How to watch Texas high school baseball: Walnut Grove vs Whitehouse High School is away from home against Walnut Grove High School How to watch Whitehouse vs. Walnut Grove baseballWhitehouse and Walnut Grove will face off on Saturday, May 3, at 4 p.m. CT. Don't miss out on any of the action with NFHS Network The NFHS Network gives you access to live high school sports around the country Follow your favorite team and never miss a game Want to track your alma mater, local team or family member's school throughout the playoffs? NFHS Network has high school baseball streaming live plus on-demand replays and highlights of all the action from thousands of schools across America Watch Walnut Grove vs. Whitehouse on NFHS Network! All NFHS Network events are available to watch online at NFHS Network and through the NFHS Network Mobile Apps for iOS and Android and TV Apps for ROKU A trio of Lady Greyhounds embrace after last week’s postseason loss It was the Lady Hounds’ best record in four seasons The Lady Hounds close in to slow down Walnut Grove’s offensive advance during last Tuesday’s state tournament match Cari Green (24) steadies possession of the ball near the sideline against the Warriors Senior goalie Wendy Ramirez-Perez and head coach Mikayla Coley share a moment late in last week’s postseason match The Lady Greyhounds have plenty to look ahead to next season To access content, please login or purchase a subscription starting at just $5 © 2025 The Jones County News Lufkin Lady Panthers celebrate teammate Akira Smallwood’s grand slam against Jacksonville at Lufkin High School Lufkin opens the Class 5A Division I bi-district playoffs tonight against Walnut Grove in Athens After capturing their first district title since 2016 the Lufkin Lady Panthers begin the postseason tonight with a Class 5A Division I bi-district matchup with Prosper Walnut Grove Lufkin (22-4) closed out its district schedule Friday with a 10-6 win over Texas High giving the Lady Panthers a share of the District 10-5A title with Hallsville as both teams finished league play at 13-1 and split the two games they faced each other Walnut Grove finished second in District 9-5A who was part of last year’s team that made it two rounds in the playoffs is excited about the team’s chances this postseason I feel like we have a stronger connection with our relationships how we are together on the field and we talk so much better,” Dean said but this year I feel like we have such a strong senior group and we have a junior group behind us that can pick us up We have a lineup that’s good top to bottom it’s a special thing for all the seniors to be together again and keep going.” the Lady Panthers had a chance to clinch a district title at home but came up short in a 3-0 loss to Hallsville Lufkin rebounded on Friday to win at Texas High and clinch a share of the district title with Hallsville “They set this goal of a district title in the beginning and they battled for it,” Lufkin head coach Ashley Bryant said “Every game they’ve done the little things and they have pushed through They had the goal and they didn’t let down I think the loss to Hallsville fueled them Sometimes you can get a little complacent and Hallsville is a great team but we won’t lay down and we’ll give them everything we’ve got I’m behind them and it’s going to be a fun ride.” Lufkin third baseman Marleigh McClendon talked about bouncing back from the loss and getting the share of the district title “The games leading up to winning the championship were tough and that loss really made us push harder to be clutch in the win against Texas High,” McClendon said “That feeling when we beat Texas High was great because that’s what we’ve been working for all season.” The Lady Panthers started the season with six straight wins but lost three straight games in a tournament at Port Neches “We’ve been growing as a team through the season We had our little troubles early in the season but now we’ve been really getting along well,” Lufkin rightfielder Ava Mendez said “We’ve definitely progressed on the field defensively We’ve been limiting our errors and relaying the ball a lot better Our offense all season has just been great We’ve been hitting well nearly every game and our hitting always keeps us in the games.” Bryant talked about how the team has improved through the season and I told them not to worry about everything else just work on what you can fix,” Bryant said “They’ve all done that and it’s all pieced together beautifully it’s everybody has given everything they’ve had It’s been fun and it’s a blessing to coach them.” Edwin Quarles’ email address is edwin.quarles@lufkindailynews.com Email notifications are only sent once a day there are no recent results for popular commented articles Your browser is out of date and potentially vulnerable to security risks.We recommend switching to one of the following browsers: Account processing issue - the email address may already exist  Get a link to the latest e-Edition delivered to your inbox on our publication days Start your morning with the top headlines each day Get the latest breaking news from The Lufkin News newsroom. Sign up today!  college and national sports headlines delivered to your inbox every morning Get the latest local and national police reports every day in your inbox Receive the daily weather forecast and the weekly outlook in your inbox each morning Receive the most recent obituaries every afternoon Receive monthly updates on the latest issues of Charm East Texas magazine Sign up to receive emails about our exciting Deals Invalid password or account does not exist Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account The suspect in the alleged armed robbery in Walnut Grove has been identified as Austin Michael Hammonds He is currently housed at Walton County jail charged with armed robbery; robbery by intimidation (Editor’s Note: Please note an arrest or charge does not constitute a conviction) 2025) – Walton County Sheriff’s Office is reporting that a suspect is in custody and the items recovered following an armed robbery in Walnut Grove this afternoon the Walton County Sheriff’s Office received a report of an armed robbery at the Sparkwell Variety Store in Walnut Grove The vehicle used in the robbery was soon located in the Cannon Farm road area,” WCSO reported on social media the primary suspect was located and arrested without incident.” All items taken in the robbery have been recovered “A tremendous job by Deputy Calloway and Savage We are also very grateful for the assistance of Sheriff Brown and Deputies of the Newton County Sheriffs Office who helped tremendously,” WCSO reported You must be logged in to post a comment May 1Data SkriveWalnut Grove High School hosts Whitehouse High School at 7 p.m How to watch Whitehouse vs. Walnut Grove baseballWhitehouse and Walnut Grove will match up on Thursday, May 1, at 7 p.m. CT. Don't miss out on any of the action with NFHS Network Watch Whitehouse High School all season long on NFHS Network! Walnut Grove High School baseball scheduleMay 1 vs. Whitehouse High School: 7 p.m. CT | TBA, TX | NFHS NetworkMay 3 vs. Whitehouse High School: 4 p.m. CT | TBA, TX | NFHS NetworkWatch Walnut Grove High School all season long on NFHS Network! Team schedules reflect available data from NFHS and may not include every upcoming game Walnut Grove Library is expanding its services to the community with a little help from its friends – Friends of Walnut Grove Library that is Friend of the library Andrea Raphael was recently able to obtain a grant through the United Libraries and Penguin Random House for a $500 in-kind book donation to purchase Penguin Random House titles “We plan to use the $500 books to support the summer reading program (with) easy readers board books and juvenile books,” Raphael said noting this was her first attempt at obtaining a grant “When kids and adults signed up for reading program after they read a certain amount of library books during the designated summer times they can earn free books to have forever at home from our selections of titles There will be more options and titles for the summer program Color Our World is this summer’s theme.” Raphael said this is just one of the ways that Friends of the Walnut Grant Library are able to boost the services it provides “We have partnered with Master Gardeners of Walton too for Free seeds Seed library Monroe library also has one,” Raphael said adding that other projects ince facilitating a partnership with the Matthew Talbot chapter of the DAR to donate two separate Lego walls to the library and hosted a recent event with Master Gardeners and and has an upcoming flag pole collaboration with Woodmen Life If you are interested in joining Friends of Walnut Grove Library you can attend a meeting at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, May 5 at the library, located at 1050 Walnut Grove Pkwy, Loganville, GA 30052. Click or tap on this link to find out more information on Friends of Walnut Grove Library on Facebook. You must be logged in to post a comment Walton County Fire Rescue Deputy Chief announced that the brush fire on Paul Smith Road in Walnut Grove is contained He said that Forestry is going to be plowing a fire break around the fire perimeter 2025) – Walton County Fire Rescue Deputy Chief Craig League is asking people to avoid the area of Paul Smith and Jersey-Walnut Grove roads due to a large brush fire “Multiple WCFR personnel and units are on the scene of a large brush fire on Paul Smith Road in Walnut Grove A live power line fell igniting brush and spreading to adjacent woods,” League said “Georgia Forestry has been requested to respond with a fire plow.” You must be logged in to post a comment Falling tree limbs in Birmingham kills one person and charged with burglary in the third degree and theft of property in the first degree according to Etowah County Sheriff Jonathon Horton Prince's arrest follows an ongoing investigation into the theft of several items Investigators identified Prince as a suspect through fingerprint evidence processed by the JSU Center of Applied Forensics The stolen vehicle has been recovered and returned to its rightful owner Prince is currently being held at the Etowah County Detention Center with a bond set at $7,500 "This is another example of our dedicated efforts to bring those responsible for criminal activity to justice," said Sheriff Jonathon Horton "We are committed to utilizing every resource at our disposal to solve these cases and protect our community." – Middle Tennessee State University's Walnut Grove the traditional pre-game gathering spot for students will be louder and prouder this season with the addition of Party in the Grove The centerpiece of Party in the Grove will be a performance stage for bands set to start three and a half hours before kickoff of the six home football games Two food trucks and several new sponsor tents and activities will be added to the mix as well the traditional arrival of the team two hours before kickoff as does the family favorite features such as the Band of Blue Space also remains for fraternities and sorority tents as well as tailgating for alumni and others The party will wind down 45 minutes prior to kickoff with a "Follow Me to Floyd" parade led by Student Government Association President Michai Mosby and Blue Zoo President Bretlyn Warner and our many other new initiatives tied to Athletics is to build excitement and engagement on our campus during game days," said MTSU President Sidney A "I appreciate the hard work and collaboration by the many offices and groups across the University to make this new event possible." The power behind the Party in the Grove is a partnership led by the Division of Student Affairs the College of Media and Entertainment and Blue Raider Athletics "Party in the Grove is just one of many great additions in the works this season to improve the game-day experience for our fans," said Athletics Director Chris Massaro "We are all excited to begin this new era of Blue Raider Football." McPhee said the artist lineup for Party in the Grove will be announced shortly "I'm looking forward to welcoming some of our music industry alums to help us get the Party in the Grove started." Information about each Party in the Grove will be featured on the Blue Raider Athletics website as part of its game day information for fans an open field between Peck Hall and the Cope Administration Building has long been a focal point on the MTSU campus a custodian at then Middle Tennessee State Teachers College and filled a paper bag with nuts that had fallen from trees growing when the nation's first president lived there Bayer planted the walnuts in the grove and the resulting trees became a source of beauty and shade throughout the years Blue Raider Football's season begins at 6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 31, with the home opener at Floyd Stadium against historic rival Tennessee Tech. Click here to purchase tickets to the game Thanks for visiting The use of software that blocks ads hinders our ability to serve you the content you came here to enjoy We ask that you consider turning off your ad blocker so we can deliver you the best experience possible while you are here A 19-year-old Walnut Grove man has been charged with felony third-degree assault with substantial bodily harm following an incident earlier this month in Jeffers a deputy spoke with a man who stated his son was at a party in the 200 block of West Clark Street in Jeffers His son was in the hospital and would be transferred to Sioux Falls An officer from the Marshall Police Department spoke to the victim prior to transport to Sioux Falls The victim was able to identify the suspect who stated Lee punched the victim in the face after someone had made a comment about Lee’s girlfriend Two other witnesses corroborated the initial statement the deputy traveled to Balaton to speak to the victim who noted two other friends were joking with Lee The victim stated he didn’t know Lee or his girlfriend but said people were joking and play fighting about it The victim remembered turning to talk to a friend with the next thing he remembered was waking up in a bathroom The victim stated his jaw needed to be wired shut for 3-4 weeks The deputy then spoke to the victim’s sister stating the victim had gotten in his face and tried to intimidate him prior to the punch No other witnesses reported the victim being the aggressor in the incident Lee faces a maximum possible sentence of five years in prison Looking for more Cottonwood County news delivered to your inbox every week? Subscribe to our eEdition at https://publisher.etype.services/Cottonwood-County-Citizen Citizen Publishing Company has been bringing you all the latest local news from all over Cottonwood County since 1883 Contact us: citizen@windomnews.com a couple key things changed to turn January’s 12-point loss into a 48-40 win “We knew we had some things that we didn’t do well that game and we knew that we hadn’t played our best,” Chadwick head coach Jim Pendergrass said “This team grew all season and here we are heading to the state championship game.” The first thing that changed was sophomore Emily Landry doing her best Caitlin Clark impression from beyond the arc in the first half The sophomore was four-for-four in the first quarter and five-for-five in the first half from deep “Getting off to a great start gave us great confidence,” Pendergrass said and she really stepped up in the biggest moments when we needed her most in that first half.” Landry scored 16 first-half points to help Chadwick build a 24-22 lead into the break The other change Chadwick made was on the defensive side which helped the Lady Cardinals build an 11-point lead “I thought a key to this game was the start,” Pendergrass said we did a defense that we hadn’t shown all year We brought it out tonight because we thought we really needed to try and take them out of the ability to run their sets on offense They are a team that runs a lot of sets very methodically and they are very good at them and they get the ball to people who can score.” Walnut Grove head coach Rory Henry also credited Chadwick’s defense with slowing the Lady Tiger offense CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME “They did a great job of coming out and keeping us off balance at the beginning It is something they haven’t done all year is play a 1-3-1 and they did a great job with it and it just took us off balance,” Henry said Walnut Grove didn’t go away coming back to tie the game at 27-27 with 4:54 to go in the third quarter and cutting Chadwick’s lead to one Chadwick had the answer and never relinquished the lead Now Chadwick will play in the state championship game for the second time in three years and third time in program history This trip will be the first under Pendergrass who took over as head coach this season “I stepped into a situation that Chadwick is very rich in basketball tradition on the boys side and on the girls side I was very excited to be the coach at Chadwick High School It is an important job for the town because sports are very important to Chadwick,” Pendergrass said and it’s been fantastic because of the players They have not been resistant on anything that we have done and that shows a great deal of maturity and that makes coaching really easy and fun.” Saturday’s game will have extra meaning for the community and senior Ray Little in particular MSHSAA will recognize the 2003 state championship team for their 20th anniversary was a player on that team which was the only Chadwick girls basketball team to win a state title “This is my mom’s 20th reunion for the state championship I wanted to go to state this year so I could be playing in the championship game and have that opportunity while she is getting recognized She has always talked about when she went to state the memories she made and how fun it was Chadwick will play for the Class 1 state championship at 8 pm on Saturday at Mizzou Arena in Columbia Walnut Grove will play for third place at 2 pm It will be the final game for a group of four seniors including Ellie Smith who has played the entire playoff run on a torn ACL but she figured it out in the last week what her limitations were and how she could overcome them,” Henry said “For her to step up and lead us and play the entire game It shows you how tough she is and what kind of kid she is The whole senior class did a good job of leading us and rallying around her.” Henry expects a strong effort from his team in their final game together on Saturday “We talked about character in the locker room That is what our program is built off is our culture and they showed it tonight and I think it will be on display tomorrow,” Henry said A workshop aimed at preserving the history and cultural legacy of the Walnut Grove community will be 6 to 8 p.m The Walnut Grove Community Engagement Session is being hosted by the OKC Black Alumni Coalition The classic is a celebration of Black community Event organizers said Walnut Grove was once a thriving Black community along the North Canadian/Oklahoma River but was displaced due to redevelopment in the area The River Bowl Classic brings members of the Black community back to the Walnut Grove site for a reunion-style event organizers of the coming event began collecting oral histories of individuals with connections to Walnut Grove Those interested in attending the March 13 community engagement session are encouraged to bring photos stories and artifacts from Walnut Grove to help preserve its history More: Remember Sand Town and other Black settlements along Canadian River? Share your memories The event is being held in partnership with the Metropolitan Library System Riversport and the Institute for Quality Communities a community engagement program in the University of Oklahoma Christopher C For more information, go to https://www.okcbac.com/ The OKC Black Alumni Coalition is hosting an open meeting to hear how the community would like to preserve and recognize a former southeast Oklahoma City neighborhood also known as simply "The Grove," was located in the same area where OKC Riversport now stands The neighborhood was home to prominent Oklahomans such as civil rights leader Leslie Brown the city's first black female city council member and former Oklahoma NAACP president Cecile L The BAC says due to city redevelopment in the early 2000s families living in the Walnut Grove neighborhood were displaced to make way for new developments How does the Black Alumni Coalition get involved the BAC hosts the River Bowl Classic in August each year to bring together the community in the area where Walnut Grove once stood and community members in watersport competitions including rowing "The first few years of planning and organizing the River Bowl Black Alumni Coalition executive director Shawntay Alexander said "You couldn't find [anything] online about Walnut Grove .. We want to deepen the connection [of] the space by bringing up awareness for the historic Walnut Grove." the organization is seeking help with creating ideas for a preservation site to show the history of the area The BAC is hosting an open forum Thursday night for people to voice their concerns the organization says it will work with the OU Institute of Quality Communities to create a proposal for the city Alexis Young joined the News 9 family in July 2024 and can be seen reporting from 5 a.m also known as simply \"The Grove,\" was located in the same area where OKC Riversport now stands \"The first few years of planning and organizing the River Bowl \"You couldn't find [anything] online about Walnut Grove .. We want to deepen the connection [of] the space by bringing up awareness for the historic Walnut Grove.\" and general news updates from News on 6 delivered right to your inbox Walnut Grove doubled its win total from 2023 with eight wins in 2024 The Tigers will look to post the program’s first winning season since 2019 with a young roster featuring six returning starters so one of the strengths we will strive for is being a scrappy young group,” Walnut Grove head coach Mason Sanders said “Everyone will have a specific role they follow and will be called upon to meet that role in certain situation I think we have a solid pitching staff and a lineup that can get on base We will be putting an emphasis on being able to take the extra base in multiple scenarios to set us up to drive runs in.” The pitching staff looks to be strong led by sophomore Sam Vorhis “Sam Voris will be a top guy on the mound for us this year,” Sanders said “He has a heavy fastball in the high 70’s/low 80’s and a hammer 12-6 curveball; big swing and miss stuff.” Junior Ryder Boone will see many innings as well “Ryder has been one of my most consistent arms the past couple years filling up the zone and forcing teams to put the ball in play,” Sanders said “He has developed some off-speed that will help keep hitters on their toes He is also solid at keeping runners at bay with a quick time to the plate and solid pickoff moves as well.” Ethan Kelley (junior) and Nick Leeper (sophomore) will step up to the varsity level this season “Kelley will be a reliever I look to with a deceptive arm slot and great movement on his fastball,” Sanders said “Leeper is a mature frame who has great feel for the ball after developing off-speed over the summer Leeper may see time as both a starter and reliever.” Freshman Quinten Conner will look to make an immediate varsity impact “Quinten Conner is an experienced arm who will immediately impact the game on the mound,” Sanders said “He has a mature game that will translate well to high school ball.” Dwyer Coons and Wyatt Holman will look for time at catcher but Holman spent this summer and fall developing to help split the workload for us this year,” Sanders said Leeper (first base) and Boone (third base/second base) will be on the infield Leeper and Holman are all in the mix in the outfield and Coons will be called upon to lead,” Sanders said “Kelley is a natural leader that does all the right things and give 100% every single day Coons and Voris now have a year under their belts which will help them lead those around them by being the physical example as well as teaching the game to those around them.” Coons in particular has improved in a big way this offseason “Dwyer Coons has really taken this offseason to improve physically,” Sanders said “He took the year off basketball to heal an ankle injury which has allowed him to put on a lot of muscle and really develop his game He has the chance to be an all-state type of player for the next three years.” Walnut Grove opens the regular season on Mar “Our identity is to be a tough with low strikeout percentages and mentally understanding the defensive side of the game will put us in a place where we can succeed,” Sanders said this team can be above .500 and put us in a position to compete for a district championship We have a young group of guys that take the game serious and want to win.” Video released Wednesday by the Vancouver Police Department shows officers inside an armored vehicle duck when gunshots hit the windshield, eventually shattering it, during a standoff last month that left a Vancouver man dead Investigators also identified Vancouver police Officer Cameron McAnally McAnally has been with the police department for five years and works on the regional SWAT team He responded to the incident as a part of SWAT’s sniper team according to the Lower Columbia Major Crimes Team According to the video compilation of the incident was armed with a handgun and threatening to harm another neighbor The caller reported Williams had fired at least one round into the air Clark County sheriff’s deputies responded about 11 p.m. Sept. 26 to the 5400 block of Northeast 71st Street in the Walnut Grove area Vancouver police members of the SWAT team later responded at 1:24 a.m A police drone was able to get a view of Williams moving around his property and arming himself with a rifle Williams can also be seen outside of his front door putting on ear protection the drone footage shows a rifle on a shooting tripod aimed out the front door Wednesday’s update states Williams was shooting at police throughout the incident with a high-powered rifle and multiple rounds struck a SWAT armored vehicle The Lower Columbia Major Crimes Team said six officers were inside the rig One round struck the windshield of the vehicle nearly penetrating the windshield to where a Vancouver police crisis negotiator sat inside Video from the body camera worn by an officer in the armored vehicle’s front passenger seat captured the moments the round struck the windshield The officer is heard saying over the vehicle’s loud speaker You need to come to the front door with nothing in your hands.” A second later the officer ducks as the round strikes the windshield The officer is then heard saying “shots fired” and “he’s shooting at us.” Another officer inside the armored vehicle is heard telling the others the video shows officers again calling for Williams to come out the front door “Show us you don’t want to hurt anyone out here Show us that you can be safe,” before another gunshot is heard As the armored vehicle then backs out of the driveway Officers can be heard exhaling deep breaths and assuring each other that they are OK Wednesday’s video also included footage from McAnally’s body camera and the update states he was positioned in a low-lit area McAnally is heard on the video saying he can see Williams wearing a helmet and a gas mask Video from a drone as it approached the rear sliding door showed Williams dead inside Drone footage of an upstairs bedroom also shows multiple boxes of ammunition and several rifles and handguns A rifle with a scope was also on a shooting tripod and aimed out of the upstairs Investigators said neighbors reported during interviews ongoing problems with Williams They said Williams had made derogatory comments to neighbors about their ethnicities and had slashed tires on vehicles Walnut Grove’s seniors came through in their final game in Walnut Grove uniforms beating Rock Port 58-45 to win the Class 1 third place game on Saturday Jacie Gavisk and Kelli Albert combined to score 48 of the team’s 58 points Rock Port jumped on Walnut Grove in the first half taking an eight-point lead it was all Walnut Grove as the Lady Tigers turned an eight-point deficit into an 18-point win who played the entire playoff run on a torn ACL Albert scored nine points in her final game for Walnut Grove Walnut Grove finishes the season with a 24-6 overall record The Lady Tigers graduate a four-player senior class that includes Smith Walnut Grove held off host Hume 40-36 in overtime to advance to Saturday’s Class 1 state quarterfinal round The Lady Tigers carried a 9-7 lead after one quarter and 23-18 lead into the half Walnut Grove added a point to that lead at 32-26 with one quarter to play Hume mounted a furious rally taking the quarter 10-4 to force overtime Walnut Grove got baskets from Rachael Kruger and Jacie Gavisk while keeping Hume off the scoreboard to secure a 40-36 win Elizabeth (24-5) on Saturday in the state quarterfinal round their high school careers will conclude the same way they commenced With a trip to the Class 1 Final Four on the line the Lady Tigers simply would not be denied Saturday afternoon at home — punching their tickets The Tigers now begin preparations for Friday’s tilt against the Chadwick Lady Cardinals who has had his share of elite senior classes over during his long tenure said this team — this win — is extra special I have coached them since they were fifth graders “We do have junior high and the different seasons But I have been able to coach them since they were little They were freshmen the last time we went to the Final Four I am so proud of them for the effort that they have had Adversity has hit the team throughout the year including last month when senior and all-state guard Ellie Smith fully tore her ACL I recovered as much as I could and built up the muscles up around it “You cannot say enough about that kid,” Henry said She is in a lot of pain — you can see it on her face It is awesome that she is able to do that.” The Tigers were up as many as five points in the opening quarter before the Hornets closed out the period with the 12-9 lead The second quarter also belonged to the visitors While uncertainly may have presented itself to those in attendance CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME it is about toughness and the resiliency of our group,” Henry said of the third quarter I knew that we would come out and get a good fight out of them.” The Tigers authored a 7-0 run to begin the third which was capped by Kelli Albert’s 3-pointer from the near wing Their first lead since two minutes remained in the opening period The fourth quarter began with Walnut Grove collapsing on the lane and stuffing Reagan Wobbe A loose ball picked up by Smith led to her going coast-to-coast as she was fouled and dropped the pair from the line as the Tigers pulled to within three points Rachael Kruger connected for the 3-pointer and the game was tied at 36 After a miss and a press attack by the Hornets Kruger penetrated the interior defense en route to the score Loehr was fouled and made the pair from the line and Smith dropped in her last point from the charity stripe came up with the rebound to close out the game that rebound served as a little bit of poetic justice given her injury Being able to close out her prep career in Columbia with her counterparts is something she is most grateful “I am just happy that I could be out here with my friends my teammates one more time,” Smith said as she choked back the emotion on March 14 at Mizzou Arena in the Class 1 semifinals Scoring for Walnut Grove: Racheal Kruger – 13; Sadie Loehr – 12; Ellie Smith – 3; Jacie Gavisk – 4; Kelli Albert – 9 (all from the perimeter) Elizabeth: Reagan Wobbe – 19; Charlize Duemmel – 6; Kinley Kemma – 2; Dani Heckmeyer – 10 The first day of the Walnut Grove girls tournament is in the books Find box scores for most of the games below CLICK HERE FOR THE TOURNAMENT BRACKET Clayton Garrison and Tristan Smith are the star players for the defending Class 1 state champion Chadwick Cardinals Chadwick’s only two seniors are targets for relentless ribbing from their younger They’re always chirping that we’re the old guys.” who turned 18 before the start of basketball season “They know I can’t fight them because I’m 18,” Smith said ‘What are you going to do about it?’ I can’t do anything so we all jab at each other from time to time.” It’s a form of team camaraderie that you find at a school like Chadwick with an enrollment of 73 and a town population of about 350 my goodness,” said Chadwick coach Shawn Guerin “These sophomores and freshmen are non-stop on these guys But they’ve been friends their whole lives CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME Chadwick’s established veterans have meshed well with the young blood The Cardinals defeated Southwest Missouri RUSH 52-40 on Monday night to win the championship of the 2024 Walnut Grove Holiday Classic Garrison scored a game-high 23 and was named tournament MVP Smith and sophomore forward Prestin Kinyon each scored 11 But it was an inauspicious start for Chadwick (6-3 overall The Cardinals were held scoreless for nearly six minutes after the opening tip and trailed 9-6 after the first quarter and I’m going to give RUSH props for that because they are a good basketball team athletic and they cause problems in that spread zone defense,” Guerin said “We talked about it in practice (Sunday) night – we knew what they were going to do If we could not turn the ball over and maybe a make shot early on Smith made back-to-back 3-pointers in the second quarter to give Chadwick its first lead (19-18) and ignite a run Chadwick’s lead swelled to 14 late in the third quarter on a 3-pointer by sophomore guard Creek Guerin “Definitely not how we drew it up at the start of the game,” Garrison said We’ll have to clean up in practice before the next game.” Smith and Kinyon also made the all-tournament team for Chadwick who has enhanced its regular season schedule as the defending Class 1 state champions The Cardinals travel to the Tipton Shootout later this week for a pair of neutral site games: Montgomery County (Jan The Cardinals will also play in the Mountain View (Liberty) Shootout and Stockton Tournament during the month of January the Cardinals will host perennial state title contender Hartville Chadwick played Class 5 Rolla to a close loss Two seniors graduated from Chadwick’s 2024 state title squad but a talented (and talkative) freshmen class has helped fill in the gaps Seven of the 11 players on Chadwick’s roster are freshmen or sophomores we were still trying to find ourselves at this point,” Guerin said “The system has always been the same for the last eight or nine years We were trying to find ways to make adjustments that we couldn’t make three or four years ago These freshmen that we’re putting in big-time games have handled themselves well.” Walnut Grove and Wheatland will meet for the second time in two weeks in the Class 1 District 6 championship game in Humansville on Saturday after the top two seeds both won on Thursday Walnut Grove was dominant in a 59-11 win over Halfway Ellie Smith Scored 15 to lead the Lady Tigers followed closely by Rachel Kruger with 14 The second game of the night was much tighter with Wheatland needing overtime to beat Fair Play 65-55 The two teams were tied at 52 after regulation Wheatland outscored Fair Play 13-3 in the extra frame Foul trouble hit Fair Play hard with three starters fouling out in the game Wheatland was led by Kiarah Blation’s 36-point effort Ally Sawyer was also in double figures with 11 Fair Play was led by Mackenzie Evans with 18 points Walnut Grove and Wheatland will meet for the Class 1 District 6 Championship at 5 pm on Saturday in Humansville The Lady Tigers beat Wheatland 43-18 on Feb CLICK HERE FOR THE BRACKET Constantly working to get better for the Walnut Grove lady tigers “She is learning and take and soaking every bit of it in,” said Walnut Grove Head Basketball Coach Rory Henry “I know she wants to be successful and our motto is that we are a part of something bigger than ourselves and I know that she believes that.” Rachael brings a spark that sets the standard for the her team “I’ve always said she will be the kid that will run through a brick wall for you,” said Jeff Kruger the things that don’t get into stat lines,” Henry said When the senior isn’t looking out for her lady tigers on the court she’s looking out for the her community as a firefighter I mean like last night we had a game and I got home and we got called out,” Rachael said “There’s a lot of nights where I go home and I eventually get a call or something and my dad [also a firefighter] and I will go.” she goes from a full day of school and basketball to attending a call “Someone in our community had a barn fire and it was actually my first fire call over the summer and I got to go out there and we were out about six or seven hours putting out the fire so,” Rachael said whether it’s midnight one or two o’clock in the morning or it’s six o’clock in the morning when she gets woken up by a call,” Jeff said Those days sometimes feel even longer for Rachael “This past spring I went in to get some blood work done and they told me I need an MRI,” Rachael said we found out that I have a non-cancerous brain tumor and that was a scary moment for sure.” The tumor located in her pituitary gland does cause physical exhaustion for Rachael “You know just to see her get up and get ready and be like ‘okay we got to go we got to support our community we got to do these things’,” Jeff said “It doesn’t matter how tired she is she just keeps going It’s safe to say Rachael’s dedication to her team and community never burns out thinking that maybe one day she wants to do something like [this] and you know she can do it Argyle players listen to coach Todd Rodgers after their 52-35 win over Prosper Walnut Grove in the 5A Division II regional semifinal Friday in Prosper Argyle running back Logan Rexroat carries the ball against Prosper Walnut Grove Argyle wide receiver Julian Caldwell runs after a catch against Prosper Walnut Grove Argyle running back Watson Bell heads for a touchdown against Prosper Walnut Grove Bell had 21 carries for 108 yards and two TDs 4 Argyle rode a 35-7 first-half surge to a 42-14 halftime as it beat Prosper Walnut Grove 52-35 in Friday's regional semifinal playoff bout The Eagles were led by their run game with 301 of their 500 yards and 4 of 6 TDs coming on the ground If you're not already a Denton Record-Chronicle subscriber, you can subscribe now for just $1 a month over the next six months and read all of our stories throughout high school football season 4-ranked Argyle was tied with Prosper Walnut Grove through eight minutes of Friday’s playoff game but built a 28-point edge by halftime on its way to a 52-35 win The Eagles scored back-to-back touchdowns with an onside kick recovery in between to turn a 7-7 tie into a 21-7 edge during the first quarter of the 5A Division II regional semifinal at Prosper ISD’s Children’s Health Stadium The Wildcats cut it to 21-14 on the final play of the period before Argyle scored 21 unanswered points in the second to pull out of reach for good Argyle coach Todd Rodgers said building that early margin helped the Eagles work through some early defensive struggles against a Walnut Grove offense that’s difficult to defend “They’re very up-tempo and lots of energy in how they execute their offense,” Rodgers said We were able to get a breather and continue to work through our challenges defensively to make sure we could calm their brains down and get them really confident out there facing that offense.” Argyle (12-1) advances to face Lucas Lovejoy (10-3) in next week’s regional championship round The Eagles are making their fifth trip in the last eight seasons to at least Round 4 of the playoffs Argyle leaned on its run game to earn that opportunity with 301 of its 500 yards and four of its six touchdowns coming on the ground Junior running back Watson Bell led the way with 21 carries for 108 yards and two scores while sophomore Logan Rexroat added 14 carries for 104 yards and one score Junior quarterback Maguire Gasperson chipped in 17 carries for 75 yards and another TD along with going 13 of 20 for 181 yards and two scores through the air but all credit to the O-line,” Bell said of his contributions Argyle got the game’s first score on a 6-yard touchdown run by junior athlete Nathaniel Bruce to lead 7-0 just over four minutes into the first quarter Walnut Grove tied it up at 7-7 less than three minutes later on a 3-yard touchdown run by Cam Newton The Eagles outscored Walnut Grove 35-7 over the remainder of the first half to lead 42-14 at the break Gasperson connected with sophomore wide receiver Julian Caldwell for a 36-yard touchdown pass and Logan Rexroat ran for a 9-yard score shortly after to make it a 21-7 late in the first period Walnut Grove scored on the final play of the period when Hayes Hackney hit Luke Watkins for a 15-yard TD pass Argyle found the end zone three more times in the second quarter on a 3-yard Gasperson run along with a pair of Bell scoring runs from 9 and 21 yards out Walnut Grove cut it to 42-21 with 7:24 left in the third period on a 1-yard keeper by Hackney Argyle responded on its ensuing drive as senior kicker Anthony Ruvalcaba made a 39-yard field goal Gasperson hit junior wide receiver Jaxon Greene for a 19-yard touchdown pass to make it 52-21 with 6:19 left in the final period Walnut Grove tacked on a pair of garbage-time TDs to set the final margin The Eagles have leaned on a tried-and-true formula for success through their first three playoff wins over Frisco Emerson Wichita Falls Memorial and now Walnut Grove They’ll look to follow the same recipe against Lovejoy “It’s the basis of a good football team — you have to be able to run the ball and have to play good defense,” Rodgers said “I think we’re doing both of those right now We just have to get back to the basis of our football team and what we do Get the scoop on all the thrilling victories nail-biting games and standout performances — straight from the sidelines of Denton-area high schools JOHN FIELDS can be reached at 940-566-6869 and jfields@dentonrc.com Your essential companion for starting the day in Denton Delivered fresh to your inbox every morning Wake Up gives you a curated snapshot of local news for the day as well as the day’s e-edition and trending stories you may have missed Sign up for the Denton Record-Chronicle's absolutely free weekly newsletter highlighting winners and finalists from the 2024 Best of Denton awards Your weekly guide to surviving college and thriving in Denton local news and more exclusive content in your inbox every Tuesday afternoon There's always something going on in Denton Check out what's on the local events calendar and plan a fun weekend with friends Get a roundup of the 10+ puzzles and games available from the Denton Record-Chronicle for free Sudoku and other brain-busters are new every day the latest in puzzles and word games with a Wordle vibe From minor traffic accidents to neighborhood watch updates stay informed on public safety with the week’s top crime stories in your inbox every Wednesday morning Don’t miss out on breaking news in Denton from weather and traffic to big events and important headlines Be the first to know the latest on new stores restaurants and other businesses in Denton County so you can live better here we bring you the highlights and updates from our hometown college teams Prepare for the polls and stay informed on the candidates issues and deadlines for Denton County’s key races Save money and find what you need with promotions from local businesses and special DRC offers It’s a big change from the run-you-off-the-court style of some past Walnut Grove teams rugged style in an impressive 59-35 victory over Marionville in the championship game of the Walnut Grove Holiday Classic on Saturday night we’ve had teams that are more guard-oriented where we want to attack you and pressure you,” said Walnut Grove coach Rory Henry we feel like we want to punish you inside and play with a physical group “It’s fun – we try to figure out what best suits our team year to year We play off what we think our strengths will be.” 2 MBCA state rankings in Class 1) boast four starters who are 5’8” or taller All-state point guard Ellie Smith (5’6”) doesn’t shy away from contact Walnut Grove’s physical presence took its toll on an undersized and undermanned Marionville team The Lady Tigers drew 25 fouls and shot 30 free throws on the night “We talk about it every day: We want to be more physical than the other team,” Henry said “We talked after the game in the locker room about defense being our staple and playing with physicality We do have the size that most small schools don’t have.” Walnut Grove’s physical style is bred in practices which can look like an obstacle course event at times “We do a lot of physical drills,” Gavisk said “(Coach Henry) gets the mats out and he beats on us with the mats That prepares us for more physical games.” Seniors Ellie Smith (22) and Rachael Kruger (19) combined for 41 points to lead the Lady Tigers “It’s a great accomplishment for us,” Henry said “This group doesn’t get real excited about a whole lot because I think that what they really want is the prize at the end CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE GAME Walnut Grove’s players accepted the championship plaque in businesslike fashion “It’s a great accomplishment and it’s something we need to get before we go into our postseason,” Gavisk said but we’re going to keep getting better and keeping working toward bigger things All of the tradition and teams here in the past Walnut Grove broke the game open in the third quarter The Lady Tigers outscored Marionville 21-7 in the decisive frame “Marionville came out and their defense was good It kind of threw us into a loop in the first half,” Henry said Third quarter woes have plagued the Lady Comets’ in the early season stretch “We got over some big humps this week that we needed to get over We still have a lot to work on – that third quarter is our next goal that we have to conquer,” said Marionville coach Casey Young it was still a memorable week for the Lady Comets Marionville (7-3 overall) was the Cinderella of the tournament this year 6 seed Fordland to reach Saturday’s title game The Lady Comets were happy to flip the script after losing in the quarterfinals as the No but last year the 7-seed knocked off the No “They didn’t think I was very funny with that we had a plan and went out and executed it That was a good win to get under our belts for sure.” Sophomore Lanie Stokes scored 16 to lead Marionville Stokes and teammate Dally Pomeroy made the all-tournament team Gavisk and Rachael Kruger received all-tournament honors for Walnut Grove “We’ve yet to put our shooting together with our post play and size