Ten Sandites Sign College Letters of Intent

Click here to view the full photo gallery.

The Sand Springs athletic department celebrated ten student-athletes Wednesday morning at the Ed Dubie Field House, who have all signed letters of intent to compete at the collegiate level.

For the first time in school history, two Sandites signed to compete in collegiate shooting sports. Gunnar Casey and Sammy Naugle are both headed to Connors State College after building impressive careers with the FFA shooting team.

“We actually started the program back in 2008,” said coach Randy Evans. “Both of these boys have shot with me for the last four years. It’s the first set of kids we’ve ever actually sent to college to shoot.”

Casey was the 2019 SCTP State Skeet Champion, 2019 20-gauge Oklahoma State Skeet Champion, 2020 28-gauge Oklahoma State Skeet Champion, and was on the five-man HOA State Championship team in 2019. 

Naugle was on the 2021 2nd-place team at the Oklahoma Cattlemen's Sporting Clays Championship and placed second at the Dewey Invitational. 

“Our school board and our administration is extremely supportive of that whole program,” said Evans. “They realize the kids never actually have guns in school and when we practice there’s eight to ten adults around, so it’s a really safe and secure thing.”

“I actually started watching these kids when they came to my contests about four years ago,” said Connors State coach Sierra Walker. “They’ve been on my radar since eighth grade. They just have a really unique technique and style about them and they are really good.”

“Even in eighth grade they were making the hits and killing the targets, so I was really excited to get to have them come to Connors.”

The Sandite football team will have three players continuing their careers at the next level.

Quarterback Ty Pennington received a full ride scholarship to play football at Pittsburg State University in Kansas. 

“Pennington, you know, statistically is the greatest quarterback in Sand Springs history,” said Sand Springs coach Bobby Klinck. “I’m going to have to actually coach now that he’s gone. I’m very proud of him and what he’s accomplished.”

Pennington follows in the footsteps of his position coach Darrack Harger, who played for the Gorillas from 2012 to 2013. 

The three-year starter set single-season records of 2,831 passing yards, 27 passing touchdowns, and 39 total touchdowns while leading the Sandites to an 8-4 record and semifinal appearance in the OSSAA 6A-2 playoffs.

He also set career records of 6,455 passing yards, 54 passing touchdowns, and 79 total touchdowns.

“It checked all the recruiting boxes academically and athletically. I know I made the right decision,” said Pennington, who also had offers from Central Oklahoma, Missouri Southern, Washburn, Central Missouri, East Central, and a preferred walk-on opportunity at Oklahoma State.

“At first I thought about going to OSU, but once I started to figure out the kind of school Pitt State was, it was pretty obvious where I wanted to go,” said Pennington. 

Pitt State has won two national championships at the NCAA Division II level. The Gorillas went 8-3 last season in their second year under head coach Brian Wright 

Pennington was recently named to the All-State East team and will play in the All-State game on Friday, July 29th alongside defensive end Gabe Brown.

“It was a marathon, not a sprint for Gabe,” said Klinck. “He played a position that he wasn’t quite sure of and ended up being an All-Stater at it… He’s one of those guys that kept chopping wood and is very deserving of everything that he’s getting now.” 

Brown signed with Northeastern State University after a senior campaign that included 69 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, and two fumble recoveries, including a 75-yard scoop and score.

NSU competes at the NCAA Division II level in the MIAA. The RiverHawks went 2-9 last season under third-year head coach JJ Eckert. Sandite Justis Myers is also on the roster at NSU. 

Outside linebacker Conner Light signed with Southwestern College, an NAIA school in Kansas that competes in the KCAC. 

Light tallied 74 tackles for the Sandites this season, along with 5.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, and two forced fumbles. He received All-District and Academic All-Conference Honorable Mentions.

“I couldn’t be more proud of that young man,” said Klinck. “He just maxed out his ability and ended up being a really good football player for us.”

“He’s one of those kids that you’re going to miss seeing. I’m very happy for him going off to school. He’ll be successful in whatever he does.”

The Moundbuilders are entering their eighth season under head coach Brad Griffin. They recently finished their most successful season since 1999 after posting a 9-2 mark and making it to the NAIA Championship Series. Light will join fellow Sandite JT Bristow, a sophomore tight end, at Southwestern.

“All three of those guys are great ambassadors for our football program,” said Klinck.

Shortstop Keaton Campbell signed to play baseball at Cowley County Community College in Arkansas City, Kansas. 

Campbell batted .299 last season with 23 runs, 30 RBI, a .465 slugging average, a .392 on-base percentage, with 10 double plays, and one save on the mound. 

In addition to his baseball accomplishments, he was also an All-District selection in football after making 55 receptions for 774 yards and 9 touchdowns this fall, and he received Academic All-Conference accolades for both baseball and football.

The Tigers compete in the NJCAA and have won four consecutive KJCCC East Division titles, finishing 47-10 last season with a fifth-place finish at the JUCO World Series. They are coached by Darren Burroughs. 

Karsen Lynch signed to play soccer at Rogers State University, an NCAA Division II program competing in the MIAA. The Hillcats went 9-8-1 last season and are about to enter a new era under recently appointed head coach Chris Jones.

Lynch is a four-year starter for the Sandites, who are about to start their first season under head coach Cisco Chavez. She also plays for the Side FC 92 semi-pro team, which placed third in its inaugural season in the UWS. Last season she made the Academic All-Conference team and was team offensive MVP.

She will be reunited with former Sandite goalie Alison Day, who is a freshman at RSU.

Cassidy Tiepelman signed to play soccer at Southwestern College. The Moundbuilders went 13-5-1 last season and were the KCAC tournament runners-up. Tiepelman will join fellow Sandite Teagan Smith under head coach Joe Schwartz. Tiepelman was Academic All-Conference last season.

Charley Fahland and Tehya Johnson both signed to play volleyball at Friends University, an NAIA school in Wichita that competes in the KCAC. The Falcons are coached by Martin Ayin and went 12-19 last season.

Fahland and Johnson helped the Sandites to a 14-20 record this season. Fahland was second on the team in aces with 36 and led the team with 353 digs. Johnson had 217 digs and a team-high 689 assists.

Johnson was named to the Frontier Valley All-Conference Second Team and Academic All-Conference. Fahland received an All-Conference honorable mention and both made the Sandite Invitational All-Tournament Team.

The Sandites have now signed 13 athletes from the Class of 2022. Raegan Rector and Avery Tanner previously signed to play college softball in November and John Keim signed to play baseball.

Ty Pennington commits to Pitt State

Charles Page High School senior quarterback Ty Pennington has committed to play for Pittsburg State University, an NCAA Division II school in Pittsburg, Kansas. The Gorillas went 8-3 this past season.

Pennington will follow in the footsteps of his position coach, Darrack Harger, who previously held two Sandite records that Pennington broke. Harger played for the Gorillas from 2012 to 2013.

Pennington shattered the Sand Springs football record books this season.

His 2831 passing yards this year beat Cody Hale’s 2012 record of 2416. His 27 passing touchdowns beat Hale’s record of 22, set in 2012 and matched in 2013. His 39 total touchdowns beat Payton Scott’s 2017 record of 34.

In career totals, Pennington’s 6455 passing yards beat Harger’s record of 4813 from 2009-2011, his 54 passing touchdowns beat Hale’s record of 44 from 2012-2013, and his 79 total touchdowns beat Scott’s record of 71 from 2015 to 2017.

Sandite football went 8-4 this year, falling 20-17 to Edmond Deer Creek in the Class 6A-II semifinals. The Sandites went 2-8 under Pennington his sophomore year and improved to 7-5 in 2020.

Pennington picked the Gorillas over offers from the University of Central Oklahoma, Missouri Southern University, Washburn University, the University of Central Missouri, and East Central University. He also had a preferred walk-on offer from Oklahoma State University.

The two-sport star will compete on the Sandite baseball team this spring.

Sandites fall 37-32, Ty Pennington sets Sand Springs passing record

A version of this story was originally written for the Sand Springs Leader.

Usually when a football team takes a knee to run out the clock, that means the game’s over. But with 1:21 left to play, Dominic Ornelas burst through the Booker T. Washington line and snatched a takeaway to give the host Sandites one last shot.

Unfortunately for the Sandites, the Hornets would also get a sudden takeaway in the dying moments, as Micah Tease snagged a fumble from Jacob Blevins just 16 seconds later, and this time the offensive line held up to the hungry Sandites.

Class 6A-II No. 3 Booker T. Washington (5-1, 2-1) led for most of the ballgame, but never comfortably, and held on for a 37-32 win at previously undefeated No. 4 Charles Page (5-1, 2-1). 

A far departure from last year’s 49-0 rout at S.E. Williams Stadium.

“Every time we’ve been out here it’s usually tough,” said Hornets head coach Jonathon Brown. “I’ve been out here eight years, and every time we come over here it’s usually a tough game. Coach (Bobby) Klinck is doing a hell of a job of building that team in his image. They’re hard-nosed and they fight and they do a hell of a job, so I’m proud of them and it was a hell of a game.”

“I think it’s just another year in the program and all the off-season stuff and just them being in our system more,” said Klinck. “We’re a little more familiar with what we’re doing. We told them that this game was going to be a measuring stick for our program and where we’re at. It would have been really nice to come away with a win, but I was very proud of the way we competed and we weren’t scared for sure, so that was very great to see.”

“When people describe Sand Springs it’s ‘they play hard, they’re disciplined and tough,’” said Klinck. “Nobody ever says ‘well they’ve got good football players.’ I think we proved last night that we’ve got good football players. I’ll say it again, Ty Pennington’s the best quarterback in the state and he proved it going against a secondary that’s got two or three Division I guys in there. Our receivers are getting open as well. We’ve got good football players at Sand Springs. That’s a huge takeaway that I took away from it.”

Pennington was 14-of-27 for 270 yards and two passing scores, and had 62 rushing yards with two more touchdowns. His Hornet counterpart Lathan Boone was 21-of-29 passing for 253 yards and three touchdowns.

Pennington’s yardage was enough to set the Sand Springs career passing record at 5,061, surpassing his own quarterback coach, Darrack Harger.

“If anybody’s going to do it, I’m glad it’s that guy,” said Harger. “I’ve told him for the past three years that my goal for him was to beat my record. That dude is a baller and he’s going to go on to the next level and do all kinds of great things.”

The visiting Hornets took the lead on their first possession with a 25-yard strike from Boone to Tease, but the Sandites quickly responded.

After completing a 22-yard pass to Brody Rutledge to set the new school record, Pennington dove in for a one-yard touchdown to tie it up. He then found Blevins for a 30-yard score to take the 13-7 lead, but Logan Wolfe’s kick was blocked.

Deon McKinney, Jr. tied it up for the Hornets on an 11-yard run, but Charles Gaylord blocked Jackson Marsh’s kick to pay back the Hornets. 

Boone gave the visitors the lead soon after on a 17-yard fourth-down strike to Demitrius Prudom and the Hornets went to the locker room up 20-13 at the half.

The Sandites got possession to start the third quarter and Pennington walked untouched into the end zone on a 13-yard draw, and Jonathan Daniels kicked the point after to tie it up.

McKinney Jr. put the visitors right back on top five plays later with a 43-yard run late in the third, then Marsh kicked a 36-yard field goal early in the fourth to make it 30-20.

Kenneth Page entered the game for Sand Springs after star running back Blake Jones left with an injury in the first quarter, and scored his first varsity touchdown on a 13-yard run, but Daniels’ kick missed off the left upright. 

The Hornets retaliated with a 40-yard pass from Boone to Tease, then the Sandites struck right back with a 9-yard throw from Pennington to Keaton Campbell. A two-point pass came up a yard short, and the final score settled at 37-32.

Rutledge led the Sandite receiving corps with 94 yards, followed by Blevins with 81 and Campbell with 73. Page rushed for 49 yards on 12 carries. Drake Fain led the defense with 14 tackles, Gabe Brown had six tackles and a sack, and Conner Light had seven tackles with two for loss.

Jones’s undisclosed injury isn’t expected to be season-ending, but Klinck is confident in Page’s ability to perform while Jones is out. 

“For a sophomore he was pretty dang impressive. I was scared about ball security, we’ve done so well with our ball security. He did a fantastic job. Great for him to get some early varsity action. I hate how it happened, but Blake’s a tough kid and he’ll come back, and it’s good to have a guy like Kenneth Page to fill in for the time being.”

Klinck was also impressed with his receivers’ ability to compete against one of the best secondary units in the state. 

“Brody Rutledge, Keaton (Campbell), and Jacob Blevins. Great route runners, good hands, we’ve got speed and size. Ty’s able to fit it into windows and they make big plays. Again, as a coaching staff, we learned that our guys can make plays against the best in the state, so we’re going to take that moving forward into the rest of the season.”

Sand Springs will have another tall task Thursday at No. 1 Bixby (6-0, 3-0), who just beat No. 2 Choctaw 70-7. The Spartans have won 42 consecutive games and three State titles in a row. 

“We’re going to show up,” said Klinck. “Our kids aren’t going to back down, our coaches certainly won’t. We’re going to try to put a game plan together where it gives our guys a chance to be successful, but it’s really up to them to go make the plays. I do hope and I do feel like we got a confidence boost from playing a really good Booker T. Washington team that’s very fast, has really good skill players, and I think we found some things out defensively and offensively and kind of figured out who we are and what our identity is. We’re going to take this next week and really push that on our kids. We’ll see what happens on Thursday, we’re excited.”

Booker T. Washington knocks off Sand Springs 37-32

A version of this story was originally written for the Tulsa World.

Usually when a football team takes a knee to run out the clock, that means the game’s over. But with 1:21 left to play, Dominic Ornelas burst through the Booker T. Washington line and snatched a takeaway to give the host Sandites one last shot.

Fortunately for the Hornets, they would also get a sudden takeaway in the dying moments, as Micah Tease snagged a fumble from Jacob Blevins just 16 seconds later, and this time the offensive line held up to the hungry Sandites.

Class 6A-II No. 3 Booker T. Washington (5-1, 2-1) led for most of the ballgame, but never comfortably, and held on for a 37-32 win at previously undefeated No. 4 Charles Page (5-1, 2-1). 

“I just told our team to keep fighting, keep going out there and making plays,” said Hornets head coach Jonathon Brown. “It was just a hell of a win.”

A far departure from last year’s 49-0 home field rout. 

“Every time we’ve been out here it’s usually tough,” said Brown. “I’ve been out here eight years, and every time we come over here it’s usually a tough game. Coach Klinck is doing a hell of a job of building that team in his image. They’re hard-nosed and they fight and they do a hell of a job, so I’m proud of them and it was a hell of a game.”

Despite the defensive reputation that both teams have built, it was their offenses that shined.

Junior Hornet quarterback Lathan Boone was 21-of-29 passing for 253 yards and three touchdowns, while his Sandite counterpart was 14-of-27 for 270 yards and two passing scores.

“I thought the best pass he threw was the last one to Micah Tease,” said Brown, of Boone. “So composed. He just went back and let it go. That’s a credit to the offensive staff and the quarterback coach getting him ready. He’s truly becoming a leader. The game is starting to slow down for him and he’s doing a hell of a job.”

Meanwhile the Sandite quarterback had a bit of a consolation prize, as he set the Sand Springs career passing record at 5,061, surpassing his own quarterback coach, Darrack Harger.

“If anybody’s going to do it, I’m glad it’s that guy,” said Harger. “I’ve told him for the past three years that my goal for him was to beat my record. That dude is a baller and he’s going to go on to the next level and do all kinds of great things.”

Pennington also had 62 rushing yards and two more touchdowns on the ground.

In addition to Tease’s defensive takeaway to seal the game, he also had a huge hand in the offense, racking up 98 yards on five catches with two touchdowns, including a 40-yarder for the 37-26 lead with 4:57 to play. 

Sand Springs will have another tall task next week at No. 1 Bixby (6-0, 3-0) while the Hornets will host Putnam City West (0-6, 0-3).

Sand Springs at Enid: Week 2 Pre-game

Friday, September 11th, the 1-0 Charles Page High School Sandites will travel to Enid to take on the 0-1 Plainsmen in the second game of the season. 

CPHS annihilated the 5A Nathan Hale Rangers at the Eastside Sports Complex in their season opener 61-8, while Enid was handily defeated 41-14 at Ponca City.

Both teams are led by inexperienced Quarterbacks. Sand Springs junior Hunter Greathouse got his first varsity start against Hale and threw for two touchdowns before the JV squad went in at the second half. Enid’s Tanner Lingenfelter, a senior, started against Ponca and was replaced late in the second quarter by junior Colton Troxell. Troxell went 5-of-15 passing for 105 yards and two touchdowns, and led his team in rushing with 45 yards. Lingenfelter is now listed as WR in the current roster from Enid so it’s unclear who will get the start this Friday.

Dustin Kinard is in his ninth year as the Sand Springs Head Coach and has a record of 41-45 with four trips to the playoffs. If the Sandites perform as well this season as they have the past three seasons, he can expect to claim a winning record this year. His win over Hale helped him move up a rung on the Sand Springs ladder, surpassing Gary Quimby in win percentage.

Steve Hayes is in his first year at Enid, but was Head Coach at Texas’s Trinity Christian Academy for 11 years where he amassed an 88-49 record that included 11-straight playoff appearances and 4 state final games.

Sand Springs has an 11-14 record against Enid.

The series began in 1978 when AD James was Head Coach in Sand Springs. The Plainsmen won the first three installments, 7-6 in Enid, 13-12 in SS, and 20-14 in Enid. Quimby took over in 1980 and the Sandites won the fourth installment 21-7 at home under QB Eric Haines.

By their next meeting in ‘88, LD Baines was the man in charge in SS and Blair Culley was QB. The Sandites won 40-16 at home, but were not so fortunate the next two years. With Brett Pennington at QB, the Sandites lost 10-9 on the road, then 17-3 at home in ‘89-90. ‘90 was a big year for CPHS as they defeated both Union and Jenks in a playoff run before losing to Putnam City North in the semi-finals.

Enid won 24-14 in 1991 and 35-6 in ‘94 before SS finally scored the first shutout of the series, 20-0 in ‘95 with QB Dustin Morrow. The Plainsmen were shutout again in ‘96 by Keith Hooks, 21-0, then were defeated 30-22 in the famed ‘97 season when CPHS went 12-1 before losing by three points to Yukon in the semi-finals.

SS won the next two games before entering their dark days in 2000. The Plainsmen won 21-6, 45-29, 40-7, and 34-6 before a 4-year hiatus in the series.

The next time the Plainsmen met the Sandites was 2008—their first game against Dustin Kinard. They beat the Minutemen 38-23, 28-14, and 44-29 before the Sandites finally turned it around with QB Darrack Harger in 2011. Harger threw 14-of-27 for 272 yards and two touchdowns in a 59-13 beat-down.

From there it’s been all Sandite wins. 2012 was the best year for the Sandites since ‘97 and the Enid game was a big one. Cody Hildebrant became the highest-scoring receiver in school history with 11 touchdowns, and QB Cody Hale broke the single-season passing record with over 2,200 yards and tied the school record of passing touchdowns with 21. The Sandites won 35-21.

2013 saw the Sandites beat the Plainsmen 21-16 to place second in district and secure their first home playoff game since ‘97—which they went on to lose to Westmoore 31-10.

Last year the Sandites narrowly held off a two-point-conversion with a minute to play that would have tied the game, and won 16-14.  Charles Page went on to finish the season 8-4 and win their first playoff game since ‘97.

Enid’s longest winning streak against SS is 7 games, opposed to 5 by SS. CPHS has won the last 4 matchups.

Kick-off is at 7PM in Enid, so come support your Sandites on their path to state!