SPORTS SHORT: Texas Southern downs Lamar 76-73

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 30, 2019) The Texas Southern Tigers and the Lamar  Cardinals battled to a 39-39 score at halftime and continued to battle back-and-forth in the second half until the Tigers emerged with a 76-73 win over the Cardinals.

Three Tigers scored in double figures; John Walker III (Thurgood Marshall HS, Missouri City, Texas) tallied 20 points with Tyrik Armstrong (Elkins HS, Sugar Land, TX) adding 17 and Justin Hopkins (J.O. Johnson HS,  Huntsville, Al) chipping in 10, along with seven rebounds.

No. 9 Atascocita downs No. 19 Katy Tompkins, 42-24 in UIL football playoff action.

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 30, 2019) In a battle of 11-1 teams, the No. 9 Atascocita Eagles defeated the No. 10 Katy Tompkins Falcons by the score of 42-24 at NRG Stadium on Saturday. The win set up a UIL Region 3 final, pitting the Eagles against the No 3 North Shore Mustangs.

Atascocita got on the scoreboard first, at the 6:41 mark of the first quarter, with a Brice Matthews to Keith Wheeler four-yard pass to complete a 15-play, 70-yard drive. On the following drive, Tompkins marched the ball 60 yards in 13 plays, but could only manage a 32-yard field goal by Hunter Huckaby. The first quarter ended with the Eagles leading the Falcons 7-3.

With 6:19 remaining in the first half, Matthews again connected with Wheeler with a 14-yard pass to give the Eagles a 14-3 lead. They followed that TD up four minutes later when T.J. Thomas carried the ball the final five yards for Atascocita's third touchdown of the game. After the Eagles intercepted a Tompkins pass in the final minutes of the first half, Matthews carried the ball into the end zone to post a 28-3 with 2:27 to go in the half. However, the Eagles were not done as Matthews again connected, this time with Landen King for another six points. With the extra point, the Eagles head to the locker room after 24 minutes of play with a 35-3 lead.

Tompkins finally found some offense when they came onto the field for the third quarter. After driving down the field, Jalen Milroe found Marquis Shoulders open and flicked him a three-yard pass for the score at the 6:35 mark of the quarter Huckaby added the kicking conversion to cut Atascocita's lead to 35-10.

Early in the fourth quarter, with 11:32 remaining in the game, the Eagles added seven more points on a TJ Thomas four-yard run and a Sean Nesemeier kicking conversion. the junior kicked also converted the previous five extra points to add to Atascocita' total. Thirty-seven seconds later, Tompkins added seven points to their total on a Jalen Milroe to Marquis Shoulders 77-yard pass and another Huckaby extra point. After Atascocita fumbles on their own seven-yard-line, the Eagles pull a halfback pass oout of the playbook. Gabe Atkin hits Milroe with a seven-yard pass for the TD. Huckaby added the extra point to put the score at 42-24 with 10:48 to play. After a great deal of give-and-take for the reamined of the game, Alascocita pulled out the win and are headed to a Region 3 match-up against the No. 5 North Shore Mustangs on Saturday, December 7, 2019 with a 2 p.m. kickoff at Sheldon ISD Stadium in Houston.

McNeese falls to Rice 81-50 in women's basketball

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

LAKE CHARLES, LOUISIANA (November 27, 2019) The McNeese State Cowgirls jumped out to a 19-12 lead after the first quarter, but could not contain the Rice Owls' comeback in the final three periods as the dropped a 81-50 non-conference match up to the Owls at the H&HP Complex in Lake Charles. McNeese took control of the game in the first period, with 10 of the points coming in the paint. It was a different matter in the second quarter with Rice outscoring McNeese 21-8, lead to the Owls' 33-27 lead at the half. Rice increased their lead in the third quarter, 25-7 in route to their third win of the season. The Cowgirls shot 53.3% (8-of-15) from the field in the first quarter, but could only manage 34.7% by the end of the game. They scored a scant eight points in the second quarter and seven in the third, as opposed to 21 and 25 for the Owls, respectively. They picked up their scoring with 16 points in the fourth quarter.

The Cowgirls were led by starting guard Regan Bolton (St. Thomas Aquinas HS, Hammond, Louisiana) with 11 points and Damilota Balogun (Bossier Parish CC, Lagos, Nigeria) with nine rebounds. Rive had four players in double-figures; Erica Ogwumike (Cypress Woods HS, Cypress, Texas) and Haylee Swayze (Purcell HS, Purcell, Oklahoma)with 12 points and Lauren Schwartz (Larry A. Ryle HS, Union, Kentucky) and India Bellamy (Eagles Landing Christian Academy, McDonough, Georgia)  with 10 reach.

Last season, the Owls downed McNeese 93-65 at Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston on November 11. Rice holds a 8-4 all-time series record against the Cowgirls. The last time McNeese downed Rice was a 61-53 victory an Lake Charles on November 25, 2015.

Iowa Wild fall to hot-sticks of Texas Stars, 7-3

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

CEDAR PARK, TEXAS (November 26, 2019) In a game that saw a great deal of offense and not much defense, the Texas Stars (5-13-0-2) got their second win in a row, and fifth of the season as they downed the Iowa Wild by the score of 7-3 at the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park on Tuesday evening.

The Stars got off to a good start, scoring two goals in the first 3:36 of play. Left wing Michael Mersch scored at the 2:04 mark with fellow left wing Anthony Louis finding the net with 92 seconds later. The Wild cut the Stars lead to one when right wing Gerald Mayhew final got Iowa on the scoreboard. Centers Rhett Gardner and Joel L'Esperance added to more for the home team, pushing score to 4-1 in favor of the Stars. Mayhew added a second goal for the Wild with 6:32 remaining in the first period to take the score to 4-2 after 20 minutes of play. In the first period, Robinson served two minutes in the penalty box for high-sticking while Mayhew sat out for two minutes for hooking.

In the second period, the Stars increased their lead to 5-2 on a goal by left wing Joel Kiviranta. They also added penalty minutes when right wing Nick Caamano was given two minutes for goaltender interference and a minor bench penalty for too many players on the ice. Robinson served the two-minute penalty for Texas.

One-minute, four seconds into the third period, Wild forward Brandon Duhaime cut the Stars' lead to two with a goal, taking the score to 5-3. Texas responded 18 seconds late when Caamano scored his second goal of the game. He got the hat-trick five minutes later on a break-a-way for his fifth goal of the season, to close out the game. In the final period, L'Esperance served two minutes in the box for for holding. In addition, Wild left wing Mike Liambas, with 8:05 remaining in the game, was assessed two minutes for charging (major) and 10 minutes for game misconduct as related to the charging call/

Texas State rallies to down Abilene Christian 61-56

Photo by
Darla Tamulitis
La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

SAN MARCOS, TEXAS (November 25, 2019) The Abilene Christian Wildcats jumped out to a 34-30 lead at the half, but Texas State rallied in the second half to give the Bobcats a 61-56 win at the Strahan Center in San Marcos. The Wildcats dropped to 2-4 on the season while Texas State raised their record to 5-2. 

Abilene Christian, who were the 2019 Southland Conference tournament champions, have faced a very tough schedule to begin the 2019-2020 season. They began the season with a  90-39 win over Arlington Baptist at home, followed by a 86-83 loss on the road to Drexel in Philadelphia. They then came up on a losing side of a 73-69 decision against a strong Pepperdine team in Abilene. Next on the schedule was a 72-58 loss to UNLV on the road along with a 90-59 win versus Champion Christian College at home.

Againt the Bobcats, Payton Ricks tallied 13 points, followed by Koltom Kohl with 11. Ricks pulled down eight rebounds with Kohl adding seven. For the Bobcats, Nijal Pearson led the way with 16 points.

Photos from the Monday evening game, by Darla S Tamulitis of La Vita Loca Photography, can be viewed by clicking here.

Incarnate Word falls to Eastern Illinois 72-63

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS (November 24, 2019) The Incarnate Word Cardinals held a 33-30 lead at the half, but a 42-30 surge in the second half powered Eastern Illinois to a 72-63 win in the final game of the UIW Basketball Tournament at the McDermott Center in San Marcos.

Cardinals' head coach Dr. Carson Cunningham stated after the game,

"We played well for a good 36 minutes. We need to keep plugging and working on closing games. The fellas are working hard. Eastern Illinois found a way and they deserve credit. We're going to keep battling. We're grateful to have hosted this event and for the teams that came."

 
Drew Lutz (Penn HS, Granger, IL) tallied a career-high 20 points, hitting four three-pointers and all four of his free-throw attempts with five assists and a steal. 

Keaston Willis (Sulpher Springs HS, Sulpher Springs, TX) finished with 13 points, tying his season-high for three-pointers made with four. He also pulled down a career-high five rebounds.

In addition, freshman forward Vincent Miszkiewicz (South Elgin HS, South Elgin, IL) had another well-rounded game, scoring eight points with nine rebounds and two blocks. Also, forward Bryce Davis (Deer Valley HS, Glendale, AZ) added eight points, four rebounds, three assists and one steal.

Bethune-Cookman downs St. Francis-Illinois 74-70 in San Antonio

Photo by
Darla Tamulitis
La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS (November 24, 2019) Bethune-Cookman came from behind to down St. Francis-Illinois by the score of 74-70 in the first game of the third day of the University of Incarnate Word Basketball Tournament, sponsored by Denny's.

Earlier in the tournament, the Wildcats downed Incarnate Word 83-58 on Friday, November 22 and Eastern Illinois 66-63 on Saturday, November 23. to finish the tournament with a 3-0 record. The Fighting Saints dropped both their Friday and Saturday games. On Friday, they lost to Eastern Illinois 87-47. Saturday, they fell to Incarnate Word by the score of 68-44.

HBU falls to SHSU in final game of season

Photo by
Darla S Tamulitis
La Vita Loca Photography
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 23, 2019) Wide receiver Ben Ratzlaff (shown right) scored two touchdowns but it was not enough to overcome an early 27-0 of the Sam Houston State Bearkats, as the HBU Huskies dropped a 37-14 decision in the final game of the 2019 season for both teams.

The Bearkats jumped out to a 20-0 lead in the first quarter and extended their lead in the second quarter before Ratzlaff (Westview HS, San Diego, CA) could get the Huskies on the scoreboard. At the 6:39 mark, he covered the final 17 yards of a 78-yard drive when Bailey Zappe (Victoria East HS, Victoria, Texas) connected with the junior wide receiver for his first touchdown. The Huskies added their second TD with the Zappe-Ratzlaff connection scoring on a 25-yard pass to complete a nine-play, 87-yard drive.

Zappe, who completed 29-of-64 passes for 367 yards, had trouble with the Bearkat defense; throwing two interceptions while being sacked three times. Ratzlaff caught 13 passes for 178 yards while Ean Beek (Taylor HS, Katy, Texas) carried the ball eight times for 33 yards. Defensively, Tra Fluellen (Gilmer HS, Gilmer, Texas) recorded 14 tackles with Philip Ossai (Oak Ridge HS, Conroe, Texas) and Cotton Manning (Allen HS, Allen, TX) accounting for eight.

The Huskies finished the season with a 5-7 record, with a 2-6 record in Southland Conference action. They will kickoff the 2020 season on September 5 against North Texas in Denton.

Monterrey outlasts Club America 2-1 in Tour Aguila

Story and photo by Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 16, 2019) Scoring two goals in the first half,  C.F. Monterrey held on for a 2-1 win against Club America in an exhibition friendly game as a part Tour Aguila at BBVA Stadium in Houston, Texas. America took an early 1-0 lead in the 7th minute off a penalty kick by defender Emanuel Aguilera.

Monterrey responded with a goal from Daniel Parra, with an assist credited to Alfonso Gonzalez, in the 16th minute. They score the game-winner five minutes later on a Vincent Janessen goal. Dorian Paboni provided the assist.

Tour Aguila is the official United States tour of Club America dating back to July 3, 2016.

North Shore football continues to roll.

By Robert H Kelly
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 1, 2019) The No. 5 North Shore Mustangs did not start out as strong as they have in past games, but why should they? Bringing a 5-0 district record into their Friday evening game against Beaumont United, the Mustangs jumped out to a 28-0 lead at the half in route to a 42-14 over the Timberwolves at Galena Park ISD Stadium. The Mustangs seemed to cruise to the win, in so much as not breaking a sweat in the unseasonable cooler weather on the nippy Friday evening.

The Mustangs are going to the UIL playoffs, just as they have, time and time again, in previous season. Making the playoffs in football is like getting up in the morning for the players of North Shore Senior High School. Their only loss of the season, a 24-21 defeat at the hands of the Katy Tigers. In the nationally televised game, the two Texas powerhouses battled in front of a sellout crowd at Galena Park ISD Stadium. It was the only defeat for the Mustangs up to their match up against United, and with one game to go in the regular season, they are just getting the engine revved up. The final game of the regular season is against the Channelview Falcons at Maddry Stadium in Channelview.

Washington Nationals are Baseball Champions

Story and photos by Lou Roesch
Copyright 2019 All Rights Reserved

HOUSTON, TEXAS (November 1, 2019) Take It Back!  From rally cry to near reality, the Houston Astros fell a game shy dropping game seven 6-2 to the 2019 World Series champion Washington Nationals. It was the first World Series championshipfor the nation’s capital since 1924. In a win, the Nationals became the first team to win a World Series without winning a home game. The long and winding journey that began in 1869 as the Washington Nationals baseball franchise later to evolve into the Washington Senators before morphing into the Minnesota Twins and then restarted in 2005 when Major League Baseball forced the Montreal Expos to leave the empty confines of Olympic Stadium and relocate to the District of Columbia, the D.C. “Boys of Summer” are now the world champions of baseball. In the end it was Washington and not Houston that took it back.

The title game though was not without its moments and reminders of history. Yuli Gurriel took Nats starter Max Scherzer deep in the opening frame sending a packed Minute Maid Park into a frenzy. Houston would touch up right-hander for another run in the fifth on a two out hit by Carlos Correa. In between those two tallies was what spelled the difference in the series. Houston left eight runners on the basepaths through the first five innings.  Scherzer,who could not lift his right arm above his head a week ago, gutted out five innings, scattering seven hits and allowing just two runs.

Living by the mantra “Finish The Fight”, the 2019 Nationals resembled the 1924 Washington Senators storming back to win games six and seven. Ninety five years ago, the Senators dropped game five by a score of 6-2. Fast forward and the next team from the District of Columbia to claim the title baseball champion wins by a score of 6-2. In game seven, the Senators came from behind in the eighth  to tie the game and on this night the Nationals came back and took the lead late.

This year’s Nationals could not solve Houston starter Zach Greinke getting just two hits and a run through 6 1/3 innings. They did however solve the Astros bullpen which mysteriously kept Gerrit Cole under wraps. Trailing 2-1, enter Will Harris who promptly surrendered a Howie Kendrick two run shot off the right field foul pole turning a one run deficit into a one run lead. Washington never looked back tagging on two more in the eighth and one more in the ninth.

Meanwhile Patrick Corbin on in relief of Scherzerr was doing his best baseball Hall of Famer Walter Johnson imitation. Johnson, for the Senators in the 1924 Game 7 pitched four scoreless innings as his team rebounded for the win and the last DC title. Corbin hurled three innings of two hit ball with three strikeouts shutting the door on Houston. Daniel Hudson acquired at the trade deadline hurled a perfect ninth including strikeouts of Jose Altuve and Michael Brantley.

It was the most unlikely of all unlikely’s happening at Minute Maid Park against the team with most home wins in the major league this season. The Nationals left for dead at 19-31 in late May fought back to not only make the playoffs but win the wild card game, survive two NLDS elimination games, sweep the NLCS, and lose three World Series home games by a count of 19-3 and yet at the end of it were the veterans Max Scherzer (12yrs), Ryan Zimmerman (15 yrs), Fernando Rodney (17yrs) released in May by the A’s andseveral more with seven plus years including Houston native Anthony Rendon. Together the veterans finished the fight for their owner Ted Lerner born nearly one year to the day after the Senators won D.C.’s last World Series.

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That's the reason we're here – scouting and player development," Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo told MLB Network Radio after the game. "They sign 'em, we develop 'em. They get to the big leagues and they win championships."