Sports

By Fred Gray

Last Friday night the Hedley Owls hosted the Lazbuddie Longhorns, and promptly kicked the cow patties out of them, 54-20. It was homecoming, no less, so their victory was doubly sweet indeed.

Anyway you look at the game; it was complete domination by the Owls, taking some of the sting out of last week’s loss to another herd of Longhorns in Hart.

Kyle Lindsay, Denver Chambless, Casey McCleskey, and Clay King used devastating blocks all night long, to free up Owl skill players (It must be noted, however, that in 6-man football, everyone is a skill player). Such physical domination, as exhibited by the Owls’ offense, started and finished in the trenches up front.

The Owls’ ground attack was a beast all night long. Seth Ruthhardt ran over and through the Longhorn defense for 74 yards and three touchdowns on 7 carries. Klaiton Moore slashed his way for 300 yards and five touchdowns on a mere 14 carries, for a hefty 21.4 yards per carry average. Clay King, Jake Owens, and Arden Haught also carried the pigskin for the Owls during the game.

Meanwhile, the Owls’ defense held Lazbuddie to 53 yards and a single touchdown on 18 carries, for a per carry average of just less than 3 yards. The Longhorns’ passing attack met with a similar fate, gaining just 111 yards on a 7 for 19 effort.

The Owls’ defenders continued their aggressive, hard hitting ways. Kyle Lindsey had one solo tackle, along with two assists. Jake Owens added one solo tackle and one assist to the defensive domination. Seth Ruthardt had two solo tackles, eight assists, and a fumble recovery. Denver Chambless added two solo tackles, three assists, and knocked down a pass. Klaiton Moore managed three solo tackles and an assist in additional to his sparkling offensive contribution. Arden Haught also contributed a solo tackle and two assists to the Owls’ defensive domination.

The bench also contributed significantly to the Hedley results. Zach Chapman, Raul Carillo, and Lane Cabler played very well when they were asked to go in and give the starters a breather.

This week, the Owls travel to White Deer for a 7:30 p.m. kick-off on Friday, October 4.

By Fred Gray

The Clarendon College Lady Bulldogs hosted Odessa College to a volleyball match last Wednesday, September 18.

The Lady Bulldogs fell to Odessa College in a spirited match, 23-25, 15-25, 25-21, 19-25. After half-time, the Lady Bulldogs came out focused and played very well in the 3rd set, before fading in the final set of the match.

Then on Sunday, September 29, the Lady Bulldogs hosted Frank Phillips College, out of Borger, and sweep them in three sets, 25-11, 25-18, 25-23.

In between the two matches, the Lady Bulldogs hosted Vernon College and fell, 23-25, 20-25, 25-20, 25-13, 6-15. During the tie breaker, the Lady Bulldogs appeared to simply have run out of gas.

The Lady Bulldogs travel to Snyder, Texas, to play Western Texas on October 6, 2013.

By Fred Gray

The Hedley Owls travelled to Hart and were inadvertently trampled by the Longhorns, 66-20, last Friday, September 20. Feathers flew as the Longhorns figured out how to compete against Hedley’s gang-tackling defense, and showcased a passing game that negated the Owls’ swarming, aggressive defense.

For the night, senior running back Seth Ruthardt rushed for 42 yards on 7 carries, a very respectable 6 yards per carry. Klaiton Moore rushed for 111 yards on 22 carries, and Clay King added 16 yards on 5 carries. The Owls running game rushed for 153 yards on 29 carries, and 2 touchdowns.

In the passing game, Clay King was 2 for 3, for 20 yards and one touchdown. Klaiton Moore passed for 90 yards, on a 3 for 9 effort, with an interception.

Denver Chambless caught 3 passes for 90 yards, while Klaiton Moore caught one pass for 20 yards that went for a touchdown. Senior Kyle Lindsey also caught one pass that went for 5 yards.

On defense, Seth Ruthardt had 5 solo tackles and 1 assist, and Klaiton Moore added 2 solo tackles and 2 assists – along with a fumble recovery.

The Owls’ defense held Hart to 200 yards on 27 carries and 4 touchdowns. The Longhorns passed for 225 yards, on 10 pass completions out of 13 attempts, with 6 touchdowns.

About the game, Coach Shely remarked, “It was not our best effort.”

Hedley will host Lazbuddie, in the Owls’ homecoming game this Friday, September 27. Kick-off is 7:30 p.m.

By Sandy Anderberg

“It was just one of those nights,” head coach Gary Jack said of the loss to the Gruver Greyhounds last Friday night. “We just didn’t have much fire and could never get anything going.” The Broncos lost 0-48 to Gruver in a non-district game on the road.

“We have beaten them quite a few times in years past, but we knew they were a better team this year,” Jack said. “We couldn’t stop their offense. And we didn’t show any resemblance of who we are as a team.”

The Broncos dug themselves into a big hole early on as Gruver took a 35-0 lead at the break. Clarendon mustered up only 178 yards of offense with only 52 of those yards on the ground. The 3-0 Greyhounds had 326 yards rushing.

“We moved the ball better in the second half but we dropped a pass for a touchdown and had a penalty for another. We were frustrated, but we held them in check better in the second half.” Jack knows the Broncos need to regroup this week. “We need to get things going this week,” he said. “We will keep working and be ready for Booker on Friday night.” The Broncos will take on the Kiowas at home beginning at 7:30 p.m.

By Sandy Anderberg

The Broncos’ hard work last week in practice paid off big in their huge 27-20 rout over Wheeler on Saturday. The Broncos trailed early, but regrouped to get the win.

The game was scheduled for Friday night, but heavy rain and some lightning strikes delayed the game until it was finally rescheduled for the next morning.

“It was a slow start for us,” head coach Gary Jack said. “After the first quarter, we got going. Playing the game on Saturday morning had a different feel for us and we let them have a two touchdown lead.”

But the Broncos came roaring back and put up 27 unanswered points before Wheeler was able to score again.

“We had 427 total yards,” Jack said. “We were very balanced. Charles Mason had a good game rushing, and Chance McAnear did a good job of passing the ball. The guys up front gave him a lot of time to throw and several of our guys made good catches. Cedrick McCampbell, Zack Laroe, Brandon Miller, and Zack Watson all did a good job.”

Jack credited the offensive line for their good play as well. David Johnston, Tres Hommel, Montana Hysinger, Zach Cornell, Zack Watson, Taylon Knorpp, Jacob Bishop, and Johnathon Taylor were on the line. Defensively, the Broncos exploded racking up numerous tackles and sacks.

“Taylon Knorpp had a really good game and he’s just a freshman,” Jack said. “And Dustin Crump did a great job for us getting 17 tackles and two sacks.”

Laroe had 16 tackles, Cornell 11 tackles and a caused turnover, Hommel nine tackles, Watson 10 tackles, Mason 11 tackles, JoJo Cartwright six tackles and caused a fumble, Knorpp six tackles and one sack, and Johnston played some defense as well.

“The win was just what we needed,” Jack said. “We played well. It was good to get the win, and we will just keep moving.”

The Broncos will travel to Gruver Friday, September 20, with kickoff at 7:30 p.m.

 By Fred Gray

The Lady Bulldogs of Clarendon College hosted the New Mexico Military Institute Lady Broncos last Wednesday the 11. The Lady Bulldogs easily won the first set, then proceeded to drop three straight, with every game but the last by close margins.

This year’s team is very young, composed mainly of freshmen. On occasion, their youth results in inconsistent play, which happened against the big, aggressive hitters of NMMI.

Then on Saturday, September 14, the Lady Bulldogs travelled to Seminole State, in Seminole, Okla., losing in four sets: 25-20; 18-25; 24-26; 23-25. Once again, they won the first set, and then lost two really close matches.

When these Lady Bulldogs finally get their groove on, they are going to be something very special.

The Lady Bulldogs host the Western Texas College Westerners in another conference matchup, this Wednesday, September 18. Game time is 7:00 p.m.

By Fred Gray

On a surprisingly dry home field, the Hedley Owls ran around and through the McLean Tigers last Friday night. The Owls were able to continue pounding the ball against the Tigers and were able to run out the clock while nursing a nine point lead for most of the fourth quarter. Mother Nature even got into the act, holding the rain at bay until after the final gun.

Once again, the Owls’ defense was scrappy and swarmed around the ball. The Hedley defense, led by Denver Chambless’ 8 solo tackles and 4 assists – several for big losses, held McLean to 88 yards rushing on 27 carries, a rather paltry 3.3 yards per carry. Kyle Lindsey added 6 solo tackles along with 4 assists. Seth Ruthardt added another 4 assists and 5 solo tackles. It’s telling that each of the Hedley players had multiple assists, a sure sign of an aggressive, swarming defense.

Offensively, the Owls were able to hold on to the ball and pound McLean. Hedley’s version of the Lone Ranger, Klaton Moore, slashed and slugged his way through the Tigers, rushing for 248 yards on 20 carries – for a remarkable 12.4 yards per carry, along with 3 touchdowns. Seth Ruthardt had another beastly night, rumbling and bulling his way for 184 yards on 19 carries, a very healthy 9.7 yards per carry, while scoring 2 touchdowns. In total, Hedley rushed for 432 yards on 39 carries, averaging 11 yards per run.

Hedley’s special teams also performed well, breaking Klaton Moore free for a 65 yard td run.

This coming Friday, September 20, the Owls travel to Hart for a 7:30 kickoff. It will be worthwhile to make the trip and watch the speedy Owls go against the size and heft of Hart.

 By Fred Gray

The Lady Bulldogs eventually fell to Trinidad, 25-20, 28-30, 22-25, 24-26 in their home opener. Alisson Kiewiet powered 24 kills in the match to lead the Lady Bulldogs. Brazilian Gisele Silva contributed 15 kills to CC’s spirited effort.

This year’s team is already showing much more talent and potential than last year’s Lady Bulldogs. These athletes are close to meshing and becoming a very good squad.

The Lady Bulldogs open conference play against New Mexico Military Institute Wednesday, September 11, at 7:00 p.m. Dress for the heat and come out and watch these ladies play. You’ll be glad you did.

By Sandy Anderberg

The Broncos know their season will be a tough one and they also know they are fighting a ‘numbers’ uphill battle. But as they continue on in the shadow of a tough 20-29 Homecoming loss to Vega, they will persevere and fight as hard as they can for as long as it takes to get their season turned around.

Head coach Gary Jack knows the Broncos could have gotten the win Friday night in Bronco Stadium before a huge alumni crowd if it were not for the turnovers.

“It was tough for us,” Jack said. “We outplayed them everywhere but on the scoreboard. We had six turnovers; and when we do that, it is tough to win.”

The Longhorns struck first with only a few ticks off the clock when they ran the opening kickoff back to the Broncos’ three-yard line and punched it in on the next play. The Broncos did not lay down and quit after the surprise touchdown, but they continued to play hard and fight to take the lead by one point at the break.

Cedrick McCampbell scored on a 50-yard strike from senior quarterback Chance McAnear, and Jo Jo Cartwright added the bonus to grab the momentum at half time.

Vega took advantage of a sluggish third quarter and more turnovers to put 15 points on the board, which went unanswered by the Broncos.

“We gave them opportunities and they took advantage of them,” Jack said. Despite the loss, the Broncos put up impressive numbers racking up 334 total yards with 242 of those yards coming from the arm of McAnear, who, according to Jack, threw the ball well on the night. Jack also noted that the defense did a better job in the game.

“Several guys played well on defense,” Jack said. “Zach Watson, Zack Cornell, David Johnston, Tres Hommel, Bryce Hatley, Zack LaRoe, McCampbell, and Dustin Crump did a good job for us.”

Jack praised the offensive line for their blocking.

“Cornell, Watson, Hommel, Johnston, Montana Hysinger, and Cartwright did a good job. “LaRoe and Charles Mason made some big catches and Mason ran the ball well. The key to their win was our turnovers. We made their job easier. We need to eliminate the turnovers.”

The Broncos will host the Wheeler Mustangs Friday night beginning at 7:30 p.m. Jack knows they will be tough.

“Wheeler will be tough and scrappy,” Jack said. “They always play hard-nosed football and they will be a handful. But we will regroup and be ready for them.”

By Fred Gray

The Lefors Pirates beat the Hedley Owls 42 – 8 last Friday night, spoiling their home opener. In the first quarter, Lefors intercepted a Hedley pass deep in their own territory and drove the length of field, scoring with 45 seconds left, to take a 15-8 first quarter lead. They extended that lead in the second quarter, to take a 28 to 8 half-time lead. The Pirates scored the only points in the third quarter to take a 36-8 lead into the final quarter. Lefors scored once more, with 52 seconds left in the game, for a 42 – 8 final score.

Hedley once again played a hard hitting, scrappy game, but turnovers once again hurt them. They created opportunities to score but were unable to convert points due to turnovers and dropped passes. They continue to play a good, swarming defense, with everyone going to the ball, but overcoming their offensive mistakes continues to be an issue.

This week, Friday, September 13, the Owls host the McLean Tigers. Kick-off is 7:30. Be there!