Sports

The Dripping Springs HIgh School Lady Tigers basketball team had a prosperous week with wins over Del Valle and Anderson High Schools to complete the first round of district play.

The Dripping Springs High School Tigers took the mandated Christmas break and used the Hays ISD Classic as a springboard to the second half of the basketball season, achieving an 8-10 record and 2-3 in district play.

The two varsity golf teams got in a couple of tournaments during the final fall months. Below are the results of those tourneys.

On the last day of the fall semester, the two Dripping Springs basketball teams took on Lake Travis with the same result: a loss to a competitive team.

Dripping Springs High School sophomore Henley Anderson has been named to the 2023 MaxPreps Volleyball All-America Second Team. She is one of just seven underclassmen and nine from the state of Texas to be named an All-American.

It was only a matter of time for the Lady Tigers to break into the win column in district play. They hosted Austin Akins with high hopes. Both teams struggled in the first half with scoring. Many shots were put up but few were finding net. The first four minutes went by before Gracie Embry would get a basket. Two late baskets by Rain Collins would give Dripping Springs a slim 7-6 lead after one. The second quarter was much the same. It was 13-12 at the half.

The Dripping Springs High School soccer programs have been a constant entry in the playoffs. This year should be no different. Both boys and girls teams will start young lineups but have enough key returnees to keep the quality of play to the high standard they are accustomed to.

The top three teams in district are staying ahead of the pack but the Tigers are on top of the remaining teams to hold down the fourth spot. After losing to Hays Johnson and Westlake the Tigers continue to take care of business with the others. Lake Travis remains ahead but the others are equals.

The Lady Tigers have struggled for wins all season long and the trend has continued in district. Even though there were several returning letterwinners with experience, only one, Rain Collins, chose to return. This meant that Coach Batson had to start out with an entirely new team to go against some good district teams. In watching the Bowie game, there were many encouraging signs coming from the team. First of all they played hard the entire game and showed no signs of discouragement. They aggressively went to the basket for shots and although they still missed the majority, unlike the last few years, the shots had a chance to go in. They hustled on defense, competed for rebounds and took care of the ball. They are certainly worth your time and effort to support them. They are doing all they can do to win and they will come away with victories during district play.

The Tigers basketball team have been playing some pretty stiff competition to prepare for the equally tough competition in district play. The top three teams in the district is expected to be Lake Travis, Westlake and Hays Johnson. Dripping Springs is expected to battle hard for that fourth spot in the playoffs which means they must win all the games they are supposed to and sneak up on some they should not. At the present the Tigers are 7-8 and 1-1 in district. They have defeated Bowie 44-36 and lost to Hays Johnson 61-52.

When a team gets to the quarterfinal game in the playoffs, it knows the opponent will certainly be an equal.

The two basketball programs have quietly gone about the business of playing pre-district opponents in preparation for the coming district play. For the first month of play the teams have been overshadowed by the success of the football team and the fact the basketball teams rarely play home games until district. With nine teams in the district, the schedule begins in early December and runs into February. As the district schedule begins there will be a home game (either girls or boys) every game night, mostly Tuesdays and Fridays.