Friday, April 19, 2024
Participation in athletics at Gatesville Independent School District is strong, with a total of 771 students participating - an increase of 90 students from the previous year.
That was among the good news shared during the Sept. 19 school board meeting by Rickey Phillips, Gatesville ISD athletic director.
"It's been pretty good," Phillips said. "There are 451 students at the high school and 320 at the junior high involved in athletics. We're proud of that."
Of the 451 high school athletes, 183 are girls and 268 are boys, with 56% of the student body participating in athletics.
Of the junior high athletes, 137 are girls and 183 are boys, with 75% of students involved in a school-sponsored sport.
Phillips noted that the total number of participants has increased by 128 students in the past two years.
"Those numbers are good, we're getting them involved in athletics which helps keep them out of trouble and helps them stay accountable with their grades," Phillips said.
The first nine weeks grading period information was not available in time for Phillips' presentation, but he said he hoped for students to maintain the strong academic performances they have had during the previous school year.
"Our student-athlete academic passing rate last year was 90%, 96% and 94% at those (2021-22) grading periods," he said.
Phillips also talked about some of the highlights of the GISD athletic year so far.
In cross country, the varsity girls have finished third in two of their last four meets, and sophomore Vania Martinez has won all four races. The varsity boys have won all four meets — at Hillsboro, Brownwood, Waco Midway and Gatesville. Carlo Martinez is also a perfect four-for-four in individual race results, winning the gold for first place among the boys at each meet.
Hornet A teams are a combined 12-3-1 the first four weeks (including varsity, junior varsity and freshman results). The varsity earned a 3-1 record, beating Mexia 43-14 heading into the Hornets' homecoming game against Godley. The junior varsity also sported a 3-1 record, with the freshmen being 2-1-1. The eighth grade and seventh grade A teams were both 2-0, while the eighth grade B and seventh grade B teams were both 1-1.
Team tennis has also had an outstanding fall season, with a 12-2 overall record, including 2-0 in district competition. The Hornets recently won their 11th straight district match, and are in the running to earn their third straight district championship in team tennis. The next match for GHS will be Sept. 29, a home match against Brownwood.
The Hornet varsity volleyball team was 14-15 overall and has been missing a couple of starters. The junior varsity, eighth grade A team and seventh grade A team all have winning records. District play in volleyball was set to begin Sept. 23 against Robinson.
