FFA/4-H Spotlight

Cleveland County 4-H High School Rifle & Pistol Team is Growing

Scroggins Animal Hospital 1259 S Eastern, Moore (405) 895-6638 scrogginsanimalhospital.com

Last summer, we told you about Moore High School freshman, Elisa Boozer and her excellent achievements in competitive shooting. This year Boozer is finding more company on her journey to the Olympics as the Cleveland County team has expanded and hit new heights.

Here’s a quick recap:

• High School Rifle/Pistol Teams swept the State Contest receiving 1st place in both Air Rifle and Air Pistol

• Oklahoma Sharpshooters won 1st, 2nd and 3rd in the

Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) OK 3-Position

Air Rifle Jr. Championships (first time!) Boozer’s accomplishments

• 4th place overall at the Under-15 Women’s Division at the US Nationals (Winter Air Gun) in December and 2nd in the super finals.

• Almost swept the OK state titles for USA Shooting,

CMP Air Rifle, and 4-H. She was also the top overall

Under-21 shooter.

• USA Shooting OK Jr. Championship: State Champion in Air Rifle, Runner-up in .22 Rifle, and qualified for third trip to USA Shooting Junior Olympics

• State Champion in CMP OK 3-Position Air Rifle Junior

Championships

• 4-H – 2nd Overall in Air Rifle, Air Pistol, .22 Rifle, and .22 Pistol and Top Overall Female Shooter

Westmoore Slow Pitch Coach Steps Away from the Game He Loves

Twenty-four years ago, a much younger Steve Schwarz remembered applying at Westmoore in hopes of landing a position coaching baseball. As it often does, destiny had other plans for Schwarz, including a run of success that included six state championships, 25 regional championships, 471 wins, multiple "coach of the year" honors, and a spot in the state softball Hall of Fame as the youngest coach to be inducted.

"Westmoore offered me a softball job," said Schwarz, "My first thought was, 'Well, I'll just get my foot in the door and then switch to baseball down the line. But I just fell in love with softball, especially the kids who put so much energy and passion into it, and I never thought about going back to baseball."

These days Schwarz has kids of his own and a wife handling the lion's share of home duties. Now that his kids are at the age where they're starting to play sports, he wants to make sure he doesn't miss the most important moments of their lives.

"As much as I love coaching, I've missed so many of my kids' games," said Schwarz. "By the time I get home, they're already in bed. It just hit me that I've spent 24 years helping raise Westmoore kids, and now it's time for me to raise my own."

Schwarz says he has so many great memories from his time at Westmoore, most of them centered around the kids he coached.

"Gosh, I can't even name all of them, and honestly, it would be unfair to leave any of them out," said Schwarz. "We've had so many great players, and many kids go on to play college ball, but even the ones that didn't go on to play at a higher level were so much fun to coach."

Schwarz's other great memory is the tremendous support from the Westmoore community and families. He says that the family atmosphere was the foundation of his coaching philosophy.

"I decided early on that I wanted to run the team more like a family," said Schwarz. "No one is more intense about the game than I am, but I never wanted that intensity to get in the way of how much I cared about every player on the team. And I think that if you talked to most of my former players, they would tell you that I genuinely cared about them and encouraged them."

Schwarz's plans now are to take all that experience and encouragement and pour it into the lives of his children as they grow up. He's also ready to step up and take some of the load off his wife, Morgan.

"My beautiful wife carries so much of the load," said Schwarz. "She does triple duty, taking care of the kids and helping with all the homework. She also runs a boutique and does some photography on the side. Plus, we actually have a farm with cows, horses, and goats that she works on. It's time for me to start carrying my share of the load there."

As for the future beyond that point in time when his kids graduate from high school, Schwarz isn't quite ready to say he's done with the game for good.

"It feels weird, and I'll miss the game," said Schwarz, "But I'm out of high school ball until my kids are done. After that, who knows. Yah never say never, I guess."