By Donnie A. Lucas

It was a tale of two halves for the Albany Lions last Friday in Eastland.

The 2A Lions dominated the first half of the non-district showdown against the 3A Mavericks, taking a 28-27 lead to the locker room at the half.

But the second half belonged to the Mavericks, who scored 33 unanswered points to rally for a 60-28 win over the visiting Lions.

Albany will be at home Friday night in Robert Nail Stadium to host the unbeaten Hawley Bearcats, who are fresh off a win over the Hamlin Pied Pipers last week.

By Donnie A. Lucas

The varsity Lady Lion volleyball team opened District 6-2A competition with a pair of wins over Strawn and Newcastle during the last week.

First-round action will continue on Saturday with the Hawley Lady Bearcats visiting for bouts between the only actual 2A teams in the district. Games start at 10:00 a.m. for JV II, 11:00 a.m. for JV I and 12:00 noon for the varsity.

The Lady Lions will play a set of non-district games next Tuesday, Sept. 24 in Coleman. Games start at 4:30 p.m.

By Melinda L. Lucas

Three Albany runners traveled to Merkel on Tuesday for their third meet of the season, with freshman Brylee Moore earning her second medal of the year.

She came in sixth out of 56 runners in the girls JV division. 

“Two of our runners improved their times by more than a minute from last week,” said cross country coach Tate Thompson. “I feel they are getting the hang of things, getting in shape, and learning to push through their barriers.”

 By Donnie A. Lucas

The JV Lions improved to 3-0 for the season after a 38-14 win over the Eastland Mavericks at Robert Nail Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 12.

Albany will travel to Hawley this week to play the Bearcats in a 7:00 p.m. game

The Lions scored four times in the first half to lead 26-7 at the half.

“I’m sure it was a fun game to watch,” coach Rod Britting said. “There were two good teams out there on the field, but ultimately we were able to take advantage of their turnovers and stepped up our defense.”

By Donnie A. Lucas

Both Albany Cub football teams suffered losses in Eastland last Thursday during the second road games of the season.

The Cubs will be out of town again this Thursday (today) for games in Hawley starting at 4:30 p.m. with the seventh graders. The eighth grade will follow at about 5:45 p.m., and the junior varsity will start at about 7:00 p.m.

The eighth grade Cubs were shut out by the Mavericks 18-0.

By Kathy Thomson

Moran beat Sidney last Friday by a score of 34-18, and the Bulldogs hope to improve their record to 4-0 tomorrow when they take on the Yellowhammers.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Rotan on Friday, Sept. 20, and head coach John Hughes is making sure his team does not take anything for granted.

By Kathy Thomson

Moran lost last Tuesday’s home match with Lingleville to finish pre-district with a 6-4 record, but volleyed back on Saturday, Sept. 14, to beat their first district opponent in straight sets.

Lingleville

“Lingleville has a strong team,” said coach Jo Hise. “We were defeated in three sets.”

According to athletic director John Hughes, the Lady Bulldogs fought to the very end, but it just wasn’t their night.

Moran lost to Lingleville 15-25, 5-25, 15-25.

Ranger

By Donnie A. Lucas

After a pre-game ceremony when the field at Robert Nail Stadium was named for longtime head football coach Denney Faith, the Lions roared their way to a 14-0 lead in the first period against the Dublin Lions last Friday.

But the visiting Lions didn’t allow Albany to coast to an easy win, with Dublin posting two touchdowns of their own in the fourth quarter and threatening to score what could have been a game-winner late in the bout.

By Donnie A. Lucas

The Lady Lions have been busy over the past week with last-minute tune-up games against larger schools as the pre-district schedule ends and the start of the District 6-2A race gets underway.

Albany will open district at home on Saturday against Strawn. The JV Red will start the action at 10:00 a.m., followed by the varsity game at 11:00 a.m.

“The girls have been excited to start district,” coach M.J. Reneau said. “We love that our district opener is at home, and we hope our fans and community will be there to show support.”

By Donnie A. Lucas

The two junior high teams opened the 2019 season on the road with victories last week in Dublin.

The eighth grade Cubs racked up a 22-0 win, while the seventh Cubs won 30-0.

Both teams will travel to Eastland on Thursday (today) for games starting at 5:00 p.m.

The eighth grade Cubs took a 6-0 lead to the locker room at the half, thanks to a three-yard score by Cason Fairchild. The PAT failed.