bracket to meet in the championship bracket seventh-place game, but the coaches chose not to play that game since the teams have two matchups forthcoming.

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by Daniel Youngblood

TOURNAMENT CENTRAL: Abilene High, Cooper go winless on Day 2 of Cane’s Key City Classic

The second day of the Raising Cane’s Key City Classic was a rough one for the two host schools, as Abilene High and Cooper both went 0-2 on Friday after winning on Thursday to earn a spot in the championship bracket.

Abilene High dropped its quarterfinal game to Lewisville The Colony 54-29 before falling in the fifth-place semifinals to Fort Worth Wyatt 82-41, while Cooper lost in those same rounds to McKinney Boyd (63-41) and Round Rock (55-52), respectively. The Eagles and Cougars were slated to play in the seventh-place game Saturday, but the coaches elected not to play that game since the two teams are already scheduled to play each other twice in the coming weeks.

Wylie, which dropped a play-in game to Fort Worth Nolan Catholic on Thursday to fall out of bracket play, rebounded with a pair of wins on the Classic’s second day, routing Abilene High’s JV 75-34 before topping Borger 56-46.

In action not involving Abilene teams, Northwest Eaton advanced to Saturday’s title game with a 47-44 win over The Colony. They’ll take on North Crowley, which defeated Boyd 38-37 in its semifinal to advance to the tournament championship.

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