Sports

Lady Blues’ Delaney Sullivent passed a ball from the back row in Friday morning’s home scrimmage against Bowie.

Two Steers lineman worked under the tutelage of coach James Williams during one-on-one linemen drills during Friday’s practice.

From left, Harley Hammond, Tristan Stephens, John Bagwell, Josh Leatherwood, Dylan Riggins, Josh Jonas, Nick Stubblefield, Paxton Whitaker, Tyler Tanner, Dillon Orr and Brett Briles posed for fans while head coach Jason Briles spoke at the “Meet the Cowboys” Booster Bash in Bryson Thursday. After the ceremony to kick off the season, the Cowboys had a midnight football practice under the lights.

Running is pretty self-explanatory. The faster you move your feet, the faster you are; the harder you work, the better you get. That’s why boys cross country coach Marcus Morris spent a portion of the first day of practice talking with his runners about something a little less black-and-white. “We try to talk about safety a lot,” Morris said. “We run in the early hours of the morning and it’s still dark a lot of the time, so safety is really important.

When field turf began taking root in high school stadiums a decade ago, you couldn’t find many complaints about the fairly new invention. It was a lot safer than astro turf and it required a lot less maintenance than grass. Now, school districts like Graham are realizing the surface can be made even better. “When the board of trustees made the decision to replace the field, they went the extra step and purchased a safety layer,” Graham ISD Superintendent Sonny Cruse said.

With their first game set for Aug. 9, the Lady Blues don’t have much time to prepare for the season. Luckily, Graham volleyball is far ahead of schedule according to coach Marci Faulk. “The staff was very impressed with the level of play,” she said. “We discussed the level that we started at yesterday and how it was higher than the prior two year that I’ve been here. We had some great rallies. The length of the rallies was impressive.

It isn’t hard to motivate players on the first day of practice. The end of the summer means the allure of Friday night football is near. For Steers head coach Kenny Davidson, keeping practices energetic throughout the week, after the excitement of the first day, is key. “We had a good first day,” Davidson said. “It was positive. We tried to challenge them to keep up the energy throughout the week. “It’s just a challenge to keep the energy up. With the new stadium and the new turf, it was awesome today.

While just over six months isn’t a large chunk of time in the big picture, it is enough time to learn, grow and make impressions. The six months I have spent in Graham as the Sports Editor have not only been a formative experience, but also a ton of fun. The athletes, events and graciousness of the community have made the experience all the better. 

Soon, I will take over as Editor at The Olney Enterprise. The opportunity is a great chance for me to gain experience putting out the whole newspaper. I have a passion for sports, and that passion will never die.