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MUSTANGS READY TO TANGLE WITH ZEBRAS
By CHRIS EDENS, City Editor
The Mustangs are ready to hit the ground running. Oologah kicks off the football season in a home opener against county rival Claremore at 7:30 p.m. tonight (Thursday) night.
The pre-season buzz about the Mustangs has centered on the size of the offensive line. That size will be complimented by experienced skill players and a speedy defense.
"We feel real good about the offensive line," head coach Brandon Craig said. "We'll be a run first team and we'll throw when we need to. The main thing is controlling the line of scrimmage. We feel pretty good about our defense too."
District 4A-3 might be one of the toughest in the state. Three teams in the district are in the top ten in 4A pre-season rankings. Wagoner is ranked second, Oologah is ranked sixth and Catoosa is ranked tenth.
The Mustangs hope to build on last season. Oologah made it to the second round of the playoffs and finished with an 8-4 record.
Big bodies up front should give Oologah a big advantage. Seniors Brian Rawlinson (6'6"-287), Jake Taylor (6'7"-278) and Lee Davis (6'3"-284) will anchor a powerful offensive line. Rawlinson has verbally committed to play for North Texas University.
The big eaters should be able to create holes for senior running back Josh Collier (5'10"-179). He is one of the top running backs in this part of the state and Collier is being recruited by several colleges.
"Josh had a great year last year and we expect him to improve on that this year," Coach Craig said.
Collier was a work horse last season. He rushed for 1,624 yards, averaging over five yards per carry with 22 touchdowns.
The big boys up front should also give good pass protection. Second year starting quarterback Alec Brunson (6'2"-185) gained valuable experience last season. He threw for over 1,400 yards and had 13 touchdown passes. Coach Craig has even bigger expectations for Brunson in his senior year.
"Alec knows what's going on now and he's a smart kid," Craig said. "Anytime you have a year's experience it gives you more confidence and there's no doubt he's reading defenses better."
On the defensive side, the Mustangs will have two outstanding linebackers on the field. John VanSingel (5'11"-205) and Dakota Hudgens (6'0"-225) led the team in tackles last year. The two seniors will be a menacing presence in the middle of the defense. Craig said VanSingel will also come in at running back to give Collier a breather.
Craig also expects senior safety Justin Jarred and senior corner back Cody Brunk to make things happen on defense.
Craig is in his second year as head coach at Oologah. He's settled into the position and he's really gotten to know his team.
"It's a little more comfortable this year. I've gotten to know everybody and everybody's gotten more comfortable with me. I think people know I want to make sure these kids have a good experience," he said.
Craig said the goals for the season are to win a district championship, a first round playoff game and then compete for a gold ball.
Oologah scrimmaged Cleveland and Ft. Gibson to prepare for the season and the opener against 5A Claremore. The Zebras are ranked ninth in pre-season polls.
"It's going to be a real good test against a good team. We'll need to play perfect to win," Coach Craig said.
Fans will also get their first look at a newly renovated Mustang Stadium Thursday night. There's a new ticket booth and entrance and extensive renovations have been done to the bathrooms and bleachers.
Craig hopes Oologah fans pack the stands to cheer on the Mustangs. Claremore has won the county showdown the last four years and Craig wants to turn the tide.
"It's a game the kids always look forward to. It's a rivalry they get excited about," Coach Craig said. "Now we'll see if we can knock them off."
LADY MUSTANGS UNDEFEATED
By CHRIS EDENS, City Editor
Don't jinx it. It's taboo in softball to talk about a no-hitter or a win streak, but it's hard not to talk about the run the Lady Mustangs are on.
Oologah is the only undefeated team in 4A with a record of 12-0. That impressive start has earned the Lady Mustangs a ninth place ranking.
"We don't have any weak links. We're solid through and through," head coach Andrea Vaughn said. "This is the first time I can honestly say we have all the pieces in place."
The Oologah offense has been overpowering and the defense has been relentless. Oologah has posted six shutouts. The Lady Mustangs have plated 93 runs and only allowed 12.
The team has a batting average of .356 and junior Jessie Wright is the leading hitter with an average of .471. Oologah is turning a lot of heads this season and the Lady Mustangs are creating quite a buzz.
"It's exciting to get the recognition and the word is spreading. I've had other coaches tell me we're the most athletic team they've seen in 4A," Vaughn said.
One of the keys to Oologah's success this season has been outstanding pitching. Sophomore Meaghan Thompson has pitched 43.3 innings. She has 29 strikeouts and an ERA of .65. Freshmen Hunter Jeffs has pitched 22.6 innings with 37 strikeouts and a 1.24 ERA.
"Obviously those girls are getting it done on the mound. Meaghan's been great and it's nice having Hunter to come in and give Meaghan some relief," Vaughn said.
Oologah 5-Berryhill 0
Oologah knocked off Berryhill last Thursday 5-0 in the first game of a double header.
The Lady Mustangs got on the board in the first inning. Alex Edinger had a single and stole second.
Whitney Hamilton had a base hit that scored Edinger. Kassidy Giertz had an RBI single and Jessie Wright drove in a run with a double. Taylor McElhaney scored Wright on a squeeze play and Oologah led 4-0.
The Lady Mustangs added another run in the sixth. Meaghan Thompson reached on a walk. Randye Sharp brought her home on a double and Oologah coasted to a 5-0 win.
Thompson pitched a complete game. She had seven strikeouts and gave up one walk and two hits.
Oologah 6-Berryhill 1
The Lady Mustangs took the second game of the double header in a 6-1 win over the Lady Chiefs.
In the bottom of the fourth, Jessie Wright had a base hit. Taylor McElhaney scored Wright on a triple. Baleigh Hamilton brought McElhaney home on a squeeze play and Oologah was up 2-0.
The Lady Mustangs plated three more runs in the fifth. Randye Sharp reached on an error.
Alex Edinger had a single and Whitney Hamilton scored Sharp on a double. Kassidy Giertz knocked a double into the outfield to score another run and Oologah had taken a 5-0 lead.
Berryhill scored an unearned run in the top of the sixth, but it barely cut into the lead. Oologah tacked on one more run in the bottom of the sixth to pick up the win.
Meaghan Thompson pitched a complete game. She had four strikeouts and gave up two walks and four hits.
Oologah 3-Dewey 2
The Lady Mustangs had their toughest challenge of the week against Dewey at the Vinita Festival last weekend. The game was tied until Oologah took the lead in the fifth inning.
Oologah drew first blood in the first inning. Taylor McElhaney drew a walk and then stole second. Jessie Wright brought her home with an RBI single and the Lady Mustangs were up 1-0.
The Lady Bulldoggers took the lead in the third. Dewey scored two runs on a single, a walk and a double.
In the fourth, McElhaney had a lead off triple and she scored on a passed ball. The game was tied 2-2.
Oologah refused to lose and the Lady Mustangs used good base running to retake the lead in the fifth. Alex Edinger reached on an error and she stole second to get in scoring position.
Whitney Hamilton moved her to third on a fielder's choice. Coach Vaughn called a squeeze play and Kassidy Giertz came through and scored the game winning run.
Hunter Jeffs pitched a complete game. She had seven strikeouts and gave up one walk and two hits.
Oologah 4-Vinita 1
The Lady Mustangs knocked off Vinita 4-1 in another road win Saturday.
All the action happened in the third inning. Meaghan Thompson had a lead off walk. Randye Sharp moved her to second with a sacrifice bunt and Alex Edinger brought her home with an RBI single.
Whitney Hamilton had an RBI double and Delaney Gray reached on a walk. Kassidy Giertz hit a double down the line to score two runs and Oologah had a 4-0 lead.
In the bottom of the inning, the Lady Hornets scored one run on two singles and an error to cut the lead to 4-1. It was all defense the rest of the game and Oologah held on for the 4-1 win.
Meaghan Thompson pitched a complete game. She had three strikeouts and gave up three hits and no walks.
Oologah 5-Inola 0
Oologah picked up another shutout with a 5-0 home win over Inola Monday night.
The Lady Longhorns loaded the bases in the top of the first with two outs. Meaghan Thompson was on the mound and she never panicked. She got a strikeout to get out of the inning and no damage was done.
In the bottom of the second, Delaney Gray had a lead off single. Taylor McElhaney reached on an error. Baleigh Hamilton smacked a ball into center field and scored both runners to give Oologah a 2-0 lead.
Whitney Hamilton made it to first on a fielder's choice in the third inning and Hannah Yancy came in as a pinch runner. Yancy made her way around the bases and then scampered home on an error.
Oologah put up two insurance runs in the fifth off Hamilton's big bat. Alex Edinger had a lead off walk. Hamilton stepped to the plate and blasted a home run over the scoreboard. Oologah cruised to a 5-0 win and remained unbeaten.
Meaghan Thompson pitched a complete game. She had seven strikeouts and gave up one walk and four hits.
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