6A-2 All-District team
Here’s the 6A-2 All-District team. Have another districts awards? E-mail them to raber@opubco.com.
District 6A-2 All-District
Awards
Coach of the Year: Lance Manning, Edmond Santa Fe
Player of the Year: Casey Curtis, Putnam City
Co-Offensive Player of the Year: Trevor Thompson, Westmoore
Co-Offensive Player of the Year: Jarion Tudman, Edmond North
Co-Defensive Player of the Year: Josh Crouch, Edmond Santa Fe
Co-Defensive Player of the Year: Kyle Factor, Westmoore
Linebacker of the Year: Brendon Pitzer, Edmond North
Co-Defensive Back of the Year: Conner Bays, Edmond Santa Fe
Co-Defensive Back of the Year: Archie Ocloolee, Westmoore
Defensive Lineman of the Year: Patrick Diaz, Lawton
Offensive Back of the Year: Jesse Mathews, Edmond North
Co-Offensive Lineman of the Year: Brandon Dewitt, Lawton
Co-Offensive Lineman of the Year: Cole Parsons, Edmond North
Co-Wide Receiver of the Year: Austin Bowling, Westmoore
Co-Wide Receiver of the Year: Tre Kelly, Edmond Santa Fe
Special Teams Player of the Year: Michael Ryan, Mustang
All-District team
Del City: Stephon Herd, WR; Josh McNaughton, DL; Jerel Jeten, DB; Larry Long, DB.
Edmond North: Jarion Tudman, RB; Jared Benway, RB; Cole Parsons, OL; Troy Davis, TE; Jesse Mathews, QB; Russell Sivard, DL; James Duncan, DL; Christian Contreass, DB; Regan Land, LB; Bryndan Pitzer, LB; Christian Peterson, DB.
Edmond Santa Fe: Tre Kelly, WR; Taylor Ashcraft, LB; Chris Carter, DL; Conner Bays, DB; Josh Crouch, DL; Zach Birts, DB; Michael Onuoha, DL; Brandon Roberts, OL; Chad Reitz, OL; Ryan Frazier, LB; Matt Freeman, K; Allston Hadley, OL.
Lawton: Brandon Bartlett, DeMarious Littles, Freddie Taito, Vincent Thomas, Corey Pilgrum, Adam Castro, Jacquan Beck, Dometreas Pyfer, Jordan Gouge.
Mustang: Arron Smith, OL; Derek Garvin, WR; A.J. Ashman, RB; Michael Ryan, K.
Putnam City: Casey Curtis, RB; Rontez Smith, TE; Anthony Hogg, DB; Damion Brown, DL; Elie Rushing, LB; Derrick Rovers, DL; Conner Nichols, TE; Jeff Tanner, DL.
U.S. Grant: Christian Nicholson, DE; Jacob Tavares, OL; Cory Hooks, RB; Derrick Young, DB.
Westmoore: Kyle Factor, DL; Trevor Thompson, QB; Austin Bowling, WR; Archie Ocloolee,. DB; Dalton Craig, WR; Preston Higgins, DL; Blake Martin, DB; Corey Lassiter, OL.
Class 6A Top 10
BY RYAN ABER
raber@opubco.com
No rankings in the paper this week but I do a final ranking after the season ends. But I’ll update my top 10 in each class on the blog beginning with 6A:
Class 6A
1. Broken Arrow (2)#11-1
2. Tulsa Union (3)#11-1
3. Jenks (5)#10-2
4. Owasso (7)#9-3
5. Midwest City (1)#11-1
6. Edmond Santa Fe (4)#10-2
7. Lawton (6)#9-3
8. Edmond North (8)#9-3
9. Stillwater (9)#8-3
10. Westmoore (10)#7-4
Picks: Second round of the playoffs
Ryan kept the three-game lead over Jason as both went 8-2 last week. Scott dropped two games, due to picking Yukon over Edmond Memorial and Ada over Duncan.
Last week:
Ryan: 8-2, 1-0
Jason: 8-2, 1-0
Scott: 6-4, 1-0
Overall:
Ryan: 80-31, 10-1
Jason: 77, 32, 8-3
Scott: 73-36, 9-2
Ryan
Jenks 28, Edmond Santa Fe 21
Midwest City 21, Owasso 17
Guthrie 34, Tulsa East Central 30
Lawton MacArthur 35, Tulsa Kelley 28
Sallisaw 28, McGuinness 26
Anadarko 35, Kingfisher 20
Seminole 28, Verdigris 7
Davis 26, Millwood 20
Woodland 21, Wynnewood 19
Timberlake 35, Temple 32
Lock of the week: Lawton MacArthur over Tulsa Kelley. Kelley’s defense is good but they haven’t faced an offense near as potent as Lawton MacArthur yet this season. Darius Graham and company pass the test to advance to the semifinals yet again.
Jason
Edmond Santa Fe 31, Jenks 23
Midwest City 31, Owasso 28
Guthrie 27, Tulsa East Central 17
Lawton MacArthur 38, Tulsa Kelley 24
McGuinness 28, Sallisaw 27
Anadarko 28, Kingfisher 21
Seminole 37, Verdigris 24
Davis 24, Millwood 14
Woodland 38, Wynnewood 34
Temple 35, Timberlake 31
Lock of the week: Anadarko over Kingfisher. This will be Anadarko’s first real test of the season, and I think they pass it. Sheldon Wilson won’t be able to run wild like he has all year, but he’ll still be too much for the Yellowjackets.
Scott
Edmond Santa Fe 28, Jenks 24
Midwest City 37, Owasso 31
Guthrie 28, Tulsa East Central 21
Lawton MacArthur 35, Tulsa Kelley 21
McGuinness 17, Sallisaw 14
Kingfisher 24, Anadarko 21
Seminole 30, Verdigris 20
Davis 31, Millwood 28
Woodland 28, Wynnewood 22
Timberlake 38, Temple 34
Lock of the week: Midwest City over Owasso. The Bombers are on a crash course with the title game, and their secondary is better than any Owasso has seen this year.
More 6A game times changed
Edmond North and Yukon had already made the decision to move their playoff game on Friday up to a 7 p.m. start.
Tuesday, at least two more Class 6A games were pushed up 30 minutes: Westmoore at Midwest City and Lawton Eisenhower at Edmond Santa Fe.
This isn’t a surprise as most 6A games on this side of the state start at 7 p.m. during the regular season.
Fall signing day coming Wednesday
This might be the opening week of high school football playoffs, but it also includes signing day Wednesday for sports other than football. Know of an athlete signing? E-mail me at raber@opubco.com or leave it as a comment here. Please include as much information as possible.
Edmond Santa Fe practice report: Wolves prepping for athletic Lawton Eisenhower
Edmond Santa Fe defensive end Michael Onuoha (81) takes a break from running sprints with teammates at practice on Monday.
EDMOND — I visited Edmond Santa Fe’s practice today, where the Wolves are prepping for a first-round showdown with Lawton Eisenhower at Wantland Stadium on Friday.
Edmond Santa Fe won District 6A-2, and Lawton Eisenhower finished fourth in 6A-1.
Although Eisenhower (4-6, 3-4 in District 6A-1) has struggled this season, coach Lance Manning said they are athletic and dangerous.
Quarterback Adrian McDonald, who has some NCAA Division I offers, is dangerous as a runner and a passer.
“They’re athetic; they run that gun option,” Manning said. “They’re scary. You’ve gotta be in position defensively or they will big-play you.”
Eisenhower is the first option team that Santa Fe has faced this year since Week 1, when the Wolves bested rival Edmond Memorial. But Eisenhower’s style of option is different; they run a veer option offense.
“It’s just a different thing to prepare for,” Manning said.
For his part, senior defensive end Michael Onuoha doesn’t seem too concerned.
“We’ve come across a lot of athletes, and we’ve been able to stop them,” Onuoha said.
It’s true. The Wolves’ schedule featured lots of fast, athletic teams like Putnam City, Edmond North and Lawton.
And Santa Fe (9-1, 7-0) is pretty athletic itself. The Wolves’ only loss this season is in nondistrict play to No. 1 Midwest City.
Sophomore quarterback Justice Hansen has been a dual threat, and with receivers Tre Kelley and Trevan Smith and running back Phillip Sumpter, the Wolves’ offense has been dynamic.
“It’s a good matchup,” Manning said. “It’s what makes the high school playoffs so special.”
NOT LOOKING PAST EISENHOWER
The Wolves insisted that they are focused on Lawton Eisenhower and aren’t looking past it to a potential second-round game against Jenks.
“I’m sure some people might have (Jenks) in the back of their minds,” Hansen said. “But the players that are focused are going to keep everyone focused.
“It’s the playoffs. You can’t overlook anybody because if you do, you get beat and you’re done.”
Edmond Santa Fe’s Aaron Anderson commits to Fresno State
Edmond Santa Fe guard Aaron Anderson verbally committed to play basketball at Fresno State on Friday, ending the recruiting process just in time for the opening of the early signing period this week.
Anderson averaged 8.4 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game last year. The 6-foot-3 senior impressed college coaches over the summer with his defensive strength and improved decision-making with the ball.
He also had scholarship offers from Nevada and Oral Roberts. After a visit to Fresno in late October, Anderson cancelled his trip to ORU and made his decision official on Friday.
“I don’t know if there was one thing that sold him on Fresno State,” Santa Fe coach Shawn Schenk said. “Aaron wanted to be at a place that was competitive, and he really liked what they’re doing there in a really good conference.
Anderson also has a friend in Fresno who he was able to communicate with about the area. Former Santa Fe player Rickey Vick is currently a senior on the basketball team at Fresno Pacific, an NAIA school.
It was important to Anderson to made a decision before the season began, learning from the difficulties faced by Santa Fe’s Josh Richardson last year. Richardson passed up early opportunities to sign, instead waiting until April. The situation ultimately worked out well for Richardson, who signed with Tennessee, but it was a scary and uncertain situation at times.
– Scott Wright, swright@opubco.com
Twitter: @ScottWrightOK
All-State volleyball announced
The Oklahoma Coaches Association released its All-State volleyball roster on Thursday. The All-State game will be played Tuesday, July 24 at a venue to be determined. The small school game will begin at 6 p.m., followed by the large school game at 7:30 p.m. The coaches will be announced at a later date.
Large East
Sadie Schaffner, Bartlesville
Inky Ajanaku, Tulsa Kelley
Cat Roth, Tulsa Kelley
Sydney Eggers, Bixby
Cailyn Burd, Owasso
Aubrey Marsellis, Owasso
Alexa Knox, Tulsa Union
Kylie Johnson, Tulsa Union
Large West
Maddie Reddick, McGuinness
Skylar Conner, Edmond Memorial
Kristen Nashert, Edmond North
Heather Watson, Edmond North
Hannah Holkum, Edmond Santa Fe
Barbara Jackson, Edmond Santa Fe
Lexie Matthews, Norman North
Tori Thomas, Norman North
Small East
Kara Gleason, Lincoln Christian
Evette Allen, Lincoln Christian
Sunny Smarty, Oklahoma Union
Hayley Bryan, Copan
Aryn Dixon, Cascia Hall
Allie Murphy, Cascia Hall
Carolina Arnould, Victory Christian
Mayci Sparkman, Shawnee
Hannah McKenzie, Tulsa Wahsington
Morgan Allison, Catoosa
Small West
Dawnshate Blakes, Chickasha
Taylor Crismas, Oklahoma Bible
Bree Fritschow, Duncan
Danielle McGill, Big Pasture
Sydney Miles, Heritage Hall
Jessica Penner, Corn Bible
Jenny Pratt, Christian Heritage
Lindsey Smith, Big Pasture
Talie Stanley, Cache
Madison Ward, Cache
Edmond Santa Fe wins district title, proves me wrong again
Edmond Santa Fe's Tre Kelley runs after a catch during his team's 31-21 win over Edmond North on Friday. PHOTO BY NATE BILLINGS, THE OKLAHOMAN
EDMOND — Admitting that I was wrong after an Edlam game that Edmond Santa Fe won. This seems familiar.
The craziest part is that, unknowingly, I predicted Santa Fe to lose both games by the same score (21-17).
In any case, the Wolves beat Edmond North 31-21 on Friday at Wantland Stadium to clinch the District 6A-2 championship, just one year after a 1-9 season.
The game really seemed to swing in Santa Fe’s favor after a few critical errors in the second and third quarters.
With the game tied at 3 late in the first half, Edmond North blocked a Santa Fe punt and had the ball on the Wolves’ 26-yard line. But after three plays, North faced a fourth-and-one on Santa Fe’s 17.
Huskies’ quarterback Jesse Mathews tried to sneak for the first down, but didn’t get it.
On the Wolves’ first play after taking over possession, quarterback Justice Hansen found Tre Kelley for an 82-yard gain. On the next play, Phillip Sumpter ran in a two-yard score to send the Wolves into halftime with a 10-3 lead.
Huskies’ kicker Ken Bingham hit a 31-yard field goal in the third quarter, leading me to believe that, given the opportunity, he would have made the 34-yard attempt.
I can’t say I understand the decision to go for it with the chance to have a halftime lead, especially after all the momentum you’ve gained with the blocked punt.
Edmond Santa Fe coach Lance Manning, though, said he would have done the same thing that his Edmond North counterpart did.
“I feel like, if we’re playing as well defensively as they were at the time, and we’re as big and physical, I can be a little more of a riverboat gambler,” Manning said. “That’s the same thing I would have done to be honest with you.”
The Wolves were able to extend their lead to 24-3 in the third quarter after three Edmond North fumbles. The Huskies were never able to get it back within 10 points.
Regardless, Edmond Santa Fe was clearly the better team and now has the chance for two home playoff games.
The Huskies, meanwhile, are now out of the home-playoff-game conversation. They should easily handle U.S. Grant in the regular-season finale, and will probably end up in third place in the district behind Santa Fe and Lawton.
Edmond North is still a dangerous team, and will still be a favorite in their first-round game, which looks like it will be at Yukon.
But this was a team that had a legitimate claim to Class 6A’s No. 1 ranking just two weeks ago.
The Wolves only loss is to No. 1 Midwest City, and that 27-6 setback was in Week 3. It would be interesting to see those two teams play again, because I felt that week like Santa Fe left a lot of points on the board.
Santa Fe, which ends the regular season at Putnam City, is looking towards a likely first-round tilt with Lawton Eisenhower.
Picks: Week 9
Ryan picked up another game on Jason and Scott last week on the strenght of his pick of Lawton over Edmond North and Sallisaw over Hilldale. Only Scott missed his lock last week, missing on Wagoner-Catoosa.
Last week:
Ryan: 7-3, 1-0
Jason: 6-4, 1-0
Scott: 6-4, 0-1
Overall:
Ryan: 59-22, 7-1
Jason: 55-26, 6-2
Scott: 52-29, 6-2
Ryan:
Jenks 28, Broken Arrow 24
Edmond North 17, Edmond Santa Fe 14
Lawton 28, Putnam City 9
Norman 28, Muskogee 15
Tulsa Central 26, Coweta 17
Carl Albert 35, Deer Creek 26
Douglass 27, Glenpool 24
Anadarko 33, Tuttle 14
Heritage Hall 38, Bethany 14
Wynnewood 20, Wayne 14
Lock of the Week: Carl Albert over Deer Creek. The Titans offense has steadily improved throughout the season and they have both the secondary speed to hold the Antlers’ receivers down and the front seven to get pressure on Deer Creek’s quarterback.
Jason:
Broken Arrow 27, Jenks 24
Edmond North 21, Edmond Santa Fe 17
Lawton 31, Putnam City 7
Norman 26, Muskogee 17
Tulsa Central 24, Coweta 14
Carl Albert 41, Deer Creek 14
Douglass 17, Glenpool 14
Anadarko 31, Tuttle 14
Heritage Hall 35, Bethany 14
Wayne 13, Wynnewood 10
Lock of the Week: Anadarko over Tuttle. The Tigers are always a tough, well-coached team under Phil Koons. I expect that Sheldon Wilson won’t be able to run wild like he has all year against Tuttle. But the Warriors, at home, will be too tough,
Scott:
Jenks 30, Broken Arrow 28
Edmond Santa Fe 21, Edmond North 20
Lawton 28, Putnam City 21
Norman 34, Muskogee 28
Tulsa Central 28, Coweta 24
Carl Albert 42, Deer Creek 24
Douglass 28, Glenpool 21
Anadarko 34, Tuttle 28
Heritage Hall 38, Bethany 28
Wayne 27, Wynnewood 22
Lock of the Week: Norman over Muskogee. Norman is beyond motivated to finish this season strong after finding themselves facing potentially being left out of the playoffs. I’d look for a big day from Donovan Roberts, as well as the passing attack to give the Tigers momentum heading into the Week 10 battle with Jenks.
