Sports

The Broncos brought home two gold balls last week in their quest to become number one in the class 2A standings for the 2020-2021 season.

Only two games remain in their mission to win a State Championship. As the Enterprise went to press Monday night, the Broncos were preparing to play Lipan in Graham on March 9 to punch their ticket to the State Final game in San Antonio this weekend.

Game results will be posted on ClarendonLive.com and on Facebook.com/TheEnterprise. The Mulkey Theatre will be screening the games live on the big screen with no charge for admission.

In the Wink game, Senior Donovan Thompson’s 37-point game helped to propel their way to the Regional Championship in a high-scoring game that finished at 85-65 in front of at least 1,000 fans at Littlefield High School.

The Broncos played hard in the opening quarter, but only led by five when time ran out on the first eight minutes of play. They were able to regroup defensively and hold off the Wildcat offense with their strength and quickness.

The Broncos quickly put points on the board to lead by 12 about the 5-minute mark and finish the quarter with a good lead at 41-28.

The third quarter is when Thompson made his big run in the game making 16 of his point total. Overall, the Broncos’ solid offensive attack worked well all night long with each of the Broncos making a difference at just the right times. The Broncos turned in a 67 percent scoring average from the free throw line, which is huge in a big game. The Wildcats were not far behind the Broncos as they put in 62 percent of their attempts.

Joining Thompson in double figures was Cayden D’Costa with 14, Lamarcus Peniger with 13 points, and Sylvester Ballard with 10.
Jordan Herndon finished with six, Lyric Smith three, and Jmaury Davis and Harrison Howard put in one each.

Earlier in the week, the Broncos flew by Christoval at 51-29 in the Regional Semi-Final game in Slaton. The Broncos had an easy go of it against the Cougars, but team realizes things will get tougher down the road. Once again, the Broncos took the early lead in the game and held the Cougars to only 10 points in the first half of play to lead by 23.

Davis was unstoppable as he put in 18 points in the game converting four for four from the bonus line. As a team, the Broncos put in 67 percent of their free shots.

Christoval was never able to make any kind of a run on the Broncos as once again their quickness on the court caused too many turnovers for their opponent.

Herndon and Ballard put in eight points each in the win, and Thompson and D’Costa added six apiece, while Peniger added five.

Hard-fought games bring out the best in a team and the Clarendon Broncos proved that Friday night with a huge Regional Quarterfinal win over Floydada in Canyon.

The 62-52 win puts them in the Regional Semi-Final Round this week. The Broncos were scheduled to play Christoval at Slaton on March 2. Game results will be posted on ClarendonLive.com and Facebook.com/TheEnterprise.

On Friday, the two fairly evenly matched teams went toe-to-toe in the opening eight minutes of the game and ended with the Broncos up one point. It looked like it might stay that way through halftime until the Broncos found an offensive edge with just a little time on the clock before the half. They were able to score six unanswered points that results in a big momentum boost going into the locker room.

Another scoring run in the third allowed the Broncos the cushion they needed to all but secure the win. Floydada fought hard, but too many turnovers cost them the game. Fighting foul trouble, the Broncos were able to stay solid on both ends to get the win.
Jmaury Davis led the way with 22 points and Lamarcus Peniger was right behind him with 21. Jordan Herndon added seven, Cayden D’Costa had five, Sylvester Ballard helped with four, and Donovan Thompson had three.

Earlier last week, the Broncos played Farwell at Vega and claimed the area championship with a victory of 58-49.

Great defense wins games on the basketball court and solid free throw shooting helps in a pinch. The Broncos used the two in their favor as they won the Bi-District round over Sanford Fritch in Pampa last week at 87-47.

Four players landed in double figures at the end of the game, and the team finished at 73 percent from the bonus line.

The Broncos, ranked number two in the state, earned their spot against the Eagles by going undefeated in District play and winning the District Championship. Their solid offense and quickness on both ends of the court allowed the Broncos to take a commanding lead in the game and never look back. They were able to execute well enough that they built a 30-point lead at the break that hindered everything Fritch tried on the court.

Donovan Thompson and Sylvester Ballard both finished with 19 points in the game. Thompson hit two three-pointers, and Ballard was perfect from the bonus line. Jmaury Davis was unstoppable and ended with 18 points that included two for two from the free throw line. Cayden D’Costa added 11 points to the scoreboard with four two-pointers and one three.

Lamarcus Peniger jumped into action with nine, Lyric Smith put in four, and Jordan Herndon had two. Anthony Ceniceros hit one three-pointer and Jaxan McAnear helped with two.

As the Enterprise went to press, the Broncos were preparing to play Farwell for the Area title Tuesday night in Vega. Check Facebook.com/TheEnterprise for game results.  UPDATE: The Broncos defeated Farwell Tuesday and will play Floydada in Canyon on Friday at 6 p.m.. Tickets are $5 and must be purchased in advance at the Clarendon school administration building. No tickets will be sold at the door, and no passes will be accepted.

The Hedley Owls won the Bi-District Championship last Friday, February 19, with a 66-36 win over Ft. Elliott in Shamrock.

The title victory marked Hedley’s first playoff win since 2007, according to school officials.

The first quarter of play was close, but Hedley had at 18-15 lead. Hedley turned up the heat in the second quarter and held a 30-19 lead at the half.

The second half belonged to the Owls with Hedley racking up 36 points compared to their opponents’ 17 points.
Joshua Booth led Hedley with 22 points. Also scoring were Cody Bond 10, Elijah Booth 9, Tyler Harper 8, Jordan Upton and Hayden Alston 6 each, Gray 5.

The Owls played Nazareth on Monday in Amarillo for the Area title but unfortunately came up short, 47-80.

Tyler Harper and Esteban Carron led the Owls with 11 points each. Also scoring were, J. Booth 8, Upton 6, E. Booth 5, Alston 3, and Bond 2.

The Lady Broncos pulled out a huge win over Stratford in the bi-district game last Thursday night that kept the fans on the edge of their seats and the point spread never more than single digits.

The Clarendon girls were able to outlast the Lady Elks in a game that went to the wire with the maroon and white getting the 44-43 win and Bi-District gold ball.

The teams ended the first quarter of play at 8-8 as it was setting up to be a defensive scenario for both sides. However, Stratford’s shooting fouls in the opening quarter allowed the Lady Broncos an undeniable edge in the game as they went six for six from the bonus line.

Clarendon kept their consistency going at the bonus line and junior Madi Smith hit two crucial three-pointers, and Makenna Shadle connected on another to give the Lady Broncos the five-point edge going into the half.

Despite a good third quarter for Stratford, the Lady Broncos maintained their offensive execution with Shadle adding two well-timed three pointers in the second half to give them the edge they needed.

The ladies took advantage of good free throw shooting, which helped with the win. Senior Jade Benson hit four out of five, Smith made four for six. Ashlyn Crawford hit two for three, and Finley Cunningham made one of two for 69 percent as a team.

Smith led the way on the scoreboard with 14 total points, and Benson added 12. Shadle put in three three-pointers for nine, Crawford had six, and Cunningham three.

A playoff game scheduled with New Deal on Tuesday in Plainview was cancelled and will be rescheduled. Check Facebook.com/TheEnterprise for game schedule and results.

The Broncos were looking to go deep, not only on the field, but also in post-season play. Things were going their way, until turnovers and missed extra points hindered their chance to advance. The Broncos lost their bi-district game with Stratford last Friday in Borger, 18-20.

“We lost a heartbreaker to Stratford, (but) I thought our kids played great on defense and offense,” head coach Clint Conkin said. “We ended the season 7-4 with some young kids getting experience for the future.”

The Broncos came out and worked the field exactly how they wanted and took an 18-7 lead at the break. Quarterback Brock Hatley threw two touchdown passes, one to Lyric Smith from eight yards out and one to Koyt Tucek for a five-yarder TD.

Jmaury Davis added to the point total with a four-yard run for six. Jordan Herndon was running on all burners as he compiled 208 yards on 25 carries, which was a personal best. Davis carried 19 times for 107 yards.

The Broncos finished with 348 yards rushing and 68 yards in the air. Hatley accounted for the 68 yards connecting on eight of 15 passes. He was also credited with throwing two touchdown strikes. Davis had three catches for 26 yards.