03 - The Unger Memorial Library - MyPlainview.com

Page 2B - Sunday, January 3, 2010 - Plainview Daily Herald http://www.MyPlainview.com
Olton, Lockney top list of area teams in ’09
By RYAN BLAKE THURMAN
Herald Sports Editor
It was an historic
year for the area sports
scene.
The Olton Mustang
football team made
YEAR IN REVIEW
school history as it became
the fi rst-ever team to win two playoff
games, and the Lockney Longhorn baseball
team matched the mark for the program’s
deepest run in the playoffs, spurred by the
desire to provide hope and encouragement
to the small town devastated by tragedy after
their school burned to the ground.
FOOTBALL
Olton’s Mustangs reached the third round
of the playoffs for the fi rst time in school
history. Prior to this season, the Mustangs
had never won two playoff games, but behind
the leadership of second-year coach
Joel Baker and senior quarterback Bobby
Workman and senior receiver Ryan Nieto,
who were named co-offensive MVPs for
District 6-1A, the Mustangs got all the way
to the regional quarterfi nals. Unfortunately,
they ran into the Canadian Wildcats and lost,
55-7, fi nishing with a 10-3 record. Canadian
advanced to the state championship, losing
to Goldthwaite, 29-25.
The six-man Petersburg Buffaloes also
had a second consecutive successful season
YIR
From Page 1B
Randall. Plainview handled
the Lady Raiders in their
regular-season meeting, 52-
46, but Randall was able to
turn the tables in the playoffs
and topped the Lady
Dogs, 53-33.
And though they were
fresh-faced and new, every
member of the Lady Dogs’
2008-09 roster was included
on the All-District 4-4A
team. Freshman point guard
Laura Castillo led the way as
she was named the district’s
Newcomer of the Year. The
Lady Dogs had four players
named fi rst team, three
named to the second team
and two given honorable
mention. The team’s lone
senior, Reneta Glenn, led
the team in steals, averaging
almost three a game,
and was instrumental in
shutting down opposing offenses’
most dynamic players.
Glenn was named to the
fi rst team along with sophomores
Amanda Ramirez,
Sandra DeLaGarza and
Marisa Gamboa. Junior Dylan
Chavez and sophomores
Lauren Ritter and Sydney
Hearn were selected to the
second team, and sophomores
Rebecca Burnett and
Emily Welch were named
honorable mention.
Inexperience and youth
manifested itself in inconsistent
play for the 2009
Wayland Pioneers, who
fi nished their season with
a 15-16 record. In Sooner
Athletic Conference play,
the Pioneers fi nished 10th
with a record of 7-15. Their
season culminated with a
fi rst-round loss at the SAC
Tournament to USAO.
The Flying Queens won
more conference games (14)
last season than any of their
predecessors in the SAC and
had the most total victories
(22) since the 1996-97 and
1997-98 seasons when the
Queens won 25 games in
each of those campaigns.
The Queens’ performance
earned them a trip to the
NAIA National Championship
tournament, and though
Wayland ended its season
in the fi rst-round with a 73-
59 loss to Freed-Hardeman,
Tenn., it was a season worth
remembering.
FOOTBALL
The Plainview Bulldogs
had their second consecutive
season in which they
fi nished District 4-4A play
winless and at the bottom of
the standings, but the year
was punctuated more by the
new coaching staff and their
approach than it was wins
and losses.
First-year head coach
Marcos Hinojos’ new system
showed promise and
had fl ashes of what the
future could hold, but ultimately
Bulldog fans suffered
through another season
in which the Plainview
offense struggled and the
defense succumbed to being
on the fi eld more than half
the time.
The Bulldogs were 2-8 on
the year with their two wins
coming against Randall (9-
0) in week 2 and Pampa (31-
13) in week 6. The Bulldogs
fi nished the season with fi ve
straight losses.
Plainview had fi ve players
selected to the All-District
4-4A team.
Topping the list for the
Bulldogs was senior utility
player Chance Aven.
Aven was a unanimous se-
YIR
lection as the district’s fi rstteam
utility player and also
was selected as a fi rst-team
outside linebacker.
Aven led the Bulldogs in
tackles with 90.5, seven of
which were for a loss, and
had two interceptions.
Elsewhere, senior quarterback/punter
Jason Miller
was selected as one of two
fi rst-team punters for the district,
along with Hereford’s
Parker Bridwell.
Miller punted 50 times,
averaging 34 yards per kick.
Senior Jacob Hinojos was
the Bulldogs’ second-leading
tackler with 68 from his
defensive end position. Hinojos
had eight tackles for a
loss and three sacks.
Rounding out the selections
for the Bulldogs were
two players who made the
second-team offense — junior
receiver Thomas Curry
and senior full back Taner
Velasquez.
Plainview also had fi ve individuals
receive honorable
mention honors.
On offense, senior receiver
Marquis Jackson and senior
lineman David Richburg
each received nominations,
and on defense Velasquez at
linebacker, senior Jonathan
Solis in the secondary and
sophomore Marcos Hinojos
Jr. on the line were nominated.
Over at Plainview Christian,
the Eagles were unable
to fi eld a football team as
too few athletes prompted
the school and athletic director
Brent Patton to decide
against fi elding a team.
BASEBALL
The Plainview Bulldogs
were among the squads that
put their name in the history
books in 2009 as they became
the fi rst PHS baseball
team to reach the regional
semifi nal round of the playoffs.
Behind the leadership
of fi rst-year coach Carter
James, the Bulldogs went
17-19 overall and fi nished
second in District 4-4A behind
Frenship. Plainview
outlasted Caprock in a threegame,
bi-district series, then
topped El Paso Ysleta in the
area round. The Bulldogs
then lost an eight-inning
heartbreaker in the opener of
a regional quarterfi nal series
against El Paso Del Valle,
but then responded to win
twice the next day. In the regional
semifi nals, the Bulldogs
ran into Wichita Falls
Rider, which beat the Dogs
in two straight games.
Nine Bulldogs were
named all-district. Named
to the fi rst team were junior
catcher Taner Velasquez,
senior fi rst baseman Chris
Valdez and junior designated
hitter Peter Landeros. On
the second team were senior
pitcher Andy Craig, senior
second baseman Rico Pena,
junior outfi elder Jason Miller
and senior utility player
Brandon Gutierrez. Named
honorable mention were
senior third baseman Chris
Hill and junior outfi elder
Jonathan Solis.
Wayland’s Pioneers had
yet another fantastic season
that culminated in falling one
game short of reaching the
NAIA World Series for the
fi rst time in school history.
WBU made it to the NAIA
Baseball National Championship
Opening Round Field
1 Tournament where they
ran into conference rival
and eventual NAIA champion
Lubbock Christian.
The Pioneers played LCU in
six of their fi nal nine games
of the season, including the
Richard Porter/Plainview Daily Herald
TAKE A KNEE: The Olton Mustang football team says a prayer with the Bushland
Falcons after Bushland defeated Olton 55-7 in the regional championship.
as they fi nished undefeated in the regular
season. They plowed through their bi-district
opponent Ropes, 52-36, before running
into Follett in the regional round where the
Buffs lost, 73-38. Petersburg fi nished with
an 11-1 record.
Junior quarterback Blake Smith was
named District 3, Division I MVP and the
Buffaloes also had nine individuals named
to the all-district team, including freshman
Thomas Roden who was named the district’s
Newcomer of the Year.
The Floydada Whirlwinds and the Hale
Center Owls both made the playoffs, but
each lost in the fi rst round — Floydada to
NAIA opening round. Wayland
won the fi rst of the six
meetings when Todd Weldon
set a new single-season
strikeout record with 120.
The Pioneers lost their last
outing with the Chaps, 15-6,
fi nishing the year with a 43-
15 record after going 19-11
in SAC play to tie Southern
Nazarene for third place.
The 13-year-old Optimist
team was another local
baseball squad to have signifi
cant success in ’09. The
13-year-olds reached the
Southwest Regional Tournament
in Bentonville, Ark.,
and came very close to making
it to the World Series.
The team eventually lost to
Eagle Pass, 4-1.
In the fi rst year of the
league’s existence, both the
Plainview Little League
11-12-year-olds and 9-10year
old Little League All-
Stars fell in the sectional
round of their summer tournaments.
The 11-12-yearolds
fell to El Paso Franklin
while the 9-10-year-olds lost
to Pecos.
SOFTBALL
The ’09 Lady Dogs became
the fi rst-ever team in
the program’s history to
reach the playoffs. Coach
Stan Countryman’s Lady
Dogs were unable to win the
program’s fi rst-ever playoff
game, however, as they lost
in two consecutive games
to Canyon in the bi-district
round. The Lady Dogs fi nished
the year 10-20.
In their historic season,
the Lady Dogs had seven
players named to the All-
District 4-4A team. Topping
the list of awards was junior
shortstop Lauren Hill being
named the district’s co-offensive
MVP. On the year,
Hill had 32 hits, 29 runs, 13
RBIs, a .344 batting average
and slugging percentage
and a .455 on-base percentage.
Named to the fi rst team
were senior catcher Lindsay
Barton, senior outfi elder
Abby Hinojos, junior third
baseman Tiffany DeLuna,
freshman pitcher Cassandra
Chavez and freshman
outfi elder Bethany Chavez.
Selected as a second-team
infi elder was junior fi rst
baseman Corinna Chavez.
VOLLEYBALL
Yet another PHS team
that made history, the Lady
Dogs had the best record
in the program’s history in
2009. With another fi rstyear
coach, Torri Hatch, at
the helm, the Lady Dogs
cruised to a 27-16 record
and recorded more wins
than any other Lady Dog
team. In the second round
of district, the Lady Dogs
also became the fi rst-ever
PHS team to beat Frenship
in district play. It was also
the fi rst district loss for
Frenship in three years.
Plainview eventually fi nished
in third place in District
4-4A, and in the bi-district
round of the playoffs the
Lady Dogs ran into defending
state champion Hereford
and fell in three sets.
The Plainview Christian
Lady Eagles fought their
way into the playoffs in the
last week of the regular season,
but that exertion cost
them as they fell in the opening
round of the playoffs to
Arlington Fellowship in fi ve
sets. PCHS fi nished the year
8-17.
The Pioneer women began
the season ranked No.
2 in the SAC polls, but injuries
hampered Wayland. The
Pioneers eventually fi nished
fourth in the SAC, making it
Bushland 48-6 and Hale Center to Springlake-Earth,
21-14. Floydada senior running
back Fred Williams was selected as the District
2-2A offensive MVP.
The Tulia Hornets had a rough season as
injury, sickness and players quitting reduced
the team’s numbers so greatly that the school
was forced to forfeit its varsity schedule after
its fi rst district game to Friona, a 49-0
loss. Shortly after the announcement that the
team would be forfeiting its fi nal four games,
athletic director Eric Wilson stepped down.
BASKETBALL
The Floydada Whirlwinds and Lady Whirl-
into the conference tournament
as the No. 4 seed. In
the fi rst round, the Pioneers
beat Southern Naz in fi ve
sets, but in the second round
ran into LCU, which toppled
the Pioneers in three. The
Pioneers fi nished the year
21-9.
GOLF
Senior Bulldog golfer
Shannon Allen concluded
his stellar career in ’09 by
reaching the regional tournament
for the fourth consecutive
season. Allen won
the individual district title
by nine strokes, fi nishing
54 holes in 8-over 224. At
regionals, Allen didn’t have
his best performance and
missed out on making a trip
to state.
After graduation and four
years after he became the
youngest person to ever
win the Plainview City Golf
Championship, Allen won
his second by 13 strokes.
On the girls’ side, Evan
Teel and Maria Alvarado
qualifi ed for regionals as individuals.
In the Jack Williams Memorial
Tournament, the duo
of Scott Rundell and Ross
Tyler, both of Lubbock,
surged ahead of the pack
on the fi nal day tournament
with a round of 13-under
58 that gave them a threeround
total of 34-under 179
and a four-shot victory over
the second-place team of
Bobby Hutcherson and Justin
Payne. Defending champions
Cody King and Bill
Ashley fi nished third with a
185.
Heading into the fi nal
round of the Plainview
Country Club Championship,
Chris Sims was tied at
the bottom of the fi ve-man
Championship Flight. At
the end of the second round,
Sims was at the top of the
scoreboard, one stroke ahead
of Kevin Walker after making
up seven strokes with a
2-under- par 69 to capture
the club championship.
In its fi rst year at the university,
the Wayland Pioneer
women’s golf team won
its fi rst tournament at the
Mustang Desert Classic in
March. The Pioneer women
fi nished in third place at
their fi rst-ever SAC Championships.
On the men’s side, the
Pioneers won the Peak’s
Classic, came in second
at the Uvic Shootout and
were third in three other
tournaments, including the
SAC Championships which
earned them a trip to the
NAIA Championship where
they fi nished 12th of out 31
teams.
POWERLIFTING
The Lady Dogs powerlifters
won their fi fth straight
regional title and qualifi ed
six lifters for the state meet.
Plainview scored 14 points
to win the Division I regional
title among 4A and
5A schools, besting Abilene
High with nine points and
Abilene Cooper with seven.
The top fi ve lifters score
points, meaning Bianca
Shepard, Mercedes Vera
and Kaci Castillo accounted
for all of the Lady Dogs’
points. Shepard was fi rst in
the 132-pound weight class,
Vera second in 220-plus
and Castillo fourth in 220s.
In addition to those three,
all of whom qualifi ed for
state in 2008, other Lady
Dogs qualifying for state
were Adrian Casanova,
Peaches Williams and Sonia
Villarreal.
At state, Castillo and
Villarreal fi nished eighth
in their respective weight
classes while Plainview’s
four other lifters “bombed
out.” A combination of
nerves and stricter judging
may have gotten the better
of the Lady Dogs.
On the boys side, Jaime
Salgado had a fantastic
year for the Bulldogs. At
the regional meet, Salgado
placed fi rst in the 114-pound
weight class with a combined
weight of 1,135 (465
pounds on squat, 260
pounds on bench and 410
pounds on deadlift). Salgado
set regional records in both
squat and deadlift, and his
total also was a regional record.
Salgado was given the
Best Squat Award, the Best
Deadlift Award and the Best
Overall Lifter Award for the
light platform.
As a team, the Bulldogs
qualifi ed three other lifters
for state: Alan Rivera in
the 148-pound weight class,
James Rodriguez in the
181-weight class and Jacob
Hinojos in the 220-pound
weight class. In his third appearance
at the state meet,
Salgado placed third with a
total of 1,010 pounds. Rivera
(1,015 pounds), Rodriguez
(1,300) and Hinojos (1,415)
each placed 10th. As a team,
Plainview placed 19th out of
42 teams.
TENNIS
Dustin Lambright was the
shining star of the Plainview
tennis program over the past
12 months.
At the district tournament,
Lambright showed Abilene
Cooper’s No. 1 boys singles
player Max Prachyl why he
was district champion last
year. After dropping the fi rst
set 6-3, the top-seeded Lambright
calmed his nerves and
began hitting winners to successfully
defend his crown.
Lambright took the second
set 6-2 before shutting the
No. 2 seed Prachyl out in the
third set, 6-0.
At regionals Lambright
didn’t have the success he
hoped to have and lost in the
fi rst round to Jason Walt of
Dumas, 6-3, 6-0.
SOCCER
The past year saw the debut
of men’s soccer at Wayland,
but it was rough going
for the fi rst-year squad.
The Pioneer men went
0-16. Their closest match
was against Texas Wesleyan
in the second outing of the
season when the Pioneers
lost 2-1 in double overtime.
On the women’s side, after
reaching the SAC tournament
in 2008, Wayland
missed out in ’09 as it only
won one conference match.
Overall, the Pioneers went
3-13-1.
CROSS COUNTRY
The PHS boys and girls
cross country teams both
had successful years as both
reached the regional meet.
At district, the girls fi nished
in second place while the
boys fi nished in third.
Sophomore Daisy Guerrero
took second place at
district and Janie Macias
fi nished eighth. On the boys
side, Prince Dawkins fi nished
in fi fth while Chris
Salinas came in eighth.
Three members of the
Wayland cross country
teams earned the right to
compete at the NAIA Cross
Country Championships —
senior Timmy McCune and
freshmen Catherine Leubner
and Milca Villegas.
At the NAIA Champion-
winds each had great success last season as
both teams won district titles. However, both
teams ran into Shallowater in the area round
of the playoffs and were sent home early.
The Lady ’Winds’ trip to the playoffs was
their fi rst since 2006 and the district championship
was the program’s fi rst since 1967.
Six-foot-fi ve senior Byron Smith led the
Whirlwinds all season and was named the
District 2-2A Most Valuable Player. Smith
almost averaged a double-double on the year
as he put in 16.5 points per game and pulled
down almost nine rebounds an outing. Aarrhon
Flores was named the district’s Defensive
Player of the Year. The Floydada boys
fi nished 28-4 and the girls fi nished 19-12.
The Abernathy Lady Antelopes earned a
share of the District 3-2A district championship
and advanced to the regional semifi nals
where they lost to the Bowie Lady Rabbits.
Abernathy fi nished its season with a 26-5
overall record.
The Tulia Lady Hornets fi nished second
in District 2-2A behind Floydada and made
it to the area round of the playoffs where
they were defeated by Abernathy. The Lady
Hornets fi nished their season 17-14.
In qualifying for the playoffs as the No. 2
seed from District 4-1A, the Lockney Lady
’Horns won a school record 28 games. Lockney
eventually lost in the regional quarterfi -
nals to Canadian and fi nished its season with
See Area YIR, Page 3B
ships, McCune ran a time
of 26 minutes, 38 seconds
to fi nish in 112th place. In
their fi rst national competition,
the two Pioneer women
fi nished in the middle of
the pack. Villegas ran the
5K course in 20:16 to fi nish
153rd, while Catherine Leubner
was 198th with a time
of 20:38. There were a total
of 330 women in the race.
TRACK & FIELD
After having the regional
meet delayed, taken away
and then reinstituted due
to concerns over the H1N1
virus, the PHS tracks team
eventually had several individuals
compete, but they
ran into some stiff competition.
On the boys side, senior
pole vaulter Michael Cantu
was the only athlete to score
a point for Plainview as
he placed sixth in the pole
vault.
On the girls side, sprinter
Bria Brazier was the only
Lady Bulldog to have much
success. She took seventh
place in the 100 meters.
During the indoor season,
the Wayland women’s
team won its second straight
NAIA Indoor Title, edging
out Azusa Pacifi c University
by a point. The championship
was the fi fth for the
WBU women’s program,
which is an NAIA record.
During the outdoor season,
the Wayland women had
eight individuals combine
to score 102 points and win
the school’s second straight
NAIA Outdoor Track and
Field National Championship.
The Wayland women
easily won the championship
and topped their nearest
competitor Oklahoma Baptist,
which fi nished with 58
points.
The PCHS track tied for
second place at the TAPPS
Class 1A State Meet. The
four-person Lady Eagles
team amassed 59 points to
tie Boerne Geneva Christian
School. PCHS junior
Bekah Spain set a state
meet record in the 100-meter
hurdles with a time of
17 seconds fl at. Spain also
was second in the 100-meter
dash with a time of
13.51 and in the high jump
with an effort of 4 feet, 10
inches. She also competed
in the 200 where she fi nished
third with a time of
28.22 and in the long jump
where she was fourth with
a mark of 15-10.
WRESTLING
On Oct. 13, Wayland announced
it would become
the fi rst university in Texas
in more than 20 years to
offer a scholarship-based
wrestling program.
“Intercollegiate wrestling
is a win-win situation for the
university,” Wayland athletic
director Greg Feris said.
“It will generate additional
students while providing an
additional competitive sport
for the university community.”
The WBU wrestling program
will compete in the
NAIA beginning with the
2010-11 school year. Thirty-seven
NAIA schools currently
sponsor wrestling for
men, 10 for women.
Currently, no intercollegiate
wrestling programs
exist in Texas, despite statistics
that show in excess of
245 high school boys’ wrestling
teams and 198 girls’
teams in the state. In the
Texas Panhandle area, there
are approximately 375 boys
and more than 125 girls participating
in the sport.