KFDM COOP

Battlin' Bears on the brink Gabriel Pruett The Orange Leader LITTLE CYPRESS — The Little Cypress-Mauriceville Battlin’ Bears were hard at work Monday and preparing for what will be a long hard road through the 2007 football season. The Bears, who were 5-5 last season, began practice on Monday and coaches and players alike showed an intensity level of a team knowing the playoffs are a strong possibility. LC-M had a strong workout participation this summer and returning starting quarterback President Driver could not be more excited. “All the kids got fired up over the summer,†Driver said. “We had a great summer. All the players are ready for the race.†Driver knows the Bears have a lot to prove this season after going 4-3 last year in the District 22-4A race. It has been a long time since the Bears tasted the playoffs with the last being in 1997 when LC-M lost 41-20 to La Marque in the Class 4A Division II state quarterfinals. This season will be Coach Todd Moody’s third year at the helm and each year has seen an improvement. The Bears went 2-6 in Moody’s first year before going 5-5 last season which was highlighted by a 42-0 over the Port Neches-Groves Indians. LC-M followed that shutout up with a 33-0 blanking of Beaumont Ozen. “It feels great to be back out on the field,†Driver said. “Right now we are just focusing on getting back in the groove and working out in this heat. We have a lot to prove this year. A lot of people say we can make the playoffs and that is what we are shooting for. I like our chances. We have to play like the team we are and we will surprise some people. It is going to take a lot of hard work from a lot of people.â€

Yea ya'll should be pretty darn good.

LC-M netters excited over 2007 possibilities Van Wade The Orange Leader LITTLE CYPRESS — The Little Cypress-Mauriceville volleyball squad barely missed the postseason in 2005, placing fourth in a rugged District 20-4A. Last season, the Lady Bears busted through, winning 20 games and landed the third-place playoff spot out of what was a rugged District 22-4A. The playoffs were fun for the Lady Bears, but their goals are much higher entering the 2007 season. “We’re looking for a very exciting season,†said 6-1 senior middle blocker Morgan Blohm. “We have several key seniors back and a great group of juniors that will make a huge impact. Last year was a great season and all but this year we want to move up in the standings and our main goal, of course, is to win a district title.†Long-time Lady Bear coach Vicki Castino likes the promise that the Lady Bears show. “We have seven kids back with varsity experience and that includes three starters,†Castino said. “We have some young ones off our JV that are ready to take that next step. We’ve got a hard-working group and if they stay healthy and make their grades, we’ve got a great chance at making the playoffs again.†Blohm, an all-district pick last season, sophomore hitter Christine Sicktich, the 22-4A Newcomer of the Year and junior libero Shayna Sheppard are all returning starters. Returning letterwinners include Kristi Trahan, Olivia Hinds, Jordyn Davis and Carly Gauthier. Sicktich had an awesome campaign as a freshman and looks for big things again from the Lady Bears. “I’m very excited about this season,†Sicktich said. “We’ve got a lot of talent back and more talent to mix in with that. I definitely think we can make the playoffs again and we’d like to do it by winning district. That would be awesome.†Sicktich played for an elite USA Volleyball Team over the course of the summer. It was an All-Star team made up of players that were born in 1992 and 1993. “That was a tremendous experience, one that I will always remember,†Sicktich. “The competition was amazing. I got to go to some great places, especially for a big tournament in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. I think the whole experience has really helped my game.†Newcomers expected to make heavy contributions include Alexa Humble, Kinsey Staudt, Rebecca Dimas, Maci Wilcox, Brittany Wiegand, Erica Bloodworth and Kaci Olson. The Lady Bears have a tough road schedule before 22-4A play opens up, including trips to the Barbers Hill Tournament (Aug. 16-18) and the prestigious Northwest Tournament (Aug. 24-25) in Dallas before the first official day of school. “That schedule will certainly get us ready,†said Castino. “The Barbers Hill Tournament is really great because it is a round robin tournament and we’ll get six matches that will all be 3-out-of-5 sets. That should get us ready for the big Dallas trip.†Blohm likes the idea of traveling before the season. “It’s great, because this year it all happens before school starts,†Blohm said. “It will give us a chance to bond even more as a team too. We just got back from an awesome team camp at the University of Alabama and that was a super fun trip.†District 22-4A looks to be a crap-shoot again. Nederland ruled the roost last year and Port Neches-Groves was second. However, Nederland lost a ton of talent to graduation. “This is definitely one of those years where everything is a mystery,†Castino said. “Nederland lost a lot but they’ll still be very good. PN-G is always PN-G and they’ll be strong again. Ozen is always tough and Vidor came on strong last year with a young team. It should be very interesting all the way and I think we have a team talented enough to be right in the thick of it all the way through.â€

’Stangs take first step of 2007 Van Wade The Orange Leader WEST ORANGE — So what, if Monday was a typical steamy, hot day in Southeast Texas, West Orange-Stark senior offensive lineman Tim Matherne was thrilled about the Mustangs’ first workout of the 2007 season. The balmy weather usually isn’t a lineman’s best friend but Matherne dealt with it just fine. “It’s hot, of course, but that’s expected in this part of the country,†Matherne said. “You just have to suck it up and move on to what you have to do. This football team has a lot of goals and weather isn’t going to do anything to slow that down.†Matherne feels the sultry heat won’t have much or any affect on the Mustangs. “We’ve had a tremendous turnout all summer long and that’s what this program takes a lot of pride in,†Matherne said. “We work so hard as far as going that extra step to prepare and to get in shape. Things like that have helped put this program on top for a long time.†So what did the Mustangs do in their first workout Monday? “We hit the weightroom first to show the coaches what we have and let them kinda know who has worked hard and who maybe hadn’t during the summer,†Matherne said. “Then we hit the stands at the stadium. Those first few days are always tough as far as conditioning goes.†Matherne is certainly waiting on one day for sure. “I can’t wait for Friday, we all can’t hardly wait, with it being the first day in pads and all,†Matherne said. “It’s been a long time since we’ve lined up and hit people. Friday is going to be fun, but a friendly kind of fun. What I’m really waiting for is that first scrimmage.†Matherne has had the pleasure of blocking for two excellent quarterbacks in his stint at WO-S in Kenneth Beasley and Andre Bevil. This year, Ortavious Hypolite will be the newcomer at quarterback. Then there is the return of all-district tailback DePauldrick Garrett. “With our style of offense, we’re always capable of moving the ball down the field,†said Matherne. “We have so many interchangeable parts with all of our skill positions, we always keep people second-guessing.†Matherne, Brandon Allensworth and Eric Arnold are three of the valuable contributors who will return to lead the offense in the trenches. Long-time Mustang head coach Dan Hooks has seen many kids go through that first-week ordeal for 31 years at WO-S as he heads into his 27th year as the head man. He feels some things rarely change. “It has been a typical first morning,†Hooks said. “You see guys in shape and you see guys not in shape. We had a tremendous turnout this summer and you can always tell who the guys are that were up here in June and July and who wasn’t. For the most part, our varsity kids came in being in excellent shape. For the most part, it’s the younger guys like the freshmen and sophomores that you are concerned about the most. They’ll get in shape pretty quick though. That first wek and a half and especially those first three days, is all about conditioning.†Monday was the only morning practice that the Mustangs are going to have with the exception of the intersquad scrimmage this coming Saturday. The Mustangs plan a 4 p.m.-6:15 p.m. and a 6:45 p.m.-8:15 p.m. practice schedule for the first couple weeks before the scrimmages at Barbers Hill (Aug.18) and at home against Vidor (Aug, 25). “We’ve done it like that the last several years and I think we’ve gained a lot from doing it that way,†Hooks said. “It’s hard getting everything in line with a morning practice and an evening practice and making sure we can get the kids all here consistently. We still have a good break in the middle of the two sessions and it can get a little cooler up here at night.†The Mustangs lost a gifted group of seniors off last year’s 11-1 District 21-3A champion unit. However, the cupboard is far from bare. Seven starters return from that excellent team and then there are members off a JV team that went a perfect 10-0 and a freshamn unit that was 7-2. “We’re always excited this time of year,†Hooks said. “As usual, the expectations are high around here. We’ve got some key kids coming back but we’re also looking at a bunch of young ones to step in and fill key roles. We’ll start to know more when the kids put on the pads Friday and then the two scrimmages. We’ve got tough non-district schedule ahead of us with Dayton, LC-M and Bay City, so will get plenty of tests early to see where we’re at before district starts.â€

Just remember what i said.

The WOS/LCM Merger could really happen in the future.

Heard they looked good from someone that went earlier.

Rockets guard Alston arrested in Houston Associated Press HOUSTON — Rockets guard Rafer Alston was arrested early Sunday morning in downtown Houston on charges of assault and public intoxication, police said. Both charges against Alston are misdemeanors, said Victor Senties, a Houston police spokesman. “We are aware of the situation and are attempting to get more details about the incident,†Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said in a statement. “While we do not have all the facts yet, it is nevertheless very disappointing to have one of our players involved with any police activity. We will continue working with the authorities in order to get to the bottom of the situation.†Senties had no information whether Alston had been jailed or if he had an attorney. The 6-foot-2 player out of Fresno State joined the NBA during the 1999-2000 season with Milwaukee. Alston signed with the Rockets in 2004 and averaged 13.3 points last season.

Indians looked good Monday.

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8) Good move!

You going?

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Wait until you find out who your broadcasting!!!!

SP will beat BS this year! 8)

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In the good ole heat!! That's what Jasper is doing. There're going from 7-9 then 12-2.

Ya'll doing Morning and evening?

8) If your team is doing Midnight madness post here.

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Report from Jasper is that Coach Brooks is working their Butts off. They go again at 12:15. Comments from coach Brooks " We will be ready".

If you guys get any pictures from practices e-mail them to [email protected]

Be nice now catman. 8)