Featured Running 

Canyon Lake runners finding their stride; junior varsity boys, Ella Thiele earn gold

CAPTION: With his eyes set on returning to the state cross country meet in November, Canyon Lake High School’s Aleksandur Villavicencio started the season off with a strong performance at the Johnson City Eagle Nation 6-Mile Relay on Friday, Aug. 19. Photo by Briley Mitchell/Dirt Devil Photography The Canyon Lake High School boys and girls cross country teams raced into the 2022 season with a strong showing at the Johnson City Eagle Nation 6-Mile Relay and 1.5-Mile Run on Friday, Aug. 19. The Hawks Junior Varsity A squad of Grant…

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Featured Running 

High School Cross Country Results from Aug. 19

Marble Falls at the Johnson City 1.5-mile Relay Meet Boys varsity (junior Nick Dahl and sophomores Ezekiel Atkinson, Blake Cockrell and Tyler Hamblin) finished second in 33:33 Head coach Chris Schrader noted that while the Mustangs didn’t break their own meet record set last year with a team of seniors, this year’s four runners showed they have what it takes to set their own history. Cockrell pulled the team from third to second thanks to finishing in 8 minutes and 24 seconds. “Blake is starting to realize his immense potential,”…

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Featured Football High School 

Faith Academy Flames end training camp with solid performance against Austin Veritas

CUTLINE: The Faith Academy of Marble Falls football finished its training camp with an impressive performance against Austin Veritas. Photo by Stennis Shotts The Faith Academy of Marble Falls football team didn’t display a weakness during its scrimmage against Austin Veritas Aug. 19. The Flames scored six times and the Faith defense, which gave up two touchdowns, made a statement, head coach Stephen Shipley said. “The defense played really well,” he said. “I think we only gave up a handful of first downs. Their two touchdowns were on busted plays.…

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Featured Football High School 

During the live scrimmage against Leander, Marble Falls Mustangs shine

Training camp ended with some defensive stands and impressive runs for the Marble Falls High School football team in a scrimmage against the Leander Lions Aug. 19. That’s because when the Mustangs needed to make plays — after the first live quarter ended with a 7-7 tie — they showed they had plenty of: athletes who relished the moment and want to be counted on, belief in each other and their coaches to put them in position to be successful, and protecting the football when it mattered most. That was…

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Cheer Featured Football High School Recruiting 

Canyon Lake’s offense, defense get the job done against Elgin in scrimmage

The Canyon Lake Hawks found the end zone twice during the live portion of the scrimmage Friday, Aug. 19, against the visiting Elgin Wildcats, but it was more than that in the eyes of head coach Charley Drum. “It was a little slow start but we responded in the live quarters,” he said. The Wildcats scored a touchdown on a pass over the middle during the controlled portion of the scrimmage, but it was the only time they’d get in the end zone. While the Hawks didn’t score in the…

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Featured Football High School 

Burnet shows Jarrell who are the better Bulldogs during final scrimmage

The Burnet High School football team flashed much more than the seven touchdowns during its final scrimmage against Jarrell Aug. 19. Burnet scored in a variety of ways: short and long touchdown passes and short and long touchdown runs. Meanwhile, the Burnet defense yielded only two touchdowns, all in the live quarters, during the two-and-a-half hour affair. Head coach Bryan Wood noted his players displayed the chemistry and rapport coaches have highlighted throughout the last several months. Each Bulldog did his job and trusted his teammates to do theirs. That’s…

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Featured Running 

2022 Preview: Marble Falls Cross Country

The Marble Falls High School cross country team is experiencing a transition in many ways. In addition to being realigned to District 24-4A from District 25-5A, the Mustangs and Lady Mustangs are still determining their top runners’ order. The boys have four returners — Marco Almazan, Ezekiel Atkinson, Nick Dahl and Tyler Hamblin — and several others vying to be in the top five, which will yield a team score. They’ll get their first chance to make their case at the Johnson City 1.5-mile Relay Meet Friday, Aug. 19, at…

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Baseball Featured MLB 

The Point After: Why Brett the Met’s debut means so much to the Highland Lakes

By now, most of us sports fans (and some who don’t consider themselves fans) are well aware of Brett Baty and his Major League Baseball debut with the New York Mets Aug. 17. But in case you’re not, Baty, in his first at-bat, hit a two-run homer in the second inning while wearing No. 22 and flashed the “I love you” hand signal to his family — dad Clint, mom Leslie and older sister Lauren — and others close to him who were sitting in the players section steps before…

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Featured Football High School 

Smoking For Jesus football’s defensive scheme showcases the Eagles’ natural speed

A mix-up in dates forced the Smoking For Jesus Ministry School football team to wait another week to scrimmage an opponent. The Eagles will get their opportunity when they face the Austin Royals and Not Your Ordinary School at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 19, at 2001 N. Denney Fort Blvd. in Round Rock. “The boys are ready to hit someone other than themselves,” head coach Charles Frazier, Sr. said. “It gave us an extra week to get some plays down and know our assignments. The Austin Royals and Not Your…

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Featured Running 

Burnet’s Bennett enters final year in tip-top shape

Soon after the results of the 2022 Class 4A state meet, where he finished second in the 1,600 meters May 12, Burnet High School runner Hudson Bennett left the University of Texas at Austin’s Mike Myers Stadium more determined than ever to cross off what’s left on his list of goals going into his senior year. Part of that was intensive training that turned into an extensive stay in Colorado during the middle of the summer of 2022. “I spent 35 days (there),” he said. “I was running the entire…

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