Bulldogs basketball

Howe sophomore Jacob Campbell (11) drives the lane at Whitewright Friday night. Photo by Michelle Carney.

The Howe Bulldogs (8-8, 3-4) continued to hang around in District 11-3A by holding pace with a win and a loss. On Tuesday, Howe lost a heartbreaker, 46-43 as their shooting percentage was a paltry 28.6 percent from the field including 11-of-37 from 2-point range (29.7 percent). Howe was playing with a very limited roster due to illness which kept tired legs on the court for much of the night. Leonard shot 48.7 percent from the field including 56.7 percent from 2-point range. That turned out to be the biggest advantage for the Tigers as they took home the win.

Howe, who thrives on defense was unable to get the stops they usually get, and the 46 points allowed was the second most allowed in district play behind Pottsboro’s 63 and Bells’ 50.

Austin Haley led Howe with 18 points and shot 5-of-10 from the field. Jacob Campbell finished with 11 points. Other scorers were Eli Wilson (10), Luke Lopez (2), and Cooper Jones (2). Wilson led Howe with eight rebounds. On Friday, back with a full roster, the Dogs blasted Whitewright out of the gym by a 48-33 score. Howe shot a more respectable 41.9 percent from the field and held the Tigers to 26.5 percent.

Campbell placed Howe squarely on his back as he totaled 21 points and shot 43.8 percent from the field and was perfect on free throws at 4-for-4. Howe needs scoring help from others than just the guards and received that

Howe at Leonard

Howe at Whitewright

District 11-3A Standings

Bells 6-1 Leonard 6-1 Blue Ridge 4-3 Pottsboro 4-3 Howe 3-4 Gunter 3-4 Bonham 1-6 Whitewright 1-6

on Friday as Jones went 3-for-6 and finished with eight points. Other scorers were Luke Lopez (7), Haley (4), Zak Defrange (4), Wilson (2), and Ethan Lopez (2). Howe will host Pottsboro and Bonham at home this week and need to sweep the week to keep playoff hopes alive.

Howe senior Eli Wilson and Head Coach Jay Forsythe. Photo by Michelle Carney.

Kerri Pruitt was sworn in as city secretary at Tuesday’s city council meeting. Staff photo.

(Continued from page 1)

double that (capacity.)” Stanley said that the plan is to spend increments of $50,000 at a time of the grant money to fix sections of lines that can be replaced. Mayor Bill French told the council that the city has concluded certain sections of smoke testing in town that has identified a lot of issues. The large majority of issues were as simple as missing sewer caps on cleanouts. The city has gone around and replaced caps at these locations which was approximately $1 for each cap. “There is no doubt that there are collapsed lines or broken lines and that will be found with a camera that they will run down the pipes,” said French. “We are very blessed to have this month because with this kind of money, we can do some repairs.” The city recently replaced a broken sewer line on Maple Street which came to a total of approximately $30,000. Councilman Brett Bearden asked about the deadline of spending the grant money in which French responded that they “will not need a nanosecond to go through that money” because of the multitude of issues to be repaired. The City of Howe approved payments to begin to Howe ISD for a joint water line agreement placed for Summit Hill Elementary a few years ago. The City of Howe’s total is $300,000 which includes a payment plan to Howe ISD of $30,000 per year for 10 years at no interest. The council approved the payment for the current year which will leave nine years. Stanley also discussed a development agreement with Saddleback Developments which is planning a residential development near Castlegate Street with approximately 120 acres. A professional services agreement will take care of the city’s portion of attorney fees and other items. Mayor French told the council that this is a long-term project and will be a great one for the City of Howe. The council approved the agreement. The council also approved a previously budgeted $58,848 lease/purchase agreement between the City of Howe and Independent Financial to purchase police vehicles. They also approved a lease/purchase agreement between the City of Howe and Independent Financial to purchase Sewer Jet Machine in the amount of $73,834.00. Kerri Pruitt was officially sworn in as city secretary taking over for the recently retired Joy Stevens. The council approved adding Pruitt to all accounts and removing Stevens. The council also heard a presentation from Scout Caleb Wahrmund who will dedicate a flagpole at the Community Center for his Eagle Scout project.

The council approved spending as needed for stormwater and sewer repairs in increments of up to but not over $50,000.

and sees the mail box begin to fill up with notifications of scholarship auditions all over the nation. Over 10,000 students begin the ATSSB All-State process each year but less than 300 of those get to perform in San Antonio in February. To put it on an even larger scale, each fall, over 70,000 Texas high school students begin the ATSSB AND Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA) all state audition process. Only 1810 are ultimately selected to rehearse and perform during the annual TMEA Clinic/Convention in one of 18 Texas All-State ensembles, and now senior Howe High School clarinet player, Alyssa Sharp, has earned one of those spots for the second year in a row.

Alyssa’s success comes as no real surprise to assistant band director, Julie Cook. As the clarinet specialist on the Howe staff, Mrs. Cook has spent countless hours in lessons and rehearsals with Alyssa. “Since fifth grade, I have known Alyssa ‘could’ be an allstater,” said Cook. “And now that she is a two year all-stater I could not be more proud. A common obstacle many performers deal with is the issue of performance anxiety and Alyssa was no exception. Cook continued, “One of the things I am most proud of is how Alyssa worked to overcome her nerves. I watched it happen last year in a virtual audition but this year in a live audition she did it again. I cannot wait to see her next chapter unfold.” Throughout her years in band, Sharp has practiced diligently and consistently made the all-region band each year as well as qualified for state each year with multiple clarinet ensembles and solos. She also performed the last two marching seasons as one of the featured soloists in the UIL contest show. Alyssa was a member of the 2021 AllState Band but after the normal TMEA Convention was canceled, that all-state clinic and performance was sponsored by ATSSB and held in Melissa this past June. This year, Alyssa will travel with her band directors to San Antonio in February where she will rehearse under Texas State University band director, Dr. Caroline Beatty. That band will be premiering a piece by Clifton Jones called Rising which was commissioned by ATSSB. The all-state experience also offers Alyssa the opportunity to visit with multiple universities and colleges at the events annual college fair. Alyssa is the daughter of David and Sandra Sharp.

CHANGE CHANGE CHANGE CHANGE CHANGE