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Weekly Newspaper and Tourism Guide for Ward County Trans Pecos, Big Bend of West Texas

Sports

October 8, 1998

Cowboys start new win streak


By a sports correspondent of The News
GRANDFALLS - Grandfalls-Royalty's Cowboys started a new
regular season winning streak and their race for a third
consecutive league championship on Friday, Oct. 2.

The victim was Balmorhea, once considered with Grandfalls
and Sanderson to be a potential title winner. No more.
Grandfalls, ranked third in Texas six man football by the
San Antonio-based Huntress report, slapped Balmorhea 57-28.
Balmorhea had been beaten by second-ranked Borden County
57-24 two weeks ago. Top choice Trinidad stopped the Cowboys
regular winning streak at 23 when the Trojans beat
Grandfalls 44-32 two weeks ago on a neutral field at Voss.

The return to the victory column was costly for the Cowboys
though when they lost star back Roy Vasquez early in the
third quarter. Vasquez already had rushed for four
touchdowns in the game when he limped to the sideline with a
hyperextended knee.

But Grandfalls, as the cliche goes, does not rebuild;
Grandfalls reloads. Sierra Blanca finds out how this works
when they host the Cowboys in Sierra Blanca.

Leading 33-12 at the half in their first league game of the
season, the Cowboys blitzed Balmorhea for another 24 points
in the second half with most of the Big Red starters on the
bench.

Of the victory over Balmorhea, Coach Dewaine Lee says: "One
really positive thing we did was a really good job of
extending our game plan.

"The kids executed. There were a few things we wanted to do
and that was to work on some of our mistakes. We did that."

"On defense, we played well except for a couple of errors.
Two long deep passes completed against us could have hurt.
We must stop that kind of defensive lapse."

The Cowboys still have a lot to prove to themselves which is
not good news for Sierra Blanca this week.

"We're improving," says the coach. "We're further a long at
this time than we were last year. We're just a few mistakes
away from being where we need to be on offense."

That comes from a coach whose team puts more 50 points on
the board when they have the second team playing. That comes
from a coach whose junior varsity can beat other varsity
schools.

"We're throwing the ball more than last year," says Lee.
"Throwing really has been effective."

Lee's biggest problem will be keeping the lid on over
confidence.

Over confidence can allow even a Sierra Blanca that plays
a solid game to beat a much better football team.

Knee fells running back


Grandfalls-Royalty's star running back Roy Vasquez will be
out for at least a week because of a hyperextended knee,
reports Coach Dewaine Lee.

Lee says Vasquez will not play in this Friday's game at
Sierra Blanca and his playing status literally is day to
day. The coach says Vasquez was hurt early in the third
quarter of the Cowboys victory over Balmorhea. His foot
apparently caught in the grass when Vasquez made a turn.

Lee says he will move Andy Leyva from offensive end to take
the Vasquez place in the backfield. James Stocks and Jamie
Ramirez will share playing time at Leyva's offensive end
position.

Big Red defensive end Sean Francisco, who suffered a knee
injury earlier this year, still is on the mend and is not
expected back soon.

"Sean had to have surgery," says Lee. "Roy just needs to
rest for a week or so."

Lady Loboes bow to Alpine


By Nathan Rogers
A sports correspondent of The News
The Monahans Lady Loboes are walking just the slightest bit
different lately - not enough to really notice with close
examination, but enough of a difference for them to measure.

On Tuesday, Sept. 29, the Ladies confronted longtime nemesis
Alpine. After leading through the second game, the team
just seemed to let something slip away.

"The girls played Alpine tough, but they just let it slip
away. And afterwards, they realized that it could have been
theirs'. They finally realize that Alpine is beatable, and
we are the team to beat them," says Coach Patty Hall. The
Ladies resumed practice as usual on Wednesday and Thursday,
but had a new feeling surface. A feeling of confidence,
perhaps?

"We are a good team, but we can't let that go to our heads.
We can beat many teams, but we'll have to play," says Hall.

In their game against Kermit on Saturday, Oct. 3, the team
played with that confidence.

Dedra Wessels maintained her high level of play and helped
lead the Lady Loboes to a quick 15-6, 15-8 victory over the
Lady Jackets.

Vanessa Collins also led the effort, coupled with sophomore
Stephanie Taylor.

Add aggressive scorers to a stingy defense, led by Shayla
Terry, and the Ladies are 2-0 in district play. Next
Tuesday, Oct. 13 the team faces Greenwood in Monahans.

Says Hall, "Greenwood has played a little rocky lately, but
I think we are fully capable of beating them. We'll have to
play up to that level, but we can do it. This way we can
insure our spot in the playoffs."

Can the Ladies beat Greenwood and build their feelings of
confidence? It's whether they think they can or not. One
last note, Alpine and Presidio are not a part of the
Monahans volleyball district. They comprise a district all
to themselves, 1-3A, while the Ladies play in 2-3A,
consisting of Kermit, Crane and Greenwood.

Bloodied Loboes face champion Cranes


Friday, Oct. 9, marks the beginning of District 4-3A play.

Friday night, Oct. 9, at 7:30 p.m. at Lobo Stadium in
Monahans, the pre-season favorities to win the championship,
the Monahans Loboes and the Crane Golden Cranes, meet in a
game district coaches still feel will be a barometer of the
district.

The Loboes survived the pre-district meat grinder; now,
bloodied and ready to play after meeting the likes of state
4A ranked Andrews, it's time for the undefeated Golden
Cranes .

Week one may tell the tale of the district, with the likely
district championship game Friday night between the 1-4
Loboes and the 5-0 Golden Cranes, ranked seventh in the 3A
Harris Ratings.

Kermit enters week one of district with a 3-2 record, good
for 2nd place thusfar, and will take on 1-3 Alpine, in a
potential shootout for the third and final playoff spot
teams. 1-3 Midland Greenwood opens up with 1-3 Presidio.
Here's how the district's marquee battle of the week looks.

MONAHANS LOBOES

If you saw Monahans play against 4A rival Ft. Stockton last
week, you know the Loboes do not look like a 1-4 team.

The defense (headed up by junior MLB Brandon Lee, senior OLB
Joel Najar (50 tackles in 5 games), and a quick 280 pound
DT Aaron Swartzfager) held a potentially dangerous Panther
offense to two first downs, one of which came on a penalty,
and 22 total yards.

One can argue the Lobo season turned around with just over
eight minutes remaining in the Andrews loss, when the
Loboes had a gutsy six minute drive against the tough
Andrews D. The drive proved the Loboes could play with
the best high school teams in the State.

The Lobo front 7 has become stingy, refusing to allow the
run. This works particularly against 4-3A teams, like Crane
and Kermit, which rely on the run for success. The possible
return of All-District LB Gabe Ontiveros will add power to a
stingy Lobo defense. Offensively, the Loboes have begun
producing much better.

This is in part due to the quick maturity of the Lobo
offensive line and QB Jarod Thomas (24 for 66, 250 yards
with 3 INTs). Seniors Crosby Swanson and Lanny Hayes have a
combined 104 knockdowns, and have been instrumental in the
new success of the team's running game. Robert Sanchez and
Todd Passmore are recovering from injuries and should both
be at 100% for the start of district play. Raul Hinojos
leads the team with 398 yards rushing on 83 carries with 3
TDs. Roy Porras, who has been stellar at defensive end, has
207 yards on 32 attempts and a TD.

Keys to victory: Long sustained drives, few turnovers,
and continued excellence on defense. If Crane's excellent
safeties make all the tackles, it will be very good for the
underdog Loboes.

CRANE GOLDEN CRANES

The Crane Golden Cranes have come out of the pre-season as
one of the most surprising teams in the state.

Sporting a 5-0 record, including shut-out wins over 2A
McCamey, 3A Denver City, and 4A Pecos; the Cranes have not
had to put out much effort in the second half to win.

First half dominance of the Golden Cranes will likely be a
factor in the district, both positive and negative. Crane
has a potent offense, headed by 6'4 QB Clay McGuire, that
can put games out of reach quickly.

However, whether or not the Cranes can play 48 minutes of
football has yet to be seen. This situation will be tested
quickly, as the Cranes will likely be in a dogfight with
Monahans and their "fourth quarter mentality" this Friday
for the district title. The Crane offense features several
formations, including a power option headed by McGuire and
leading rusher Donny Bishop. McGuire has a potent arm, but
has more runs than passes attempted.

The Crane defense is headed by a tough two man linebacking
corps, and safeties that react quickly to the run.

Keys to victory: Get ahead of the Loboes early, and keep
the offense on the field. Special teams may be key.



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Copyright 1998 by Ward Newspapers, Inc.
Joe Warren, Publisher
107 W. Second St., Monahans TX 79756
Phone 915-943-4313, FAX 915-943-4314
e-mail monnews@ultravision.net

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Copyright 1998 by Ward Newspapers Inc.