Yoemen Sports Network

On Monday, the Cameron Lady Yoe golf team competed in their third tournament of the young season on the road at Copperas Hollow Golf Course in Caldwell.

It was another strong performance across the board as the ladies finished second as a team with a 391.  Host Caldwell was first with a 364.  “We did well,” said first-year golf coach Pete Magre.   “We started off slow, but just about all the girls started off slow.  Several of them turned it around and had good back nine’s and saved rounds.”

Cameron’s number one golfer Keagan Galvan was one of those in that position, grinding through the first nine holes before finishing strong on the back nine for a team-low 89. 

“I started off bad, but I came back and it’s all about comebacks,” said Galvan.  “Golf is a game where the next shot is the most important shot.  That is all I did.”

Since moving down to 3A back in 2011, the Yoemen baseball team has been one of the most consistent programs in the Yoe High athletic department.  Cameron won a state championship in 2011 and has been in the playoffs five out of the last six years. 

On Monday, the 2017 version of the Yoemen put on the cleats for the first time in a scrimmage at Robinson in what is the beginning of a 3-month trek to getting back into the postseason.

The expectations should remain high with the return of eight starters from last season’s 17-15 area finalist team.  The second round playoff finish was the best since the Yoemen won it all six years ago.

"2016 was our most successful playoff finish since 2011," said Yoemen head coach John Broussard, who has won 173 games in his nine years as a coach. "I was really impressed on how our team came together and competed after having a slow start. We had a combination of younger and older players step up and play big roles last year."

By Josh Pratt

Herald Sports

Last Wednesday, two Yoemen football players decided to continue their education and football careers.  Yoe receiver Sicory Smith signed with Blinn College while defensive lineman Jesse Valdez signed with Howard Payne University.  

“It’s huge for these two young men and their families,” said Yoe athletic director Tommy Brashear.  “It’s huge for our community.  We have a lot of tradition in Cameron, and a lot of our kids have a dream of going on and playing on the next level, and these two are getting to fulfill those dreams.  These two guys have taken care of business to be able to play at the next level.”

Smith will join a Buccaneers program that has seen plenty of Yoemen come through in recent years, including Edgar Luna, Tralund Webber and Dede Westbrook.  Blinn finished 5-4 last season and was 3-4 in the Southwest Junior College football conference.  

The Lady Yoe golf team has opened the 2017 season by participating in two tournaments.  The ladies were in Lampasas on Feb. 1 and at Taylor on Feb. 6.

Cameron finished seventh as a team at Lampasas.  Keegan Galvan (92), Alexis Magre (102), Julie Harwell (112), Jazmin Vaculin (112), Presley Berry (122) and Emily Graham (125) all competed for the Lady Yoe.

Cameron upped their play the following week by winning with Taylor tournament with a 384.  Salado was second and Thrall was third.  Galvan was the second medalist and finished with an 86.  Magre (94), Harwell (102), Vaculin (102), Graham (103), Berry (110), and Darci Denio (121) all got a round of golf in.

The boys saw their first action of the year on Wednesday in Taylor, finishing third as a team.  We will have a report on that tournament in next week’s edition of sports.

The girls will be in Caldwell on Monday with the boys to follow on Tuesday.

After taking Friday off due to a seven team district, Cameron was back in action on Tuesday at home against Eastside Memorial.  The Lady Yoe picked up their first district win of the season with a 1-0 shutout victory.  Karla Martinez scored the goal to improve Cameron to 1-2 in district play.  The Yoemen did not have the same fortune in a 19-0 loss to the Panthers.  Eastside had defeated Smithville (11-1) in their previous match and is now undefeated in district at 4-0.  The Yoemen drop to 0-3.  Both teams will be in La Grange on Friday and will return home on Tuesday to host Gonzales.  The girls will begin at 5:15 p.m. with the boys to follow at 7:15 p.m.  

This past weekend, the Yoe High wrestlers competed in the junior varsity wrestling championships from Bowie High School in Arlington.   Every competitor for Cameron ended up winning a match in what head coach Dale Keen classified as his team’s most successful week to date.

Rico Bolivar was in five matches, going 3-2 on the day.  Joel Uvalle, Alfredo Ramos and Domanique Borgas all were 2-2 for the boys. 

For the girls, McKenzie Salicos and Destiny Merrow both were 1-2 and finished third in their respective weight classes. 

“We had a great day,” said Keen.  “Every wrestler we took won at least one match   We got pinned a few times but not as much as we sometimes do so this is encouraging.  This was our best performance up to date.”

Cameron will compete in the district tournament this Saturday from Huntsville High School. 

Last Wednesday, two Yoemen football players decided to continue their education and football careers.  Yoe receiver Sicory Smith signed with Blinn College while defensive lineman Jesse Valdez signed with Howard Payne University. 

“It’s huge for these two young men and their families,” said Yoe athletic director Tommy Brashear.  “It’s huge for our community.  We have a lot of tradition in Cameron, and a lot of our kids have a dream of going on and playing on the next level, and these two are getting to fulfill those dreams.  These two guys have taken care of business to be able to play at the next level.”

Smith will join a Buccaneers program that has seen plenty of Yoemen come through in recent years, including Edgar Luna, Tralund Webber and Dede Westbrook.  Blinn finished 5-4 last season and was 3-4 in the Southwest Junior College football conference. 

Rogers

In Cameron’s first matchup with the Lady Eagles, points came at a premium.  The Lady Yoe shot the ball 43 times, but only converted on four of those shots in a 60-14 loss. 

On Friday in the second round of district, it appeared as if we were headed down the same path.  Rogers led 10-2 after one period and Cameron was 0-2 from the floor.  Cameron finally broke through in the second quarter, pushing across 20 points to keep the game competitive at the half (33-22) before Rogers created some distance in the 63-39 win.

“I felt like our defense kept us in the game in the first quarter,” said head coach Corey Cunningham, who added that his team’s 10 turnovers led to the scoring opportunities for Rogers.   

Rogers

For Cameron to get into the postseason for the first time since the 2010-2011 season, a win over the Rogers Eagles at Yoe Gym was of the utmost importance. 

The Yoemen had fallen to the Eagles on the road earlier this year, 61-57, and needed to pick up a win to at the worst stay tied with the Hearne Eagles.

Cameron struggled offensively a good portion of the game, and trailed 29-23 entering the final period.  However, Cameron closed the final eight minutes on a 21-9 run to pick up a critical 44-38 win.

The Yoemen defense, which has propelled the team into its current position, came through in a contest where neither team had much offensive consistency.

“If we would play like we did in the fourth quarter, we would be fine,” said Glendenning.  “ We play really good defense.  I don’t care what sport it is, defense is going to matter.  That is what is going to get us there.”

Just sitting here on Saturday afternoon, trying not to get interested in all the Super Bowl hype, but looking forward to the NFL Network coverage of Cameron Yoe, that was filmed the week of the Malakoff game.  I just found out that besides the 10 minute coverage (1:30-1:40) on Sunday, that they were running the entire story today at 4:30 on the NFL Network. 

Also I am writing my column this week about a couple of assistant coaches, who started their careers briefly here with the Yoemen.  They are Jerry Hopkins (1957-1958) and John Wilkins (1965-1966).  Both wound up as two of the winningest head coaches in Texas.