Jumping back into the win column with a vengeance, El Reno High School’s girls basketball team defeated 13th-ranked Shawnee last week 46-22 for its first Suburban Conference win.
El Reno, ranked ninth in the same Class 5A poll, improved to 2-1 on the season and 1-1 in the league standings. The win over the Wolves counts toward the conference title since it’s the only slated head-to-head meeting in league action.
El Reno High School’s boys basketball team kicked off a four-game road swing on a sour note, losing a Class 5A top 10 battle with fifth-ranked Shawnee 57-46 in Suburban Conference action. The loss dropped El Reno, ranked ninth in the state, to 2-1 on the season and 1-1 in the league standings.
Like the EHS girls, the loss does count toward the Suburban Conference title.
Despite a three-week break, Calumet High School’s boys basketball team played well according to head coach Jacob Mayfield in the Chieftains first game of the new year.
Calumet, ranked fifth in Class A, remains undefeated with a 95-41 win over Lookeba-Sickles. The Chieftains improved to 7-0 on the season and 3-0 in the Washita Valley Conference standings.
The Chieftains shot 60 percent from the field in the 55-point blowout, hitting 27-of-37 shots from inside the arc (71 percent). The team was 9-of-23 from the perimeter (39 percent).
Facing a tough schedule is nothing new to El Reno High School’s boys basketball program, but even veteran skipper Rodney Haydon shakes his head in disbelief at the path ahead.
“I’ve been trying to tell people that the schedule is ridiculous, but the kids are excited and the coaches are excited too. Looking at the schedule and who we will be matching up against in the tournaments, it will be tough.
“Yet, if we are as good as we think we are, this will help us get ready for the playoffs,” said Haydon.
While the sample size has been small, the biggest hurdle facing the El Reno High School girls basketball team at the holiday break is something head coach Jennifer Douglas can see but not grasp – time.
“Once we get our confidence in playing with each other, then we are going to be OK. We have got to figure out what that little secret aspect is for us all to be successful as a team.
“We are growing as we go so it will take a little time,” said Douglas.
Without question the holiday season has brought a wave of cooperation and sharing among residents in our state. It’s what many refer to as the “Oklahoma Standard.”
What readers have seen in recent months is that community newspapers in our state have been sharing content at a greater level due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
El Reno High School’s wrestling team got an early Christmas present as the Indians closed out the 2020 portion of their schedule by winning the Max Dippel Memorial Tournament.
Hosted in Weatherford, El Reno bested 11 other team to win the title by 13.5 points over Suburban Conference nemesis Carl Albert. The Indians logged 233.5 points to the Titans with 220 points.
“The most satisfying thing, from a coach’s perspective, is to see the kids bounce back after some adversity like we had in Broken Arrow.
El Reno High School post player Paige Primeaux has her arm pulled back from a rebound attempt by a Piedmont player during last week’s battle among top 10 teams in Class 5A. The Wildcats defeated EHS 50-46, but both teams remain in the top 10 of the new state poll. El Reno (1-1) is ranked ninth and Piedmont is eighth.
El Reno senior Jay Gililland shoots a jumper during the Indians 56-45 win over Piedmont. Now 2-0 on the season, El Reno jumped into the top 10 of the Class 5A poll at No. 9.
Several fall and winter hunting seasons are either open now or will open soon. Here are some details about Oklahoma’s annual ring-necked pheasant season and holiday deer antlerless gun season.
Ring-Necked Pheasant Season
Oklahoma’s 2020-21 ring-necked pheasant hunting season is under way, and hunters planning to pursue this exotic species will likely have more luck traveling farther into the northern reaches of Oklahoma this year.
