BRYAN -- A little more than a month ago, the Waskom Wildcats celebrated their first-ever state championship. To the victor, go the spoils.
Waskom junior linebacker Chan Amie, who won Defensive MVP honors in the Wildcats' 41-22 state title game win over Newton, is the Collin Street Bakery/Texas Sports Writers Association Class 3A Defensive Player of the Year.
HALLSVILLE -- It was a tale of two halves Saturday afternoon at Bobcat Stadium. Fortunately for the Elysian Fields Yellowjackets, they played their best once when it mattered.
Elysian Fields used a 29-0 second-half run and the legs of junior Kyree Ratliffe to overcome a 15-point halftime deficit and defeat the Paul Pewitt Brahmas, 36-30, in their Class 3A Division II Region II bi-district matchup.
Tyler Invitational
Championship Bracket
Saginaw def. Mabank 25-23, 25-11
Tyler Lee def. Paris North Lamar 28-26, 25-23
Hallsville def. Pine Tree 25-12, 25-22
White Oak def. Whitehouse 25-21, 24-26, 25-19
North Lamar def. Mabank 25-20, 25-11
Tyler Lee def. Saginaw 5-16, 25-19
Whitehouse def. Pine Tree 21-25, 25-14, 25-11
Hallsville def. White Oak 25-19, 25-21
Consolation: Whitehouse def. North Lam
Tournament season for East Texas volleyball teams continued Thursday with the commencement of the Tyler Invitational and Hughes Springs Tournament.
Whitehouse, Pine Tree, Paris North Lamar and Mabank won their respective pools in Tyler.
Redwater, Liberty-Eylau, Queen City and host Hughes Springs came out on top in pool play at the Hughes Springs Tournament.
While some schools were thrown into brutal new districts, featuring four and even five playoff teams from the previous year, both Paul Pewitt and Hughes Springs have to feel pretty good about their new home.
Paul Pewitt looks like it's in for a fight against Hughes Springs, ETSN.fm's Class 3A Preseason Poll's No. 10 team, as well as Hooks and Queen City for a District 7-3A Division II crown.
That being said, the Brahmas look like they have an edge that can push them over the top.