Fall sports season is officially under way at Charles Page High School

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Season ticket prices have been set for Sand Springs high school athletics.

$7.00 General admission
$11.00 Reserve seating
$20.00 Student Athlete All-Sport Pass, general admission
$25.00 Student Non-Athlete All-Sport Pass, general admission
$40.00 Senior Citizen All-Sport Pass, general admission
$50.00 Season pass, home games, reserve seating
$60.00 Adult All-Sport Pass, general admission
$85.00 All-Sport Pass Package with reserved seating

Charles Page High School boasts one of the premier athletic programs in the State of Oklahoma. Fall athletics include Cross Country, Football, Fast Pitch Softball, and Volleyball.

Lady Sandite Volleyball went 24-14 last year, reaching the number thirteen ranking in Class 6A before being eliminated in the playoffs by No. 4 Edmond Santa Fe. Head Coach Janna Green was named Frontier Valley Conference Coach of the Year, junior Gloria Mutiri committed to Ohio State University, and Lee Leslie signed with Oklahoma Wesleyan University.

The Sandite Football team went 7-5 last season and attained the number one ranking in Class 6A-II before being defeated in the semifinals by the defending and eventual State Champions from Bixby. The Sandites won a 26-25 upset over then top-ranked Muskogee with a two-point conversion that made the EPSN SportsCenter number one play. Four seniors went on to play collegiate ball and three received OCA All-Star accolades.

The Lady Sandite Softball team went 30-9, placed second in the district, made the State quarterfinals and won the 6A Academic State Championship. Sydney Pennington signed with Oklahoma State University, Jessica Collins signed with Connors State College, and both made the All-State team. 

The Boys' Cross Country team won the Kiefer meet and placed second at Sapulpa. The Girls placed first at Kiefer, second at Sapulpa, and fourth in the conference. The girls team qualified for State, Aden Baughman qualified individually, and Cheyenne Walden won her fourth State Championship. Walden signed with Oklahoma State University and Alexis Davis signed with Southwestern Oklahoma State University.

Sandite of the Week: Josh Taber tears up the Bixby offense and the classroom

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By: Sandite Pride Editorial Board

Charles Page High School senior Josh Taber was selected as Sandite of the Week for his outstanding performance both on the football field and in the classroom. 

The 5'11" 160 pound defensive back and wide receiver led his team in unassisted tackles this past week in the regular season finale at Bixby and was also recently given commendation from the National Merit Scholarship Program. 

Taber hasn't spent much time in the receiver slot this season, holding four receptions for 28 yards. Last season he hauled in five passes for 58 yards and a touchdown. He seems to have found his niche in the secondary where he's sitting at 35 tackles for this season, with only three assisted. He has recorded one tackle for a loss of two yards and also holds five breakups for the season. 

Last Friday Taber recorded a career-high ten tackles, all unassisted, including the one for loss and one for no gain. All but two of his tackles stopped the ball carrier short of the first down. In the final stanza, as the Sandites definitely needed a turnover, he was stride for stride with the carrier on his last three tackles trying to wrestle the ball away. Though he wasn't able to force a fumble, he fought hard to try and give his offense another shot and played near-perfect defense. 

Taber was also one of two Charles Page High School students to receive commendation from the National Merit Scholarship Program as a result of his performance on the PSAT-National Merit Qualifying Test.

In addition to football, he is a talented athlete on both the Sandite basketball and baseball teams. He finished last spring with a .363 batting average with 34 singles, 3 doubles, 21 RBI, 31 runs, and 7 sacrifices on 102 at bats. He was 23 of 28 stealing bases. Last winter he finished the basketball season with 33 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals, and 1 block. He will likely see increased action this year as a senior.

This is his first time being named Sandite of the Week, though he has been a finalist many times. His older brother, Jacob, was also named Sandite of the Week last December, and his younger sister, Jacie, was named Sandite of the Week in August. Josh is the son of Amy and Ronnie Taber. Ronnie is a member of the Sandite football coaching staff.

SEE RELATED: Sandites of the Week for August through September
SEE RELATED: Sandite of the Week: Jacob Taber

Sandite of the Week is a weekly recognition given to any one person with significant ties to the Sand Springs community who accomplishes remarkable achievements during the Sunday through Saturday week preceding the award. Prior achievements may be noted in the article, but do not bear direct influence on the selection committee which only considers prior week accomplishments. Candidates may be nominated by anyone by emailing SanditePrideNews@gmail.com. The award is not given to anyone in consecutive weeks, but any recipient may be nominated and awarded again in the future, so long as the weeks are not consecutive. Final selection is made by a majority vote of the Sandite Pride Editorial Board.

Businesses or organizations seeking to sponsor the Sandite of the Week award may contact the above email for inquiries.

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

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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.

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.