October 2022

MIDWEST CITY – Perennial powerhouse and seven-time state champion Carl Albert was given a scare by El Reno High School’s fast-pitch softball team in the championship round of the Class 5A, Region 1 Championships.

El Reno, needing to beat the Titans twice to make a third trip to state in the past four seasons, took a 3-2 lead into the seventh inning of game one.

However, the Indians watched Carl Albert score two runs in its final at bat to pull out a 4-3 win over El Reno. The Indians season ends with a 14-18 overall record.

El Reno High School’s volleyball team went into the Class 5A, Region 1 Championships having faced a gauntlet of ranked teams over the final 10 days of the regular season.

Three of the four opponents over that period were ranked, including 3-0 losses at Class 5A’s 12th-ranked Newcastle (25-17/25-23/25-17) and No.5 Piedmont (25-12/25-9/25-20) in Suburban Conference action.

Tuning up for the 2022 Suburban Conference Cross Country Championships later this week, El Reno High School took nine runners to the Elk City Invitational – bringing home five medals.

The El Reno girls were led by an 11th-place finish by Cielo Estrada with a time of 15 minutes and 41 seconds over the 3,200-meter course.

Kaylee Pawnee (17:15) took 20th place, followed by Emma Pawnee (20:14) in 26th place.

Calumet High School’s baseball team reached the semifinals of the Class B State Championships before losing to Fort Cobb/Broxton.

See Saturday’s paper for a recap.

There is an old saying about never meeting your heroes for fear of being let down.

I am sure there are many examples in which people can point to which would demonstrate this.

I have been fortunate to be able to not only meet many of the individuals who I have looked up to as a young man and tried to emulate with my career, but to also develop friendships with many of them.

Recently I had the opportunity to sit down with such a person who inspired me to public service and thank him. He is a hero who has never disappointed.

After five decades of coaching, El Reno High School’s Bill Reeves is used to giving speeches to literally thousands of players before a big event.

“I can talk in front of kids all day long, I’ve sort of gotten used to that,” said Reeves.

Yet there is one speech he will give this weekend which has this veteran coach a bit on edge.

Reeves is required to give an acceptance speech as one of six honorees of the Lifetime Service Award presented by the Oklahoma Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame.

Canadian County is the 27th county in Oklahoma to enact a burn ban.

County commissioners voted 3-0 last week to approve new outdoor burning restrictions.

The county may get a reprieve with cooler temperatures, but the county’s new Emergency Manager Josh Davis said conditions are still ripe for wildfires.

The two-week burn ban is due to expire at 9 a.m. Monday, Oct. 17 but could be lifted before then if conditions improve.

The best in Oklahoma beer, wine and barbecue is coming to Canadian County.

The inaugural Oklahoma Wine, Brew & BBQ Festival will be held from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 15 at the Canadian County Expo and Event Center, 3001 Jensen Road East.

Participating wineries and breweries will be inside an 18,000-square-foot complex and the barbecue will be outdoors.

On Oct. 1, the sanctuary at Wesley United Methodist Church turned 100 years old.

The congregation celebrated the milestone with a weekend of activities.

The large trophy case was filled with sanctuary memorabilia and photographs throughout the decades.

On Saturday, a small group met at the El Reno Cemetery to honor and remember those members who were identified as being involved in the sanctuary’s original construction and scores of members who left a permanent mark on Wesley’s history.

El Reno’s Dominic Cortez cheers from the sidelines during last week’s seventh- and eighth-grade football games against Guthrie at Memorial Stadium.