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Cowgirl Fast-Pitch Squad Hopes To Rebound From Winless 2019 Season

By
Trey Smart
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0

It was a tough season last year for the Ryan High School fast-pitch softball squad.

The 2019 team was 0-19 for the fall season and is looking to improve that mark as the 2020 season kicks off Tuesday at Waurika.

The Cowgirls will stage the home opener one week from today (Thursday) when they will play host to Big Pasture on Larry Ninman Field at the Bob Givens Sports Complex.

Youth will be counted on by third-year coach Stan Mueggenborg as last year’s team featured four seniors. This year’s roster has only three seniors.

But, while the Cowgirls may be short on experience, they will have more talent on the field.

Mueggenborg is looking to start as many as three freshmen, including the likely starting pitcher, Jasmine Villerreal.

“She (Villerreal) has good speed and has a good fast ball and has been working on some off-speed pitches,” Mueggenborg said.

With Villerreal in the circle for the Cowgirls, that leaves a hole at shortstop where Villerreal was slated to play when pre-season practices started a few weeks ago.

Three returning starters – Kodi Duke, Diamond Chazaretta and Linsdsey Reake will be counted on to provide the offensive punch for the Cowgirls.

“Diamond has been hitting the ball well and a lot better than last year,” Mueggenborg said of the Cowgirl senior.

Reake, who returns a first base for the Cowgirls, should provide some power as she will probably hit in the four spot.

“Lindsey has a great attitude and works harder than just about anyone,” Mueggenborg noted.

Emily Harris, a sophomore, will see some playing time in the circle for the Cowgirls and will hopefully provide some offensive punch.

Harris and Reake were cited by Mueggenborg as two of the hardest working girls on the team.

“We are a little more talented and faster than a year ago,” Mueggenborg said. “We have the opportunity to do some things on the base paths that we have not been able to do previously.”

That speed will not only be an asset to the Cowgirls on the base paths, but also in the field.

The Cowgirls will have a bit of depth as Mueggenborg has 13 players currently preparing for the upcoming season.

Kyla Este’Phillips is one senior that will hopefully provide some depth in the outfield when needed.

Carter Combs looks to be the starter behind the plate, while sophomore Libby Carter will probably be holding down the second base position.

“Libby loves playing softball,” Mueggenborg said. “She is here every day and works at it and has gotten better every year.”

Kaitlyn Dabbs, another speedster for the Cowgirls, will be joining Duke and Chazaretta in the outfield.

Alexis Shockley is the other infielder for the Cowgirls and will see action at both shortstop and third base.

Overall the Cowgirls may be better, but with the schedule loaded with teams that return most or all of their players from a year ago, the Cowgirls may find a difficult time finding the win column.

But, as the younger players progress through the early part of the season, Mueggenborg is hopeful the wins will eventually come.“We are going to hustle every chance we get,” said Mueggenborg.

Look for the Cowgirls to be a bit more competitive on the diamond, but without the experience in the circle and teams such as Geronimo, Grandfield and Waurika returning key players from a year ago, it will be tough for the Cowgirls especially early in the season.

Cowgirl Fast-Pitch Softball Schedule

August

11: at Waurika; 13: Big Pasture; 17: at Wilson; 20, 22: Southern Eight Conference Tournament; 24: at Geronimo; 25: Grandfield.

September

1: Waurika; 3: Temple; 8: Wilson; 10, 12: Temple Tournament; 14: at Grandfield; 15: Frederick; 17: at Big Pasture; 21: Empire; 24: District Tournament.

Lady Eagles Turn In Impressive Performance At State Meet

By
Trey Smart
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0

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.

Cowgirl Harriers Finish Seventh In First Meet of the Season

By
Trey Smart
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0

A pair of outstanding individual performances highlighted the first meet of the season for the Ryan cross country teams.

The Cowgirls posted a seventh-place finish in the Class 4A-2A division with two runners earning medals and another battling a nagging injury during competition at the Duncan Invitational last Saturday.

Photo by Shelley Villarreal

The Cowboys took only one runner – Mason Adsit. The sophomore runner, however, recorded his second best time of his career which was good for 78th place in the crowded field of competitors.

His time over the five-kilometer course was 23:19.83.

Alicen Williams and Jasmine Villerreal led the Cowgirls to the seventh place team finish and both runners earned medals in the highly competitive meet.

Photo by Shelley Villarreal

Williams recorded a personal best time over the two-mile course. Her time of 13:54.22 was good for 18th place overall.

Villarreal, running in her first meet at the high school level, finished in 24th place with a time of 14:29.55.

Lilybet Harmon, the Cowgirls’ top returning runner from last year’s regional title team, has been battling an injury, but she still managed to finish 34th in the meet with a time of 15:16.21.

Rounding out the performances for the Cowgirls were Katelynn Dabbs who finished 58th with a time of 18:05.22.

Libby Carter was 69th in the race with a time of 24:42.01. Carter is a recent addition to the Cowgirl squad and has had limited time conditioning for a cross country race.

Blanchard won the high school girls division meet with 46 points, while Merritt was second with 56 tallies. Ryan’s point total of 151 was seventh among the eight teams in the meet. A total of 70 high school girls competed in the meet.

Ryan will return to competition on Saturday when they travel to Geronimo for the first meet ever hosted by the school.

Duncan Invitational Junior High Results

Boys

9. Andrew Scott, 13:18.24; 12. Koble Lewis, 13;38.58

Girls

Merritt 47, Hollis 72, Comanche 90, Altus 108, Rush Springs 121, Blanchard 121, Duncan 184, Waurika 190, Ryan 226

41. Lilah Regehr, 13:55.68; 65. Harleigh Loftis, 15:54.40; 71. Lynnlee Tomberlin, 16:29.08; 80. Alyssa Harrison, 17:58.46; 82. Heather Poage,18:03.02; 89. Kayleigh Hodges, 20:29.52

Cowgirl Softball Squad Picks Up Pair of Victories

By
Trey Smart
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0

It has been a busy few days for the Ryan Cowgirl slow-pitch softball squad after the team has struggled to get on the diamond because of weather and cancellations.

 The Cowgirls went 2-3 in the stretch of games with two wins over Big Pasture and losses to Thackerville, Geronimo and Grandfield.

 In the first game with Big Pasture, the Cowgirls captured a 4-0 victory over the Lady Rangers.

 Two singles by Justyce Keith and Brooklyn Charmasson helped the Cowgirls score two runs in the top of the second.

 Cassy Charmasson reached base in the top of the third and came around to score after a base hit by Samantha Good gave the Cowgirls a 3-0 advantage.

 In the top of the fourth, the Cowgirls added to the lead as Randi Linton and came around to score to put the Cowgirls up, 4-0.

 B. Charmasson picked up the shut out win for the Cowgirls and survived seven stranded base runners by the Lady Rangers.

 Later the same day the Cowgirls dropped a 14-2 decision to Thackerville as the Lady Wildcats scored five runs in the first inning and six more in the second inning.

 Thackerville added to the lead in the top of the third with three more runs for a 14-0 lead.

 The Cowgirls were able to scratch for two runs in the bottom of the third, but the game ended on the run-rule.

 Sadie Guzman led off the bottom of the third with a walk and scored, while C. Charmasson also walked and scored. The Cowgirls threatened for more runs to try to keep the game alive, but left the bases loaded.

 The Cowgirls took on Geronimo and Big Pasture a week ago Tuesday split the two contests.

 Geronimo blasted the Cowgirls for six runs in the first inning and coasted to an 11-1 victory over Ryan in just four innings.

 Keith accounted for the Cowgirls’ lone run in the game.

 The Cowgirls rebounded from the loss to pick up a 6-3 victory over Big Pasture.

 The Lady Rangers took a 1-0 lead after one inning, but the Cowgirls picked up three tallies in the top of the third to take the lead.

 Madison Rhodes, Kenzie Lewis and Linton all reached base for the Cowgirls and scored. The Cowgirls also stranded two runs in the inning.

 The Cowgirls added to the lead in the top of the sixth as Lewis, Good and Guzman each circled the bases for Ryan giving the Cowgirls a 6-1 lead.

 Big Pasture managed two runs in the bottom of the inning as seven batters came to the plate, but the Cowgirls ended the rally.

 Last Thursday the Cowgirls got into a slugfest with Grandfield and dropped a 21-10 decision.

 Ryan jumped out to a 2-0 lead as Lewis and Linton reached base and scored. Abbie Bolin added a basehit, but the Cowgirls could not do any more damage.

 Grandfield answered in the bottom of the inning as the first four batters came around to score and the Lady Bearcats added another run for a 5-0 lead after the first inning.

 The Cowgirls actually regained the lead in the top of the second inning as they exploded for eight runs.

 Eleven Cowgirls came to the plate in the inning and the first eight batters scored. Keith, C. Charmasson, Rhodes, Savannah Lashley, Keith, Linton, Good and Guzman all scored in the inning to give Ryan a 10-5 lead.

 The Bearcats responded, however, with 12 runs in the bottom of the second inning for a 17-10 lead.

 The Cowgirls could get nothing started in the third inning, while the Lady Bearcats added four more runs for a 21-10 lead heading to the top of the fourth inning.

 The Cowgirls tried to extend the game, but left the bases loaded and the game ended on the run rule.

 Ryan is now 2-4 on the year heading into competition at the Fletcher Tournament that begins play today (Thursday).

 The Cowgirls were to have met Verden in the first game.

 The host school, Verden, Chickasha, Big Pasture and Empire are among some of the teams in the tourney.

Spring Sports Set to Get Under Way for Cowboys, Cowgirls

By
Trey Smart
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0

With the recent rain, ice and cold weather, it is hard to imagine the spring sports seasons are ready to begin.

However, that is exactly the case as Ryan is set to open its 2018 baseball campaign today, weather permitting.

The slow-pitch softball squad and track squads will open their seasons soon.

The Cowboy nine is scheduled to play host to Temple today at the Bob Givens Sports Complex. Action is scheduled to get underway on Larry Ninman Field at 4:30 p.m. and will feature both the junior high and high school teams against the Tigers.

Ryan will also host a junior high tournament Monday and Tuesday at the Bob Givens Sports Complex.

The Cowboy baseball squad will have a new coach for the first time in 11 years. Stan Mueggenborg, who has directed the Cowboys for the past 11 seasons, has stepped over to take the reigns of the Cowgirl slow-pitch softball squad.

Judd Matthes will be the coach for the Cowboys and will face somewhat of a rebuilding year on the diamond for Ryan.

Last season the Cowboys were 6-9 – only the second losing season in the past 11 years.

The Cowboys will return up to five starters from the 2017 club and will also get the talents of last year’s junior high standout – Grayson Tomberlin.

The Cowboy nine will be looking to post a winning season and possibly snag a district title.

The key will be finding a dependable pitcher as the Cowboys graduated their two top pitchers from a year ago – Sebastian Morales and J.D. Martin.

The Cowboys will be solid behind the plate with veteran Dawson Tomberlin returning for his senior season. Joseph Martin and River Williams will be counted on to also provide some fireworks at the plate.

The Cowboys will be competing in Class B again in the 2018 season, but will no doubt face a tough road to a deep playoff run as many of the Class B schools do not play football and enjoy the advantage of an extra 30 games or so from playing fall baseball.

The Cowgirl slow-pitch softball squad will be in action for their season-opener on Monday as Ryan will host Lawton Christian School. The first pitch is slated for 4:30 p.m. and will feature both the junior high and high school squads in action.

While slow-pitch softball has not been a highly successful sport since its inception in the 1998 season, the Cowgirls did post a 5-6 mark a year ago and were the district runner up for only the second time in school history.

And, in the fast-pitch season last fall Ryan managed a 16-13 record – the first winning season in fast pitch softball in the 18 years of competition.

Most of the contributors to the fast-pitch team will also be aiding the cause of the slow-pitch squad in Coach Mueggenborg’s initial season at the helm.

Abbie Bolin, Kenzie Lewis and Sadie Guzman, who were all-conference selections in the fall, will return to bolster the Cowgirl hopes.

Bolin, Lewis and Randi Linton are the three seniors on the squad and will be counted on to provide leadership to the rest of the squad which is consists of a number of sophomores.

The Cowgirls will return to action Tuesday when the host Grandfield.

Track will be the final spring sport to get started.

The Cowboy and Cowgirl thinclads will travel to Wynnewood on March 15 to compete in the Wynnewood Invitational. The two squads will compete as individuals as no team scores will be kept in the meet. Field events will begin at 9:30 a.m. with the track events beginning at 10 a.m.

The Cowgirls should be contenders in most meets they enter this spring.

Ryan’s girls won their first invitational meet title last season since 1990 and most of the contributors to the team scoring return for the 2018 season.

The Cowgirls finished fifth in the team race at the regional meet in 2018 and that tied for the second highest finish in a regional meet in school history.

All the girls who scored points for the Cowgirls in the regional meet will return for the 2018 season including Lily York, Samantha Good, Holland Carter and Juliet Spangler.

The Cowboy track squad may have limited participation but should have athletes that will score points at any meet they are able to compete in.

D. Tomberlin and Joseph Martin, along with River Williams, will be some of the Cowboys that return from seeing limited competition on the track in 2017.

For both the Cowboys and Cowgirls to compete for any team titles, some depth will have to be added to the squads.

Coach Steve Spangler will begin his second year as the coach of the Cowboy and Cowgirl track squads.

Ryan Baseball Schedule

March 1          Temple

March 8  at Turner

March 9        Waurika

March 12  Comanche

March 13 at Grandfield

March 26 at Thackerville

March 27       Turner

March 29 at Comanche

April 3  at Big Pasture

April 5-7    Ryan Invitational

April 10   at Waurika/Dickson

April 12     Grandfield

April 13             Alex

April 16 at Geronimo/Waurika

Ryan Slow-Pitch Softball Schedule

March 5   Lawton Christian

March 6     Grandfield

March 13    at Temple

March 15  Big Pasture

March 26  Comanche

March 29   Geronimo

April 2  at Big Pasture

April 3  at Geronimo

April 5  at Grandfield

April 10         Temple

April 12-13    Fletcher Tournament

Ryan Track Schedule

March 15 at Wynnewood Invitational

March 27 at Alex 8-Man Invitational

April 6      at Stratford Invitational

April 13     at Waurika Southern Oklahoma 8-Man Invitational

April 21 at Waurika Red River Invitational

April 24 at Velma-Alma Comet Invitational

Ryan Softball Seniors Honored at Home Game

By
Curtis Plant
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0

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

Ryan Gets Double Overtime Victory Over Waurika

By
Trey Smart
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0
Ryan vs Waurika Photo by Sheree Hanson

Very seldom in the history of this rivalry has a game lived up to expectations especially in terms of being a close game. But, the 60th edition of the series between Ryan and Waurika did not disappoint in living up to expectations as Ryan came away with a 44-36 double overtime victory last Friday night at Bob Givens Sports Complex.

Both teams return to action tonight (Thursday) with Ryan traveling to Bray-Doyle and Waurika hosting Central High in another big game for the Eagles.

Ryan moved to 5-2 on the year and 2-0 in district play, while Waurika dropped to 3-4 and 1-1 in district competition.

The contest last Friday was one where both teams put forth supreme effort with Waurika jumping out to a big advantage and Ryan coming back in the second half to even the score and send the game into overtime.

The fast-pace Waurika offense gave the Cowboys problems most of the night, but several costly miscues running the offense led to failed two-point conversions and loss of yards at crucial times.

The Cowboys overcame four turnovers that helped the Eagles get out to a three touchdown lead in the first half.

The Cowboys had to drive 69 yards with no timeouts and only 1:14 showing on the clock to tie the score in the fourth quarter. But exactly one minute later the Cowboys got the game-tying score.

Earlier in the game every time the Cowboys made a charge, the Eagles answered with a touchdown until late in the fourth quarter.

Ryan got off to a good start after a Waurika onside kick recovered by the Cowboys gave them excellent field position.

It took the Cowboys 12 plays to drive 53 yards as Grayson Tomberlin scored from two yards out to cap the drive. The two-point conversion failed, but Ryan held a 6-0 advantage with 6:07 left in the first quarter.

The Eagles immediately answered.

Waurika took possession of the kickoff at their own 24 and drove 76 yards in just eight plays.

Quarterback Aaron Nitka found Seth Cathey for a 24-yard pass and catch for the score. The two-point conversion failed leaving the score knotted at 6-6 with 4:02 left in the first quarter.

On the ensuing kickoff the Cowboys misplayed the ball and also were penalized for holding sending the Cowboys back to their own eight-yard line to start the drive.

A key third-down conversion on G. Tomberlin’s pass to Wesley Clark got the Cowboys out of the shadow of their end zone, but a fumbled snap at their own 47 yard line that was recovered by Waurika’s Scott Showalter ending the Cowboys’ hopes of regaining the lead.

The Eagles did not waste much time in taking advantage of the turnover.

Waurika drove 43 yards in eight plays – overcoming two holding penalties – to get the go-ahead score.

Kevin Garcia covered the final eight yards on the ground to put Waurika up, 12-6, with 11:13 left in the second quarter. The two-point conversion failed.

The Cowboys’ next possession also ended in a turnover. Garcia picked off an errant Cowboy pass and returned it 24 yards to give Waurika the ball at the Ryan 40 yard line.

Waurika scored in seven plays – overcoming another holding penalty and a sack. Aaron Nitka found Colton Bryant for a 37-yard touchdown pass to give Waurika an 18-6 lead with 3:28 left before the half.

The Eagles attempted another onside kick, but it was recovered by the Cowboys’ Kalen Weldon.

However, on Ryan’s first play – a pass completion to Weldon – was fumbled and the Eagle defender fought off Weldon for the ball to set Waurika up again with a short field.

On the first play after the turnover, Nitka found Hunter Wesberry wide open for a 41-yard touchdown pass with 3:12 still left before the half. The two-point conversion once again failed, but Waurika held a commanding 24-6 lead.

Weldon recovered yet another Waurika onside kickoff attempt giving the Cowboys excellent field position at the Ryan 42-yard line. Another third down completion, a 16-yard run and a Waurika personal foul penalty helped the Cowboys move to the Waurika seven.

G. Tomberlin capped the 58-yard drive with a seven-yard scamper for the score diving into the right corner of the end zone with just 30 seconds left in the half. The Cowboys tried a halfback pass for the two-point conversion, but the receiver ran the wrong way and the pass fell incomplete

However, the Cowboys had narrowed the gap to 24-12 heading into intermission.

On the opening drive of the second half, the Eagles moved from their own eight to the Waurika 42 before the drive stalled. On fourth down the Eagles faked a punt, but the pass from Turner Mora to Cathey was stopped for no gain giving Ryan the ball.

In just four plays the Cowboys drove the distance with G. Tomberlin finishing off the drive with an eight-yard touchdown run. The two point conversion failed, but with 7:34 left in the third quarter Ryan had narrowed the score to 24-18.

The Eagles’ next drive ended at the Ryan 24 when a fourth-down play was stopped by the Cowboy defense after an errant snap from scrimmage by the Eagles.

The Cowboys could not take advantage as Cathey recovered another Ryan fumble at the Ryan 48 to give Waurika an opportunity to increase the lead.

The Eagles did exactly that.

In just five plays – aided by a Ryan personal foul penalty – Waurika went the distance for the score. Cathey capped the drive with a one-yard run.

On the two-point conversion the Eagles completed a pass, but the receiver was ruled to be ineligible and on the second try, the Eagles’ rushing attempt was thwarted leaving the score at 30-18 with 1:27 left in the third quarter.

The Cowboys took possession at the Cowboy 25 after the kickoff return and were able to drive 75 yards in eight plays. G. Tomberlin found River Williams for a 29-yard touchdown pass. The two-point conversion failed again, but Ryan had narrowed the gap to 36-30 with 7:16 left in the game.

Waurika set up its next possession at the Eagle 48 following a 28-yard kickoff return by Mora. The Eagles were able to drive to the Ryan 37, but on fourth down, G. Tomberlin intercepted a pass and the Cowboys took over.

After two incomplete passes and a bad snap that resulted in a 17-yard loss, the Cowboys were forced to punt and Waurika took over with only 5:12 left in the game.

The Eagles were able to drive to the Ryan 16, but a penalty and two plays that resulted in losses of 10 yards put the Eagles in a fourth-and-23 situation.

The fourth down pass fell incomplete giving Ryan the ball at the Cowboys’ 31-yard line with 1:14 left.

This is where G. Tomberlin went to work for the tying score. A key fourth down pass to Williams resulted in a first down at the Waurika 47.

On first down, G. Tomberlin found his brother Dawson and the Cowboy back caught the pass and rambled 32 yards before being brought down at the Waurika 15.

G. Tomberlin spiked the ball on first down leaving the Cowboys with 26 seconds to try to tie the game.

A second down pass fell incomplete with 21 seconds left setting up a third down.

G. Tomberlin was able to find Skyler Parkhill in the back of the end zone for a 15-yard scoring pass that tied the score with 14 seconds left.

The quarterback sneak on the two-point conversion was stopped just short of the goal line to deprive the Cowboys of the win in regulation.

In the first overtime period, the Eagles took possession first and lost five yards on first down. A second-down pass fell incomplete and after a third down play resulted in a penalty pushing the Eagles back to the Ryan 20.

The third down pass was incomplete as Nitka was under heavy pressure. The fourth down pass was intercepted by Williams to end Waurika’s first overtime possession.

The Cowboys’ first two plays from scrimmage resulted in six yards to the Ryan 4, but a third down pitch was errant causing D. Tomberlin to lose his balance resulting in a three-yard loss.

A fourth down pass fell incomplete ending the first overtime.

The Cowboys got the ball first in the second overtime and G. Tomberlin covered the 10 yards on the first play from scrimmage with a run right up the middle for the score. The two-point conversion-pass from G. Tomberlin to D. Tomberlin was good to put the Cowboys in front, 44-36.

Waurika threatened to score in its possession as a first down play resulted in a six-yard gain by Cathey. Nitka’s lateral to Mora resulted in three yards with the Cowboys making the stop at the one.

A third-down rush resulted in a loss of two yards and on fourth and three, the Eagles fumbled the snap and the ball rolled around before being recovered at the Ryan seven.

That sent the Cowboy bench and the home crowd into a frenzied celebration.

Nitka was outstanding at quarterback for the Eagles as he was able to pick apart the Cowboys’ secondary – especially in the first half. Nitka finished the night with 21 of 36 for 349 yards and three touchdowns.

Cathey, the outstanding senior tight end for the Eagles, finished with nine catches for 119 yards and one touchdown. He also added a touchdown on the ground.

G. Tomberlin, the Cowboys’ freshman signal-caller, finished the night with 99 yards rushing on 21 attempts and four touchdowns. He connected on 10 of his 19 attempts for 224 yards and three touchdowns giving him a hand in every Ryan touchdown.

HIGHWAY 81 RIVALRY MUSINGS: The 362 yards passing by the Eagles is the second most ever by a Ryan opponent….The 44 points scored by the Cowboys ties the mark for most points scored in the series with the Eagles….Both teams had over 400 total yards of offense – 465 for Waurika and 403 for Ryan….The Eagles had only four runs of 10 yards or more in 39 attempts, while Ryan was not much better with six runs of 10 or more yards in 21 attempts…The 224 yards passing by the Cowboys was the eighth most in school history….The 224 yards passing by G. Tomberlin is also the eighth best mark in school history….Waurika still leads the series with the Cowboys, 40-17-3….The eight-man meetings have resulted in each team having three wins….This was the first time in 60 meetings a game has gone into overtime since the rule was instituted in 1975…The overtime game for Ryan was the first for the Cowboys since 2007, while Waurika’s last extra-period game was in 2010…This game was one of only three games across Oklahoma that went into overtime last week…The 36 points scored by Waurika is the third most points scored in a losing cause in school history behind the 54 points scored last year against Seiling and the 39 points scored against Ringling in 1980…The Eagles also scored 36 in a loss to Cyril in 2013…Waurika converted Ryan’s first three turnovers into scores in building a 24-6 advantage in the first half of the game…The Eagles also scored after Ryan’s fourth turnover….The win by the Cowboys breaks a three-game winning streak by Waurika in this series….A large crowd witnessed this thriller – possibly as many as 800 fans were at the game.

Cowboys Nine Pick Up First Win of Season

By
Trey Smart
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0

It has not been a good start to the baseball season for the Ryan Cowboys.

But, Tuesday night on Larry Ninman Field, it got a little bit better as the Cowboys record a 12-6 victory over Grandfield to move to 1-2 on the season.

No other details about the game were made available.

In the first two games of the season, Ryan fell at Turner, 8-0, last Thursday and then dropped a 22-r4 decision to Comanche on Larry Ninman Field at the Bob Givens Sports Complex on Monday.

Photo by Sheree Hanson

The season’s home opener got off to a rough start as Comanche exploded for eight runs on just three hits as the Class 3A Indians took advantage of two Ryan errors, three walks and two hit batsmen.

The Cowboys answered in the bottom of the first with three tallies as five of the first six batters reached base.

The Cowboy cause was helped along by a pair of hit batsmen and a walk.

The only hit in the inning for the Cowboys was by Andrew Villarreal.

The Indians added two runs in the second inning and three more in the third inning, while the Cowboys could only must a single run to trail 13-4.

The Cowboy run came after Grayson Tomberlin doubled and River Williams singled G. Tomberlin around to score.

That would be the final run the Cowboys could generate.

Comanche added nine runs in the top of the sixth as they took advantage of three hit batsmen, two errors, three walks and a pair of doubles.

Joseph Martin suffered the loss for the Cowboys on the mound.

In last Thursday’s game with Turner, the Cowboys could get nothing done at the plate.

Turner’s Chase Greenwood tossed a one-hotter and struck out 11 Ryan batters in just five innings in a game shortened by the run rule.

Turner scored two runs in the first, four runs in the third and two runs in the fifth inning to end the game with only one out in the final inning.

G. Tomberlin picked up the only hit for the Cowboys.

Dawson Tomberlin took the loss on the mound for the Cowboys giving up five walks but surrendering only two hits on the day.

Ryan will be off through spring break, but the Cowboys will be busy when they resume action.

The Cowboys will travel to Thackerville to battle the Wildcats on March 26 and will host Turner on March 27. The Cowboys will play their third game of the week on March 29 at Comanche.

District Basketball Tournaments Have Long History in Oklahoma

By
Trey Smart
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0

 The district basketball tournament for high school girls’ and boys’ teams is the first step in the long process of competing for a state basketball championship in Oklahoma.

The Class A and B schools were able to complete that process this past March with the crowning of state champions, but the upper classes were not able to complete their state tourneys in Oklahoma City and Tulsa because the pandemic forced the cancellation of those events.

In today’s prep basketball world the district tournament is the first of three steps to earning a spot in the state tournament each year for classes B through 4A. The district tourney sends the champion and runner up to the regional tournament. From there teams compete to advance to the area tournament and ultimately the state tournament.

Today’s district tournaments are much smaller than the district frays held 40 to 60 years ago when district tournaments featured six to eight teams. Of course, there were more high schools in Oklahoma prior to 1970 than exist today.

District tournaments in Oklahoma were started in 1919 and the winners of those district tournaments were the qualifiers for the state tournament. There was one class for boys and one class for girls and only eight district tournaments.

A few years later the regional tournament was added and for a number of years a team had to win just two regional tournament games to qualify for state.

At some point regional tournaments had eight teams and a squad had to win three games to earn the state tourney berth.

The Jefferson County schools did not compete in a district tournament until 1922 when the Waurika boys sent a team to the district tourney.

Hastings, Terral and Addington sent teams over the next three seasons to compete in the district tournament.

The Terral, Ryan and Hastings girls were the first female squads to compete in a district tournament in 1929.

The first year for Ryan’s boys to compete in a district tournament was in 1929.

Irving boys, Hastings girls and Sugden’s boys and girls teams also entered district tournament play in 1929.

Claypool, Ringling and Union Valley’s boys’ teams first competed in a district tournament in 1931.

While most schools had a girls’ team compete in a district tournament at some point, nearly all Jefferson County schools went several years without a girls team entered in a district tournament.

Around 1948 all the Jefferson County schools did have girls teams competing in the district tournament.

 Ryan and Waurika have snared more district titles than any of the other schools, but they continue to compete in basketball today along with Ringling.

All the other high schools that existed around Jefferson County closed by about 1960.

The introduction of more than one class of basketball for boys and girls also had an impact on the success of the county teams.

All schools in Oklahoma competed in the same class until 1931 when two classes of boys basketball began. In 1980 there were six classes of boys’ basketball and since 1996 there have been seven classes that crown state champions.

Girls’ basketball in Oklahoma has undergone the biggest changes through the decades. Girls played six-on-six for many years.

There was only one class for girls up until 1950 when schools were divided into two classes. In 1964, three classes of play began.

In the 1980’s the larger schools in Oklahoma began to play five-on-five and in 1988 the first five-on-five champion was crowned.

The last six-on-six champions in Oklahoma were crowned in 1995 and Oklahoma was the last state to switch to five-on-five for all schools. From that point on, there have been seven classes in girls’ basketball.

Ryan, Waurika and Ringling were many times classified in a different class from the rest of the schools in the county.

There was a period of time that Waurika and Ringling were in a class above Ryan, but in the last few years all three schools have been in Class A.

Most often the county teams gathered for the district tournament at Waurika or Walters – especially in years prior to 1960. Ringling was the exception as they competed in a district tourney that was most often held at Healdton.

Once consolidation hit and several county schools closed the district tournament began to be held at schools that required more travel.

Since district tournaments are now over 100 years old this would be a good time to examine the history of the county high schools and their achievements in the basketball playoffs that began with a district tournament,

NEXT WEEK: The high school basketball playoff history of Waurika.

Small Group of Ryan Thinclads Compete at Covington-Douglas

By
Trey Smart
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0

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.

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