Tyler County Sports

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Mighty Eagles running back Pop Prejean has possession of the ball. Prejean scored three touchdowns against Crockett last Thursday. (LARRY LAMB | PCPC )

By Larry Lamb
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LUFKIN –  The Woodville Eagles turned in a dominating performance on both sides of the ball to upend the Crockett Bulldogs, 41-6, in the bi-district round of the Class 3A DI playoffs Thursday night in Abe Martin Stadium.

The playoff road gets much tougher for the Eagles with an area round matchup against No. 5 ranked Lorena looming Thursday night at 7 o’clock in Madisonville’s Mustang Stadium. Lorena (9-2) beat Hitchcock (5-6) 53-28 in the first round.

The Eagles (7-3) received the opening kickoff and set the tone early by driving 51 yards on 10 plays to take a 7-0 lead. Senior running back Pop Prejean scored on a 2-yard blast and kicker Cole Standley added the extra point with 9:02 left in the first quarter.

Crockett intercepted a pass on Woodville’s second possession but was unable to pick up a first down. After a punt pinned the Eagles back at their own 9-yard line, Woodville drove down the field on hard running by Prejean and a 15-yard pass to Jaylin Kibble. Quarterback Jack Fowler connected with Raylon Williams on a 44-yard TD strike and Standley tacked on the PAT for a 14-0 lead with 3:06 left in the opening quarter.

Prejean made two more trips to the end zone before half time to put the Eagles up 28-0.

After the Eagle defense forced Crockett’s fourth punt of the game, Prejean escaped outside and rambled 55 yards to cap a 76-yard drive. Standley’s kick made it 21-0 with 4:28 left in the half.

A 13-yard quarterback sack at the 3-yard line forced the Bulldogs to punt from their own end zone. Punter Tony Cruz managed to get off a good kick under heavy pressure and the Eagles took over at Crockett’s 38. Three plays later, Prejean bulled his way into the end zone from 1 yard out with :48 before halftime.

Crockett’s biggest offensive play of the half came on the last play when quarterback Jadyn Collins hooked up with Crowley Pierce on a 31-yard toss to the Eagle 25.

After halftime, Pierce energized the Bulldogs when he returned the kickoff to the Eagle 34. Crockett senior running back Keshun Easterling put Crockett on the scoreboard with a 27-yarder but the Eagles blocked the extra point and the score stood at 28-6 with 10:18 in the third.

Midway through the quarter Woodville took over on downs at the Crockett 39 and scored on a 9-yard pass to Jaylin Kibble. Standley kicked his fifth extra point to put the Eagles up 35-6 with 3:47 on the clock.

The two teams exchanged punts the rest of the night.

Late in the game, the Eagles returned a punt to midfield and completed a 25-yard pass to Lloyd Evans at the 14-yard line. Kameron Wyatt scored on the next play with :18 left to make it 41-6. After a delay penalty on a two-point conversion, the quarterback took a knee in the backfield.

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The Chester Lady Jacket volleyball team were well represented in All-District selections. Pictured are: Bottom row, left to right: Sydney Brock, Kat Knox, Emma Byrd, Bailey Fann. Top row, left to right: Emma Grimes, Kyli Handley, Kinsley Barnes, Abby Grimes, Lily Read, Kaylee Tolar, Linzie Romo.

By Jana Rayburn

The Chester Lady Jacket volleyball team was knocked out of the state playoffs in the regional quarterfinal round to the Neches Lady Tigers.  The Lady Tigers were the defending state champions and had experience in their favor.  

Chester has met up with Neches for the last three years in this round, but this year, the score was very close.  The Lady Jackets lost 0-3 (21-25, 18-25, 19-25), but Chester put up a fight. Coach Terry Lambert said, “We battled with Neches, but came up short. Neches played some solid defense, and we errored a little bit more than they did.”  

Lambert said if they had minimized some of the errors and created a little more pressure, they would have won that game. All three sets were a tight battle and both teams fought hard. “In the past, Neches would run all over us. This year, Chester came to play. In the future, we are now on the radar as being a top team in Region 3,” said Lambert.  Everyone in Chester is really proud of the Lady Jackets and all they have accomplished this year. This group of athletes competed with every team they played and learned to play at a more advanced level.  The future for Chester volleyball is exciting.

All-District honors were announced after the conclusion of the season for the Lady Jackets, and Chester was well represented.  Freshman Lily Read was named MVP for the district.  Kat Knox received the honor of Defensive MVP, and Kaylee Tolar was named Co-Offensive MVP.  First team all-district honors go to Emma Grimes, Emma Byrd, and Sydney Brock. Second team honors went to Kyli Handley, Linzie Romo, and Bailey Fann. Kinsley Barnes and Abby Grimes were given honorable mention honors.  

Basketball in season

The Yellowjackets and Lady Jackets are already busy with basketball. Practice started shortly after the conclusion of football and volleyball, and games began last week.  Coach Justin Hilliard will be busy coaching both teams, but he is excited about the upcoming season.  

The boys will play a home game on Friday, Nov. 19, as they host the Good Samaritan Hornets in a 5 p.m. game. The boys will play at home again on Monday, Nov. 22 against the West Hardin Oilers.  Tip off will be at 1 p.m. The girls team will play their first game on Nov. 30 in Spurger.

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By Chris Edwards
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CUSHING – A loss to the Cushing Bearkats on Friday night took the Colmesneil Bulldogs out of contention for the 2A Division II playoffs this season.

The Bulldogs battled out the final game of the regular season on the Bearkats’ home turf, J.F. Whitaker Stadium, and came up on the wrong end of a 40-14 final score. History did not exactly repeat itself, but the ‘Dogs did face the Bearkats in their last game of the season in 2020.

Cushing’s win secured them a spot in the fourth-seed of the playoffs. They will face the Evadale Rebels for the bi-district title. The Bulldogs end their season with some of their best numbers in years, with 6-4 overall and 2-4 in district.

The first half of the game was marked by a strong drive from the Cushing offense, which found the team scoring a couple of touchdowns to put them at 14-0 before halftime. The ‘Dogs were able to retaliate with two TDs of their own and tied the game 14-14 at the half.

The second half showcased Cushing’s offensive drive, as they were able to take a 20-14 lead with two minutes remaining in the third quarter after a turnover.

With under a minute left in the third, Cushing scored again on a rushing TD, and went into the fourth 26-14.

Another turnover on the ‘Dogs’ ball resulted in another Bearkats score early in the fourth quarter, putting them further in the lead, 34-14.

With three minutes to go, an interception on a Bulldog pass further sealed the deal for Cushing, with another Bearkat rushing TD, and ending the game with a 40-14 final score.

Basketball season beginning

The end of football season means the start of basketball in Bulldog Country. The JV Lady Dogs had a game scheduled for Friday against the Lady Bulldogs of Crockett, but that was cancelled due to Crockett not having a JV team, according to Lady Dogs’ head coach Caleb Hardy.

 The varsity girls will play at 5 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 12 in Crockett. 

 The varsity boys will begin their season on Friday, Nov. 19 against Burkeville, on the road. 

 Tip off is at 6 p.m. for that game

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By Jana Rayburn

The Lady Jackets defeated the Oakwood Lady Panthers last week and are Area Champions.  The Lady Jackets defeated the Lady Panthers 3-1 (25-20, 25-19, 23-25, 25-19) to advance to round three.  Coach Terry Lambert is happy with the win, especially since two Lady Jackets were out with injuries and one athlete who played despite an injury.  The Lady Jacket passers did a great job during the game. 

 Kat Knox had some incredible saves and Sydney Brock stepped in to have an impressive night as well.  Emma Byrd again led in assists, and Lily Read played through an injury, and hit the ball well.  Emma Grimes, Lily Read, and Bailey Fann led the team in kills.  The Lady Jackets improved to a 21-15 record and move on to the Regional Quarterfinals. The Lady Jackets have now moved up in the top 10 rankings in 1A and are currently ranked 6th in the state.

‘Jackets shut-out Eagles

 The Chester Yellowjacket football shut out the Apple Springs Eagles 47-0 in the final football game of the season last Friday, Nov. 5 at Aubry Bradley Stadium. 

 The Jackets’ offense was on fire against the Eagles all night long. The first drive alone, Carsyn Whitworth had two carries of 18-yards to go with two receptions for 25-yards with the touchdown.  Miles Redwine and Peanut Fann both had fumble recoveries for touchdowns.  Keighen Green had a 75-yard touchdown run.  Colton Pursley and Jackson Knox both also had touchdown runs of over 20-yards in the game.  The Yellowjackets finished out the season with a 3-6 overall record and a third-place finish in district.   

 The senior class of 2022 was recognized during halftime of the game, as they were escorted onto the field by parents and family members.  The football team voted Emma Grimes as the Football Sweetheart and the cheerleaders voted Ethan Vinson as Mr. Spirit.

 The Chester Yellowjacket junior high football team wrapped up their season with a 60-13 victory over the Apple Springs Eagles.  The Jacket defense again scored the first touchdown of the game when Jaxon Gay jumped on a fumble just a minute and a half into the game.  While the starting six were on the field, Apple Springs did not have a positive gain.  Jayse Gay returned the second half kickoff for a touchdown.  Jesse Bittick also returned two kickoffs for touchdowns in the second half.  Emmanuel Jones had an exciting 48-yard run where he reversed the field numerous times.  Henry David finished off the season with a 7-yard touchdown jaunt to put the mercy rule into effect.

 Basketball season underway for the high school boys, with the conclusion of football last week.  The boys will have their first game next Tuesday, November 16 as they host the Apple Springs Eagles. 

 Tip off will be at 7 p.m. in J.P. Johnson Gymnasium in Chester. 

The Chester junior high boys and girls will get basketball season started in Colmesneil on Monday, Nov. 15. Games start at 5:30p.m.