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Sunday, January 5, 2014
2013 YEAR IN REVIEW
Denton Record-Chronicle
NO. 2: GUYER GOES BACK-TO-BACK
NO. 3: ARYGLE WINS STATE
NO. 4: NATE MAKI DIES
After winning their first state championship in dramatic comeback fashion to close out the 2012 high school football season, the Guyer Wildcats were immediately thought of as favorites to repeat in 2013 with several returning starters, including one of the nation’s best players in quarterback Jerrod Heard. The Wildcats lived up to the hype by winning back-to-back state championships with a 31-14 win over San Antonio Brennan on Dec. 20. During the two-year alignment, Guyer was 26-0 against Class 4A teams and became a state powerhouse.
After two previous unsuccessful attempts, Argyle brought home its first football state championship in a thrilling 38-33 victory against Fairfield on Dec. 20 in the Class 3A Division II state championship game. Texas Tech pledge Ian Sadler was the catalyst offensively and was named the offensive MVP of the title game. On the way to the state championship, Argyle avenged last season’s loss to Gilmer with a win over the Buckeyes in the regional semifinals. The Eagles finished up the second half of their perfect season without starting senior linebacker Sam Sizelove, who is headed to Kansas State.
The weight of expectations took a back seat for the Guyer football team early in the season when tragedy struck the program and the entire Wildcat community. Starting fullback Nate Maki was accidently shot and killed days after Guyer opened the season with a loss to eventual 5A Division II state champion Cedar Hill. Football was far from Guyer’s minds for the ensuing week leading up to a game against Colleyville Heritage, which was nearly canceled. Instead, Guyer played hours after attending Maki’s funeral and breezed to a 35-14 win that was later forfeited for use of an ineligible player.
NO. 5: HUNTER DOZIER DRAFTED
NO. 6: TONY MITCHELL DRAFTED
NO. 7: JOEY FLORENCE WINS NO. 200
It was only a matter of time before Denton graduate and Stephen F. Austin shortstop Hunter Dozier was going to be drafted within the first few rounds of baseball’s first-year player draft. But the Kansas City Royals shocked many people and drafted the former Bronco with the eighth overall pick, making Dozier the highest Denton ISD prospect and SFA player to be drafted. Dozier moved his way up from the rookie Pioneer League to the Royals’ Class A affiliate in Lexington, Ky. In 69 games between the two leagues, he batted .308 with seven home runs, 30 doubles and 52 RBIs.
Former North Texas standout Tony Mitchell was selected in the second round of the NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons early in 2013. The former Dallas Pinkston standout was selected 37th overall and became the highest pick in UNT history. Mitchell played just a year and a half for the Mean Green, but elevated the profile of the program in his short time at the school. Mitchell played sparingly in his first season with the Pistons and recently was assigned to the NBA Developmental League, where he was expected to see additional playing time that will foster his development.
Ryan head football coach Joey Florence reached a plateau reserved for the state’s best coaches when he picked up his 200th career head coaching victory this season in Ryan’s win over Flower Mound Marcus. Since he came to Ryan from Cooper in 2000, the Raiders have never missed the playoffs under Florence. Florence and the Raiders surpassed many people’s expectations this season and reached a Class 5A Division II regional final, where the team lost to the eventual state champion, Cedar Hill. Florence finished the season with 205 career wins, with 152 of those coming at Ryan.
NO. 8: GUYER GIRLS WIN STATE
NO. 9: COLE HEDLUND BREAKS MARK
NO. 10: TWU REACHES NCAA TOURNEY
After rolling through opponents all the way to the state championship game, it seemed Guyer’s girls soccer team might have finally met its match in Highland Park, the defending state champion that was riding a 49-game winning streak. But led by a formidable scoring duo of Hannah Alspach and Brittany Crabtree, the Lady Wildcats snapped the Lady Scots’ streak and won a state title in their first state tournament appearance. Throughout the postseason, Guyer outscored opponents 27-6, and with most of the squad returning in 2014, the Lady Wildcats will be a favorite to repeat this spring.
Coming into the season, Argyle senior kicker Cole Hedlund already owned one national high school football record. At the end of the season, he owned two. Hedlund set the national record for most career field goals made when he knocked down five field goals against Krum in the playoffs. As a sophomore, he set the mark for most field goals made in a season. He made 24 field goals as a senior, one shy of his 2011 record. Hedlund finished his career with 56 field goals and showed why he’s ranked as one of the nation’s best kickers and will play at Arkansas next season.
TWU’s softball team fought back and made things interesting in an elimination game at the NCAA Division II national tournament in Salem, Va., but the Pioneers’ season ended as they went 0-2 at the tournament. The Pioneers were 51-14 last season, their best in program history, and made their first appearance in the tourney behind a core group of players that returns this season. The Pioneers had one prior national title in 1979 as an AIAW member before joining the NCAA. TWU returns in 2014 with a new head coach, as Richie Bruister left to start a program at Texas A&M-Commerce in July.
Denton Record-Chronicle file photos From Page 1B
Year-end What transpired over the next few weeks changed the trajectory of UNT’s program. “Guys took a stand and were not going to be denied,” Chancellor said. UNT hammered Middle Tennessee 34-7 the week following its loss to Tulane and was suddenly off and running. UNT beat Louisiana Tech the
next week, giving the Mean Green back-to-back wins for the first time since 2004. A win over Southern Mississippi followed, setting up arguably the Mean Green’s biggest victory of the regular season. UNT beat Rice 28-16 on national television and captured widespread attention with an eight-play goal-line stand after the Owls picked up four extra downs due to a holding call in the end zone. UNT went on to beat UTEP
HONORABLE MENTION Here are a few stories that just missed the cut for the top 10: Pilot Point wins Class 2A state softball title Krum girls basketball team advances to Class 3A state tournament UNT soccer team advances to the C-USA tournment title game Guyer quarterback Jerrod Heard selected for Army All-American Bowl Denton soccer legends Iseed Khoury, Raiford Malone leave town UNT tennis team advances to NCAA tourney UNT men’s basketball team flops in highly anticipated season DISD athletic director Ken Purcell retires
and then Tulsa for the first time since 1969.
The Mean Green stumbled against Texas-San Antonio, but
was all but locked into a bowl game following its win over the Golden Hurricane. A few days later, UNT found out it was headed to Dallas, another perfect turn of events in a season full of them. The Heart of Dallas Bowl invited the Mean Green, which ended up playing in front of a sea of green-clad fans at the Cotton Bowl. UNT rolled in the second half of that game, breaking a 7-all tie with a 29-point onslaught that
brought Mean Green fans rushing out of the Cotton Bowl stands and onto the field.
“The sky is the limit,” McCarney said before the game. “That is one of the reasons I took this job.” UNT fans started to feel the same way, thanks to the Mean Green’s performance in 2013, a run that was the story of the year in Denton sports. BRETT VITO can be reached at 940-566-6870 and via Twitter at @brettvito.