Sports

The Hamilton Bulldog tennis team competed at the district tennis tournament on Monday and Tuesday of last week at Robinson High School.

The Hamilton Bulldog and Lady Bulldog golf program will be represented by two teams at the Region II Golf Tournament on April 18-19 at the Old Brickyard Golf Course in Ferris.

SAFE - Hamilton’s Lady Bulldog softball team split games last week to move to 8-5 on the season and 6-4 in district. In the first round of district competition, the Lady Bulldogs fell on the road in Blum by a lopsided score of 19-4. On Wednesday of last week, the Lady Dogs took just three innings to flip the script, pummeling the visiting Lady Bobcats 19-4 in Hamilton. Jordyn Medina toed the rubber for all three innings and recorded three strikeouts while sacrificing just two hits. In turn, the Lady Dogs scattered five hits, including two by Kendal Stroud and one each by Grace Killian, Addison Kelley and Lily Emeyabbi. Emeyabbi drew two walks and was one for one at the plate with a team high three RBIs. Laurel Ann Elkins, Dezlyn Lamb, Killian, Kelley, Medina and Stroud each batted in two runs, and Skylar Carr drove in one. Last Friday, the Lady Dogs traveled to face district frontrunner Rio Vista. The Lady Eagles posted a 27-7 win in Hamilton during the first round of district competition but found themselves up by just two runs through four innings on Friday. Rio Vista added two runs in both the fifth and sixth innings to eventually triumph over the Road Dogs 6-0. Lamb and Killian recorded Hamilton’s only two hits in the ballgame. The Lady Bulldogs were scheduled to host Jonesboro on Tuesday of this week before traveling to Itasca on Friday. The first pitch in Itasca is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Pictured at right, Laurel Ann Elkins confers with Assistant Coach Andrew Heers while standing safely on first base. Above, Skylar Carr slides headfirst across home plate for a run in Hamilton’s 19-4 win over Blum on Wednesday of last week. Staff photos/Hinton

UMPH - Brooklyn Bragg (above) and Kazdon Thedford (right) are pictured racking up points for Hamilton in the discus and shot put competitions during last Friday’s Extraco Relays. Staff photos/Hinton

BASE WARS - After defeating district foe Miles on the road the previous Friday 6-1, the Hamilton Bulldogs welcomed the Miles Bulldogs to Fair Park last Tuesday and were upended in a tight 9-8 contest. Miles scored two runs in the top of the fifth inning to take their first lead of the game, 5-4. Hamilton roared back with three runs in the sixth, including a solo shot by Chase Weaver over the center field fence. The visiting Dogs added four runs in the seventh and held Hamilton to one to escape with the upset victory. Hamilton recorded 12 hits compared to just nine by their opponent. Weaver was a perfect four for four at the plate, including a pair of doubles, a single and a homerun to drive in a team leading three RBIs. Jaydon Watson drove in one run while going three for four at the plate, and Garrison Blackwell was two for four with an RBI. On Friday, Weaver went the distance on the mound, shutting out DeLeon for five innings as the Dogs cruised to an 11-0 district win. Weaver recorded nine strikeouts while walking just one batter and allowing two hits. Helping his cause at the plate, Weaver connected for three hits in four at bats. Sutton Lee also recorded multiple hits, going two for two with a pair of RBIs. With six district games remaining, the Bulldogs are 10-7 on the year and 5-2 in district. The Bulldogs were scheduled to travel to Coleman on Tuesday, looking to reverse a first round 5-3 loss to the Bluecats. The Dogs will host Gorman this Friday and will stay home next Tuesday to play Winters. Both games are set to begin at 4:30 p.m. The junior varsity Bulldogs are slated to host Gorman on Saturday with the first pitch scheduled for noon. Pictured, Bryson Tarpley dives to make a tag on a Miles base runner, and Garrison Blackwell is all smiles after reaching second base safely versus Miles on Tuesday of last week in Hamilton. Courtesy photos by Julie Weaver

EAGLES SOAR THROUGH DISTRICT - Jonesboro Eagle golf team won district April 4 with a team total of 356. They also had the top 3 medalists Jeffrey Morse 1st, Hunter Thompson 2nd and Logan Necessary 3rd. Members include (l-r) Lefty Kaibas, Superintendent Matt Dossey, Hunter Thompson, Jeffrey Morse, Logan Necessary, Costin Allison and Coach Billy Massingill. Courtesy photos

Track teams from 27 communities across the state converged on Brownwood last Thursday for the 1A- 3A Bluebonnet Relays. Hamilton’s varsity Bulldogs, varsity Lady Bulldogs and junior varsity Bulldogs each placed fifth overall, and the JV Lady Dogs placed tenth in the competitive 12-hour track meet that began at 10 a.m. and finished a little after 10 p.m.

HOME RUN - Lady Bulldog junior Addison Kelley, pictured, belted her fourth home run of the season as Hamilton upended district foe Meridian on the road 10-5 last Friday. Kelley’s first inning three-run shot catapulted the Lady Dogs to an early 3-1 lead. After picking up a single run in the fourth, the Lady Dogs proceeded to cross the plate six times in the final two innings of the ballgame. Skylar Carr was a perfect three for three at the plate, including a pair of triples and three RBIs. Kelley also knocked in three runs on two hits, and Kendal Stroud recorded an RBI while going one for four at the plate. Jordyn Medina toed the rubber for all seven innings, allowing just five hits and five runs while striking out six and walking one. The Lady Bulldogs are now 7-4 on the season and were looking to improve upon a 5-3 district record versus Blum in Hamilton on Wednesday at 5 p.m. The Road Dogs will travel to Rio Vista this Friday for a 5:30 p.m. district contest and will return home next Tuesday to host Jonesboro at 5:30 p.m. Staff photo/Hinton

SHUTOUT - Junior pitcher Caden Hopper, pictured, pitched five shutout innings, struck out six batters and allowed just one hit on Tuesday of last week as the Bulldogs 10-run ruled the visiting Goldthwaite Eagles by a score of 10-0. Garrison Blackwell batted in three runs, and Bryson Tarpley drew one walk and recorded two RBIs on one hit. Hayden Blackwell was a perfect two for two at the plate and scored twice. Senior Jaydon Watson went one for two, including a double, and reached first base on a couple of occasions by drawing walks. Sutton Lee, Ryan Worbington and Chase Weaver also each recorded an RBI in Hamilton’s district win over Goldthwaite. On Friday, the Dogs traveled to Miles and tagged another 6-1 district victory. Weaver earned the win on the mound, striking out 12 in five innings of work, and Hopper recorded an additional two strikeouts in two innings of relief. Tarpley was two for three at the plate with a pair of RBIs, and Watson, Hayden Blackwell and Hopper each drove in one run. The now 9-6 on the season and 4-1 in district Bulldogs were scheduled to host Miles on Tuesday before traveling to DeLeon this Friday for a district game set to begin at 6:30 p.m. Next Tuesday, the Dogs will play in Coleman at 4:30 p.m. Hamilton’s junior varsity Dogs dropped a home game to Goldthwaite on Tuesday of last week and fell to Miles in back-to-back games on Saturday in Hamilton. The JV Dogs will host DeLeon this Saturday at noon. Courtesy photo by Julie Weaver