The Lady Lions won two of three games during the local basketball tournament last week, improving to 13-8 for the season as they prepare to open district competition this week.

Albany will host the Cross Plains girls on Friday, Jan. 4, with the JV team taking the court at 5:00 p.m., followed by the varsity at about 6:30 p.m.

The Lady Lions will be on the road next Tuesday, Jan. 8 for games in Stamford. Tip-off will be at 5:00 p.m. for the JV and 6:30 p.m. for varsity.

Local Tournament

The varsity Lion basketball team won three out of four rounds at the Windthorst tournament last week as they prepare for the opening of the district race.

Although they started the season late due to football playoffs, coach Ryder Peacock said that team members brought back several positives from the two-day tourney in Windthorst.

“We were able to rotate a lot of guys in during tight games to see how they would respond,” Peacock said. “It is still very early in the season for us, and we found ways to win while our perimeter game develops.

New Year’s Day 2019 wasn’t exactly balmy, with temperatures in the low 30s for most of the day and freezing drizzle on Wednesday, but it wasn’t the extreme of one year ago, when the mercury dipped down into the single digits on both New Year’s Eve and the next night, Jan. 1, 2018.

The nine degrees recorded on both those nights was nowhere near the all-time low in Albany of minus nine degrees that bottomed out thermometers on Jan. 5, 1947.

County officers starting new terms of office were sworn in during a brief ceremony held in the courtroom of the Shackelford County Courthouse last week.

County justice of the peace James Breeden officiated for most of the informal meeting on Tuesday morning, Jan. 1, swearing in two incumbents, including district and county clerk Cheri Hawkins and county treasurer Tammy Brown. Precinct 4 commissioner Cody Jordan will be sworn in later.

Breeden also swore in two newly elected officials – Precinct 2 commissioner Ace Reames and county judge Robert (Bob) Skelton.

Color photo packets taken of high school varsity and junior varsity girls, and junior high boys and girls basketball, taken by The Albany News in December are ready for pickup. 

Pictures of the varsity and JV boys teams are scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 17 at 3:00 p.m. and will be ready in a couple of weeks.

There are also quite a few packages from previous sports that have not yet been claimed.

The cost of the school sports packages is $25 plus tax.

Youth packages are priced at $18 plus tax.

The varsity Lady Lion basketball team opened district with a win over Cross Plains last week, then traveled to Stamford on Tuesday for the second league game.

Down by three at the half, Albany pulled ahead in the third quarter and held off Stamford in a big 46-45 win to up their district mark to 2-0 and go 15-8 for the season. Details of the bout will be reported next week.

The march towards the playoffs will continue on Friday, with Albany hosting Roscoe. The JV will take the floor at 4:00 p.m., followed by the varsity girls at 6:30 p.m.

Signup is underway for Little Dribblers basketball and local boys and girls from eight years old through fourth grade are invited to join.

“Players must be at least eight years of age on Jan. 1,” said organizer Clint Chapman.

Parents need to complete, sign, and return the registration form along with the $30 entry fee to either the Nancy Smith Elementary School office or to Chapman by Wednesday, Jan. 23.

The youth fifth and sixth grade basketball teams will play their first games of the season on Saturday, Jan. 12, with the four local teams competing in both the Albany High School gym and the Albany practice gym.

Basketball games will take place every hour from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with two games scheduled for each of the 16 teams playing in Albany this Saturday. 

General hunting season for white-tailed deer ended last weekend, but antlerless deer and spikes can be harvested until Jan. 20, and a special Youth-Only Season also extends through that same weekend.

Local hunters who harvest more venison than they intend to use are being encouraged to donate their extra bounty to Hunters for the Hungry, with distribution being handled locally through the Albany Masonic Lodge.

Locally, field-dressed deer can be dropped off at Rocker B Taxidermy, along with the required $40 processing fee, during regular business hours.

The Lady Bulldogs suffered defeat in both of their games over the Christmas break.

Moran hosted Lueders-Avoca for an 11:00 a.m. match on Dec. 31, and the visiting Raiders left with a 46-22 victory.

The varsity girls also dropped their first district bout on Friday, Jan. 4, to Gordon by a final score of 18-45, according to coach Dakota Fowler.

The Lady Bulldogs traveled to Ranger on Tuesday, Jan. 8, for a 6:30 p.m. tip off.

Results were not available at press time.