In a week filled with unforgettable moments, several of our nominees handed in by area coaches could justifiably be called our Capital Farm Credit/BCP Player of the Week.
We finally settled on Clyde sophomore Payton Phillips, who stunned attendees at the Region I-3A meet by taking gold in both the long jump (18 feet, 6 inches) and the 100 hurdles (15.12) — breaking school records that were 25 and 15 years old, respectively.
Over his time at Cooper, big numbers have become the norm for standout back Noah Garcia. The senior is, after all the Cougars’ all-time leading rusher with more 4,500 yards and 55 touchdowns to his credit.
But Friday’s performance in a 48-0 road win over Fort Worth Arlington Heights was noteworthy even by his standards.
In rushing for 172 yards and four touchdowns and adding a 48-yard touchdown reception in just over three quarters of action, Garcia accounted for 30 of his team’s 48 points.
Benitez photo courtesy of Kassi Westermann
While a libero seldom gets as much attention as volleyball’s glamour positions up front, there are times when these defensive specialists make themselves so valuable they can’t be ignored, even in a losing effort.
That was the case last week with Snyder junior Abby Benitez in a pair of dual matches against Monahans and Odessa Permian on Tuesday, followed by another against Jim Ned and Denver City on Saturday. The Lady Tigers didn’t register a single win, but Benitez’s hustle was astonishing enough to earn her our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award for the week ending Sept. 19.
With starting quarterback Isaac Brann out with an injury in Week 2, Anson looked to unproven junior Dylyn Pyle to lead them in a road trip to Coleman on Friday.
He responded with one of the area’s more memorable first starts for a varsity quarterback in recent memory, hitting 14 of 21 passes for 193 yards and two scores in a 38-14 win.
But he wasn’t finished there.
Pyle also rushed for 71 yards and a score on 11 carries and took a punt return 58 yards for another score to lift the Tigers (2-0). He even played a little defense, collecting three solo tackles.
It has been at least years since we’ve seen the type of offensive execution exhibited by the Big Spring Steers in Friday’s 36-14 win over Vernon. And Big Country Preps has never had a Big Spring player as its player of the week.
Until now.
Junior quarterback Gabriel Baeza helped bring both of those streaks to a close, hitting 20 of 32 passes for 282 yards and four scores. In his spare time he also rushed nine times for 56 yards and two more touchdowns, giving him 338 total yards and a direct hand in six scores.
In doing so, he takes our first Big Country Preps Player of the Week for the 2020-21 school year. It was the first season-opening win for the Steers since a 58-56 win over Kerrville Tivy on Aug. 30, 2014.
After a disappointing finish in the high jump Friday morning as the defending champion in that event, Early’s Trinity Tomlinson had one chance at redemption at the state track meet in the 100-meter hurdles.
She cashed in on the opportunity, finishing in 14.93 seconds to take gold. In doing so, she also earned our final Big Country Preps Player of the Week for the 2018-19 school year.
For Big Country sports fans, the name of Hallie Rose Edmondson is usually associated with basketball, and it will likely stay that way for some time.
An All-Big Country Preps pick on the hardwood, the Roby senior has been a part of a successful RHS varsity program dating back to 2016 when, as a freshman, she saw significant minutes with the Lady Lions in their march to the state semifinals in San Antonio.
She is now committed to play hoops at Hardin-Simmons University beginning next season and, frankly, I’m not surprised.
It is through track and field, however, that Edmondson has found her way into this week’s area spotlight, qualifying for the state meet in four events to capture our BCP Player of the Week award.
Hermleigh junior Makia Gonzales is no stranger to Player of the Week awards. But Big Country sports fans are more accustomed to seeing her snag the accolade on the basketball court, where she is notably one of the area’s best best players.
Surprise, surprise, she’s not all about hoops.
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