McDonald’s All-American nominees announced
The nominees for the 2012 McDonald’s All-American game were announced Wednesday.
The 24 boys and girls selected to participate in the All-American Game will be announced at 4 p.m. Feb. 9 on ESPNU. This year’s games will be held March 28 in Chicago, with the girls game tipping off at 6 p.m., followed by the boys at 8:30.
Only Texas and Iowa had more nominations on the girls side than Oklahoma’s 26.
Boys
Nino Jackson, Ardmore
Terrell Savala, Edmond Memorial
Austin Thrash, Cheyenne
James Woodard, Edmond Memorial
Girls
Kate Andrews, McGuinness
Kelsey Barnwell, Kansas
Ashley Clark, Midwest City
Taylor Cooper, Shawnee
Courtney Cowan, Kansas
Alie Decker, Edmond Memorial
Quira Demery, Millwood
I’Knique Gaines, Tulsa East Central
Mariah Gilliam, Tulsa Washington
Daisha Gonzaque, Edmond Santa Fe
LaShanda Green, McAlester
Kelsey Grovey, Shawnee
Elyse Hight, McGuinness
Sydney Hill, Edmond Memorial
Shelley Knight, Wayne
Deena Manning, Wayne
Madison Mercado, Sapulpa
LaNesha Middleton, Stillwater
Bria Pitts, Tulsa East Central
Caitlyn Ramirez, Shawnee
Toni Smith, Del City
Caitlyn Spurgeon, Vinita
Jordynn VanPelt, Snyder
Courtney Walker, Edmond Santa Fe
Antoinet Webster, Western Heights
Adriana White, Midwest City
5A-1 All-District
District 5A-1 All-District
Player of the Year: Luke Davis, Guthrie
Offensive Player of the Year: Dillan Dansby, Carl Albert
Defensive Player of the Year: Landry Chappell, Guthrie
Lineman of the Year: Blake Belcher, Guthrie
First-team
Offense
Quarterback: Raymond Little, El Reno
Running back: Nathan Blakely, Ada
Running back: Darvonte Winston, Carl Albert
Tight End: Kyle Kanady, Deer Creek
Wide receiver: Rashad Copeland, El Reno
Wide receiver: Alex Polston, Carl Albert
Offensive lineman: RayShawn Cato, Carl Albert
Offensive lineman: Cooper Davis, Guthrie
Offensive lineman: Steve Dunham, Carl Albert
Offensive lineman: Matt Eppler, Ada
Offensive lineman: Hayden Seifert, Guthrie
Kicker: Easton Ramsey, Carl Albert
Punter: Sam McCann, Ada
Defense
Defensive lineman: Nolan Boyd, Deer Creek
Defensive lineman: Zack Brown, Guthrie
Defensive lineman: Willis Lusk, Carl Albert
Defensive lineman: Micah Tiger, Ada
Linebacker: John Clark, Guthrie
Linebacker: Kevin Jones, Carl Albert
Linebacker: Jermiah Reed, Carl Albert
Linebacker: John Whitlock, Noble
Defensive back: Tyliq Brazille, Southeast
Defensive back: Taylor Hawkins, Carl Albert
Defensive back: Darion Winston, Carl Albert
Second-team
Offense
Running back: Chase Bowker, Ada
Running back: Tyre LeBlanc, Carl Albert
Tight end: Clint Simek, Guthrie
Wide receiver: Hunter Dinkines, Deer Creek
Wide receiver: Hunter Long, Noble
Offensive lineman: Tristan Clark, Western Heights
Offensive lineman: Malachai Galbrath, Guthrie
Offensive lineman: Grant Oliver, Carl Albert
Offensive lineman: Jacob Stein, El Reno
Offensive lineman: Craig Waters, Western Heights
Kicker: Esau Perez, Guthrie
Punter: Antonio Cueto, Southeast
Defense
Defensive lineman: Darren Colquitt, Carl Albert
Defensive lineman: Clint Edgeman, Deer Creek
Defensive lineman: Michael Holder, Southeast
Defensive lineman: Josh Raper, Western Heights
Linebacker: Austin Ferguson, El Reno
Linebacker: Devonte Henderson, Western Heights
Linebacker: Gumaro Murphy, Southeast
Linebacker: Ian Smith, Deer Creek
Defensive back: Trez Jackson, Carl Albert
Defensive back: Harley Dodd, Deer Creek
Defensive back: Donte Rocco, Western Heights
Ed Polly takes over Western Heights football
Western Heights football coach Kevin Ball resigned in mid-July, and defensive coordinator Ed Polly will take over as head coach.
“It’s all been kind of a blur,” Polly said.
Polly is a former Oklahoma high school football star at U.S. Grant, where he played running back and defensive back. He went on to start three years at Iowa, where he was part of the Hawkeyes’ 1990-91 Rose Bowl team.
Ball left Western Heights to be offensive coordinator in Ashdown, Ark.
“I have a long history in Oklahoma,” Polly said. “I’ve bided my time and waited for a program of my own so I can build something.”
Polly has quite the challenge ahead of him. Western Heights’ football program has recorded just one winning season (2007) in the last 20 years.
“I’m a visionary,” Polly said. “I have a long-term vision for this program, and I know we’re going to turn it around.”
Polly has been an assistant at Northeast, Midwest City and, for the last three seasons, at Western Heights.
Between his time at Midwest City and Western Heights, he was an assistant coach at Bryant College in Smithville, R.I.
Polly said the key to turning the Jets around is getting more students to participate, and part of that, he said, is showing the elementary and middle school kids that he is serious about changing the program.
“You’ve gotta get the numbers up for a 5A school,” Polly said. “You have to recruit the kids in the school.”
While losing a head coach in the middle of the summer can often mean trouble, Polly said he isn’t worried about it because he’s been around.
“(Ball) allowed me to do a lot of things within the program,” Polly said. “The kids are very familiar with me, and we’re not really changing much.
“We’ve got a vicious district we’re in, but I think this is a place I can win at.”
Suburban Conference baseball awards
As selected by the coaches:
2011 Suburban Conference
All – Conference Team
| POSITION | NAME | SCHOOL | CLASS |
| P | Colin Hightower | Chickasha | Sr |
| P | Dylan Johnson | Shawnee | Sr |
| P | Chris Nye | Chickasha | Sr |
| P | Jordan Hammer | Carl Albert | Sr |
| P | Mark Meadors | Carl Albert | Sr |
| P | Cameron Warren | Carl Albert | Fr |
| C | Landry Chappell | Guthrie | Jr |
| C | Cole Davis | Piedmont | Jr |
| C | Devin Shepperd | Chickasha | Sr |
| 1B | Ross Stracke | Deer Creek | Sr |
| 1B | Anthony Frazier | Carl Albert | Sr |
| 1B | Tanner Heatley | Shawnee | Sr |
| IF | Isaac Hellbusch | Deer Creek | Jr |
| IF | Bryan Dutton | Guthrie | So |
| IF | Cameron Hill | El Reno | Jr |
| IF | Alex Polston | Carl Albert | Jr |
| IF | A.J. Wilson | Carl Albert | Sr |
| OF | Jon Wilson | Deer Creek | Sr |
| OF | Bryan Rhodes | Piedmont | Sr |
| OF | Cooper Ansell | Shawnee | Sr |
| OF | Korbin Polston | Carl Albert | Jr |
| OF | Luke Davis | Guthrie | Jr |
| UTILITY | Taylor Hawkins | Carl Albert | Jr |
| UTILITY | John Mitchell | Chickasha | Jr |
| UTILITY | Bo Fields | Western Heights | Sr |
| DH | Hayden Seifert | Guthrie | Jr |
| DH | Austin Ferguson | El Reno | Jr |
| DH | Hunter Holley | Shawnee | Sr |
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Sr. Brian Anderson- Deer Creek
PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Sr. Michael Fulmer- Deer Creek
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR
Fr. Gavin Lavalley- Carl Albert
COACH OF THE YEAR
Ron Moore- Deer Creek
OCU wrestling signs Eric Waggoner, Kenneth Hartfield
Carl Albert's Eric Waggoner, surrounded by family and friends, signs with OCU for wrestling.
Always fun to get out to signing day ceremonies. Wasn’t able to make it out to Western Heights to see Kenneth Hartfield sign with Oklahoma City University but was able to attend Eric Waggoner’s at Carl Albert.
Yep, conference foes and state champions are both heading to the Stars. Both were also named first team All-City wrestlers in Wednesday’s paper (or you can catch it all on NewsOK).
I’ve chronicled Waggoner’s story about overcoming his svt heart condition to qualify for state last year and win it this year. His cousin, Kyle Garcia of Choctaw, was also in attendance. Garcia was named the All-City Wrestler of the Year.
***
Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com
Top 7 girls postponed games
As Scott Wright and myself have said, it’s going to be a crazy time in basketball in the next couple of weeks. Athletic directors will be working feverishly to try to get everything in.
And yes, I hope they do. Here’s my top 7 girls games in the OKC area that need to be made up:
1. Midwest City at Edmond Memorial – Assume this is No. 1 for both the boys and girls. Bombers are still undefeated, while Memorial has shown the ability to play with the big dogs but not yet beat MWC or Edmond Santa Fe.
2. Del City at Norman – Tigers have been lurking. Some early season losses may have had people forgetting about them. Del City was one of those teams to get Matilda Mossman’s girls early. Big statement game for either team.
3. Choctaw at Putnam North – As I’ve written about a lot the last couple of weeks, the Yellowjackets are coming on strong. But so, too, are the Panthers. Both teams are playing their best ball. Hope that delay doesn’t hurt them.
4. Millwood at Star Spencer – One more go-around for the OKCPS rivals. Millwood looks like the early favorite in 2A for the crown, while Sharane Campbell you know wants to lead one last run for the Bobcats.
5. Bethel at Dale – Ye old stompin’ grounds. Back in Shawnee, this was one of the big ones. And you know what? In the state, it’s still one of the big ones. Wildcats have rightfully earned top spot in Class 3A.
6. Shawnee at Carl Albert – Gioya Carter vs. Kelsee Grovey would be a nice matchup/shootout. But really, Tim Price’s club needs this win after losing three of its last four games.
7. Western Heights at Piedmont - Oh, another big Suburban Conference showdown. Dilan Webster is extremely talented, but I think she’s too unselfish for the Jets. Kylie Boggess has been big for the Wildcats.
Will they all get made up? I don’t know. I hope so, but we’ll have to wait and see. If you know of any confirmed makeup dates, please send ‘em this way.
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Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com
Jacob Strassle, Zac Grismer do little things for Mustang
Bruce Gray Invitational
Boys
McGuinness JV 55, Star Spencer 54 – seventh place
OCS 74, Western Heights 72 – fifth place
Deer Creek 53, Enid 31 – third place
Mustang 72, Putnam North 64 – championship
Ahh, so that’s why Mustang is good. I said Sunday that neither myself nor Scott Wright had seen why the Mustang boys were getting so much respect.
Monday night I found out why. They do the little things. Especially Jacob Strassle and Zac Grismer – they do the dirty work necessary to earn the tough victories.
Any 50/50 ball last night went to the Broncos, no doubt about it. Putnam North made a nice run to make it interesting in the fourth quarter, but Mustang deserved this win.
I still don’t think Mustang has the greatest perimeter shooting team out there. But it doesn’t have to be if you execute in the other parts of the game, which is exactly what Alan Green’s boys do.
Another good game from PCN’s Armon Provo and Joe Summers. And with the Panthers going east, I could definitely see this team making the state tournament.
Mustang also made its free throws to get rid of any drama. David Glidden was 7 of 8 alone in the fourth quarter. Well played game.
Deer Creek 53, Enid 31
Nice statement by the Antlers here. A well-balanced effort sparked by the post players to earn this victory.
Josh Fields and Anthony Clark are both just juniors and the last two games they both looked good. This team has to be more than Garrett Hermanski, and it is so intrigued to see what happens against Piedmont and Carl Albert later this week.
After Alex Patterson went down, seemed like Enid was a little deflated.
OCS 74, Western Heights 72
Ah, the most fun game of the day. It was all Jack Warren of OCS and Alton Whittaker of Western Heights.
Then in the second half, it was all T.J. Holland of OCS and Western Heights’ Kenneth Mayfield. Warren and Holland – 51 points. Mayfield and Whittaker – 54 points.
Mayfield went nuts in the fourth quarter. He scored 23 points and shot the lights out. He made a three and Deer Creek’s Grant Gower was trying to announce it when the lights went out.
Almost a huge comeback by Western Heights who were down 65-51 midway through the fourth.
Warren had 27 with 19 in the first half. Holland had 24 with 18 in the second half.
OCS didn’t play McGuinness JV as I thought because no matter what, the Irish were going to play in losers’ games. They understood that and were fine with it. Even if McGuinness JV had beaten Mustang on Friday, Mustang would have advanced. For what it’s worth, the JV team went 2-1 and beat Star Spencer on Monday.
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Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com
Joh’Vonna Mitchell’s buzzer beater at Bruce Gray Invitational
Bruce Gray Invitational
Girls
OCS 52, PC West 45 – seventh place
Deer Creek 53, Western Heights 50 – fifth place
Enid 40, Star Spencer 30 – third place
Putnam North 44, McGuinness 42 – championship
There it is. Putnam North making me look stupid.
Going into the championship, I thought the Irish were going to handle the Panthers. But by the end of the first quarter, knew differently.
Was a little worried for Putnam North after Joh’Vonna Mitchell picked up two fouls in the first four minutes, but Kelsey Abraham kept the team rolling in the first half and rightfully earned the MVP honors of the tournament.
Likewise, that was the best game I’ve seen from McGuinness’ Caroline Cameron, who scored 13 of her 18 points in the first half to keep the Irish within striking distance.
Rae Rae Brannon came up huge in the second half for PCN, scoring all 12 of her points after halftime.
Tremendous atmosphere in a game that pitted two non-hosting teams in a tournament final. Great battle down the stretch. And while last year Putnam North didn’t make that final basket, this year, yep, Mitchell did it.
Enid 40, Star Spencer 30
Seriously, Enid fans are lucky to get to watch Courtney Chelf every single game. She is something special. She had 13 of the team’s 15 points at halftime.
In the second half, more Pacers got involved and Enid really took control. Kept waiting for that Star Spencer run, just wasn’t in the cards this time around.
Enid’s a solid team, but solid won’t get the job done in 6A girls competition. Gonna be a dog fight in the next month for those state berths.
Deer Creek 53, Western Heights 50
The Antlers are coming around. You look at that lineup and see a bunch of freshmen and sophomores, but it’s coming together.
Sophomore Alexa Adair looks so much more confident than she did back in December. This team is learning to win the close games, and I think they’re right back in the hunt for a state berth.
Bayli Blanchard is doing a good job in the post, and it was a good battle between Blanchard and Western Heights’ star Dilan Webster.
The Jets made a big comeback in the fourth and took a 50-49 lead, but Adair hit four free throws in the final minute to earn the win.
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Robert Przybylo, bprzybylo@opubco.com
Bruce Gray Invitational: Joe Summers, Armon Provo too much for Antlers…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Bruce Gray Invitational
Monday (I’ll be there)
At Deer Creek
Seventh place: McGuinness JV vs. Star Spencer, 11:30 a.m.
Fifth place: Western Heights vs. OCS, 2:30
Third place: Deer Creek vs. Enid, 5:30
Championship: Mustang vs. Putnam North, 8:30
I felt Deer Creek would have to play a near perfect game to beat Putnam North. The Antlers didn’t, and the Panthers cruised in the fourth quarter to a 69-53 victory.
I have never seen Garrett Hermanski bottled up like that. PCN’s Armon Provo, an explosive scorer in his own right, put the clamps on one of the best juniors in the state. Provo frustrated Hermanski, was extremely physical with him and never let Hermanski get into that groove.
Hermanski had five points at halftime and nine points total. Great job by Provo.
If it was Provo on defense, then it was the Joe Summers show on offense. He hit three 3s in the first half that really set the tone for his game. Antlers had to come out and guard him, and he’s too strong off the dribble.
It was interesting because Deer Creek’s Jalen Burnett is a really talented player. However, the size of Summers was something he simply could not deal with it. Burnett still managed to have a really good game, but it was a clear difference of 5A and 6A in terms of the size there.
In contrast, the Panthers learned why the Deer Creek community goes ga-ga over sophomore Joel Blumenthal. He was trying to put the team on his back in the third quarter. He scored 11 points, including connecting on three 3s to pull the game within 41-38. However, all runs must come to an end, and Deer Creek couldn’t muster a response after JR Simon hit a three-point play and Provo drained a 3 at the end of the third to make it 50-42.
Mustang 46, Enid 38
Interesting Mustang team. First time I’ve gotten to see them. Do a lot of the gritty things, not afraid to go in there and mix it up. Not sure if the Broncos have the perimeter shooting for a long run.
Impressed with Ben Berry and David Glidden. Speaking of Glidden, he took a nasty shot to his shoulder in the third quarter but missed minimal time. After getting checked out, he was right back out there.
I see why Mustang is so highly regarded by opposing coaches, but neither myself nor Scott Wright has seen Mustang on its best day. Perhaps that will be Monday?
Looking ahead to Monday…
Rematch of last year’s final when Provo absolutely went off for 33 points and a PCN title. I don’t see this one being a blowout at all, but I stated earlier I thought Rick Harris’ boys would win it so I’ll stand by that.
Deer Creek coach Matt Bailey faces his former squad, Enid, in the third-place game. It’s not as simple as Hermanski vs. Alex Patterson and whoever has the better game, his team wins, but it’s close. They trigger so much on their respective teams when they’re playing well.
And OCS, who I almost left for dead after Thursday, has a chance to claim fifth place against a surprising McGuinness JV team. After losses to Heritage Hall and Deer Creek, big response by the Saints against Star Spencer.
Bruce Gray Invitational: Irish girls survive vs. Star Spencer…
By Robert Przybylo
BPrzybylo@opubco.com
Bruce Gray Invitational
Monday (I’ll be there)
At Deer Creek
Girls
Seventh place: OCS vs. Putnam West, 10 a.m.
Fifth place: Deer Creek vs. Western Heights, 1 p.m.
Third place: Enid vs. Star Spencer, 4 p.m.
Championship: McGuinness vs. Putnam North, 7 p.m.
Somebody asked me Thursday to predict the winners in the Bruce Gray Invitational, and I said the McGuinness girls and the Putnam North boys. I was three minutes away from being wrong Saturday.
The Irish girls trailed Star Spencer 35-29 before going on a 13-2 run to win 42-37 and advance to Monday’s championship game.
I’ve never seen McGuinness look so lost as it did yesterday. Coach Jennifer Burch gave Star Spencer a lot of the credit as the 1-2-2 zone befuddled the normally efficient Irish.
Burch said when the offense is down, the defense can’t let up. It didn’t. Eventually it was the defense that spurred the run. The press was able to create turnovers and Elyse Hight came up big down the stretch as she has for basically the whole season.
Another great game by Sharane Campbell of Star Spencer. She’s a fighter, no doubt. Felt like Star had set up McGuinness for that knockout blow but simply never delivered it.
Putnam North 45, Enid 37
Another two years with Courtney Chelf, Enid fans are lucky. She’s a good one and her three-pointer at the end of the third made it 30-29 Enid going into the fourth.
However, this was a good statement made by the Panthers. I always look to Joh’Vonna Mitchell and Alexis Watson, but Kelsey Abraham was the star in this one. And give a lot of credit to Blaire Hall’s eight points off the bench.
Watson took a nasty fall midway through the third with PCN leading 27-23. She missed the rest of the third and start of the fourth before coming back in. She seemed OK, hope she is for Monday night.
Looking ahead to Monday…
I think Rae Rae Brannon is going to have to come up big for the Panthers. She’s tiny, but she has more quickness than what the Irish are used to dealing with. Mitchell cannot get in foul trouble against Hight and Alexa Lienhard (and vice versa on that one).
Third-place game should be a good battle between Chelf and Campbell. I like Enid in a close one. Fifth-place game is intriguing in the grand scheme of things as Western Heights and Deer Creek might be still standing when it comes to the 5A state tournament. I like Dilan Webster to help the Jets prevail in that one.
