By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

The DHS Golf team has found great success in recent years. Under coach Eric Sitze, the squad finished third in the state two years ago, and last season, the Bearcats sent four to the state championships.

The team has lost four seniors in the last two years, but two of them (Jon Bowman and Chance Holden) moved to on play golf at the collegiate level.

"We're reloading this year. We finished third in state two years ago, and last year I took four to state," Sitze said. "I've lost four Varsity golfers in the last two years; Jon [Bowman] and Chance [Holden] went on to play in college, and we've lost Brennan Justice and Logan Robey, who were three year varsity players. We have 11 kids on the team this year; we can play five in tournaments and six in matches, and I have three guys back that played Varsity last year."

Cody Stevens is the team's lone senior; the three-sport athlete has already signed to play golf and football at Missouri Valley College. Ryan Joyner, a junior, and Myles Urhahn, a sophomore, both saw significant time on the varsity level last season.

"Cody [Stevens] has played a ton, and he just signed a golf scholarship, and we also have Myles Urhahn and Ryan Joyner," Sitze said. "Both played a little bit of Varsity last year; Myles is just a sophomore, and he's shaved a few strokes off his scores from last year. Ryan's scores still aren't very low, but he's got time to improve. I've had a freshman, Brandon Strickler, turn in a decent score or two, so we'll see how he does."

"Cody's shot some really good scores so far this year," Sitze added. "He's got a lot of experience over the last two years, and I expect great things from him this year."

Sitze noted that, on a team level, things would be hard this year due to their youth, but he expects good individual performances from his veterans.

"Team-wise, it will be a struggle this year, but on an individual level, we should have a few guys do pretty well," he said. "I'm letting them get a feel for their game and seeing where they are based on scores right now."

One of the biggest challenges for any golfer, regardless of age, is the short game - shots close to the green. Sitze noted this as one of the biggest challenges for his golfers early in the season.

"The biggest hurdle early is mostly their short game - you can make up a lot of strokes around the green," he said. Any year, if you watch these guys play golf, they lose a lot of strokes on the green in chipping and putting."

Only four of the Bearcats' matches are at their home course - Hidden Trails Country Club - this season, but Sitze said he prefers to have his team on the road and on harder courses.

"We really like to play on the road a lot. When you get to district and state-type courses, they all have bent greens, so they are a lot faster," Sitze noted. "We have Bermuda grass here, so it's a little slower. We also don't have the tiered greens and sand traps that a lot of other courses have."

The Bearcats are set to open the 2012 season on Friday, March 23, in a four team match with New Madrid County Central, Malden, and Bloomfield. The match is set to get underway at 4:00 p.m. from Hidden Trails Country Club.

Click here to download the 2012 schedule.

The West Kentucky United U-14 girls soccer team won the Cincinnati Elite Spring Thaw Tournament. Pictured from left to right in the front row: Anna Ferguson (Hickman County), Ashley Zimmerman (Lone Oak), Kaitlin "Cookie" Cook (Marshall County), Skylar Hargrove (Graves County), Callie Thomas (Graves County), Allie Fiske (Marshall County), Bailey Wood (Marshall County) and Linda Arakelyan (Murray). Back row: Coach Aaron Fenton (Mid Continent University Assistant  Coach), Allison Whitfield (Louisville), Macy Wessel (Massac County, IL), Erica Zetter (Mayfield), Hannah Bowles (Caldwell County), Allye Darnell (Graves County), Ashlyn Willett (Graves County), Jannie Wiles (Marshall County), MaKayla Waldner (Dexter, MO) and Julie Kinsolving (Caldwell County).

The Dexter Sideouts fifth grade volleyball competed in a tournament in Advance this weekend and brought home the second place trophy.

Team members are Anna Bishop, Chaley Mosby, Kelby Hill, Macy Roper, Maycie Martin, Jaydn Northcutt, Maci Mcbride, Jerika Porter, Natalie Sitze.

The team has accumulated a 11-4 record this so far this season.

The fifth grade girls are coached by Christina Pyles.

Good job, ladies!

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

Fans of Lady Bearcat Softball will be greeted by fresh faces in the dugout this year, but not only the players; the Lady 'Cats will be sporting a new coaching staff in the 2012 season.

Leonard Morse is entering his first season as head coach of the Lady Bearcats; he assisted under previous head coach Tammy Crowley for the last four seasons, and has taught at Dexter for five years.

Chris Bolin, in his first year back in Dexter, will fill in as assistant coach.

"I started off assisting with the field work, and I could keep a scorebook; that really sealed the deal," Morse said, laughing. "I moved from groundskeeper to coach."

The Lady Bearcats only participate in the spring softball season; Morse noted this as one of his biggest challenges as a coach, as the MSHSAA State Tournament is only available during the fall season.

"Coach Bolin and I are trying to build this program back up and get more interest. We're both going to coach the summer leagues and the travel team, and most of our girls wind up playing on that team," he said. "That is the biggest challenge: to get good talent year-in, year out when you don't have a State Title to play for. You don't have a District Tournament either, so sometimes it's hard to get girls motivated. We still have the county tournament, but that's down two teams this year since Bell City and Richland couldn't get teams together. We also lost those two games on the regular season, and those would have been easy wins for us."

The two big losses from last season's roster are Alec Jackson and Mollie Whitehead. Jackson, who was the team's ace pitcher, and played catcher on her off days, was lost to graduation and is currently playing softball at Shawnee Community College; Whitehead, currently a sophomore, elected to be a member of the track team this spring.

"Mollie Whitehead flipped over to track to throw the discus, and I can't blame her; I would have too if I'd had that talent. She's got a good shot at getting a college scholarship that way," Morse said. "She set all the school records when she was in middle school, but decided to try softball last year. She was a good first basemen last year for us, and we wish her the best."

"It's going to be hard, replacing Alec. Not only for what she could do at the plate, behind the plate, or on the mound as a pitcher, but also losing her leadership. All four years I was an assistant, she was on the team," he continued. "It's what we're looking for, who is going to step up and take the mantle and prove they can be the leader of the team. It's one thing to say you're a leader, but it's another to earn the teams respect and be a leader. I think we'll be okay replacing her behind the plate - Tiffany Watson played a little bit at catcher last year, but she also plays third and short for us."

Morse will look to several young players to fill in the roster this season; the softball Lady 'Cats have eight of 14 roster slots filled with sophomores.

"We're really young; I've only got one returning senior in Whitney Leyton, plus two more that came out this year, and one junior. I've got two freshmen, and the rest are sophomores," Morse said. "We had a handful not come out this year - we lost three seniors last year, two juniors didn't come back out, and a few sophomores didn't come out."

"Our defense will be top-notch. We've got two returning starters in the outfield, and two more in the infield. Riley Rickman is coming back, and she played some first base last year, so in a way, she's a returning starter as well," he continued. "Emily Triplett was our DH last year, and she's playing third base for us now. We have some pieces that are filling in really well; one of the girls that moved in, Vicki Anderson, she's a pitcher and moved in from Imperial. She's a good pitcher, and she's not afraid to get in there and pitch inside. In left field, we'll have Whitney [Leyton] starting, and she provides a lot of leadership as well. The way she plays the game is full-out; she tends to get hurt because she's so aggressive, and she's not afraid to dive for a ball in the outfield. I can put her anywhere I want her to and she'll give me everything she has. Ashley Brown was our starting center fielder last year, and she's back; she has speed and a good arm, and she's not afraid to go after balls either."

Morse was quick to point out his team's flexibility, which will be a key asset with such a short bench. He noted sophomore Kendra Stevenson, who can play virtually anywhere on the field. Most of her freshman season was spent on the corners or on the mound, but she has the ability to play some in the outfield as well.

Both Morse and Bolin expressed the same goal for their first season coaching the Lady Bearcats: more structure, excellent defense.

"We're trying to maintain a little more structure than there was in the past; I think we're going to have one of the best defensive infields that we've had in the five years I've been associated with this," Morse said. "In spring softball, if you have a good pitcher and good defense, you'll win some games, and we fully expect to win quite a few games. It's shaping up to be a good year; we have a good vibe around this team, and it's a lot of fun right now. We've been having trouble getting everyone out here at once, because of early season injuries or other school functions, but when we have them here, we've got a good group. They work hard, and they will do anything we ask them to without complaining, which is always a good quality. We're already improving, and jumping way out ahead of where we were because they're putting in the time."

"We have a tough schedule, as we still have to play New Madrid and Kennett," he added. "The Malden Tournament is being held in Bernie this year, and some of the Arkansas teams that come up for that are really good. It's not going to be a cakewalk, but we'll be competitive no matter what."

The Lady Bearcats are set to open the season on Monday, March 26, when they host Clearwater. First pitch is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.

Click here to download the 2012 Softball schedule.

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

The DMS Volleyball team opened the season with a pair of massive wins over the Sikeston Lady Bulldogs on Thursday night. The Lady 'Cats held Sikeston to single digits in all four sets.

In the seventh grade contest, the 'Cats posted 25-6 and 25-8 wins. Madison McConnell and Sydney Rodgers accounted for 17 points in the first set, while Zoe Schumer served up 12 points in the second.

The lopsided scoring continued in the eighth grade contest, where DMS put up 25-5 and 25-3 decisions. Madison Bishop scored 13 points for the Lady 'Cats in the first set, and Mary Kate Miller was good for 16 in the second set.

Head coach Melissa Hahn was pleased with her team's preparedness and aggressiveness at the net throughout the game.

"Overall I was pleased with my girls' intensity throughout the game. I was very happy with the power and especially the consistency of our serves," she said. "We had some big streaks, led by Mary Kate Miller who served 16 straight points in the 8th grade game."

"I thought we were ready for the ball to come back over the net and made some nice passes which resulted in some big hits," Hahn continued. "Matney Davis did a great job at the net tonight. She's been hitting the ball hard in practice and it was good to see that in a game."

The Lady Bearcats expect some more competitive games next week; they play host to Scott City on Monday night, and face off against SCAA rival Bernie on Tuesday in the Hits for Hope game.

"We are preparing for some tough games with Scott City and Bernie this week which both have great programs. We sure hope to use our home court advantage and encourage our community to come out to see some great games and support our girls."

Both games next week are scheduled to get underway with seventh grade action at 6:00 p.m.; Tuesday night's Hits for Hope game will feature fundraising activities to benefit 18 FORE Life and area families battling cancer.