Could we have statewide newpaper scores on HS baseball & softball?

[Old Cardinal]

I love to pick up the paper and read the associated press listing of HS football scores during season....Why can't we have the same thing statewide for softball and baseball?....I wish someone would find an e-mail that we could all write to and try to get "someone" to develop a like listing in these other sports...Please try to figure out how we can promote this, and I am sure we can get folks that will e-mail their concerns in and just maybe get this HS score list to become a reality!

[BH_146]

With a son whose job is to cover high school and college sports, I can tell you there has been an attempt to do such. The problem seems to stem from the fact that many coaches just will not assist in such venture. Papers cannot afford to hire the massive number of reporters to cover games (softball as well as baseball). Thus, it is up to the coaches to report game summaries. You might wonder, what about getting knowledgable fans to give straight statistical reporting of the game? One would think this might work but there seems to be major potholes in the path of your request. Sighting an example from your area from last year. a coach from a major 4A school in the Triangle protested vigorously to a news reporter about the statistics reported in the paper after a game. The coach didn't like the reporter's scoring nor the home team's scoring of the game. He explicitly stated that he did not want the reporter printing as fact any statistics on his team unless the games stats came from him. Every time I inquire to news papers about not having more scores, the reply is always the same: Coaches just don't take the time to report them and the papers feel compelled to only post information from a school rep. if there was not a report at the contest.

Now, best possible solution for your request. It has got to be the internet. Slowly, more and more hs sports are being covered by various web sites. What needs to happen is for the high school coaches associations to get behind a site in which game information can be posted for any team. The coach could then post game information or get knowledgable fans who would be given admin access who would then post game wraps and statistics.

[Old Cardinal]

Thanks BH 146: I contacted the Texas Girls Coaching Association, asking if the might add a listing area for Girls Softball and got a cordial reply. They would have to vote, as a board, if they were interested in setting up such a listing page. They had already voted, sometime back, to not set up a "message board". I don't look for them to be a viable listing site anytime in the future...I don't think it matters if some Coach doesn't want their teams scores published, that is public info, and the whole world doesn't to revolve around that one person!

[Old Cardinal]

BH 146: How did the game Friday night end up between Splendora and Barbers Hill in Softball?

[BH_146]

Old Cardinal, Splendora won 5-1 but it was a real battle. The game was tied 1-1 going into the 7th. But with two outs, BH made 2 critical mistakes and Splendora took advantage of the mistakes to score 4 unearned runs. I have to say, the Splendora girls swing the bat exceptionally well. They get the bat out front and are very timely in shifting their weight into the ball. Their coach has done an excellent job. By the way, the one run against Melissa Collins was an earned run despite how they may report it. But the 2 games with Splendora should really benefit our young team. We only start 2 seniors after having 5 seniors last year that had started since their freshmen year.

And I agree with you about the reporting of scores. I still think the internet is changing the way scores are being reported. More and more, sites are opening up either through schools or via a fan. I think if newspapers don't open up more to the use of the world-wide web to give expanded coverage, they will wake up one day and find people indifferent to their print only coverage of sports. Most schools do not get consistent coverage of their teams so why should they be beholden a paper who only tosses out bones every once and a while. As more people use the computer to access information, as the speed of internet access improves while becoming more affordable and available and as the software makes it easier and easier for people to post information, the importance of print additions will begin to fade.

A final note, I see where the H-F pitcher tossed a good game agaist BC. Do you guys have road trips to H-J and Buna?

[BH_146]

Old Cardinal, if you ever want to find out about BH sports, you can go to my website. Not meaning to brag but I think it is one of the best in Texas covering all of our school's high school sports.

Barbers Hill Sports Report (http://www.eteamz.com/bheagles)

[Old Cardinal]

BH_146: BC plays Orangefield at home Apr. 8th; On Apr.11th they play H-J at Sour Lake, then Apr. 22nd, Buna at Buna 7 pm. We are in the same position as BH with a good pitching staff, going against teams with one ace pitcher.

[Phil C]

BH you have every right to brag and be proud of that web site. I wish every school had a similar web site that we could get updates on all the schools.