FORNEY – Rockwall’s girls softball team defeated Seagoville 21-1 Friday night in an Area playoff game to advance to next weekend’s Region II-4A Quarterfinals against District 10-4A rival McKinney.

Emily Cowan pitched the Lady Jackets (24-10) to their 16th consecutive victory in the game at North Forney High School. The outcome wasn’t in doubt after the Lady Jackets scored 11 runs in the first inning.

In District play Rockwall already beat McKinney (22-15) twice. The Lionettes outscored Dallas Hillcrest 30-0 in two games to sweep their best-of-3 Area series.

By J.J. Smith, Publisher

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(By Aaron Williams) HEATH -The Heath Hawks jump-started their quest for a state championship by opening the 2012 playoffs with an 11-1 trouncing of the Frisco Raccoons at the Hawk’s Nest last night.

The series will resume tonight at Frisco at 7:30 pm.

Frisco opened the scoring with a first inning run against Heath starter Jovan Hernandez and the Raccoons had several potential scoring opportunities taken away by clutch pitching by Hernandez and some very sharp Heath defense.

Centerfielder Austin Stewart threw out Frisco runners at both first base and home to stifle Raccoon rallies, Jake Baxter chipped in with a RBI and R.J. Williams garnered two runs batted in. Catcher Jake Bledsoe nailed a runner at second base in an attempted steal. Hernandez took advantage of his defensive support and settled into a rhythm that saw him retire the last ten Frisco hitters in order.

The Heath offense countered the first inning run when Bret Boswell worked a base on balls and stole second base. That set the stage for Jake Thompson who promptly blistered a shot through the hole at shortstop to tie the score 1-1. The Hawks pushed across a run in the bottom of the second and the game had the makings of a pitcher’s duel as the score was still 2-1 heading into the bottom of the fourth.

A leadoff single by Grayson Lewis set the stage for successive bunts by Heath. The first Hawk bunt was misplayed by the Raccoons and Austin Stewart then laid a perfect bunt down the third base line which he turned into a hit. Two straight outs followed as it appeared Frisco would escape the jam. However, getting Jake Thompson out with the bases loaded is a daunting task.

In what would turn out to be the decisive moment of the game, Thompson, following a nine-pitch at bat, blasted a bases-clearing double down the left field line. After Timbo Duncan (shown above) followed with his fifth home run of the year, the score had mushroomed into a 7-1 Heath lead. The Hawks would follow with a single run in the fifth and three more runs in the sixth to end the game via the run rule, 11-1.

For the evening, Grayson Lewis and Jake Thompson combined for six of the nine total Heath hits. Lewis had a double, triple, and one RBI while Thompson chipped in with two doubles and four RBI. Hernandez reached base safely four times with a RBI double and three walks. Jake Baxter chipped in with a RBI and R.J. Williams garnered two runs batted in. The Hawks managed to score in every inning except the third.

Heath will ride the big arm of Jake Thompson in game two while Frisco is expected to counter with senior Andrew Miller. If necessary, game three will be played at noon Saturday at Highland Park.

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ROCKWALL – The Rockwall Lady Jackets District championship softball team stretched their wining streak to 15 games in a row last Friday and Saturday, blasting Frisco Centennial, 14-3 and 2-0, to win the  best-of-three game series for the Class 4A Region II Bi-District Championship.

In the first game, Ashton Atwell, Kennedy Harrison smashed home runs over the fence for the Jackets (23-10) and Cyndi Bertrand hit an inside-the-park home run.

Kayla Vandergriff pitched a complete game and earned the victory.

Atwell was 2-for-4 with three RBIs, Harrison went 2-for-4 with two RBIs, Bertrand hit 2-for-4, Haley Baker 1-for-1 with two RBIs, Mallory Taylor 2-for-4 and Bailey Wallace was 1-for-3 with two RBIs.

Rockwall and Seagoville will play at North Forney High School Friday at 7 pm in a one-game elimination for the Class 4A Area Championship.

Seagoville, winner of District 11-4A, clobbered 12-4A Dallas Conrad 18-7 in a single-game playoff for their Class 4A Bi-District Championship.

By J.J. Smith, Publisher

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NORMAN OK – Former Rockwall High School football star Austin Woods, a sophomore offensive lineman for the U. of Oklahoma Sooners football team, was diagnosed with Stage-3 Hodgkin’s lymphoma last week and began a series of chemotherapy treatments yesterday.

The news was first reported by Rivals network website SoonerScoop.com and reported today in Tulsa World.

Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a cancer of lymph tissue that is most common in people ages 15-30 and 50-70, according to WebMD.

SoonerScoop.com reported that Woods will receive chemotherapy in Oklahoma to be close to his teammates and that Woods’ parents, Don and Elizabeth Woods from Rockwall, are moving to Oklahoma and will stay with friends during his treatments.

According to Tulsa World, Woods posted a few thoughts on his Twitter feed yesterday at @AwesomeWoods_50:

“Fighters mentality. Round 1…” Woods tweeted in the morning.

Last evening, Woods posted that he found out last Thursday he has stage 3 Hodgkin’s lymphoma and that he is receiving treatment at OU’s Stephenson Cancer Center.

Woods also posted, “Thank you everyone for all the support! #beatcancer” and even got a message of encouragement from pro wrestler turned actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, a former University of Miami football player: “Stay strong man. Team Bring It’s pullin’ for ya.”

Tulsa World wrote that  in 2010 and 2011, Woods was OU’s deep snapper on placekicks and also played four games in 2011 on the offensive line. He earned Academic All-Big 12 in 2011 and was featured briefly during the Sooners’ “ESPN All-Access” preseason show in August.

He is nicknamed Thor for his long blond hair.

By J.J. Smith, Publisher

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By Aaron Williams. HEATH – The Heath Hawks begin their quest for the elusive state Final Four this year with a return engagement from last year’s first round against the Frisco Raccoons.

Frisco is the fourth place team from District 9-4A, having secured their berth in the playoffs with a dramatic come from behind victory over Frisco Liberty on Friday night by a 12-11 score. Frisco overcame a 9-3 fifth inning deficit.

Heath enters the contest as the number one seed from District 10-4A, following their 11-3 campaign to finish off their third consecutive District 10-4A championship. The Raccoons went 8-6 during their district season.

Frisco is led on the mound by Andrew Miller, Johnny Sitgreaves, and Jordan Gibbs. Miller went 4-3 with a 2.27 ERA in 52.33 innings pitched. He struck out out 71 and walked 38. The number two pitcher is Sitgreaves who amassed a 5-3 record with 53 strikeouts in his and 25 walks in his 36.67 innings of work while Gibbs went 3-1 with 22 strikeouts and nine walks. There is not a real dominant pitcher on the staff but all three saw plenty of work and should provide the Hawks with a real challenge.

At the plate, the Raccoons were not a power -hitting team by any means as they hit only five homers as a team. By contrast, Heath’s Jake Thompson clubbed six home runs by himself.  Frisco has a series of feisty base hitters throughout their lineup led by Zach Jenkins, Jordan Gibbs, Matt Goudie, and P.J. Harris. Gibbs led them with two home runs and Harris was the RBI leader with 22 while all four players had averages over .300 for the year. Senior Andrew Miller is also a tough out at the plate.

Heath comes into the series on the heels of a season ending 14-0 thumping of Wylie East that clinched undisputed possession of first place. The second half of District play saw the Hawk offense start to jell as they scored 68 runs in those seven games, plus a 21 run outburst in a non-district game against Richardson.

Jake Thompson, Jovan Hernandez, Timbo Duncan, and Bret Boswell tore the cover off of the ball with averages ranging from .417 to .376. Duncan has 32 RBI to lead the team while Thompson has six homers to lead the squad. All four have had big games offensively while Jake Bledsoe has also chipped in with three homers and 22 RBI. The Heath bats will be a tough task for any pitching staff.

The Hawk pitching staff is loaded and talented. Expect Coach Greg Harvey to choose between seniors Jovan Hernandez, Jake Baxter, and freshman Tyler Ivey to complete a rotation centered around ace Jake Thompson.  The trio has compiled a 13-5 season record with ERAs ranging from 2.22 to 2.83 and all three have seen district action.

Thompson has been one of the best pitchers in the area this season as he enters the series with a perfect 9-0 record and a miniscule 0.339 ERA in 62 innings of work. He has allowed only three earned runs all year and has a staggering 117 strikeouts against only 13 bases on balls. Against Wylie East he passed the 400 strikeout plateau for his career. Hawk fans feel very confident when big number 15 toes the rubber.

The action gets underway Thursday, May 3, at 7:30 pm at the Hawk’s Nest. Game two is slated for 7:30 pm Friday at Frisco. If necessary, a third game will be played Saturday at a time/location to be announced.

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IRVING – The Rockwall High School girls and boys gymnastics teams just won the Region I Gymnastics Championships and will soon be headed to the State Championships in San Angelo May 3-5.

The defending state champion Lady Jackets (shown above) will be competing for their fifth state championship.

The RHS girls scored 232.05, matching their score as last year’s state champions. All-around State meet qualifiers freshman Laura Arce finished second in all-around at 76.950, while senior Sarah Beasley placed fourth at 76.200.

The Lady Jackets finished first in every event. Jenna Jeffrey won the uneven bars (19.600) and the floor exercise (19.550). Kailea Coles won the balance beam (19.500) and tied for first in the vault (19.250).

The first-place boys team scored 322.00, 2.2 points higher than runner-up Garland Lakeview Centennial.

Sophomore Michael Weidman was the boys all-around champion (108.100). He won the vault (18.300), tied for first in the floor exercise (19.100), placed second on the pommel horse (18.200), was third on the rings (18.300) and parallel bars (18.400) and finished ninth on the high bar.

Zach Bennett, first all-around, placed first on the high bar and Luke Bennett was sixth all-around. Jayson Copes tied Weidman for first in the vault.

At the State meet, compulsory events will begin at 11 a.m. for the girls and 4:30 p.m. for the boys May 3.

Friday’s optional events are scheduled for 11:30 am for the girls and 5:45 pm for the boys. The team and all-around awards will be given that evening. Saturday’s finals for the top 10 in each individual event will begin at 11 am.

The Rockwall-Heath High Shool boys team also qualified for the State Championships by placing third in the Region at 309.50. The Lady Hawks were also third in Region 1, but did not meet the team qualifying score of 215.00.

Heath’s Morgan Hines and Audrey Grammer will compete as individuals in the state meet because they finished among the top 10 in the region.

By J.J. Smith, Publisher

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(By Aaron Williams) HEATH – The Heath Hawks failed to take advantage of their first opportunity to win the District 10-4A baseball title outright when they fell to the Highland Park Scots 7-3 Friday night at Scotland Yard.

Heath maintains a one game lead over both Scots and the Rockwall Yellowjackets with one game remaining.

Heath failed to take advantage of ten walks dished out by Scot pitchers as they repeatedly left men on base in numerous innings. Highland Park took an early 1-0 lead and maintained an advantage over the Hawks the entire game.

Freshman Tyler Ivey started on the mound for Heath and was saddled with the loss. The offense was paced by Jovan Hernandez but the Hawks never got even after pulling within 3-2 in the fourth inning.

Heath takes on Wylie East on April 27 at the Hawk’s Nest at 7:30. A win will give them their third consecutive district title and wrap up the number one seed for the playoffs. Heath pulled out a narrow 1-0 win in the first meeting between the two teams.

It will also be Senior Night for the Hawks. All seniors and their parents will be recognized prior to the game in a ceremony starting around 7 pm.  This class has amassed 126 victories heading into Friday night’s affair and senior Hawk Jake Thompson has started in every one of them.

Thompson (shown above) will be on the mound Friday pitching to battery mate Jovan Hernandez, another senior who has made four years of varsity contributions.  In total, eleven Hawks will be taking the field for their last regular season home game. They are listed below with their years of varsity experience:

• Jake Thompson -  4
• Jovan Hernandez – 4
• Austin Stewart -2
• Grayson Lewis -2
• Timbo Duncan -2
• Jake Baxter -2
• Jake Bledsoe -2
• Cade Flory -2
• Wade Bennett -1
• Garrett Manuel -1
• Christian Sanders -1
• Team manager Jordan Desmond is also a senior.

A big crowd is expected to pay tribute to these seniors and cheer the Hawks into the 2012 playoffs.

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(By Aaron Williams) (Photo by Trudy Woessner) – The  Heath baseball team – ranked fourth in the state – routed the Wylie Pirates 14-0 Tuesday night at the Hawk’s Nest to give themselves at least a share of the District 10-4A crown for the third consecutive year.

One win in the last two games will secure the title outright for the Hawks.

Heath entered Tuesday’s contest  fresh on the heels of a big showdown win over Rockwall last Friday and the Hawks were eager to get after a Wylie team that handed them one of their two district losses earlier this season.

Wylie entered the game with an outside chance of earning the fourth, and last, spot in the playoffs.

Heath started ace Jake Thompson on the mound as he attempted to keep his perfect record intact and move to 8-0 on the year.  Thompson proved to be very effective once again as he limited the Pirates to only two hits and racked up five strikeouts in his three innings of work. Junior Ryan Kinney came in and threw a scoreless final two innings and picked up four whiffs of his own.

The Hawks only needed five innings of pitching due to the barrage of runs generated by their suddenly hot offense. After a single run scored in the first on a Jovan Hernandez single, the roof literally fell in on the Wylie bunch in the bottom of the second.

Before the Pirates could garner that elusive third out, the mighty Hawks had managed an amazing 13 runs.  In a total team effort, Heath had eight different players contribute at least one base hit while seven different Hawks had at least one RBI. Wylie pitchers also chipped in with nine bases on balls.

Grayson Lewis and Austin Stewart had two hits apiece for Heath. Jake Bledsoe (shown above), Jake Thompson, and Timbo Duncan all had doubles. Thompson led the RBI column with three while Hernandez, Bledsoe, and Lewis all had two RBI. Nine different Hawks eventually would score as the Pirates were completely overwhelmed.

The Hawks try and wrap up the 10-4A title when they travel to Scotland Yard on Friday to take on Highland Park at 7:30 p.m.  There will also be a non-district game on Saturday at 11 am against the Richardson Eagles at Richardson.

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(By Aaron Williams) (Photos by  HEATH – The Heath Hawks moved a little closer to their third consecutive District 10-4A baseball championship on Friday with an 8-6 defeat of their cross-town rival, the Rockwall Yellowjackets.

With the win, Heath opened a two-game lead on both Rockwall and the Highland Park Scots with only three regular season contests remaining. McKinney North is currently three games behind the front-running Hawks.

Rockwall came into the contest with an opportunity to pull even in the standings and to exact some revenge for the 8-0 shellacking Heath handed to them in the first game back in March. Rockwall entered that game as the number two ranked team in the state of Texas according to the Texas High School Coaches Association rankings but they were thoroughly dismantled as Hawk ace Jake Thompson hurled a one hit shutout at them and racked up 16 strikeouts.

Friday’s contest featured a lot of action on the base paths for Rockwall during the first five innings but none of those runners were able to score. Hawk starter Jake Baxter repeatedly wiggled out of jams by making clutch pitches in key moments. Baxter kept the Jackets off the scoreboard until Rockwall pushed one run across in the top of the fifth which proved to be Baxter’s last inning of work.

The Hawk offense tallied a first inning run and followed it up with three runs in both the fourth and fifth innings while the final score came on a solo bomb by Jake Thompson (shown above left) in the bottom of the sixth.  Heath would eventually tally 10 hits as Baxter, Thompson, and Jovan Hernandez (shown above right) contributed two hits each and the trio combined for 5 RBI. Bret Boswell chipped in with a RBI single and Austin Stewart had a run-scoring double. Thompson’s second hit was also a run-scoring double.

Rockwall put a scare into the Hawks with a five-run uprising in the top of the seventh as Heath Coach Greg Harvey ran through three pitchers to get the last three outs of the game. Tyler Ivey and Ryan Kinney each ran into some control issues as they combined for five walks, despite not allowing any hits. Jovan Hernandez came in and also walked a batter and gave up a two-run double before he got Brewer Money to fly out to deep left field to end the game. The Jackets fought hard to the very end but the deficit was just too huge to overcome.

A victory Tuesday night will allow Heath to clinch at least a share of the District championship as they host the Wylie Pirates at 7:30 pm at the Hawk’s Nest. Heath is anxious for another shot at the Pirates as Wylie handed them a 7-0 loss in the first round. Jake Thompson will start on the mound for Heath as he tries to improve his record to a perfect 8-0.

Rockwall will travel to Wylie East as they attempt to remain in at least a tie for the runner-up spot in 10-4A with the Scots of Highland Park.

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(By Aaron Williams) McKINNEY – The Heath Hawks baseball team maintained their grasp on first place in the 10-4A standings Tuesday night with 5-4 victory over the home-standing McKinney North Bulldogs.

Heath moves to 8-2 to remain one game ahead of the Rockwall Yellowjackets as the two Rockwall schools prepare to slug it out Friday night at 7:30 pm at the Hawk’s Nest.

The Bulldogs slipped into a third place tie with Highland Park at 6-4.

Heath struck early as they tallied two runs in the first off of Will Cooper as hits were strung together by Jake Baxter, Bret Boswell, and Jake Thompson before Timbo Duncan was walked and Jovan Hernandez belted a two -double. It was a lead Heath would never relinquish as they chipped in solo runs in three different innings highlighted by Jake Bledsoe’s home run to left field (see photo above).

Jake Thompson earned the victory on the mound and was once again a dominant force. Thompson went six innings while allowing only five hits and one earned run. He racked up 14 more strikeouts and handed out only one base on balls. Thompson improved his record to 7-0 for the season. Jovan Hernandez picked up a save by working the seventh inning.

The normally tight Heath defense allowed four unearned runs to score with three of them coming in the last two innings to make the final outcome quite close.

The stage is set for Friday. Come out and see the Battle of Rockwall at Heath at 7:30 pm.

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