Frontier Valley Conference Men's Basketball Standings, Week Nine

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The 2016-2017 season is well under way and the Frontier Valley Conference is as competitive as ever. Eight out of ten FVC teams are ranked within their divisions and the Union Redskins are currently the undefeated unanimous pick as the No. 1 team in the state. They are also the only remaining team undefeated in conference play. The FVC is currently ranked third out of the five 6A conferences in overall strength.

No. 1 Union (12-0, 6-0) holds the best defense in the whole state, allowing only 48 points per game, on average. They have the third-ranked offense in the conference and win by an average of 15.8 points. In the last two weeks they have topped Bishop Kelley 65-42, Owasso 62-39, and Muskogee 78-42. SMU-commit Ethan Chargois scored 22 against both Kelley and Muskogee, but sat out Owasso with a hand injury. In that game Mo Garcia stepped up to lead the team with 20 points. 

No. 9 Muskogee (8-2, 5-1) holds the second-best offense in the conference and the fourth-highest margin of victory. In the last two weeks they have topped Sand Springs 47-42 and Jenks 85-59, but were just hammered 78-42 by Union in what was expected to be a somewhat close match. Brooks Haddock has been the consistent top dog this season and posted 27 against Jenks, but could only muster a team-best 12 against the Redskins. Tyreece Berry has been back in action since the new year and led the team with 18 against Sand Springs. 

No. 13 Sapulpa (7-2, 4-1) has the top-rated offense in the conference, averaging more than 68 points per game. Both of their conference games this year have been close ones, 59-57 over Broken Arrow and 72-68 over Sand Springs. Keenan Balance led the Chieftains to a come-from-behind victory over their archrivals from Sand Springs with 23 points, closely followed by Keenan Balance with 21. Balance also posted a team-best 20 points against Broken Arrow.

No. 11 Broken Arrow (8-4, 4-2) holds the second-best offense in the conference, third in the state, allowing only 49.1 points per game for the third-best margin of victory in the FVC. The Tigers have had a tough start to 2017, falling 59-57 to Sapulpa and only topping Jenks 46-38 in a game that saw the entire starting line benched by a frustrated head coach. Make no mistake, the powerhouse program is still a solid contender for the conference title if they can over come Muskogee next week. 

No. 19 Bartlesville (6-5, 3-2) is middle of the pack both offensively and defensively, but has still managed to come out on top more often than not. The Bruins fell 76-68 to Bixby in triple overtime last week and had their game against Sapulpa canceled due to weather, but got back in the win column Tuesday with a 64-57 victory over Bishop Kelley. Barron Tanner has been the top dog in both of the last two games, scoring 23 against Bixby and 28 against Kelley. 

5A No. 14 Bishop Kelley (4-6, 2-4) has done a good job keeping up with the 6A public school competitors, but dropped both of their last two conference games. The Comets hold the fourth-best defense in the FVC, but fell 65-42 to Union and 64-57 to Bartlesville. Ryan Gendron posted 18 against Bartlesville, closely followed by Alex Woodruff with 17. 

No. 16 Owasso (7-5, 2-4) got off to a rough start with four straight losses to start the season, but have been making a solid comeback since the new year. After topping 5A No. 6 East Central (8-5) and No. 8 Booker T. Washington (9-3) to sweep the Skiatook Invitational, the Rams returned to conference play with a bang. They defeated Jenks 66-52 and Bixby 62-50, but fell 62-39 to Union. Jake Thompson posted 10 against both Jenks and Union, with 15 against Bixby. Josh Proctor led the team with 16 against Jenks and 13 against Bixby. Courtre led against Bixby with 17 and also had 12 against Jenks. 

Bixby (5-7, 2-4) won a 76-68 triple-overtime shootout with Bartlesville, but fell 76-71 to Sand Springs and 62-50 to Owasso. Will Fiser scored 17 against Bartlesville, 22 against Sand Springs, and 11 against Owasso. 

No. 18 Sand Springs (6-6, 1-5) notched their first conference win with a 76-71 performance against Bixby, but fell 47-42 to Muskogee and 72-68 to Sapulpa after leading for most of the game. The Sandites have the fourth-best offense and third-best defense in the conference. Colt Savage posted 20 against Muskogee and Sapulpa and 34 against Bixby. Jacob Garbey had 21 against Bixby and Kyle Keener had 21 against Sapulpa. 

Jenks (1-9, 0-6) is still looking for their first conference win, despite a 21-point performance from Cole Surrett against Owasso and a 17-point performance from Eli Harris against Broken Arrow. The Trojans fell 66-52 to Owasso, 85-59 to Muskogee, and 46-38 to Broken Arrow. 

Conference Strength:

1. Big Ten (51.5)
2. Central Oklahoma (48)
3. Frontier Valley (45.4)
4. Green Country (43.1)
5. All-City 32.09

FVC Leading Scorers (points-per-game)

1. Colt Savage (Sand Springs) 21.2
2. Brooks Haddock (Muskogee) 20.7
3. Keenan Balance (Sapulpa) 19.9
4. Eli Harris (Jenks) 19.7
5. Caleb Huffman (Broken Arrow) 18.9
6. Julian Smith (Sapulpa) 17.1
7. Ethan Chargois (Union) 17.1
8. Kyle Keener (Sand Springs) 16.6
9. TyReece Berry (Muskogee) 16.3
10. Josh Proctor (Owasso) 15.8

January conference schedule:
1/24 Union @ Sand Springs
1/24 Bartlesville @ Muskogee
1/24 Broken Arrow @ Owasso
1/24 Bixby @ Sapulpa
1/24 Bishop Kelley @ Jenks
1/27 Sapulpa @ Union
1/27 Muskogee @ Broken Arrow
1/27 Sand Springs @ Owasso
1/27 Jenks @ Bartlesville
1/27 Bishop Kelley @ Bixby
1/31 Bixby @ Union
1/31 Muskogee @ Bishop Kelley
1/31 Broken Arrow @ Bartlesville
1/31 Owasso @ Sapulpa
1/31 Sand Springs @ Jenks
 

No. 13 Sapulpa overcomes No. 18 Sand Springs 72-68; Kyle Keener scores 21

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

Sapulpa 72 CPHS 68

1Q Sapulpa 13-10
2Q Sand Springs 18-14
3Q Sand Springs 23-18
4Q Sapulpa 27-17

Fouls: Sand Springs 18, Sapulpa 13.
Free Throws: Sand Springs 16-of-20. Sapulpa 13-of-24.
Field Goals: Sand Springs 24-of-46. Sapulpa 22-of-41.
Three-pointers: Sand Springs 4-of-11. Sapulpa 10-of-20. 

Scoring: (Sand Springs) Keener 21, Colt Savage 21, Garbey 8, Cale Savage 6, Taber 4, Durkee 4, Golightly 3, Wash 2. (Sapulpa) Smith 23, Balance 21, Phipps 17, Hoggatt 11, Combs 2, Williams 2. 

(Sand Springs only)
Offensive Rebounds: Golightly 3, Cale Savage 2, Colt Savage 1, Durkee 1, Wash 1.
Defensive Rebounds: Colt Savage 11, Keener 6, Durkee 3, Wash 2, Cale Savage 1, Taber 1.
Steals: Keener 1.
Assists: Cale Savage 2, Wash 2, Taber 1, Keener 1.
Blocks: Keener 3, Durkee 1.
Fouls: Keener 4, Garbey 4, Wash 3, Colt Savage 2, Cale Savage 2, Durkee 1, Taber 1, Golightly 1.

The Sandites won half of the game, but they couldn't win the whole thing. Entering the fourth quarter with a 51-45 lead over their archrivals, the No. 18 ranked Charles Page High School boys basketball team (6-6) was outscored 27-17 and had victory wrestled from their grip. 

No. 13 Sapulpa (7-2) was deadly from three-point range throughout the night, and it was a series of threes in the fourth period that gave them the momentum to reclaim their lead. The Chieftains shot 50% from three-point range and 54% on field goals overall, and it was that killer accuracy that allowed them to overcome the fifth-ranked defense in Class 6A.

The game was heavily contested throughout and never slowed down for a second. The scoring snowballed as the night went on with more points being scored in each period than the one before it. 

Jacob Garbey came out with a layup on the first possession to draw first blood for the Sandites and Kyle Keener sank a free throw to make it 3-0, but Keenan Balance sank back-to-back twos to claim the first Sapulpa lead. Colt Savage tied it up on a free throw and Keener made his first field goal of the night to reclaim the advantage, but Julian Smith sank a deep three immediately after. Caleb Wash subbed in for the Sandites and scored on his first possession of the game, but Balance and Trey Phipps hit back-to-back threes to make it 13-8. Josh Taber ended the period off with a two-pointer.

The Sandites won the second quarter handily, thanks to twelve points from Keener, four from Colt Savage, and two from Cole Durkee to take a 28-27 lead into the half. The Sandites played their best period in the third, outscoring Sapulpa 23-18. Once again Garbey started off the half, and once again Sapulpa battled right back and the two teams exchanged leads.

Sand Springs took its final lead of the night with a two point basket from Colt Savage, followed by a steal and dunk from Keener to make it 43-39. Colt Savage and Peyton Golightly added three more apiece to make it 49-39, their highest lead of the evening. Smith added yet another three pointer, followed by a two from Durkee. The Sandites ended the period up 51-45, but Sapulpa finished on a strong note as Phipps went three-for-three from the charity stripe in the final second. 

Sand Springs staved off their opponents till midway through the final stanza, but Phipps and Hunter Hoggatt hit back-to-back threes to cut things to 60-59 and Smith hit a two for the lead. Garbey went one-for-two from the charity stripe to tie it back up, but Smith took the lead once again, and this time for good. Hoggatt made another three and the Sandites resorted to desperation fouls to try and win it. Smith sank five free throws in the final minute and a last second three-pointer from Cale Savage wasn't enough to overcome the deficit. 

Smith led all scorers with 23 points, followed by Keener and Balance with 21 each and Colt Savage with 20. Phipps wasn't far behind with 17 and Hoggatt had 11. Keener's 21 marked his fourth game this season leading the Sandites, and was just two points short of breaking the career-high he set a month ago against the OKC Storm. The University of Central Oklahoma committed senior is averaging just under 17 points per game this season. Colt Savage also picked up 12 rebounds for his first double-double of the season.

The Sandites will look to reclaim their winning record this weekend at the Interstate Classic in Coffeyville, Kansas and to build some momentum before taking on undefeated No. 1 Union (12-0) next Tuesday at home. Sapulpa will compete at the Shawnee Invitational this weekend before hosting unranked Bixby (5-6) next Tuesday. 

Payton Scott rushes for 3 touchdowns and 197 yards in 35-7 victory over Sapulpa

Photos: Morgan Miller

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The No.6 Charles Page High School varsity football team (2-2, 1-0) secured their first district win of the season with a dominating 35-7 victory over the No. 14 Sapulpa Chieftains (0-4, 0-1) Friday night, taking a 35-0 lead in the third quarter before their rivals got on the board.

This was the 90th year of Highway 97 Rivalry and the Sandites won their third-straight installment to bring the record to 41-45-5 with the Chieftains still leading overall. The two teams, which are separated by only a few miles of Highway 97, have met consecutively since 1930 and have hated each other ever since. 

There's been a lot of bad blood over the decades and in past years fights were notorious and security was always heavier at the Sapulpa game than any other game of the year. Even this year saw an unsportsmanlike penalty on Sapulpa for an out-of-bounds shove. The week preceding the game is known as "Sapulpa Hate Week" in Sand Springs, and both schools take their rivalry trash talk to twitter where it can get pretty heated. 

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This year, however, the two teams were able to come together in solidarity to honor a Sandite who passed away shortly before the game. Swift Myers, who graduated in May of this year, was battling his seventh bout with cancer when it took his life Friday evening. His wife, Abbi Myers, tweeted that "Swift made it clear to us before he left that when he died, he didn't want people saying he lost his battle. He beat the shit out of cancer."

After seven long bouts with the condition, Myers is finally at peace in Heaven, and for this year, the two football teams put aside their rivalry and met in the field after the game to honor and remember him. Swift's classmate America Higgins tweeted "I honestly I can't even consider Sapulpa a rival after their support they showed tonight." Even before the game, Sapulpa students were hanging banners throughout the school bearing the #SWIFTSTRONG motto, and brought those banners to the game as well. Wrestling National Champion Daton Fix posted that "Heaven gained an amazing person tonight. One of the toughest guys I will ever know. A fighter and a winner. #SwiftStrong forever."

The game itself was a dominating performance by the Sandites, who rushed for over 300 yards and held the Chieftains to a mere 12 first downs and forced six turnovers. Hunter Greathouse led the Sandites in passing with 5 completions for 76 yards and a touchdown, while Payton Scott led the ground game for both teams with 29 carries for 197 yards and 3 touchdowns. Dalton Morgan also played a significant factor on the ground with 11 carries for 100 yards. Sophomore Hayden Cramer led the defense with six solo tackles, followed by Tyler Delozier with five tackles and an interception.

Sandite Flag Crew members are painted with the Flash symbol, which has been adopted by #SWIFTSTRONG supporters.

Sapulpa quarterback Cameron Elder completed 8 of 13 passes for 53 yards and 1 interception. The ground game was fairly split between Elder and Dayton Vann with 59 yards each, but led by Marcus Henderson with 67 yards on 8 carries. Trevin Inks and Stanley White had four tackles each, and B.J. Dansby had the lone tackle-for-loss for the Chieftains.

Sapulpa got the ball to start but was held to fourth-and-two and had to punt less than two minutes into the game. The Sandites got on the board midway through the first quarter with a two-yard run from Scott to cap off a methodical 13-play, 72-yard drive. Kasey Bales kicked the extra point for a 7-0 lead. 

Sapulpa's next drive ate up the rest of the first quarter and two minutes of the second as they drove 51 yards to the Sandites' 29 before a tackle for loss by Jerry Lyons and fumbled snap forced them back to fourth and nineteen and they had to punt. Less than three minutes later, Scott pushed in yet another touchdown on a one-yard run to make it 14-0.

The Chieftains had yet another drive end without a first down after a third-and-seven pass was nearly picked off by Cody Motes, but was dropped. The punt gave Sand Springs the field at their 36 and they needed only five plays to score. Scott picked up a first down on a ten-yard run, and an offsides penalty put the Sandites at the Sapulpa 49. Greathouse pitched the ball to Scott, who reversed it back to Greathouse for a 46-yard pass to Bales who was barely stopped by Aaron Sechrist at the three-yard-line. Two plays later, Greathouse punched in the touchdown on a 1-yard sneak to make it 21-0 after the Bales kick.

Dansby got a huge kickoff return to the Sandite 38, and a 37-yard run from Henderson put the Chieftains at first-and-goal from the one-yard line. An illegal procedure on the Chieftains, followed by a sack from Gage Fain pushed Sapulpa back to the 7, and Tyler Delozier picked off a pass from Elder and returned it to the 47 before being forced out by Inks. 

Sapulpa nearly got the ball back as Greathouse nearly threw an interception in the endzone, but intended-receiver Kasey Bales managed to swat the ball away from the Chieftain defender. A few plays later, Greathouse connected from eleven yards out to Mack Thompson for the score. With 29 seconds left in the half, Bales sent in the point-after to make it 28-0.

The Sandites were only two minutes into the second half when they scored once more on a five-yard run from Scott to make it 35-0.

Sapulpa finally got on the scoreboard on the corresponding drive. Henderson picked up a fifteen-yard run, Elder connected with Dansby for thirteen yards, then went 36 yards on a keeper to score. Bobby Schmidt sent in the extra point to make it 35-7 where the score would remain for the duration.

The Sandites put together a big drive on their next possession, starting at their 15. Scott found a first down in a twelve-yard run, then Bales snagged a lateral and ran it eleven yards. A facemask penalty put the Sandites at the Sapulpa 42, and a run by Morgan took them to the 35. A handoff to Scott should have been a loss of two, but the running back was bolstered by offensive lineman Lincoln Adams who pushed it into a three yard gain and a first down.

Morgan picked up nine yards on a run and Bales hauled in a screen to put the Sandites at the 16. Morgan ran another seven yards while carrying four Sapulpa defenders before he went down, and Scott went five more for the first down at the four-yard line. Sapulpa brought the drive to an end, however, with an endzone interception by Sechrest who ran it all the way back to the Sandite 46 before being ran down by Cameron Lierly. 

The two teams exchanged possessions from there and with five minutes left, the Sandite backups went in to play. Sophomore Caden Pennington took over at quarterback, but didn't get to make any plays. Sophomore running back Garrett McCallie picked up 14 yards on 4 carries before Sapulpa put a stop to the drive and took over possession shortly before time expired.

The Chieftains are still looking for a win this season and will host No. 2 Booker T Washington (3-2, 1-0) next Friday at 7:00 p.m. The Sandites will look to improve to a winning record as they host 6A-I Yukon (0-4) in a non-district home game Friday at 7:00 p.m.

Lady Sandite Softball takes second in district after 5-2 loss to Yukon

Photo: Scott Emigh

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

For the second year in a row, the Yukon Millers (23-5, 13-1) spoiled the Sandites' run at a District Championship. The Charles Page High School varsity softball team (20-6, 11-3) hosted Yukon Thursday evening with an 11-2 district record to the Millers' 12-1. The Lady Sandites had already defeated the Millers on their home turf earlier this season, so a win at home to tie their records would have given the Sandites their first and only district title since 2012.

Last year the Sandites came into their final district game against Yukon undefeated at 13-0, having beaten the Millers 4-3 earlier in the season. That time Yukon was 12-1 and defeated the Sandites 4-0. The two teams split the district title, but Yukon claimed the number one seed on run differential. 

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Sand Springs drew first blood in the 5-2 loss with a single from junior Madelyn Blair to score Makenna Skaggs in the bottom of the third. Skaggs was running courtesy for sophomore pitcher Jacie Taber who doubled. Freshman Sabrina Usher hit a single to follow and advanced Blair to third, but the two were left stranded to end the inning 1-0.

In the top of the fifth, Mady Taylor was hit by pitch for a free base, and advanced to second on an error that allowed Jewell Lee to reach first. Taylor tied the game up as Rylee Uhr reached on an error, and Lee scored soon after on a single from Aleyah Holman. Cheyenne Factor was hit by pitch to load the bases, and all three runners scored on a double from Breley Webb. The Sandites gave up a double to Hannah Franklin and walked Janie Abrams to reload the bases, but pulled out the inning with a double play from Kimi Presnell at second to Blair at first.

The Sandite freshmen stepped up in the bottom of the sixth as Usher hit a double and scored on a double from Felicity Horn, but that would be the last run of the game. Senior Rachel Blair also hit a single in the inning, but was put out on a fielder's choice to bring the visitors in to bat. The Millers didn't land any hits in the seventh, but didn't need to. Madelyn Blair singled in the bottom of the inning, but was left stranded to end the game 5-2. 

Taber (8-4) got the loss on the mound with four walks and four hits against two strikeouts and zero earned runs. Webb picked up the win with one strikeout, two earned runs, nine hits, and two walks. 

After coming in second in the district, the Sandites will get to host their own Regional tournament beginning October 6th. Though official brackets won't be released by the OSSAA until the 28th, current district standings would have the girls playing Claremore (10-18) in the preliminary round. The tournament is double elimination, so the girls will play either or both Stillwater (19-12) and Sapulpa (7-18). Those pairings aren't final, however, as some teams still have district games left to play. Ponca City (16-14) still has three district games left and could surpass Sapulpa in the standings which would send either Ponca themselves, or Norman (13-7) to Sand Springs.

The girls will get plenty of practice in before Regionals, however, as they travel to the Northeastern State University Tournament in Tahlequah Friday and Saturday. They will take on Muskogee (7-12)  at 2:00 p.m. and Moore (20-4) at 4:45 p.m. Friday. On Saturday they will play Jay (14-13) at 2:15 p.m. and Muldrow (13-13) at 3:45 p.m., followed by bracket play. 

Lady Sandite Softball defeats Bixby 13-1 and will play District Championship Thursday

Photo: Scott Emigh

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

The Charles Page High School varsity softball team (20-5, 11-2) played a district double-header against the Bixby Lady Spartans (15-13, 10-4) Tuesday at home and split the games. After winning the first game 13-1, the Sandites couldn't bring in a run in the second game and lost 1-0. Fortunately, they only needed one win to stay alive in the race for a district title. 

The Sandites jumped on the Spartans quick and early as Oklahoma State commit Sydney Pennington drew a walk in the top of the first, reached third on a sacrifice from Jessica Collins, and scored after tagging up on a fly out by Elizabeth Luttrell. Soon after, Cameron Clemons singled to score Collins and Makenna Skaggs for the 3-0 advantage. Felicity Horn scored on a failed fielder's choice, and Sabrina Usher reached on an error to score Clemons and Kimi Presnell to cap off the inning 6-0 after being put out at second.

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Sophomore Jacie Taber doubled in the top of the second inning to score Pennington, then came home with Skaggs on a single from Horn. She batted in another pair of runs in the top of the third, scoring Pennington and Usher on a single for the 11-0 lead.

Usher hit a double to start off the fifth inning and scored on a home run from Pennington, her ninth this season.

The Spartans hit their first run of the game in the bottom of the fifth, a double from Adrianna Forbus, to score Mia Gates. It would be their only run of the game, however, and the Sandites won it 13-1 after a five-inning run-rule.

Junior pitcher Madelyn Blair (8-2) picked up her sixth straight win on the mound with only one hit and two walks against four strikeouts and one run. She also hit two singles in the game.

The second leg of the double-header was an anomaly as the Sandites were shutout for only the third time this season, despite landing five base-hits and putting ten runners on base over the course of the game. 

In the first inning, Horn reached on an error and was joined by Pennington, who walked. Both were left stranded.

The Spartans scored their first and only run of the game in the top of the second with a home run from Meredith Iden. Bixby loaded the bases from there as Forbus was hit by the pitch, Brooklyn Lemon hit a single, and Kyndal Pirtle walked to load the bases. Sophomore pitcher Jacie Taber was able to save the inning, however, striking out Teri Pogue swinging. 

Presnell was stranded on a single in the bottom of the second. Sarah Tyree was stranded after a triple in the top of the third. Blair and Taber both singled in the bottom of the fourth, but Blair was caught in a double play and Taber was stranded. Horn reached on error once again in the bottom of the fifth, and Pennington walked in the sixth.

The Sandites threatened again in the bottom of the seventh. After Clemons grounded out and Jensen Arnold struck out looking, Usher drew a walk and Horn singled. Collins was next to the plate and also singled, but Usher was caught advancing on the play and the game was brought to an end.

Taber (8-3) pitched a career-best eleven strikeouts while giving up only four hits and two walks. She averages less than one run per game with five shutouts this season. This is her third double-digit strikeout game this season.

The Sandites' 11-2 district record is surpassed only by Yukon at 12-1. However, the Sandites and Millers will play the final district match for both teams Thursday at 4:00 p.m. at the Sandite Softball Complex. Sand Springs has already defeated Yukon once this season, 9-1 at the Miller's home turf. If the girls can pull off the repeat, they will match the Millers' record and win the district on head-to-head results. 

Kyle Keener commits to University of Central Oklahoma Bronchos

By: Scott Emigh, Editor-in-Chief

Charles Page High School senior Kyle Keener is the third Sandite of his class to announce his college commitment. Keener will be playing for the NCAA Division Two University of Central Oklahoma Bronchos.

The 6'6" center has been a crucial component in the turnaround program at Sand Springs, averaging 11 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 blocks per game last season. He held a 62% field goal percentage and 77% free throw percentage over the season and posted two double-doubles with a career-high 22 points against Tulsa NOAH. He led his team in scoring four different times.

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The Bronchos compete in the NCAA Division Two Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association conference. They finished last season with a 16-14 overall record, 11-11 in conference, and 10-5 at home. They went 1-1 in last season's MIAA post-season tournament, defeating the University of Central Missouri 94-74, but falling 67-61 to Fort Hays State. The Bronchos are lead by second-year head coach Tom Hankins who spent the prior 18 years at the Division One level. He was an assistant coach for 15 years at Oral Roberts University and 3 years at Southern Illinois Carbondale. 

Other Class of 2017 college commits include: Sydney Pennington (Oklahoma State softball) and Jake Terry (Oklahoma baseball).