Abilene High School

For the 64th time in their long and storied history, Abilene High and Cooper will meet on the turf at Shotwell Stadium in Friday night’s annual Crosstown Showdown.

The Cougars lead the series 36-26-1, but the Eagles have won the last two games (14-10 in 2022 and 26-7 in 2023) and six of the last 10 overall. Kickoff is at 7 p.m., and tickets are available to purchase online. Abilene High fans should purchase AHS tickets for the west side (home side) of the stadium, and Cooper fans should purchase CHS tickets for the east side (visitor side) of the stadium).

Fans who cannot attend the game in person can watch the action on AISD Live. The Abilene High audio broadcast is available here, and the Cooper audio broadcast is available here. As a reminder, AISD has implemented a clear bag policy at Shotwell Stadium and the Shotwell Annex. Only clear bags will be allowed in with spectators to ensure the safety of all events at Shotwell and the Shotwell Annex.

The Eagles are 1-0 and ranked No. 8 in Class 5A Division I by Dave Campbell’s Texas Football. Abilene High opened the season last Friday night with a 60-36 win over longtime rival San Angelo Central at San Angelo Stadium.

Senior wide receiver Ryland Bradford – who has committed to UTEP – caught six passes for 181 yards and four touchdowns against the Bobcats. Junior quarterback Brayden Henry completed 8 of 12 passes for 198 yards and one score, caught two passes for seven yards and one touchdown, and ran the ball eight times for 67 yards.

The Eagles ran just 38 offensive plays, scored eight touchdowns, and racked up 403 yards of total offense against the Bobcats.

Cooper, meanwhile, opened its season with a 41-34 loss to Azle at Shotwell Stadium. Cooper led 20-19 at halftime, then took a 27-19 lead on its first possession of the second half. But Azle scored the final 22 points to send the Cougars to their fifth-straight season-opening loss.

Cooper quarterback Austin Cummins was 16 of 29 for 195 yards and two touchdowns through the air and ran the ball 19 times for 39 yards and one score. Peyton Ewing ran the ball 14 times for 74 yards, and Zavian Alexander caught six passes for 95 yards and two touchdowns for the Cougars.

Volleyball
Abilene High is back in action this weekend, while Cooper is off until Tuesday after a loss Wednesday night at home against San Angelo Central.

The Lady Eagles – 11-15 on the season – will host Frenship at 6 p.m. Friday at Eagle Gym and then travel to take on Stephenville on Tuesday, Sept. 10. The Wildcats will be off next weekend.

The Lady Cougars – 9-13 on the season – are off this weekend but will host Mineral Wells at 6 p.m. next Tuesday (Sept. 10) and Andrews at 4 p.m. next Friday (Sept. 13).

Team Tennis
The Abilene High and Cooper tennis teams have been off for almost two weeks but will return to action this weekend.

Both teams will host Midland Legacy and Midland High this Saturday (Sept. 7) at the AHS and Cooper Tennis Courts. The undefeated Cougars (17-0) will host Midland Legacy at 9 a.m. and Midland High at 2 p.m., while the 17-1 Eagles will host the same schools at 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

Both teams will play District 4-5A matches next Saturday (Sept. 14), with Abilene High at Wichita Falls Legacy and Cooper at home against Wichita Falls Memorial. The Cougars will also host Brownwood on Thursday, Sept. 12, at 4 p.m.

Cross Country
The Abilene High and Cooper cross country teams will get a good look at a course they will run on later this year as they compete in the Lubbock Invitational on Saturday (Sept. 7) at Mae Simmons Park. That course will host the Region I-5A meet on Oct. 21.

Abilene High was in action last Saturday (Aug. 31) at the Marcus Invitational at North Lakes Park, and the AHS girls’ team finished ninth out of 25 teams in the field. The Lady Eagles were led by Mason Murray, who finished ninth (18:11 in the Elite Girls’ 5000-meter race), and Zoe Vann (12th in 18:19 in the same race).

Murray now has the third-fastest 5000-meter time in AHS history behind Ashton Endsley (16:50.4 in 2014) and Victoria Cortes (17:50.0 in 2012), and Vann is fifth in school history behind Endsley, Cortes, Murray, and Isabella Gutierrez (18:12.0 in 2013).

In the boys’ Elite 5000-meter race, Abilene High senior John Alcantar finished 16th in 15:29.0, leading the Eagles to a 25th-place finish in the 30-team field.