Carter Young takes 2nd in Flo Kickoff Classic

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

12-14 years old

13 year-old Sandite-extraordinaire Carter Young is now 91-5 for the year after an impressive performance at the 2015 Flo Kickoff Classic. Twelve Sandites competed at the 2-day event which was hosted at the Tulsa Expo Square Pavilion this weekend.

The 76-pound wrestling stud started out hot with a 17-1 tech fall over Gavin Owens and a 0:57 pin of Nate Mooney before giving up a narrow 4-3 decision to Aiden Riggins of Janesville, Iowa. 

Young didn't let it get him down, however, and he rebounded with a 58 second pin of Nebraskan Bryce Jackson, then defeated Cael Keck 6-0, Jacob Salcedo 6-1, Lain Yapouijan 6-0, and Tristan Stafford 7-1 for the second-place title.

Owen Martin competed at 64 pounds and didn't place.

  • Defeated Charles Hannah (Mighty Bluebirds) by pin 0:46. 
  • Lost to Jore Volk (Pinnacle) by 16-0 tech fall.
  • Lost to Christian Forbes (RAW (Roller Academy of Wrestling)) 9-4.

15-17 years old

Noah Almy competed at 145 pounds and took 6th place.

  • Lost to Matt Liberato (Hanover Park) 6-2.
  • Defeated Nicholas Bahm (Winfield Wrestling Club) 3-2. 
  • Defeated Peyton Buzbee (Roller Academy of Wrestling) 3-1.
  • Lost to Gage Hockett (Cushing) by fall 1:56.
  • Lost to Jadon Martin (Dethrone) 5-4.

Saige Martin competed at 101 pounds and didn't place.

  • Lost to Mosha Schwartz (SOT Academy) 17-2 by tech fall.
  • Lost to Jared Campbell (Collinsville Cardinals) 2-0 by sudden victory.

10-11 years old

Clayton Giddens took 6th place at 61 pounds in the 10-11 year old division, going 3-3.

  • Lost to Dillon Campbell (Catalyst Wrestling Club) 8-1.
  • Defeated Keith Sanders (Parsons Wrestling Club) 14-0 by major decision.
  • Defeated Kody Routledge (Matrix Grappling) 4-0.
  • Defeated Reid Spurley (Sebolt Wrestling Academy) 10-5 by sudden victory.
  • Lost to Vince Bouzakis (Team Greco) 15-4 by major decision.
  • Lost to Louden Stradling (Forest Hills Central) 5-0.

Jackson Martin competed at 52 pounds and didn't place.

  • Defeated Reece Parks (Kansas Young Guns) by fall 1:03.
  • Lost to Ayden Thomas (Texas School of Wrestling) by fall 0:56.
  • Lost to Angelo Di Pol (Legends of Gold) by fall 0:21.

Michael Johnson competed at 52 pounds and didn't place.

  • Lost to Miles Anderson (Nebraska Boyz) by 14-0 major decision.
  • Defeated Tobius Kriner (Lawrence Elite Wrestling) by fall 0:52.
  • Lost to Christian Fretwell (Shawger Elite) 3-0.

Zander Grigsby competed at 55 pounds and didn't place.

  • Lost to Seth Syra (Red Cobra WA) by fall 2:39.
  • Lost to Gage Walker (Jay Wrestling Club) 6-2.

8-9 years old

Jaxon Grigsby competed at 46 pounds and didn't place.

  • Lost to Turner Ross (Texas School of Wrestling) by 9-0 major decision.
  • Defeated Mason Brayfield (Greater Heights Wrestling) 9-2.
  • Defeated Eli Gabrielson (SMWC WolfPack) 10-6.
  • Lost to Jaxon Kennedy (Yukon Youth Wrestling) by 1:43 fall.

Jaxon Trotter competed at 85 pounds and didn't place.

  • Lost to Tag DeLuca (Oregon Wrestling Academy) 5-4.
  • Defeated Carlos Cardosa by fall in 0:41.
  • Lost to Danny Zmorowski (Twinsburg Wrestling Club) 5-4.

Zane Swafford competed at 61 pounds and didn't place. 

  • Lost to Landin Lamberth (Maverick Elite Wrestling) by 11-0 major decision.
  • Defeated Cale McCurry (Terminator Wrestling) by 2:00 pin. 
  • Lost to Sean Stanton (Nebraska Boyz) by 2:36 pin.

Jace Simms competed at 61 pounds and didn't place.

  • Lost to Reed Wilson (Terminator Wrestling) 8-4.
  • Lost to Devon Miller (Ponca City) 6-1. 

#3 Charles Page upsets #1 Booker T Washington: Here's the stats

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

In case you've been living under a rock for the last 36 hours, the Sand Springs Sandites are headed to the State Championship for the first time in 49 years after a come-from-behind 30-23 win over the #1 Booker T Washington Hornets.

Passing

First-year quarterback Hunter Greathouse threw for 171 yards and 1 touchdown in his second largest output of the season, completing 7 of his 14 passes. Greathouse sits 88 of 164 for the season with 1603 yards, 16 touchdowns and only 6 interceptions.

Kasey Bales also attempted one pass that was broken up, but still sits at 2-4-0-77 for the season.

Receiving

Five Sandites registered receptions in Friday's semi-final game.

Bales led with two catches for 79 yards and 1 touchdown, putting him at 21-359 for the season and 4 touchdowns. 

Lane Lettich pulled in a season-long pass for 49 yards. He sits at 12-231 and 2 touchdowns on the season.

Trace Fleischman caught two passes for 25 yards, putting him at 32-718 on the season with 6 touchdowns.

Jake Ward caught a season-long 13-yard pass bringing him to 5-47 this year.

Ty Fain caught a 5-yard pass putting him at 10-158 and 1 touchdown for the season.

Rushing

Lane Lettich had his second-best night of the year, entering the game 69-yards short of a 1000-yard season rushing. He broke through that barrier on his first play of the night with a season-best 70 yard carry and went on carry 13 times for 128 yards and 1 touchdown. He'll be going into the Championship 207-1059 with 17 touchdowns.

Payton Scott was 6-39 bringing him just shy of 900 for the season. Scott will need a big night against Bixby if he hopes to break 1000 as he currently sits 112-861 with 8 touchdowns.

 Trace Fleischman picked up a single yard on a direct snap. He sits 19-112 with 1 touchdown.

Kasey Bales was hit hard immediately upon reception of a lateral pitch and stuck with a 10 yard loss for the night. Seasonally, he sits 5-12.

Hunter Greathouse was pushed to negative yardage for the season, suffering several sacks by the #2 defense in the state. Despite a few QB sneaks for 2 touchdowns, he ultimately ended up 9-(-13) against Booker T and is 62-(-9) on the season with 5 total touchdowns.

Kicking

After quite a few kicker switch-ups at the beginning of the season, Kasey Bales has had the position completely on lock for the last several games. He was 3/4 on extra points and sank a 25 yard field goal, but missed a 32. He punted 3 times for an average of 26 yards and kicked off 6 times for an average of 40.

For the season, Bales is 33/38 on PATs and 3/4 on field goals with a long of 36. He averages 25 yards over his 28 punts with a long of 57. He's kicked off 32 times for an average of 39.9 with 1 touchback.

Kick Returns

Trace Fleischman returned four kickoffs for 57 yards. He's 13-341 on the season with a long of 57. 

Parker Taylor picked up 10 yards on a punt return and is 8-151 for the season with 1 touchdown and a long of 62.

Tackles

For the third time this season, Cole Dixon registered 11 tackles for a team leading 89 total. 14 of those are tackles for loss totaling 52 yards and 2 are sacks for 10 yards.

Jacob Taber was not far behind with 8 tackles bringing his total to 76. 10 were for losses totaling 36 yards and 1 was a 1 yard sack.

  • Jaxon Starling had 6 tackles, 3 for loss of 9, 1 sack for 5 yards. (47 tackles, 21 for loss of 115, 9 sacks for 81).
  • Delvin Jordan had 6 tackles, 1 for loss of 4. (74 tackles, 15 for loss of 63, 7 sacks for 31).
  • Malachi Walton had 3 tackles, 1 for loss of 3. (24 tackles, 1 for loss of 3).
  • Cruz Desjarlais had 3 tackles. (32 tackles, 1 for loss of 3).
  • Parker Taylor had 3 tackles. (37 tackles).
  • Jason Cooper had 3 tackels. (31 tackles).
  • Gage Fain had 2 tackles. (28 tackles, 6 for loss of 13, 1 sack for 5).
  • Trace Fleischman had 2 tackles. (8 tackles).
  • Payton Scott had 1 tackle. 
  • Treyce Tolbert had 1 tackle. (23 tackles, 1 sack for loss of 6).
  • Josh Taber had 1 tackle. (4 tackles. 

Other Defense

Malachi Walton caught his first interception of the season, the only one of the night, on the final play of the game to seal the Sandites' ticket to the State Championship.

Jacob Taber scored his first pass breakup of the season.

Jacob Taber and Jaxon Starling both forced their first fumbles of the season. Delvin Jordan recovered one of them, his fourth recovery of the season. 

Click to Enlarge

Read the full story here.

http://www.sanditepride.com/football/151120bookert

 

Sandites upset #1 Booker T Washington in Semi-Finals

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

For the first time since 1966, the Sand Springs Sandites are headed to the state championship after a 30-23 come-from-behind win over the #1 previously undefeated Booker T Washington Hornets.

It was a rough start to the game as the Hornets complete a 14 play, 61 yard drive that consumed more than half the clock to emerge at a 7-0 lead off a 1-yard QB Keeper by Dakari Willis with 5:00 left in the first.

It looked like the Sandites were ready for a major offensive explosion as Lane Lettich rushed 70 yards on the opening play of the drive to give Sand Springs first and goal at the Hornet 7.

Unfortunately for the underdogs, a strong defensive rally pushed them back to fourth and 8 and they had to settle for a 25 yard field goal by junior Kasey Bales.

The Hornets came right back for another touchdown drive, most of the gains made by Oklahoma State-commit Justice Hill, and capped it off with a 13 yard keeper.

A daunting 14-3 score with 7.5 seconds left in the first looked like the Hornets might run away with this game, especially after the next Sandite drive fell flat. Bales was forced to punt into a headwind and the Hornets ended up with great field position at the Hornet 38 yard-line.

Once again the Hornets were off to a bold start, driving to the 25 before the infamous Sandite secondary put up a fourth and 2 stop thanks to Delvin Jordan and Cole Dixon combining for a tackle on Willis.

The Defense had found their feet, but the Offense was still stumbling, getting pushed back to fourth and 14 and had to punt once again.

They wouldn’t get to rest for long, however. Two plays into the corresponding Booker T drive, Jaxon Starling collided with Hill to knock the ball loose where it was recovered by Jordan.

Three plays later, Hunter Greathouse connected with Bales for a 58 yard touchdown pass, then the all-purpose Bales kicked his own PAT and followed it up with a 40 yard kickoff.

The Hornets’ Zach Haney sent home a 33 yard field goal for a 16-10 advantage, but the Sandites had found their momentum.

Booker T was looking to maintain their lead, however, and drove 51 yards for another Willis touchdown and a 23-10 lead mid-way through the third.

Finally, it was Sand Springs’s time to shine. After getting pushed back to third and 22, Greathouse connected with Bales for fourth and short. The quarterback piled behind his sturdy O-line and kept the drive alive.

A pass interference call against the Hornets gave Sand Springs another first down, then it was time for some trick plays. Trace Fleischman reversed a lateral back to Greathouse who launched it downfield to Lettich for first and goal at the 2.

The O-line piled Greathouse in to narrow the score to 23-16, but Bales’s PAT was blocked.

Sand Springs took possession once again toward the top of the fourth, then Payton Scott pulled out all the stops, dragging a defender 10 yards for a 27 yard rush.

A series of pass interference calls on Booker T helped Sand Springs reach the 14 where Lettich scored and Bales kicked the PAT to tie the game.

The corresponding kickoff was fumbled and recovered by Sand Springs at the Hornet 24, but the challengers failed to capitalize on it as a 32 yard field goal attempt fell short.

The Hornets were equally incapable of moving the ball and Sand Springs got the punt in Hornet territory.

This time, the Sandites wouldn’t fail. Lettich picked up an 18 yard rush, then Greathouse connected with Fleischman for 22. On fourth and 1, Greathouse was once again piled into the endzone and for the first time since week 9, the Sandites led the Hornets.

Bales sent the kickoff deep into Hornet territory and Dixon stopped the return at the Hornet 19. Booker T was resilient, however, and drove to the Sandite 40.

In Hollywood fashion, Malachi Walton picked off a 30 yard pass attempt that could have forced overtime to end the game.

It was the perfect ending to a glorious night that will go down in the Sandite history books as the biggest game in 49 years.

 Sand Springs won't know their opponent till Bixby and Bartlesville battle it out Saturday at 1pm at Owasso High School. 

 

Three Sandites take gold in Broken Arrow

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The Sand Springs junior high wrestling team traveled to Broken Arrow this weekend to compete in the 19th annual Joe Zamora/Skyler Holman Open. Carter Young, Irwin Portillo, and Tyler Ash each took first place and eight other wrestlers placed fourth or higher. 

6th/7th 80A: Carter Young, 1st Place

  • defeated Zach Prince (Miami) 15-0 tech fall
  • defeated Casey Goss (Broken Arrow) 1:41 fall
  • defeated Cooper Evans (Bristow) 16-1 tech fall

6th/7th 80B: Kaden "KJ" Clark, 2nd place

  • defeated Hayden Rogers (Bartlesville) 0:40 fall
  • defeated Kolton Berry (Fort Gibson) 1:03 fall
  • lost to James Hunter (Muskogee) 3:50 fall

6th/7th 89B: Cody Spaan, 3rd Place

  • lost to Walker Hill (Broken Arrow) 1-0 decision
  • defeated Johan Abercrombie (Broken Arrow) 0:50 fall
  • defeated Beau Hansen (Cascia Hall) 0:34 fall
  • defeated Tanner Cousatte (Pryor) 12-0 major decision

6th/7th 98B: Seth Carson, DNP

  • lost to Blake Salt (Oologah) 1:28 fall
  • lost to Dalton Allen (Broken Arrow) 5-3 decision

6th/7th 132: Santana Naugle, 2nd Place

  • defeated Logan Blood (Bartlesville) 0:57 fall
  • lost to Trey Kitchel (Bartlesville) 0:18 fall

6th/7th 162: Tegen Campbell, 2nd Place

  • defeated Jorey Hollenback (Jay) 10-1 major decision
  • lost to Garrett Graham (Sallisaw) 7-2 decision

Junior High 98A: Hunter Carter, DNP

  • lost to David Boucher (Bartlesville) 1:36 fall
  • defeated Blake Stone (Claremore) 2:58 fall
  • defeated Ethan Strain (Locust Grove) 6-2 decision
  • lost to David Boucher (Bartlesville) 10-1 major decision

Junior High 98B: Russell McCaskey, DNP

  • lost to Kolby Encinas (Pryor) 0:55 fall
  • lost to DJ Anderson (Cascia Hall) forfeit

Junior High 106A: Hunter Hilger, DNP

  • lost to Payton Messenger (Broken Arrow) 0:20 fall
  • lost to Jesse Collinsworth (Coweta) 0:55 fall

Junior High 106B: Chris Jones, DNP

  • lost to Chandler Wing (Fort Gibson) 0:45 fall
  • lost to Dathan Leach (Salina) 6-0 decision

Junior High 106B: Kyler Clark, DNP

  • lost to Hunter Scott (Broken Arrow) 8-1 decision
  • defeated Drew Miller (Broken Arrow) 13-0 major decision
  • defeated Chandler Wing (Fort Gibson) 12-5 decision
  • lost to Hunter Scott (Broken Arrow) 11-6 decision

Junior High 113A: Irwin Portillo, 1st Place

  • defeated Stephen Alcorn (Broken Arrow) 2:51 fall
  • defeated Garrett Weis (Jenks) 18-3 tech fall
  • defeated Caleb Tanner-Cook (Cardinal Wrestling Club) 3:59 fall

Junior High 113A: Colton Roberts, 4th Place

  • lost to Austin Whitaker (Salina) 1:39 fall
  • defeated Isaac Castleberry (Broken Arrow) 1:39 fall
  • defeated Foster Thaxton (Owasso) 10-2 major decision
  • defeated Garrett Weis (Jenks) 0:27 fall
  • lost to Bryce Mattida (Broken Arrow) 1:45 fall

Junior High 113B: Jared Jenkins, DNP

  • lost to Braydon Miller (Broken Arrow) 0:48 fall
  • lost to Simon Young (Sapulpa) 6-0 decision

Junior High 113B: Jacob Reed, DNP

  • lost to Trenton West (Broken Arrow) 0:59 fall
  • lost to Jace Getz (Grove) 10-2 major decision

Junior High 120A: Tyler Ash, 1st Place

  • defeated Alex Andazola (Broken Arrow) 0:43 fall
  • defeated Enrique Hernandez (Owasso) 0:31 fall
  • defeated Christian Webb (Muskogee) 1:12 fall
  • defeated Ty Rozell (Broken Arrow) 9-0 major decision

Junior High 120A: Caleb Phillips, 3rd Place

  • defeated Matthew Skinner (McAlester) 5-3 decision
  • lost to Ty Rozell (Broken Arrow) 5-0 decision
  • defeated Austin Britt (Broken Arrow) 0:43 fall
  • defeated Christian Webb (Muskogee) 1:51 fall

Junior High 120B: Thomas Naugle, DNP

  • defeated Cameron Prieto (Jay) 11-4 decision
  • lost to Randy Mills (Muskogee) 1:31 fall
  • lost to Braden Cook (Broken Arrow) 1:47 fall

Junior High 120B: Preston Medlin, DNP

  • lost to Jordan Berryman (Muskogee) 10-3 decision
  • lost to Cameron Prieto (Jay) 8-0 major decision

Junior High 132A: Braden Dahl, DNP

  • lost to Richee Lee (Owasso) 1:26 fall
  • lost to Blake Hulland (Owasso) 7-2 decision

Junior High 132B: Hunter Lawrence, DNP

  • lost to Zach Conrad (Owasso) 15-0 tech fall
  • lost to Nathaniel Holt (Jay) 2-1 decision

Junior High 140B: David Cooper, 2nd Place

  • defeated Brandon Skaggs (Muskogee) 1:25 fall
  • defeated Wyatt Moyers (Broken Arrow) 0:51 fall
  • defeated Marchell Friday (Broken Arrow) 0:37 fall
  • lost to Zach Coy (Jay) 3:25 fall

Junior High 150: Riley Magee, DNP

  • defeated Logan Sams (Claremore) 2:31 fall
  • lost to Skyler Murphy (Bristow) 1:46 fall
  • defeated Dalton Rogers (Owasso) 1:26 fall
  • lost to Diego Maturino (Broken Arrow) 1:41 fall

Junior High 162B: Justin Smith, DNP

  • lost to Paxton Jenkins (Bixby) 0:44 fall
  • lost to Noah Lettich (Broken Arrow) 11-4 decision

Sandite of the Week

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  • By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief
  • Photo: Debi Ropp

In lieu of recognizing a single Sandite of the Week, we would like to recognize the entirety of the Sandite Offensive Line this week for their outstanding efforts this entire season, and the Stillwater game in particular.

Friday Night the Sand Springs football team traveled to Pioneer Stadium for their fourth-consecutive playoff appearance. Not only was it a win, but it was the biggest post-season win in 64 years since a 54-0 shutout of Poteau in 1951.

Lane Lettich and Payton Scott both rushed for over 100 yards each, and Hunter Greathouse had time and coverage to connect on all 11 of his passes for 181 yards. All of that is made possible by the outstanding offensive line. "They put in all the work, and that's where the play starts." says Greathouse. 

The Offensive line has put up some impressive stats this season, allowing less than three tackles-for-loss per game. The run game has seen an average of 4.9 yards-per-carry, and Sand Springs converted 84% of first down-attempts against Stillwater--their highest rate since week 3 against Guthrie. The team averages less than 20 lost yards per game, less than 3 fouls per game, and is 61% on fourth-down conversion. 

The usual starting lineup is 

  • Left Tackle: Andrew Biggs, senior
  • Left Guard: Zac Blake, sophomore
  • Center: Danny Ropp, junior
  • Right Guard: Harold Dodson, senior
  • Right Tackle: Lincoln Adams, junior
  • Tight End: Jake Ward, senior

Other OL players include

  • Michael Carper, junior
  • Elijah Titone, senior
  • Robert Hunter, senior
  • Ethan Hooper, sophomore
  • Blake Wadley, senior
  • Cristian Rodriguez, sophomore
  • Kobe Chen, sophomore
  • Seth Blackburn, sophomore
  • Dell Prince, sophomore

Jay Fleischman, a three year starting safety at OSU, is the special teams and OLB coach for Charles Page. 

The Sand Springs Sandites (6-4) will take on Booker T Washington (10-0) this Friday at George F. Collins Stadium in Sapulpa in the State Semi-Final playoff.

Sandites vs Hornets: Get to know your semi-finalists

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By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

There's only three games left in the race for the 2015 State Championship, and all three are rematches between District 1 rivals. 

#1 Booker T Washington (10-0, 7-0) District Champions

#3 Charles Page (6-4, 5-2) *2 Forfeitures

The week 9 opponents will get their rematch at Sapulpa's George F. Collins Stadium. The last time the two teams met was a rainy run-game with barely a hundred passing yards combined between the two teams.

Since then the Sandites squashed Stillwater 49-14 thanks to a marvelous run game that saw both Lane Lettich and Payton Scott rack up over 100 yards each, complemented by QB Hunter Greathouse's perfect night passing for 181 yards.

Meanwhile, the Hornets did nearly as much damage to Choctaw in a 47-17 rout that saw Justice Hill run up 191 yards, complemented by Dakari Willis's 11-13-134 in the air. 

While the stadium is technically neutral territory, it can be noted that Sand Springs has a long history of battling it out on the Cheiftain turf due to their long-standing rivalry with Sapulpa. 

While the hornets have a 10-win streak going into the game, the Sandites' win at Stillwater was only the second time since 1997 that they've won in the post season, and with all their starting lineup in tact, the Minutemen will be out to prove that they have what it takes to be a major contender for the first time in the current century. 

The two teams have met only 12 times till now; the Hornets lead the series 8-4.

The first time the teams met was during a mediocre 1986 season in which the Sandites went only 2-8. However, the 42-21 loss was the most points anyone had scored on the Hornets all season. 

The next meeting in 1987 saw a narrow 15-12 Sandite win on their way to the semi finals.

The Hornets walked away with the next three wins before Sand Springs managed to edge them out 15-14 in 1991 to clinch a playoff berth. 

The next year, the Hornets put the biggest beat down of the series on Sand Springs in a 48-7 rout. The most Sand Springs has ever beaten the Hornets by was 21-7 in 2012.

The highest scoring game of the series came in 2006 when the Hornets handled the Sandites 62-28.

For the current class of seniors, the series is an even split. 2012 saw a 21-7 Sandite upset at SE Williams Stadium, followed by a 42-38 home shoot out that the Sandites came out on top of. 

The Hornets walked away with the next two, however, spoiling a Sandite Halloween Senior Night in 2014 in a come-from-behind 42-35 victory, then kicking a tie-breaking field goal this year with 14 seconds left.

This will be the first time the two teams have met twice in one season. 

The pick: CPHS 35, BTW 24