Sandy Anderberg

The Lady Broncos outlasted and outplayed a good Quanah team to take two games in the Regional Quarterfinal game with the Lady Indians.

One run proved to be the difference in both of the games as Clarendon won the first game 7-6 and the second 5-4 before an electrified hometown crowd.

Senior Sade Cobb started from the mound in the first game, and freshman Danielle Ford took over late in the game.

“We fell behind 0-3 in the first two innings,” head coach Gary Jack said. “We hit the ball fairly well in those innings, but it went right to them.”

The ladies came alive according to Jack in the fifth inning to go up 5-3 with good hits by Macy Shadle and Erin and Elissa Holland to put some runs on the board.

“We battled back,” Jack said.  “We were able to capitalize on some of their errors, and we started hitting the ball better.”

The Lady Indians tied the game at 5-5 in the 7th inning, which made the Lady Broncos hustle to get the upper hand once again and go up by two.

“Danielle walked the first three batters of the inning,” Jack said. “We were able to get two outs, but they also scored a run. They had runners on second and third, and Danielle was able to strike out the last batter, and that was the game.”

The Saturday game began differently for the ladies as they went ahead 3-0 early in the game with Ford on the mound.

“We held them until the fifth,” Jack said. “And then the wheels fell off for us.  They scored four runs and took a one-run lead in the fifth inning.”

Despite trailing, the Lady Broncos chipped away and were able to tie the game when Janae White hit a single to score Erin Holland.  They went on to get another run and win the game to take the series.

“It was a great series against a much improved Quanah team,” Jack said.  “It was an unbelievable crowd.  There were people everywhere, and the girls were definitely excited. It was very special to be able to play a play off game at home.

“This is as far as the Lady Broncos have been in the play offs. At the end of the week, we’ll be playing in the Regional Semifinal game against Marfa. We are ready to move on.”

Clarendon will face Marfa in Midland at Ulmer Park this Friday at 7:00 p.m. The Saturday game starts at 10:00 a.m.

The Broncos are gearing up for their match-up with Electra and did so by playing a warm-up game with Boys Ranch.  Clarendon walked away with a 7-2 win.

“After losing to BR on two occasions, we went into the game more focused in preparing for the playoffs,” Coach Brad Elam said.  “We played well in all aspects of the game, and our pitching was outstanding as we gave up only two unearned runs.”

Johnny Gaines and Austin Howard threw three innings, and Trevor pitched the last inning.

“As a group, they struck out seven and walked only one hitter,” Elam said.  “Our defense was strong and committed only two errors. Gaines went three for three at the plate with a walk, three runs scored, a triple, three RBIs; and he also connected for his third homerun to rack up good numbers offensively.”

The Broncos will take on Electra on Friday, May 9, at 5:00 p.m.  It will only be one game, and the Broncos will have the hometown advantage as it will be played at Clarendon College.

The Broncos rallied in the last two innings Monday to come from four runs down to grab the win for the number one seeding in the playoffs in a game with Follett.

The win put the Broncos at 16-6 for the year and gave them a first round bye in the playoffs.

“We are ready for the playoffs,” coach Brad Elam said.  “Our defense played really well, and we made plays when we needed to.  We turned a big double play defensively.”

According to Elam, Austin Howard pitched three good innings before being relieved by Johnny Gaines, who came in and pitched four solid innings.  After holding the four-run lead, Follett crumbled somewhat and the Broncos took over to dominate the game and the win.

Trevor Leeper reached base four times and had two stolen bases; Dalton Askew hit a double, reached base three times, scored two runs, and had two stolen bases; Austin Howard slammed a triple and added two runs; David Roberts had two hits and two RBIs; Derrick Shelton had an RBI single and scored one run; and Stephen Fowler had an RBI.

The Broncos earned a bye in the first round, which will begin this week.  The Broncos look to play Friday or Saturday, May 9-10, and will take on the winner of the Ralls/Electra game.  Times and location will be in next week’s edition of the Enterprise.

Earlier in the week the Broncos took on Caprock JV and defeated them 10-9.

“We started out with the lead and held on at the end,” Elam said.  “Austin Howard started the game and pitched four good innings. Troy Chambless came on in the fifth and finished the game for the win.”

Elam also noted that, offensively, the bottom of the lineup was very productive.  Derrick Shelton reached base three times, scored two runs and drove in two with a long triple; Stephen Fowler scored two runs; Brayden Philips had two hits and drove in two; and Trevor Leeper had three hits including an inside the park homerun.

The Broncos also played Bushland on Saturday and lost 1-19.

“We did not show up to play against a very good team, and the score shows it,” Elam said.  “We made too many errors in the field and did not hit the ball well.  We ended up with only one hit, and Austin Howard run scoring double in the first inning. We really didn’t strike out that much, but we were unable to hit the ball hard.”

The Broncos will play a practice game on Friday, May 2, to prepare for the playoffs.

The Lady Broncos left no doubt as to who was the better team in their play off seeding game against Follett on Tuesday in Fritch.

It was the third meeting of the year after a 1-1 split in regular season play.  The 10-3 win pushed the ladies to the number one seed in the Region 1 1-A Bi-District race.  The Lady Broncos who are currently at 15-3 will take on Ranger in a best two-out-of-three Friday and Saturday, May 2-3, at Abilene Cooper High School at 5:30 p.m. on Friday and 2:30 p.m. on Saturday.

“I won the toss, and we’re going to go with two out of three,” head coach Gary Jack said. “We are the number one seed going into the Area game, and that’s where we wanted to be.

“We will have some girls gone in the game against Ranger because of the UIL State Academic meet; and we thought if we went with this format, we could get some girls back for the Saturday game.”

If a third game is needed, it will follow the second game.

In the Follett game, Clarendon got things rolling in their favor early on when they scored four runs in the first four innings to take a 4-0 lead.  After a scoreless fifth, the Lady Panthers rallied back to come within two runs of Clarendon.  But determination kicked in for the Lady Broncos, and they put the game out of reach by scoring five runs in the seventh and holding Follett scoreless.

“They got some hits and runs on us in that sixth inning,” Jack said. “They had three hits in a row and took advantage of an error that we made.  But we came back in the seventh inning to score five runs to seal the deal.”

Freshman Danielle Ford was on the mound and, according to Jack, pitched a great game.

“Danielle threw a great game,” Jack said.  “It was nearly a perfect game, and she was very consistent.  Going into the fifth, she didn’t have any hits or walks; and she struck out 10 batters. And our defense played great behind her.”

Also according to Jack, this game was one of the best played by the Lady Broncos.

“We really played the best game of the year,” Jack said.  “It was nearly flawless.”

The game was the third time this year these teams have played with each team getting one win.

“We started off hitting the ball against their really good pitcher,” Jack said. “That’s something we didn’t do when we lost to them. We’ve played them six times in two years, and we’ve won four of those games.”

The ladies hit the ball well against Follett, according to Jack.

“We had some really big hits,” Jack said.  “Macy Shadle had two singles, a triple, and scored three runs; and Abby Patten got us going when we needed it with a shot down the third base line with two outs.  Erin Holland also had a single and triple, and Danielle Ford and Brandi Mays did a nice job of hitting the ball.  Overall, it was just a solid game for us.”

The ladies are currently ranked 19th in the Coaches’ Poll and are confident they can move up the ladder with a big win over Ranger in the Area game this next weekend.

The Clarendon Broncos varsity basketball team swept two opponents last week to clinch the Bi-District and Area Championship titles.

The Broncos crushed Memphis last Tuesday to claim the Bi-District crown by scoring a whopping 93 points to only 37 for the Cyclones.

Before the week was out, the Broncos claimed one more title when they stunned Boys Ranch for the Area Championship at 78-49.

Five Broncos scored in double figures in the Memphis game, which was played at Clarendon College, and all contributed to the huge win.  Clarendon began the game on fire and went 19-7 for the first eight minutes.  They romped in the next period to extend their lead and seal the win.

Scoring:  Johnny Gaines 22, T.J. Brown 21, Alton Gaines 12, Dalton Askew 12, Derrick Shelton 12, Aaron Gordon 5, Tré Brown 5, Stephino McCampbell 2, and Mike Crump 2.

The win over Memphis allowed the Broncos to play for the Area Championship against Boys Ranch at Amarillo High last Friday night.

Once again the Broncos proved they were worthy of continued post-season play as they dominated a good Rough Rider team.  The Broncos managed a 14-point lead after the first quarter and never looked back as they played great basketball in front of a super fan base.  The Broncos hit five three-pointers in the game and went 11 for 16 from the free throw line.

“We played a really good offensive game,” Coach Colby Waldrop said.  “I would like to see us pick it up defensively, but I am so proud of their energy.  It was a great game, and the crowd was fantastic.  Our offense needs to stay the same for the next games.”

Scoring:  Johnny Gaines 22, T.J. Brown 20, Alton Gaines 14, Tré Brown 7, Dalton Askew 8, and Derrick Shelton 6.

The Broncos ended their season Tuesday night before a large crowd in Childress, falling in the Regional Quarterfinals to Wellington.

Complete details of the final game of the season will be printed in next week’s edition of the Enterprise.

Twenty-seven boys and girls teams participated in the 2007 Greenbelt Holiday Classic Tournament held at the Clarendon Gymnasium December 27-29, and the Broncos outlasted 13 of them to claim the Championship over Highland Park.

The 56-54 defeat of the Hornets came after wins over Bible Heritage, Groom, and Stratford.  The Broncos defeated Bible Heritage 107-16 in the first round and bested the Groom Tigers 92-33 after their first win.

Six players finished in double figures in the Bible Heritage game.  Alton Gaines led with 19, and Johnny Gaines had 18.  Aaron Gordon and Dalton Askew put in 13 each, and Derrick Shelton and Tré Brown added 11 and 10 respectively.  Nathan Gribble had 9, and T.J. Brown finished with 8 while Jadon Thornton had 6.

The game against Groom had similar results as the Broncos won 92-33.  Four finished in double figures and all players contributed to the win.

Scoring:  Askew 23, J. Gaines 17, A. Gaines 15, T.J. Brown 10, Thornton 8, Shelton 7, Gribble 4, Gordon 4, and Tré Brown 4.

The Broncos faced a good Stratford team in the third round and earned a 56-37 win.  Clarendon began the game with an offensive edge over the Elks in the first quarter.  They continued to play aggressive offense and pumped in 24 points after thr break to secure the win.

Scoring:  T.J. Brown 22, J. Gaines 9, Askew 8, A. Gaines 4, Thornton 4, Gribble 3, Tré Brown 2, Shelton 1, and Stephino McCampbell 1.

The win over Stratford put the Broncos in the Championship game against Highland Park Saturday afternoon.  It went down to the wire, but the Broncos played to a 56-54 win.

HP jumped out to a seven-point lead, and the Broncos found themselves struggling offensively in the first quarter of play.  But things went their way in the second period as they worked hard to get even with the Hornets.  A three-point shot at the halftime buzzer put both teams at 28 at the break.  Both teams came out fighting after the break and were determined to get the win.  But things went the Broncos’ way as they stayed focused until the end.

“It was good getting back into the flow,” Coach Colby Waldrop said.  “The kids did a good job, and they were really excited.  We got two big wins over two 2A schools.  We’ll keep working hard to prepare for District play.”

Scoring:  T.J. Brown 21, Shelton 18, A. Gaines 10, J. Gaines 2.

“Overall the tournament was a big success,” Waldrop said. “We heard a lot of good comments from several schools, and they want to come back next year.”

The three-day tournament was held at both Bronco Gyms and the Bulldog Gym at Clarendon College.

T.J. Brown was named All-Tournament Most Valuable Player, and Alton Gaines, Derrick Shelton, and Dalton Askew were named to the All-Tournament Team.

Macy Shadle was the lone Lady Bronco named to the All-Tournament Team on the ladies’ side.

The Lady Broncos played Bible Heritage in the first round and handily defeated them 88-33.  The ladies totally dominated their opponent on both ends of the court, and five players finished in double figures.  Abbie Massingill had 18, Macy Shadle scored 14, Jenci White had 12, Abby Patten finished with 11, and Erin Holland had 10.  Sade Cobb had 8, Janae White had 6, Jill Cornell and Cortnee Thornberry each had 4.

The ladies faced Lockney, who were named the eventual tournament champions, in the second round and were defeated 45-60.  It was slow going for the Lady Broncos as they struggled against the Lady Horns in the second half.

Scoring: Shadle 21, Cobb 8, Massingill 6, Holland 4, Thornberry 4, and Janae White 2.

The ladies took on Hedley in the third round; and despite leading in the first half, they lost to the Lady Owls in overtime 39-44.

Clarendon led 22-13 at the end of the first half, but allowed their opponent to get back into the game and play to a tie at the end of regulation.

“We played hard in the tournament,” Coach Randy Yelverton said.  “We played well for a half in each of the Lockney and Hedley games.  We need to learn to play under pressure, and we need to pick it up on offense.”

Scoring: Cobb 10, Holland 8, Massingill 8, Jenci White 7, Shadle 4, and Cornell 2.

Both the Broncos and the Lady Broncos will participate in the Claude Tournament January 3-5 and will play at Bushland January 11.

The Broncos will host Panhandle January 8 at home beginning at 5:00 p.m.

The Broncos have played some of their best basketball in each of the two playoff games they competed in last week.  They seemed to have the games scripted as they turned both of them into nail-biters for the coaches and fans while keeping it completely in their control. 

Junior T.J. Brown iced four free throws over the two games that was a definite turning point in each of the games.  Against Shamrock the free throws came very late in the game and stole the momentum away from the Irish as the Broncos went on to take that game 59-54 to claim the Bi-District title. 

Brown iced two more from the charity line with only three seconds left in the game against Boys Ranch to claim the Area title with the 57-56 overtime win.

In the Bi-District game Shamrock jumped out to take a big lead early on and led by seven at the end of the first period.  But a huge second quarter for the Broncos allowed them to even up the score at the break at 30-30.

The Irish held the slight advantage going into the final minutes, but the Broncos were determined, and they would not be denied the win. Four Broncos finished in double figures. 

“We never gave up,” Coach Colby Waldrop said.  “They came out hot, and we stayed with them.  They were playing with a lot of confidence. We were on an emotional roller coaster, but we came out on top in the end. This was a first playoff win in 10 years, and I am very proud of them.”

Scoring:  LaDez Captain 14, Brad Sell 13, Danzel Wilson 10, T.J. Brown 10, Alton Gaines 4, Dalton Askew 4, Derrick Shelton 2, and David Gordon 2.

The Boys Ranch game was nearly a repeat of the Shamrock game, but this time the game went into overtime.  The Rough Riders (who were ranked number eight in the state) looked to dominate early on, but the Broncos stayed close and only trailed by three points at the break.

Boys Ranch increased that lead in the third period with hopes of holding the Broncos at bay.  But Clarendon had a different ending in mind and continued to battle hard to tie the game at 46-46 at the end of regulation. 

With only 1:13 left on the clock in overtime, the Broncos were down by five points.  They fought back to come within one point when the clock read only three seconds.  It was enough time for Brown to sink two free throws to put the Broncos up by one point. 

Boys Ranch made one last attempt to score, but the buzzer went off before the shot was made, and the Broncos were declared the champions. 

“It was the gutsiest performance ever,” Waldrop said.  “They never gave up.  It was such an emotional win. David (Gordon) hit two huge free throws in the fourth quarter, and then T.J. hit what turned into be the biggest points of the game. I can’t even put into words how I felt about the way they all played. Derrick Shelton stepped up and had the biggest game of his life.  I am just very proud of all of them.”

Scoring:  Captain 19 (13 rebounds), Brown 15, (11 rebounds), Shelton 7, Sell 5, Gordon 4, Askew 3,Wilson 2, and Gaines 2.

The Broncos played a Regional Quarterfinal game against Vega in Amarillo on Tuesday night and were defeated, 45-28.

The Lady Broncos are pressing on in the playoffs as they strive to get closer to the state tournament with each win.  Their latest title of Area Champions came against a good Vega team in Amarillo on Friday night with a 57-55 victory.

At press time, the Lady Broncos are at 19-12 for the season.

Clarendon held a slight advantage early in the game but relinquished the lead before the break.  The tide turned somewhat in the third period, and the Lady Broncos found themselves down by five going into the final period. 

They grabbed the fourth quarter momentum and finished with a well-deserved victory to earn the Area championship over Vega.  The Ladies shot a very impressive 11 out of 12 free throws for 92 percent, compared to only 79 percent for the Lady Longhorns.

“Our motto has been Post Proelia Praemia, which is Latin for ‘After the battles, comes the rewards,’” Coach Steve Myatt said. “We are definitely living up to our motto! We are battling hard; and I give all the credit to the girls, assistant coaches Kasey Bell and Alton Gaines, and my wife, Darla.  It is nothing I have done.  Something is clicking for us right now, and we are excited.”

Scoring:  Jessie Howard 19, Macy Shadle 15, Abbie Massingill 12, Regan Lemley 8, and Haley Carter 3.

Earlier in the week, the Lady Broncos claimed the Bi-District Championship by defeating Quanah in Childress by the final of 53-29. 

The Ladies held a four-point edge at the end of the first period but completely owned the second quarter as they outscored their opponent 11-4 to give them a big lead going into the break.  The second half of the game turned into an offensive showcase for the Lady Broncos as Macy Shadle and Regan Lemley pumped in 22 and 21 points respectively. 

Shadle’s 22 included three three-pointers, and Lemley connected on four three-pointers to add to her total. 

“It was unbelievable team offense,” Myatt said.  “It was just awesome the entire game.”

Myatt gave credit to the entire team but felt sophomore Abbie Massingill played well against Quanah’s best post player. 

“Abbie did a great job against their post,” Myatt said.  “She played hard and stayed strong.” 

Offensively, Myatt was pleased with their play. 

“When our shooters got hot, the game was over.  It was our best game we have played so far all year.  It was our best ball.”

Scoring:  Shadle 22, Lemley 21, Howard 6, and Massingill 4.

The Lady Broncos will play Sudan on Wednesday, February 21, at Canyon High School beginning at 8:00 p.m. 

If they win that match up, they will travel to Fort Worth to the Regional Tournament.

The Hedley Lady Owls came out on top after the Clarendon Lady Broncos took it down to the wire in their own tournament over the holidays. 

The Hedley girls won the championship match of the Greenbelt Classic 43-47 in Saturday night’s game. 

Katie Gregory from Hedley earned the MVP award. All-Tournament honors went to Clarendon’s Jessi Howard and Macy Shadle.  Lockney won the Sportsmanship Award, and Megan McClain was the three-point contest winner.

The championship game was all even after the first quarter of play, but the Lady Owls claimed a small advantage at the break.  The Lady Broncos came back and outscored their opponent in the third period to come within one point at 30-31.  But Hedley was allowed too many free throws in the last quarter and took the four-point win.

Scoring for Clarendon were:  Jessi Howard 18, Macy Shadle 8, Regan Lemley 7, Abbie Massingill 4, Erin Holland 2, Sade Cobb 2, and Haley Carter 2.

Individual results for Hedley were not available at press time.

The Lady Broncos breezed through Groom, Highland Park, and Lockney to get to the championship game.  They defeated Groom 94-21 in the first round in a game that was definitely a team effort as everyone contributed to the win with five players recording double digits.

 Scoring:  Cobb 18, Shadle 17, Howard 16, Holland 10, Lemley 10, Haley Carter 7, Katie Askew 7, Jill Cornell 4, Massingill 4, and Shelby Watson 2.

The Ladies defeated Highland Park 68-51 in the second round in their second Thursday game.  Despite an improved effort by the Lady Hornets, the Lady Broncos were in complete control of the game from the tip-off.

Scoring:  Howard 15, Lemley 13, Shadle 11, Massingill 8, Askew 6, Cobb 5, Cornell 4, and Holland 4.

The Lady Broncos faced Lockney in the next round and got by them 36-33.  The game was tight throughout, but the Ladies stayed strong and got the win. 

“Overall, we feel like we are playing good,” Clarendon coach Steve Myatt said.  “We are improving, and we need to keep improving to make sure we are ready for District.”

Scoring:  Howard 13, Shadle 11, Cobb 5, Lemley 4, Carter 2, and Watson 1.

The Lady Broncos will travel to Memphis January 5 and will play Channing there January 9.  They will host Bushland January 12 with all games at 6:30 p.m.