Llano High freshman Anna Casey wound up her first regular season in Track & Field with three gold medals in the March 29 Jacket Relays. The opponents will certainly get tougher, but Casey has no control of the entry list, and her splendid campaign now totals nine race titles.
She ran the 800 in two minutes, 20.6 seconds.
ABILENE—En route to one of the greatest performances in Texas High School Powerlifting Association history, Dakoda Trull made a rare mistake, akin to Justin Verlander throwing a hanging curve in a 2-2 game in the ninth inning. Dakoda turned an absolute rout into a root
canal. The unbelievable, almost unthinkable, though, did not happen, and this teenage mountain man, this Paul Bunyan of the indoors, went on to capture the state championship
in the 275-pound class of Class 4A.
2017’s ...
WACO—Another outstanding performance by one of Llano High’s busiest athletes—and that’s a huge group. Courtney Renia, in the 220-pound class, finished ninth in the Powerlifting State Championships at the Extraco Events Center. She was lifting maybe near a bench or just out of bounds where Baylor played basketball before the Ferrell Center was born.
“I’m not pleased with the squat,” said the very-hard-to-please junior, a state qualifier a year ago.
It has arrived. The magnificent four-year career of Dakoda Trull has reached the summit—for the second and final time, but this is much different than 2017 when he placed fifth. He appears in Abilene, March 24, as a huge favorite to win the state title in the Class 4A, 275-pound division.
“I always have confidence, but not enough to be overconfident,” he told me after a workout, March 21.
A Perfect 10 in one game and Dressed to the Nines in another described Llano’s softball opponents in games two and three of district play. They did not describe good times for the Jackets.
“It will get better,” is the way outfielder Jordan Reed quoted coach Kemp Lowery’s postgame talk after a 9-2 loss to Leander Glenn, March 16.
LAMPASAS—“That’s one {which means} I won’t sleep very well tonight.” Llano head coach Todd Doucet, following a 6-5 loss to the Badgers to open district play, March 13. All defeats hurt—this one is right up there among the opening chapters. Yes, of course, a controversial call was huge.
Llano, up twice but down 4-3 in its half of the seventh, got a one-out single from Justin Lange.
SMITHVILLE—He lifted himself to a penthouse view of the residence of the best-ever. While not winning the state’s top prize yet, on March 10, this near incomparable powerlifter—Dakoda Trull—turned the Tiger gymnasium into a one-man show. The crowd—normally only concerned with its family member or its school—eyed the Llano High senior like it was the ninth inning, and he was about to throw a perfect game.
SMITHVILLE—Luis Coronado came close to advancing to state, and Ray Dixon and Quint Pincelli also got medals, as that trio finished in the top six in the March 10 Region II, Division II Powerlifting championships. Three other Llano High boys also did well to complete superb seasons.
Coronado is quite a story.
We’ve seen a lot of baseball the past week, and the worst was saved for last, March 12. In the first inning, at home against Wimberley, a line drive was hit straight at Jackets’ pitcher Jack Neff. His glove deflected it, but it still struck him in the nose. He walked off under his own power and was seeing a specialist, March 13.
Jayme Standhart makes the catch near the Salado dugout. The Eagles beat the Lady Jackets 9-0 in the district opener. A 9-2 non-district loss followed to Canyon Lake. Also, Lauren Young in a workout, March 12. I hope this proves she has recovered sufficiently from a nasty spill at Johnson City, March 3.
