Friday, March 29, 2024

Dragon Tennis Sweeps District 7-6A Championships

The Carroll Dragon tennis teams decorated the District 7-6A results with top finishes and both won team championships. Several Dragon tennis players are now headed to the April 19-20 regional tournament in Arlington. The following qualified for regionals.

Boys Doubles
Matt Landers/Alec Reusche – 1st place
Zach Meader/Cole Westland – 2nd place

Girls Doubles
Cameron Wang/Taylor Reusche – 2nd place

Mixed Doubles
Brady McClanahan/Maddie Rippa – 1st place
Callen DiGiovanni/Ashley Kim – 2nd place

Boys Singles
Arman Dave – 1st place
Nick Ryniak – 2nd place

Lady Dragon Volleyball Wins Arlington Tourney

The Carroll Lady Dragons are off to another fast start this season. Carroll is coming off a tournament championship last weekend in the Arlington Invitational. Carroll defeated Colleyville Heritage finishing an undefeated run to the title. Timarie Nymeyer was named all-tournament, Cat McCoy was MVP and Christen Sikora earned Outstanding Offense. Follow the Lady Dragaons this season on Twitter @LadyDragonVball. Catch the Lady Dragons in action at Carroll Senior High School Tuesday when they host Plano East at 6:30 p.m.

 

 

Golden Finish: Lady Dragon Captures 1,600 Meter Title

Lady Dragon runner Courtney Kriegshauser won the Class 5A State Title in the 1,600-meter run.

AUSTIN – Carroll Lady Dragon distance runner Courtney Kriegshauser capped an amazing year Saturday at the UIL Class 5A State Track and Field Meet. Kriegshauser raced to the state title in the 1,600-meter run with a time of 4:53.43. She held off second-place finisher Madi McLellan of The Woodlands, winning by .07 seconds.

Kriegshauser added the individual state title to her team title in cross country earlier this year. She was also the Region I champion heading into the state meet. Kriegshauser was one of three Carroll distance runners competing at the state meet. Felice Johnson finished seventh in the 3,200 meters and Trevor Gilley was sixth in the 1,600 meters. Kriegshauser earned the first individual girls’ state track title since 2004 when Miranda Walker won the 3,200 meters.

Video of Kriegshauser’s 1,600 meter victory

Coach Celebrates Father’s Life, Program’s Finest Hour

Carroll Dragon swimming coach Kevin Murphy never felt so good to be soaking wet wearing nice shorts, an oxford shirt and green tie.

Keeping with event tradition, Murphy made the leap into the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swim Center pool at the Class 5A State Swimming/Diving Championships. But this leap was more rewarding and meant twice as much as last year’s plunge.

Both of Murphy’s swimming/diving teams – boys and girls – had just finished best in the state at the 5A level, both setting records for team points. The Dragons dominated the waters in Austin in what was the most historic afternoon in the program’s history.

Dedication, training and teamwork all joined on the top of the podium on this unforgettable Saturday. Soon, both teams will share in a ring ceremony celebrating the accomplishments of the 2012 run. Last season, the girls left Austin heartbroken by a one-point, second-place finish while the boys won the state title. This time, they celebrated each other and together. The bus ride home was not awkward this year like it was last.

This was a bus ride of all state champions.

“It was a pretty nice trip,” Murphy said.

But there was much more to the story of this great day for the Dragons. Murphy fought his own personal emotions. The Dragon coach’s 102-year-old father passed away the week before the state meet. Five days following the funeral, Murphy’s emotional week ended with Carroll’s sweeping performance.

Murphy felt his father Frank was watching over the event and saw the greatest triumph of his coaching career.

“We told the kids that my dad will have a better seat for the high school state meet this year than he did last year,” Murphy said.

Murphy’s father was mentally sharp through his final days. During last Christmas break this was very apparent, as Frank “whopped me” (as his son said) at spades winning four of seven games. Frank Murphy also knew his Dragon swimming. He received regular email updates from his son, which were printed out for him to read by Kevin’s sister. At the age of 101, Frank Murphy was in the stands watching the Dragon boys’ team win the 5A state title.

Frank Murphy, who lived in Rogers, Ark., passed away on Feb. 11.  His son received the news following Carroll’s successful finish at the regional meet. The funeral was held nine days later in Oklahoma City and Kevin delivered the eulogy.

“It was more of a celebration of his family and of his life,” Murphy said.

From coaches, parents and friends, Kevin received 65-70 cards of encouragement. The day after the funeral, Kevin returned to Southlake and went back to work helping guide Carroll into unprecedented waters. But the pressure of producing two titles in one trip to Austin began to weigh heavy. He wanted his swimmers to enjoy the journey and not be burdened by expectations.

“I wanted the kids to experience the joy of winning both meets,” Murphy said. “The boys were happy (last year) but didn’t know how much to be happy.”

Murphy’s father provided a great influence on his career. He traveled across the country when his son was a youngster, and helped foster a swimming career that started at 7-years-old and eventually included competitions in 37 states. His father was also a finish judge at his swim meets. Encouragement as a coach had its greatest impact when Frank along Kevin’s wife Patti, suggested he head for Texas 10 years ago to find a new post. Kevin Murphy listened and he now oversees a swimming/diving powerhouse in the state’s largest classification. From top to bottom, he has built a program on teamwork and competition which builds faster times and championships.

“We prep them all year long,” said Kevin Murphy, in his seventh year at Carroll. “Just go be the fastest and be the best you can.”

This year’s team followed the 2011-2012 motto of “Open The Throttle.” The throttle was open from the start as both teams went undefeated and it stayed open in Austin. Runaway victories and personal records were common. The theme for the 2012-2013 season has already been selected and will likely appear on a future T-shirt at the C.I.S.D. Aquatics Center – “Pressed Down and Overflowing.”

That’s exactly what Frank Murphy would expect from the Dragons, as he watches from the best seat of all.

Special Delivery: Dragons Receive Championship Rings

Dragon seniors Peyton Williams (left) and Will Davis show off their new state championship rings that arrived this week.

The Carroll Dragons Class 5A Division I state championship football team had another reason to celebrate this week. The Dragons’ state championship rings arrived. Carroll players, coaches and parents packed the hallway of Carroll Senior High School on Thursday to pick up the new shiny jewelry. The championship was a state record-tying 8th title and first since 2007.

The Dragons went 16-0 and coach Hal Wasson earned two national coach of the year honors after the historical season. The first day of spring practice for the 2012 team will be Monday, April 30.

 

 

Gold Rush: Cross Country Teams Race To 5A Crowns

ROUND ROCK — What a finish.

The Carroll Dragons boys’ and girls’ cross country teams have dominated the competition all season and completed their journey with the ultimate finish — state championships. Saturday morning in Round Rock, Carroll captured the Class 5A state championship in boys’ and girls’ cross country.

The boys’ finished in record-setting fashion producing five runners in the top 10. Carroll’s winning total of 20 points was the lowest in the history of the 5A state meet. The girls’ finished with a team score of 34 points and Humble Kingwood was second (48 points) and Marcus ended third.

Following the incredible performances, both teams jumped into Old Settler’s Park pond to celebrate. It marked the girls’ first title since 2008 and fifth in Class 5A since 2005. This was also a milestone for the boys’ program, marking the first title in school history.

“I told my runners, ‘Today is our day, we will not disappoint,’ ” Carroll cross country coach Justin Leonard said. “People came to see if we were for real. And we are.” 

Both Carroll teams erased the heartbreak of last season’s finish at the state meet when the girls finished third and the boys were second. The Dragons’ top finisher was Nate Sullivan, who claimed fifth overall. And his teammates weren’t far behind — Ben Golestan (6th); Joe Sansone (8th), Trevor Gilley (9th) and Jordan Chavez (10th). The five runners left little doubt atop the leaderboard as a distant second-place Houston Strake Jesuit ended with 110 points.

For the Lady Dragons, Courtney Krieghauser led the way and edged out The Woodlands’ Madie McLellan for second place. The Lady Dragons earned three spots in the top 10 as Shelby Chapin was sixth and Felice Johnson was seventh.

“We left everything on that course and came away with gold,” Leonard said. “I am proud of each and every one of them.  They gave it their all throughout the season.”

Varsity Girls (34 pts.)- 1st

2nd place- Courtney Kriegshauser: 11:23.50

6th Place- Shelby Chapin: 11:29.80

7th Place- Felice Johnson: 11:31.40 

13th Place- Julia Sunderland: 11:43.70

18th Place- Rachel Harper:11:47.90

25th Place- Allison Naval: 11:54.30

36th Place- Sarah Roe: 12:03.70

Varsity Boys (20 pts.)- 1st

5th place- Nate Sullivan: 15:40.30

6th Place- Ben Golestan: 15:40.50

8th Place- Joe Sansone: 15:47.40

9th Place- Trevor Gilley: 15:51.90

10th Place- Jordan Chavez: 15:53.20

15th Place- Alexander Johansson: 16:07.10

25th Place- Connor Hendrickson: 16:25.90