In the 2018 season Wimberley staggered to a 4-7 record. As a respectful winning team the previous two seasons they have come back to winning football this year and have made the playoffs. It didn’t sit too lightly on the players heading into the summer workouts.
“I think that the kids took it to heart, realized it was not satisfactory. They used it as fuel let that drive them. Turn it into a great summer and fall camp,” replied Coach Warren. The fuel turned this season into a successful 4A district 8-3 record. A wake-up call that helped them prepare for the playoffs. It sparked a new drive within them. As the season continued throughout the weeks Coach Warren noticed something within his team which is needed for the postseason.
“Spirits are great, they like being around each other, enjoying it.” Team chemistry is essential for a successful season and beyond. As they got back to winning football it certainly helped that their confidence was high. They will need it for Raymondville who will be there first test in the playoffs.
A formidable opponent who has Coach Warren’s respect. “They’re explosive; their two running backs get tons of yards. Twelve yards per carry, you’re doing something right when you’re doing that, very impressive. They are physical and not afraid to complete plays.”
Raymondville will provide the ultimate test for Wimberley. Spirits will need to stay up. With two players running the ball gaining a first down on every play, Wimberley will need to bring a complete team effort to come out on top. They’ve done it all year so why wouldn’t they keep the trend going. Central Texas has made noise in the postseason and Wimberley wants to be heard.
When your a young kid you Dream of playing for the Majors and envision yourself hitting that Grand Slammer to win the game in front of the home crowd. It’s often a tall order for many players as few get to really live their dreams out and play professionally. But for one Lake Travis student, hard work, lots of practice, great parenting and coaching has landed Lake Travis senior Brett Baty just such an opportunity.
Brett Baty, a third baseman from Lake Travis High School in Austin, Texas, talks on the phone with New York Mets personnel after being selected No. 12 by the Mets in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft, Monday, June 3, 2019, in Secaucus, N.J. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
This past week Baty was one of 4 High School kids to be drafted in the 1st round of the MLB Draft in June 3, 2019, in Secaucus, N.J. Baty who has been hitting a staggering .624 this season just graduated from High School last week and is also playing for the 6A State Championship game in Austin for a chance at a Title.
The Texas Longhorn commit may skip his collegiate career altogether as the temptation to the simply play in the major leagues professionally is every college athletes dream anyway.
The 6’3 19 year old 3B/1B/P has a well balanced game and should do well to acclimate to the pros. We wish him the best in search for his own Field of Dreams.
With
most of their fans expecting a pitching prospect to be selected with
the 12th overall pick of Monday night’s MLB Draft, the New York Mets
surprised many by instead nabbing Lake Travis third baseman Brett Baty.
Perhaps
new Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen thought it was about time
his franchise found a suitable replacement for David Wright, who made
his last All-Star Game appearance in 2013.
“I’m
just so happy right now I can’t even explain it,” Baty said in a
televised interview on MLB Network. “I’m grateful to have my family and
friends here to celebrate it with me. They’ve had so much support for me
over the years.”
Baty
was called the “best high school bat” in the entire draft by MLB
Network analyst Jonathan Mayo. The 6-foot-3 senior definitely possesses a
ton of power, as he’s mashed 19 home runs during the 2019 season while
also batting over .600 and knocking in 50 runs with a slugging
percentage of 1.333. As a junior, Baty belted 12 homers for the
Cavaliers.
Impressed
by Baty’s offensive prowess, the Mets added to a growing list of prized
minor league infielders that they hope will one day transform their
lineup in the same way that the trio of Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa and
Alex Bregman have infused new life into Houston’s order.
Brett Baty, a third baseman from Lake Travis High School in Austin, Texas, adjusts his jersey after being selected No. 12 by the New York Mets in the first round of the Major League Baseball draft, Monday, June 3, 2019, in Secaucus, N.J. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
Baty
and his family flew to New Jersey for the draft and will head back to
Texas soon so that he can pitch the opening game of the Class 6A state
tournament Friday against Southlake Carroll at the Dell Diamond in Round
Rock. Baty’s presence on the mound has helped ease the loss of injured
teammate Jimmy Lewis, who was taken 78th overall by the Los Angeles
Dodgers on Monday night.
Baty comes into the state semifinals with an ERA of 0.84 and 79 strikeouts.
The
Mets’ gain appears to be the Texas Longhorns’ loss, as Baty’s expected
signing bonus is in the ballpark of $4.37 million. It would be more than
a bit surprising to see the 19-year-old turn down that type of money,
but then again, it wouldn’t be an unprecedented move.
The
Mets’ decision to take Baty represents the first time the franchise has
chosen a third baseman in the first round of the draft since Wright in
2001. Coincidentally, Baty’s T-ball team as a youth was also the Mets.
AUSTIN SPURS TO HOST ‘FRIENDSGIVING’ GAME NOVEMBER 18 Fans Are Asked to Bring a Canned Food Item to Exchange for a Free Ticket
AUSTIN (Nov. 12, 2018) – The Austin Spurs, presented by SWBC, will host their first ‘Friendsgiving’ game on Sunday, Nov. 18. Tipoff vs. the Oklahoma City Blue at the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park is set for 4 p.m.
Fans are encouraged to bring a non-perishable canned food item that can be exchanged for one ticket for that night’s game. Fans can redeem one ticket each. All food items will be donated to the Central Texas Food Bank.
To purchase tickets or find more information regarding the Friendsgiving game, call the Austin Spurs office at (512) 236-8333 or go to austinspurs.com.
About Central Texas Food Bank:
Central Texas Food Bank works with food donors across the country, financial supporters and volunteers to fill unmet needs in Central Texas. This commitment from private, government and charitable partners has allowed them to bring 45 million meals to their community last year and into the hands of families and local nonprofits that turn to them for help. There are three key ways they do this:
They share free food and knowledge on low-cost, healthy eating with families in need.
2. They assist families who qualify for federal assistance programs.
3. They make food affordable for charitable and government partners. The quality food and food resources they provide means that they can spend their limited resources to enhance their programs.
They are a registered 501(c)(3), which means that they are not a religious, political or advocacy organization. A leader in the fight against hunger for nearly 35 years, their mission is to nourish hungry people and lead the community in the fight against hunger.
TSM: I know as a coach, you all like taking it one game at a time, but how sweet would it be to bring Westlake its first state championship since Drew Brees was quarterbacking back in 1996?
Coach Dodge: Oh gosh, it would be awesome. It would be something that obviously this entire student body would carry for the rest of their lives, not only the football team. We were basically 15 seconds away two years ago and that was a heartbreaker. To miss a field goal to win it with about 15 seconds left in the game, that’s how close we were to getting the second one. But now you got to start all over again. But it absolutely would be a thrill and something we’re always striving for. Our goals our to win a district championship, and then to be playing Thanksgiving. That means you made it to the final 16 in the state, and once you get there, you can really just let everything fly and see if you can’t go make a run at it.
What can you say about the job Eanes Independent School District does in giving you the resources you need to run a successful high school football program?
I think that we get everything that we need, between our budget from our school district and obviously the great facilities that we have. Our school district has really dedicated itself to turf fields. That’s a big plus. We have four 100-yard turf fields on campus, so that’s a real benefit to us, all of our sports. And then we got a tremendous booster club, a lot of hard-working parents that really support us. I’m very, very pleased.
Rivalries are one of the funnest aspects of sports. Y’all got a pretty good one with this Westlake/Lake Travis deal, which many consider the biggest game in Central Texas. What are the benefits of having a rival like Lake Travis?
Oh, I just think it’s just special for high school football players in schools. It’s part of the whole high school experience. I mean, I think everybody can remember back to their high school days what the big rival was. It’s just part of the great history of Texas High School football. There’s always a lot of memories that are surrounding those, so I think it’s really good for the kids.
How do you feel about what y’all return on offense going into the season?
Well, right now I have a lot of confidence in our four returning starters on our offensive line, so we got some guys up there, and that’s not the norm. You usually don’t have that many coming back in an offensive line, and then, obviously, our running back, Nakia Watson, those are the proven factors in our offense. Everybody else, all the other skill position people, I’ve really been pleased and excited about what this group can be. We’re just really, really young and inexperienced in a lot of places. We’re not alone. There’s a whole lot of people who are like that, but I’m very, very optimistic about our young receiving core.
How do you feel about the state of the defense with the season-opener right around the corner?
That’s got to be the strength of our team right now, is our defense, because of all of the veterans that we have on that side of the ball. We got seven bonafide returning starters. We got probably four or five other guys that have played quite a bit. So that’s really, really going to have to be our strength. We expect our defense to play well. We’ve played really good defense since we’ve been here, and we expect for it to continue.
If you could challenge Coach Carter to a game of anything not football-related for a charity of your choice, what game would you choose and what charity would you like the funds donated to?
I would challenge him to a game of washers. Either washers or horseshoes, either one. The charity that I would send the money to would be the Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Austin, that organization. I think that’s awesome to be mentors for young kids.
Texas fought valiantly but fell short in a 27-24 (2OT) loss to No. 4 USC at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles, CA on Sept. 16. Head coach Tom Herman said he doesn’t believe in moral victories, but there are positives to take from the Longhorns going on the road and almost beating the highly-ranked Trojans.
The defense played lights out. No, they couldn’t seal the deal when USC was down by three with the ball at its own 35 and 39 second left, but this game never would’ve got to that point if it wasn’t for a phenomenal effort by the unit as a whole. USC running backs Roland Jones II and Stephen Carr managed only 75 yards on 27 carries (2.8 avg.) after going for 235 yards on 34 carries (6.9) the week before against a Stanford defense that has long had a reputation as one of the best run-stuffing units in the country.
The Longhorns did a great job at plugging gaps and setting the edge, making it impossible for the Trojans to establish a ground game and leaving their offense completely one-dimensional. Todd Orlando’s crew stepped up with three 4th down stops, including a 4th & inches at the goal line, and even scored a defensive touchdown when junior Dashon Elliot intercepted a tipped pass and took it to the house. Linebackers Malik Jefferson and Anthony Wheeler combined for 23 tackles and 5.5 for a loss.
Sophomore wide receiver Collin Johnson showed up in a big way. The 6-foot-6 California-native repeatedly made big plays and ended up with seven grabs for 191 yards. On Texas’s first offensive snap, Johnson shoved down the cornerback giving him press coverage and hauled in a pass down the right sideline for a 48-yard gain. He also made a spectacular catch late in the first half by going practically through the cornerback to catch a ball thrown behind him.
There was also a diving grab for 24 yards early in the third quarter to help set up Texas’s lone field goal, and 47-yarder on the Longhorn’s final drive of regulation that led to the go-ahead touchdown. Johnson accounted for more than half of UT’s total yardage, and for parts of the game was all Texas had going on offense.
There was one big negative, however, that could have giant ramifications on the rest of the season. That was the injury to junior left tackle Connor Williams, who reportedly tore his meniscus and will be out for a significant amount of time. Williams was a preseason All-American who many scouts had already tabbed as a top-10 NFL draft pick. Without him in the lineup, it’s going to me much harder for Texas to get the pass protection and run blocking it needs to keep up in high-scoring Big 12.
