Sports

The Fruitvale Lady Cats punched their ticket to the Regional Semifinal round in emphatic fashion last week, routing District 19-2A champions Gilmer Union Hill by a score of 18-1. Fruitvale was slated to take on District 18-2A champions Bloomburg at Longview ISD beginning at 7 p.m. May 13. The winner of the Fruitvale-Bloomburg contest will take on either Chireno or Chester for a chance to advance to the State Tournament. Courtesy photo

The Edgewood Bulldogs squared off against one of the top teams in the state last week, clashing with a Gunter Tiger squad that entered the postseason ranked second overall in the 3A classification this season.

The Canton Eaglette softball program had history in its sights last week, needing a series win over the Gilmer Lady Buckeyes to clinch a first-ever Regional Quarterfinal berth. Despite a stiff challenge Canton would complete its mission, scoring a pair of thrilling victories to keep their postseason journey alive.

The Canton Eagles found themselves in a rare position last week, opening the playoffs against a higher seeded opponent after finishing fourth overall in District 14-4A play. Canton would take care of business despite those challenges, fending off the Nevada Community Braves in three games to advance to the Area round.

The Edgewood Bulldogs generated plenty of positive momentum entering the playoffs, outclassing Class 4A Henderson 10-1 in a warm-up game played May 2. Henderson would strike early, taking a 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning.

The Canton Eagles kept busy with the start of this year’s Class 4A UIL Playoffs looming just over the horizon, wrapping up District 14-4A play against Brownsboro before playing a pair of tune-up games against Tatum and Brook Hill.

The Fruitvale Lady Cats and Avery Lady Bulldogs kept scorekeepers busy April27, trading runs at a dizzying pace during their Area round matchup. Fruitvale managed to come away victorious in the contest, doing just enough both at the plate and in the field to edge past the Lady Dogs 13-12.

The race for the second spot in District 12-3A came down to the wire last week as the Grand Saline Indians and Rains Wildcats met three times in a five-day span. Once the dust settled, the Wildcats had seemed the district's second spot and Grand Saline had locked in the third spot heading into this year's postseason.

The Edgewood Lady Dogs had their hands full last week, clashing with Gunter in bi-district playoff round action. Gunter took advantage of two strong pitching performances to sweep past the Lady Dogs and into the Area round.

County athletes representing Canton, Van and Wills Point made their way to the Texas A&M campus in Commerce April 29-30 to compete against one another and some of the top programs from across East Texas at the Class 4A Region II Meet.