Every two years the football schools in Oklahoma are regrouped into districts.
New enrollment figures place Waurika around the middle of Class B and Ryan will move to Class C for football for the next two seasons.
In early January the districts will be finalized by the Oklahoma Secondary Schools Activities Association.
The Oklahoma Football Coaches Association makes recommendations to the OSSAA and those recommendations have been released.
Class B is divided into eight six-team districts, while Class C is made up of four eight-team districts.
It is recommended that Waurika be assigned to District B-3.
Two of Waurika’s district foes from the past two years are part of the recommendations. Central High and Empire will probably join the Eagles in the new district.
Joining the three schools will more than likely be Cyril, Snyder and Tipton. Tipton, who has dominated play in Class C the past four years, has moved into Class B for the next two years.
Bray-Doyle, one of Waurika’s district foes this past season has been recommended for District B-4, while Velma-Alma will begin district play in District B-4 along with Alex, Caddo, Strother and Southwest Covenant.
The Eagles will have five non-district games on the 2020 schedule which will be finalized soon after the district recommendations have been approved.
Ryan has been placed in District C-2 by the coaches’ association. All the other teams in the district have been in Class C the past two years.
None of the teams recommended for placement in District C-2 will be totally unfamiliar to the Cowboys.
The district will likely include Temple and Grandfield – both long-time rivals of Ryan.
Also recommended to be in the district are Fox, Maysville, Mountain View-Gotebo, Paoli and Thackerville.
All of those schools have been on the Cowboys’ schedule but it has been 10 years since the Cowboys have faced Fox and Paoli in the regular season.
The districts are to be finalized at a meeting on January 15.
Waurika halted Ryan’s initial drive of the game near midfield and went on to crush the Cowboys, 52-0, at Bob Givens Sports Complex last Friday night.
Waurika moved to 6-1 and travels to Central High Friday with the kickoff set for 7:30 p.m.
Ryan, 3-4 for the season, will be back in action tonight trying to shake off two straight big losses as they travel to Bray-Doyle to battle the Donkeys. Kickoff is slated for 7:30.
The Cowboys simply had no answer for the powerful Waurika offense last Friday night.
Gunner Phillips makes a tackle assisted by Trey Bryant. Photo by Adam Brinson
The Eagles scored four times on one-play drives and only one score was from less than 15 yards out.
The big-play scores were simply too much for the grind-it-out Cowboy offense to keep up with. A pair of turnovers by Ryan and two onside kick recoveries by the Eagles also contributed to the rout.
The Cowboys punted on their first drive and Grayson Tomberlin launched a 41-yard punt which Waurika’s Kevin Garcia fielded and returned it to the Waurika 43.
Kevin Garcia tackles Grayson Tomberlin in Friday night’s game. Photo by Adam Brinson
In just four plays the Eagles moved 57 yards. Turner Mora found connected with Payton Fletcher for a 28-yard touchdown pass to put Waurika up, 6-0, with 8:18 to play in the first quarter.
On the ensuing drive, the Cowboys fumbled and Hunter Wesberry recovered for the Eagles to give Waurika the ball inside Ryan territory at the 46-yard line,
Mora again found Fletcher – this time wide open over the middle – and Fletcher did the rest to complete a 46-yard scoring play. Mora ran for the two points and with 7:15 left in the first quarter the Eagles had a 14-0 advantage.
The wheels began to fall off for the Cowboy as they could not field the kickoff and Octavio Gomez was there to cover the ball for the Eagles at the Ryan 43.
Garcia picked up 18 yards on first down and after a Waurika penalty, Mora broke into the Ryan secondary and scampered 24 yards for the score. Garcia added the run for the two points to increase the lead to 22-0.
In just a little more than 90 seconds the Eagles had scored 22 points and that wave of scoring was too much for the Cowboys to overcome.
Kevin Garcia looking for the end zone. Photo by Adam Brinson
The Cowboys put together their best offensive thrust of the night after Jonathan Clark fielded the short kickoff and returned it to the Waurika 48.
It took nine plays, but the Cowboys had moved the ball to the Waurika 30 after overcoming a holding penalty, but on a fourth down Tomberlin was sacked by Fletcher and Jordan Watkins to give the Eagles the ball at the Waurika 40.
On the first play Mora ran through the Cowboy defense for a 60-yard touchdown run. The Cowboys had stopped the two-point conversion, but Ryan was flagged for a penalty and on the second try Garcia converted to put Waurika in front, 30-0, with 1:40 still showing on the first quarter clock.
The second Ryan turnover of the night – an interception by Treyton Torrez – set the Eagles up deep in Ryan territory at the Cowboy 24. In five plays – the longest drive of the night for the Eagles – Waurika had another score.
Garcia took a direct snap and weaved his way through the Cowboy defense for a 14-yard scoring run. Mora ran for the two points and with 10:44 left in the second period the Eagle lead was now 38-0.
The Cowboys’ Andrew Villerreal returned the kickoff to the Ryan 46 and on first down Tomberlin found some gaps in the Waurika defense for a 23-yard run.
But two sacks, an incomplete pass and a failed fake punt gave Waurika the ball again at the Ryan 42.
A penalty set the Eagles back five yards, but it made little difference as Mora broke loose again for a 47-yard scoring run. The Cowboy stopped the two-point conversion, but now it was 44-0 with 8:17 still left in the half.
Gomez recovered the kickoff for the Eagles after the Cowboys could not field the ball and on first down Garcia crossed the goal line from 32 yards out. Torrez ran for the two-point conversion and that would wrap up the scoring in the game with 8:01 left in the half.
The Cowboys punted on the next drive and the Eagles cleared the bench, but moved from the Waurika 31 to the Ryan 25 in eight plays. The drive ended in a fumble that was recovered by Ryan’s Walter Snider, but only 1:55 remained in the half.
Ryan attempted to score to keep the game from ending at the half, but the Waurika defense held up and the game clock expired and the game ended on the mercy rule.
Mora once again dominated the offensive attack for the Eagles with 165 yards on just five carries and three touchdown runs and a pair of touchdown passes.
The Eagle defense was equally impressive holding the Cowboys to only 38 yards rushing and 52 total yards in the game.
Waurika faced a third down only twice in the game and converted on both of them. Ryan was only one of eight on third downs.
HIGHWAY 81 RIVALRY NOTES: Waurika now holds a 42-17-3 advantage in the series that began in 1919….This is the second straight year the Eagles have shutout the Cowboys…Waurika has recorded 20 shutouts in the 62-game series excluding ties and a forfeit….Three of those shutouts have come in the past four years….The Eagles have scored 50+ points against the Cowboys for two straight years and that has happened only one other time in the series – in 1971 and 1972…Waurika has won five of the last six meetings between the two rivals….The 52 points scored is the fifth most points scored by the Eagles in contests against the Cowboys….Waurika moves to 2-0 in district play, while the Cowboys are 0-2…The Eagles remained sixth in The Daily Oklahoman Class B poll for this week…The Eagles are ranked as high as fifth in Class B in one poll…The 52 total yards for the Cowboys is a season low.
Game in Figures
WHS RHS
First Downs 13 5
Yards Rushing 17-278 24-38
Yards Passing 74 14
Passes 2-5 2-8
Passes Int. By 1 0
Fumbles, Lost 1-1 1-1
Punts 0-0 2-40
Penalties 4-40 3-30
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Waurika 30 22 x x—52
Ryan 0 0 x x—0
FIRST QUARTER
WAURIKA – Payton Fletcher 28 pass from Turner Mora (run failed), 8:18
WAURIKA – Fletcher 46 pass from Mora (Mora run), 7:15
WAURIKA – Mora 24 run (Kevin Garcia run), 6:46
WAURIKA – Mora 60 run (Garcia run), 1:40
SECOND QUARTER
WAURIKA – Garcia 14 run (Mora run), 10:44
WAURIKA – Mora 47 run (run failed), 8:17
WAURIKA – Garcia 32 run (Treyton Torrez run), 8:01
Waurika hosted the Velma-Alma Comets Tuesday night for a doubleheader encounter and the visitors came away with a pair of victories.
The Lady Comets bested the Lady Eagles, 44-33, while the Comets toppled the Eagles, 53-29.
The Lady Comets are 7-0 and ranked 17th in the latest Class A rankings. The Comets are now 5-1 and are ranked sixth in Class A.
The Lady Eagles dropped to 3-3 with the loss and the Eagles are now 4-2.
Waurika will close out the December portion of the schedule with a Friday matchup with Grandfield on the Bearcats’ home court. Tipoff for the girls’ game is 6:30 p.m.
On Saturday, Waurika will return home and face Big Pasture. The girls’ game will begin at 6:30 p.m. at the Waurika gym.
The Lady Eagles were in front of the Lady Comets after one quarter of play, 14-10.
In the second quarter, however, the Lady Eagles went ice cold and scored only two points. Fortunately, the Lady Comets only managed eight points, but it was enough to give them an 18-16 lead at the half.
The third quarter was a battle with Velma-Alma coming out of the period with an 11-10 advantage to lead 29-26 heading into the final quarter.
The Lady Comets outscored the Lady Eagles, 15-7, to secure the victory in the fourth quarter.
Velma-Alma had three girls in double figures and all three were responsible for the Lady Comets’ fourth-quarter surge.
Jaycee Kimbrough and Shain Ille each had 13 points, while Destinee Wofford added 12 points.
Waurika’s Tallin Mora had 13 points including eight in the first quarter to help the Lady Eagles hold the lead. Asia Smith added 10 points for the Lady Eagles.
The Eagles simply could not keep pace with the talented Comets.
The Comets jumped out to a 13-8 lead and increased the margin to 31-15 by the break.
In the third quarter the Comets put the game away with an 18-6 run to open up a 49-21 lead going into the final frame.
Waurika outscored the Comets, 8-4, in the fourth quarter, but the game was out of reach by that time.
Treyton Torrez led the Eagles in scoring with seven points.
It was a struggle, but the Waurika Eagles flew past Wilson in the second half and scored a 62-34 victory at Cy Sloan Stadium last Friday night.
It was a tight game at the halftime break as Waurika led, 28-20, but after Wilson tied the game early in the third quarter, Waurika came alive with four scores to put the game away.
Turner Mora Photo by Adam Brinson
The Eagles travel down U.S. 81 Friday night to take on the Ryan Cowboys in a District B-4 matchup. Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m.
Wilson got on the board first after a Waurika interception gave Wilson the ball at their own six. On the third play from the Waurika three, Logan Schaaf’s pass was tipped and landed in the hands of Shane Honea who raced to the end zone for a 97-yard touchdown pass. Schaaf found Caylen Fulton for the two-point conversion giving Wilson an 8-0 lead with 7:12 to play in the first quarter.
Waurika answered on their next possession with a 63-yard drive on six plays. The big play of the drive was a 45-yard scamper by Kevin Garcia to the Wilson 15. Four plays later Garcia scored from one yard out and the lead was trimmed to 8-6 with 5:16 remaining in the first quarter.
Waurika Cheerleaders Photo by Adam Brinson
Honea fielded the ensuing kickoff and raced 82 yards for the score. The two-point conversion failed, but the Carter County Eagles had increased the lead to 14-6 with 5:01 left in the first quarter.
Waurika came back to tie the score on a seven-play, 55-yard drive. Turner Mora picked up the touchdown was a 22-yard run. Trent Arellano picked up the two-point conversion on a tough run around the left side to knot the score at 14 with 2:35 remaining in the first period.
Tackle by Hunter Wesberry Photo by Adam Brinson
Wilson began another scoring drive that carried into the second quarter. Schaff capped the drive with a one-yard plunge giving the lead back to Wilson at 20-14 with 10:26 left before the half.
Waurika had another answer, however, as they drove from their own 43. Mora found Hunter Wesberry wide open in the end zone and connected on a 24-yard touchdown pass to put draw Waurika even with Wilson at 20-20 with 8:45 left before the half.
Turner Mora Photo by Adam Brinson
After turning back another Wilson drive, Waurika took possession at the Waurika 25. Working against the clock Waurika marched down the field and competed the scoring drive when Mora hit Payton Fletcher with a touchdown pass over the middle. Mora ran for the two points and with just 16 ticks showing on the clock Waurika had gained the lead for the first time.
The two teams exchanged turnovers to open the third quarter and after Waurika recovered the Wilson fumble, Garcia scored from two yards out. After Mora ran for the two points, Waurika upped the lead to 36-20 with 10:12 to play in the third quarter.
Kevin Garcia Photo by Adam Brinson
Wilson refused to die as they took the ensuing kickoff and drove 63 yards on just two plays. The big play was a 54-yard pass from Schaaf to Honea score the touchdown. Schaaf ran for the two-point conversion to narrow the gap to 36-28 with 8:12 left in the third period.
This is the point in the game Waurika took control. Mora had two-long distance scoring runs – a 40-yarder the completed a 63-yard drive and a 74-yard scamper that capped a 97-yard drive. The scores extended the lead for Waurika to 48-28.
Trent Arellano Photo by Adam Brinson
Garcia got the next score for Waurika with a five-yard run with 11:22 left in the game giving Waurika a comfortable 54-28 advantage.
Waurika scored again after a Wilson punt and this time a 52-yard drive in three plays ended when Garcia caught a 12-yard pass from Mora for the touchdown. Mora ran for the two-point conversion and Waurika was in front, 62-28, with 8:28 left in the game.
Trent Arellano Photo by Adam Brinson
Wilson got its final score of the night on a 50-yard drive that ended when Honea caught a 27-yard scoring pass from Schaaf. The try for two was batted down by Jordan Watkins to set the final margin.
Waurika rolled up 611 yards of total offense with Mora picking up over half of that on the ground. The talented senior quarterback finished with 27 carries for 319 yards. Garcia also topped the 100-yard mark with 137 yards on just 13 carries.
The Waurika defense was impressive against the run as Wilson picked up only 104 yards on 33 totes, but Wilson struck for 254 yards in the air.
EAGLE FLIGHTS: Waurika now leads this series, 52-20-3, with the first game being played in 1921….The 96 points scored by both teams is the most points by the two teams in a game in the series….The 62 points scored by Waurika is the most ever scored against Wilson….Wilson’s 34 points ties for the fourth most points scored against Waurika which was also done in 1956….The 34 points scored by Wilson is also the most points scored in a loss in this series….Mora moved over the 1,000-yard mark in rushing yards in this game as he now has 1,067 yards rushing….This was the third game of the season that Mora rushed for more than 200 yards.
Game in Figures
WIL. WAUR.
First Downs 14 30
Yards Rushing 33-104 49-501
Yards Passing 254 110
Passes 11-16 10-14
Passes Int. By 1 0
Fumbles, Lost 4-3 1-1
Punts 1-25 0-0
Penalties 5-28 2-20
SCORE BY QUARTERS
Wilson 14 6 8 6–34
Waurika 14 14 20 14-62
WILSON – Shane Honea 97 pass from Logan Schaaf (Caylen Fulton pass from Schaaf), 7:12, 1st Quarter
WAURIKA – Kevin Garcia 1 run (run failed), 5:16, 1st Quarter
The Ryan Cowboys spotted Maysville 38 straight points and could never recover in dropping a 54-6 verdict to the Warriors in a game that ended at the half.
The contest was delayed twice by lightening, but the Cowboys were never really in the game that was played in rainy and miserable conditions.
The two delays totaled about two hours in length.
The Cowboys will try to get back on track tomorrow night (Friday) as they will play host to the Caddo Bruins in a homecoming contest. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at the Bob Givens Sports Complex.
The Bruins will bring a 1-2 record to Ryan. Caddo lost its season-opener to Wilson, 58-16 and then fell to Dewar, 54-6. Last week the Bruins picked up their only win of the season with a 34-6 victory over Thackervile.
The game was barely underway when the first weather delay occurred and the Cowboys trailed only, 8-0.
Ryan Football Photo by Sheree Hanson
But when play resumed, the Warriors got another score before the end of the quarter to up the lead to 16-0.
Early in the second quarter the Warriors increased the lead to 24-0.
From that point in the game it became the Gunner Aprill show for the Warriors as the talented quarterback scored four straight times for the Warriors.
The Cowboys got on the board late in the second quarter after a second weather delay and sandwiched between Aprill’s four touchdowns. Grayson Tomberlin broke loose for a 55-yard run which cut the Maysville lead to 36-6.
Aprill got the third and fourth of his scores to close out the scoring for Maysville. His third TD of the night came on a two-yard run.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Warriors executed an onside kick and just one play later Aprill scooted 40 yards to seal the mercy-rule victory for the Warriors.
Tomberlin led the Cowboys in rushing with 70 yards on eight carries, but the Warriors held the Ryan offense in check most of the night.
Ryan Offense Photo by Sheree Hanson
Aprill finished the night with 125 yards on nine carries for the Warriors while Gunner Chambers added 101 yards on just six carries. The Warriors rolled up 322 yards on just 22 carries in the shortened contest.
Tomberlin led the defensive effort for the Cowboys with five tackles.
RYAN RAMBLINGS: Despite the loss the Cowboys hold a 4-3 lead in the series with Maysville….The 54 points scored by the Warriors is the most ever against the Cowboys….The combined total of 60 points by the two teams is the most in the seven-game series with the Warriors…Maysville is unranked in the Class C poll in The Daily Oklahoman, but is ranked sixth in the latest okprep.com poll…
A limited number of Ryan Cowgirl track team members made the three-hour drive to Covington-Douglas High School Monday to compete in the Covington-Douglas Invitational.
The Cowgirls, who did not compete in every event in the 36-team field, scored 32 points on the day to tie Sharon-Mutual for seventh place in the meet.
Thomas was the meet champion with 111 points followed by Pawhuska which finished with 79 points.
The meet was for Class A and Class 2A schools only.
The 3,200 meter relay team of Lilybet Harmon, Lily York, Juliet Spangler and Holland Carter brought home a silver medal with a time of 11:05.40.
The posted time is the third best in school history and the second best time recorded this season by the Cowgirl quartet.
Spangler and Alicen Williams finished second and third respectively in the 3,200 meter run. Spangler’s time was 14:08.8 – her second best time of the season. Williams was clocked at 14:34.95 and was over 30 seconds ahead of the fourth-place finisher.
The only other scorer for the Cowgirls came in the 800 meters where Carter managed a fifth place finish. Her time of 2:41.30 is her best this season.
One thing you can be sure about in today’s world – not much stays the same.
An examination of the eight-man football participants in Oklahoma certainly would fit this description as the schools playing the eight-man brand of high school football has increased and continues to change.
It is no secret the population of small towns in Oklahoma is in great decline and that has a direct impact on the schools in those communities.
Sports in the small schools are experiencing a decline between two factors – declining population and declining participation – the impact is felt in those schools. The sport it has impacted the most is high school football.
A number of schools – both eight-man and 11-man – did not finish the 2018 season because of lack of participation and injuries.
Before 1955 there were no schools in Oklahoma playing eight-man football. A few schools played six-man in the years prior to this time. But, a number of schools in the panhandle and northwest Oklahoma began playing the eight-man game in the mid-50’s.
Eight-man football remained in that geographic area until the mid-70’s when schools in the northeast, central and southwest parts of Oklahoma began to play eight-man football.
As recent as 2007 eight-man football was limited to 72 schools, but that number has risen to 80. Look for that number to be increased in the near future.
Changes are routinely made to the eight-man classes as schools drop from 11-man to eight-man and other schools have been forced to drop the sport. A few of the schools that played eight-man football are no longer in existence.
It would seem some of the most dramatic change to the eight-man game has occurred in the past year or two.
At least two schools – Bokoshe and Copan – have dropped football after going 1-9 and 0-9, respectively in the 2017 season. But, the biggest change has come in the number of schools that are dropping to the eight-man grid version from the 11-man game.
And, what is amazing is some of those schools have been traditional powers in Class A football through the years including just a few years ago.
Hollis, who is playing an independent eight-man schedule this season, won the Class A state title in 2013 and won 10 games or more for at least four seasons from 2013 to 2016. The Tigers will play three 11-man games this season as the 2019 season will serve as a transition to eight-man football.
Velma-Alma and Okeene are two more traditional powers in Class A over the past two or three decades and both are moving to eight-man football and will play an independent schedule for this season.
Quinton, located in eastern Oklahoma, and Wellston and Beaver are three additional schools that are making the move to eight-man football. Quinton and Wellston both have a pretty large average daily membership, but were approved by the Oklahoma Secondary Schools Activities Association to move to eight-man football.
All of those schools will be assigned to an eight-man district for the 2020 season.
Temple and Balko are two eight-man schools that did not complete their schedules last year. Temple played two or three games last season and finished one of those games with only seven players. Balko played five games before being forced to forfeit the remainder of the schedule. Welch also had a difficult year putting a team on the field in 2018.
Temple will likely be able to compete this season, but Balko has formed a co-op with Forgan giving kids from Forgan the chance to compete in football for the first time since the 2012 season when the Bulldogs played for a state title.
Over the past 10 to 15 years, over 10 schools that played football no longer play the sport. This includes some former Ryan opponents such as Duke, Cement and Gracemont.
Waurika is part of a significant number of schools that moved from 11-man to eight-man football within the past 10 years. Waurika began eight-man play in 2012 and since that time nearby schools, Empire and Wilson, have joined the eight-man ranks.
Not all schools are experiencing decline. In fact a few of the schools that have played eight-man football most recently may be forced to move to 11-man football when the final average daily membership numbers are released in September and new football district assignments are revealed in January.
Central High and Caddo, both teams on the schedule for this year for Waurika and Ryan, may be two of those schools along with Ryan’s 2018 playoff opponent, Burns Flat-Dill City.
Waurika’s average daily membership has increased to 107.42, but that number should put the Eagles in the middle of the eight-man schools that will make up Class B.
Ryan has seen its average daily membership drop to 82.47 and it is probable the Cowboys will move to Class C for the 2020-2021 seasons.
It is possible that three-time Class C defending champion Tipton may move up to Class B.
Some of the possible district foes for 2020 and 2021 for Waurika may be Wilson, Empire, Velma-Alma, Bray-Doyle. The remaining member of the district could be Tipton (if they move to Class B), Alex or Bray-Doyle. Waurika will have five schools in the new district besides the Eagles.
Ryan will be looking at some familiar foes if they make the move to Class C. Possibilities include Fox, Thackerville, Paoli, Maysville, Mountain View-Gotebo, Temple, Grandfield and Corn Bible Academy. Ryan will likely have seven other schools in its district.
Of course none of this is official until the final numbers are posted in September, but the eight-man game will likely continue to grow as more and more schools in rural parts of the state continue to decline.
The 2019 season is slated to get underway in just a few weeks with preseason practices, scrimmages and the regular season slate of games. Ryan will travel to Velma-Alma in the season opener on August 30 while Waurika will begin the season a week later with a home game against Temple.
All through the regular season – including the regional cross country meet – the Waurika girls’ cross country squad has been on the cusp of accomplishing great things.
And, all the hard work and competition of the 2019 season paid off last Saturday at the Class 2A State Cross Country Meet held at the Gordon Cooper Technology Center in Shawnee.
The Lady Eagles, who finished behind Ryan and Merritt at the regional on Waurika’s home course, outdistanced those two teams in the state meet to earn fifth place – the highest finish ever for a Waurika cross country squad at state.
Watonga claimed the team title over Hooker by one point. Watonga finished with 52 points, while the Lady Bulldogs had 53. Cherokee was fourth with 119 points and Boise City was fourth with 134 points. Waurika claimed fifth place with 175 points.
“I was very proud of the high school girls this year,” said long-time cross country coach Joe Masoner. “They started working towards state in June in the weight room.”
The course was a difficult one last Saturday as the recent rains produced a somewhat muddy path for the competitors in the crowded Class 2A field which featured 154 runners.
Asia Smith led the way for the Lady Eagles earning 21st place with a time of 13:43.06 – her second best time of the season. Smith was a late addition to the Lady Eagles’ squad and she really made a difference for the Lady Eagles in the last part of the season.
Tallin Mora finished 34th with a time of 13:52.10 – also her second best time of the season.
Liberti Simmons, just a freshman for the Lady Eagles, earned 35th in her first appearance in the state meet with a time of 13:52.47 – her second best clocking of the season.
Lexie Streeter was 53rd for the Lady Eagles. She turned in a time of 14:08.62.
Rounding out the team scorers for the Lady Eagles was Faith Roberson. She finished 92nd in the race and turned in a season-best time of 15:07.12.
Also representing Waurika at the state competition was Hope Cummings. She finished 132nd with a time of 16:46.04 – also her best time of the season over a 3,200-meter course.
Kaci Reynolds finished not far behind Cummings in 140th place with a time of 17:33.54.
The fifth-place finish for the Lady Eagles was the highest team finish at the state meet in school history.
The Lady Eagles have qualified for the state cross country meet the past three seasons and have improved each year. In 2017, Waurika finished 14th and in 2018 the Lady Eagles were ninth.
Waurika also qualified for state in 2014 and 2013.
“These girls ran hard in practice and in meets,” said Masoner commenting on the 2019 season. “I was hoping for a regional title this year, but they gave themselves a chance.”
“The one thing about this group of ladies is they were determined to do better at state which they did by finishing fifth overall and beating the two teams that beat them at regionals,” added Masoner.
“I am super excited about next year getting everyone back next year except for Sara (Ballard),” noted Masoner. “We will add five girls moving up from the junior high team that will make us better.”
While the boys’ squad failed to qualify for the state meet, they claimed one meet title and performed well against some tough competition throughout the year.
“I am also proud of the boys’ team although we didn’t qualify for state,” said Masoner about the Eagles’ 2019 season. “The boys never seemed to get over the hump where their times started to go down.”
“They worked hard and ran close to each other which needs to be done to score well but only was able to do that in the front half of the pack in a couple of meets,” Masoner noted.
“It hurt not having Bryson (Hernandez) this year since he has been one of the team leaders the previous three years,” said Masoner. “We are losing half our team to graduation, but we will get some help from the junior high team.”
With the accomplishments of both teams this year, the Lady Eagles and Eagles have a lot to look forward to next fall for the 2020 cross country season.
There have been a number of outstanding coaches of all sports at Ryan.
Many of them stayed at Ryan a short time and then bolted for greener pastures and ended up with highly successful careers.
This article will focus on the top ten coaches of all-time with a lot of consideration given to success but also tenure at Ryan. Some of them had short tenures but where highly successful. Others stayed a long time. A few coached more than one sport with success.
Not all the names of the coaches of boys and girls basketball, track and baseball have been identified – especially when you get before 1950.
However, the Cowboys and Cowgirls did not have a lot of success in those sports in the early days with a few notable exceptions. It would be a reasonable assumption that a coach has been left off this list and if so, this writer would be glad to hear from you.
Here’s the list that surely will create a bit of conversation among former Ryan athletes through the decades.
1. Raymon West
When you have your name placed on the basketball court and win a state championship, you are bound to be at the top of the list. Coach West put together an outstanding career at Ryan. The vast majority of his coaching career was spent with Cowboy and Cowgirl athletes. He had short tenures at Irving, Burkburnett and Duncan, but the rest of his coaching career was at Ryan. Coach West coached every sport at Ryan at one time. His 1962 boys’ basketball squad was the first roundball team at Ryan to qualify for the state tournament. He also coached a number of football teams during that time and coached baseball. He guided the 1965 Cowgirls to a state title – defeating three opponents by a total of four points. He returned to Ryan in 1970 to coach basketball and become the high school principal. Coach West was instrumental in the move from 11-man to eight-man football. He coached the final 11-man team and the first three eight-man squads – winning a district title in the first year of eight-man football. He coached boys’ basketball for 15 seasons and was at the helm of the Cowgirl basketball squads for a total of 11 years.
2. Stan Mueggenborg
Coach Mueggenborg, who is the only current coach at Ryan to make this list, spent 11 seasons as the head football coach and head baseball coach. He compiled a 110-97 record during that span in baseball and recorded an 81-52 record in football. The 81 wins is the most by a coach in school history. The football squad made nine playoff appearances and won two district titles. Mueggenborg directed the Cowboys to a pair of double-digit win seasons and two semifinal appearances. He even directed the Cowboy basketball team for half of a season. He is currently serving as the fast-pitch and slow-pitch softball coach for the Cowgirls.
3. Phil Elerick
The long-time Oklahoma high school football coach made an incredible impression on the football program at Ryan. He is second to Mueggenborg in total number of wins, but it was accomplished in just six seasons – from 1984 to 1989. He guided the Cowboys to a 58-16 record during that time. Elerick was the first Ryan football coach to guide a team to the state semifinals and was also the first coach to take a squad to the state title game. The Cowboys had three state runner-up finishes, four district titles and five playoff appearances during his six years at the helm of the Cowboy grid program.
4. Lane Weldon
Weldon had a long tenure as the boys and girls basketball coach at Ryan. He coached both teams for 10 consecutive years – a feat unequaled in Ryan basketball history. During his tenure at Ryan the Cowgirls won three district titles and made two area tournament appearances. The Cowgirls made the regional tournament in eight of the 10 seasons Weldon was roaming the sidelines. The Cowgirls were 123-132 during the decade of Weldon’s influence. Prior to his arrival the Cowgirls had suffered through five different coaches in six seasons. The Cowboys were also successful under Weldon’s coaching prowess. All ten of his Cowboy basketball teams advanced to the regional tournament and the Cowboys won six district titles and advanced to the area tournament four times. The Cowboys were 164-96 under Weldon. Weldon also coached softball and baseball during his time at Ryan.
5. Gordon Garner
The only reason for Garner being behind Weldon was the number of years he stayed at Ryan. The veteran Oklahoma prep coach guided the Cowboy basketball team to a state tourney appearance – only the second time in school history. The boys’ teams during that time were 37-52 with one district crown. Garner guided the Cowgirls to a 62-32 mark and won two district titles. He also coached track for three of his four years at Ryan and was the assistant football coach with Elerick.
6. Richard Hendricks
Here is another coach that had a short but really successful coaching career at Ryan. He coached both the Cowboy and Cowgirl basketball teams for only two seasons – 1966 and 1967. His boys’ teams struggled, but the Cowgirls put together two outstanding seasons after claiming the state title in 1965. The Cowgirls won the district tournament in both seasons Hendricks served at Ryan. The 1966 squad attained a ranking as high as fourth in the state. Overall, Hendricks put together an astounding 40-9 mark in two seasons.
7. Travis Smith
Smith guided the Cowboy baseball squad for four seasons, but those four years were some of the most successful years of Cowboy baseball. His tenure came after the first two seasons of the renewed baseball program at Ryan. Smith guided the Cowboys to a 76-27-1 record and the Cowboy nine garnered two district titles. The 1996 squad finished 24-6 and was one game away from a state tournament appearance.
8. Bill Hunt
Hunt came to Ryan from Seiling and helped guide the Cowboys to one of the most successful 11-man seasons in school history. Hunt is the winningest 11-man coach at Ryan and is the only 11-man coach with a winning record in at least three seasons. The 1974 squad was 9-1 and dropped a tense 26-22 decision to Pernell in the fourth game of the season. That was the final season that only the district champion advanced to the playoffs. The 1974 team finished ranked eighth in the state – without an appearance in the post-season. Hunt is also responsible for revitalizing the boys’ track program at Ryan. The 1973 mile relay team won a state title and the 1972 team won the conference title and was the regional runner up. Hunt finished his career by coaching at Cache for over two decades.
9. Chy Waters
Waters coached girls’ basketball and softball at Ryan for five seasons. Her basketball squads put together a 70-49 mark and won two district titles. All five teams were either district champions or runner up. Two of her squads advanced to the area tournament, which is half of all the area tourney appearances made by a Cowgirl team. Waters guided the 2011 Cowgirl fast-pitch team to the district title and a regional tourney appearance – the only time in the short history of the program that has happened.
10. J.F. Robertson
It is likely that no one reading this article would remember Robertson. He coached the Cowboy basketball teams in 1916, 1917 and 1918. All three squads had winning marks – with the 1917 team putting together a 15-2 record. The 1918 team, for which a final win/loss record is unavailable, claims a mythical state title as that season preceded the first playoff system for basketball.
Honorable Mention List (no order): Gene Wells (coached three sports during his five years at Ryan – including the only district title in 11-man football and three district baseball titles and after leaving Ryan he established a powerful athletic program at Hobbs, New Mexico); G.J. Williams (the first Ryan football coach and if all the records were available may have more wins than coach Hunt); Andy Claborn (coached only two football seasons, but the Cowboys advanced to the state championship game in both seasons); Mattie Norman (was the first girls’ basketball coach to direct a squad to a district title and regional tournament appearance); Glen Alain (coached football for only two season, but the 1929 Cowboy squad defeated Yukon on Thanksgiving Day to claim the mythical state title); Frank Norman (coached track for the Cowboys for an unknown number of seasons, but the 1941 team claimed the county title and had two dominant relay teams that won a number of meets during the season).
Girls track at Ryan High School does not have near the history because girls track was much slower to be developed in Oklahoma and at the local level.
The Cowgirls would put together a team and compete in the Red River Rebel Conference track meet in the 1960’s, but there were few, if any, meets to enter in Oklahoma during that time. The 1966 group that competed in the conference meet won the team title.
A regional and state track meet for girls in Oklahoma was not held until 1972 and it was not until 1975 that the Cowgirls competed in a regional meet.
However, through the years the Cowgirls have had some outstanding individuals hit the oval and so the top ten competitors have been selected for the sport. It is much easier pouring through 45 years of results than trying to go through over 100 years of the sport on the boys’ side.
Making it a little easier was the fact the Cowgirls still did not field a team every year. There has been a total of 14 years since 1975 the Cowgirls did not send competitors to the regional meet.
The Cowgirls have not been able to win an individual title in any event at the state meet despite coming close a couple of times through the years. It has become increasingly difficult to be able to place at a state track meet with many more schools competing in girls’ track.
Nearly every small-school meet today has a boys’ and girls’ division. In the early days of the girls track schools attended different meets designated for each of the genders.
To help produce some more conversation, however, the top 10 girls are listed below:
1. Tonya Martin
Martin is the school’s only four-time regional champion in one event. She claimed the regional title in the 400 meters from 1988 to 1991. During that time she also won the regional title in the 800 meters in 1989-1991. She holds the school record in both of those events. In the 1990 state track meet, Martin and another girl ran under the state meet record time for the 800 meters with Martin finishing second. Martin also finished second in the 800 in 1989 and third in 1991. In the 400 meters she placed fourth twice and had a fifth-place finish in 1989 and a sixth-place finish in 1988. She was the conference meet champion in the 400 and 800 meters in 1990 and 1991. Results from the conference meet in 1988 and 1989 are unavailable.
2. Karona Conkling
Conkling was the first regional champion in school history. She claimed the mile run title in the 1982 regional meet. In 1983, Conkling won the 1,600 meters and the 3,200 meters at the regional competition. Those are the only two years results are available. The regional and state meets are the only results available for those two seasons for Conkling. Like Martin, Conkling could never quite win the gold medal in the state meet. Her best finish was in 1983 when she finished second in the 3,200 meters. Her time of 13:03.19 is the school record in the event. She also holds the school record for the 1,600 meters and in 1983 she earned the bronze medal at the state track meet. She also qualified for state in 1983 in the 800 meters and finished sixth in the event making her the only state placer in three events in school history.
3. Roshanda Lewis
Lewis made her mark in the sprints and helping the 400 meter and 800 meter relay teams for the Cowgirls. In 2012, she earned third place in the state track meet after finishing fourth in the event at regional. She qualified as an additional qualifier and ended up placing in the top three at state. Her best regional finish came in 2014 when she was the runner up in the 100 meters. She also placed in the high jump at regional twice including 2012 when she finished second because of more misses. Lewis helped the 400 meter relay team to a pair of third-place finishes and one fourth-place finish at regional. She also was part of the 800-meter relay team that finished fourth in 2014 and 2012. She holds the school record in the high jump and has three of the top four performances. She also has the five best times in the 100 meters of any Cowgirl competitor.
4. Kara Hawkins
Hawkins placed in the state track meet twice – in 2012 she was sixth in the 100 meters and in 2013 was fifth in the long jump. She was a regional champion in 2011 in the long jump. Hawkins placed in the long jump all four years of high school. She also ran on the 400 meter relay and the 800 meter relay for the Cowgirls. In the 400 relay, the team placed in the regional in each of Hawkins’ four seasons running track for Ryan. Hawkins holds the two best times in school history in the 200 meters, but her best performance in the event at the regional was fourth place her freshman season.
5. Whitney Roark
Roark was a hurdler for the Cowgirls and her best performance came at the 1995 regional meet when she finished third in the 300 meter hurdles. She was also the conference champion in the 100 meter hurdles in the 1996 Southern Eight meet. She holds the school record in both events. Her school record time of 20.41 earned her a third place finish in the 1997 Southern Eight meet. In the 1996 regional, Roark was fourth in the 300 meters with a school record time of 60.98.
6. Kourtni Gore
Gore, along with Lewis, is the last regional champion in an individual event for the Cowgirls. Gore was the regional champion in the discus with a toss of 93-9 in the 2014 event. Gore went on to place fifth in the discus at the state track meet that season with a mark of 107-5, which is the school record for the event. Gore also finished fourth in the shot put in 2015 and was the regional runner up in the discus in 2015.
7. Natalie Grantham
Grantham earns a spot on this list because she was the first three-event qualifier for the state track meet. She was the 1975 regional runner up in the 75-yard dash, the 100-yard dash and the long jump. She was also the conference champion in the 1975 Red River Rebel Conference track meet at Temple. Grantham did not place in the 1975 state track meet.
8. Juliet Spangler
Spangler is one of the final four on this list and she has a chance to move up on the list as she just completed her junior season for the Cowgirls. This past season she was the regional runner up in the 1,600 meters and the 3,200 meters. She was also the regional runner up in the 2017 regional meet in both events. Spangler helped the 3,200 meter relay team in 2019 to an eighth place finish in the state track meet – the first year that eight places earned team points. It was the first relay team to place in a state meet in school history. Spangler holds the third best time in school history in the 1,600 meters which was recorded at this season’s regional meet. Spangler was part of the 1,600 meter relay team that holds the school record set in the 2019 state meet – even though the team did not place. Spangler is also a standout on the Cowgirl cross country team.
9. Holland Carter
Carter gets the nod for this spot because of her accomplishments not only in the 1,600 and 3,200 meter relays but also because of her individual performances in the 800 meters. She placed second in the 800 meters at the 2019 regional and also had a third place finish in the 2018 regional competition. She medals in most meets during the 2019 season in the 800 meters in additional to her spot on the relay teams that excelled throughout the 2919 season. Carter was also a standout for the cross country squad.
Harmon also has not completed her career at Ryan as she is set to enter her senior year this fall. Harmon is part of the 1,600 and 3,200 meter relay teams for the Cowgirls that have made their mark at meets throughout the south central part of the state – including the 3,200 meter team that placed at the 2019 state meet. Harmon runs the first leg of the two relay races and has helped set the momentum for these two relay teams to finish with a medal in most of the meets they competed in during the 2019 campaign.
10. (tie) Lily York, Lilybet Harmon
You could make an argument that Spangler, Harmon, York and Carter should all get an equal spot on this list. York and Harmon will return to the Cowgirl track squad in 2020 and will look to assist the 1,600 meter and 3,200 meter relay teams of which they have been a part of the past three seasons. Harmon has also competed in the 800 meters and will be trying to qualify for state in her final year for the Cowgirls.
Honorable Mention: Kristi Kilpatrick (third in the 1990 regional in the 1,600 meters); Charlotte Denning (1966 Red River Rebel Conference champion I the high jump with the third best mark in school history); Gail Shoffner (the first state qualifier for the Cowgirls in a field event with her 1975 performance in the high jump); Tobi Gunter (owns two of the four top marks in the discus and was fifth in the state track meet in 1990).
