Category Archives: Sports

A Strong Start for Eagles Softball

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TEXARKANA, TX —- Kicking off the season strong: This is exactly what the Eagles Softball team did this month. To open up the season, the Eagles hosted Avila University of Kansas City, Missouri for a 4 game series on Saturday, February 5 at 12 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. The two teams met up again on Sunday, February 6 at 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

On the 5th, Avila held the lead through all 7 innings, until the Eagles fought hard during their last at bat to put 4 runs on the board opposed to Avila’s 5. Anna Westberry and Lauryn Henson pitched for the Eagles. 

Shortly after the first game, both teams took to the field again to compete for the last game of the day. TAMUT took the lead in the 4th inning when Erika Richardson hit a home run to put 2 runs on the board. After 326 days out from an injury, Molly Harrison was released to play again. The first pitch of her first at bat, Harrison hits a homerun that adds another run for TAMUT. Speechless, all Harrison could say after her home run was “God is good.” 3 more strong innings played by TAMUT resulted in an 8-5 win.

Sunday morning the 6th, bright and early, both teams met at the field. This time, TAMUT was determined to win both games, which is exactly what they did. Game 3 and 4 of the series came and went, giving the TAMUT Eagles a reason to celebrate their opening weekend at Bramlett Field at Spring Lake Park. 

The TAMUT Eagles were back in action on Saturday, February 19, 2022 for a 1 day, 2 game series against Lyon College and Park University, then again on Saturday, February 20 for a 1 day, 2 game series against Lyon College and Park University. The Eagles looked forward to improving their 6-1 record this coming weekend at the Lyon College Tournament.

Stars Send Head Coach Packing

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In an unexpected turn of events, the Dallas Stars have dismissed Head Coach Jim Montgomery (pictured below) according to an article released at  9:30 A.M. Tuesday, December 10. This was Montgomery’s second year coaching in the NHL and many fans are shocked at the sudden dismissal of the former head coach. Assistant Coach Rick Bowness will serve as Interim Head Coach effective immediately. 

(photo from dallasstars.com)

After a live-streamed press conference at 11:00 A.M., the answer to the question “What exactly happened?” is still unclear. General Manager Jim Nill stated that he would not discuss the incident “…out of respect for those involved.” Although the whole situation is still unclear, we know that as of right now there is no timeline on hiring a new coach and the interim staff will remain in place for the rest of the season. 

For more information and updates make sure to follow the Dallas Stars on Twitter and Instagram (@DallasStars on both) and check dallasstars.com for regular updates.

To Breathe, Or Not To Breathe?

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I’m going to say it. Not everyone knows this about me but…I have asthma. I know, I look like the most athletic and perfectly healthy specimen you have ever laid eyes on. But it is true; I have sports induced asthma. The “sports induced” part makes me sound a little cooler…right? A little less like Napoleon Dynamite?

When I was younger, about second grade, I would run to the sidelines of the soccer field with tears in my eyes wheezing uncontrollably. I would try to ask my coach for a sub, but I couldn’t speak… so he would tell me to put my hands on my head and shove me on my way. After a few of these episodes, my mom took me to the doctor to figure out what was happening. 

I took a few tests; breathing into a tube for as long and as hard as I could. I remember standing in front of a computer with flickering cartoon candles, I was told to blow them all out by blowing into a device. I tried a few times but could never get them all out; I remember my mom telling me to try. I was trying! My little second grade lungs just weren’t a match for those digital candles. 

The doctor prescribed me an inhaler to take once a night before bed plus another inhaler to take before soccer games and if I was having trouble breathing. Getting into the car after the appointment my mom squinted at me through her rearview mirror and asked “were you really trying your hardest? Giving it everything you could?” This lady thought I was faking it! She thought I wanted inhalers for fun. 

I didn’t take the nightly inhaler for long, after a few months my prescription was adjusted to just the emergency inhaler with the preventive pre game “puff.” Let’s fast forward about thirteen years– my Advanced News Writing class took a field trip to look at the undergraduate independent research project presentations. I glanced over a few projects until something caught my eye: an Elmo inhaler. 

The presenters saw me looking at their Elmo inhaler poster and began to explain their research question: is there a relationship between steroid inhalers and growth rates in children? To sum it up– in the few studies done there has been a correlation between steroid inhalers and children with growth deficiencies. My first question was how they came up with the research question, these two factors seemed completely unrelated to me. Both researchers had personal experiences with stunted growth and wanted to see if their childhood steroid inhalers were to blame. 

This research information was really interesting to me. What if I had continued taking my nightly steroid inhaler? My height has played a huge roll in my personality, athletics, and career; so to imagine my nightly inhaler stunting my growth is mind boggling. We take for granted the medicine we have today, brushing off side effects and what we put into our bodies. An inhaler I was given to help my breathing could have had drastic effects on my life. What side effects are hiding behind your trusted daily routine?

Retro Jerseys Put Stars in Fans’ Eyes

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On Wednesday, January 1, 2020, the Dallas Stars will play against the Nashville Predators in one of the most iconic games in the NHL season – the 2020 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic. The Winter Classic first took place in 2008 with the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Buffalo Sabres facing off in what would be the start to a now long-standing tradition. Every year since then, two teams are selected to play on New Year’s Day in what is called the Winter Classic. This season, the Stars and the Predators are at the center of it all with the game being held in the Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas, the furthest south the Winter Classic has ever traveled.

One of the reasons this highly-anticipated matchup has drawn so much attention is that the two participating teams released new retro-themed jerseys for the game. This year, the Stars revealed their Winter Classic jerseys (pictured below) and had them up for pre-order on November 6. The jerseys sold out in less than a day. 

Photo from dallasstars.com

This season the Winter Classic jerseys were in such high demand that the Dallas Stars franchise had to re-release a limited supply of the jerseys a week later in-store only, explaining that they were not expecting such a high quantity of orders. There has also been an unexpected demand for young players such as Roope Hintz and Miro Heiskanen that simply could not be met during the pre-order release. More jerseys will become available in mid-December according to the Stars’ website but fans are encouraged to follow the Stars’ social media pages for updates on jersey availability.

Understanding Hockey Basics

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Watching hockey can be confusing for people who are new fans; with rules, regulations, and terminology that are intimidating to learn, it can seem like it is in a whole new language. Hockey is continually growing with a new National Hockey League (NHL) team joining the league in Seattle in the 2020-2021 season and more recently the Vegas Golden Knights playing their first season in 2017-2018. With continual growth, it’s better to go ahead and get a head start on learning the rules now.

Let’s start with some terms that may be confusing to new viewers.

Icing

  • If you’re a beginner, icing is one of the more confusing hockey terms, but it’s easy to understand once you’ve got some general knowledge.
  • You can’t shoot the puck  from your end of the ice to the other end in hockey. This is called “icing.” You’re in the clear when your player first touches the puck when it reaches the other end but if it is touched by the other team, it returns to your end for a face off.

Offside

  • In hockey, you cannot stay in the area of the opponent waiting for the puck. If you do this, you’ll get called offsides by the referee. You are also offsides when you cross the opponent’s blue line before the puck crosses the same line.

Pulling The Goalie

  • Sometimes, teams decide to pull their goalie if they are losing at the end of a game. You’ll also see teams pulling their goalie when the penalty is delayed.
  •  Only six players can be on the ice at one time from each team, but there is no rule dictating what position they must be filling.
  • Once the goalie leaves, they will be replaced by an offensive player. At this time, the team is actually playing 6 on 5.

Now that you have a basic understanding of some of the rules, let’s look at who the players on the ice are.

The Goaltender 

  • Firstly and arguably most importantly, we have the goaltender, also known as the “goalie”. The goalie in hockey plays the same role a goalie plays in any other sport; keep the other team from scoring. 
  • It sounds simple enough but a lot of the time, the only thing goalies can rely on are their hand-eye coordination or their instinct.

Two Defensemen 

  • The role of the defensemen can be a bit more diverse than that of the other positions. There are essentially three different roles the defensemen can play: classic, offensive (it sounds contradictory, I know), and a hybrid version.
  • The classic defensemen’s role is to stop players from the opposing team from scoring and to create some aggression and intimidation on the ice; they  rarely take any shots to the net and their first priority is to defend. 
  • The offensive defensemen is someone who will act as an extra forward. They will handle the puck from their end of the ice and create scoring opportunities and even take shots on goal themselves. 
  • The hybrid version is just that, a mix of the traditional style of play with the style of the offensive defensemen. They don’t shy away from big hits but are also there to help put points on the board.

The Right and Left Wings

  • The right and left wings are both considered skill positions and they are the positions that cover the right and left sides of the ice, respectively. They are usually fast and are responsible for generating most of the goals.

The Center

  • The center is the player who is responsible for creating scoring opportunities for their team. They are usually players who can read the game well and are able to steer the game in the direction they wish to take it; much like a quarterback of sorts.

Although these are just some of the basics involving hockey, you now have a general understanding of what is going on and that means you’re one step closer to enjoying this great sport without having to ask too many questions.

For a more in-depth look at hockey rules click here.

Star-Crossed Stars’ Stumbling Start

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 After a devastating double overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues in game six of the 2019 playoffs, the Dallas Stars look to redeem themselves and make their fans proud this year. October 3, 2019 marked the official return of the National Hockey League (NHL) to Dallas, Texas. 

Left to Right; Miro Heiskanen, Jamie Benn, Alexander Radulov, and Tyler Seguin
Photo from dallasstars.com

During the preseason, the Stars acquired  Joe Pavelski (San Jose Sharks), Corey Perry (Anaheim Ducks), and Andrej Sekera (Buffalo Sabres). Sekera brings maturity and experience to an already impressive line of young defensmen that includes Miro Heiskanen who participated in the 2019 NHL All-Star Game and had an astonishing season last year, leaving many under the impression that he is going to keep improving as his second season begins. 

With the addition of players like Pavelski, the Stars have given themselves the ability to create stronger, more diverse line combinations. Pavelski was placed in a line with Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn which proved to be a successful group. In their final preseason game, all three players scored a goal, leading the team into overtime where they sealed their 4-3 win in a shootout against the Colorado Avalanche. 

The preseason has not gone without its fair share of injuries, with Corey Perry out for two weeks due to a broken foot and Jason Dickinson placed on a day-to-day status after an accidental in-game injury from teammate, Seguin. Martin Hanzal and Stephen Johns are  on injury reserve due to Hanzal’s back injury and Johns’ head injury. Julius Honka is now out of the lineup with no specifics or updates on his situation. 

The Stars started off the regular season against the Boston Bruins, with their matchup ending in a 2-1 and two more injuries added to the Dallas Stars’ roster with Roman Polak fracturing his sternum and Blake Comeau recieving a lower-body injury putting him out for 2-4 weeks. 

The Stars played against the reigning Stanley Cup champions and their division rivals, the St. Louis Blues, on Saturday, October 5, which proved to be a very physical and aggressive game. The Stars gained a 3-1 lead over the Blues with a power play goal but after a controversial call, the goal was disallowed since officials declared that Justin Dowling was offside. The Blues then tied the game two minutes and eleven seconds later and eventually gained a lead, ending the game with a score of 3-2. 

Dallas played against the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday, October 6 and was led in goals by Roope Hintz. Hintz scored two goals and Seguin scored one goal to give the Stars a total of three goals. The Stars could not seem to pull through with a win, falling to the Red Wings with Anthony Mantha scoring all 4 goals for Detroit. 

The Stars coaching staff and the players both  know what changes need to be made in order to generate more scoring opportunities and hopefully improve their record as the season continues.

A Special Softball Weekend

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Special athletes went to A&M University’s Veterans Park and Athletic Complex in College Station the first weekend of October. Our local Bowie’s Best athletes participated in the annual Special Olympic of Texas Softball Tournament held at College Station October 3-5.  Bowie’s Best had two teams competing with twenty-four athletes.

SOTX softball has three divisions, depending on skill level. Coach-pitch is the lowest level with the teams’ coach pitching the ball to the athletes. Each athlete gets five tries to hit the ball and the team is allowed six hits (unless they get three outs first) before switching with the opposing team. The Traditional division is played using the same rules as regular softball. In the highest division, Unified, teams are half special athletes and half non-special athletes. Unified allows the special athletes to go to second base after hitting the ball, giving them a chance to run to home plate before getting out.

Bowie’s Best Athletes standing outside the church before opening ceremonies Friday evening

Bowie’s Best Team One plays Traditional softball and Team Two plays Coach pitch. Team One qualified for the Cubs group, one of the higher groups for the traditional division.

Just like regular Olympics, SOTX had an opening ceremony with the parade of the athletes held at Central Church in College Station.

Taking a quick group picture before the line-up of the athletes.

The athletes played two games on Friday and two games on Saturday. Team One won two games and lost two games earning a silver medal. Team Two won one game and lost three games earning a bronze medal. Both teams played exceptionally hard this weekend. The coaches and parents are proud of them all.

I had the privilege to attend this annual event as my son is one of the athletes. SOTX is a wonderful organization providing children and adults with disabilities the opportunity to participate in a variety of sports.

Team One Athletes winning silver medals. Athletes from left to right: Deaundre, Justin, Colton, Aaron, Patrick, Jeffrey, Steven T., Jordan, Cory, Omarion, and Casey.

Team Two Athletes winning the bronze medal. Athletes front row from left to right: Polly, Rebekah, Kristen, Steven P., Diane, Teri, Kayla, Kyle, Chris, J.T. Back row: Adyen, Tiffanie, and Brittany.

Photos provided by Donna Montgomery

A&M TXK Homecoming Highlights

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Homecoming week always ends with a football game, right? It’s basically a rule in Texas. Texas A&M University-Texarkana does things a little differently, closing out the spirit week with fútbol (soccer) games.

TAMUT’s soccer teams are in the thick of their season. With only a few conference games left, every match is extremely important. Both men’s and women’s teams have had their ups and downs throughout the beginning of the school year. It has become a tradition on TAMUT’s campus to host homecoming soccer games to engage students and boost school spirit around the beginning of October.

Homecoming week is usually filled with fun student activities and dress up spirit days while the soccer teams train to battle it out on their home field in front of their biggest crowd of the season. This year’s homecoming was exciting and one to remember on and off the field.

The outcome of every game has become crucial for the TAMUT soccer teams as the Red River Athletic Conference tournament approaches. Teams must rank in the top six of their conferences to make it into postseason play. It’s every team’s dream to win the conference tournament, take home a ring, and continue on to nationals. Both teams stepped onto the field ready to fight for a homecoming win against Louisiana State University-Shreveport and the fans were given two very intense matches.

Photo by Suzanna Summerlin

The women’s game was back and forth. TAMUT’s Alex Martinez sent in a cross in front of the goal and one of the LSUS defenders accidentally scored an own goal, giving TAMUT the lead. The rest of the game was intense as fouls became more frequent. Martinez accumulated two yellow cards, which forced her off the field so TAMUT played one member down for the remaining 30 minutes of the game. LSUS took advantage and scored a goal in the last few minutes of the game, sending the match into “golden goal”: first team to score wins. LSUS had a hand ball right on the 18-yard box, giving TAMUT a free kick right in front of their goal. TAMUT stormed the field after Emily Juarez scored off the free kick– bringing the final score to 2-1.

Photo by Amanda Johnson Vaughan

It is tradition to introduce homecoming court between the men’s and women’s games and announce the homecoming king and queen winners. School organizations such as Campus Rec and the Path Program submit nominees, who are voted on by the student body to narrow down to the final five of homecoming court. Ellie Kemins and Zak McCarthy, king and queen last year, escorted TAMUT’s president Dr. Emily Cutrer to the middle of the field to crown the 2019 winners. After a drumroll from the crowd, Philip Derouen and Sharnell James were named homecoming king and queen.

The men’s game began quickly after the homecoming announcement. The game started off intense. LSUS scored in the first ten minutes but TAMUT’s Yassin Ghasemi tied it before halftime by scoring off a penalty kick. LSUS fought back with another goal at the beginning of the second half, but Ghasemi tied it up again to keep it interesting at 2-2. The game got rowdy as players and fans almost broke out into a fight after LSUS scored a third goal. Play continued after the referees calmed everything down and LSUS went on to win 4-2.

Photo by Amanda Johnson Vaughan

It was an eventful week on TAMUT’s campus as another homecoming is put in the books. Both teams played their hearts out for their student body and left it all on the field. The women’s team earned their first conference win, making their record 1-3, while handing LSUS their first conference loss. The men’s team has started to catch momentum and has a bright future ahead of them if they continue to play with such passion. Good luck to both teams as they finish out their seasons and to the student body as they buckle down for midterms.

Cowboys Hit a Speed Bump in NOLA

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Football season is here and every team is fighting for one thing, to be the best. Battling heat through constant practices everyday can be tough, but that is what makes players perform on the highest levels. At first, the Dallas Cowboys were running over teams like nothing I have ever seen. 

The Cowboys have been a big name in football not only in the United States but also worldwide. Top name players such as Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, and Michael Irvin turned the franchise into something special by winning three Super Bowls together. That winning mentality has seemingly carried all the way to the current season. The team is focusing and working together, which definitely is paying off.

Their perfect form started slowing against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday the 22nd. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott was on fire in the first two games but was trying to find his feet in this one. The Dolphins definitely came to play. As the team itself reported, Dak said that greed led to a slow first half. “One of those heat checks or whatever you call it, just trying to do too much in the first half.” The team finally kicked it in after halftime and ended up winning the game thirty-one to six.

On Sunday, September 29th, the Cowboys headed to New Orleans to face a very good Saints team. As I watched the game, I was very stressed out, but excited because of the constant battle on the field. The game kept going back and forth all night, but it ended up being the Saints that came out with the win. After the game, the quarterback Dak Prescott said that the outcome will help them come back better.

The Cowboys have gotten a lot of attention lately with the new contract made with Ezekiel Elliott. Troy Aikman, the former Cowboys quarterback, recently weighed in on the deal made with Elliott and what he thinks about the current team. Aikman said he thought the deal the Cowboys made with Zeke Elliott shows how much trust they have in him as a player to get the job done. Anyone that knows Jerry Jones knows that he is aiming for another Super Bowl title. “There is a great deal of pressure, there always is, but the expectation right now for this team is as high as I’ve seen in quite some time,” Aikman told the Dallas Morning News. “Can they meet those expectations and make it all the way to the Super Bowl? Time will tell.”

ESPN has ranked the Cowboys as one of the best in the league this year. According to Bill Barnwell of ESPN, the Cowboys should make an incredible shift to the top in the rankings by his examination of skill position groups.

 

Slippery Slope to Purgatory

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Do you ever want a boost of adrenaline and an urge to try something new? I can tell you that snow skiing is worth a try. Who doesn’t want to put their feet in a pair of ski boots and rush down a snowy mountain? I don’t think there is anything better than that. Snow skiing may seem simple to some people, but there is actually a lot to learn and keep in mind before going down the slopes.

I went snow skiing for the very first time in March 2019 and, man, it was so much fun! Since I had never been before, my two older siblings did not let the opportunity slip away for me. The three of us and my brother-in-law packed our bags and made the trip to Durango, Colorado to meet up with our uncle and his best friend. Durango is a popular town in Colorado because Purgatory Ski Resort is right up the road.

Purgatory is a smaller resort with less runs and slopes, but since it was Spring Break for some schools, it was packed. I have never seen so many people on a small mountain in my life. The resort has condos that people can rent out for however many days they want to stay. The condo that we stayed in was very neat and old-timey. We cooked out and relaxed in our condo when we weren’t on the slopes. The majority of our time was spent trying to master skiing. My sister, brother-in-law, and I all spent the first full day in lessons and on the bunny slope.

At the beginning of the lesson, I was struggling to get the hang of it. I wanted to give up and just go to the condo, but I knew better than to give up. The second day, I was in lessons half a day then practiced on my own. On the third day, I went up the lift with my brother and uncle and they turned into my instructors. We started on a green run, which is the least difficult. I was skiing along and noticed that I was doing tremendously better than on the bunny slope.

As my confidence was building, they decided to take me on a blue run, which is a step-up from a green. Once again, I went down with some ease and a few crashes along the way, but felt good about it. At the end of the day, I was skiing all over the mountain and having a blast. After we left and got on the plane, I was already wanting to go back. I knew at that moment that I had found my new and exciting hobby. Purgatory will always have a special place in my heart.