Lady Horn speedster second at Meet of Champs
Lady Longhorn sprinter Morgan Chilson came up just .39 of a second shy of winning the 100-meter gold medal at the prestigious Arizona Meet of Champions.
Pine Water District may boost rates 40 percent
The Pine-Strawberry Water Improvement District board will meet at 10 a.m. on Saturday morning to consider increasing both water rates and property taxes.
Mister Payson Rodeo - Armstrong keeps rodeo heritage alive
In the Rim Country, Bill Armstrong is known as a longtime rodeo boss, a crafty businessman, a sports aficionado and the father and grandfather to some of the finest athletes to ever play for Payson High School.
Memories of the man of the memorial
The Payson Pro Rodeo Committee honors the memory of Gary Hardt when the action hits the arena at the Payson Event Center this week. Among those who remember him fondly is his son, Shawn, now a teacher and coach in Queen Creek.
Chilson triumphs, other Longhorn teams fall
Longhorns’ soaring hopes came crashing to earth on Friday after a storybook season in golf, track and field, softball and baseball. For complete details, see Sports on 1B.
Dogs bite Lady Horns; no title this year
Payson High School’s first-ever state softball championship has slipped out of the Lady Longhorns’ grasp. The title squirted away May 10 at Rose Mofford Field in Phoenix, where the Winslow Bulldogs ran roughshod over PHS, winning the state semifinal showdown 14-4 in a game truncated after five innings on the 10-run rule.
Chilson comes up big at state
Payson High senior speedster Morgan Chilson etched her way into school record books by winning two gold medals at the Division III state championships. Competing May 10 and 11 at Mesa College, Chilson — whose father Ty was a state champion sprinter in the mid-1980s — was first in the 100 meters in a personal record 12.55. In the preliminaries, she qualified with a first-place time of 12.72.
Horns struggle at state
A Payson High School golf team that dominated opponents most of the regular season couldn’t continue it blitzkrieg in the Division III state tournament, finishing a disappointing sixth place. Playing May 10-11 at Antelope Hills near Prescott, Payson’s final team tally of 632 was well off the pace of the state champion Valley Christian that easily won the title with a 596.
The Elks Lodge wants golfers to help youth
Golf can be great fun and rewarding. But it can be even more fun and rewarding if play is for an admirable cause like the 2013 Elks Clothe-A-Child benefit set for Saturday, July 6, at Payson Golf Course.
Season ends, but future is bright
Longhorns’ bid for championship ends at semifinals
While a 13-3 Division III semifinal tournament loss to Tucson Empire was heartbreaking for Payson High coaches and players, there is much solace in knowing the team finished as one of the top four in the state, compiled an impressive 20-10 record and will return next season loaded for bear, losing only Gunner Goodman to graduation.
“Turn Out the Lights, the Party’s Over”
“Turn Out the Lights, the Party’s Over,” is the song Dandy Don Meredith would have crooned had he been announcing the final innings of the PHS baseball and softball teams’ state semifinal tournament losses on Friday evening.
Wrestlers practice; others have fun in mud
Payson High School wrestling coach Casey Woodall is hailing the May 4 off-season youth tournament held in Wilson Dome an overwhelming success. “Things are on the upswing,” he said. Following a full day of mat action involving aspiring wrestlers ages 5 and older, two local grapplers — Levi Herrera and B. J. Paulson — won weight class championships.
Runners get their geek on
It’s tough to admit you might be a geek, but a field of 51 runners of all ages and abilities turned out for the “Embrace Your Inner Geek” 5K and 10K races held May 4 at Rumsey Park. Town Special Events Coordinator David Roehig expressed satisfaction with the turn out, even though it was smaller than last year when about 80 competed.
Payson Men’s Golf Association wraps up first round of match play
Members of the Payson Men’s Golf Association have wrapped up the first round of their three-week match play tournament. The fray began on May 1 and wraps up May 15. All three rounds are being played at Payson Golf Course.
Buzzin’ on Beeline
Payson High School sports fans hit the road today to cheer on their favorite teams
Southbound traffic today, May 10, on Beeline could be heavy as throngs of Payson High fans, boosters and students travel to the Valley to cheer on the baseball, softball and track and field teams in state tournament action.
Cline Poker Ride fund-raiser best ever
Laci Sopeland and a bevy of Lorraine Cline Memorial Fund volunteers have for the past five years waged an all-out war against cancer. Among the weapons they’ve used to earn money to fund the fight against the disease is the Lorraine Cline Memorial Poker Ride, which has grown in stature and popularity each year since its founding in 2006.
Horns in Final Four for State Championships
Lady Horns dominate
Two down, two to go. That’s the position Lady Longhorn softball players find themselves as the journey toward Payson High School’s first-ever state softball championship continues. Now in the rearview mirror are a 9-0 tournament-opening win on May 3 over Thatcher and a 7-3 second-round victory the following day against River Valley.
Junior Wrestling Club working on a dynasty
Payson High School wrestling coach Casey Woodall is putting countless hours into building the school’s wrestling team into one of the finest in Arizona. To accomplish that goal, he’s started from the ground up by attracting younger athletes with an interest in the sport.
Winner finishes Zane Grey 50 in 8:40
Bob Young, a longtime sports reporter and columnist for the Arizona Republic, thrived in his personal opportunity to compete in a big time event rather than simply write about it.
Payson golfers win May 1 invitational
A five-team prep golf invitational played at White Mountain Country Club May 1 turned into a healthy dose of nostalgia when all six schools from the now-defunct Class 3A East Region showed up to rekindle old rivalries.
Longhorns tame Cougars
The Payson Longhorn baseball team pulled off the upset of the 2013 season whipping No. 1 seeded and championship favorite Show Low 5-3 in the quarter final round of the Division III state tournament.
Pine’s rates may jump
Water district considers rate, tax hikes to cope with $680,000 deficit, cost of new wells, pipes
Water rates and property taxes will rise in Pine and Strawberry, but just how much is anyone’s guess. The Pine-Strawberry Water Improvement District faces a $680,000 deficit for 2013-14, the board learned this week from consultant John Nelson, a retired Gila County administrator.
Lethal pitching, Murderer’s Row of hitters has propelled record-breaking softball team
Paulson sisters have headlined team with a 27-4 record and a solid shot at state title
Armed with two of the finest pitchers in the state and a power hitting lineup led by seven players (20-plus games played) hitting over the magical .300 mark, the Lady Horns are primed and ready to earn the school’s first state softball championship.
Lady Longhorns softball team gunning for state title
Tucson’s Empire Ravens ranked No. 1, but No. 2 Lady Horns enter state tournament today on a winning streak
Prognosticators from around the state are predicting the Division III state championship softball game could come down to a battle between No. 1 seeded Empire and No. 2 Payson.
Longhorn golfers driving toward championship
Tricky Antelope Hills’ courses just one of the challenges as team seeks to avenge last year’s second-place, Division III finish
Payson High School golfers travel Friday, May 10 to Antelope Hills Golf Club in search of the Division III state championship that eluded them last year when the Longhorns had to settle for second place behind then-defending state champion Yuma Catholic.
Lady Longhorn speedsters off and running for state finals
Chilson, Schatz, Ralston, Western and relay teams all among fastest in the state
Blinding speed will be the Lady Longhorns’ forte when the Division III state track and field championships sprint off the starting blocks on Friday, May 10 at Mesa College. The meet will wrap up Saturday.
Gutsy veterans, freshman sensation leap at state titles
Longhorns sending relay teams, jumpers, sprinters, vaulters to contend for medals
One of the most talented freshmen in Payson High School track and field history, together with a solid group of veterans, will lead the Longhorn boys track and field team into the D-III state championships Friday, May 10-11 at Mesa College.
Track team reveals its secret weapon: Super Dawg
Tough workouts pay off for Horns
Does former Payson High track coach Dan Reid, a member of the Arizona Coaches Association Hall of Fame, have the magic elixir that could help the boys and girls team reap state honors in the D-III finals that play out May 10-11 at Mesa College?
The race starts in sprinter’s head
Speedster follows in father’s footsteps while trying not to ‘psych’ herself out
Morgan Chilson is Payson’s track star heading into the state meet next week, ranked No. 1 in both the 100-meter and 200-meter dash.
Plenty of thoroughbreds in the Longhorn corral
Several players on PHS baseball team have been on the field together since Little League
The Payson High School baseball team will be buoyed in the 2013 Division III state tournament by a player Arizona Sports Network’s “Coach Pichotta” predicted last spring will “be a dominant force as he moves forward.”
Longhorns look to repeat 1999 school feat
Despite underdog status, Payson High baseball has history of overcoming odds
With the Longhorn baseball team set to begin a long-shot pursuit of Payson High School’s second-ever state baseball championship, those of us long in the tooth fondly remember the spring of 1999 when a group of scrappy, but unheralded young baseball players set the prep sports world on its ear by winning the Longhorns’ first-ever Arizona title.
Off to a good start
The Payson High School baseball team opened pursuit of the school's second state championship on a successful note edging Rio Rico 4-3 in a tournament opener played April 30 in Surprise Sports Complex.
Register youth now for first swim lessons
EVO Swim School owner David Tait and a bevy of young swimmers eagerly await the opening of Taylor Pool and the beginning of swim lessons on May 28.
Lady Longhorns cap regular season with a ‘W’
The hard-chargin’ Lady Longhorn softball team wrapped up the 2013 regular season by stinging the frustrated Blue Ridge Yellow Jackets 19-0 in a blowout that ended after 4-1/2 innings on the 10-run Mercy Rule.
WON Pro-Am returns to Roosevelt Lake
A trio of Rim Country anglers will join professional and amateurs from around the West to test their skills in the Western Outdoor News (WON) Pro Circuit tournament on May 4-5 at Roosevelt Lake.
Go-Girls stumble in finale
Payson’s Go-Girl club volleyball team turned in a banner 2013 season even though the team struggled in the season-ending tournament playing without standout seniors Megan Wessel, Kaitlyn Wessel or Shayna Neal.
Three teams battle for links title
A Payson Men’s Golf Association hosted a “Four Man Select Drive” tournament at Payson Golf Course that turned into one of the most hotly contested frays of the spring season with the top-three foursomes finishing within two strokes of one another.
Let the playoffs begin!
Lady Longhorns #2 Boys Baseball #9
The Payson Longhorns softball and baseball teams have not only made the playoffs — the girls softball team earned the No. 2 ranking in the state. The Longhorn baseball team landed the No. 9 seed, which means they will enter the playoffs with a first-round contest on April 30.
Benefit poker ride is this Saturday
The hootin’ and hollerin’ that begins tonight in Tonto Basin will pick up again tomorrow and carry on most of the day. The down home, country hoopla will be a big part of the Fifth Annual Lorraine Cline Memorial Fund Poker Ride and benefit that kicks at 6 p.m. this evening, Friday, April 26, with a rootin’, tootin’, benefit dinner and dance beginning at 6 p.m. at The Butcher Hook in Tonto Basin.
Frosh carries Horn banner
Wyatt Chapman might feel like the new kid on the block when he and his Payson High School track and field teammates travel to Mesa College on May 10 and 11 to compete in the Division III state championships.
PWGA lags on Payson Golf Course greens
Believe it or not, Payson Women’s Golf Association members were deliberating trying to miss the green on some of their shots during a “Lagging” formatted tournament played April 9 at Payson Golf Course.
Tonto Rim Sports Club Open House, Outdoor Expo set
There are plenty of feel-good success stories around the Rim Country, but probably none more remarkable than The Tonto Rim Sports Club’s growth from a small, undeveloped firearm shooting range to a state-of-the-art facility, complete with six shooting bays, a 300-yard long rifle range, a field archery range that can be outfitted with high-dollar, 3D targets and a rapidly growing membership.
Teams need public support at two benefits
The benefit barbecue dinners, cooked deep-pit style by outdoor chef Albert Hunt, have been a highlight of Lady Longhorn softball seasons for more than a decade.
PHS among power point’s best
Although the Arizona Interscholastic Association will today, April 23, announce an updated set of baseball and softball power point rankings, both Payson High teams were highly ranked when last week’s ratings were compiled.
No fear – Pat’s Run carries on
Refusing to have their spirits dampened by the Boston Marathon bombings that killed three people and wounded more than 180 others, 30,000 runners, walkers and volunteers turned out April 20 for the Ninth Annual Pat’s Run.
Men golfers shoot a Masters blank
“What do we know,” asked Payson Men’s Golf Association member Herb Sherman after not a single club member picked first place-finishing Adam Scott or runner-up Angel Cabrera to win the 77th U.S. Masters played last week at Augusta National Golf Club.
Lady Horns eye state gold
With the 2013 track and field regular season winding down, Lady Longhorn team members are focusing on being in tiptop shape for the grand daddy of the sport — the Division III state championships.
Pine, Strawberry celebrate a year of - well - fun stuff to do
Enthusiastic townspeople, including the Pine/Strawberry Historical Society, Pine Library, LDS church and a bevy of pioneers, on July 9 hosted a hometown centennial celebration in honor of Arizona’s 100th birthday that turned into the highlight of the year in the two tiny mountain hamlets.
Pine/Strawberry Water District still suffering growing pains
The Pine Strawberry Water Improvement District has experienced its share of growing pains since it acquired the aging, poorly maintained Pine and Strawberry Water companies in 2009 from Brook Utilities.
Lady Longhorns softball team adds a page to history books
In 2012, the Lady Longhorns added yet another defining moment in Longhorn sports with the “Miracle at Mofford” – a come from behind win in the state tournament.
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