The region's high school weekly football section.

One win down, four to go.
The Lions of Chandler and the Tigers of Stroud each prevailed last week in the first round of the 2009 football postseason, and second-round action looms tonight as the crews keep hopes alive of reaching the big show.

Pin the ears back and let fly.
That’s the defensive trademark of the Bixby Spartans, who will try to put a snafu in Shawnee’s Class 5A state championship dreams.

Thanks to a 78-74 overtime win over visiting Columbia College Saturday, the St. Gregory’s University men’s basketball team remains unbeaten heading into tonight’s road game in Little Rock, Ark.

Seminole State College’s Belles registered a 77-59 road victory over Southern Nazarene’s junior varsity squad Monday.

The Maud Tigers swept through the District C-4 honors this year, and three of the players will take part in next summer’s 8-Man All-State game in Miami.

Liberty defeats Destiny ChristianCharity Fowler dished out 32 points as she and the Liberty Academy Lady Eagles defeated visiting Destiny Christian 56-34 Tuesday evening.
The Liberty boys also had good fortune as they delivered a 54-30 setback to Destiny Christian’s Wildcats.

Dale’s basketball crews moved to 2-0 on the season after road wins in Latta Tuesday evening.
The Lady Pirates withstood a late rally to win 42-38, and Class 2A’s No. 11 Pirates delivered a 63-45 upset to the No. 10 Panthers.

The Asher Lady Indians earned their first season win as the Asher basketball teams double up on host Wanette Tuesday evening.
The Lady Indians moved to 1-3 with a 51-48 triumph, and the Indians secured a 73-60 victory to move to 3-1.

Steve Fluke, Billy Brown and the Shawnee football squad liked what they saw before last Friday night’s Class 5A opening-round playoff game with Altus.
The home side of the stadium was packed as Shawnee enjoyed its largest audience of the season.

Moments after Shawnee’s 43-13 opening-round playoff win over Altus Friday night, Shawnee head coach Billy Brown was in a Spartan-like mood.
As in Bixby Spartans.

Eight area squads entered the football playoffs last Friday night but only three emerged victorious.
In addition to Shawnee, two other area squads, Chandler and Stroud — both of whom are district champions — kept their seasons alive with victories.
Chandler, ranked 12th in Class 2A, mauled Spiro, 47-6. The Lions of head coach Neal Bacon, winners of five straight games, will oppose ninth-ranked Verdigris (8-3) Friday night (7:30) in a second-round test at Chandler.

OKLAHOMA CITY — Liberty Academy’s basketball crews dropped two games each in the Oklahoma City Knights Festival over the weekend.

ASHER — Asher’s basketball teams fell to visiting Stonewall Friday, dropping the Indians to 2-1 on the season and the Lady Indians to 0-3.

Superstitious Tecumseh supporters might have noted it was Friday the 13th. They could have pointed to the “luck” of the Bishop McGuinness Irish.
But Savage head coach Greg George had a more concrete explanation for the 49-0 pounding his team took Friday night in the Class 4A playoffs.
“They’re good. They’re really good,” George said. “They’re one of the top teams in the state. And they’re good at all the right spots.”

CHANDLER 47, SPIRO 6

CHANDLER — It didn’t take long for the Chandler Lions to show the Spiro Bulldogs exactly who was in charge of Friday night’s opening round of the Class 2A playoffs. In fact, it took just 19 seconds for the Lions to get their first score in a 47-6 pasting of the visitors.
The Lions took the opening kickoff and needed just one play from scrimmage to get on the board, and did so in spectacular fashion. Quarterback Brandon Cummings took the snap and threw a hook pattern to Joe Hernandez. The receiver then pitched the ball to a sprinting J.J. Tillis, who ran untouched for the 66-yard scoring strike with 11:41 left in the first quarter.
Chandler’s defense then held the Bulldogs on their initial drive. The offense responded with a 9-play, 65-yard drive and created a comfortable 14-point cushion with 5:57 left in the first quarter. The scoring play came on another scoring pass from Cummings, this time to Tyler Milam from the 10-yard line.

MAUD - District C-3 continued to be a big stumbling block for the Maud Tigers Friday night in the first round of the Class C football playoffs.
Covington-Douglas, the fourth place team in C-3, received 170 yards rushing and three touchdowns out of quarterback Dylan Sterling as the Wildcats, with a dominating first half, rolled to a 34-14 victory over C-4 champion Maud at Derrel Pearcy Stadium.
The Tigers, who concluded their season at 10-1, have now bowed out to a C-3 team in the opening round of the playoffs for three straight seasons.

Class 2A Playoffs

OKLAHOMA CITY — Meeker’s 2009 season came to a halt Friday night as defending Class 2A champion Heritage Hall dished out a 35-0 final in the first round of the postseason.
The Chargers’ Barry Sanders Jr. — son of legendary NFL running back Barry Sanders — collected three touchdowns and 65 yards on just eight rushes. He also scored on a 58-yard completion from quarterback Cooper Cloud en route to accumulating 116 yards on five receptions.

STROUD — Stroud’s Tigers — Class A’s No. 2 team — had little trouble keeping their record unblemished Friday night as they throttled visiting Savanna 54-6 in the first round of the 2009 postseason.

Shawnee 43, Altus 13

That was Shawnee’s unstoppable combination Friday night as the Wolves devoured Altus, 43-13, in a Class 5A opening-round playoff game at Jim Thorpe Stadium.
Quarterback Brayle Brown found wide receiver Saulyer Saxon on seven passes for 180 yards to propel the Wolves into a second-round test against Bixby next Friday night at Jim Thorpe Stadium. Bixby knocked out Tulsa Central, 17-13, in another opening-round test.
Brown and Saxon didn’t play for most of the fourth quarter.