District 1-2A Division I
Stratford wins 1-2A Division I title
The Stratford Elks capped off another District 1-2A Division I championship and topped that with a perfect regular season with a lopsided 55-7 home win over West Texas High on Friday.
The Elks (10-0) head to the Class 2A Division I playoffs as a team to watch. Stratford will open the bi-district round with Sundown (3-7) at 7 p.m. on Thursday at Happy State Bank Stadium in Canyon. WT High (5-5) is the No. 4-seed and battles New Deal (7-3) at 7 p.m. Thursday at River Road.
Bryce Braden was strong for Stratford as usual going 8-of-10 for 97 yards with two touchdowns. Israel Licon added 96 rushing yards on five carries with a touchdown.
Panhandle outlasts Farwell for second place
In a game that saw 102 combined points, Panhandle was able to pull away from Farwell 62-40 in a key District 1-2A Division I showdown at Farwell on Friday night.
The Panthers (9-1) take outright second place behind Stratford out of the district at 4-1. Farwell (7-3) finish 3-2 in the league and will be the No. 3-seed. The Panthers will open the Class 2A Division I bi-district playoffs against Tahoka (4-6) at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Happy State Bank Stadium in Canyon. Farwell will battle Olton (7-3) at 4 p.m. on Friday at Wildcats Stadium in Littlefield.
This game was wild from the opening kickoff to the end of the game with Panhandle and Farwell combining for 1,029 yards of offense. The Steers got off to a fast start taking a 20-6 lead into the second quarter only to see the Panthers come clawing back with 21 unanswered points to go up 27-26. Farwell answered going up 40-33 after a quarterback Jonathan Armstrong three-yard touchdown run in the third quarter, but from that point forward, Panhandle took all the momentum scoring the games final 29 points to put away Farwell 62-40.
Panhandle quarterback Broxton Robinson was a deciding factor especially with his dynamic ability to bust loose out of the pocket. Robinson torched the Steer defense on the ground running the ball incredible 42 times for 248 yards with six rushing touchdowns. The sophomore also tacked on an 8-of-14 outing through the air for 193 yards with another score. Teammate Landyn Durst chipped in with four catches for 100 yards and a touchdown.
Armstrong did all he could for Farwell totaling 328 yards of offense with five touchdowns.
Highland Park ends season on high-note
The district season didn’t go as planned for a much-improved Highland Park team, however, the Hornets were able to end their season on a positive note with a 55-28 victory at Sanford-Fritch on Friday.
Highland Parks ends the season at 6-4 overall and 1-4 in District 1-2A Division I. The Eagles finish winless at 0-10, 0-5.
Senior quarterback Brady Thompson played lights out in his final game for the Hornets going 26-of-32 for 308 yards with four touchdowns. Thompson even added a rushing score. Teammate Ben Ho caught 11 passes for 129 yards with a TD and Alex Conway had two catches for 37 yards with a receiving touchdown.
District 2-2A Division II
Clarendon stuns Wellington to claim outright 2-2A D-II title
Clarendon took a lead early and never relinquished it pulling out a statement victory over rival Wellington 36-20 on Powell Field in Wellington on Friday night.
The Broncos, who started the season at 0-3, finish the regular season with seven straight wins under head coach Aaron Wampler and go a perfect 5-0 in District 2-2A Division II. Clarendon (7-3) will now take on Wampler’s former team, Boys Ranch (2-8), in the bi-district round at 7 p.m. Friday at Dick Bivins Stadium. Wellington (7-3) squares off with Vega (2-7) at 6 p.m. on Thursday in Pampa.
Clarendon’s Lyric Smith was an absolute gamechanger in this battle for district supremacy. The fastest player on the field showed how dynamic he can be on both sides of the ball going 12-of-20 passing for 318 yards with three touchdown tosses and rushed for 90 yards on 21 carries with two more scores. Defensively, the senior was equally outstanding making 19 tackles, 10 solo, two for a loss with an interception.
Colton Caudle used his 6-foot-3 frame to play a mismatch on the outside hauling in four catches for 184 yards with a pair of touchdowns and made six tackles on defense.
Wellington’s Nixon Folk had a great night despite the loss with 148 yards on the ground on 18 carries with a score.
Shamrock punches ticket to playoffs, Wheeler finishes third
Shamrock is back in the playoffs after blowing out Memphis 44-2 on Friday night.
With the victory, the Irish (5-5) grab the fourth and final postseason spot out of District 2-2A Division II and will play District 1-2A champion Gruver (8-2) in a bi-district clash at 7 p.m. on Friday in Borger. Memphis ends a difficult year at 0-9.
Shamrock quarterback Phillip Cook threw for 266 yards on 12-of-20 passing with an eye-opening six touchdowns. Terry Menefield caught four passes for 154 yards with three TDs and made six tackles with an interception and Jermiah Luna led the way with 15 tackles.
In the other district matchup on Friday, Wheeler knocked off Quanah 36-30. The Mustangs (4-6) were already locked in as the No. 3-seed. Wheeler moves on to the bi-district round to face off with Sunray (8-2) at 7 p.m. Friday in Perryton.
Running back Julius Atherton had a monster effort for the Mustangs against Quanah chewing up 179 yards on the ground on 17 carries with a pair of touchdowns.
District 1-2A Division I
Gruver wins 1-2A Division II title
The Gruver Greyhounds are the outright District 1-2A Division II champions after crushing Boys Ranch 68-12 at home on Thursday night.
The Greyhounds finish off the league at 3-0 and move to 8-2 overall. Gruver takes on Shamrock (5-5) in the bi-district round at 7 p.m. Friday in Borger. The Roughriders (2-8) are in the playoffs for a second straight year and will play Clarendon at 7 p.m. on Friday at Dick Bivins Stadium.
Gruver quarterback Briggs Satterfield was a perfect 8-of-8 for 185 yards with four touchdowns. Pratt McLain added 108 yards on three carries with two touchdowns.
Sunray takes second place
Playing without standout quarterback Armando Lujan, Sunray stepped up to the challenge and blanked Vega 22-0 at home on Friday night.
The victory secured second place for the Bobcats (8-2), who move to the bi-district round to battle Wheeler (4-6) at 7 p.m. on Friday in Perryton. Vega (2-7) is the No. 3-seed and takes on Wellington (7-3) at 6 p.m. Thursday in Pampa.
Lujan is expected to be back for the playoffs after suffering an injury against Gruver. He was sat out of Friday’s game for precautionary reasons. Backup Luke Grajeda did an admirable job in relief of Lujan going 15-of-122 for 155 yards with a touchdown toss. Running back Arnold Mendoza stepped up with 130 yards rushing on 17 carries and Kagan Davis made four catches for 82 yards with a score and added a pick six on defense.
Sunray held Vega to 61 yards of offense, forced three turnovers. Damian Barragan made two interceptions on the night. It’s the Bobcats fifth shutout on the season.