Sports

Oh, what a difference a year can make. In a season in which Ennis scored in single-digits in 19-of-22 games, it wasn’t hard to see why their 5.8 runs per game translated into a barely break-even 11-10-1 record. Then there’s this year.

Ennis came up short in their District 14-5A road opener on Tuesday when Midlothian (4-3-2) escaped with a 3-2 win. In a clash of ace hurlers, the Panthers had just enough at home to take the first of the two-games the teams played this week.

Former USA Today National Coach of the Year, Hal Wasson, 65, announced his retirement last week after 33 years as a head coach, the final three at Corsicana. The Tigers, who went 17-14 in three seasons with Wasson, are now in the hunt for a successor as head coach and athletic director.

Ennis introduced the hiring of Shalyn (Martin) Colbert as the new girls varsity basketball coach on Wednesday, March 9. She will direct the Lady Lions basketball program, beginning with its off-season activities. This will be her first head coaching position.

Playing sports can be beneficial to athletes’ physical and mental health. Researchers at the American College of Sports Medicine discovered that middle school students who played sports and performed best on tests that gauged strength, endurance and aerobic capacity also performed better academically.

Weather has wreaked havoc in recent weekend tournaments, forcing altered schedules and cancellations, because ready-or-not – high school baseball is about to enter the district season. For Ennis and the other six teams in District 14-5A, the next 12 games – two games against each league opponent, are the most important of the season.

A second straight narrow-miss at qualifying for the playoffs by the Ennis varsity boys, both times after a non-losing record, naturally focuses on next year and the impact of up-and-coming players.

Against a large field with veteran teams, Ennis varsity girls took sixth at the Crandall Pirate Relays on Thursday, March 10.

Fresh from the University Interscholastic League realignment and redistricting, Ennis football HC Sam Harrell has made public the Lions 2022 fall schedule.

No. 1 ranked Lipan (30-0) used a 20-9 finish to pull away from No. 16 Italy (24-5), 47-31, in the Class 2A Regional Quarterfinal played at Aledo on March 1. It was the second year in a row the two teams met in the third round at the same location and with the same victor.