By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports

The Advance Lady Hornet softball team - a young squad under head coach James Hamlin - looks to impress everyone in the County Tournament with their ability.

Hamlin, entering his fifth season as head coach, noted his team’s ability, despite their youth and a loss in their season opener against Malden.


“We’re young, but we’ve got a lot of potential,” Hamlin said. “We’re making progress every day, and with some experience, we’ll be successful. We’re just still on a learning curve with some of the girls.”

Offensive production wasn’t cited as a concern by Hamlin, but defense and pitching both were.


“We’ve got some girls coming back that can hit pretty well,” Hamlin continued. “We’re just not as strong defensively as we have been is past seasons, and we’re going to have to work on that. We’ll also have to have some pitchers step up this season, but I’m not terribly worried about that.”


Hamlin didn’t cite anyone as a ‘star’ on the team, but rather noted his squads teamwork and willingness to work together.


“Some seniors are stepping up into some leadership roles,” Hamlin continued. “There just isn’t anyone blowing me out of the water right now. We only had 14 days before our first game, but the girls work hard every day. They’re not only great athletes, but they’re great kids as well.”


By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports

The Bloomfield Wildcats have jumped around a lot in regards to their golf team. The team had traditionally been Class 1, switched to Class 2 a couple years ago, and decided to move back to Class 1 this season. Despite all the competition changes, the Wildcats have managed to put together a solid team in the last several years under coach Travis Westbrook.


Westbrook, now going into his sixth year as Bloomfield’s golf coach, is enthusiastic about his group’s potential this year.


“We had six kids come out this year, four of which are returning players,” Westbrook said. “We’ll compete well against other Class 1 schools, and hopefully send a few individuals to state, if not the team as a whole.”


Westbrook noted the leadership that he had returning as keys to his squad’s success this year.

“Seth Hill is the only state-qualifier from last year coming back,” Westbrook continued. “He went to state his freshman year, as well. He’s finished somewhere in the middle of the pack - probably the 60’s - both times.”

“Austin Cooper, a junior, is another good leader,” Westbrook commented. “He’s missed the cut at districts by less than ten shots in his first two years, and he’s been working hard to lower his scores all summer and in practice.”

Talent has also been noticed by Westbrook in one of his younger players.


“Ryan West, a freshman, has been stepping up big,” Westbrook continued. “He played in Gateway Junior PGA tournaments all summer, and fared pretty well, but he was forced to drop out when he broke his arm. He hits the ball well, and plays within his capability.”


Westbrook noted his team’s power as their strong suit this year, but really hasn’t had much of a chance to evaluate their short game.


“Our length off the tee is going to be great this year,” Westbrook said. “Its just been tough - they only uncovered the greens two weeks ago - so we haven’t had much of a chance to chip and putt.”

Photos above The 2011 Bloomfield Wildcat golf team consists of (from left to right); Ryan West, Zac Goode, Austin Battles, Gene Masters, Austin Cooper, and Seth Hill.

Submitted to the ShowMe Times
by Reader Shannon Putnam

The Lil’ Idols and Impact Idols young cheer groups from Dexter made an impressive showing recently at a metro cheer competition.

The Lil’ Idols took second place in its division at the Champion Spirit Group Cheer and Dance Championship.

After an injury to one of the girls during warm-ups, one of the Impact Idols team members was unable to tumble. However, the Impact Idols worked to overcome this adversity and earned third place in the competition.

Following the competition a group of Dexter girls competed in a stunt, Liberty Competition. The girls took third against ALL squads at the competition.

The competition was held at Lafayette High School in Wildwood, in the West St. Louis County region. The teams are coached by Tory Hillis.

A ShowMe Times Sports Report

It was a chilly afternoon , but the Lady Bearcats’ bats were hot as they travelled Thursday afternoon for a game against Bell City.

The Lady ‘Cats won 11-1 against the Cubs in five innings by the 10-run rule. A strong – but bundled for warmth – crowd of Dexter fans traveled to Bell City for the afternoon game.

Catcher Alec Jackson, leading off for the 'Cats, scored twice in the game – in the first and second innings. Jackson, a senior, recently signed a national letter of intent to play softball next year at Shawnee Community College in Ulin, Ill.

“Alec is a great leader for the team,” said coach Tammy Crowley. “She sets a competitive example and steps up to help us be a great team.”

Freshman Kendra Stevenson was on the mound for the Lady ‘Cats, and got her first varsity 'W' with the 11-1 win. Stevenson also chalked up 10 strikeouts during the match.

Stevenson and teammate Jerrica Wood both joined Jackson and scored twice - in the first and fourth innings.

The lone score for Bell City came in the final inning from Lindsey Rendlemen.

Crowley said it was a really cold game, but she was proud of the Dexter team.

“Kendra Stevenson pitched the entire game and is a freshman. I had four freshman playing on the field and another was the designated player/hitter. We have a very young team, but we are coming together nicely,” Crowley said.

Photo Above:
Freshman Kendra Stevenson pitched her first varsity baseball game Thursday, helping lead the Lady Bearcats to an 11-1 victory over Bell City.

Photo Below:
Despite a cold and dreary afternoon, a young Lady Bearcats squad came on strong Thursday, defeating the Bell City Cubs 11-1.

Photos submitted by Reader Kay Stevenson. Thanks, Kay!

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports

MALDEN, Mo. - Dexter’s Varsity baseball took to the diamond against the Malden Green Wave on Tuesday (March 23) afternoon. The offensive juggernaut of the Bearcats - Dexter has put at least 20 runs on the board in their first two contests - blew out Malden, ending the game with a 20-8 victory.


Owen Flowers took the start for the ‘Cats, and gave up four runs off eight hits during his four innings of work. Jordan Miller took over pitching duties for the ‘Cats in the fifth inning, and didn’t give up a run during his two innings. Josh Overall closed out the contest on the mound, but gave up four runs on four hits.


“Overall, I was pleased with the way we played,” Dexter head coach Brian Becker said. “Chase Young was out of the lineup today nursing an illness, but Daniel Fitts stepped up and filled in at shortstop for us - defensively, we played really well.”


Becker also expressed happiness with his team’s offensive ability early in the season, but noted that such lopsided scores would be difficult to consistently put out.

“Our bats are going real well right now,” Becker continued. “I was really pleased with how we swung our bats today. But you’d be a fool to think that this scoring barrage is going to continue all season long.”

‘Well’ could be an understatement for the Bearcats' offense right now. The ‘Cats had five players with multiple hits in the contest - Brad Potts and Alex Cliff both went four for five, both scored three runs, and had two and five RBI’s, respectively. Miller, Fitts, and Josh Sifford all went two for four at the plate, and all had at least one RBI - Fitts and Miller had three and two RBI’s, respectively.



The ‘Cats began and ended the game with big rallies - six runs in the first and eight runs in the seventh - with Alex Cliff hitting a booming solo shot in the fourth inning. Malden scored two runs in the opening frame, and either scored one run or didn’t score in each inning after until the seventh, where the Green Wave game up with a four-run rally.

After starting the season with two wins, the Bearcats will face a tough Kennett team in the home opener Wednesday (March 23) afternoon. Becker expressed concern with the Indians’ pitching staff, but seemed hopeful about his team’s chances for another ‘W’.


“We’re definitely going to run into a buzzsaw today - we have Kennett at home,” Becker commented. “[Kennett has] eight solid pitchers, and the one we’ll face is a flamethrower. We just have to come out, compete hard, and hopefully we can put the bat on the ball and our pitchers can keep us in the ballgame.”


First pitch is set for 4:00 p.m. in Dexter’s home opener.

Photos above Top Photo: Bryn Hester readies his swing during Tuesday’s 20-8 blowout at Malden.
Bottom photo: Alex Cliff blasts a solo shot during the fourth inning. Cliff went 4-5 with 4 RBI’s on the day.