Sports

The Lady Cards varsity soccer team had a pair of strong performances last week as they snatched back-to-back district wins and extended their win streak to three games. Columbus had an explosive week offensively, finding the back of the net four times in each of their two competitions. Striker Karina Rubio had the most effective week of the bunch, scoring six of the team’s eight goals of the week. To pair with their strong offense, they also played with impressive defense as they held both of their opponents scoreless for their third clean sheet in a row.

LADY CARDS HOST INVITATIONAL

The Cardinals’ varsity soccer team had maybe their best week of season over their last two competitions, first against Wharton and then later in the week against Hallettsville. The Cards’ offense turned up to another level as they created 13 goals during the week, by far the highest two-game total of the season. The main beneficiary of the offensive explosion the Cards had last week was junior Javier Mendoza. Mendoza scored six goals with hat tricks in both matches to lead a Columbus team that created chance after chance in front of goal.

EAGLE LAKE – The Rice powerl ifting program hosted their penultimate meet in the Swamp Strength series for 2023 on Saturday, Feb. 18. Each varsity program in Colorado County attended as the teams get ready for the regionals competition that is slated for the first week of March. Each school got some strong returns from this meet, and they will be hoping that their performances at this meet as well as the final Swamp Strength competition on Thursday, Feb. 23 will translate into more strong outings at the regional meet.

LADY RAIDERS PICK UP FIRST DISTRICT WIN

Calle Collier has been starting in her first season playing for the Southwestern University softball team.

RAIDERS TAKE TWO BIG LOSSES, FOLLOW WITH DISTRICT DUB

SHINER – The Weimar Wildcats season is officially over after completing a Valentine’s Day regular season finale against the rival Shiner Comanches. With no postseason on the horizon, the Wildcats came into their game against Shiner with some energy as they attempted to leave everything on the court. After a tight first half, the Wildcats lost a bit of ground on the scoreboard before entering the final frame. However, Weimar turned on the intensity in the final period of the game as they began a furious comeback to erase the deficit and threaten the Shiner lead. However, despite Weimar’s efforts in that huge fourth quarter, they did not get a decisive, go-ahead bucket to steal the victory as they went on to lose to their rivals in a 52-51 heartbreaker.

NAVASOTA – The Weimar Ladycats’ varsity basketbal l team qual ified for the playoffs after finishing as one of the top teams in the district. Throughout the season, they depended on their ability to defend the ball and slow down opposing offenses. However, after some low moments and slip ups in the regular season, Weimar set themselves up for a relatively difficult matchup in the first round of the playoffs against the Hearne Lady Eagles, the team that removed Weimar from the postseason last year in the third round. The Ladycats usually potent defense could not find enough effectiveness in stopping Hearne’s attack, and Weimar departed the playoffs in the first round after suffering a 55-37 defeat Monday, Feb.13.

WILDCATS BASEBALL HOST ALUMNI GAME FOR FINAL WARM UP

The high school sports programs of Colorado County have created some outstanding players throughout their history who have gone on to do impressive things beyond their days at the school. While many have gone to play college ball, an elite few have risen the ranks and taken their place amongst fellow professional athletes at the top of their craft. One of those professionals from the county is someone who had always been used to the spirit of competitiveness and hard work it takes to reach that level ever since they first started their sports journey. Rice Consolidated High School alum Kevin Dogins let his work do the speaking throughout his athletic career that culminated into a multi-year career in the NFL as one of the few players from the area to reach that peak.

The Columbus Cardinals’ varsity basketball team hung near the top of the district standings for basically the entire district season. They started with a huge win streak that had them holding the first-place spot in the standings. A victory earlier in the season against legitimate challenger, Edna, put the Cards in a position to potentially close out the season in first place. However, Columbus would go on to lose two games in a row to lose their hold on the district lead. Last week, the Cards held pace in the standings with a big win against Palacios that set up a rematch against Edna that would decide the district title. Edna’s offense exploded in the title game and clinched the district championship on their own home court.

The Lady Cards’ varsity basketball team have known for a while that a few things were coming to them by the end of the season. The first, was a district title. They clinched first place in the district much sooner than their final game of the regular season last week, but they officially clinched an undefeated district season following their win against Palacios on Tuesday, Feb. 7. The Lady Cards got the rest of the week and the weekend to prepare themselves for the second thing they knew had been coming: the playoffs. The Lady Cards travelled to Smithville to take on Nixon-Smiley in a game that was never very competitive as they ran out to a huge victory to claim their spot in the second round and surpass last year’s postseason run.

SAN ANTONIO – After a strong season with top performances all year, the Columbus swim team put the cherry on top of their season with more good results at the UIL State swim meet. Their record-setting performances in the prelims as well as their qualification to the Finals cemented this season as one of the best seasons in Columbus swim history.

The Rice Raiders’ varsity basketball team took a step forward this year and improved their record from a season ago. Not only did the program take a step forward, but the team itself also made strides in terms of individual improvement and team performance. The Raiders picked up a few signature wins and quality performances throughout this season as they fielded a much more competitive squad than in recent seasons. With just a limited number of seniors on the squad, Rice will remain optimistic that many of their improvements will continue into next season. While there was progress throughout the season, the final two games of the year represent the growing pains of a team still accruing experience. After taking a huge loss to Industrial earlier in the week, the Raiders put up a good fight against Yoakum before falling behind late in the regular season finale.

The Rice Raiders’ varsity soccer team had a strong start to their week with a big 4-2 win against Wharton on Monday, Feb. 6. They got two goals from Jual Valles Serrano, and one goal each from Miguel Vital and Luis Tellez for the scoring strikes. Jesus Belman played the passer as he assisted on two of Rice’s goals. Gus Peacock limited the damage with eight saves to keep Wharton at just two goals. The Raiders went on to face Palacios on Friday, Feb. 10 where they were held scoreless and fell in a 1-0 defeat.

The Rice Lady Raiders’ basketball team has been grinding away all season making small improvements as the players grew in confidence and ability as the season went along. Unfortunately for Rice, their improvements did not translate into wins during the district season as they lost each of their first thirteen games in the district schedule. In a district with many solid teams and good offenses, the Lady Raiders often struggled to keep up the energy on both sides of the ball to be able to compete and keep games close. However, everything came together for Rice in the final game of the season. The Lady Raiders travelled to Industrial and claimed their first district win of the season and their third overall in a tight, 45-44 victory over the Lady Cobras.

RICE TAKES TWO CLEAN SHEET DEFEATS

WEIMAR – The Wildcats’ varsity basketball team did everything they could to give their much-improved season another victory as they faced off against the Bloomington Bobcats on Friday, Feb. 10. After an intense first half and a big run for the Wildcats in the second half, it seemed they were getting closer to accomplishing that goal. However, the Bobcats responded with a run of their own in the fourth quarter as they eventually sent the Wildcats to the 41-36 defeat.

EAGLE LAKE – The third and final installment of the Rice-hosted Swamp Strength series ended with a bang after a full two-day event last week that featured many nearby schools including all three Colorado County powerlifting teams. Each team finished with some strong performances as there were several who took top placements throughout the meet.

COLUMBUS GOLF TEAMS TAKE TOP-3 PLACEMENT IN WALLER