AISD Insights: Dec. 2023 Vol.1

The All-District 2-5A football teams in Division I and Division II were released earlier this week, and Abilene High and Cooper were well-represented on those teams. Abilene High finished its season at 11-3 overall with a District 2-5A Division I championship, while Cooper finished the year 5-7 overall after finishing third in District 2-5A Division II. Here’s a look at each of the players on those teams:

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Abilene High

The Eagles – who swept through District 2-5A Division I with a 6-0 record and reached the state quarterfinals – had 29 players honored on the all-district team and four winners of special awards. Head coach Mike Fullen – who just completed his fifth season as the leader of the Eagles’ program – was voted the district’s Coach of the Year. Fullen led the Eagles to the program’s first district title since 2016 and the first appearance in the state quarterfinals since 2011. Senior quarterback Dylan Slack was voted the District MVP. Slack threw for 2,465 yards and 28 touchdowns and ran for four more touchdowns. Senior linebacker Bryce Neves had an incredible season with 141 tackles (93 solo), eight forced fumbles (four recoveries), and five interceptions, and that season earned him District Defensive MVP honors. And junior wide receiver Ryland Bradford was voted the district’s Offensive MVP after catching 61 passes for 817 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also ran for three touchdowns – including a 91-yarder – and had two kickoff returns for touchdowns, from 97 and 77 yards out. Other Eagles on the all-district team were:

First team: Boss Brake, ol; Rhyan Esparza, ol; Trey Simpson, te; Brayden Henry, qb; Demarco Upshaw, db; Beckham Paul, db; Caden Rainwater, lb; Dristain Payne, lb; Anthony Hernandez, dl; Luke Fisher, de.

Second Team: Shetonde Polepole, ol; Jerrod Turner, ol; Jim Boima, ol; Bryson Perez, wr; Jackson Howle, wr; Chad Lara, rb; Tre Sharp, db; Jadrian Carrillo, lb; Eduardo Rocha, dl; Naim Segura, pk.

Honorable Mention: Brelon Badon, wr; De’Zhon Magee, rb; Ethan Joyner, db; Demetric Sanchez, db; John Miles Wagstaff, p; Adrian Munoz, pk.

Cooper

The Cougars finished third in District 2-5A Division II, running their playoff streak to 17 straight seasons. Cooper won its first-round game before falling in the area round, the 14^th time in those 17 straight playoff appearances that the Cougars have won at least one post-season contest. Cooper had 23 players honored on the all-district team, including 11 on the first team. Here’s a look at each of the players on those teams:

First team: Daniel Bray, rb; Jayden Flores, ol; Jaden Carrillo, utility; Clayton Gift, te; Nhoj Henry, db; Eric Tonche Jr., lb; Lucas David, lb; Zavian Alexander, db; Jeremiah Appel, db; Alejandro Ibarra, dl; Dycin Davis, dl.

Second Team: Austin Cummins, qb; Canon Adams, fb; Jaylen Parker, wr; Xanaan Fletcher, ol; Adam Guruk, lb; Esteban Lozano, dl; Daniel Cavazos, pk.

Honorable Mention: G Carter, ol; Micah Flores, ol;p Kayden Bryan, ol; Cedric Brooks, lf; Jacob Bynum, db.

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Christmas Season in Abilene: The weather might not make you feel like we’re nearing Christmas, but it’s only 17 days away. And if you’re looking for ways to get into the Christmas spirit, Abilene has plenty of activities to help you prepare yourself for the Christmas season. Here are just a few of the ways you can enjoy what Abilene has to offer during the Christmas season:

CHRISTMAS LANE

When: Dec. 7-26 (Sunday-Thursday, 6-9 p.m.; Friday-Saturday, 6-10 p.m.; Dec. 24-26, 6-9 p.m.)

Where: Abilene State Supported Living Center (2501 Maple St.)

Admission: Free (donations accepted)

Now in its 34^th year, Christmas Lane at the Abilene State Supported Living Center opens this weekend and will be open through the evening of Dec. 26. Admission is free, and those who attend drive through the streets of the ASSLC, which are lined with outdoor Christmas displays that are sponsored by local individuals, businesses, schools, and churches. Inside, children can take photos with Santa (from 6:30-8:30 p.m. each day), try the North Pole Hotline, and take advantage of the concession stand. All donations and concession sales are used to improve the quality of life for residents of the ASSLC. Christmas Lane is open from 6-9 p.m. Sunday-Thursday and 6-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday. The hours are 6-9 p.m. from Dec. 24-26.

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UNITED WAY WINTER LIGHTFEST

When: Weekends through Dec. 29-30, 6-9 p.m.

Where: 2250 E.N. 10^th St.

Admission: Purchase tickets here
The United Way of Abilene, in partnership with Christmas Décor by Lone Star Electric, is bringing the Winter Lightfest back to Abilene and the Big Country for a fifth year. The Winter Lightfest will be open each weekend from 6-9 p.m. through Dec. 29-30.

The Winter Lightfest features a paved ¾-mile walking path through nearly three million lights with numerous photo opportunities, Santa Claus, a scavenger hunt, hot chocolate, s’mores, and more. Proceeds go to the 25 partner agencies that are supported by United Way of Abilene. Parking at Winter Lightfest is free, and parking lots open at 5:30 p.m.

Thanks to the generosity of local donors and businesses, every elementary student in the Abilene ISD will be given a ticket to the Winter Lightfest, which will be good for any night. Each student will receive a letter that has a QR code specific to their school that they can use for entry into the park. Elementary students must be accompanied by a ticketed adult.

Discounted tickets can be purchased online here for $12 (adults) and $7 (youth). Entrance to the park for children aged 2 and under is free. Tickets at the gate are $15 for adults and $10 for youth. All ticket prices and packages can be found online here.

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FA LA LA IN THE FOREST

When: Saturday, Dec. 9, 6-8 p.m.

Where: Abilene State Park (150 Park Rd 32, Tuscola)

Admission: $5 per vehicle

See the dazzling Christmas lights at Abilene State Park! Drive through the park to see the wonderful flickering lights and get into the holiday spirit! Campers adorn their campsites, screened shelters, and yurts with festive decorations for all to see. Organized by Friends of Abilene State Park, entrance fees will only be $5 cash per vehicle. If you would like to decorate a campsite for this event, call our Reservation Center at 512-389-8900 to claim your spot.

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HOLIDAYS AROUND THE WORLD FESTIVAL

When: Thursday, Dec. 14, 5-8 p.m.

Where: The Grace Museum (102 Cypress Street)

Admission: Free

Join The Grace Museum and connect with the community at our FREE holiday event for families! Make crafts, learn about holiday traditions around the world with a presentation by Elizabeth Kahura, and visit with Santa. At 6:30 p.m., Kahura, from the African Safari Program is a storyteller, performer, singer, and educator from Kenya. Learn about Kwanzaa, Diwali, and Hanukkah through this exciting and interactive performance for all ages!

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NUTCRACKER! MAGICAL CHRISTMAS BALLET

When: Monday, Dec. 11, 7 p.m.

Where: Abilene Convention Center

Admission: Purchase tickets here

The beloved family Christmas tradition is back for one night in Abilene. Gather your loved ones for one of America’s favorite Christmas celebrations: Nutcracker! Magical Christmas Ballet. Experience the extraordinary international cast and Ukrainian Principal Artists performing at the peak of classical European Ballet. Be transported by the magic of jaw-dropping acrobatics, larger-than-life puppets, and stunning hand-crafted sets and costumes. Don’t miss this chance to experience the wonder of Nutcracker! Magical Christmas Ballet.

The AISD Memorial Park honors the memory of deceased AISD students and staff who honorably served in the United States Armed Forces. The park is located on the grounds of Dyess Elementary School and includes a Veterans Memorial Wall commemorating the names of those who served. If you want to nominate a loved one who has passed away for memorialization on the district’s Veterans Memorial Wall, please click here to submit their information. If you’d like to search the AISD database for the 77 names that already have their names etched onto the wall, click here.

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The Marine Corps Toys for Tots program is currently accepting applications for their program. Applications will be accepted through Sunday, Dec. 10. The program is for children 14 and under. Distribution to the community is planned for Dec. 19-Dec. 21. If you have any questions, email abilene.tx@toysfortots.org. The Toys for Tots program distributed 18,425 toys last year, supporting 4,411 children in Abilene and the surrounding area. If parents need assistance with the application, they can call Abilene ISD School Social Worker Diana Hall at 325-677-1444, ext. 7123. The application can be found here. If you would like to make a financial donation, click here. If you want to donate a toy, click here to learn where to drop off your donation.

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Abilene ISD Sports Roundup: Abilene High cross country and track standout Andruw Villa finished 50^th in the Nike Cross National meet in Portland, Oregon. Villa covered the 5-kilometer course at the Glendoveer Golf Course in 15 minutes, 53.1 seconds. JoJo Jourdon from the Southwest Region won the meet in a time of 15:16.5. Villa finished seventh on Nov. 18 at the regional meet in The Woodlands in 15:06.1. Villa, a senior who will also run track in the spring, closed his high school cross country career on Nov. 3 by finishing second at the UIL Class 5A state championship meet at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock, the best finish ever by an AHS athlete at the state meet. … The Abilene High boys’ basketball team is off to a 9-2 start after finishing third last weekend in the Raising Cane’s Key City Classic. The Eagles beat El Paso Austin, Richardson Pearce, and Canutillo. The Eagles will be back in action this weekend at the Glen Rose Tournament, which began Thursday night. The Eagles will play at Odessa High at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 12. … The Cooper boys are 3-6 after going 1-3 in last week’s Raising Cane’s tournament. Cooper is back in action this weekend at the Lake Worth Bullfrog Classic. Cooper played Lake Worth in the first round Thursday and will play bracket play the rest of the weekend. The Cougars will be at Argyle at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 12. … The Abilene High girls’ basketball team is 9-6 to start the season after Tuesday night’s 56-45 win at Merkel. The Lady Eagles are hosting Hawley at 6:30 p.m. Friday before opening District 4-5A play on Tuesday, Dec. 12, with a game at Bulldog Gym against Wylie. … The Cooper girls’ basketball team is 4-7 after a 66-50 loss at Wellington last Friday. Cooper is in the Brady Tournament this weekend and will open District 4-5A play at home. Tuesday (Dec. 12) at 6 p.m. against Lubbock Cooper. … The high school soccer season is coming up and all four teams are in action over the next few days with tune-up scrimmages. The Cooper boys and girls are both in action with the boys scrimmaging at 6 p.m. at Burkburnett, while the girls are at Weatherford. The Abilene High boys are scrimmaging tonight against Midland Legacy, while the AHS girls are at Midland Legacy next Tuesday, Dec. 12. … The regular schedule for the AHS boys will start on Dec. 29 with a 2 p.m. match at Wichita Falls Rider. … The other three district teams won’t get started until early January with the AHS girls hosting Wichita Falls Rider at 6 p.m. on Jan. 2, while the Cooper boys are at Odessa High at 7:30 p.m. The Cooper girls will open their regular season on Jan. 4 at the AISD Tournament against Royce City at 11:30 a.m.

Academic All-State: The Texas High School Coaches’ Association recently announced its academic all-state teams and Abilene High and Cooper are well-represented on those teams. To be nominated for Academic All-State, a student must be:

• An athlete, student trainer, or manager in good standing with the team
• Of good moral character
• A senior
• Have an overall grade point average of 92 or above (including courses from grades 9-11 and courses completed from grade 12). Weighted GPAs accepted.

Nominations must be made by the head coach of the prospective sport and the head coach must be a member by October 15th. After the nominations are submitted and the deadline has passed, the nominations are sent to the THSCA for review. While the student might initially meet the criteria for nomination, that does not guarantee the student a spot on a team. When reviewing the nominations, the THSCA considers each student’s GPA, class rank, SAT and/or ACT score. The students receive points based on each criterion. The total number of points they receive determines which team they are placed on. The classification of the school is not a factor, and there’s no limit on how many players can make a team. The best team a player can make is the Elite Team. It is a great honor to make the Elite team, as a player must have near-perfect scores in all categories. … Abilene High senior Yasmine De La Garza was an honorable mention selection on the academic all-state volleyball team, the only AISD student-athlete on the volleyball team. … Seven Abilene High cross country athletes were selected for the Class 5A academic all-state team, including female student-athletes Marin Murray and Alexis Heckathorn. Murray was selected for the ELITE team, while Heckathorn was an honorable mention selection. On the boys’ team, Jackson Hilbrich was selected first team and Aiden Seekins was selected second team. Austin Gallegos, Michael Smalley, and Kevin Nguyen were all selected to the honorable mention team. … The Class 5A football teams had 27 players from the Abilene ISD on the first and second teams with the Eagles checking with 19 academic all-state selections and Cooper with nine. … Lucas David from Cooper was selected to the ELITE team, while Avery Clark was a first team selection, and Mason Rodriguez was a second team pick. The honorable mention selections were Noah Warren, Deago Benavidez, Joshua Sinclair, Maverick Au, Lamine Bayire, and Clayton Gift. … Abilene High’s Jacob Castillo was a first team academic all-state pick, while second team selections were Trey Simpson,Ben Bredemeyer, Brelon Badon, Caden Rainwater, Beckham Paul, and Kevin Rivera. Honorable mention selections from Abilene High were Brian Garcia, Noah Giron, Luke Fisher, Chad Lara, Maicah Palafox, Dylan Slack, Eduardo Rocha, Jadrian Carillo, Michael Martinez, Jackson Howle, and Sean Moreno.