Sports

The hard work put in by a pair of Pierce City baseball players has paid off with state-wide recognition. Bill Ashley and Mason Moreland both earned All-State Class 2 baseball honors for their play this season. Ashley landed on the Second Team as a catcher, and Moreland was named Honorable Mention as a designated hitter/utility player...

One of the keys to being a good journalist is having a heightened observational skill set. In every situation and setting, you watch how people react. Sometimes, it’s their body language that says everything, and that is the context needed in order to set up the next question...

The 2017 Monett Youth Baseball and Softball League Rookie League team, sponsored by State Farm.

The 2017 Monett Youth Baseball and Softball League T-ball team sponsored by Jack Henry and Associates.

A familiar face to Cubs Nation can be spotted on the sideline on Saturday when alumni from Monett and Cassville square off in the Barry County Brawl: Alumni Edition. When the game was officially announced, one thing was apparent, the team needed a coach. One named quickly rose to the top of the Monett alumni players’ list and resonated with the group — Alan Spencer...

The 2017 Monett Youth Baseball and Softball League Major League team sponsored by Schreiber Foods.

The 2017 Monett Youth Baseball and Softball League T-ball team sponsored by Adrenaline Apparel.

Outside of the years he went to the University of Arkansas, Tyler Rickard has been a Monett mainstay. A standout athlete in his high school days, Rickard was thrilled to find a job at his alma mater upon the completion of his college education. After five years with the district, the true son is bidding adieu to Monett and has accepted a position at Kearney High School for the 2017-2018 school year...

Monett’s North Park continues to be a beehive of activity and a Mecca for sports fans from around the area on summer evenings.

The 2017 Monett Youth Baseball and Softball League 16-and-under softball team sponsored by EFCO.

The 2017 Monett Youth Baseball and Softball League T-ball team sponsored by Schreiber Foods.

The final group of baseball awards was released Sunday afternoon in the form of the All-State baseball teams from the Missouri High School Baseball Coaches Association. Four players from Monett made the cut this season. Mason Swearingen received First Team honors as an outfielder, while Ian Meyer was named to the Second Team as a pitcher...

Remember when you were younger and people asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” The usual response to that question is almost still routine today in firefighter, police officer, doctor or professional athlete. The question’s purpose serves as an ice breaker for many public speakers, but also is designed to trigger the dreams and imaginations of those in the audience...

The Ozark 7 Conference has named its top softball players in the annual all-conference voting. Purdy, the runner-up in the spring state title game, was tops in securing seven spots, including Hallie Henderson as the Player of the Year. First Team honors went to Rion Boyd, Devyn Callahan, Casey Ellison and Sami House...

The Missouri High School Baseball Coaches Association has released its most prestigious Academic All-State team, listing top academics. While most fans only want to discuss the play on the field, the association realizes that its players are students first and athletes second...

The 2017 Abou Ben Adhem (ABA) Shrine Mosque Preservation Baseball Showcase will be held Saturday at Hammons Field in Springfield, and among the honored players are two from Purdy — James Hughlett and Ricky Aldaba. Close to 90 area ABA coaches were contacted to recommend players for the Showcase...

The Mighty Mite Cheer Camp is slated for Aug. 1-3 from 6-8 p.m. at the Monett Athletic Complex (MAC), located at 2150 Park St., behind Price Cutter. There is no charge to attend this years event and it is open to cheerleaders in third through sixth grades...

To the victor goes the spoils, and in this case, it was the Monett baseball team celebrating the inclusion of five players to the Class 4, All-District 12 baseball team. The Cubs landed four First Team selections in Ian Meyer, Mason Swearingen, Jonathan Hawkins and Corey Spain. Collecting Second Team accolades were Alex Rivera, Zack Burgherr and Jake Bouchard...

It’s not uncommon to drive by Burl Fowler Stadium and see a couple of dozen boys on the field playing a pick-up game of football. The sport enjoys a tremendous amount of popularity in this sleepy little town that sit on the border of Barry and Lawrence counties...

Thousands of Monett faithful waited patiently on a foggy November morning in Springfield to enter Plaster Field.  The line of paying customers, at one point, stretched nearly four blocks. Everyone was there to cheer on their Cubs as they vied for a state title...

The Monett Booster Club is selling raffle tickets to the Aug. 31 Kansas City Chiefs pre-season game with Tennessee. The winner receives 14 tickets to the game, an Arrowhead Suite and 4 pre-game passes to go on the field. Tickets are $25 and will be limited to 500 total sold. They can be purchased at Monett High School, Community National Bank and First State Bank...

For 23 area senior athletes, Saturday night in Neosho signals an opportunity to lace up their shoes and hit the hardwood one more time. The Lions of District 26-M6 will host its 36th annual Lions All-Star Twin Classic basketball games at Neosho High School...

Levi Szydloski, a 7-year-old gridiron hopeful, works on his passing technique in front of Monett Coach Derrek Uhl during the Mighty Mite passing and receiving camp Wednesday night at Burl Fowler Stadium.

The Monett baseball team turned in another stellar season on the diamond this year, and the Big 8 conference took notice. The Cubs locked down 10 spots on the Big 8 All-Conference baseball team with Ian Meyer, Mason Swearingen, Corey Spain and Jonathan Hawkins receiving first team honors...

The Monett baseball team recently released its 2017 team awards. The list is as follows: • Most Valuable Player: Ian Meyer • Captain: Jonathan Hawkins • Captain: Zach Burgherr • Captain: Mason Swearingen • Captain: Meyer • Defensive Player of the Year: Swearingen...

The annual Pierce City Youth Football camp will be held July 10 and 11 from 6-8 p.m. The camp is free to athletes in the third through eighth grades. Camp T-shirts can be purchased for $10. The camp will be conducted by Brad Hocker and his coaching staff and will focus on football fundamentals...

The Lions District 26-M6 38th annual All-Star Basketball Twin Classic is set for Saturday. The girls game is slated to tip at 6:30 p.m. followed by the boys game. Local athletes participating include: Alex Turner, Monett; Matt Wilson, Purdy; Kayla Portillo, Pierce City; and Nicole Stephenson, Verona...

Springfield is quickly turning into one of Monett’s favorite places to play football. Cubs players have won their last two games in the Queen City. The first was in November 2016 and resulted in a state title, and the second was on Friday and gave six more Cubs the title of Grin Iron All-Star Classic champion...

Monett baseball can take some solace in the fact that their season was ended by the eventual Class 4 state champions. On Friday, Aurora rallied from a 3-0 deficit in the sixth inning with three runs to tie the score and then plated two more runs in the seventh to claim its first state title in school history with a 5-3 win over Lutheran South in O’Fallon...

Tickets are on sale now for the June 24 alumni football game between Monett and Cassville. Advance tickets can be purchased at Coast to Coast or Andy Brandt's Shelter Insurance Office, 122 E. Broadway. The Monett Athletic Booster Club will receive 50 percent of all advance ticket sale proceeds...

The first of what is sure to be many postseason awards for the Pierce City baseball team have begun to be released with the revealing of the Spring River Valley All-Conference team The Eagles secured nine spots on this year’s squad, including B. J. Curry collecting Coach of the Year honors...

It was a risky proposition when Monett decided to add three sports to its large list of offerings. Boys and girls swimming, along with girls soccer, meant that the student athlete pool would be further diluted. There was a fear that key cogs on certain teams would be snatched away by the allurement of other sports offerings and instead of growing programs, the district was ensuring mediocrity...

Tucker Goetz worked on a dribbling drill during the Monett basketball camp on Thursday.

For seven Monett football players, tonight will signal the last time they get to play at the high school level. The 16th annual Grin Iron Classic serves a two-fold purpose in raising money for the Tooth Truck and also giving the best 90 senior players in southwest Missouri one more chance to play under the Friday night lights...

Lost in the shuffle of a high school spring season full of playoff games and district title runs was the outstanding performances of the Monett Middle School track team. The eighth grade boys took home the title of Big 8 champion with a 144 point performance. Mt. Vernon was second with 55...

The date Oct. 28, 2016, has not been forgotten by Pierce City’s Jordan Cruz. That was the last time he wore a football uniform, and it is a feeling that he will get to relive on Friday. Cruz, along with nearly 90 other players from southwest Missouri, will play in the 16th annual Grin Iron Classic in Springfield...

Windmill Ridge Golf Course will host a Junior Golf League beginning June 4 and ending Aug. 3. The league is open to golfers age 8-15, with league play every Thursday morning. Players will need their own bags and clubs, should have a basic knowledge of golf and should have the ability to put the ball in play...

One would expect that a softball team that went 22-7 during the season would stand to have some stellar players, and one would be right. For Pierce City players, all but the All-State honors have been revealed. Individual team awards were as follows:...

Two days, a tornado warning and a five and a half hour delay could not dampen the sprits or resolve of the Monett trio of Kelli McCallister, Kelsey Dalton and Kaesha George at the state track meet in Jefferson City over the weekend. The Lady Cubs weathered both he proverbial and literal storm and led the Lady Cubs to a 32nd place finish out of 70 Class 4 schools...

For more than 15 years, the Leonard Witt family has been a staple in the Monett sports scene. With five boys that are all athletically gifted, a Cubs roster was not complete with a Witt on the list. From the early beginnings of their boys’ sports careers, Leonard and Tina instilled the importance of being humble, consistent and hard working...

Several years ago, an owner of a pizza restaurant went to see his banker about a series of bounced checks he had cashed for a customer. The banker said he knew the person who had written the checks and that the bank — more frequently than it wanted to admit — dealt with this particular individual’s overspending problem...

The 17th annual Tony Roper Memorial Race is set for Sunday at the Monett Speedway. The MARS Series invades town for high speed action, along with USRA Mods, B-Mods, Midwest Mods, Pure Stocke and Pro 4s. Adult tickets are $20 and children 6-15 are $10...

Perry Azelton, 10, of Monett was one of nearly 20 youth that participated in the annual Monett Baseball Camp.

It was not the end to his season Michael Calhoun, Monett baseball coach, had hoped for on Tuesday. The No. 3 state-ranked Cubs (21-5) saw their campaign end in a 5-0 loss to No. 2 Aurora (26-3) in the Class 4 sectional. “Give them credit,” Calhoun said of Aurora. ...

There were no signs of jitters or sayings of “just happy to qualify” coming from the trio of Monett track stars on Tuesday. In fact, freshman Kaesha George was matter-of-fact when she said her goal was to win the event. It was not arrogance or cockiness that led her to make the bold prediction, but a confidence in herself that she could reach the top level this weekend...