Sports

It’s been a great week, and I’ve been blessed to spend time with fine friends that share my love of the outdoors. For those of us that love to hunt, this is most definitely ‘our’ time of year.

The Canton Eagles saw their remarkable season come to a disappointing close Nov. 21 in the Class 4A, Division 2, Area Championship Game as they lost to the Texarkana Pleasant Grove Hawks, 49-7, in Texarkana.

The unbelievable season for the Edgewood Bulldog varsity football team continues as the Bulldogs held off a late Woodville rally to capture a thrilling 59-56 victory in the Class 3A, Division 2, Area Championship Game Nov. 21 at Rusk.

davidb@vanzandtnews.com Last season, the Van Vandals defeated the Sunnyvale Raiders twice, including a playoff game. Sunnyvale returned the favor as they defeated the Vandals for the second time in 2025 with the Raiders blowing past Van, 56-28, in the Class 4A, Division 2, Area Championship Game Nov.

The two-time defending Class 2A, Division 2, State Champion Martins Mill Lady Mustangs continued their strong start in non-district as they easily got past Lindale, 77-42. Kara Nixon led the Lady Mustangs in scoring with 30 points followed by Kenna Wise with 19 and Teely Salazar with 14, Briden Butcher with eight, Paisley Whitus with four and Lily Youngblood with two.

The Martins Mill Lady Mustangs eased past the Canton Eaglettes in a battle of Van Zandt County rivals, 53-35. Kara Nixon led Martins Mill in scoring with 29 points followed by Allison Vaughn with seven, Keena Wise and Paisley Whitus with six each, Teely Salazar with three, and Brilen Butcher with two..

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The Martins Mill Lady Mustangs continued their strong start during the 2025-26 basketball season as they dominated Class 5A Tyler High School, 78-37. Martins Mill (2-0) started out impressively and never looked back as they led 22-0 after the first quarter, 34-11 at halftime, and 5820 at the end of the third quarter.

With their predictions in the ‘tie-breaker’ game, Dale Beard of Murchison and Billy Shannon of Tyler are the co-winners of Football Contest #12, the final contest of the season, in the Van Zandt News.

Three out of the four Van Zandt County varsity football teams kept their seasons alive following victories in the bi-district round of the state football playoffs. The Edgewood Bulldogs, the Van Vandals, and the Canton Eagles moved on to the Area championship round Nov.