The Wills Point Tiger traveled to Allen Dec. 27-29, competing in the Small School Bracket at the In-N-Out Burger Allen Holiday Invitational Basketball Tournament. The tournament, one of the largest post-holiday tournaments in Texas included 15 other teams in the Small School Bracket: Princeton, Melissa, Legacy Christian Academy, Van Alstyne, Coram Deo Academy, Dallas HSAA Blue team, Krum, the Allen JV, Sunnyvale, John Paul II, Whitesboro, Crandall, Mabank, Gunter and Tatum. Wills Point opened play against Van Alstyne, dropping to the consolation portion of the bracket with a 56-53 loss. The Tigers dropped to 0-2 during the first day of the tournament with a 58-36 loss to Sunnyvale. The Tigers returned to Allen Dec. 28, putting together their best offensive showing of the tournament in a 67-55 loss Gunter. Michael McCormick and Doug Sheldon finished as Wills Point’s leading scorers, combining for 31 points in the game.
Photo by David Kapitan Fresh off a second place finish at the Kaufman Holiday Tournament, Wills Point will open District 13-4A play tonight (Jan. 6) against the visiting Mabank Lady Panthers.
The Wills Point Lady Tigers returned to the court following a brief break for the Christmas holiday, building up plenty of positive momentum heading into District 13-4A play by finishing second overall at the Kaufman Holiday Tournament. Wills Point finished 2-1 overall at the tournament, knocking off Anna and host Kaufman Dec. 27 before falling short against Malakoff in the tournament’s championship game Dec. 28. The Lady Tigers played strong defense on the opening day of the tournament, getting past Anna 33-29 in a back and forth game. Wills Point took an 11-9 lead after one quarter of play in the contest. Things slowed down considerably through the second and third quarters, with Anna and Wills Point combining to score just 12 points in the second quarter and eight in the third quarter.
Doug Sheldon draws a foul as he goes up for a basket against Ennis. Sheldon finished with a team-high 15 points in the Wills Point win.
By David Kapitan Sports Editor
The Wills Point Tigers will carry a healthy dose of positive momentum with them as they reach the annual holiday break, topping Ennis 53-45 at home Dec. 19.
Wills Point struggled in the early going, falling behind 9-3 during the early stages of play. The Tigers got a slight boost in momentum just before the end of the opening quarter, getting a put back from Doug Sheldon with time winding down to cut the Ennis lead down to 9-5.
Three-point shooting helped turn the game's momentum in the second quarter, with Matt Mayfield connecting on three shots from long range and Jayton Oldacre adding another to give the Tigers a 25-23 lead entering the half.
Wills Point took advantage of its height advantage inside against Ennis in the third quarter, getting eight points from Doug Sheldon, and two each from Michael McCormick, Matt Mayfield and Tyler James to build a 39-29 lead with eight minutes to play.
The Wills Point Lady Tigers will get one last tune-up before the start of district play, participating in the 26th annual Kaufman Holiday Tournament Dec. 27-28.
Entrants in the two-day tournament are set to include Anna, Kaufman, Malakoff, Paris, Quinlan Ford, Scurry and South Garland.
The Lady Tigers are scheduled to be among the first teams to take to the court as part of the tournament, taking on Scurry beginning at 8:30 a.m. on Dec. 27 in the high school gym.
The Texas High School Coaches Association Academic All-State Teams annually recognize high school athletes who excel in the following categories: GPA, class rank and ACT/SAT score.
To be nominated for Academic All-State, a student must be: an athlete, student trainer or manager in good standing with the team; of good moral character; a senior; and have an overall grade point average of 92 or above (including courses from grades 9-11 and courses completed from grade 12).
Among this year’s Academic All-State Football Teams were three players each from Wills Point and Grand Saline, as well as a player from Edgewood.
Hope Turner puts up a jump shot from the wing during play against Caddo Mills Dec. 8 in Edgewood.
The Wills Point Lady Tigers continued to edge their way closer to the start of district play, traveling to Edgewood Dec. 8-10 for the annual Edgewood Varsity Tournament.
Playing in a field that included Cumby, Alvarado, Brook Hill, Quitman, Sulphur Springs, Peaster, Scurry-Rosser, North Lamar, Kaufman, Campbell, Mineola and Caddo Mills, the Lady Tigers finished 1-2 overall.
The Texas Associated Press Sports Editors released its list of All-State High School Football Teams earlier this week, honoring the best players from around the state in every classification.
Senior Sloan Rodberg, already named the District 6-4A MVP following Wills Point’s perfect 5-0 record in district, was honored twice by the APSE for his stellar all-around season. In 12 total games played, Rodberg finished his season with 217 tackles, an interception, a blocked punt, nine caused fumbles and a fumble recovery on defense, and added three carries for 14 yards and a touchdown and seven catches for 86 yards and another score on offense.
With his performance, Rodberg was selected as a member of the 4A All-State First Team Offense and also named a member of the Honorable Mention 4A All-State Team on defense.
Michael McCormick fires up a three-point shot from the wing as part of a seven-point effort Dec. 9.
By David Kapitan Sports Editor
The Wills Point Tigers bounced back from a tough start at their home tournament, rallying back from a tournament-opening loss to win three consecutive games and finish as the consolation bracket champions.
Wills Point opened play Dec. 8 against Alvarado, falling behind 29-19 at the end of the first half and never recovering in a 43-34 loss.
Michael McCormick led all Tiger players in scoring with 10, followed by Doug Sheldon with nine, Tyler James with six, Matt Mayfield with five, and Jacob Davis and Jacob Moore with two each.
The Tigers returned to the court Dec. 9, taking on a Lindale Eagles team that lost its tournament opener to Ferris. Wills Point put together a strong defensive effort in the contest, holding Lindale to just nine fourth quarter points in a 41-38 come-from-behind win.
Jacob Moore and the Tigers participated in the Jack Shellnut Basketball Tournament in Edgewood last weekend.
The Wills Point Tigers have found themselves in the midst of their busiest stretch of the 2016-’17 season in recent weeks, participating in the 50th annual Jack Shellnut Basketball Tournament in Edgewood Dec. 1-3 before returning home to host their own tournament Dec. 8-10.
The Tigers began their tournament run against host Edgewood Dec. 1, falling 56-31 to the same Bulldog team that has already tallied two wins over Wills Point rival Canton this season. Wills Point narrowly came up short in their second and final pool play game of the tournament against Wolfe City, falling 38-35 Dec. 2.
Placed in the bronze bracket after the completion of pool play, Wills Point wrapped a winless run in Edgewood with back-to-back losses against both Hooks and Quinlan Ford Dec. 3.
Adrianna Holland (33) puts up a short runner in the lane over the outstretched arm of a Quitman defender.
The Wills Point Lady Tigers hosted their annual tournament Dec. 1-3, welcoming a field that included Anna, Brownsboro, Dallas Thunder, Edgewood, Heritage, Kaufman, Kemp, Life, Malakoff, Quitman and Trinity Christian Academy.
Wills Point opened tournament play with a contest against Quitman Dec. 1, using a big defensive performance in the third and fourth quarters to register a 56-28 win over the Lady Dogs.
The Lady Tigers returned to the court Dec. 2, taking on Malakoff for a shot to move into a championship bracket semifinal game against eventual tournament runner-up Dallas Thunder.
