Sports

After a weekend tournament in Lubbock, the Lady Blues returned home for their first game of the season against the Alvord Lady Bulldogs. The Lady Blues made sure to make an early statement against the Lady Bulldogs and came away with a 9-1 victory. 

Head coach Adam Arrington said coming out of the tournament in Lubbock that he was looking for improvements in making routine plays defensively while seeing more confidence up at the plate—and the team accomplished exactly that against Alvord. 

The Steers traveled on the road to Stephenville to complete their district schedule and regular season against the Yellowjackets and despite a loss, they have a lot to look forward to in postseason play. 

Head coach Quinton Fossett, who is in his first year of coaching, laid out what is at stake for the Steers and the kind of statement that this team could make in the first round of the playoffs. 

“It’s pretty easy,” Fossett said. “We haven’t won a playoff game in seven years. We like the matchup we have. We just have to take it possession by possession.”

It’s a turning point in the Graham community as spring sports kick off.

The Graham Leader is recognizing Tiffany Cotter of the Lady Blues and Caleb Chandler of the Steers as this week’s Athletes of the Week. 

Tiffany Cotter, Lady Blues Softball

The Lady Blues have officially kicked off softball season and after a weekend tournament, traveled back home to Graham for their home opener against the Alvord Lady Bulldogs. 

The Graham Steers came up short despite a fight against the Glen Rose Tigers at home.

The Steers were close to victory, but fell by seven points with a final score of 47-40. 

Head coach Quinton Fossett said that despite the loss, he appreciates the team’s poise no matter what the situation. 

“It’s any night, it doesn’t matter who you play,” Fossett said. “We expect to battle night in and night out. That’s what these guys keep believing in and that’s what makes it fun.” 

The Lady Blues officially kicked off their regular season on a long road trip out west to Lubbock for tournament play. 

It was a constructive weekend for the Lady Blues as they got their first chance to analyze their strengths and weaknesses in official competition. 

Head coach Adam Arrington said as much when reflecting on the tournament which took place Thursday, Feb. 12 to Saturday, Feb. 14. 

Steers senior athletes were honored by the community and put up a fight Friday against the Rams. 

The senior night celebration honored the hard work and dedication of senior athletes in the soccer program. 

The celebration and game took place Friday, Feb. 13 at home at Newton field and the hometown crowd came out in full support. 

The community came out to show their support for Lady Blues seniors whose hard work brought another victory over the Lady Rams. 

Head coach Casey Weil gave the seniors on his team a message after the game as they embark on the next chapters of their lives. 

“I’m extremely proud of what they have done,” Weil said. “Put what you’ve learned in Lady Blues soccer into your life. We’ve worked hard and we’ve gained trust in one another. In life if you do that with hard work and trusting people it can go a long way in your life.”

The Lady Blues traveled to Decatur for arguably the biggest game of their season up to this point. 

Both the Lady Blues and Lady Eagles entered the game with a 2-0 record in district and one team would come out remaining undefeated and firmly cementing themselves in first place. That team ended up being the Lady Blues in a hard fought 5-4 win. 

Coming into the game, the team was also shorthanded. Mylee Lattimore was out of action with an ankle sprain and Tara Dawson was away attending senior night for the Lady Blues basketball team. 

The Graham Steers entered their home matchup against Mineral Wells with a lot on the line. 

Not only was it a chance to honor the seniors at home on senior night, it was also a chance to clinch a postseason spot for Graham. The team accomplished both of those goals with a 58-37 win over the Rams. 

Head coach Quinton Fossett spoke about what it was like to pick up a win like this on such a big night, both for the playoffs as well as paying homage to seniors Jaden Neal and Nick Wankowicz.

The Lady Blues entered into a home game matchup against the Mineral Wells Lady Rams with emotions flowing. 

This would be the final game of the regular season for the Lady Blues as well as a bitter sweet farewell to its seniors. This game marked the team’s annual senior night. 

The seniors who were honored for their hard work and dedication to Graham athletics on Tuesday, Feb. 10 were Tara Dawson and Briley Randall.