Yoemen Sports Network

If you’re a fan of pitching and defense, then Cameron’s season opener at Madisonville was not the game you needed to be at. Despite frigid temperatures, the Lady Yoe bats were red hot in a 19-13 win over the Lady Mustangs.

Cameron pounded out 14 hits, including 5 home runs to begin the season at 1-0. For outgoing head coach Abe Vargas, it was great to see the lineup come together and put up an all-around strong performance.

“It’s great, especially with the cold weather,” said Vargas which will be leaving the school district on February 16 to begin his duties as athletic director at Runge ISD. “We talked about things that we cannot control like the weather, and that is just part of the game. We had to be mentally tough.”

Yoe leadoff batter Kenzie Wimmer’s stats were some of the most impressive you could ever expect to see in a single game.

20-3A Girls Basketball Playoff Results

Cameron’s basketball district managed to split in the opening round of the playoffs, with district champion Academy and number two seed Franklin advancing, while three seed Jarrell and four seed Rogers bowed out of the playoff race.

Academy, which is ranked at the number four team in the state, crushed Troy in their game, 59-14. Franklin had a very similar showing, blowing by Whitney, 61-29. Jarrell had a 21-19 lead over West at the half, but fell hard in the end, 57-43. Rogers also fell to Marlin, 69-42.

Academy advances to play Keene Smith, which knocked out Buffalo, 64-49, while Franklin gets Grandview, which took down Leon, 51-43.

Both golf teams place in top 5 at Caldwell

Despite poor weather conditions, both the Yoemen and Lady Yoe golf teams managed to compete in Caldwell this Monday and Tuesday.

Rogers

Yoe head coach Nick Burns wanted one thing from his team Friday at Rogers. He wanted a complete buzzer to buzzer game, and in the process keep the pressure on the entire way.

You could say mission accomplished as Cameron began the game on a 9-0 run and continued to pour it on in the fourth in what was a dominating 63-31 win.

“This is always a scary game in Rogers and Coach Evan is a great coach,” said Burns shortly after the win. “They run a 2-3 zone just like Franklin, and it’s given us problems. I think that Franklin loss lit a fire under us. This week, we didn’t focus on man, just all zone. During morning practice, I pulled out the shooting gun, and we worked on a zone shooting drill. You can tell it payed off tonight.”

Keanu McCarter was a big reason for the fast start as he was the one that scored all of Cameron’s nine opening points.

It’s no secret that the Lady Yoe’s season has not gone as everyone would have liked. The ladies have been out of playoff contention for some time, but there was still one big game left on the schedule with Rockdale at Yoe Gym on Tuesday. It was not only an important game because it was against Cameron’s archrival, but it was the last time for the seniors to suit up at home.

Those seniors were not going to be denied on this night, recovering from a 1-17 shooting performance in the first and pulling away in the fourth for a 48-40 win.

“It feels good,” said senior guard Marquazia Workman after the win. “We really wanted this game with it being our last one. We always fought hard against Rockdale but to get a win feels good.”

Cameron simply could not anything to fall in the poor-shooting first, but the defense kept the game within reach with just a 6-2 deficit.

Yoe offensive coordinator Abraham Vargas takes head job

The long-standing tradition of coordinators from Cameron to become head coaches held up on Monday when it was announced the Yoe offensive coordinator Abraham Vargas had been hired as the next athletic director and head football coach at Runge ISD, a 2A school located about and hour and a half southeast of San Antonio.

As you would expect, there was a connection that led Vargas to the position.

“I'm sure there are several people who are curious where it is at and why I would go there,” said Vargas. “I visited with a former superintendent who I worked for and with for several years. She spent a couple of years in Runge. She gave nothing but high praises on the students, faculty, and community. I see it as an opportunity to make an impact and a difference in the lives of other students and the community.”

The biennial realignment is a big event for schools in Texas. Every two years, the UIL decides who is going to be playing who with the reclassification of all the districts from North to South and East to West.  That day took place last Thursday, and it had a big impact on what is the new 10-3A football district.  

Cameron will remain with the likes of Jarrell, Little River Academy, Rockdale and Troy, but there were two major shifts.  That includes Franklin moving out east to 11-3A, while McGregor shifts up north to 9-3A.  Manor New Tech and Lago Vista will be moving in to keep the district at seven teams.  

1. Brock - 16 all-district players return from a 14-3 state finalist team.

2. Goliad - 15 all-district players return from a 11-2 state quarterfinalist team

3. Franklin - 19 all-district players return from a 10-3 regional semifinalist team

4. Edna - 8 all-district players return from a 8-5 regional semifinalist team

5. Malakoff - 9 all-district players return from a 9-2 bi-district finalist team

6. Hallettsville - 10 all-district players return from a 9-2 area finalist team

7. Diboll - 8 all-district players return from a 6-4 bi-district finalist team (4a)

8. Atlanta - 8 all-district players return from a 5-6 bi-district finalist team (4a)

9. Woodville - 14 all-district players return from a 9-2 area finalist team

10. Yoakum - 9 all-district players return from a 13-2 state semifinalist team

11. Bushland - 6 all-district players return from a 11-3 state quarterfinalist team (4a)

Franklin

Sometimes a team just seems to have your number.  For the Lady Yoe, that seems to be the case with Franklin.  Cameron did not have much luck on the road versus the Lady Lions earlier this season, falling 67-27.  Not much changed at home on Friday, as Franklin built a commanding 30-7 lead at the half and breezed the rest of the way to the 63-21 win. 

The three was once again important for the Franklin, which nailed nine long-range shots compared to Cameron’s one.  In total, Franklin’s three-point shooting outscored Cameron alone, 27-21.  

The shooting woes plagued Cameron the entire first half as Franklin sat at 12-23 at the break while Cameron was just 2-13. 

Terryn Adams did provide a spark in the third with two field goals and 6 total points.  

Franklin

As of late, the Yoe basketball team has been involved in some dramatic 20-3A ball games.  The Yoemen fell to number one ranked Jarrell at home by just six, and managed to hold off Hearne on the road in overtime to maintain their second place standing in the district. 

The positive momentum did not carry over into Friday’s home contest with Franklin, as the Yoemen managed just 20 points through three quarters and fell hard in the end, 53-36.  

It was a frustrating game all around, and Yoe coach Nick Burns reiterated that feeling following the loss.  

“Shots were not falling,” Burns said. “We didn’t grab rebounds and everything was going their way.  We just did not play very good.”

Yoe Golf begins season at Lampasas

On Monday, the Yoe High boys golf team began their 2018 season on the road at Lampasas, finishing 6th overall out of 20 teams with a score of 354. Junior Nikolas Keratsopoulos led the way with a team-low 76, good enough for 6th overall individually. Stockton Kruse shot a 86, Luke Greene was 2 behind at 88, and Jale Walzel posted a 104.

Belton A won the tourney with a 291, Belton B was second at 302 and Lampasas captured bronze with a 323.

The boys will next travel over the Mustang Creek in Taylor on Wednesday.  

The Lady Yoe officially get things going today in Lampasas.  The girls will also be participating in Taylor in Monday.  We will have a full report on both of those tournaments in next week’s edition of sports.  

Baseball season begins soon