The Abilene ISD athletics season wrapped up last weekend as Abilene High’s baseball and softball teams were knocked out of the Class 5A state playoffs.
Here’s a roundup of what happened in AISD Athletics last week:
BASEBALL
The Abilene Eagles’ season ended after a hard-fought best-of-three series loss against Wylie in the Region I-5A quarterfinals. Abilene High lost the first game of the series: a rain-delayed 6-1 decision that started last Thursday and finished Friday afternoon at McMurry University’s Walt Driggers Field. The Eagles bounced back to win the second game, 7-5, forcing a decisive third game Saturday afternoon.
Wylie threw a combined no-hitter in a 14-4 win over the Eagles, sending the fourth-ranked Bulldogs (30-6) to the regional semifinals where they will play No. 2-ranked Argyle in a best-of-three series later this week in Cleburne.
The Eagles are now 41-34-1 with two playoff appearances in head coach Brad Harman’s two seasons leading the program. AHS has reached the regional quarterfinals in each of the last two seasons.
The other District 4-5A team still alive in the state baseball playoffs is district champion Lubbock Cooper, which swept Lubbock Monterey, 2-0, last weekend. The Pirates (26-13-1) will play No. 1-ranked Grapevine (34-4) this weekend in a best-of-three series in Graham.
SOFTBALL
Abilene High reached the fourth round of the Class 5A state playoffs this season for the first time in more than two decades but found a tough Burleson Centennial waiting for them in the Region I-5A semifinals.
Centennial won the first game of the series Friday, 13-2, and then took a 7-1 win in Saturday’s series-ending game. The Lady Spartans (32-7 and ranked No. 10 in the state) will play seventh-ranked Aledo in the Region I-5A championship series with the winner advancing to the Class 5A state tournament, set for May 31-June 1, at Red and Charline McCombs Field in Austin.
The Lady Eagles hadn’t advanced to the regional semifinals since 2004 but put together a terrific season-closing run over the season’s last two months. AHS was 14-11-1 overall and 3-3 in District 4-5A play after a 4-3 loss to Lubbock Cooper on March 22. The Lady Eagles finished the season on an 11-4 sprint to record 25 wins.
The all-district team was announced Monday, and the Lady Eagles were well-represented, including senior pitcher Diana Silva earning district Pitcher of the Year honors. Junior shortstop Kinzley Cantu was voted the district’s co-Defensive Player of the Year.
First-team selections from Abilene High were junior first baseman Anbriana Camacho, sophomore third baseman Mariah Estrada, and sophomore centerfielder Brieyonna Reed. Sophomore pitcher Avah Reyes was voted second team all-district.
Abilene High’s academic all-district selections were Maiya Badon, Cantu, Marissa Cardenas, Claudia Ceballos, Estrada, Elani Flores, Makayla Gutierrez, Reed, Reyes, and Amyah Starks.
Cooper junior shortstop Lynette Aguilar was voted first team all-district, while junior pitcher/first baseman Maddie Fry and junior outfielder Emma Ruiz were voted second team all-district. Junior catcher Gabriella DeLeon was selected honorable mention all-district.
Cooper’s academic all-district selections were Jaedah Titus, Ruiz, Natalyn Kuhn, Madeline Fry, Ariana Diaz, Aubriella Casillas, and Sabrina Lopez-Calhoon.
ALLEN PRESENTED WITH TOM LANDRY AWARD
Randy Allen – who starred as a running back at Cooper High School in the late 1960s and later led a revival in the Cougars’ program as the head coach from 1991-98 – was presented with the Tom Landry Award at Saturday night’s Texas High School Football Hall of Fame ceremony at the Texas Sports Hall of Fame in Waco.
The Tom Landry Award – presented to Abilene High School head coach Mike Fullen in 2023 – is given annually to a coach whose contribution to football in Texas has been significant, specifically someone who has served as a positive role model for student-athletes and coaches.
Allen is second all-time in wins in Texas high school football history with 446, 44 wins behind Phil Danaher, who won 490 games as the head coach at Corpus Christi Calallen. Allen has more wins than any other active head coach in the state, and he has coached the Scots to four state championships in his 25 seasons at Highland Park: 2005, 2016, 2017, and 2018.
LOOKING AHEAD …
The next time the Eagles and Cougars will be in action will be on Monday, Aug. 12, when the two teams open the volleyball season. The Lady Cougars will begin the season on that day at 1 p.m. by hosting Keller Fossil Ridge at Cougar Gym. Abilene High will be in San Angelo on Monday, Aug. 12, to take on San Angelo Central in its season opener.
The Cooper football team will begin the 2024 season at home by hosting Azle on Friday, Aug. 30, and return to Shotwell the next week to take on Abilene High in the Crosstown Showdown on Friday, Sept. 6. Abilene High will start the season on the road by taking on San Angelo Central on. Friday, Aug. 30, in San Angelo. The Eagles will play their home opener on Friday, Sept. 6, against Cooper.