Sports

By Sandy Anderberg

The Bronco baseball team participated in a scrimmage with Memphis last Friday, February 15, as they begin their 2014 season.

According to Clarendon coach Brad Elam, the scrimmage went well.

“We didn’t really hit the ball all that great, but our pitching and defense was good for this early on. Zack LaRoe and Caleb Cobb pitched really well for eight innings. Ray Jaramillo, Brandon Miller, and Mykeal LaRoe made good plays on defense.”

The Broncos will play a regular season game at home against Hale Center on Saturday, February 22, at 2:00 p.m.

They will travel to Memphis on Monday, February 24, and play at 4:00 p.m.

 By Fred Gray

Last week, Clarendon College travelled to Midland and beat the Chaparrals in their house, then returned to Clarendon and thumped Midland in the Dawg House.

On February 3, the Bulldogs went on the road and put a 78-72 beating on Midland College. The Washington DC, duo of Hershell Grant and Melvin Mitchell led the Bulldogs to victory. Hershell Grant scored 15 points while freshman Melvin Mitchell added 22. Mario Garcia lit it up for 17 points, on five of seven from three-point range.

Showing that the away win was not a fluke, the Bulldogs returned to their Dawg House and put another good whipping on Midland College. This time sophomore Hershall Grant poured in 28 points in a fine night of big time shooting. Chiza Ntirata, the big freshman rebounder from the Congo, added a rare double-double, scoring 11 points and pulling in 13 boards for the Bulldogs.

The Bulldogs play aggressive, fast-paced basketball. They play hard and never quit. The Bulldogs are almost always in the game and provide excellent entertainment. Come on out and watch good college basketball.

The Bulldogs return to the Dawg House on Thursday, February 13, for a game against South Plains College of Levelland. Everyone needs to wear pink to the game and support cancer research and awareness.

By Sandy Anderberg

The Clarendon Lady Broncos have had a great season and were rewarded for their effort by earning the title of Co-District Champions after only one District loss to Panhandle last Tuesday night. A win would have given them the outright title, but both the Lady Broncos and the Pantherettes went 7-1 in District play and split the District Championship. Because of the tie, the teams met once again last Friday night at Claude in a seeding game and the Lady Broncos won 50-44.

The Lady Broncos came out in the first quarter and steamrolled the Lady Mustangs taking a six-point lead. But Claude outscored the Lady Broncos in the second period of play to cut their lead to two. Determination was key in the final minutes of the game, as the Lady Broncos were not going to be denied and took the six-point win. Clarendon shot 68 percent from the bonus line and Taylor DeGrate alone shot 86 percent. Camra Smith helped out as well from the charity stripe hitting three out of four of her free throws.

“It was a great game,” head coach Molly Weatherred said. “I thought the girls played extremely hard. It was a tough, physical game, and we stepped up to the challenge. I was proud of the adversity that the girls fought through. It can never be a good sign when one of your starters goes down the first play of the game, but we kept our composure and were able to get the win.”

On Tuesday, the Lady Broncos played their final district game against Panhandle and lost 45-52. Missed free throws plagued the Lady Broncos as they went three for ten and the Pantherettes shot 75 percent from the bonus line. The Lady Broncos trailed by only four points after the first quarter, but cold shooting struck in the second quarter of play and the ladies fell further behind at the break. They were able to work themselves back into the game in the final half of play, but time got away from them and they took the seven-point loss.

Scoring: Smith 12, Starnes 12, Gaines 11, DeGrate 8, and Howard 2.

By Sandy Anderberg

The Lady Broncos have one hurdle left in their District schedule and they can do no less than Co-District Champions. A win over the Panhandle Pantherettes on Tuesday will give them the District Championship outright and a loss will put them in a tie with Panhandle. The first time they met in the Bronco Gymnasium, the Lady Broncos scored a big win to give the first half title over the field.

Friday night, the Lady Broncos earned a huge win over the White Deer Does at 58-27. The Lady Broncos had little trouble holding the Does off and opened a huge lead in the first quarter of play. White Deer had trouble matching up against the Lady Broncos’ aggressive defense and stalled out on the scoreboard. Ryann Starnes and Taylor DeGrate had 16 and 13 points to lead the Lady Broncos.

“It is always nice to get a win on your last home game,” head coach Molly Weatherred said. “It was an emotional night for our five seniors. I thought they all played a great game. We got ourselves in foul trouble a little, but we were able to get through the game.”

Also scoring: Taylor Gaines 8, Deborah Howard 8, Camra Smith 6, Phara Berry 4, and Haley Ferguson 3.

Last Tuesday, the Lady Broncos traveled to Vega and got a big win at 46-31. The ladies jumped out to the early lead and never looked back as they used a solid third quarter to seal the win over the Lady Longhorns.

Despite only shooting 60 percent from the bonus line, the Lady Broncos were able to execute offensively to defeat their opponent. DeGrate led the Lady Broncos on the scoreboard with 14 and Berry and Gaines each added 10.

“Vega is always a tough place to play,” Weatherred said. “I thought we played great defense holding Vega to 31 points. We struggled a little offensively, but had a couple of girls hit some big shots.”

Also scoring: Starnes 9, Howard 2, and Ferguson 1.

The Lady Broncos will begin post-season play next week.

By Sandy Anderberg

The Broncos lost on the road to Vega last week but rebounded from the loss and defeated White Deer at home on Friday night.

The Broncos were off their game somewhat against Vega on Tuesday night and found themselves in a tough spot. The Broncos got behind early and could never make up the deficit. Charles Mason finished with 14 points. “We did not shoot the ball well (at Vega),” head coach Brandt Lockhart said.

Also scoring: Cedrick McCampbell 7, Bryce Hatley 5, Chance McAnear 5, JoJo Cartwright 4, Chance Lockhart 2, and Ashton Smith 2.

On Friday, the Broncos came back strong and solidly defeated White Deer 85-20. They were able to turn things around and bounce back from their earlier loss. The Bucks were unable to stop the Broncos’ strong offense and struggled to get around their defense. Mason and McCampbell led the Broncos on the board with 19 each. Lockhart added 14 and Smith had 10.

“We shot the ball well,” Lockhart said. “We did a good job on defense and were able to get turnovers. I was pleased with our effort.”

Also scoring: McAnear 7, Hatley 6, Cartwright 6, Zach Cornell 2, and Taylon Knorpp 2.

By Sandy Anderberg
Several Broncos and Lady Broncos participated in a powerlifting meet at Highland Park and finished with good results according to coach Johnny Nino.
Ray Jaramillo finished fifth with a lift total of 620 pounds in the 123-pound class. Clint Franks also earned fifth place in the 132-pound class with a total of 530 pounds, and Ethan Ballard finished 19th in the 165-pound weight class with a total lift of 685 pounds. Joseph Jaramillo participated in the 148-pound class and lifted a total of 765 pounds for third place, and Nick Shadle finished 11th in that class with a lift total of 600 pounds. Lady Bronco Emberli Holland lifted a total of 500 pounds in the 165-pound class for 4th place, and Chelsea Morris was second with a total lift of 530 pounds in the 198-pound class. Karlee Adams also participated.
“This was a new experience for all but one lifter,” Nino said. “I felt like they competed very well and they all have room for improvement.”
The lifters will travel to Childress February 1.

By Sandy Anderberg
The Clarendon Lady Broncos went 4-0 in the first half of District and continued their winning streak at home Friday night defeating the Claude Lady Mustangs 53-45.  The win puts the ladies in control for the remaining games left on their district schedule.
The Lady Broncos trailed by two points after the first eight minutes, but came storming back in the second quarter and outscored the Lady Mustangs by eight points.  Determination and focus kicked in for the ladies in the second half and they were able to get a big win over their opponent.  The Lady Broncos went to the free throw line twenty-four times and made good on sixteen of those.  The two Taylors on the team led the ladies on the scoreboard with seventeen and fourteen points, respectively.  Camra Smith was perfect from the bonus line going four for four and put seven total points on the board.
“We played really, really hard,” head coach Molly Weatherred said.  “They came out ready for us and we didn’t shoot very well.  But our defense kept us in the game.  Not playing Tuesday night hurt us somewhat, but we were able to get it done and get the win.”
Scoring:  Degrate 17, Gaines 14, Smith 7, Deborah Howard 7, Phara Berry 5, and Ryann Starnes 3.
The Lady Broncos will play in their final home game on Friday, January 31, against White Deer beginning at 6:30 pm.  They will travel to Panhandle on Tuesday, February 4, for their final regular season game.

By Sandy Anderberg
Things did not go as the Broncos planned against Claude at home last Friday night and they were defeated 31-48 after getting a win against them in the first half of district.
The first half of play was fairly even with Claude only holding a three-point lead at the break.  The Broncos were right where they needed to be, but a slow-shooting third quarter was devastating for the Broncos as the Mustangs increased their lead to ten.  Fouls worked against the Broncos as Claude went to the line numerous times while the Broncos only went thirteen times and made good on only four of those.
“We did not shoot the ball well for the entire game,” head coach Brandt Lockhart said.  “We could not buy one inside or outside in the second half.  It was a tough loss.”
Scoring:  JoJo Cartwright 10, Cedrick McCampbell 6, Charles Mason 6, Taylon Knorpp 4, Chance McAnear 3, and Ashton Smith 2.
The Broncos will host White Deer at home Friday, January 31, and travel to Panhandle on Tuesday, February 4, beginning at 8:00 p.m.

By Sandy Anderberg

The Lady Broncos pulled off a great win over their biggest threat in their five-team District last Friday night at home. The Lady Broncos survived all attempts by the Pantherettes to stop them and earned a 52-40 win to go 4-0 in the first half of District play.

The Lady Broncos actually trailed by one point after the first quarter, but put together a solid second quarter to take a commanding lead into the break. They were able to explode their offense in the second half and put together a great defense that stopped Panhandle from finding a rhythm.

Several Lady Broncos stepped up in the game and added points to the board at crucial times and three finished in double figures. Taylor Gaines led the ladies with 16, Deborah Howard had 12, and Taylor DeGrate helped with 11. Ryann Starnes had seven, and Phara Berry, Camra Smith, and Skyler White added two.

Earlier in the week, the Lady Broncos stomped White Deer on the road 63-40. They jumped out to an early lead and opened a twenty-seven-point lead at the break. White Deer cold do nothing to stop them and the Lady Broncos breezed to the win.

Scoring: Gaines 17, Smith 10, DeGrate 10, White 10, Berry 5, and Brittney Braim 2.

The Lady Broncos will begin their second half of District play at home Friday, January 24, against Claude beginning at 6:00 p.m.

By Sandy Anderberg

The Clarendon Broncos traveled to White Deer Tuesday night and earned their third district win over the Bucks by a huge 73-30. They finished the first half of District at 3-1.

The Broncos began the game in control of their opponent and remained in power throughout the game. They took an early seven-point lead after one quarter and turned it into a spread of seventeen points by the break. The Broncos were unstoppable and the Bucks were powerless to stop the Broncos’ offense. Cedrick McCampbell put in twenty and JoJo Cartwright had ten to lead the Broncos on the scoreboard.

“We did a good job of passing the ball and getting good shots,” coach Brandt Lockhart said. “We were also to get turnovers for easy points.”

Also scoring: Chesson Sims 9, Chance McAnear 8, Bryce Hatley 8, Ashton Smith 6, Taylon Knorpp 6, and Charles Mason 6.

On Friday, the Broncos hosted a tough Panhandle team and after fighting hard, fell short at 48-70.

The Broncos took the tipoff and McAnear put in a huge three-pointer to get the game going. They stayed determined in the first half against Panhandle, but could never get the jump on the Panthers they needed. They had a four-point deficit after the break, but a slow-scoring third quarter cost the Broncos and they were unable to overtake their opponent.

“We played a good first half in a very physical game,” Lockhart said. “In the second half we were unable to score in the third quarter and get stops in the second half.”

Scoring: Mason 15, Cartwright 13, Smith 8, Hatley 5, McAnear 3, McCampbell 2, and Sims 2.