5th Annual Monster Ball raises $3,000 for Special Olympics; weekly sports roundup

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

Monsters, inmates, and movie characters came together for a good cause Thursday evening at the Sandite Sports Complex. The fifth-annual Monster Ball softball game raised over $3,000 for Sandite Special Olympics, and featured more Halloween-themed festivities than ever before.

The event began in 2016 when Jessica Collins, then a senior softball player and Special Olympics partner at Charles Page High School, came up with the idea. 

“She was the brainchild of this whole thing,” said Carrie Schlehuber, Director of Special Education for Sand Springs Public Schools. “Since then it’s really just been a cooperative effort between softball coaches, baseball coaches, and the Special Olympics coaches.”

This was the fifth event in six years, with a rainout in 2019. In the past it’s always been just a softball game, with dizzy bat races and the occasional home-run derby. This year, however, it was bigger than ever with a trunk-or-treat and hayrides to increase attendance and raise extra money. 

“This year Megan Elliott and Tamera Ornelas were the big organizers,” said Schlehuber. “They came up with the trunk-or-treat, the hayride, the costumed run on the bases, all those extra things we did for the kids in the community.”

The add-ons made it the most profitable fundraiser yet, but the highlight of the evening remained the slow-pitch softball game.

The game pits the Sandite softball team versus the baseball team, with all players fully costumed. The baseball team bats with their non-dominant hands, but even with that disadvantage the boys prevailed 3-0.

In the bottom of the third inning, Nathan Gibson, dressed as Mario, got the boys on the board with an RBI single to score Jacob Shields, dressed as Buzz Lightyear. Gibson came in on a single from Gage Elliott, dressed as Alan from The Hangover, then Elliott scored on a triple from Jace Arnold in a deer onesie. 

The game was the lowest-scoring in the history of the event, and the first without any home runs.

The series is now tied at 2-2 with the softball team winning the first and third years, and the baseball team winning the second year. Last year the game saw mixed rosters due to a shortage of softball players while many were quarantined.

“It’s just so huge for us,” said Schlehuber, about the community involvement. “We’re always blown away by the fact that our athletic teams, our student body, our parents, everybody is so willing to be helpful, donate money, donate time. By far, this is the biggest crowd we’ve ever had. I would say probably triple the amount of people that we’ve had in the past.”

“Every dollar that we can raise as a fundraiser is money that our Special Olympics athletes and their families don’t have to pay to go towards the State Games when we go to Stillwater in May.”

Cross Country 

The cross country season came to a close for Sand Springs, as neither the boys nor the girls teams qualified for State. 

The girls placed 14th and the boys took 13th at the OSSAA 6A-East Regional Championship at Mohawk Park, Saturday in Tulsa.

Jazmin Lopez led the girls team with a 45th place finish, running the 5K in 22:01. Freshman Gracie Gifford finished in 25:51, and Lauren Foster ran it in 26:42. The entire girls team will be back next year, with no graduating seniors. 

Senior Noah Hanlon led the boys in 45h place with a time of 18:15, followed by Alejandro Lopez in 18:43, and Dalton Wilcox in 19:07. The boys team will graduate four of their top six, opening the door for new stars in the coming season.

The State Championship will be held at Edmond Santa Fe High School on Saturday.

Softball

Six members of the Sandite fast-pitch softball team received district accolades this past week. Raegan Rector was named Defensive Player of the Year, Jolee McNally was named an All-District outfielder, and Kelsi Hilton and Lauren Hammock got nods as All-District utility players. Avery Tanner and Nataley Crawford both received honorable mentions.

Choctaw deals Sandite football team 41-28 loss

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

There’s one thing that Sand Springs and Choctaw have in common. Both teams’ coaches had to tip their hats to the other side at the end of the game.

“That’s a really good football team,”  said Sand Springs coach Bobby Klinck. “Hat’s off to them.”

“So proud of our kids for finding a way to win,” said Choctaw coach Jake Corbin, “but also hat’s off to Sand Springs, they did a great job.”

The Class 6A-II No. 2 Yellowjackets (6-2, 4-1) prevailed 41-28 at No. 4 Charles Page High School (5-3, 2-3) to retain sole ownership of the No. 2 spot in the district Friday night at Memorial Stadium, though the game was far closer than the final score indicated.

Sandite quarterback Ty Pennington found Ryan Shoemaker for an 11-yard touchdown with 4:10 left to play and the home team only trailed 34-28, then recovered an onside kick and drove to the visitors’ 39-yard line before Cameron Hunt picked off Pennington with 2:06 to play.

Possibly expecting the Yellowjackets to take victory formation, the Sandites were caught sleeping on a 61-yard scoring run from La’Trell Ray on the very next play.

Still, they didn’t give up and drove right back down to the red zone before time ran out on a fourth-down incompletion. 

“The difference between winning and losing can be just a few plays,” said Klinck. “Whether it’s blown coverage or a missed interception opportunity, those types of things. We’ve got to start making those types of plays if we’re going to get this program over the hump.”

“That’s what we try to get these kids to understand, that’s why we’re so hard on them during practice and demand excellence. Hat’s off to Choctaw, really good football team, but I like my team.”

Sand Springs did make several big plays, including a fumble recovery from Landon Hendricks on a bad punt snap that set up Ty Pennington for a 3-yard touchdown run late in the first half.

Ryder Barnes recovered the onside kick late in the fourth that also gave the home team a huge opportunity, and Pennington didn’t waste any opportunity.

The senior record-breaking quarterback was 19-of-31 passing on the night with 272 yards, and even strung together nine-straight completions late in the game with 189 yard in the fourth quarter. 

All while being mercilessly pursued by the heavily recruited DeSean Brown, who sacked Pennington four times for 37 yards. 

“He’s an absolute stud,” Corbin said of the Sandite QB. “He’s just a tough kid, throws really accurate balls. He plays tough as nails. He can barely walk at the end and he’s still standing in there firing off, running it. I definitely shook his hand after the game and wanted to tell him what a great job he did. He’s a super tough kid.”

Corbin gave credit to the entire Sand Springs operation for creating a hostile road environment.

“They’ve got tough, hard-nosed kids like us that just keep battling. We knew it would be an absolute battle on the road and a great atmosphere. It’s a cool place to play when you’re not the opponent. We knew it’d be a big-time game and we knew that they were a really good team, a really talented team, and you know we had to play well for 48 minutes. Obviously we did. It came down to the last couple of plays to be able to do it.”

Choctaw was paced offensively by quarterback Steele Wasel, who was 16-of-29 passing for 215 yards and two touchdowns, while Ray had 11 carries for 122 yards and two scores.

Both teams will wrap up the season as heavy favorites against Bartlesville and Putnam City West in the coming weeks. 

“We still control our own destiny,” said Klinck. “That’s what I tell these kids. It’s okay to be disappointed. Last week we got rolled at Bixby. I could tell the kids were disappointed. That’s what you want, so I’m glad about that. We’ve got two weeks to get a lot better. I do feel we’re going to be a dangerous football team when it comes time for the playoffs.”

Sandite Football hosts Choctaw Friday in pivotal district matchup

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If you can only make it to one Sand Springs football game this season, this Friday is the one you don’t want to miss. No. 4 Charles Page High School (5-2, 2-2) hosts No. 2 Choctaw (5-2, 3-1) Friday at 7:00 p.m. at Memorial Stadium, and the outcome could be the difference between fourth and second place in the district.

If Sand Springs beats Choctaw, it’ll force a three-way tie for second place behind Bixby. In such an event, at the end of the season, it’ll come down to district point differential to settle things between the Sandites, Yellowjackets, and Booker T. Washington Hornets. That’s a difference between a first-round playoff game against the District 1 Champions, and a home game against the No. 3 team in District 1.

The Game

Tickets for the game are $7 for adults, $5 for students, and $10 for reserved seating. Memorial Stadium is located at 600 N. Adams Road on the campus of CPHS.

Sand Springs

The Sandites are in their second year under Head Coach Bobby Klinck, who holds an all-time coaching record of 25-19. While Sand Springs was a perennial playoff contender from 2012 to 2017, they hit a rough patch of three losing seasons before Klinck’s arrival spurred them from 2-8 in 2019 to 7-5 last year.

In the season opener they beat archrival Sapulpa 53-26, then they easily handled Bishop Kelley 34-13. Against defending Arkansas 4A State Champion Shiloh Christian they had to come from behind in a 40-33 shootout. In district action they have won 30-13 against Ponca City and 48-34 against Muskogee before falling 37-32 to Booker T. Washington and 58-14 to Bixby.

“We’re going to reset this,” said Klinck after Friday’s loss. “We’re going to give the kids some time, we’ll see them on Sunday. Let them kind of recover. Then we’re going to get right back at it. We’ll put it to bed, make corrections, and then we’ll come up with a brand new game plan and we’re gonna see what happens.”

“It’ll be a measuring stick for our program to see how we respond to something like this” said Klinck.

Players to Watch

Ty Pennington (Sr. QB) is 109-175-1535-1 passing with 17 touchdowns, and is 90-335 rushing with six TDs. He has over 5,000 passing yards in his career and holds the school record.

Blake Jones (Sr. RB) is 108-746 rushing with seven touchdowns but was injured against Booker T. Washington and his status is unknown going into Friday’s game.

Brody Rutledge (Jr. WR) is 2-3-49-0 passing with two touchdowns and 26-413 receiving with three TDs.

Keaton Campbell (Sr. WR) is 29-373 receiving with six touchdowns and averages 22.8 yards per kick return.

Jacob Blevins (Jr. WR) is 36-528 receiving with five TDs and averages 19 yards per kick return.

Ryan Shoemaker (Sr. TE) is 14-153 receiving with four TDs.

Jabe Schlehuber averages 38.9 yards per kick return with a school record-setting 99-yard TD.

Landon Hendricks (Sr. DE) has 46 tackles, 14 for loss, 7 sacks, 5 pass breakups, 1 fumble recovery, 4 forced fumbles, a safety, and a blocked PAT.

Brooks Dudley (Sr. LB) has 60 tackles, 3.5 for loss, and 1.5 sacks.

Gabe Brown has 38 tackles, 4 for loss, 2.5 sacks, 1 pass breakup, and a 75-yard scoop and score.

Conner Light has 45 tackles, 4 for loss, 1 pass breakup, and 1 forced fumble.

Drake Fain has 62 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 pass breakup, two fumble recoveries, and a 13-yard scoop and score.

Ryder Barnes has 34 tackles, 0.5 for loss, two interceptions, 4 pass breakups, and 1 fumble recovery.

Logan Wolfe (Jr. K) is 24-of-29 on PATs and 2-of-2 on field goals with a long of 34 yards.

Choctaw

The Yellowjackets are in their fifth season under Head Coach Jake Corbin, who holds an all-time coaching record of 37-30 and a record of 27-18 at Choctaw. He previously went 2-7 at Sapulpa and 6-5 at Del City in one-year stints.

Choctaw has put together back-to-back winning seasons with playoff appearances, and made it as far as the State finals last year. Coming into the season, the Yellowjackets were considered by many to be the biggest threat to Bixby’s reign after close losses of 24-13 in last year’s regular season and 17-14 in the championship.

Choctaw started strong with wins of 66-0 and 63-6 against Beacon Hill (1-5), and Springdale (1-6), but they suffered their first loss 36-29 at Dallas Jesuit (6-1). They got back on track with a huge 29-20 win over Booker T. Washington (6-1), then earned a 36-0 shutout against Ponca City (3-4). The much-anticipated rematch with Bixby was nothing like anyone expected, however, as the Spartans decimated the Yellowjackets 70-7 on statewide television. Choctaw got back on track with a 49-32 win at Muskogee (2-5) last week.

Players to Watch

Three-star senior DL DeSean Brown (6’3”, 230) has offers from over a dozen D1 programs, including Oregon, Michigan, Nebraska, Indiana, Missouri, and most of the Big 12. The 247 Sports Crystal Ball projects him as a likely Oklahoma State commit.

Three-star senior IOL Cade McConnell (6’5”, 290) is committed to Texas Christian University.

Junior quarterback Steele Wasel has passed for over 1,000 yards and 17 TDs this year, including a 6-9-124-0, 2 TD performance against Muskogee last week. He recently received an offer from Virginia Tech.

Junior running back La’Trell Ray put up 207 yards and two touchdowns against Muskogee last week.

The Series

The Yellowjackets lead the all-time series 5-2 and have won the last three consecutive meetings. Choctaw’s biggest win was a 37-0 shutout in 2000, while the Sandites’ biggest win was 29-6 in 2001.

The home team has only failed to win one time in the history of the series, a 21-20 Yellowjacket upset in 2017 at Memorial Stadium.

Coach Corbin is 2-1 against the Sandites in his career, losing his one Highway 97 Rivalry game, but winning both meetings as the Choctaw lead man.

1992: Choctaw 21-14 (A).
1993: Sand Springs 31-18 (H).
2000: Choctaw 37-0 (A).
2001: Sand Springs 29-6 (H).
2016: Choctaw 45-41 (A).
2017: Choctaw 21-20 (H).
2020: Choctaw 34-9 (A).

Sand Springs Sports Roundup: Mack Taylor and Parker Haling take fourth at Skiatook tournament

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

Cross Country

The Sandites got their first taste of the postseason Tuesday at the Frontier Valley Conference Meet in Bartlesville. The girls didn’t have a full lineup, but the varsity boys played eighth and the junior high boys placed seventh.

Jazmin Lopez led the varsity girls with a 5K time of 24:32 for 37th place. Alejandro Lopez led the varsity boys in 19:15 for 30th place, closely followed by Noah Hanlon in 19:22 for 33rd. 

Chloe Grona led the junior high girls with an 11:57 two-mile run for fourth place. Taigh Wright led the junior high boys with a time of 11:39 for 13th. 

The varsity teams will return to action Saturday, October 23rd at Mohawk Park in the 6A-East Regional.

Fishing

Sandite duo Mack Taylor and Parker Haling placed fourth at the Oklahoma BASS Nation trail event on Lake Skiatook Saturday, catching three fish totaling 6.29 pounds. On Sunday they caught one fish weighing 1.19 pounds for 37th place. 

Standings have not been updated with this weekend’s results yet, but the duo should rank among the top 10 in the state. The OBN season will take a winter break and return to action April 2nd at Lake Tenkiller.

Softball

The Charles Page High School softball team recently ended the season with an 18-15 record as Regional runners-up. 

Despite not advancing to the State tournament, the Sandites showed flashes of brilliance this year, including wins over Edmond Memorial and El Reno, who did go to State. They pitched three shutouts and won seven games by run rule.

Lauren Hammock led the team in batting average (.446), on-base percentage (.532), and hits (41). Kelsi Hilton batted .413 and led the team in slugging (.543) with a team-best four triples and 30 RBI. Raegan Rector led the team in doubles (11) and Jolee McNally led in runs (36).

Rector led the team in put-outs with 183, and Avery Tanner led in assists with 66. Rector turned 14 double plays and Tanner had 12. Rector was also among the most efficient fielders, holding a .995 fielding percentage on 204 opportunities.

Hilton was the team’s ace pitcher this season, collecting a 10-6 record with a 4.5 ERA, 1.61 WHIP, and a team-high 46 strikeouts. Nataley Crawford went 5-6 in the circle with a 4.2 ERA, 1.65 WHIP, and 42 strikeouts.

The Sandites will graduate five seniors this year: Tanner, McNally, Hammock, Rector, and Taylor Skipper.

Volleyball

Sandite Volleyball wrapped up its season with a 14-20 record, going 2-6 in Frontier Valley Conference action, and winning its home tournament.

The girls played a tougher schedule than they have in the past few years, competing at several A-league tournaments, and 12 of their 20 losses came at the hands of eventual State Qualifiers. 

Payton Robbins led the offense with 259 kills, followed by Kasidy Holland with 204, Layla Lenex with 192, and Jacelyn Smith with 147. Robbins also led the team in aces with 49, followed by Charley Fahland with 36 and Smith with 34. 

Lenex led the team in blocks with 64, Robbins had 31, and Smith had 29. Fahland had a team-high 353 digs, Robbins had 265, and Teyha Johnson had 217. Johnson handled most of the setting, recording 689 assists.

Sand Springs will graduate Smith, Holland, Fahland, and Johnson this year.

Sand Springs Football falls 58-14 to No. 1 Bixby

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

It’s hard to look for a silver lining in a 58-14 loss, but when your opponent is Bixby High School, you have to take what you can get.

The No. 1 Spartans (7-0, 4-0) won their 43rd consecutive game, a streak which includes three State Championships, and their eighth consecutive meeting with No. 4 Charles Page (5-2, 2-2) Thursday night at Spartan Stadium.

The Sandites held Bixby to an unusually low 9-0 lead after the first quarter, but the home team soon hit the gas for a 30-0 halftime advantage and never looked back.

“The biggest thing is that we didn’t give up in the second half,” said Sandites head coach Bobby Klinck. “I told them ‘hey I want it 0-0 this half, let’s see what happens.’ You go by that, it’s 28-14, so I was proud of our guys for not giving up.”

“This is Coach (Loren) Montgomery’s 12th season here so their culture is pretty ingrained and that’s what we’re trying to do,” added Klinck. Montgomery, a Charles Page alumnus, earned his 100th win as the Spartans’ head coach. 

Bixby outgained Sand Springs 555 yards to 81, forced ten punts, got a turnover on downs, sacked Ty Pennington five times, and totaled 16 tackles for loss.

“They were definitely more physical than us,” said Klinck. “That comes with off-season weight room stuff. We’ve just got to really grind and get into that to where we’re not missing weeks during the summer. That’s got to be our culture.”

Bixby has out-physicaled everyone they’ve played this year, including No. 2 Choctaw who they beat 70-7 the week prior. The Sandite defense actually held up well, considering their world-class opponent. 

Sand Springs forced one punt and three turnovers on downs, and got two takeaways deep in their own territory. Ryder Barnes picked off Spartan senior quarterback Christian Burke on Bixby’s first possession, and Trevor Stone recovered a fumble on the Spartans’ last possession. 

“I think that in the first quarter we showed some fight,” said Klinck. “Defensively we showed some fight. We kind of got off to a rocky start offensively, which hasn’t happened all year so that was pretty surprising.”

A quick three-and-out ended in a punt snap out the back of the end zone for a safety, followed by five more Sandite punts before they successfully moved the chains.

“I thought we had some good matchups,” said Klinck. “So we just need to watch the tape and see where we can get our playmakers in spots to get the ball. Because that’s what Bixby does. They’ve got some pretty good playmakers and do an unbelievable job of getting it to them in space.”

The Sandite defense matched up well against a loaded Spartan backfield, holding Bixby to a season-low 4.8 yards per carry.

“That’s kind of our staple here that we’re going to defend the run,” said Klinck. “We’ve just got to do a better job of pursuing the ball. You got guys like the Presley kid, I mean he’s going to OSU for a reason. When they put him in positions to make plays then that’s all about pursuit and effort and we’ve got to try to get that guy down.”

Oklahoma State-committed senior Braylin Presley accounted for 151 yards receiving and 51 yards rushing with four total touchdowns. Burke passed for 326 yards and four touchdowns against the Sandites.

Pennington passed 14-of-28 for 106 yards and two touchdowns for the Sandites, with both scoring throws going to Keaton Cambell, who was 6-82 receiving.

“I was proud of our guys’ fight,” said Klinck. “We’re a better team than that. That’s a really good football team, they’ve got some really good players. They’re well coached. But we’re better than that. I’m proud of our guys for the most part. We’ve just got to become more physical.”

“We’re going to reset this, we’re going to give the kids some time, we’ll see them on Sunday.  Let them kind of recover. Then we’re going to get right back at it. We’ll put it to bed, make corrections, and then we’ll come up with a brand new game plan and we’re gonna see what happens.”

The Sandites have one more big test in the regular season when they host No. 2 Choctaw (5-2, 3-1) Friday at 7:00 p.m. 

“It’ll be a measuring stick for our program to see how we respond to something like this” said Klinck.

Sand Springs Football Preview: Looking to Topple Bixby

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Throwback file: Sand Springs packed Union-Tuttle Stadium at the 2015 State Championship game vs. Bixby.

This Thursday marks a pivotal game in the trajectory of Sandite Football in a lot of ways.

If Class 6A-II No. 5 ranked Charles Page High School (5-1, 2-1) pulls off an upset of No. 1 Bixby (6-0, 3-0), it’ll without a doubt be the biggest win for the program since the 1966 State Championship. And although it won’t come with a gold ball, such a win could even be considered of far more importance to the program.

Even if they don’t win, if they’re at least competitive, it’ll show everyone around the state that this year’s Sandites are for real.

The Spartans aren’t just another top-ranked divisional program. They’re elite. Nationally elite. Bixby has won 42 consecutive games, the second-longest streak in Oklahoma history, and the fourth-longest active streak in America. Last week they rolled over No. 2 Choctaw 70-7 on statewide television to improve to the No. 20 ranking in the country according to MaxPreps.

This game will also be on statewide television, broadcast by Yurview on Cox Channel 3. To say that Sand Springs isn’t supposed to win would be an understatement. After the beating that Bixby put on Choctaw in a rematch of their last year’s State Championship, few even expect the Sandites to be competitive.

Few outside of Sand Springs, anyways.

But Bixby’s lofty resume won’t be intimidating the Sandites.

“We’re going to show up,” Sand Springs head coach Bobby Klinck said in a Sunday interview. “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.”

Last year the Sandites lost 51-20 to the Spartans, after getting routed 49-0 by the Booker T. Washington Hornets the week prior. This year they held their own against the Hornets and only lost 37-32.

Of course, the law of transitive property doesn’t always apply in football, but if the Sandites play Bixby as hard as they played the Hornets, then the Spartans could have their hands full.

“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,” said Klinck. “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.”

The Game

Spartan Stadium (Lee Snider Field) - Capacity 5,800, is located at 601 S. Riverview Drive in Bixby. Tickets are $7.00 for adults and $5.00 for students and can be purchased at this link.

Sand Springs

The Sandites saw their five-game undefeated streak snapped last week against Booker T. Washington but they’re still very much in the hunt this year, and could force a three-way tie for first place in the district with an upset of the Spartans.

The Sandites are in their second year under Head Coach Bobby Klinck, who holds an all-time coaching record of 25-18. While Sand Springs was a perennial playoff contender from 2012 to 2017, they hit a rough patch of three losing seasons before Klinck’s arrival spurred them from 2-8 in 2019 to 7-5 last year.

In the season opener they beat archrival Sapulpa 53-26, then they easily handled Bishop Kelley 34-13. Against defending Arkansas 4A State Champion Shiloh Christian they had to come from behind in a 40-33 shootout. In district action they have won 30-13 against Ponca City and 48-34 against Muskogee before falling to the Hornets.

Players to Watch

Ty Pennington (Sr. QB) is 95-147-1437-1 passing with 15 touchdowns, and is 84-335 rushing with six TDs. He has over 5,000 passing yards in his career and holds the school record.

Blake Jones (Sr. RB) is 108-746 rushing with seven touchdowns but was injured against Booker T. Washington and his status is unknown going into Thursday’s game. Backup Kenneth Page was 12-49 with one TD in relief.

Brody Rutledge (Jr. WR) is 2-3-49-0 passing with two touchdowns and 23-413 receiving with three TDs.

Keaton Campbell (Sr. WR) is 23-291 receiving with four touchdowns and averages 22.8 yards per kick return.

Jacob Blevins (Sr. WR) is 32-511 receiving with five TDs and averages 19 yards per kick return.

Ryan Shoemaker (Sr. TE) is 13-154 receiving with four TDs.

Jabe Schlehuber averages 45 yards per kick return with a school record-setting 99-yard TD.

Landon Hendricks (Sr. DE) has 43 tackles, 12 for loss, 6 sacks, 5 pass breakups, 1 fumble recovery, 3 forced fumbles, a safety, and a blocked PAT.

Brooks Dudley (Sr. LB) has 48 tackles, 3.5 for loss, and 1.5 sacks.

Gabe Brown has 35 tackles, 4 for loss, 2.5 sacks, and a 75-yard scoop and score.

Conner Light has 38 tackles, 4 for loss, 1 pass breakup, and 1 forced fumble.

Drake Fain has 53 tackles, 1 for loss, 1 pass breakup, two fumble recoveries, and a 13-yard scoop and score.

Ryder Barnes has 29 tackles, 0.5 for loss, one interception, 4 pass breakups, and 1 fumble recovery.

Logan Wolfe (Jr. K) is 22-of-27 on PATs and 2-of-2 on field goals with a long of 34 yards.

Bixby

Bixby’s 42-game win streak includes three consecutive State Championships, six overall, and six of the last seven since the 6A split. Since their 2018 season-opening loss to Jenks, they have recorded nine shutouts and have scored 50+ points on 23 occasions. They have scored 70+ points on nine occasions, including three in a row this year.

The Spartans opened the year 69-14 against Mansfield Timberview, then won 23-15 at Jenks, 42-14 against Stillwater, 71-0 at Bartlesville, 81-6 at Putnam City West, and 70-7 at Choctaw. 12th-year head coach Loren Montgomery, a Sand Springs alumni, holds a career record of 99-39 at Bixby.

Players to Watch

Christian Burke (Sr. QB) is 97-145-1409-2 passing with 18 TDs.

Conner Kirby (Jr. QB/LB) is 6-9-61-0 passing, 56-355 rushing for 10 TDs, and 1-18 receiving. He also has 10 tackles and two two-point conversions.

Oklahoma State University-commit Braylin Presley (Sr. RB) is 53-616 rushing with 9 TDs and 30-362 receiving with 3 TDs.

Zach Blankenship (Sr. RB) is 31-199 rushing with 5 TDs and 3-60 receiving with 1 TD.

Preston Solomon (Sr. WR) is 7-268 receiving with 2 TDs.

University of Oklahoma commit Luke Hasz (Jr. TE) is 18-229 receiving with 1 TD.

Jack Puckett (Sr. LB) has 53 tackles, 9 for loss, 6 sacks, 1 fumble recovery, 2 forced fumbles,

Connor Stacy (Sr. LB) has 38 tackles, 8 for loss, 3 sacks, 1 interception,

Miles Hill (Sr. LB) has 32 tackles, 14 for loss, 5.5 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries (one for a touchdown), and 1 forced fumble.

Connor Nolan (Sr. K) is 38-of-41 on PATs and 2-of-2 on field goals with a long of 37.

The Series

The Spartans lead the series 19-12, and have won the last seven consecutive meetings. At the beginning of the 6A split, the two teams met in the playoffs for three-straight years. Bixby beat the Sandites in the 2014 and 2016 semifinals. The Sandites shut out Bixby 20-0 in the 2015 regular season, but the Spartans got revenge 38-28 in the State Championship.

Bixby’s current seven-game streak is the longest win streak in series history. Sand Springs has won three in a row on two separate occasions. Sand Springs’s biggest win was 33-7 in 1994, and Bixby’s was 75-0 in 2020. The lowest-scoring game was a 5-3 Sandite win in 1984, and the highest-scoring game was a 48-35 Spartan win in 2010.

1922: Bixby 19-14.
1926: Sand Springs 30-12.
1927: Sand Springs 20-6.
1980: Sand Springs 10-7 (A).
1981: Bixby 14-12 (H).
1982: Bixby (Score unverified).
1983: Bixby 21-4 (A).
1984: Sand Springs 5-3 (H).
1985: Bixby 14-3 (A).
1992: Bixby 20-17 (H).
1993: Sand Springs 26-20 (A).
1994: Sand Springs 33-7 (A).
1995: Bixby 17-10 (H).
1996: Sand Springs 28-7 (A).
1997: Sand Springs 19-0 (H).
1998: Sand Springs 30-6 (A).
1999: Bixby 23-7 (H).
2010: Bixby 48-35 (H).
2011: Bixby 43-23 (A).
2012: Sand Springs 21-7 (H).
2013: Bixby 35-21 (A).
2014: Bixby 34-31 (A).
2014: Bixby 41-14 (N, State Semifinals).
2015: Sand Springs 20-0 (H).
2015: Bixby 38-28 (N, State Finals).
2016: Bixby 35-19 (A).
2016: Bixby 35-21 (N, State Semifinals).
2017: Bixby 41-21 (H).
2018: Bixby 35-0 (H).
2019: Bixby 75-0 (A).
2020: Bixby 51-20 (H).