| Sports
Highlights Eighth grade Panthers stay
perfect in district
Monitor Staff Reports
MABANK–The Mabank eighth grade “A” basketball team has stayed
perfect, 16-0, in district play over the last two years.
Overall, the team has compiled a 24-3 record. They are
back-to-back district champs.
Not only does the team win, they win in big fashion. They have
averaged a 17-point margin of victory, proving they are the
dominant team.
Their only three losses came in the Forney basketball tournament
this year.
“In their three losses, they played some of the best competition
in Dallas,” head coach Brent Williams said.
“In the loss to North Richland Hills, they lost by two points.
They lost by four points to St. Anthony and in the loss to
Forney, they lost by just one point on a last-second basket,”
Williams added.
Along with the perfect district record, the Panthers have also
carried home two tournament trophies.
Not to be outdone, the Mabank Panther eighth grade “B” team have
also won back-to-back district championships.
They were 11-2 this season, and have a 20-6 record over the past
two seasons, including two tournament trophies.
“This team progressively improved throughout the season,”
Williams said.
In the last four games of this season, their margin of victory
was 24 points per game.
The only district blemish was a one-point loss to Kaufman.
“In every game, 15 players contributed to the team’s success,”
Williams said.
“The coaches and parents are expecting great things from this
excellent team in the future,” he added.
Trophy Bass Management
symposium March 24 at Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center
Special to The Monitor
ATHENS–Private bass pond managers will get a behind-the scenes
look at how Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) inland
fisheries biologists monitor fish populations and care for
trophy bass at a statewide symposium set for March 23 and 24, at
the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center (TFFC) in Athens.
“There are more than a million private impoundments in the
state, many of which could be used for increased recreation
through bass fishing with better management,” Dr. Billy
Higginbotham, Texas AgriLife Extension wildlife and fisheries
specialist, said.
“As many landowners have learned, you just don’t stock a pond or
lake with largemouth bass and automatically get trophy-size
fish.”
Growing big fish takes top management, which can be learned at
“Bass Tech: The Technology to Manage for Success.” Participants
may register online at
agriliferegister.tamu.edu (enter the keyword “bass”) or by
calling (979) 845-2604. There is a fee for attendance.
In addition to session presentations, attendees will be able to
observe a TPWD fisheries management crew electrofish on Lake
Athens and demonstrate how to obtain and record data necessary
for managing a bass population.
Also included will be a behind-the-scenes tour of the Toyota
ShareLunker holding facility at TFFC. The “Lunker Bunker” is
where bass weighing 13 pounds or more are cared for and spawned
as part of a selective breeding program. The tour will take
place from 3 - 5 p.m. March 23.
Session presentations March 24 will include Basic Pond Ecology,
Water Quality, Pond Fertilization, Do-It-Yourself Fish
Population Assessment and Corrective Stockings, Better Bass
Fishing Through Genetics, Trophy Bass Management, Identifying
and Controlling Nuisance Wildlife, Aquatic Weed Identification
and Control, and Aging Largemouth Bass Using Otoliths.
Instructors include wildlife and fisheries experts with AgriLife
Extension, TPWD and American Sport Fish Hatchery, a southeastern
U.S. stocking and pond maintenance service.
A similar symposium was held in 2008. “The main difference this
year is that we’ve trimmed some topics based on participant
evaluations,” Higginbotham said. “The one-day program means
participants won’t have to go to the expense and trouble of
spending the night if they don’t want to.”
Registration will be from 7-8 a.m. Saturday, March 24. The
symposium will conclude at 5 p.m. A catered lunch and break
refreshments are included in the registration fee.
In addition, each registrant will receive a CD of the
proceedings, speaker notes and a copy of Higginbotham’s
“Wildlife and Fish Management Calendar.”
Texas Department of Agriculture private pesticide applicator
license holders can earn one continuing education unit in
integrated pest management.
TFFC is four miles east of Athens and 75 miles southeast of
Dallas. More information on the center can be found at
www.tpwd.state.tx.us/spdest/visitorcenters/tffc/.
For more information on the symposium, or to register by regular
mail and check, contact Higginbotham at (903) 834-6191 or
b-higginbotham@tamu.edu,
or Dr. Michael Masser, AgriLife Extension fisheries specialist,
at ( 979) 845-7370 or
m-masser@tamu.edu.
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