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Waurika High School Athletes Feted At Recent All-Sports Banquet

By
Curtis Plant
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A number of recognitions were handed out to Waurika High School athletes at the recent All-Sports Banquet held at the school a week ago Tuesday.

 All athletes were given their letters for participation in fast-pitch softball, baseball, powerlifting, football, boys basketball, girls basketball, baseball, boys track, girls track and cross country.

 It was an eventful year as many of the teams had great accomplishments, but on this night it was all about individual honors that were well-deserved.

 The Waurika Athletic Booster Club presented scholarships to two senior athletes – Aaron Nitka and Madison Roberson.

 Each of the coaches took time to recognize the athletes for honors or performances they achieved in the 2018-19 school year.

 Here is a list of some of the notable accomplishments by sport:

 Cross Country

State Medalist: Asia Smith

Class 2A All-Star: Asia Smith

Regional Medalist: Asia Smith, Lexie Streeter

 Fast-Pitch Softball

All Southern Eight Conference: Destiny Barnes, third base; Madison Roberson, second base.

All Southern Eight Conference Honorable Mention: Hope Cummings, shortstop; Landry Forsyth, 1st base.

 Football

Oklahoma Eight-Man Football Coaches Association All-Stars: Aaron Nitka, Colton Bryant.

Oklahoma Eight-Man Football Coaches Association All-Star Alternates: Gatlin Black, Zachary Brown.

District B-4 Player of the Year: Turner Mora

District B-4 Offensive Lineman of the Year: Gatlin Black

District B-4 Defensive Lineman of the Year: Aaron Nitka

District B-4 Newcomer of the Year: Zachary Brown

District B-4 First Team: Colton Bryant, running back; Jordan Watkins, guard; Edwin Garcia, linebacker; Kevin Garcia, cornerback.

District B-4 Second Team: Seth Waid, center; Gabe Jenkins, defensive end; Hunter Wesberry, cornerback; Austin Dyer, defensive end.

Power Lifting

Oklahoma State Power Lifting Meet: Gustavo Gomez, 4th (645 total pounds); Hunter Wesberry, 5th (630 total pounds).

Oklahoma State Power Lifting Meet Results by Division: Madison Christian, 3rd; Olivia Ralls, 7th; Landry Forsyth, 10th.

State Eight-Man School Meet: 123 Pound Division: 3rd – Gustavo Gomez, 625 pounds; 5th – Hunter Wesberry – 600 pounds; 13th – Dallas Fristoe, 400 pounds; 132 Pound Division: 15th – Sara Ballard, 400 pounds; 145 Pound Division: 6th – Colton Bryant, 765 pounds; 157 Pound Division: 15th – Landry Forsyth, 580 pounds; 198 Pound Division: 10th – Olivia Ralls, 665 pounds

Boys Basketball

Oil Field Conference 1st Team: Aaron Nitka

Oil Field Conference 2nd Team: Kevin Garcia

Oil Field Conference Honorable Mention: Cache Arellano, Turner Mora

Southern Eight Conference 2nd Team: Kevin Garcia, Turner Mora, Cache Arellano.

All-Area Basketball: Aaron Nitka

Girls Basketball

Oil Field Conference 1st Team: Madison Roberson, Asia Smith

Oil Field Conference 2nd Team: Lexie Streeter.

Oil Field Conference Honorable Mention: Hope Cummings, Madison Dees, Tallin Mora, Faith Roberson, Gracie Walling

Southern Eight Conference Most Valuable Player: Madison Roberson

Southern Eight Conference 1st Team: Asia Smith

Souther Eight Conference 2nd Team: Gracie Walling, Tallin Mora.

All-Area Basketball: Madison Roberson

Boys Track

Regional Champions: 800 Meter Relay (Kevin Garcia, Turner Mora, Nic Alvarado, Colton Bryant); 1,600 Meter Relay (Kevin Garcia, Turner Mora, Colton Bryant, Cache Arellano); 400 Meters, Turner Mora; Discus, Aaron Nitka

State Track Meet Medalists: 400 Meters, Turner Mora; 800 Meter Relay (Turner Mora, Colton Bryant, Nic Alvarado, Kevin Garcia); 1,600 Meter Relay, (Kevin Garcia, Turner Mora, Colton Bryant, Cache Arellano)

State Track Meet Qualifier: 3,200 Meters (Cache Arellano, Bryson Hernandez, Gustavo Gomez, Octavio Gomez.

Girls Track

Regional Champion: Shot Put, Madison Roberson.

State Track Meet Champion: Shot Put, Madison Roberson

State Track Meet Medalists: 1,600 Meters, Asia Smith; Discus, Madison Roberson.

State Track Meet Qualifier: 3,200 Meters (Asia Smith, Lexie Streeter, Faith Roberson, Tallin Mora.

 Baseball

Oil Field Conference Most Valuable Player: Aaron Nitka

Oil Field Conference First Team: Gatlin Black, catcher; Bowden Forsyth, first base; Hunter Wesberry, infield; Zac Brown, outfield; Austin Dyer, outfield.

Oil Field Conference Honorable Mention: Jordan Watkins

Southwest Coaches Association All-Area: Aaron Nitka

Region Five All-Stars: Austin Dyer, Gatlin Black, Zachary Brown.

Proposed Football Districts For 2020 and 2021 Released

By
Trey Smart
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 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.

Cowboy Nine Drops Twinbill to Turner

By
Trey Smart
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After an extended time off because of scheduling conflicts the Ryan Cowboy baseball squad was back in action Tuesday at Larry Ninman Field.

The Cowboys hosted Turner in a doubleheader and Ryan found itself on the wrong side of the scoreboard in both games.

The Falcons defeated the Cowboys, 12-2, in the pair of contests that ended early because of the run rule.

Ryan is slated to be back in action today at Larry Ninman field when the Cowboys play host to Grandfield. The high school game will start around 6 p.m.

Grandfield’s only win this season came in an earlier meeting with the Cowboys.

The Cowboys close out the regular season with a twinbill with Waurika on Monday. The doubleheader will start at 4 p.m. at the Ryan diamond.

The Eagles have two wins over the Cowboys in an earlier meeting.

Following the final two regular season games the Cowboys will travel to Sterling for the Class B District Tournament.

No other details were provided on the pair of losses to Turner.

Eagles Fall in District Tourney Title Game to Rock Creek

By
Trey Smart
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 The Waurika Eagles closed its 2019 baseball season in heart-breaking fashion by dropping the title game of the Class A District Tournament to Rock Creek, 7-6.

Last Thursday on the first day of the tourney the Eagles did manage one win in the tourney opener with a 10-6 victory over Ringling. Rock Creek had already defeated the Blue Devils so the loss to the Eagles eliminated Ringling.

This meant that Waurika or Rock Creek had to win two games to claim the district championship.

Late Thursday, Rock Creek got the first win, 11-3, setting up a championship round on Friday. The Eagles would have had to beat the Mustangs twice to win the tourney.

The Mustangs scored a run in the bottom of the seventh in the 7-6 win to claim the district crown.

Waurika finished the 2019 campaign with a 16-7 record.

In the final game on Friday Rock Creek took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning.

With the score tied at 4-4 in the bottom of the fifth, the Mustangs took the lead on a two-run home run.

In the top of the seventh, the Eagles fought back to get a pair of runs – one on Jordan Watkins’ sacrifice fly.

Bowden Forsyth
Photo by Curtis Plant

The Mustangs scored the winning run in the bottom of the inning to end the Eagles’ season and advance to today’s Class A Regional Tournament.

Hunter Wesberry was 3-for-4 in the game with a triple and two singles. Aaron Nitka finished 2-for-4 with two runs batted in.

Austin Dyer took the loss on the mound as he surrendered eight hits and struck out five in the game.

In Thursday’s nightcap of the tournament the Eagles fell behind early and could not launch a serious threat during the game.

Peyton Fletcher was the starting pitcher for the Eagles, but he gave up six runs on four walks and a hit and did not retire a batter.

The Mustangs made the 6-0 first inning lead stand the rest of the way.

The Eagles only had three hits in the game – one each by Nitka, Watkins and Colton Bryant. Nitka and Jordan each had doubles with Nitka driving in a run with his two-bagger.

In the tournament’s second game on Thursday, Waurika took the lead for good with five runs in the fourth inning.

Waurika had the lead in the second inning when Wesberry picked up a run-scoring double.

The Blue Devils seized the lead in the top of the third inning, but the Eagles came back in the bottom of the third to take the lead in the game for good.

Senior Baseball Players were recognized at Monday’s Baseball Game.
Seniors pictured with their parents and/or those special in their lives (l-r) Chad Black, Gatlin Black, Miranda Black, 
Zachary Brown, Michelle Salazar, Colton Bryant, Heather Bryant, 
Bobby Dyer, Austin Dyer, Lisa Dyer, Megan Allen, Gavin Fitzgerald, Coach Joe Allen, Aaron Nitka, and Sloan Roberson
Photo by Curtis Plant

One of the big hits in the inning was Bowden Forsyth’s run-scoring single.

Watkins also doubled to score two runs and a Ringling error produced another run to put Waurika on top, 6-3, after four innings.

The Eagles continued to pad the lead and held off the Blue Devils the rest of the way.

Zac Brown, Forsyth and Watkins each had two hits for the Eagles. Watkins finished 2-for-3 with a double and two runs batted in. Dyer, Fletcher, Wesberry and Forsyth all had doubles in the game.

The Eagles helped produce the 10 runs on the base paths as they stole 10 bases during the game.

Nitka picked up the win on the mound despite giving up six runs of which only two were earned. Nitka struck out nine Blue Devils in four innings of work. Fletcher pitched three innings in relief and recorded the save.

SEASON ENDING NOTES: The 16 wins by Waurika in 2019 is the most by a Eagle baseball squad since the 2012 season when Waurika finished with an 18-7 mark….The 16 wins by coach Joe Allen’s squad is also tied for the eighth most wins since baseball returned to the high school sports menu in 1987 (with four seasons missing final records)….The district tourney runner up finish was the best performance in a district tourney since 2012 when the Eagles last won a district championship in baseball….The 16 wins is the fourth best by a first year coach since 1987.

Waurika, Ryan Thinclads Tune Up For Regionals at V-A Meet

By
Trey Smart
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 A limited number of participants from Ryan and Waurika traveled to Velma-Alma a week ago Tuesday for a final competition before last week’s regional meets for the two schools.

It was less than ideal conditions as rain threatened to cancel the meet, but after a couple of rain delays, the final part of the meet was completed.

Plus, the meet featured a number of Class 2A and Class 3A teams that made the competition at the meet extremely tough.

The Ryan Cowgirls chose not to compete in the meet after running at Covington-Douglas the day before and not wanting to risk injury.

The Cowboys sent only one participate – Walker Rawlings – to the meet and he placed in both events he entered.

Rawlings finished sixth in both the shot put and discus. His mark for the shot put was 40-8 and his best throw of the discus was 121-8.

Seminole won the boys’ part of the meet with 124 points, while Ryan finished tied for 25th with two points and Waurika managed 11th place with 20 points but had the most points among the Class A teams competing in the meet that featured over 25 teams.

Only two of the Waurika relay teams managed to place in the meet.

The 800 meter relay of Kevin Garcia, Turner Mora, Nic Alvarado and Colton Bryant was sixth with a time of 1:37.09, which is the third best time posted in the 2019 campaign.

The 1,600 meter relay team for the Eagles earned a bronze medal with a time of 3:41.85. Garcia, Mora, Bryant and Cache Arellano finished the race for Waurika. It was the third best time this season for the relay squad.

The only other placer for the Eagles was Mora who managed a third-place finish in the 400 meters with a time of 53.28. The time was the best of the season for Mora – even better than last Saturday’s gold-medal regional performance.

The Lady Eagles also took a full squad, but found the competition to be tougher than expected as the Lady Eagles failed to place in any of the running events.

Pauls Valley was the team champion with 107 points, while Waurika finished 16th with 11 points.

Madison Roberson accounted for all the team points for the Lady Eagles.

Roberson’s throw of 36-4.5 in the shot put earned her gold medal honors. It was her fourth best throw of the season in the shot put.

In the discus event Roberson finished sixth with a throw of 99-0. The mark was her third best performance in the event in 2019.

Lady Eagles Turn In Impressive Performance At State Meet

By
Trey Smart
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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.

Success on Diamond For Waurika Has Not Been Frequent

By
Trey Smart
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2019 Waurika Baseball Season Hopes to Be Foundation to the Future

With the recently completed successful baseball season, it is time to take a look back at the history of high school baseball at Waurika.

 Waurika baseball has struggled over the years much like every football-playing school that has to compete against schools that also play in the fall of the year.

 The recently completed 2019 season, however, could serve as a foundation for a good future for the Eagles.

 This past season saw the Eagles fashion a 16-7 mark and they played for the district title for the first time since 2012.

 The Eagles had the most valuable player in the Oil Field Conference in Aaron Nitka. He also played in the recent Southwest Oklahoma Coaches Association all-star game in Lawton.

 The Eagles also dominated the first team selections with five – Gatlin Black, Bowden Forsyth, Hunter Wesberry, Zac Brown and Austin Dyer.

 The 16 wins are the most wins in a season since that 2012 club put together 18 wins.

 Research has not yielded a lot of information about baseball at the school but it is thought that no teams were fielded from at least 1953 to 1986. Prior to 1953, baseball might have been offered but it is hard to find results.

 Only eight seasons in the past 29 years when baseball was brought back to Waurika have the Eagles won more than 16 games. There are four seasons where the final record could not be determined.

 Baseball at Waurika returned in 1987 after the school had not fielded a team since as far back as 1952 when Waurika lost to Ryan in the county tournament finals, 13-4.

 Even prior to that time it is hard to discern if Waurika fielded many baseball teams which may be attributed to the tremendous success Waurika had in track.

 But in 1987, Norman West put together the first Waurika team and they began the season with a doubleheader sweep of Terral. The Eagles finished 8-5 in that inaugural season.

 Todd Overstreet, Byron West, Doug Frost and Jay Chapman were some of the ringleaders of that first squad. Frost was named to The Duncan Banner’s all-area team at the conclusion of the season.

 The next season Waurika slipped to 1-16 before coming back in 1989 and putting together a 13-9 record.

 That would be West’s final season coaching baseball and he finished with a 22-30 mark in the sport.

 Don Patchin took over the baseball program for the next two years, but a final record for either year could not be located.

 Patchin became the first of four different coaches in four years and the Eagles managed only one winning record in that stretch – an 18-17 record in 1992.

 The 1993 squad earned district runner up honors despite a 10-22 final record.

 In 1994, Tim Hightower took over the reigns of the Waurika program for the next five years. During his tenure the Eagles claimed their first district title in 1997.

 The Eagles earned the district crown as the tourney host and defeated Walters in the best-of-three series for the district title. The Eagles defeated the Blue Devils, 13-1, and 17-7, for the title.

 However, the 1997 team found the regional tournament to be too tough. Ringling was the tournament host and the Blue Devils downed the Eagles in the first round. Velma-Alma eliminated the Eagles in the next game.

 The 1998 squad – the last coached by Hightower – finished second in the Southern Eight Conference tourney.

 The Eagles claimed their second district title in 1999 under the direction of Buddy Husted. Husted coached the Eagle nine for two seasons and finished with a 30-24 record.

 The 1999 Class 2A district tournament was also a best-of-three series and the Eagles played host to Empire. Waurika downed the Bulldogs in impressive fashion, 19-5, and 25-4.

 Waurika traveled to Healdton for the Class 2A regional tourney and lost to Velma-Alma, 16-0, in the first round and to Washington, 11-0, in an elimination game.

 Brad Logan assumed the coaching duties for the baseball program in 2001 and he served six seasons.

 During that time the Eagles were district champions in 2002. The Eagles traveled to Turner for a best-of-three series and the Eagles won the first two games, 21-0, and 7-4, to earn the district crown.

 Waurika was sent to Dewar for the Class A regional and the Eagles dropped a pair of one-run games. In the first round, Dewar defeated the Eagles, 2-1. In the elimination game, Okay edged the Eagles, 9-8, to end the season.

 In 2005, the Eagles hosted the conference tournament and claimed the title with a 12-7 victory over Big Pasture in the championship game.

 The next season, Waurika was the conference tournament runner up. This time Big Pasture claimed the conference title with a 9-1 victory over the Eagles at Walters.

 Keith Henderson stepped in as the Waurika coach in 2007, but after a 5-10 mark, Everett Hodges coached the Eagles for two seasons.

 Under Hodges in those two seasons, the Eagles did not win a district title but put together the first 20-win season at Waurika in 2009. The Eagles did finish as the district runner up in 2009. The 2009 team traveled to Sterling for the district tourney and won a 6-4 contest against Empire before falling twice to the host school Sterling, 18-0 and 11-0.

 Larry Vanbeber coached baseball for the 2010 and 2011 seasons and the Eagles were district runner up both seasons.

 The 2010 squad had a 24-6 record – the most wins ever for a Waurika baseball team. Velma-Alma eliminated Waurika in the district finals that season.  

 The 2011 club claimed the conference tournament title. The tournament was played at Empire and the Eagles cruised to victories over Big Pasture, 18-3; Temple, 22-2; and, Walters, 11-2.

 Waurika finished the season with a 16-16 record and were eliminated by Chattanooga in the district finals.

 Hodges took over the program again in 2012 and coached the baseball team for five seasons. The 2012 team claimed the district title and finished with an 18-7 record – the fourth most wins in school history.

 Waurika hosted the district tournament and earned a first-round win over Empire, 11-1. The Eagles then defeated Healdton, 13-3, and came back to shutout Healdton, 9-0, in the championship game.

 The Eagles traveled to Caddo for the Class A regional tourney and as in previous regional appearances, the Eagles dropped the first two games. Waurika fell to the host school, 7-1, and then fell to Elmore City-Pernell, 6-4, in an elimination game.

 Waurika is 0-8 in all regional tournament games.

 The 2012 team had three players on The Duncan Banner all-area baseball squad. Gage Pittman was named as a catcher and pitcher and Taylor Fuller was tabbed for the team as a pitcher and third baseman. Tyler Fuller earned the area’s pitcher-of-the-year honors.

 The Eagles fell on hard times during the rest of Hodges’ coaching days and did not win more than eight games in any season.

 Hodges finished with a 77-79 mark in his six total seasons coaching baseball, but that did include one district title and one district runner up finish.

 The 2013 team did have one all-area selection – Mason Wilkerson as a pitcher.

 Glenn Howard took over the team in 2017 and 2018. The first year under Howard the Eagles could only manage a 6-14 mark, but improved to 10-15 in 2018.

 Joe Allen was handed the baseball coaching duties when he was named the football coach last year. The first-year mentor hopes a foundation has been laid for future success on the diamond for the Eagles.

 Allen will have to find replacements for six seniors – five of which were starters for all or much of the season.

Here are the full names of the 1920 WHS baseball team seen in the picture above.

Harrell Cotner

Ray Powell – Left Field

Herschel Alexander – Right Field

Bill Bradford – 2nd Base

Coach J.J. Corbett

Jake Turnage

Charles Thompson – Pitcher

Byrd Adams (Mascot)

Maurice Prescott (Captain) – Center Field

Clifford Bone – Pitcher

Leslie Stone – 1st Base

Ernest Dickey – 3rd Base

Leon Boyles – Short Stop

Pierce Carter – Catcher

Roy Scott (Score Keeper)

Record

WHS 8 – Ryan High School 9

WHS 10 – Addington First Team 6

WHS 7 – Ryan High School 13

WHS 11 – Sugden First Team 11

WHS 22 – Hastings High School 6

WHS 13 – Ryan High School 13

WHS 6 – Hastings First Team 17

WHS 13 – Hastings High School 10

WHS 6 – Terral High School 4

Cowgirl Softballers Head to District Tourney Looking for a Win

By
Trey Smart
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0

It has been a very difficult season for the Ryan Cowgirl softball squad as the team is heading into today’s district tourney without a victory for the year.

The Cowgirls were seeking their first win today in the opening game of the Class B District Tournament at Big Pasture. The Cowgirls were slated to face Temple at noon.

The loser of that game will face Big Pasture at 2 p.m., while the winner of the first game will get a shot at Big Pasture at 4 p.m. If Big Pasture wins both games, they will face either Ryan or Temple in the finals at 6 p.m.

An if necessary game will be played Friday at 4 p.m. and the winner will move on to the regional tournament next weekend.

The Cowgirls dropped two more games this past week with a 12-2 loss at Frederick last Thursday and then fell to Geronimo on Tuesday, 13-0.

In the final regular season game for the Cowgirls, four seniors were recognized on Senior Day at Larry Ninman Field.

Savanna Lashley, Madisen Rhoads, Brooklyn Charmasson and Samantha Good were the four Cowgirls playing their final fast-pitch softball game for Ryan.

In Tuesday’s action, Geronimo jumped out in front 1-0 after one inning and that is where the score remained until the Lady Blue Jays exploded for 12 runs in the top of the third inning. Geronimo had five walks and seven hits – including a home run – that led to the scoring bonanza.

The Cowgirls got a single run in the top of the first inning against Frederick last week at Frederick.

Lindsey Reake singled and scored on Good’s single down the left field line.

Frederick took the lead in the bottom of the first as the Lady Bombers scored two runs to take a 2-1 lead.

The Lady Bombers added four runs in the bottom of the second to increase the advantage to 6-1.

In the top of the third inning Ryan trimmed the lead on Madison Rhoades’ solo home run to put the score at 6-2.

Frederick exploded in the bottom of the third inning with six runs to lead the contest, 12-2.

When the Cowgirls could not score in the top of the fourth inning the game ended on the run rule.

Good was 2-for-2 at the plate for the Cowgirls. 

Ryan Track Squads Find State Competition to Be Tough

By
Trey Smart
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0

The state track meet in all classes is challenging for every school in Class A.

 While the performances posted by the larger schools are almost always better, there are many more Class A schools and that results in a real challenge for a school to score points in the state meet.

 That is what the track squads from Ryan discovered at last weekend’s Class A State Track Meet conducted at Western Heights High School in Oklahoma City.

 The Cowgirls finished in a tie for 40th place among the 47 schools that scored points in the state track meet. The Cowgirls finished with two points and tied with Cimarron, Red Oak and Kremlin-Hillsdale.

 The Cowboys finished tied for 47th at the meet with just a single point. The Cowboys finished tied with Depew, Okarche and Indiahoma.

 Thomas was the boys’ team title with 120 points and Boise City-Keyes was the team runner up with 58 points.

 Boise City-Keyes turned the tables on Thomas in the girls’ team race by claiming the title with 125 points, while the Lady Terriers finished second with 75 points.

 Many more teams scored points in the 2019 state meet with the new format in team scoring. Eight places earned points in each event and the top six finishers received medals.

 The Cowgirls’ 3,200 meter relay team of Lilybet Harmon, Lily York, Juliet Spangler and Holland Carter managed eighth place with a time of 11:02.5 – just ahead of rival Waurika. The two teams have battled back and forth at nearly every meet in the 2019 season and the state meet was no different.

 The time posted was the third best in school history and the second best in the 2019 campaign.

 A few other Cowgirls competed in the state meet, but did not score. Carter posted her second best time of the season in the 800 meters, but it was good for only 11th place, while Harmon also posted her second best time in the same event, but managed only 14th place. Carter’s time was 2:36.55 and Harmon posted a time of 2:41.00.

 Spangler also competed in two individual events. The junior finished well back in the field in both the 1,600 meters and the 3,200 meters. Her time in the 1,600 meters was 6:26.21 and was her second best of the season and the seventh best in school history.

 In the 3,200 meters, Spangler posted a mark of 14:08.71 and was her third best time of the season.

 The only other event the Cowgirls competed in was the 1,600 meter relay and despite setting a school record for the event finished only 15th – just behind Southern Eight Conference rival Geronimo.

 The team of Harmon, York, Spangler and Carter finished with a time of 4:40.70, which was five seconds better than the previous school record of 4:45.71. That time was posted by the squad at the regional meet the week before the state meet.

 For the Cowboys Walker Rawlings and Travis Fristoe competed at the state meet.

 Rawlings was the only placer for the Cowboys as he finished eighth in the discus with a throw of 120-0 – his third best performance of the season.

 In the shot put, Rawlings recorded a throw of 40-1 – his fifth best of the season. He finished 10th among the 16 throwers in the competition.

 Fristoe competed in the 110 meter high hurdles for the Cowboys and recorded a time of 18.75 – his best time of the season. Fristoe’s performance was 14th among the 16 runners in the event.

SEASON-ENDING NOTES: Rawlings placed in the discus and becomes the second in his family to place in the event at the state meet….McCain Rawlings placed in the discus four consecutive years with the last year coming in 2015….In the discus, the Cowboys have placed 13 times in the state meet….Gary Waitman was the last Cowboy to win the state title in the discus and that came in 1988….Fristoe was the first Cowboy to compete in the 110 meter high hurdles at state meet since Rickey Hill finished second in the event in 2003….The Cowboys scored at the state meet for the first time since 2015 when they finished tied for 16th….The Cowboys have managed to score in a state meet only five times in the past 16 years…The best finish by a Cowboy track squad at state came in 1973 when Ryan finished fourth and won the mile relay state title….The Cowboys have only three top ten team finishes in state competition….The Cowgirls also scored in the state meet for the first time since 2014…..The Cowgirls’ best team finish at the state meet came in 190 when Ryan managed a tied for ninth place….The Cowgirls have scored at the state meet only 10 times since meets for girls began in 1972….The strength of the Cowgirls’ track squad the past few years have been in the distance relays….The 1,600 meter relay team has broken the school record 11 times in the past two seasons….The 3,200 meter relay team from the past two seasons holds 14 of the top 15 times in school history….The 2019 3,200 meter relay team became the first Cowgirl relay team to place at the state meet in school history.

Ryan, Waurika Track Squads Battle Weather & Tough Competition

By
Trey Smart
-
0
Track 3

 It was a tough day at the track last Thursday as Ryan and Waurika’s track squads competed at the Charles Butler Invitational at Wynnewood.

It was tough because of relatively bad wind through the duration of the meet.

But, the meet also attracted teams from Classes 5A down to Class A making the competition for Ryan and Waurika – both Class A schools – pretty tough.

No team scores were kept at the meet, but individuals from both schools turned in some good performances.

In the 3,200 meter relay the Lady Eagles and Cowgirls battled for the gold medal and the Lady Eagles came out on top with a time of 11:29.69. Asia Smith, Lexie Streeter, Faith Roberson and Tallin Mora comprised the winning team for the Lady Eagles.

Wewoka managed to slip in between the Lady Eagles and the Cowgirls putting the Cowgirls in third place with a time of 11:37.22.  The team of Lilybet Harmon, Lily York, Juliet Spangler and Holland Carter put in an effort that is the third best time this season and the sixth best time in school history.

In the individual race covering 3,200 meters, Ryan’s Spangler and Alicen Williams placed third and fourth, respectively.

Spangler had a time of 14:19.06, while Williams turned in a mark of 14:24.15

The only other placer for the Cowgirls was in the 800 meters where Harmon managed fifth place with a time of 2:49.91.

Smith and Streeter both placed in the 1,600 meter race. Smith took the gold medal with a time of 6:18.15, while Streeter was right behind at 6:18.50 to earn a silver medal.

The Lady Eagles placed in three different field events.

Madison Roberson claimed the title in the shot put with a toss of 38-3 – her personal best of the 2019 season.

Roberson also managed a sixth place finish in the discus with a toss of 82-9.

Mora finished fifth in the long jump with a leap of 15-7.75 – which was her best effort of the season until last Saturday’s performance at Waurika.

The Eagles sent a small contingent to the meet, but the 3,200 meter relay team of Cache Arellano, Turner Mora, Gustavio Gomez and Octavio Gomez brought home gold medals with a time of 9:33.78.

The only other placer for the Eagles was Tu. Mora, who earned a silver medal in the 400 meters with a time of 55.81.

 The Cowboys’ Walker Rawlings placed in both of the weight field events. Rawlings finished fourth in the shot put with a toss of 43-2 and managed sixth place in the discus with a throw of 106-7. The mark for the shot put was his best throw of the season in the event.

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