Sports

Colorado County will have a few of its baseball seniors recognized in an all-star game format as a pair of players earned spots on to the Texas High School Baseball Coaches Association’s annual 2A-4A All-Star Game. Ironically, both players took the only shortstop positions available for the south all-star team as Brady Henke for Weimar and Ryan Lewis for Columbus each claimed their all-star spots after having stellar seasons for their respective teams. The two players each had impactful seasons from the plate and on the field playing shortstop as they helped lead their teams to postseason wins this season. While both the Cardinals and the Wildcats have completed play for the season, Lewis and Henke will return to action on June 18 when they travel to Round Rock to compete with the north allstars at noon. Dell Diamond Stadium will be the host as the seniors represent their high school teams for one final time in their career.

AUSTIN – The varsity golf team for Weimar had a strong performance at the boys’ state championship meet as the Wildcats came away with a top-10 effort as a team. Weimar reached State after an impressive outing at the regional level. The Wildcats, led by individual regional champ Hudson Ervin, played their way into first place and claimed the regional championship to earn their spot at the state-level meet. Another quality performance at State helped the Wildcats finish in ninth place as a team with several top individual scores as amongst the team well.

The Ladycat varsity softball team punched their ticket to the state semifinals after holding on for a hotly contested victory against fellow softball juggernauts and district rivals, the Shiner Lady Comanches. In a 3-game series that was as hotly contested and competitive as their regular season offerings, it was the Ladycats who took the advantage after finding just enough scoring to outplay their longtime rivals. The storylines were plentiful heading into this Regional Finals series. Both teams spent a majority of the season in the TGCA’s top 25 poll as Weimar entered the series as the third-best team and Shiner entered as the fourth-best team in the rankings. The two teams also split their matchups during the regular season as they finished first and second in the district standings.

Helyn Lorena Hobbs Farris, 89, of Eagle Lake passed away peacefully and quickly on May 18, 2023, at the Rice Medical Center. She was born in Leverett’s Chapel, a community in the middle of the Kilgore oilfield, on Aug. 31, 1933, to Horace Hillborn and Evia Jewel Norris Hobbs. Her childhood was spent across the Texas Gulf Coast in many communities before graduating from Columbus High School in 1950.

Karl Edward Hill, devoted husband and father, departed this world and went to be with our Lord on May 22, 2023, at the age of 58, while at his home in Columbus, Texas.

AUSTIN – The Columbus Cardinals’ golf team had a strong total performance at the UIL State Championship Meet that had its first day on Monday, May 22. They placed in the top 10 as a team on each day as they finished in ninth place overall from both days in the meet. The Cards were led by their top individual performer, regional champion Kaldon Roensch, after he secured a top-25 spot in the tournament. Cullen Loessin was not far behind, and the rest of the Cards finished around the middle of the pack as they took one of their highest finishes in their history at the state meet.

CARDS TRACK SENIORS SIGN TO NEXT LEVEL

The Cardinal’s varsity baseball team just completed a historical year for Columbus after reaching the Regional Semifinals just a few games away from reaching the state tournament. While their matchup against Saint Gertrudis did not go in their favor after Columbus pushed the series to a clinching third game, the Cards can come away from the season knowing a few positive takeaways from the season at large. For one, the Cards reached the regional semifinal round for the first time in 17 years. Secondly, after finishing the season with 27 wins, the Cards had their winningest season in program history. With several key departures from seniors after this season, the Cards will be hoping to find ways to continue the momentum next season.

This year’s Raider football schedule has been decided as the school released their 2023 opponents and posted the schedule on their athletics website. The Raiders see many of their same opponents from last year as they attempt to take another step forward with their win total and continue their progress to try to make it back into the postseason. After finishing last year at 3-7, the Raiders hope the added year of experience for many of their impact players will yield high-quality results this upcoming season.

The Columbus football team had several of their graduating seniors sign on to the next level over the past week as many of the team’s top players move on to the next stage of their athletic careers. Last week was another strong week for the Cards as many of their impact seniors confirmed the schools that will be their next home for sports. Each of these players had a major impact on the team and contributed much to the team finishing the season with a 12-2 record, second place in the district standings and a trip to state quarterfinals in the playoffs during a run that was cut two wins short of reaching the Championship Game by the eventual state champions.

AUSTIN – The Rice Raiders represented in the UIL State Championship Meet for the second season in a row after sending a lone Raider last season for a sprinting event. This season, Rice found their state-level performance on the field as Robert Myers took on the shotput throw event after a strong season that saw him make several impressive performances. Myers secured ninth place at the state meet in a field of upperclassmen as he was the only thrower at the state meet for shotput that was not at least a junior.

MORE FROM COLUMBUS BASEBALL

The Weimar Ladycats softball team stayed firmly at their spot in third on the TGCA state rankings after shutting out a fellow top ten 2A team in the state. The #10 Milano Lady Eagles battled the Ladycats to a competitive first game to start the series before Weimar took full control in game two to finish the sweep victory with two straight shutout wins. Victory in the regional semifinals set up a rematch series between district rivals the #4 Shiner Lady Comanches in the regional finals. The two teams split their matchups during the district season with Shiner taking game one by a 13-4 margin and Weimar taking the second by a score of 11-4. This tiebreaking matchup will have significantly more stakes as the winner will be representing the district in the State Championship Game.

SMITH FINISHES IN STATE’S TOP 10

WILDCAT GOLFERS BATTLE FOR STATE

ALTAIR – The Wildcats did not have to go far from home to take on their district rivals from the regular season in the regional quarterfinals. After a sweep of Skidmore-Tynan for the Area Championship, the Wildcats moved on to face off against the Shiner Comanches in a rematch to avenge two regular season losses at the hands of Shiner. The Wildcats scored three runs in each of their prior games, losing by a combined 17-6 during the district season between two matchups. The postseason matchup proved to be similar to the regular season as the Comanches once again displayed their advantage over the Wildcats as Shiner never trailed in a sweep victory over Weimar. The Wildcats finish their season in the third round after claiming Bi-District and Area Championships in the prior rounds.

WHITEHEAD FINISHES TOP 10 AT STATE MEET

Just one week after the girls competed at the Jimmy Clay golf course for the state championship meet, the boys took their own turn on the course as they vied for their own state placement. The Cards sent their whole boys’ golf team to State after the team one the regional championship led by individual regional champion Kaldon Roensch. Roensch, along with Adam Schobel, Camdon Pitchford, Cullin Loessin and Trace Braden all put up quality performances at Regionals to earn their spot at the next level.

AUSTIN – Columbus’ lady golf team continued one of the best multiyear stretches in its history with a fourth-straight State Championship Meet appearance. This year marked their best finish in that stretch as they cracked into the top 10 in the standings with quality performances throughout the roster. After a score of 429 on the first day, the Lady Cards responded with a strong second day after finishing with 394 shots. Their two-day total of 823 claimed the ninth-place spot in the standings, just a single stroke away from tying the eighth-place finisher.

HALLETTSVILLE – The Columbus Cardinal s’ baseball team understood the challenges of facing a district opponent in the playoffs and the hurdles they would have to clear to claim an advantage over a team they had played twice already. During the district season against the Industrial Cobras, the teams split their competitions as Industrial claimed the first matchup by a 7-4 margin and Columbus won the second by a score of 11-4. The offense was not nearly as potent in the postseason rematch against these teams as the familiarity led to some highly defensive and tight games. However, when the offense could not get going, the Cards relied on the quality pitching and defense they have benefitted from all season to help them claim a twogame shutout sweep over their district rivals. The Cardinals will continue their postseason run into the regional semifinals with a series against Saint Gertrudis Academy for a chance to move on to the regional finals.

1st Team All-District