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PAM will be good this year but will probably only go 3 rounds deep. I give BH the edge simply on a better coaching staff

Brady Barrier will be a sophomore at Rusk HS and will play football. His father is Coach Ned Barrier and will coach on the offensive side. I am Nathan Barrier (Pap), Ned's father and Brady's grandfather. I began coaching in 1971 and am retired. I encourage Rusk fans to buckle up & hold on tight.

Division 5A – District 17 Barbers Hill Barbers Hill from Mt. Belvieu were dominant in the district last season, finishing in first place with 13 wins and just one loss, and made a solid playoff run, stopping only in the regional quarterfinals. The Lady Eagles lost their two main scorers from last season, middle Avery Wilks and outside hitter Jacie Meredith, who graduated, but still have more than enough senior talent to be a force in the division again with setter Peyton Fadal calling the shots, middles Chloe Morgan and Asia Menard dominating the net, right site Peyton Spahn scoring points, pin hitters Malia Martinez and Aemilie Broussard getting the job done and libero Mia Rivers handling the backcourt duties. Crosby Crosby made it to the playoffs last season after they got fourth place in the district with a campaign of eight wins and six losses, but couldn’t get past the bi-district round. The team will certainly miss the absence of the graduating Ashley Anderson (setter), Victoria Grace (middle), Carli Brogan (libero) and Shyla White (outside hitter), but there’s still some interesting talent in the Lady Cougars roster, most notably with junior outside hitter Kate Valt , sophomore middle blocker/right side Kylie Green, senior setter Bell Land and senior middle blocker Emma Hattaway. Goose Creek Memorial Goose Creek Memorial from Baytown ended up missing the playoffs last season as their district campaign of six wins and eight losses was only good enough to get them in fifth place. Graduation has taken two key pieces from last year’s team in setter Rylee Buchanan and middle blocker Christian Stringer, but the Patriots still have one of the best players in the district in junior middle Sanaa Donaie , who recently committed to Louisiana State. Other key players for Goose Creek Memorial will be senior middle Shyla Houston, senior outside hitter Aracely Nunez and senior libero Carmen Cervantes. Lee With just two wins in 14 matches and a seventh-place finish last season, Baytown Lee will be looking to improve in 2023. The good news for the Lady Ganders is that outside of setter Kandace Waller, no other major contributors from their last campaign graduated. Two of the team’s standouts last season, junior middle blocker Christian Duncan and senior outside hitter Makenzy Moore will have the responsibility of leading Lee to a better season this time. Nederland Nederland battled at the top of the district last season, ranking third with 11 victories and just three defeats and handing Barbers Hills their only upset – their postseason run didn’t last long, though, ending in the bi-district round. The Lady Dogs will have a lot of work to do if they want to remain among the best after the team’s three All-District First-Team selections – setter Audrey Johnson, middle Ava Whitehead and libero Ava Wiltz – all graduated. Leading Nederland this season will be senior outside hitter Kamryn Smith, junior outside hitter Naysa Arnold, junior libero Uriah Buckley and junior middle blocker Ava Patrizi . Port Arthur Memorial After a winless campaign of 14 losses last season, Port Arthur Memorial can only go up this year. Some important seniors are no longer with the team, such as Ava Williams, Charnel Jones, Jariyah Botley and Lily Pham. Junior setter Amisti Ford, senior libero Dekarra Anderson, senior outside hitter Rayven Martin and junior middle Gin’Nyah Robertson should be a big part of the team in 2023. Port Neches-Groves Port Neches-Groves had good moments last season, but still didn’t do well enough to make it to the postseason, finishing district play in sixth place with four victories and nine losses. Much of the squad will be back to try and improve this time around, with the most significant change happening at setter, where Payton Metts graduated. The core of the team should have junior right side Blakely Burks joining seniors Addison Bost (outside hitter), Karleigh Gil (outside hitter), Allie Wright (libero), Kennedy McGlory (middle) and Mallori Moreno (middle). Sterling Sterling from Baytown was the second-best team in the district last season with 11 wins and three losses and won one playoff match before going down in the area round. There will be significant departures for the team to deal with as setter Ashley Aguilar and middle blocker Tanishua Joseph both graduating, but the Rangers will be ready to compete again. The team will get a lot of stability from their senior core of libero Briana Galvan and outside hitters Katy Barger and Bailee Payne and there are other seniors who could give the next step, such as outside hitter Briana Bentancourth and setter Kennedy Birdsell.

That was simply a miracle… it’s been stated several times that people just don’t understand the level of talent at Carthage the next 3-4 years.

The RANGERS are starting to look like a MASH unit. Way to many important pieces on the injured list.

Lol not for an air attack. Hope for a good clean game. BH has yet to beat the Titians, but have played competitive with them. BH did well last year moving up and getting to the second round in their 1st year of 5 A Div1. Starting out the season ranked #23 bringing back 7 on O and 6 on D! BH should be tough this year, I think the only question mark is the O- line that graduated a bunch.

Rain is fun, keeps the "atmosphere" hydrated. 😁

Bigger community and bigger school. Never mentioned District Championships. It is almost a given the University of Carthage will take the top spot.

Pretty sure Rusk attendance at Football games will be much higher than that of Anahuac. Great community!!!!!!

Guessing Hardin still has the same head volleyball coach when two a days kick off tomorrow?

Last year LCM went down to the Reservation and whipped the Indians. Result? The Bears of South Oak Cliff have to share their state title with the Bears of LCM.

[Hidden Content]

I worked at that event with the Secret Service. Specifically I had to guard Hillary Clinton’s car.

The DOJ once again taking care of the Dims.

Like It! Has that Old School Look! An I am Old so I guess that’s why I like it! Lol Good Luck this year! So ready for some HS Football!

Bob was at the top of his chosen profession. To a lot of extent, he is from a passing era in sports writing. Few sportswriters and editors have had the excellent longevity and following of Bob West. How many people work for a single newspaper for almost 5 decades? He called ‘em like he saw ‘em. A few times I definitely would not agree on his perspective on an issue or player but the proof of his skill was that I always came back to read what he had to say on his next article. He definitely has left a legacy of events that he has been involved with from roasts, to celebrity golf events, to contests and I believe that he was instrumental in creating and bringing the Bum Phillips Trophy to Mid-County Madness which I think was thought up by members of his staff. I had spoken to West on a couple of occasions, mostly from working security at events. I have known his wife Genie for probably about 40 years from her work as a nurse at St. Mary Hospital and me being a police officer. The likes of Bob West don’t come along often in a lifetime. Condolences to his family and friends.

They are likely to struggle in any configuration of 4AD2 districts.

Preach!