Farmersville High School experienced highs and lows during the 2021 sports season.

FHS teams recorded several district titles, postseason awards, state medalists and long playoff runs despite a year peppered with cancellations due to the pandemic and unforeseen circumstances.

Volleyball- Lady Farmers advance to regional quarterfinals.

Finishing with a 40-3 record, the Lady Farmers won their fifth straight district title and reached the state quarterfinals, losing to Van High School in five sets. They went undefeated in district play and were ranked near the top of the 4A state rankings all season.

Angie Lee won the district’s MVP honors. The junior middle blocker was one of the hardest players to stop near the net, leading the team several nights in both kills and blocks. Senior Rylee Ortega won all-district offensive player of the year.

Jenson McTee, Lexi Hacker and Morgan Erwin were selected to the all-district first team. Serving as the lead setter for Farmersville, senior McTee was a big factor in guiding them to the regional quarterfinals. Taking over the libero position, junior Erwin led the Lady Farmers on the defensive end. Setting alongside McTee, Hacker was a big part of Farmersville’s offensive game plan.

Riley Tuck, Rendi Fetty and Hannah Laisure finished on the all-district second team. Reagan Searson, Baylee Valliant and Juntado all earned a spot on the all-district honorable mention team. Coach Harold Davis earned his fifth consecutive all-district coach of the year honor after leading the Lady Farmers to an undefeated district season.

Girls Basketball- Playoffs end in bi-district to Athens.

The Farmersville girls basketball team extended their playoff streak in 2020-21.

After finishing third place in their district, they lost in the opening round to Athens 59-45. The Lady Farmers closed the season with a 10-8 overall record and an 8-4 district record.

Five players earned all-district honors for the season.

Reese Fetty was prolific for the Lady Farmers last season, earning offensive player of the year for the district. Despite missing two games with an injury, Fetty was a big part of Farmersville’s identity, scoring 24 points in a victory over Terrell and 22 points in the playoff loss to Athens.

Forming a critical frontcourt duo with Fetty, senior Alex Brooks earned a reputation for being quite dominant inside as well, earning first team all-district honors as a forward. Serving a big role in the backcourt, senior Kylie Self provided a great defensive intensity and overall playmaking for Farmersville, joining Brooks as a first team all-district selection.

Two underclassmen in the starting rotation earned spots on the all-district second team: junior Jenson McTee and sophomore Morgan Erwin.

The Lady Farmers graduated four seniors: Fetty, Self, Brooks and Wendy Trejo.

Baseball- Farmers earn playoff berth in baseball

The lone Farmersville boys team to make the playoffs, baseball had a successful 2021 season.

The Farmers managed to capitalize on a talented senior class, earning the fourth spot in the district standings with a 17-12-1 overall record to earn a playoff spot. Despite losing to Canton in the first round of the playoffs, Farmersville proved it has a bright future in store on the baseball field.

They finished with nine all-district honorees.

In his final season as a Farmer, senior Randy Johnson was a big factor in the team’s district success, finishing the year as the district’s pitcher of the year.

Complementing Johnson on the mound and at the plate, sophomore Cooper Strawn showcased a strong ability in his first full season as a varsity player, earning the district’s underclassmen of the year award.

Brady Gray and Jason Gomez earned first team all-district selections. Hunter Woodruff, Brennan Pollard, Logan Dale and Aidan Gray all earned second team all-district honors.

Softball– Coach Wilfong and Lady Farmers overcome shortened offseason, win district title

Following a productive 2021 spring season, the Farmersville softball team was rewarded as several players earned all-district honors.

Despite a shortened offseason, the Lady Farmers were able to accomplish most of their goals, earning a district title after going 9-1 against their rivals. With a 17-8-1 overall record, Farmersville won their bi-district playoff match against Brownsboro before losing in the area round to Pleasant Grove.

The Lady Farmers had nine athletes honored by the district.

Senior Reese Fetty won the district’s MVP. Serving as both a starting pitcher and a contributor on offense, Fetty proved to be more than any district opponent could handle.

In the field, junior Morgan Erwin served as the defensive leader in the infield, helping limit offensive opportunities for their district rivals en route to earning the defensive player of the district.

Jamie Varga showcased a strong level of play greater than her experience at the varsity level, earning the district’s utility player of the year.

Three athletes earned spots on the all-district first team: Jenson McTee, Cecily Sandoval and Rendi Fetty. McTee was a great playmaker for the Lady Farmers throughout the season. Serving as the team’s primary catcher this season, Sandoval proved to be a big contributor come playoff time. Fetty had the ability to hit on any opposing pitcher throughout the season.

Coach Paula Wilfong earned the district’s coach of the year award.

Powerlifting- Stinedurf finished second overall at state

In his final season as a Farmer, powerlifter Colby Stinedurf put an exclamation mark on his FHS career, earning a silver medal at the state powerlifting meet March 27.

In his first event of the year in Princeton, Stinedurf was the top lifter of the meet, finishing with 1,565 total pounds, including 620 pounds in the squat competition. Winning the next two events, Stinedurf was slowly increasing his top overall weight, putting himself in great contention for a third straight state trip.

In the regional tournament, Stinedurf was able to qualify for state, finishing second in the 181-pound class, as well as fourth overall, with a total weight lifted of 1,625. He finished 45 pounds behind class leader Yovanni Juarez of Gainesville.

In the state meet, Stinedurf finished second with 1,640 pounds, and a season high 565 in the deadlift.

Boys basketball- Farmers miss playoffs with 1-11 district record

Last season was a challenge for the Farmersville boys basketball team.
In Jeff Green’s first season as head coach, the Farmers got off to a good start, going 3-4 in non-district games and defeating Sunnyvale 91-86 in overtime. However, they lost their last 10 games to finish the season with a 4-15 overall record and a 1-11 district record. The Farmers have missed the playoffs each of the last eight seasons.

Five farmers earned all-district awards. Josh Hoar earned a spot on the all-district first team. Sloan Thomas, Brady Tidwell, Tre Brewer and Jordan Herring were all selected to the all-district honorable mention.

After the season was over, Green resigned as coach. He was replaced in the offseason by Wolfe City girls basketball coach Stephen Blassingame.

Boys & Girls Soccer- Both soccer teams miss playoffs in tough district.

The Farmersville boys and girls soccer teams struggled in their new district, both failing to make the playoffs.

The Lady Farmers finished 7-16 overall, including 2-12 in district play. Their best moments of the season include shootout wins over Community and Ford and a 9-0 victory over Dallas Carter.

Three players earned a spot on an all-district team. Junior midfielder Kate Rich earned first team all-district honors. Junior midfielder Sabrina Parker finished on the all-district second team. Junior goalkeeper Arianna Dematteo earned a spot on the all-district third team.

The boys soccer team managed to have several of their players earn all-district recognitions on an all-district team despite failing to win a district game. Junior Rafael Mendoza earned a first team all-district selection as a midfielder. Senior captain Sebastian Ruelas was honored for his strong play on the back end for Farmersville, earning a spot on the all-district second team as a defender. Freshman Jackson Madrid rounded out the all-district recognitions for the Farmers, earning an honorable mention for his use as a utility player.

Track & Field- Three athletes qualify for regional track and field meet

The Farmersville track and field team had three female athletes compete in the regional track and field meet April 23-24.

Facing tough competition, the Lady Farmers failed to qualify any athletes for the state meet.

Sophomore Baylee Valliant competed in two events at the regional track meet. Her first event was the 200-meter dash, where she set a new personal record (27.34) but was unable to qualify for the finals, finishing ninth overall in the preliminary race. Valliant also earned an opportunity in the long jump, filling in as an alternate, where she finished 16th overall (13’-11.75”).

Junior Rylee Ortega competed in the shot put throw after recording a personal best at the area meet (34’-02”). In the regional tournament, Ortega managed to qualify in the shot put finals, but finished seventh overall (33’-02.25”).

Senior Alex Brooks was the final competitor to participate in the regional meet, finishing 15th overall in the discus throw (81’-07”). At the district meet, Brooks set a new school record in the discus throw (105’3”), breaking the previous record set by Edith Davis from 1983 (105’0”).

Football– Coach Barnes leads Farmers to near playoff berth

With Randy Barnes now leading the way, Farmersville football improved on their 2020 season but were unable to make the playoffs, finishing in fifth place in district with a 3-7 overall record.

Victories for the Farmers this season include a season opening win against Rains, a shutout over A+ Academy the following week and a dominant road win over rival Wills Point. This season, the Farmers were a young and thin team that had a strong rushing attack and a defense that forced a lot of chaos.

The Farmers had four players named to the all-district first team: senior running back Brady Tidwell, senior wide receiver Aidan Gray, senior defensive end Tristan Huff and sophomore offensive lineman Diego Capitillo.

Four offensive players earned a spot on the all-district second team: senior lineman Dakota Malena, senior lineman Hudson Gray. sophomore quarterback Brady Gray and wide receiver Colton Harbin.

Two defensive players were honored on the all-district second team: junior Caiden O’Brien and senior Oscar Flores.

Connor Hanson was named to the all-district second team at the kicker spot.

Seven Farmers also earned honors for their work in the classroom, finishing on the all-state academic team. Andrea Patino, Malena and Johnson were selected to the all-state second team, while Flores, Gavin Parks, Hudson Gray and Jordan Herring were honorable mentions.

Cross Country- Varner qualified for regional cross country.

Aubrey Varner closed her high school cross-country career running in the regional meet in Grand Prairie.

Varner finished 66th out of 163 runners, running a season best 13:30 two-mile.

“Aubrey had as good a rookie season as a coach could ask,” girls cross country coach Chris Chase said. “She constantly pushed her- self to improve, and it paid off. Achieving a personal best time in the biggest meet of the season is a testament to Aubrey’s competitive fire.”

She was the only Lady Farmer to qualify for the regional tournament after finishing ninth in the district meet (14:15.13).

Kate Rich finished 21st at the district meet (15:34.94). Freshman Ashlynn Clark finished 22nd (15:35.59). Makayla Grabowski was unable to compete due to health issues, but Nordin said he believed they could have qualified in the top-three had she ran.

The varsity Farmers faced a similar situation, with top runner Mikey Klemiuk unable to compete due to an injury.

The Farmers finished fifth out of seven teams with 157 points. Sophomore Amon Odom led the way for Farmersville, finishing 21st (19:37.00) out of 48 runners. Sophomore Zackary Gennette finished 29th (20:14.00).

Bryan Mujica finished 31st (20:16.48), while Logan Lane finished 33rd (20:21.85). Sophomore Logan Conner finished 43rd (23:06.55), while senior Eric Olvera ended up 48th (23:58.40). Both of these results were personal records.

Tennis- Farmers make playoffs for second consecutive season.

This season, Farmersville team tennis competed in its second consecutive playoff appearance, losing to Lindale 10-0 in the bi-district match at Wills Point.

Farmersville reached the playoffs after defeating Terrell 10-5 Tuesday, Sept. 28. That win secured the Farmers third place in the district.

Wilfong has led the Farmers to two postseason appearances, both ending in the bi-district playoff round. While she graduates a strong senior class, Wilfong said she is proud of where the team is heading going into next season.

For more stories like this, see the Dec. 30 edition of The Farmersville Times. Support your community newspaper for less than $40 a year.