It was a busy week last week for the Waurika cross country squads and the Waurika boys came away with two runner-up finishes at Frederick and Healdton.
At the Frederick Invitational last Thursday, the Eagles had only two runners earn medals, but that was good enough for a team finish of second place.
Cache Arellano was 15th to top the Eagle runners, while Bryson Hernandez was the only other medal winner with a 20th-place finish.
Other results for the team were not available.
At Healdton last Saturday, the Eagles also managed a second place team finish, but this time all six Waurika competitors finished with a medal.
Hernandez topped the Eagle entries with a second-place finish.
Three Eagles finished in successive order including Arellano who was eighth, Kevin Garcia who was ninth and Gustavo Gomez who was 10th.
Edwin Garcia finished 18th and Nicolas Alvarado was 19th to round out the Eagle medal winners in the meet.
The Lady Eagles finished third at Frederick. The 12th-ranked Lady Eagles were behind seventh-ranked Merritt and meet champion Ryan, who is ranked fifth in Class 2A.
Asia Smith turned in an impressive performance at Frederick and came across the finish line in first place. Lexie Streeter was fifth and Tallin Mora finished 17th to round out the medal winners for the Lady Eagles.
The Lady Eagles also earned a third-place finish at the Healdton Invitational. The Lady Eagles were just behind Velma-Alma and team champion Ryan.
Smith was again the leader for the Lady Eagles as she finished second in the individual race. Streeter was third and Mora captured 15th place.
Times for the performances at Frederick and Healdton were not available.
At Healdton, the Waurika junior high girls’ team captured the team title.
Waurika’s cross country teams competed a week ago Tuesday in the crowded field at the Velma-Alma Invitational.
The Eagles finished ninth in the team race, but none of the Waurika competitors finished in the top 25 to earn a medal. Waurika had 330 points and team champion Byng finished with 34 points. Only one Class 2A team finished ahead of the Eagles.
Leading the way for the Eagles was Bryson Hernandez, who finished 28th. His time of 19:13 was a season-best for the junior multi-sport athlete.
Arellano finished 50th with a time of 20:04 – nearly a minute better than his fastest time of the season. Rounding out the Eagle competitors were K. Garcia (64th, 20:40), Octavio Gomez (66th, 20:45), G. Gomez (89th, 21:43), E. Garcia (101st, 22:23) and Alvarado (116th, 23:08).
The Lady Eagles managed to earn 11th place in the 23-team field at V-A. Waurika finished with 371 points well behind Ardmore Plainview that finished with 49 points. However, only two Class 2A schools – Ryan and Velma-Alma – finished ahead of the Lady Eagles.
Streeter was the top competitor for the Lady Eagles finishing 27th with a time of 14:03 – her best time of the season.
Mora was 54th with a time of 14:56, while Dallas Fristoe finished 88th with a time of 16:18. Faith Roberson was 92nd with a time of 16:28 and Kaci Reynolds rounded out the team finishers with a 110th-place finish.
Also competing for the Lady Eagles was Hope Cummings, who finished 114th with a time of 17:17.
Over 200 girls competed in the meet.
These three meets closed out the regular season for Waurika’s cross country teams.
The next action for Waurika will be the Class 2A Regional Cross Country meet on October 13.
Junior High Results
At Velma-Alma
Junior High Girls
Waurika finished third in the team race with 142 points.
Katelynn Dabbs and Juliet Spangler pushing each other at the state Cross Country meet in Shawnee
Photo by Amy Morgan
The Ryan Cowgirl cross country team finished the most successful season in school history last Saturday at Shawnee’s Gordon Cooper Technology Center – the site of the Class 2A State Cross Country Meet.
The Cowgirls finished in a tied for fifth place with Cherokee. Both teams had 192 points. Team places are settled by the finish of the sixth runner on each team and Cherokee earned the tie-breaker.
Katelynn Dabbs and Juliet Spangler pushing each other at the state Cross Country meet in Shawnee Photo by Amy Morgan
Boise City-Keyes won the Class 2A girls’ title with 78 points, but Hooker was right behind with 80 points and Watonga was third with 90 points.
It was a much more conducive day for a cross-country race than last week’s regional meets around the state. The Class 2A girls’ division featured the 21 teams that qualified in the regionals last week and 157 total runners.
Photo by Amy Morgan
Lilybet Harmon placed the Cowgirl team members with a 42nd-place finish. Her time was 13:39.3 over the 3,200-meter course. Harmon’s time was just short of her best time of the season set at the Cameron University meet a couple of weeks ago.
Holland Carter, the only senior on Coach Steve Spangler’s squad, was 47th for the Cowgirls and finished with a time of 13:50.1, which was an individual best for the 2018 season.
Photo by Amy Morgan
Finishing 53rd for the Cowgirls was Juliet Spangler with a time of 13:55.4. Spangler was appearing in her third state meet after qualifying as an individual her freshman year.
Freshman Katlyn Dabbs was 54th for the Cowgirls with a time of 13:56.9 and that was just two seconds above her best finish of the season which came at the Cameron meet.
Coach Spangler presented Senior, Holland Carter with a heartfelt speech and a photo album of her Cross Country career Photo by Amy Morgan
Lily York was next for the Cowgirls and finished just behind Dabbs in 56th place with a time of 13:58.2. York’s time was also a personal best for the 2018 season.
Rounding out the team finishers for the Cowgirls was Alicyn Williams, who was 111th and recorded a time of 15:32.6. The Cowgirl freshman bested her top time of the season by over 10 seconds in the state meet.
Lilybet Harmon lead the Ryan Cowboys at State Cross Country in Shawnee Photo by Amy Morgan
The competition at state marked the end of incredible achievements by the Cowgirl cross country squad in only their third season of competing as a team.
The Cowgirls won meets at Waurika, Walters, Frederick, Healdton and Cameron University. The team successfully defended the titles won in 2017 at Waurika and Healdton.
The Cowgirl harriers also finished second at Sulphur and third at the Class 2A regional and were ranked among the top 10 girls’ cross country teams in Class 2A all season.
It was another amazing contest at Bob Givens Sports Complex last Thursday night as Ryan scored a come-from-behind 78-74 victory over Bray-Doyle.
The Cowboys have a huge district contest tomorrow night (Friday) as they travel to Skinny Stewart Field in Wilson to battle the Eagles. Ryan, Wilson and Central High are in a battle for the runner-up spot in District B-4.
The fans who stuck around for the end of last Thursday’s battle with the Donkeys will be talking about this one for a long time. A number of fans departed after Ryan established an 18-point advantage with 7:33 left in the game.
Photo by Sheree Hanson
To Bray-Doyle’s credit, the Donkeys battled back to take the lead with 43 seconds to go before Ryan got the winning score with just four seconds left in the game.
The game had a number of momentum shifts and featured an offensive show by both teams. A number of school records were established during the game.
The Cowboys’ performance on offense was even more impressive considering they had to overcome 218 yards in penalties – many of which were against the offense.
Ryan scored first on Grayson Tomberlin’s 12-yard run that capped a 61-yard drive in six plays. The try for two failed, but Ryan led 6-0 with 8:44 to play in the first quarter.
Bray-Doyle came back to snag the lead with two touchdown catches by Curtis Cox – the first one for 14 yards and the second for 22 yards from quarterback Justin Miller. Both were outstanding catches. Mark Kilbourne ran for the two-point conversions and Bray held a 16-6 lead after the first quarter.
Photo by Sheree Hanson
The Cowboys put together a 10-play, 54-yard drive with Tomberlin finding Skylar Parkhill on a 16-yard touchdown pass to narrow the score to 16-12 with 11:53 left in the second quarter.
Bray-Doyle answered with a 59-yard drive in just four plays. Dalton Whitehead got the final six yards on the ground and with 10:44 to play before intermission the Donkeys led, 22-12.
The Cowboys answered with a five-play, 58-yard drive. Parkhill got the rushing touchdown from 18 yards out. Kalen Weldon caught the two-point conversion pass from Tomberlin and Ryan had trimmed the lead to, 22-20, with 9:12 left in the half.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Donkeys failed to cover the pooch kick and Parkhill sped downfield to cover the loose ball.
This gave Ryan excellent field position at the Donkey 40 and Travis Fristoe finished the short drive with a 25-yard rushing burst for the score with 7:01 still to play in the second quarter. The Cowboys were back on top, 26-22.
The Donkeys looked poised to score again moving to the Ryan 22, but Tomberlin intercepted a pass in the end zone and after a Ryan penalty on the return, the Cowboys found themselves at their own two.
The Cowboys narrowly escaped disaster as a handoff was fumbled in the end zone, but Tomberlin alertly picked it up and made it out to the Cowboy 3.
After a critical third-down conversion, Tomberlin executed perfectly a screen pass to Parkhill and the Cowboy senior took it 70 yards for the score. Tomberlin found Andrew Villerreal for the two-point conversion pass and Ryan extended the lead to 34-22 with 1:49 left to play in the half.
Photo by Sheree Hanson
Another penalty on the Cowboys on the kickoff return gave the Donkeys the ball at the Cowboy 39. It took six plays, but Kilbourne found Tully Booth on the halfback pass for a 17-yard score. Whitehead ran for the two points and the Cowboy lead was narrowed to 34-30 with just 20 seconds left to play in the half.
After Gunner Phillips returned the kickoff 14 yards to the Ryan 35, Tomberlin and Parkhill connected on another screen pass and Parkhill raced 65 yards and crossed the goal line as the halftime buzzer sounded. Tomberlin ran for the two points and the Ryan lead was stretched to 42-30 at the half.
The Donkeys took the second-half kickoff and marched 54 yards on seven plays with Whitehead getting the score from one yard out. Kilbourne ran for the two points and the Cowboy margin was cut to 42-38.
Ryan answered with a 68-yard drive on only four plays. Tomberlin again found Parkhill loose and Parkhill took the pass and covered the final 50 yards for the score. Tomberlin ran for the two points and Ryan was in front, 50-38, with 7:24 left in the third quarter.
Another Donkey drive was thwarted by a Tomberlin interception at the Ryan five and after yet another Ryan penalty the Cowboys set up on offense at the Ryan 13.
It took Ryan only three plays to travel 87 yards. Fristoe scampered for 36 yards on first down, Parkhill got seven on the next play and then Tomberlin bolted 43 yards for a touchdown. The run failed, but with 4:45 left in the third quarter Ryan was now in front, 56-38.
The Donkeys answered, however, with Whitehead getting a four-yard rushing touchdown and Miller adding the extra point to trim the lead back to 56-44 with 2:28 left in the third frame.
Phillips had another outstanding return on the ensuing kickoff as he fielded the ball at the Cowboy 17 and took it 44 yards to the Bray-Doyle 34. It took Ryan six plays, but Fristoe ended the drive with a four-yard rushing score putting Ryan back in front, 62-46, with 11:23 to play in the game.
The next Donkey drive was aided by 31 yards in Ryan penalties and covered 62 yards in only six plays. Miller got the score on a quarterback sneak from one yard out and the Ryan lead was cut to 62-52 with 9:43 still left in the game.
The Cowboys answered the threat with a four-play, 81-yard drive for a score. Parkhill carried the ball the final 29 yards for the score and after Tomberlin added with two-point conversion the Cowboys seemed comfortably in front, 70-52.
The Donkeys had no quit in them. They took the kickoff and marched 56 yards in six plays helped along by a targeting penalty. Miller ran for the score from eight yards out and Kilbourne ran for the two points and with 4:43 left in the game Ryan held a 70-60 advantage.
What the Cowboys could not afford happened on the next drive as on the first play the Cowboys fumbled and the Donkeys recovered giving Bray-Doyle possession at the Ryan 39.
A highly-questionable pass interference call aided the Donkey cause and a key pass play that bounced off Weldon’s hands into the hands of the Donkey receiver helped Bray put together the scoring drive. Whitehead finished the effort with a five-yard run and after Kilbourne ran for the two points, Ryan clung to a 70-68 lead with 3:12 left to play.
The Cowboys proceeded to try to run out the clock and moved the ball from the Ryan 26 to the Donkey 38 when another borderline call went in favor of the Donkeys as Bray recovered a fumble that appeared to happen after Tomberlin was on the ground.
This put Bray with possession at the 1:37 mark and 72 yards away from the go-ahead score. Two 15-yard penalties on the Cowboys and two big plays moved the ball to the Ryan 18 with one minute left. Two plays later Miller found the end zone from six yards out to give Bray-Doyle the lead.
The Cowboys, however, did not give up. The Cowboys took possession at their own 33 after a 14-yard return by Phillips on the kickoff.
After a first-down incompletion, Tomberlin found Fristoe across the middle for a 48-yard gain putting the ball at the Donkey 19 with 22 seconds left.
An 18-yard scamper by Tomberlin put the ball near the goal line. Tomberlin finished off the drive with a one-yard score and also ran for the two points giving Ryan the lead again.
Bray-Doyle had one final play but the halfback pass fell incomplete and Ryan had sealed the win.
Parkhill and Tomberlin were again outstanding for the Cowboys on offense. Parkhill rushed for 117 yards on 14 carries and had 215 yards receiving on five catches.
Tomberlin combined for 549 yards of offense with 273 yards rushing on 25 carries and 276 yards passing on just seven completions. Add 13 yards of interception returns and he had a total of 562 all-purpose yards.
Four school records were broken in the contest.
Game in Figures
BDHS RHS
First Downs 3124
Yards Rushing 50-356 47-366
Yards Passing 151276
Passes 9-14 7-10
Passes Int. By02
Fumbles, Lost1-0 6-2
Punts 0-0 1-34
Penalties6-52 24-218SCORE BY QUARTERS
Bray-Doyle161414 30–74
Ryan 6361422–78
FIRST QUARTER
RYAN – Grayson Tomberlin 12 run (run failed), 8:44
BRAY-DOYLE – Curtis Cox 14 pass from Justin Miller (Mark Kilbourne run), 7:26
BRAY-DOYLE – Cox 22 pass from Miller (Kilbourne run), 4:39
SECOND QUARTER
RYAN – Skylar Parkhill 16 pass from Tomberlin (run failed), 11:53
BRAY-DOYLE – Dalton Whitehead 6 run (pass failed), 10:44
RYAN – Parkhill 18 run (Kalen Weldon pass from Tomberlin), 9:18
RYAN – Travis Fristoe 1 run (pass failed), 7:01
RYAN – Parkhill 70 pass from Tomberlin (Andrew Villerreal pass from Tomberlin), 1:49
BRAY-DOYLE – Tully Booth 17 pass from Miller (Whitehead run),: 20.3
RYAN – Parkhill 65 pass from Tomberlin (Tomberlin run),: 00
The Ryan Senior girls were honored recently at recent home game. The community expressed their gratitude for their commitment and hard work….
The following is a picture of the seniors and their parents.
(l-r) Darwin Deboard, Laken Deboard, Regina Reimer, Kory Reimer, Candice Keith, Justyce Keith, C.J. Keith, Sebastian Guzman, Sadie Guzman, Susan Torress, Josie Martin, Emilee Martin, and Jason Martin. These Seniors along with their parents were honored at the last home softball game of the season.Photo by Sheree Hanson
With seven games played in the 2018 season, Waurika has only played a full game one time.
That did not change last Thursday night as the Eagles pasted Central High, 52-0, in a key District B-4 contest at Cy Sloan Stadium.
Five of the six games for the season have ended at intermission because of the 45-point mercy rule.
Coach Joe Allen’s squad moves to 7-0 on the season, while Central High drops to 2-5 on the season.
The Eagles are 3-0 in District B-4 play and have a commanding hold on first place. The Bronchos are 1-2 and will have to right the ship to qualify for the playoffs.
Waurika will travel to Bray-Doyle tomorrow night for another district game against the Donkeys. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
Aaron Nitka Photo by Adam Brinson
In last Thursday’s encounter, the Eagles quickly got on the scoreboard as Colton Bryant scored from one yard out and ran for the two-point conversion to put Waurika in front, 8-0, just 44 seconds into the game.
Later in the first quarter, Turner Mora finished off an Eagle possession with a one-yard score and after Bryant ran for the two-point conversion Waurika was on top with 5:55 left in the first quarter.
On the ensuing kickoff, the Bronchos fumbled and the Eagles recovered. Mora scored from 27 yards out and then tossed to Aaron Nitka for the two points give Waurika a 24-0 advantage with 5:37 just 18 seconds after the previous score.
The Eagles got one more score before the end of the first quarter. Mora found Hunter Wesberry on a 44-yard touchdown pass. Bryant ran for the two points and Waurika was on top, 32-0, with 3:07 left in the first frame.
Early in the second quarter, the Eagles found the end zone again with Mora taking the pigskin in for the score from three yards out. The run failed, but Waurika held a 38-0 lead with 11:49 before the half.
Bryant got his second touchdown on the night as he busted loose for a 54-yard rushing score. The Eagle senior ran for the two points giving Waurika a 46-0 advantage with 5:29 left before intermission.
Zac Brown got in on the scoring act as he capped an Eagle drive with a 19-yard scoring run. The run failed, but Waurika had sealed the win with 2:00 remaining in the half.
EAGLE FLIGHTS: Waurika still trails in this short series with Central High, 3-2…..The 52 points scored by Waurika is the second most in games against Central High….The 52-point margin of victory is the largest for Waurika in the two wins….This was the first shutout Waurika has posted against the Bronchos in the five meetings…The 295 yards rushing by the Eagles equals the season-high total that was set against Wilson….This was the fifth time since beginning eight-man football that Waurika has recorded back-to-back games scoring 50 or more points….Waurika has now recorded five shutouts this season and with two games to go plus the playoffs has a chance to tie or break the school record of eight set in 1936, 1933 and 1928….Waurika recorded seven shutouts in 1989 and 1940 and six opponent shutouts in 1930 and 1934….The Eagles have also posted five shutouts in a season in 1927, 1939, 1945, 1950, 1959, 1969, 1981, 1988 and 1996….The six mercy-rule wins by Waurika is the most for any season since beginning eight-man play in 2012….Eight weeks into the season the Eagles finally found favor with at least one pollster as Waurika is ranked 14th in Class B by the website HS Football Oklahoma.
Not much has to be said or written about the rivalry between Waurika and Ryan.
With the two communities just 10 miles apart, it is natural for the two schools to be rivals in all sports competition.
The football version of the rivalry is tomorrow night at Waurika’s Cy Sloan Stadium and kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
In many of the years of this series the two teams have also been competing against each other for district honors and 2018 is no different.
The Waurika Football Team. Photo by Shelly Mora
And even though the series in football took a break (except for two seasons) after Ryan moved to eight-man football, the rivalry on the gridiron was resumed in 2012 when Waurika dropped to eight-man football.
The series of eight-man meetings have been split at three wins apiece for the two teams. Ryan won the first two and then Waurika won three straight before last year’s thrilling 44-36, double-overtime victory by the Cowboys in 2017.
It will be Waurika’s homecoming and that will give the Eagles added incentive to be able to revenge last year’s heart-breaking loss.
Waurika has a huge advantage overall in the series that dates back to 1919 – the first year the two schools played football. The Eagles lead the series 40-17-3.
The Eagles built a good part of that advantage with 11 straight wins between 1963 and 1973 before Ryan broke the string in the 1974 season with a 28-0 victory over Waurika on the Eagles’ home field.
The Ryan Football Team. Photo by Sheree Hanson
The game has been close and it has been lopsided. There have been two one-point games between the Cowboys and Eagles – in 1946 and 1954 – and each team came out on top once.
Waurika’s largest margin of victory came in a 1971 conquest of the Cowboys as the Eagles whitewashed Ryan, 64-0.
In 1937, Ryan earned its largest margin of victory over the Eagles with a 37-0 win.
Ryan has twice scored 44 points against Waurika – the highest number of points scored by the Cowboys in the series and both of those games were eight-man contests.
Waurika’s greatest margin of victory was the 64-point win in 1971.
Two of the three ties in the series were scoreless and they came in back-to-back years in 1942 and 1943.
Waurika has 15 shutouts over the Cowboys through the years, while Ryan has seven of shutouts. Both include the two scoreless games.
Waurika comes into this year’s game with a 5-0 record, while Ryan is 4-2 on the year.
Waurika had its biggest win of the year last week with a 38-6 decision over Wilson.
The Cowboys exploded for an 84-38 victory over Empire last Friday night, but that was helped along by two defensive scores and a kickoff return.
So, both offenses are potent and it could be an old-fashioned eight-man shootout.
Waurika has been a bit more dominating with only last week’s win over Wilson going past halftime.
The Cowboys will have to try to corral the team speed of the Eagles and figure out a way to keep the offensive momentum gained against Empire going against Waurika.
The two schools have three common opponents this season – Temple, Grandfield and Caddo. Both teams had runaway wins over Temple and Grandfield, but Ryan dropped a 57-26 decision to the Bruins, while Waurika rolled to a 48-0 win over Caddo.
Waurika features a potent running attack with Turner Mora, Colton Bryant, Kevin Garcia and Zachary Brown.
The Cowboys will counter on offense with a more wide-open attack behind quarterback Grayson Tomberlin, who has thrown for over 900 yards this season. He has also rushed for 655 yards.
However, the Cowboys are not one-dimensional as Skylar Parkhill has been the favorite target of Tomberlin’s passing attack. The Cowboy senior has rushed for 466 yards and 10 rushing scores.
Both teams will be challenged defensively to stop the offensive attacks.
Look for a contest with plenty of scoring if Ryan can solve the Waurika defense that has only allowed three touchdowns in five games.
Here’s a look at the results of the long-running series:
While all the games played up to this matter certainly have meaning, they do not match the intensity that is about to occur tomorrow night as the District B-4 schools begin district play.
All districts across the state began play a couple of weeks ago, but because of Class B having eight districts, each district only has five or six teams.
So for the remaining five weeks of the season Ryan and Waurika and the rest of District B-4 will be playing for a district title and a playoff spot. The top four teams in the district qualify for post-season play.
Only two schools – Waurika and Wilson – finished the non-district play with wins last Friday.
And, both Waurika and Wilson went through the non-district slate unbeaten.
Wilson is 5-0 on the year, while Waurika is 4-0. The two teams open district play by facing off at Wilson tomorrow night (Friday).
Last Friday Wilson rolled to a 54-6 victory over Maud, while Waurika scored a 48-0 road victory over Caddo.
Ryan had a bye last Friday and will take a 3-2 mark into district play tomorrow night against Empire at home.
Empire is 2-3 on the year, but has played a slightly tougher schedule than the Cowboys including last week’s 52-24 loss to Class B’s fifth-ranked Alex Longhorns.
Two Stephens County rivals – Central High and Bray-Doyle square off in the other district fray.
Bray-Doyle carries a 2-3 mark into district action, while Central High is 1-3.
Central High, who continues to struggle with injuries and depth, fell to a talented Cyril club, 46-0.
Bray-Doyle met Strother in the final non-district game for the Donkeys and came out on the short end of a 48-16 game. The Yellowjackets had seven players ejected in a skirmish during the game and Bray-Doyle had one player tossed out of the game.
It is time for serious football for the Ryan Cowboys.
Tomorrow night the Cowgirls will host Empire for a
District B-4 contest at Bob Givens Sports Complex.
Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
The Cowboys will take a 3-2 record into the game with the Bulldogs, while Empire is 2-3 on the year.
Ryan enjoyed a bye week last week and no doubt first-year head coach Tony Tomberlin helped identify the areas the Cowboys have struggled this year during the extra practice sessions.
The break also gave the Cowboys opportunity to head from nagging mid-season injuries.
This will be the first meeting between Ryan and Empire on the gridiron since 1977 when Ryan last played 11-man football.
Empire dropped to eight-man football last season and made a playoff appearance in its first year.
The Bulldogs were the pre-season favorite in most polls to win the district title.
Lexie Streeter and Asia Smith
Photo by Joe Masoner
Waurika’s boys’ and girls’ cross country team traveled to Shawnee last Saturday for the Class 2A State Cross Country meet held at the Gordon Cooper Technology Center.
The Lady Eagles wrapped up a successful season with a ninth-place finish among the 21 teams that qualified from three regional meets held the week before.
Boise City-Keyes won the team title for Class 2A with 78 points. Waurika accumulated 244 points in the meet.
In the boys’ competition, Waurika finished in 12th place. Mooreland dominated the team competition with 55 points, while runner-up Lomega was well back with 137 points.
The Eagles finished with 333 points – just one point ahead of Carnegie.
Heading the Lady Eagles as she did through most of the meets this season was Asia Smith.
Her finish of 13th place earned her a medal. She covered the 3,200-meter course in 13:02.2 –her best time of the season.
Lexie Streeter also turned in a great performance in the state meet with a 25th place finish. Her time was 13:19.8 – less than one second better than her season-best time.
Rounding out the competitors for the Lady Eagles were Tallin Mora (63rd, 14:09.6), Faith Roberson (93rd, 15:03.3), Hope Cummings (114th, 15:37.8), Kacie Reynolds (129th, 16:11.6) and Dallas Fristoe (140th, 16:33.3).
A total of 157 runners competed in the state meet for Class 2A girls – which was a particularly tough division this year.
All of the team members for the Lady Eagles will return next year for Coach Joe Masoner’s cross country squad.
The Lady Eagles earned two runner-up spots at invitational meets and finished third in three other competitions.
Bryson Hernandez was the top competitor for the Eagles at the state meet. He was 52nd in the race and finished the 5K with a time of 19:23.
As he has been all season, Cache Arellano was the second-best performance for the Eagles as he earned a 60th place with a time of 19:40.5.
The other finishers for Waurika in the state meet that featured 160 runners and 21 teams were Kevin Garcia (77th, 20:07.7), Octavio Gomez (107th, 21:08.9), Edwin Garcia (116th, 21:32.7), Gustavo Gomez (132nd, 22:13.6) and Nicholas Alvarado (137th, 22:27.8).
All six of the competitors should return for the Eagles next season. Four of them are sophomores and two are juniors.
The Eagles, also coached by Masoner, finished with the season having won two meets – at Waurika and Cameron University and finishing second in two other meets.
(l-r) Alicen Williams, Lilybet Harmon, Katelyn Dabbs, Holland Carter, Lily York, Juliet Spangler and Coach Steve Spangler
Photo by Trey Smart
The Ryan Cowgirl cross country squad continues its impressive march through the season as they won two meet titles in two days and claimed a runner-up finish last Monday.
Last Friday the fifth-ranked Cowgirls held off Merritt and Waurika to claim the team crown at Frederick.
The next day, the Cowgirls added another team title by outlasting Velma-Alma and Waurika and successfully defending the title won in 2017 at Healdton.
On Monday, the Cowgirls traveled to Sulphur and finished second to Class 4A’s fifth-ranked Pauls Valley squad. The Lady Panthers had 30 points, while Ryan finished with 64 points.
Another impressive feat by the Cowgirls in these three meets in four days is a different runner paced the team in each of the races.
Lilybet Harmon was the top finisher for the Cowgirls at Sulphur. She finished the 2.2-mile course in 15:33.76 and finished seventh overall. The time set a school record for this distance (not many meets run a 2.2-mile course) set a year ago at the same meet by Holland Carter, who ran a 16:18.79 time.
Not far behind Harmon was Lily York. She finished 10th with a time of 15:52.40.
Juliet Spangler was 12th in the race with a time of 15:58.18 and Carter was 16th with a time of 16:22.49. Katelyn Dabbs recorded a 26th-place finish and a time of 17:38.15.
Alicen Williams finished 41st in the race that featured 64 runners.
Last Saturday at Healdton it was Spangler leading the way for the Cowgirls on the 3,200-meter course in claiming the team title.
Spangler finished third in the individual race and Harmon was right behind in fourth place. Carter was sixth, Dabbs finished seventh and York was eighth giving the Cowgirls four top 10 finishers.
Williams rounded out the Cowgirl competitors by finishing just one spot from earning a medal as she recorded a 26th-place finish.
Times were not available for the meet at Frederick or Saturday’s competition at Healdton.
At Healdton it was Dabbs, a freshman, claiming her best finish of the season. Dabbs nabbed fifth place in the race and Harmon and Spangler were right behind at sixth and seventh place, respectively.
York finished in 10th place, while Carter came in 12th place. Williams finished 30th in the competition.
Sixth place in a team race is not normally considered a very impressive finish, but for the Ryan Cowgirls’ sixth-place finish at Velma-Alma’s cross country meet a week ago Tuesday was quite a performance.
The five teams that finished in front of the Cowgirls were all Class 4A teams and all of them are ranked among the top 11 in that class in the state. It was an extremely competitive meet in the high school girls’ division with 23 teams and over 200 runners entered in the meet.
Ryan finished with 202 points, which was well behind Ardmore Plainview’s meet-winning total of 49 points. Tuttle finished fifth ahead of the Cowgirls with 156 points.
Another indication the meet was a tough one was despite the sixth-place team finish, none of the Cowgirls earned a medal by finishing in the top 25.
Spangler led the Cowgirls’ effort and finished just out of earning a medal with a 26th-place showing. She finished with a time of 14:01.
Not far behind was Dabbs who managed to finish 35th with a time of 14:22. Harmon was just two seconds behind Dabbs and finished 36th. Carter was 46th with a time of 14:43 and York was 59th with a time of 15:00.
Alicen Williams also competed for the Cowgirls, but her finish did not count in the team total. Williams was 100th with a time of 16:41.
The finish by the Cowgirls was also impressive because two of the girls had been battling illness just the day before the meet.
The Cowgirls will next compete in the Cameron University meet at the Big Green Soccer Complex in Lawton. This will be the final meet of the year until the Class 2A regional on October 13.
The junior high boys’ team competed in the meets at Sulphur, Healdton and Frederick. The Cowboys recorded a fifth-place team finish at Sulphur and earned runner up honors at Healdton.
