Wylie East incoming senior Porter Cantrell raises two fingers in the air to the crowd after earning first place in the boys discus at the Region II-6A track and field meet in Waco. He placed eighth at the Class 6A state meet with a distance of 168-6. Photo by Rod Adyelotte / The Waco Tribune-Herald
By David Wolman
Another school year has come and gone for Wylie East, and just like in past years, it was another successful season in so many ways for the Raiders’ baseball, softball and track and field teams.
The Wylie News will now take a look back at each sport and highlight their accomplishments.
Baseball
The Raiders came into this season having to replace several seniors, including four players who made the all-district team in 2025.
But the good news for Wylie East is that had plenty of returning talent as well as several others who were ready to step into a bigger role.
That mix of returning talent and newly anointed starters fueled another winning season, as the Raiders finished with a 17-12 overall record and a 13-3 mark in 9-6A play and earned another postseason appearance.
Wylie East finished with one more district victory than the previous season, highlighted by a two-game sweep of crosstown rival Wylie during the final two games of the regular season, with the Raiders winning by scores of 3-2 and 4-1.
In the bi-district round of the Class 6A Division II playoffs, Wylie East battled but lost two hard-fought games to Tyler Legacy. Legacy won Game 1, 6-4, in nine innings, then rallied from a 5-0 deficit in Game 2 to stun Wylie East, 6-5.
In the first game, Wylie East rallied from a 3-1 deficit to force extra innings. Parker Brunson tied the score at 3-3 with a two-out RBI single in the bottom of the sixth. Legacy plated three runs in the ninth to take a 6-3 lead, with the final two coming on a two-run single by Cale Zips.
Softball
One year after winning its first district title in school history, Wylie East attempted to make more history.
Despite a few key departures to graduation – including pitcher/infielder Isabella Flores, and first baseman Kyra Tawney – the Lady Raiders brought back an experienced and talented squad that was determined to build on last year’s success.
Wylie East won 10 district games – a mark that would have been good enough to qualify for the postseason in many districts, but not 9-6A.
The Lady Raiders entered the final day of the regular season tied with Rowlett and Sachse for the final playoff spot. Wylie East needed to beat Wylie and have Sachse beat Rowlett in order to earn a postseason berth. However, the Raiders lost to the Pirates 3-2 in nine innings and the Mustangs dropped a 16-8 final to the Lady Eagles.
Wylie East received significant offensive contributions from junior shortstop Gabby Flores, a University of Houston commit, and catcher Jayleigh Dressler, an incoming freshman at Texas State. Flores hit six home runs, drove in 37 and had a team-high .506 batting average. Dressler finished with a .409 average with two home runs, 28 RBIs and a .429 batting average.
Incoming senior pitcher/outfielder Kinley Kovar provided good offensive support, hitting three home runs with 18 RBIs and a .350 batting average, while incoming sophomore Haley Perez contributed a .324 batting average and 15 RBIs.
Track and field
It’s not often that a three-way tie for first place occurs at the state track and field meet, but that’s what happened in Austin in May.
Wylie East incoming senior Elliana Young, Comal Canyon’s Sophia Martinez and Houston Memorial’s Cate Bryant all cleared 5-6 in the girls’ high jump but missed all three attempts at 5-8.
That tie is OK with Young, who won her first-ever state title – a feat that comes one year after she finished in fourth place at the regional meet.
Young was one of three state qualifiers for Wylie East.
Alum Tyree Washington battled through an injury-ravaged season to earn seventh place in Class 6A in the boys’ triple jump with a leap of 47-9.5. Washington finished his high school career as a two-time state qualifier and the school record holder in the triple jump.
Incoming senior Porter Cantrell saw significant improvement in his first season competing for the Raiders after transferring from Davis High School (Kaysville, Utah). He broke the school record in the discus at the Lovejoy meet and went on to earn eighth place in the state with a distance of 168-6.
Wylie East swept the team titles at the district meet and crowned 12 individual champions at Williams Stadium.
Incoming junior Evangeline Williams scored 30 team points and earned wins in the 800 (2:18.24), 1,600 (5:09.55) and 3,200 (11:29.35).
Young had a clearance of 5-7 to win the district title in the girls high jump. Egypt Baxter captured first place in the 200 with a time of 24.68, Oluwaseyi Ajakaiye ran to gold in the 400 in 57.44 and the Lady Raiders later capped off a standout team performance by winning the meet’s final event, the 4×400, with a 4:03.63.
Toi Ardoin set the tone for the Wylie East boys in the sprints, winning the 100 (10.36) and 200 (21.66).
Cantrell won the district title in the discus with a throw of 178-9. Hudson Sepe won the pole vault with a 13-8. Tyree Washington won the triple jump with a leap of 45-3.5.
Did you enjoy this article? Let us know by supporting your local community newspaper — subscribe to The Wylie News.
0 Comments