With the cancelation of graduation and other activities related to the 2020 senior class – including the all-sports banquet – it would be appropriate to recognize the accomplishments of the senior athletes at Ryan High School.

There were five seniors on the Cowboy football team last fall. While the team dropped to a disappointing 4-6 record in 2019, these seniors during their careers had two winning seasons and made playoff appearances as juniors and seniors.

Andrew Villerreal had an outstanding senior season as a running back on offense and a stellar defensive performer as well as the kickoff specialist for the Cowboys. For his accomplishments he was named to the District B-4 all-district first team.

Villerreal was a two-year starter for the Cowboys and moved to the running back position his senior season after leading the team in receptions as a tight end in the 2018 campaign. In the 2018 season Villerreal was a second team utility player on the District B-4 all-district squad.

Gunner Phillips and Walter Snider were both starters on the 2019 squad and Jonathan Clark and Parker Carey also contributed to the team in a reserve role as injuries hit the team during the season.

Three senior athletes led the Cowgirl cross country squad to an outstanding season. Juliet Spangler and Lily York – both four-year participants in the program – and Gracie Stamper, a newcomer during her senior year – helped the cross country team to a Class 2A regional title. The Cowgirls also won five other meets during the season.

Spangler and York were selected to the Class 2A All-Star Cross Country team and were instrumental in the program’s success the past four years.

Spangler was an individual state qualifier her freshman season and was part of the Cowgirl teams that qualified for state in her final three years of high school. Spangler had four top-ten finishes in meets during her senior season.

York battled some injuries during her senior campaign, but she was consistently among the top two to five Cowgirls during the season. York managed four top-ten finishes during the year.

Stamper, in her first year of competing in cross country, provided some much needed depth for the Cowgirls during the 2019 season.

Samantha Good and Brooklyn Charmasson finished their senior seasons in fast-pitch softball as all-conference honorees by the Southern Eight Conference. It was the second year in a row for Good to be named to the all-conference squad.

Both Charmasson and Good were three-year starters for the fast-pitch team and in their sophomore season the Cowgirls won what is believed to be a school-record 16 games.

Savannah Lashley and Madisen Rhoades also were members of the 2019 fast-pitch softball team and both were starters during their senior seasons on a team that struggled to a 2-19 record.

Villerreal as the only senior member of the Cowboy basketball team for 2020. He was a starter on a team that went only 6-17, but showed tremendous improvement from the past two seasons. Villerreal was also a starter on the 2019 squad.

Good, Spangler and York were key members of the 2020 Cowgirl cage squad. The three girls all became members of the 1,000-point club for their careers during their senior year and were part of the Cowgirls two straight winning seasons in their junior and season seasons.

All three girls played in the Southern Eight’s annual all-star game held at Ryan and the three girls will be furthering their basketball careers in college next fall.

Bailee Martin was also a senior starter on the Cowgirl team in 2020, while Charmasson saw considerable playing time off the bench as the Cowgirls had only seven or eight players much of the season.

Of course the spring sports seasons for the Ryan seniors were cut short by the nation-wide pandemic and the closure of schools across the state of Oklahoma after spring break.

The slow-pitch softball team managed to get in four games before the season ended. Good, Rhoades, Charmasson, Lashley and Stamper were members of the team that went winless at the beginning of the season.

The Cowgirl track squad made only one appearance before the cancellation of the season, but it was a good one. The Cowgirls won the Maysville Warrior Invitational and York and Spangler – the only two senior members of the team – played a significant role in the meet title for the Cowgirls.

York was a member of the 400-meter relay team that finished fourth and she was also part of the meet champion 1,600-meter and 3,200-meter relay teams. In the 800 meters, York earned a silver medal.

Spangler was also part of the two gold-medal winning 1,600-meter and 3,200-meter relay teams. She also captured a gold medal in the 1,600 meters and finished second in the 3,200 meters.

Both girls have been key components to the Cowgirl track program in the past four years. York was part of the regional runner up 1,600-meter and 3,200-meter relay teams in her junior season and was part of the 3,200-meter relay team that finished second in her sophomore year. In her freshman season York was part of the 1,600-meter relay team that finished as a regional runner up.

In additional to joining York on the relay teams at the regionals during her career, Spangler also finished second in the 3,200 meters and third in the 1,600 meters at regionals during her junior season. As a freshman, Spangler recorded a regional runner up finish in both the 1,600 and 3,200 meters.

There were no senior male athletes that competed in track for the Cowboys in 2020 and Ryan failed to have enough players to field a baseball team during the 2020 season.

All of these seniors are to be commended for outstanding careers and contributions to the Ryan High School athletic program in their senior year and beyond.

Waurika will continue its playoff march tomorrow night when they travel to Laverne for a third-round Class B post-season clash.

The Eagles advanced last week with a 58-36 victory over Southwest Covenant, while the Tigers had its game with Seiling canceled when Seiling could not field enough players for the game because of Covid-19.

 The two teams met in the second game of the regular season at Waurika and the Tigers handed the Eagles a 42-18 defeat.

In that contest the Eagles scored first, but Laverne rattled off 42 straight points before Waurika got a couple of late scores to set the final margin.

The two teams have two common opponents. Both teams had big wins over Canton. Waurika dropped a 56-14 decision to Shattuck, but Laverne downed the Indians, 50-14, in the final game of the regular season.

Laverne has a host of talented juniors that make up the roster and they have turned in some impressive performances on the season with a powerful offensive and a stifling defense.

The Tigers have won seven straight games. Last week’s playoff game is considered a no contest and does not count in the win/loss records.

Waurika continues to experience an up-and-down season and last weekend’s big win over Southwest Covenant was an example of what the season has been like.

 The Eagles got off to a 16-0 lead, but allowed the Patriots to cut it to 16-8. A big second quarter gave Waurika another big lead, but the Patriots scored 20 straight points to narrow the game to two scores early in the fourth quarter.

The 2020 season for the Eagles was disrupted twice with cancelations plus Waurika scheduled Laverne and Shattuck – both traditional eight-man powerhouses – for non-district games.

The Eagles struggled in one district game – the 28-22 overtime loss to district champion Empire.

Waurika came back with a big district win over Snyder and after a week off with a first-round bye picked up the playoff win over Southwest Covenant.

The winner of Friday’s contest with Laverne will advance to the Class B quarterfinals and face the winner of Summit Christian and Davenport.

Waurika and Tipton are the only remaining teams from District B-3 in the third round of the playoffs. Empire was eliminated by Alex and Snyder fell in an overtime thriller to Velma-Alma.

Laverne’s most famous alumni is not an outstanding athlete. Jane Jayroe was a Laverne graduate and was the 1967 Miss America. She worked in television news for two Oklahoma City stations and continues to be an ambassador for the state of Oklahoma.

Here’s a brief look at this week’s playoff game:

Laverne at Waurika

Time and Place: Friday at 7 p.m. at Laverne High School Stadium

How to Get There: Take US 81 North to El Reno; Take I-40 West to the US 281 Spur toward Geary and Watonga; at Geary take US 270 to Watonga, Seiling and Woodward; Continue on 270 and turn north on US 283 to Laverne. Allow about four and half hours driving time.

Records: Laverne is 7-1, while Waurika is 6-3.

Coaches: Tanner Woods is in his second season as the coach of the Tigers. He has compiled an 17-4 mark and has led the team to the playoffs in both seasons. Joe Allen is in his third season at the helm of the Eagles. Under Allen the Eagles have  a 27-6 mark.

Series History: Laverne won the only meeting between the two schools earlier this season.

Playoff History: Laverne is making is 43rd appearance in the playoffs and a 15th straight appearance. The Tigers have made the playoffs every year of eight-man play which began in 2006. Laverne has won three state titles and finished as the state runner up three other times – all in eight-man play. Laverne made three semifinal appearances between 1945 and 1958. The Tigers own a 48-39 mark in all playoff games and are 33-11 in eight-man playoff games.

Waurika is making its 30th appearance in the playoffs and the sixth since joining the eight-man ranks. Waurika is 30-26-2 in all playoff games. The 1951 Eagles won the state title and Waurika has five other semifinal appearances – all in 11-man play. Since entering eight-man play in 2012 the Eagles are 5-5 in all playoff games. Waurika is making its sixth straight appearance in the playoffs.

Team Capsules: Laverne is putting together another impressive season. The Tigers lost the season opener to Cherokee but have reeled off seven straight victories including an impressive 50-12 victory over Shattuck that ended the Indians’ long winning streak. The Eagles will have to figure out a way to stop Houston Bockelman, who ran for 230 yards on just 13 carries against the Eagles in the regular season meeting. He had touchdown runs of 32, 55, 33 and 40 yards against Waurika in the earlier meeting. The Eagles will also try to figure out the Laverne defense which has given up no more than two touchdowns to an opponent since the early-season meeting with Waurika and the opener against Cherokee

The Eagles played admirably last week without Torrez, but went through stretches of the game against Southwest Covenant where the team seemed to be disengaged. Kevin Garcia responded to the challenge of filling in at quarterback for the Eagles and rushed for 178 yards and was effective through the air by completing five of eight passes for 99 yards. Waurika continues to rely on a strong running game that is helped along by a consistent offensive line of Angel Garcia, Bowden Forsyth and Bobby Aldape. Slade Cathey adds to the offensive line from the tight end position. The defense continues to improve, despite giving up 36 points to a talented Southwest Covenant team in the first round of the playoffs.

Outlook: The Eagles will have to play an error-free game and be able to corral the Tiger offense that is averaging over 47 points a game. If the Eagles can accomplish this against Laverne, they should have the opportunity to move into the quarterfinals. However, this will prove to be the toughest challenge of the season for the Eagles as they face an improved Laverne squad from the one they faced early in the regular season.

2020 Laverne Season Results

Cherokee 28, Laverne 20

Laverne 42, Waurika 18

Laverne 50, Pioneer 14

Laverne 58, Balko12

Laverne 46, Seiling 0

Laverne 52, Canton 6

Laverne 56, Turpin 0

Laverne 50, Shattuck 16