By Sam Waller

The Moran Bulldogs’ scheduled football game against Mullin has been cancelled because of a rash of illness affecting Moran players.

The game was to have been played at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Moran’s Bulldog Field.

“It’s not due to COVID,” Moran ISD superintendent Dr. John Denson emphasized. “The kids who are sick have been tested, and all the tests were negative for COVID.”

Moran coach John Hughes said players missed practice Monday because of the situation. The decision to cancel Friday’s game was made Tuesday.

By Sam Waller

The Albany Junior High Cubs football teams took different routes last Thursday in their games against the Hamlin Pied Pipers but both wound up with positive results.

The seventh grade team took the lead for good on its first offensive play on the way to a 36-0 victory at Robert Nail Memorial Stadium in its first official game. The eighth grade Cubs had to rally from a two-touchdown deficit to win 30-14.

The scheduled junior varsity game between Albany and Hamlin was cancelled because of a lack of players for the Pipers.

By Sam Waller

The Albany Junior High Lady Cubs volleyball teams had a productive week with the seventh grade team winning twice, while the eighth grade team won its outing.

On Sept. 7, the seventh Lady Cubs defeated Moran 25-10, 25-12 on the road.

Amber Miramontes led the team with 26 service points. Zayne Lefevre had five service points, followed by Tatum Grady with three, Charlee Hefner with two, and Hattie Braly with one.

“They all played well,” coach Ginger Norton said.

By Sam Waller

Albany’s cross country runners made their second outing of the season on Sept. 7 at the Eula Cross Country Meet.

In the varsity girls division, Briley Tabor finished 37th in a field of 158 runners, covering the two-mile course in 14 minutes, 8 seconds. Avery Kleiner placed 96th with a time of 15:15.

In the varsity boys division, Jonathan Coody covered three miles in 21:21 to finish 52nd out of 112 runners.

By Sam Waller

The Albany Lady Lions moved up to No. 11 in the Texas Girls Coaches Association Class 2A volleyball poll after sweeping a pair of Class 1A opponents in District 6-2A competition.

The Lady Lions improved to 18-3 overall by defeating Moran 25-12, 25-8, 25-12 at Moran on Sept. 7, then beat Newcastle 25-16, 25-12, 25-7 Saturday at home.

“The girls had a strong week, winning both games in three sets each,” Lady Lions coach M.J. Reneau said.

By Sam Waller

The Albany Lions were looking to clean up the mistakes that hampered them in their season opener against Dublin when they made their second outing of the season last Friday.

While there were still a couple of bumps along the way, the Lions took care of business well enough to defeat the Hamlin Pied Pipers 50-0 at Hamlin’s Piper Stadium.

First Home Game

After scheduling three road games to open the season, Albany finally gets to play its home opener at 7:00 p.m. this Friday when the Haskell Indians visit Robert Nail Memorial Stadium.

By Sam Waller

The Moran Lady Bulldogs dropped both of their varsity volleyball matches, while the junior high team opened its season last week.

On Aug. 31, the Lady Bulldogs lost 25-18, 25-19, 25-20 at home to Gustine.

“They showed a lot of improvement from when we played Gustine Aug. 17,” coach Jo Hise said. “They hustled for every point.”

On Saturday, Moran lost 25-13, 25-17, 21-25, 25-10 in a District 2-6A match at Newcastle. Hise said extending the match after falling behind 2-0 was a significant step for her team.

By Sam Waller

The Moran Bulldogs showed some improvement last Friday in their second outing of the football season, but not enough to avoid a 51-6 loss to Class 1A Division I opponent Evant in their home opener at Bulldog Field.

“There was a little progress,” Moran coach John Hughes said. “There are things to work on, but our biggest problem is still our numbers. We made it past halftime, and that was a big positive.”

The Bulldogs (0-2) finished with 25 total yards and three turnovers.

By Sam Waller

Albany Junior High School football teams opened their seasons last Thursday against Dublin.

The Cubs eighth grade team won 40-8, while the seventh grade engaged in a controlled scrimmage with Albany posting a 3-0 scoring advantage.

In the eighth grade game, Shawn Keen and Huffman Heatly each scored two touchdowns. Mason McCloy had an interception, and Brodey Oliver recovered a fumble on defense.

“The Cubs had a good first outing,” eighth grade coach David Fairchild said.

By Sam Waller

Seven Albany athletes opened the cross country season Sept. 1 by competing at the Haskell Cross Country Meet.

“This first meet gave the kids a chance to see where they are and where they need to be as far as conditioning and pace,” Albany coach Tate Thompson said. “It also shows how important the workouts are – how important it is for them to push themselves in practice so that they are able to perform in meets.”

Because of a malfunction with the timing system, official times were unavailable. Reported times were kept by the coaches.