By Melinda L. Lucas

In addition to upcoming youth and children’s activities signaling the start of the school year, a couple of events are being planned for local women in the next couple of weeks, one of them a single-night “encouragement” program and the other an in-depth weekly Bible study.

Women’s Night at Bethel Assembly is set for Wednesday, Sept. 8, starting at 7:00 p.m. Worship will be followed by a segment from Jennie Allen and Friends, “IF:Lead 2021.”

By Sam Waller

The Moran Bulldog football team kicks off its regular season at 7:30 p.m. Friday against the Benjamin Mustangs at Benjamin’s Ben Grill Field.

“Benjamin is going to be pretty good from what I’ve seen on film,” Moran coach John Hughes said. “They’re ranked in the top 20 in the state, so that will add a little bit of excitement to our preparations.”

The Bulldogs completed their preseason last Friday with a three-team scrimmage at Gustine.

By Sam Waller

Registration is underway for the Albany Chamber of Commerce annual garage sale, which is scheduled for Sept. 11.

“We are getting people signed up,” Chamber manager Mary Beth Jones said. “I may be out of the office some this week, but if  you see somebody there, you can run in and sign up. We’ve got plenty of time.”

Registration will continue through Sept. 3.

A registration fee of $10 covers inclusion on the map of garage sale participants and a sign. Signs will be ready for participants to pick up Sept. 7-9.

By Sam Waller

The Albany Lions football team had its last dress rehearsal for the season on Thursday, Aug. 19, with its second scrimmage against the Hawley Bearcats.

Now, the Lions turn their attention to Friday’s season opener at Colorado City.

“We’re excited about getting to go to Colorado City and open up the season,” Lions head coach Denney Faith said. “I felt like we had two good scrimmages against good football teams. I think we’ve got ourselves ready to start our season.”

By Sam Waller

The Albany Lady Lions volleyball team remained undefeated by sweeping Olney on Aug. 17 and Eastland on Friday.

The Lady Lions were scheduled to play Ranger on Tuesday in their District 6-2A opener. 

They won easily in three sets 25-15, 25-7, 25-6, with details of that match to be reported next week.

After playing Ranger, the Lady Lions are scheduled to play in the Buckle Up for Lane’s Sake Volleyball Tournament at Nocona from Thursday (today) through Saturday.

By Sam Waller

The Albany Golf Club is still accepting names for a waiting list for its annual Labor Day tournament even though the tournament field is full.

“We have not had any cancellations yet,” Golf Club board member James Waters said. “We’ve got several teams on the waiting list. If we do have a cancellation, we should be able to fill it without a problem.”

By Sam Waller

The Albany junior high football and volleyball teams began preparing for their seasons with the start of the school year.

The Lady Cubs will be the first to compete, starting at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 31, with a combined match at Woodson.

The volleyball teams will visit Moran on Sept. 7 before hosting Abilene Christian on Sept. 13 for their home openers. That match is the only Monday date on the schedule.

The Lady Cubs are also scheduled to participate in in the Hawley tournament on Sept. 25.

Photo packages that were ordered of high school football and volleyball players, as well as all levels of cheerleaders, are printed and ready for pickup at The Albany News.

By Sam Waller

Season tickets for Albany Lions football games are on sale for the 2021 season.

The Lions have five home games scheduled at Robert Nail Memorial Stadium, starting Sept. 17 against Haskell.

That will be the first of three consecutive home dates, followed by Anson on Sept. 24 and the homecoming game against Olney on Oct. 1.

District 8-2A home games are Oct. 15 against Hico and Oct. 29 against Santo.

Single-game tickets are $6 for adults and $4 for students. Season tickets are $30 for adults and $20 for students.

By Melinda L. Lucas

Even amid the lingering COVID-19 pandemic and concerns about the effect of Winter Storm Uri, hunters are still gearing up for the fall hunting season, which is happening “no matter what.” 

Opening day of dove hunting in Texas is Wednesday, Sept. 1, and hunters across the Lone Star State, including those in the Albany area, will have a 90-day hunting season and 15-bird daily bag limits.