Another trip around the sun: The 10 best games I covered during the 2021-22 school year

It’s never easy to narrow down, but here are the 10 best games I covered during the 2021-22 school year, in chronological order.

Lake Dallas vs. Frisco Centennial, Sept. 3

Football

The game marked the first time that Jason Young officially served as head coach for the Falcons. Promoted to head coach on July 1 after longtime coach Michael Young was hired as Little Elm’s athletic director, Jason Young was unable to coach in Lake Dallas’ Week-1 win against Denton because of COVID-19 health and safety protocols. But it was worth the wait.

After Lake Dallas won just one game in 2020, the Falcons won a 41-31 shoot-out against Frisco Centennial in which the two teams combined for 955 yards of offense and 10 touchdowns.

Senior quarterback Brendan Sorsby (Indiana pledge) gave a glimpse of how explosive the Falcon offense was during the 2021 season. He had five total touchdowns on 8-of-16 passing with 229 yards and 132 rushing yards. The biggest play of the game was a 94-yard run late in the fourth quarter by Sorsby, who took the snap three yards into the end zone and ran to the Centennial 4. Two plays later, senior Drew McKinney ran for a 1-yard touchdown to ice the win.

In defeat, Centennial’s Harry Stewart III averaged 10 yards per carry, rushing for 230 yards on 23 carries, while quarterback Tyler Rich threw for 258 yards with four total touchdowns.

Little Elm vs. Friendswood Clear Brook, Dec. 27

Boys basketball

High school basketball teams embraced a return to normalcy last season, which included the return of in-season tournaments after such events were not allowed two years ago due to the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the more popular ones is the Allen In-N-Out Burger Holiday Classic.

To open tournament play, Little Elm nearly pulled off a miraculous rally against state-ranked Friendswood Clear Brook. It was a game of big runs. The Lobos led 18-7 at the end of the 1^st quarter, but the Wolverines, led by the play of Kemauri Millender, rallied to take a 19-point advantage by the end of the third quarter.

However, there was no quit in Little Elm. Isaac Berry, who scored 11 of his team-high 25 points in the fourth quarter, hit a pair of free throws with 23 seconds remaining in the ballgame to make it a three-point deficit.

Ibrahima Diallo made two free throws with 9.9 ticks left on the clock, and all of a sudden, Clear Brook’s lead was reduced to one point. The Wolverines answered with a fast-break layup. The Lobos had one more chance to tie the game, but turned the ball over near center court, and the Wolverines hung on for a 68-65 victory.

The Colony vs. Princeton, Jan. 28

Boys basketball

This game went a long way to determining playoff seeding in District 10-5A. Both teams entered the day with four conference victories, and it was the Cougars who gained the upper hand for the final playoff berth in 10-5A after the final buzzer sounded.

In a game in which the two teams traded big runs, Jaidyn Cotto ran toward the basket and recorded a tip-back just before the game clock expired in overtime, as The Colony escaped Princeton with a 57-55 win.

Cotto delivered in the clutch in the fourth quarter and overtime. Princeton made two free throws with 25 seconds left in regulation to go up by two points. Cotto responded with layup 11 seconds later to tie the score at 51-51, and the game proceeded to go to overtime after Princeton missed a 15-foot jump shot as time expired.

Plano East vs. Coppell, Feb. 4

Girls basketball

Ever since Plano East’s arrival in District 6-6A in 2020, no other team in the district emerged victorious against the Lady Panthers. East went 14-0 in conference play to claim the outright district title and then proceeded to earn its first regional final berth in 28 years.

The Lady Panthers built on that historic run, but a team that stood in the way of a second straight undefeated run through conference play was Coppell. In the team’s first match-up of the season, East rode a dominant first quarter before surviving a furious rally to earn a 42-37 victory. But, the Cowgirls were more than ready for the rematch.

Coppell’s Jules LaMendola set the tone, scoring 10 points during the first quarter. But, East was committed on the defensive end. The Lady Panthers forced 18 Cowgirl turnovers during the first three quarters, allowing East to rally for a one-point lead. Coppell regrouped. Allyssa Potter had a key 3-pointer early in the third quarter to give the Cowgirls a six-point lead, an advantage they didn’t relinquish.

Little Elm vs. Plano, Feb. 15

Girls basketball

For three-and-a-half quarters, Little Elm and Plano battled it out on the hardwood for the right to face South Grand Prairie in the area round. The two teams showcased a scrappy style of play, not afraid to dive to the court to gain possession of a loose ball or try and outwork the other team on the glass for a rebound.

Little Elm overcame a 10-point deficit to forge a 44-44 tie at the end of the third quarter. But in the fourth quarter, Plano, which was making its 11^th straight playoff appearance, showed why it was a battle-tested squad. Mia Maryland made a 3-pointer and a layup with about four minutes remaining in the ballgame, while Danielle Bennett converted a layup of her own a minute later, as Plano further distanced itself from Little Elm. Plano went on to win, 66-54.

Plano junior Salese Blow scored 14 of her team-high 24 points in the first half. In defeat, Little Elm junior Amarachi Kimpson scored a game-high 28 points.

Lake Dallas vs. Lubbock Monterey, Feb. 25

Girls basketball

A rematch of an earlier-season match-up at the Lubbock Caprock Classic – a game that the Lady Falcons won 62-53 to earn the tournament title – made it two-for-two against the Plainsmen, and in the process, made history.

Unfazed by an early 10-point deficit, Lake Dallas regrouped and received a game-high 30 points from senior Jorja Elliott in a 65-53 in a Region I-5A semifinal in Wichita Falls. With the victory, the Lady Falcons advanced to the regional final for the first time in program history.

Bailey Broughton had the hot hand early with three first-quarter 3-pointers. But it was also the defense that willed Lake Dallas to the win. The Lady Falcons held Plainsmen star point guard Aaliyah Chavez and junior forward Kelly Mora to a combined 14 points below their per-game averages. Monterey shot just 32% for the game.

Coppell vs. Allen, March 25

Soccer

McKinney ISD Stadium played host to a 6A bi-district playoff doubleheader between Coppell and Allen. Both games featured furious end-to-end action, but when the final whistle sounded, the Eagles emerged with a sweep.

In the girls’ game, Allen’s Taylor Spitzer netted the first goal 12 minutes into the second half after the two teams battled to a scoreless halftime tie. Over a minute later, Coppell scored the equalizer. Reneta Vargas directed the ball off the head of an Allen defender to level the score.

But Spitzer regained the lead for the Lady Eagles in a wild sequence. After Allen goalkeeper Robbi Curry made a diving save to rob Coppell’s Monica Morales of a goal, Spitzer scored a goal on a breakaway just seconds later. The Lady Eagles went on to earn a 3-1 win.

In the boys’ game, Coppell played with the same desperation that had over the final month of the regular season to secure another playoff berth. But in the end, it was Allen that emerged with a 2-0 victory. Diego Morales finished off a free kick by Dylan Berry with a goal in the 28^th minute, and Evan Pustejovsky scored with 52 seconds left in the match to secure a 2-0 victory for Allen. Coppell’s best scoring chance came 30 minutes into the game, when Ryder Brock kicked the ball off the left post.  

Flower Mound vs. Coppell, April 22

Softball

When a batter fouls off eight pitches during an at-bat, it could either lead to big things for his or her respective team or to heartbreak. In the case of Coppell sophomore Mallory Moore, it swung the momentum in the favor of the Cowgirls.

With the bases loaded in the bottom in the sixth inning and Coppell trailing Flower Mound by two runs, Moore was hit on the left arm by a pitch, driving in the first run of the game for the Cowgirls. Junior Medleigh Danchek followed with the go-ahead, two-run infield single, and Coppell went on to win 3-2.

A pitcher’s duel for five innings, Flower Mound took a 2-0 lead in the top of the sixth on a Carsyn Lee RBI sacrifice fly and a McKenna Andrews RBI infield single. But, the Cowgirls were quick to respond, and because of it, clinched second place in District 6-6A.

The Colony vs. Frisco Reedy, April 28

Softball

There was no shortage of drama in the first game of the 2022 playoffs for The Colony and Frisco Reedy softball teams. There were controversial calls, lots of scoring chances, and even an inside-the-park home run.

Lady Cougar junior second baseman Madison Levsey hit an inside-the-park home run, threw out the potential winning run for the Lions at home plate and had the game-winning RBI sacrifice fly, as The Colony hung on for a 4-3 win.

Reedy had a 1-0 lead on an RBI ground-out by senior Ally Ryan in the bottom of the first inning. The Colony tied the score at 1-1 on Levsey’s inside-the-park home run in the top of the fifth. The Lady Cougars, who scored just one run through the first six innings despite 12 base runners, took a 3-1 lead in the seventh inning on a bunt by junior Sydney Young and an RBI double by junior Kailtyn Moeller.

Down to their final three outs, Reedy tied the score at 3-3 on a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch taken by Makayla Cox and a bases-loaded walk issued to Audrey Messer. But the game went advanced to the eighth inning after Levsey fielded a ground ball and threw out the potential game-winning run at home plate. Levsey won the game for The Colony in extra innings with a sacrifice fly.

Prosper vs. Coppell, May 21

Baseball

For the second straight year, Coppell ended a regional quarterfinal series against Prosper in walk-off fashion.

Prosper catcher Easton Carmichael threw to first baseman Jason Miller in an attempt to pick off Coppell senior Walker Polk. But the ball sailed past Miller and into right field, allowing senior Andrew Nester to score the game-winning run in the bottom of the seventh inning, and Coppell earned a wild 3-2 win in Game 3 of a third-round playoff series at Little Elm.

Prosper took a 2-1 lead on a solo home run by Brady Boushey in the top of the fifth inning. It remained a one-run lead for the Eagles, who turned to Texas A&M signee Lucas Davenport to close out the potential win for Prosper.

But Coppell never gave up. Nester hit the game-tying RBI single up the middle to level the score at 2-2, and then scored on Carmichael’s error to ignite a wild celebration for the Cowboys near home plate. With the win, Coppell advanced to the regional semifinals for the second year in a row.