Sports

Thirty-two boys and girls teams competed in the second annual Greenbelt Classic Basketball Tournament held at the Bronco Gym and the Clarendon College Bulldog Gym December 28-30. 

The Panhandle Panthers took the boys’ championship, and the ladies from Vega walked away with the girls’ top spot. 

Three teams from Clarendon participated in the tournament with the Broncos finishing the best, taking second place, and the Lady Broncos completing the tournament in fourth place.

The Broncos faced Adrian in the first round and defeated them 97-28. 

“We played hard and well against a struggling Adrian team and scored a season high 97 points,” Coach Wade Callaway said. “A testament to our teamwork is that all 12 Broncos scored.” 

The Broncos played Grady, New Mex., in the second round; and despite a slow start, they finished strong and got the 62-51 win. 

“We came out sluggish against a much better Grady team,” Callaway said.  “We finished well and won by double digits.”

The Broncos then took on a strong Highland Park team in the semi-finals and got the 56-41 win over the Hornets. 

“We came out very strong,” Callaway said.  “However, we stumbled a bit in the second quarter and kept it close.  Again, in the second half we came out and put it away; and for the second time in the tournament, all 12 of the Broncos made it in the scoring column.” 

That win, over the Hornets, put the Broncos in the championship round against a tough 2A Panhandle team, who were named tournament champs with the 59-62 win over the Broncos. 

“We were down after the first quarter, but we played some of our best basketball of the year in the second quarter to take a 12-point lead into the locker room,” Callaway said. 

“I thought we played hard, but we just couldn’t hit some of our wide-open three-point shots (we were 0-9).  If we had shot badly (instead of horribly) from behind the arc, we would have won. 

“Even so, it was a great tournament; and it did for us what we wanted: got us ready for district.” 

Leading the scoring were Chase Thornberry 12 and Steven Ballard 12.

“Overall I thought we had a really good tournament,” Callaway said.  “For starters, I was proud of the way our Junior Varsity team responded after finding out the day before the tournament that they would be in it because a team dropped out on Monday.  All of them showed up and, for the most part, battled hard against varsity teams. 

“I appreciate all the people who had a hand in making our tournament a success.  We open district on Friday, the 7th at Wellington.  It will be a tough game, so we encourage all our Bronco fans to make it.”

On the ladies’ side of the tournament, the Lady Broncos drew Adrian in the first round, dominating their opponent 64-22.  They took on Hedley in the next round for the third time this year and defeated them 52-42 to advance into the next round.   The Lady Broncos didn’t fair well in that round as they went up against the eventual tournament winner, Vega, and were defeated 32-53. 

They then faced Panhandle in the next round for third place and fell short by six at 51-57. 

“The girls played hard,” Coach Steve Myatt said.  “We have some things to work on before district starts, but I feel sure we’ll be ready.  I also appreciate all of those who worked so hard to make our tournament a success.”

Both the Broncos and the Lady Broncos will begin district play Friday, January 7, at Wellington beginning at 6:30 p.m.  They will travel to Shamrock January 11.

Freshman sprinter Angel Williams came home from the State Track meet in Austin with exactly what she wanted – a state championship in the 400-meter dash. 

Williams’ time of 58.32 was a little less than two and a half seconds off her regional record of 55.77 but fast enough for first place against the field.  Williams also brought home a bronze in the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 14.93.

Running fifth at the halfway point of the 400-meter dash, Williams knew she had to kick it in high gear to run through the string first.  And she did just that.  Fighting through the wind for most of the race, she finally made the last turn and put the wind behind her.  She sailed past the leaders and took the win.

Williams took the bronze medal in the 100-meter hurdles behind New Diana and Tom Bean High Schools.  Her time of 14.93 was 40 one-hundredths off the winning time.

Also making an appearance at the state meet was sophomore Equilla Weatherton.  She participated in the 100-meter dash and claimed 7th place in the event with a time of 12.43.  That time was 26 one-hundredths faster than her Regional time just two weeks earlier.

Things didn’t go as well for former bronze medallist James Williams.  He fell short in his quest to repeat for a medal at this year’s state meet and finished in 8th place.

Williams didn’t throw as well as he’s capable of, and the old saying ‘if it weren’t for bad luck…’ definitely fit as Williams took his turn in the shot put.  His first two attempts in the preliminaries ended disastrous for him, but he qualified for the finals with his last throw.

The finals didn’t go any differently for the junior shot putter.  His final throw of 49’9 ¾” was his only qualifying throw and was well off his farthest throw this year of 55’7”.  Williams knew that if he would throw close to his best in the finals, that the gold would be his.  But it wasn’t meant to be for the well-deserving young man.  He finished in 8th place, five feet short of a gold medal.

“These three athletes competed well and represented the community of Clarendon with class and dignity,” Head Coach Joe Gifford said. “I believe that this meet is a slight glimpse of what is yet to come from these athletes.” 

Gifford feels CHS has the athletes to compete for a State Title next year at the 1A level. 

“Shamrock won the Class 1A title this year, and I know we have the athletes to compete for that title.  Clarendon should be proud of these three athletes who competed not only for themselves, but also for their parents, friends, and community.”

The Lady Bulldogs have set themselves up for a play off spot in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference, which will begin March 7 in Lubbock.  With one game left to play, the Lady Bulldogs are currently sitting in 3rd place behind Midland and South Plains.

CC traveled to Big Spring to take on Howard College February 11.  They played hard for 40 minutes and walked away with the win, 75-70.

Freshman post player Sancho Lyttle put in 27 points, and Esther Chavez added 15 to help vault the Lady Bulldogs to their win.

The game stayed close throughout, but CC played strong defense and held off any attempt by Howard to gain the upper hand.

Ravon Justice and Nidia Garcia were also in double figures with 11 and 10 points respectively.

Also scoring were:  Cheryl Audain 4, Lana McCandless 3, Colby Davis 3, and Nivia Garcia 2.

The Lady Bulldogs’ next opponent was South Plains College.  The highly ranked team was too much for the Lady Bulldogs, and CC was defeated 73-52.

SPC played great defense, shutting down the Lady Bulldogs’ offense.  The Lady Bulldogs did shoot 70 percent from the free throw line but couldn’t get the big shots to fall.

Scoring were Justice 15, Lyttle 10, Nivia Garcia 7, Nidia Garcia 7, Davis 5, Vasha Adams 4, Esther Chavez 2, and McCandless 2.

They then faced Odessa College February 21 in Odessa. Despite a gallant come back attempt, the Lady Bulldogs fell 71-81.

Odessa led CC by 16 points at the break.  The Lady Bulldogs rallied back to within 10 points before time ran out. Sophomore guard Ravon Justice drained a whopping 31 points to lead her team in scoring.

“The game was much closer than the score revealed,” said Coach Wade Scott.  “We gave up too many 3-pointers and then had to foul at the end to have a chance at the win.”

Scott is excited about the remaining games on their schedule. 

“We play Midland Thursday night at home.  It’ll be a big game for us, and it’s our sophomores last home game as Lady Bulldogs.”

Scoring were Justice 31, Lyttle 19, Chavez 10, Audain 4, Nidia Garcia 4, and Davis 3.

Watching the Lady Bulldogs play ball is a real treat. Make it a part of your Thursday evening to catch both the men’s and women’s games.  The Lady Bulldogs begin at 5:50 p.m.

After much thought and anticipation, baseball and softball will be a UIL sport at Clarendon High School this year.

A full baseball and softball schedule is in place with District, Non-District games, and tournaments.  According to Head Baseball Coach Danny Brittain, there are two other teams in our District that offer baseball.  They are West Texas High and Wellington. 

The Broncos will play each District team three times.  Coach Brittain said he looked for there to be more schools in our District that will offer baseball next year.

“We are looking for a good year,” said Brittain, who will be assisted by Coach Roger Hoeltzel.   “We’re excited about the season, and we hope to have a good group of guys come out to play.” 

He also cited that they might have the numbers for a JV squad.  If that happens, they would play only once a week and not the same schedule that the varsity members would play.

Baseball has been around a long time in Clarendon. The kids are very familiar with the game, and summer league has been a huge success for Clarendon. Coach Brittain doesn’t anticipate any big differences for High School baseball compared to Summer League.

“Basically everything will be the same.  The biggest adjustment will be the bat weight.  The rules state that the bat must be no more than three ounces lighter than its entire length”. 

The baseball season will get underway with the Broncos going up against the Perryton JV on February 23 at home.  District games begin March 20 with the last game being played April 24.  All three teams will automatically qualify for the play offs, which will begin after their last regular season game.

All games will be played on McLellan Field at City Park with an exception of one game which will be played at Clarendon College’s new Bulldog Field on April 24.

Lady Bronco softball will also debut at Clarendon High School. 

“We’re really excited about the fact that we are getting softball here at CHS,” said Coach Kathy Barton.  “We’ve got a lot of girls signing up.  We’ll have enough to have a JV squad also.”

The biggest change from summer league softball for the girls will be that high school softball is fast-pitch.  “It’s a faster-paced game than the regular softball in the summer,” said Barton.

West Texas High is the only other team in the District.  The Lady Broncos will play them three times in district play, and both teams automatically advance to Bi-District level play on April 28 and Area play on May 5.

“We haven’t scheduled any games that will conflict with track meets,” said Barton.  “We won’t interfere with track workouts either.  And of course, while we’re still in basketball play offs, we won’t start any softball workouts.”

All softball games will be played at Hart-Moore Field at City Park .

Amarillo Chamber names local boy football player of September

The Amarillo Chamber of Commerce Sports Committee recognized Dee Thompson October 19 as the “Outstanding Area High School Football Player” for September.

Thompson, a 5’8” senior, is the running back and defensive back for the Broncos.

This year Dee’s accomplishments on the field include 573 yards rushing, giving him an average of 10.3 yards per carry.  He has also made 7 receptions for 53 yards, 5 individual tackles, 11 assists, and 2 interceptions.  He scored 9 T.D’s; one of which was an 81-yard run against Booker, a game in which he rushed for 285 yards.

Dee sustained a serious concussion during the Panhandle game, which ended Dee’s season early.  Thompson is quick to admit he couldn’t have been successful on his own. 

“This award would not be possible if it wasn’t for my teammates, especially the offensive line who worked very hard at blocking for me,” said Thompson.  “I want to thank my coaches for pushing and encouraging me, especially Coach Hoeltzel who nominated me for this award.  Thanks to all of my friends and family who supported me this year.”

Dee’s commitment to the team is still strong.  You can always find him on the sidelines, where he is encouraging his teammates each and every play of the game.

Congratulations, Dee, on this award and your many accomplishments!