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Newcastle thumps Woodson on wet homecoming

Julian Menchaca notched his first win as a Newcastle head coach Friday night on a wet and rainy homecoming. Behind JD Brice’s six touchdown-performance, the Bobcats drilled Woodson 45-0. The game was called with 9:05 remaining in the game due to the 45-point mercy rule.

“I’m prideful to be able to earn my first win tonight on homecoming,” Menchaca said. “The tradition here in Newcastle is tremendous and to be able to do it in a shutout is extra special.”

Junior high football falls at home

The Graham eighth-grade football teams fell in their first home games of the season last Tuesday to Decatur. The eighth-grade B team fell 30-0 while the A squad came up on the wrong end of a 28-0 score. Even though both teams fell, the young athletes were introduced to the game of football and learned plenty of valuable lessons that will carry them forward.

In the first quarter of the B game, Chandler Milligan provided a strong kickoff return to the Graham 32-yard line, but the drive ended in a punt by Ethan Stewart.

Steers take down Decatur for first win of 2018

Steers head coach Kenny Davidson admitted his team needed to win the second half to come out with a win. For the first time this season, his team did exactly that. 

Graham could very well be 2-1 heading into Thursday’s matchup at Decatur if not for poor third and fourth quarter showings. The Steers looked like a complete team for four quarters of football, leading to a 59-35 road victory, spoiling Decatur’s homecoming festivities.

Lady Blues prep for district after sweep of City View

The Graham Lady Blues bounced back from their loss on the road last week with a dominating performance over Wichita Falls City View. The varsity Lady Blues ousted the Lady Mustangs in a clean 3-0 sweep (25-10, 25-19, 25-17) to regain their winning ways.

After losing at ranked Stephenville Friday for the first time since the first of the month, Graham made quick work of City View with district beginning next week. The Lady Blues had 10 different players register a kill in the outing.

Varsity takes first at Dublin meet

Graham cross country excelled once again at a meet this week. Each of the varsity teams along with the Lady Blues’ junior varsity won first place Wednesday at the Dublin Dash. The varsity girls won their third consecutive meet to begin the season. 

Sam Perkins was the top finisher by crossing the finish line ahead of any other runner in the varsity boys division. The captain finished with a time of 17:12.43 for first place. 

Steers drop to 0-3; Decatur up next

Graham is still looking for their first win of 2018 after the Steers fell to Brownwood 47-26 at Newton Field on Friday.

The 0-3 start to the season marked the first time since 2006 the Steers have started the year with three straight losses.

Although the team is still searching for their first win, there are positives to take away. Graham has put together three decent halves of football in each of the three games. However, in all three games, the Steers have been on the wrong side of the scoreboard in the second half.

Steers defense struggles in loss to Lions

 

Seeking their first won of 2018, the Steers simply had no answer for Brownwood dual-threat quarterback Tommy Bowden. The Lions used the arm of Bowden to take a 47-26 win on the road, the victory was the first of the season for head coach Sammy Burnett.  The Graham offense and quarterback Hunter Lanham were able to move the ball down the field at will, but led for just two minutes, sixteen seconds in the game.

Lady Blues power past Clyde in four sets

If Graham is ever in an offensive lull, it possesses the front-row firepower to get itself back on track at any moment.

The Lady Blues slumped at times in Tuesday’s non-district match on the road at Clyde, but they were able to keep control at the net for the majority of the contest to defeat the Lady Bulldogs 3-1 (25-16, 14-25, 25-12, 25-10). Despite the four-set battle, each team won their respective set by at least nine points.

Seven different Graham players recorded kills in the match, including junior Chloe Menard’s double-double with 14 kills and 14 assists.

Lady Blues take Lipan cross country meet

2018 may prove to be a special season for Graham High School cross country. The Lady Blues varsity team won their second straight meet to begin the new season.

Head coach Ky Graham’s varsity girls finished the race with five runners in the Top-15 to help the team take home another meet championship.

Kendra Williams’ time of 14:26.7 was good for fifth-place while Khloe Morris, Evie Griffin and Maria Hernandez finished inside the Top-10. Kaylee Little of Lipan finished as the top runner with a time of 13.42.7.

Ladycats earn big district road win

The Newcastle Ladycats volleyball team continues to have a stellar season under first-year head coach Paige Hauger.

The squad earned perhaps its best win of 2018 at the right moment with District 6-2A/1A play underway.

Newcastle went on the road Tuesday at Class 2A Albany and came away with a key win to even their league record.

“The team preserved in the second and third games despite Albany closing the lead,” said Hauger. “The girls continue to work hard not only at improving their skill level, but also their mental toughness has shown here lately.”