A Worthwhile Trip

In 13 years of covering various events in West Texas, I've gotten used to traveling long distances, which is why the journey I've taken this weekend doesn't seem like such a big deal, even if it's among the longer trips I've taken.

Less than 24 hours after I witnessed Amarillo High beat Midland High 23-20 in a tremendous District 2-5A game in my adopted hometown of Midland, I'm at Abilene's Shotwell Stadium watching West Texas A&M give No. 1 Abilene Christian all it can handle. There's a lot more defense than when the two teams played last season, as ACU leads 14-12 at halftime.

When I drew the assignment to drive the Amarillo-Midland-Abilene triangle, I'll admit at first it wasn't a trip I was all that eagerly embracing, if due mainly to the length. But with two games this outstanding in less than 24 hours, nobody has a right to complain.

A Nice Change of Pace

As much as I love football, I've really been looking forward to covering another sport for a change in the seven weeks since I started at the Globe-News. I finally got my first non-football byline on Saturday when thanks to a quirk of scheduling, I got to cover the West Texas A&M-Central Oklahoma match.

It turned out to be a historic occasion, since the Lady Buffs sscored their 50th straight victory over a Lone Star Conference opponent by sweeping UCO. I know volleyball's really big up here, and on WT's Homecoming weekend, a respectable crowd showed up for the match.

The Lady Buffs appear to be as well-oiled a machine as any athletic team up here, although the Randall and Amarillo High volleyball teams might argue with that. With balanced attack and excellent teamwork, WT is a fun team to watch, and it's worth catching the Lady Buffs if you have the time.

I know it's still football season. But with the weather getting colder, it's nice to spend some quality time indoors.