sports
NEWS-CAPITAL
B1 Saturday
www.mcalesternews.com
October 3, 2020
HS FOOTBALL
14
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SMOKY AND THE BANDITS
BROOKE YOUNG | For the News-Capital
The McAlester Buffaloes came out ready to make a statement as they faced off with East Central on Friday.
McAlester dominates East Central in gray unis Buffs players report items stolen at halftime By DEREK HATRIDGE SPORTS EDITOR
TULSA — The McAlester Buffaloes stepped on the gas and didn’t let up as they rolled to a 57-14 victory at East Central on Friday. McAlester football coach Forrest Mazey said he liked what he saw out of his team in the District 5A-3 win, but there’s some things they’ll continue to work on as well. “I think we did some quality things. I expect us to do stuff like this,” Mazey said. “Champions come out, and good teams come out when we’re away, and that’s what happened.” After a rocky start that saw both teams trading turnovers, No. 10 McAl-
ester (4-1, 1-1) forced a three-and-out to take over on offense. That’s when quarterback Trent Boatright connected with Gavin Johnson, who stiffarmed defenders and tiptoed the side line for a 70-yard score. McAlester’s Cale Prather followed that by picking off a Cardinals pass and the Buffaloes tacked on a touchdown pass to Lleyton Bass, who juked defenders on his way to the end zone. On the ensuing kickoff, McAlester pinned the Cardinals (3-1, 1-1) inches from their own goal line. The defense continued to apply pressure, resulting in a tackle in the end zone for a safety and a quick 16-0 lead. Boatright on the next
possession found Erik McCarty, who used his speed and athleticism to march across the goal line for the score. McAlester followed that up with a pass to Bass in the corner of the end zone to take a 30-0 lead at the start of the second quarter. Later in the second quarter after another McCarty score, he switched to his position on defense and promptly picked off a pass, returning it 71 yards for a score. On the following kickoff, East Central answered with a 90-yard score. But not to be outdone, McAlester added one more score before they made their way into the locker room with a 50-7
lead at the half. In the start of the second half, defense took over for most of the quarter, as the Buffs held the Cardinals out of the end zone in the third. In the final quarter, the Buffs opened it up with a pass to Lewis Woodmore, who jogged his way untouched into the end zone for the score, putting an exclamation point on the win for McAlester. Mazey said the win was a good way for McAlester to come out and his players stepped up and did what they were asked. “They did a good job,” Mazey said. “Our kids did, and our coaches did a good job (tonight).”
By DERRICK JAMES STAFF WRITER
TULSA — Several McAlester football players reported items were taken from the team’s l o c k e r r o o m Fr i d ay night during a game at Tulsa East Central. McAlester football coach Forrest Mazey said multiple athletes reported items missing at halftime and Tulsa police officers were investigating the incident. “Luckily things can be replaced and nobody got injured,” Mazey said. A student athletic trainer for McAlester told the News-Capital she saw three men leave
• Contact Derek Hatridge at dhatridge@mcalesternews.com.
the locker room before halftime. The student said an employee of Tulsa East Central open the locker room door for the trainer when the three individuals came out of the locker room. The trainer didn’t recognize the individuals and knew the locker room had been dis turbed. A photo of two of the three individuals shows one in jeans and a black top. The other person in the photo is wearing what appears to be light blue jeans shorts, tall white socks, and a red hoodie. More online at www. mcalesternews.com.
Hartshorne tallies first win of season against Valliant; three locals handed losses By DEREK HATRIDGE SPORTS EDITOR
The Hartshorne Miners hosted Valliant in a district matchup at home, where they took a decisive 33-12 win on Friday. The Miners (1-4, 1-1) received the ball to start the game, and Xavier Fraser took the return 80 yards for the first score of the game. Hartshorne then followed that up with a pass from Bryson Cervantes to Timothy Noriega for a 15-yard score. After the
Miners defense held off the Bulldogs from scoring, John Beauchamp punched it in to take a 20-0 lead after the first quarter. In the second quarter, the Bulldogs intercepted a pass from Cervantes and returned it for their first score of the night. But the Miners answered r i g h t b a ck b e h i n d a short-yard run by Micah Baker to extend their lead heading into the half. In the opening of the
second half, the Bulldogs marched downfield and used a short-yardage run to try to cut into the deficit. But in the fourth quarter, Keegan Barnhill took off for 27 yards to score a touchdown and help seal the victory for the Miners. Cervantes finished the game completing 6-of 12 passes for 77 yards and a score. Micah Baker led the ground game with 15 carries for 153 yards and a touchdown, while Tommy Hardin and Fraser
led the receiving corps, combing in three catches for 51 yards. The Miners will next travel to take on Idabel on Oct. 9. PORTER 29, CANADIAN 8
The Canadian Cougars hosted Porter in a district showdown on Friday, but fell 29-8. Canadian (2-3, 1-1) will next take to the road to face off against Talihina on Oct. 9. Jake Brewster Brewster finished with eight passes for 40 yards and a
touchdown, while Isaac Tanner added 60 yards on 14 carries. Gavin Satterwhite finished the night with three catches for 40 yards and the score. IDABEL 35, WILBURTON 7
The Wilburton Diggers hosted district newcomer Idabel on Friday, but fell 35-7. The Diggers (3-2, 0-2) were without starting quarterback Grayson Mathis, who was ruled out pre game due to injury. Wilburton will hit the
road for a matchup against Hugo on Oct. 9. CADDO 36, QUINTON 26
Quinton faced off against Caddo on Friday night and fell 36-26. Quinton (2-2) fell behind as the Bruins started first on the scoreboard, but were able to answer back twice in the second quarter to tie the ballgame at 14-14 at halftime. Next for Quinton will be a home matchup with Webbers Falls on Oct. 9.
IF THE HAT FITS
I
wasn’t sure at first what I was going to write about this week — but sitting outside in the October sun watching some softball, I had a realization. It came in the form of watching not what was happening inside the fence, but instead in the crowds. I’m a people watcher. Human beings are fascinating creatures, and you can learn a lot about a community just by how its citizens treat their fellow persons. And I saw something pretty neat the other day. While softball teams were fighting for their playoff lives
Somebody’s always watching Before I knew it, there was a full-on sandlot softball game happening on the sidelines. It made me keep my eyes a little more open, and what I saw was pretty cool. All around the fields, in each and every town I went to, I noticed how the younger kids were intently watching their Derek Hatridge high school counterparts. They SPORTS EDITOR began acting just like that little girl I saw earlier, trying to adopt the mannerisms and aton the field, I noticed a little titudes of the players they girl grab a few kids her age and she wanted to play catch. were watching out on the field. And that was a nice little reIt soon turned into her looking toward the field, then trying to minder. Because sometimes, people think that what they do emulate and reenact the picture move-for-move. during a high school game
may not matter down the road. But I assure you that it does. You see, when you’re 17, it’s easy to forget about the things not going on within your immediate range of focus. You’re worried about grades, sports, college admissions, and what the cafeteria is serving for lunch this week — or maybe that last one was just me. But for those special moments in time, you become something more. When you step onto the field in your jersey, you become a titan to those young fans. Someone who seems infallible and on top of the world. Legends in
real time, writing the pages of the history books in front of impressionable eyes. Take it from an old never-was. One day, the lights will turn off on your career, and you’ll be relegated to writing about sports instead of playing them. But when that young child becomes a player themselves and tells you that they wanted to do it just like you — BECAUSE of you — you realize the impact that you had. You didn’t see it then, but trust me when I say that that can mean just as much as any of the awards and accolades that you’ve received.