Announcing the MaxPreps Dallas High Yield Coach of the Week presented by Capital One Bank

We know that coaches play a vital role in their community that is often under-appreciated. To honor the tremendous work that coaches provide, we've teamed up with Capital One Bank to recognize a High Yield Coach of the Week in the Dallas area!

What makes someone a "High Yield Coach," you might ask? Well, it's anybody whose hard work, effort and skill produces a high yield of positives for their team and school.

Every coach knows that his or her responsibilities do not begin and end with the game clock. Commitment to the time-honored principles of preparation, dedication, team above self, hard work and perseverance will not only be rewarded on the scoreboard but, more importantly, they are also rewarded in life — now and throughout the future — for each athlete trusted to our care. This notion isn't just a slick piece of marketing — it is a guiding principle for MaxPreps.

We need your help. We are looking for high school coaches in the Dallas area who are worthy and deserving of the special recognition for their work with young people on and off the field. We're not just looking for a coach who wins a big game ... we're looking for men and women whose impact and influence extend beyond the field — on campus, inside the classroom and throughout the community.

To nominate, please send the following information to coachoftheweek@maxpreps.com:
Coach's name:
Coach's school:
Why he or she is deserving:



The winner of the High Yield Coach of the Week award will be announced on MaxPreps every Wednesday this season, so be sure to get your nominations in by noon on Mondays.

Click 'Next' to see all of the winners.{PAGEBREAK}
In the summer months, Martin (Arlington) baseball players are on their own.

But when school starts in the fall, serious team building begins, a good five months before the first game of the regular season.

The cheering crowd is only a distant consideration when coach Curt Culbertson maps out weight lifting and a conditioning regimen that gets tougher every season. Even Culbertson concedes the workouts are "rugged.''

"We do have a few that fall out, sometimes some pretty good athletes,'' said Culbertson. "But there's no way they would make it through this kind of grind.''

The "grind'' of which the coach speaks is Martin's push to reach its second straight UIL state tournament Final Four. The Warriors (34-7-1) are one series win away from a date in Round Rock for the Class 5A state semifinals. Martin faces Carroll (Southlake) in a best-of-three Region I final at Grand Prairie's QuikTrip Park, beginning 7:30 p.m. Thursday.

For leading a team with only five returnees this close to a repeat trip to state, Culbertson was selected as Dallas High Yield Coach of the Year presented by Capital One Bank.



Martin posted a perfect 14-0 record to win District 3-5A and has prevailed in four playoff series, knocking out Keller, Coronado (Lubbock), Fossil Ridge (Keller) and most recently L.D. Bell (Hurst). A third game was needed only in the Fossil Ridge series. But every series has had a one-run Martin win.

"Even though we had only five guys back, they have accounted for a heck of a lot of offense,'' Culbertson said.

This coming from a coach that knows how a great high school hitter should look. During an 11-year stint at Bowie (Arlington), Culbertson coached current New York Yankees outfielder Vernon Wells.

"Vernon could do everything,'' Culbertson said. "He was the best I've coached. The complete package. The problem was we didn't have pitching. So we had to win games the other way.''

When it comes to clutch hits this season, the man the Warriors like to see at the plate is Drew Dowdy. The senior center fielder stroked a two-run single for a 4-3 victory in the decisive third game of the Fossil Ridge series and followed it up last week with a single off the wall to score two runs and clinch the regional semifinal series over Bell, 4-3.

"We like to feel that the work we put into it makes a difference in those key situations,'' Culbertson said.



Success last season did not take the coach by surprise. "I had a good feeling,'' Culbertson said. "We were just so deep in pitching.

"This year, we had question marks, but I started feeling pretty good about three-quarters of the way through district. Our seniors can hit any pitching they see.''

And two juniors can really pitch. Turner Larkins, last year's No. 3 starter and closer, has been terrific. And the record of Daniel Lingua tells it all. He's 12-0.

Martin's baseball history is not long, but distinguished, producing high draft choices Todd Van Poppel (first round, 1990) and Ben Grieve (second round, 1994). The Warriors made state tournament appearances in 1990 and 1993.

But when Culbertson took over in 2005, the Warriors were coming off a 12-win season that ended without a playoff berth. Twelve months later, under Culbertson, Martin won 25 games and a district championship. That's the year that Culbertson put teeth in the off-season program.

"I remember some negative reaction that first year,'' Culbertson said, "but we have had kids come back from college baseball programs and tell us our program got them in better shape.''



Culbertson was a middle infielder in his high school playing days for the Arlington Colts. He continued to play right down the street at UT-Arlington and signed a professional contract with Cincinnati. But in one season Culbertson realized his future rested in coaching, not playing. So he completed work on his degree and took a job coaching in junior high and began to work his way up in the ranks.

His first baseball head coaching job came at Weatherford in 1990.

He returned to Arlington to lead Bowie for 11 seasons and found his way to Martin as an assistant for two years before being promoted to head the program.

"The job just kind of fell in my lap,'' Culbertson said.

The 52-year-old and his bride of 30 years, Carol, have three daughters. The youngest two are in college and the oldest has made Curt a granddad.

"It's a boy. We're already thinking baseball,'' Culbertson said.{PAGEBREAK}
With 32 wins and four defeats, the Carroll (Southlake) baseball team is forging its best record in Larry Hughes' 17 seasons as head coach.



That's saying something for a program, that, under Hughes, has never had a losing season and failed only once to reach the postseason.

With Marcus (Flower Mound) in a Class 5A Region I semifinal best-of-three series on the horizon, there‘s a chance to add some more wins. Carroll hosts Game 1 at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday. Marcus hosts Game 2 at Friday evening and if necessary, Game 3 is set for 2 p.m. Saturday at Grapevine.

Last week in a best-of-three regional quarterfinal series against Midland in Abilene, Carroll pulled out two dramatic one-run victories for a sweep.

Hughes, who earlier this season accomplished his milestone 500th career victory as well as No. 400 at Carroll, was selected as the Dallas High Yield Coach of the Week presented by Capital One Bank.

In Game 1 against Midland, Carroll rallied from a 4-0 deficit after 5 1/2 innings to win, 5-4, on a three-run walk-off home run by Kenny Hill (son of former major leaguer Ken Hill) with one out in the bottom of the seventh. Hill, quarterback of the football team, has signed with Texas A&M.

The following day, Chris Altimont went 4-for-5 with two doubles, a home run and five RBIs as Carroll held off a late Midland comeback for a 9-8 series-clinching win.

The preceding week in the area series victory over San Angelo, Altimont won Game 1 with a three-run homer.



"It's tough to say if this is the best team I've had,'' said Hughes. "Record-wise, it is the best. From a pitching standpoint, it is the best. Our team ERA is under 2.00 and in district it was under 1.00. But offensively, I don't think it is the best. We've had trouble scoring, but we do seem to have those intangibles.''

Heading up the pitching staff is TCU signee Tyler Alexander, a 6-2 left-hander with a 12-0 record. He's part of the reason Carroll's pitching staff has thrown 15 shutouts this season, including eight in the 14-game District 4-5A schedule.

From the time that kids in Southlake are old enough to put on a uniform, they grow up idolizing and wanting to play for the Dragons. And now, with lights added to the Carroll baseball field for the first time this season, the Dragons play at more fan-friendly evening start times.

"At Carroll, it is about winning state championships,'' Hughes said. "I'm not worried about win-loss records. In the tournaments, I have a big roster and I play everybody. Sure, that hurts your record at times, but you find out some good things, too.''

Carroll is best known for football successes. In 2011, the Dragons won their eighth state football title, tying with Celina for the most in Texas high school history.

Under Hughes, the baseball team won the Class 4A state title in 2002 and made it to the Class 5A state championship game again in 2008.



"It is such a hard thing to do, to win state,'' said Hughes. "You've got to have at least three solid arms, you've got to be good, you've got to get some calls and you've got to hope you don't run into a hot team.''

Hughes said he is prouder of going over 400 wins at Carroll (he's now 409-192-6) than he was for getting career win No. 500 back in March.

"I wanted to stay in one place, so I think I'm prouder of 400 at one school,'' said Hughes.

In his own high school days at MacArthur (Irving), Hughes was schooled in the game's finer points by coach Lance Brown.

Hughes continued his baseball career at SMU, which dropped the sport shortly after he graduated.

Fresh out of college, he began his coaching career at Cedar Hill and went on to become an assistant for his old college coach at First Baptist Academy. Hughes got out of coaching from 1984-1990 and entered the business world.



But he couldn't get baseball out of his system. He re-entered coaching at Thomas Jefferson (Dallas) and that paved the way to Carroll in 1997.

Hughes, 56, and wife Suzanna have five sons and two daughters. Four have already graduated from college and two more are attending Baylor.{PAGEBREAK}
Such is the regard for girls track and field coach Beverly Humphrey that a few years ago the Lancaster school district hierarchy paid the supreme compliment of naming its football stadium after her.

Lancaster, on a rain-soaked Friday night in Austin's Mike A. Myers Stadium came from far behind to catch Wheatley (Houston) in the team standings and share the UIL Class 4A girls state title. For Lancaster and Humphrey, it was state championship No. 10, all in the last 13 years.

Since arriving in Lancaster in 1989, Humphrey has urged, consoled and motivated the Lady Tigers to 24 district championships and 14 regional titles.

In recognition for her ability to build and sustain success over such a long stretch, Humphrey was selected as the Dallas High Yield Coach of the Week presented by Capital One Bank.

Before a thunderstorm delayed the state meet for three hours on Friday, prospects for accomplishing No. 10 looked dim. Lancaster trailed Wheatley in the point standings, 28-8.

Humphrey said the delay was a blessing in disguise.



"It gave us time to refocus on what had to be done,'' the coach said. "For us to have a chance, we needed to be perfect in three races, beginning with the 100 meters.''

Eboni Coby came through in the 100, producing maximum points with a first place finish. Then Lancaster's 4x200 was victorious, meaning the state title would come down to the last event, the 4x400.

Stress was mounting on Humphrey. First she received a call from the team's trainer advising that the relay alternates needed to be ready. Alexis Flores, the 4x400 anchor, was having a hamstring issue.

If that wasn't enough, Humphrey was informed a complaint had been lodged from a rival team about Lancaster's uniforms.

"There was more drama in this state title than in any of the others,'' Humphrey said.

No alternate was needed because Flores decided to race. And the uniform issue was put to bed.



Going into the final event, Lancaster had whittled the Wheatley lead to four points. Humphrey made sure the relay team realized that a win would assure them of no worse than a tie for the team title.

"I talked to them about what they needed to do and how it was our chance at making history,'' Humphrey said. "I could tell they were getting fired up.''

A'Driana Berkhaulter, Taylor Rockwell, Alicia Harris and Flores indeed were motivated, winning in 3:46.50 for the maximum 20 points. Wheatley finished second in 3:49.55, earning it 16 points. Lancaster and Wheatley became co-state champs with 58 points overall.

Nine previous state titles (2001-2008, 2012) didn't make this one any easier for the coach.

"Winning was a relief more than anything,'' said Humphrey, who also serves as director of athletics at Lancaster.

Fate intervened to change Humphrey's life as a senior at Lincoln (Dallas). She was a basketball/volleyball player when the school's track coach spotted her in the hallway and convinced her to give sprinting a try.



Humphrey became part of a gold medal-winning 4x400 relay for Lincoln in 1974, before moving on to set seven national collegiate relay records at Prairie View A&M. She finished eighth in the 1976 U.S. Olympic Trials in the 200 (23.54 seconds).

She began her coaching career in Greenville before settling in Lancaster. Only two stops.

"When I started as a young coach, it was big to win a district championship,'' said Humphrey, who has been inducted in the Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame. "My goal was to win 10 state titles. But you don't think about all the things that have to go just right in winning one.''{PAGEBREAK}
Instead of taking her usual place in the third base coaching box this season, Keller softball head coach Lindsay Strong settles for a spot in the safety of the dugout.

She's been replaced on-field by an assistant coach — doctor's orders. Well, a doctor's recommendation with a strong second from her husband Dan, a former decathlete at the University of Oklahoma.

Strong, you see, is in the seventh month of her first pregnancy. The risk of a hard-hit foul ball causing injury is just too great.

Aside from flashing signals from the bench instead of the coaching box, it is another typical year for Strong and the Keller softball team.

Keller (27-4-1) swept Franklin (El Paso) 2-1 and 7-4 in the second round of the Class 5A Region I playoffs last week in Midland.



For leading Keller to the playoffs for the fifth time in five tries, Strong was selected as the Dallas High Yield Coach of the Week presented by Capital One Bank.

Keller is traveling west for the second straight week, to Eastland this time, for a best-of-three regional quarterfinal series against Midland. Game 1 is set for 7 p.m. Friday. Game 2 is at 11 a.m. Saturday with a third game (if needed) immediately following the conclusion of Game 2.

"The girls love the trips,'' Strong said. "It's a little uncomfortable for me.''

Under Strong‘s leadership, Keller has made a habit of making it uncomfortable for opponents. In the five seasons since she came aboard, the team's record is 141-25-3.

The Lady Indians are doing it this year with a pitching trio of two freshmen (Kaylee Rogers and Brittany Larkin) and a junior (Robyn Stidd).

"At some point in the season, all three have started and relieved,'' said Strong. "I play it by feel with our pitchers and go with the hot hand. That's the great thing about having three.''



Rogers won Game 1 against Franklin last week and Stidd did the honors in Game 2.

Pitching is a subject in which Strong is well-versed. In 1999, then by her maiden name of Lindsay Wilhelmson, she pitched Richland (North Richland Hills) to the Class 5A state title, shutting out Nacogdoches 1-0 in the semifinal and Taylor (Katy) 2-0 in the title game.

From there she went on to a career as a pitcher and designated hitter at Texas A&M. Her Aggie resume includes a no-hitter against Kansas in 2003.

It was in her college years that she began to have thoughts of going into coaching. After graduation from A&M, she accepted a job as assistant coach at Guyer (Denton), which was just opening.

Three years later Strong, at age 26, accepted the Keller head coaching position. The Lady Indians went 33-4 in her first season.

After that first season, Strong remembers some seniors saying they were afraid under a new coach it was going to be a rebuilding season.



The coach said she borrowed from experiences at Texas A&M and Guyer for the selection of drills and practice schedules.

College softball coaches these days make Keller a must-see team each spring. Catcher Brittany Lee (Texas Tech), shortstop April Ryan (Texas A&M) and center fielder Tori Charters (Louisiana Tech) have already signed letters of intent. Two underclassmen have made oral commitments.

The Lady Indians play defense, too. The infield turned three double plays in the first game against Franklin.

Keller is in the playoffs for the 18th time in the 19 years since softball was accepted as a University Interscholastic League sport.

"It's the way the girls grow up here,'' said Strong. "They want to play for their school.''

If the doctor is right, Strong will need to have another child in order to come up with a future softball pitcher.



A gender test revealed she is going to give birth to a boy.{PAGEBREAK}
The competitive side of Bell (Hurst) baseball coach Paul Gibson causes him to initially rate the 2013 regular season as a disappointment, based on his Blue Raiders' 14-17-1 record.

A coach doesn't win eight district titles in 20 seasons without high expectations.

But factoring in Gibson's ongoing 12-month battle against a disease that afflicts only one in 8 million, the coach concedes, "I'm just lucky to be here.''

Bell's baseball team took a page in determination from its head coach, putting together a late-season six-game winning streak to secure a postseason appearance.

A 5-1 win over Nimitz (Irving) on April 22, career win No. 399 (against 232 losses) for Gibson, helped the Blue Raiders secure the No. 4 playoff berth from District 6-5A.

A team that began the season with little returning experience and a lot of youthful faces, Bell will face District 5-5A champion Flower Mound in a best-of-three bi-district playoff series starting on Thursday.



In recognition for leading Bell to its 13th playoff appearance in 20 seasons despite severe physical challenges, Gibson was selected the High Yield Coach of the Week presented by Capital One Bank.

It took visits to a succession of specialists last spring to determine Gibson had developed amyloidosis, a rare life-threatening disease in which abnormal proteins build up in organs and cause them to fail. No cure exists, but the disease can be controlled.

Cramping in his calves followed by kidney problems and a general lack of energy were the initial symptoms for the 49-year-old. Happily, the disease was diagnosed in an early stage.

Last July, he received a first round of chemotherapy and a transplant of his own stem cells at the famed Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn.

The L.D. Bell community sent the coach to Minnesota with a prayer vigil and later a fundraiser to help with medical expenses.

Fellow coaches like Richland (North Richland Hills) head baseball coach Chuck Wells have rallied support: "Paul Gibson has influenced kids lives on and off the field. He has influenced me since I became a head coach six years ago. He continues to compete every day and does not like to take credit for anything.''



In November, a Mayo Clinic checkup revealed that more chemo would be needed because the amyloid was not in total remission.

Gibson wasn't feeling well enough to lead Bell's offseason workouts, but he had extra incentive to return for the regular season. He wanted to coach youngest son Blake Gibson, a senior third baseman. Gibson had previously coached elder son Bryce, currently a 20-year-old student at the University of Texas.

Remarkably, Gibson has not missed a practice all season. On game night, he has been in his customary spot in the third base coaching box. However, a concession to his stamina problem is more time than normal sitting in the dugout.

"All of this has put a lot of things in perspective,‘' Gibson said. "It has been a challenge for me from an energy level, but I'm thankful I've been able to be there with Blake and experience it. It hasn't been the greatest year, but we're in the playoffs.''

Through it all, Cherie, his wife of 25 years, has been by the coach's side.

"I never took her for granted before all this,'' Gibson said, "and I really don't now.''



Gibson's religious faith has remained unwavering.

He even calls the experience a blessing because of the volume of support he has received.

"This has happened for a reason and I make it a point to share my testimony,'' Gibson said. "You know the Lord is using you for some reason. It is a lot bigger than just me.''

{PAGEBREAK}
The once-dominant Coppell boys soccer program had gone five seasons without a state tournament appearance when Chad Rakestraw agreed to become Coppell boys soccer head coach two years ago.

The new coach was sure that it wasn‘t a lack of talent that had been holding the team back from the level of success the Cowboys enjoyed when they made five state tournaments in eight years from 1999 to 2006.

The way Rakestraw saw it, one issue was to get those talented players to come together as a unit. And in matches against elite opponents, could the coach instill a mental toughness that would carry the Cowboys to victory?



The answer was emphatically delivered in Saturday's Class 5A state championship game in Georgetown, when Coppell scored a goal in the final four minutes to force extra time with Hanna (Brownsville) and another with a minute remaining in overtime for a 3-2 victory.

For leading the Cowboys to their first state title since 2004, Rakestraw was selected as the Dallas coach of the week presented by Capital One Bank.

Coppell's clutch final two goals were supplied by junior Chris Madden. The tying goal came on a searing free kick that ended in the upper corner of the net.

"I don't know that I've seen a better goal than the one Chris scored that put it into overtime, considering the situation and everything,'' Rakestraw said. "And then the goal he scored to win it was the cherry on top.''

Madden's final strike meant that the title wouldn't be decided on an always-dicey shootout.

To win the state title, Coppell (23-2) had to survive seven playoff matches.

"Against the caliber of teams we faced, seven playoff wins is very tough when it just takes one moment for things to go the other way,'' Rakestraw said.



To help inspire more team play and develop mental toughness, the coach created leadership classes and spent time talking to his players about how to handle situations that arise in tight matches.

"The feeling of seeing the joy on the faces of our players after the final whistle, knowing that their hard work had paid off, was something I'll remember,'' the coach said.

In Rakestraw's words, the bus ride back to Coppell "was pure joy'' with lots of singing.

"They were enjoying that last bus ride together,'' the coach said.

Coppell's Drake Lovelady opened the scoring 18 minutes into the title match. Hanna (26-2-3) stormed back with a pair of goals in a three-minute window of the second half for a 2-1 lead. The state title was slipping away, but the match-toughened Cowboys found inspiration at the right time.

Rakestraw once was a member of a state championship team, in football, at Ryan (Denton). He also excelled in soccer. After graduating from Midwestern State, Rakestraw spent three years as assistant soccer coach at Guyer (Denton). His first head coaching opportunity came at Northwest (Justin), where he spent two seasons before coming to Coppell.



"The program at Coppell had a great tradition,'' Rakestraw said.

Indeed, the Cowboys were making their sixth state tournament appearance in the last 15 years, but their first since 2006.

"Great players don't always equate to wins,'' the coach said. "Players have to care more about team success than that of the individual.''

Coppell posted 13 shutouts this season, including a 2-0 triumph over Kingwood (Humble) in a state semifinal.

The Cowboys avenged their only regular-season loss to a Texas team, 1-0 to Marcus (Flower Mound) by returning the favor against Marcus by the same score in the Region I championship match.

Florida's Montverde Academy handed Coppell its only other loss, 2-0, in the Cowboys' second match of the season.



Rakestraw, 30, and wife Shelley have two children, Madison, 3, and Kamryn, 2.
{PAGEBREAK}
It was just the kind of tense, well-played baseball game Heritage (Colleyville) coach Alan McDougal expected when his Panthers took on their biggest rival, Grapevine, with the District 6-5A lead at stake.

What McDougal didn't expect was the odd ending to his team's thrilling 4-3 victory in nine innings last Tuesday before a packed grandstand at Heritage.

The winning run, in the person of Alex Alvarenga, scored from second base on a wind-blown, two-out popup to shallow left field off the bat of Preston Palmeiro, the son of former major leaguer Rafael Palmeiro.

That victory, along with subsequent wins by Heritage and Grapevine on Friday, have the two rivals from the Grapevine-Colleyville school district tied atop the district standings with 9-1 records.

For engineering his team's reentry in the league race, McDougal was selected as the Dallas High Yield Coach of the Week presented by Capital One Bank.

"When you think about what is at stake and you factor in the wind, the height of the ball and three guys coming together, it wasn't a routine play,'' said McDougal afterward.

The level of baseball that preceded the final play was top-notch.



"I really thought we were going to play a good game. Pitchers were making pitches and guys were making great plays for both teams,'' said McDougal, who owns a 194-72 record at Heritage.

Alvarenga doubled with one out in the bottom of the ninth. Cody Thomas, the area's home run leader with 10 and a University of Oklahoma football signee as a quarterback, was intentionally walked. After an infield popup for the second out, Palmeiro, a left-handed hitter just like his dad, faced Grapevine reliever Connor McGuire.

With an opposite-field swing, Palmeiro lofted a high fly to shallow left. The left fielder, third baseman and shortstop were in range to make the catch, but the wind made it difficult. The ball came out of the glove of a diving Grapevine defender when he contacted the ground. Running all the way, Alvargenga raced to the plate for the deciding run.

Heritage (16-10-1) trailed 1-0 through three, tied the game in the fourth (1-1) and in fifth (2-2) before taking its first lead with a run in the sixth.

Carey Althouse doubled to open the Panthers' sixth and McDougal got a successful sacrifice bunt from Ryan Ramsey to move the go-ahead run to third. When the next hitter, Jason Adams, squared around for an apparent squeeze bunt, McGuire uncorked a wild pitch for the run that gave the Panthers a 3-2 lead.

"We're mostly a senior ball club, but it sure was nice to see some of the younger guys come through,'' McDougal said.



Alvarenga is a sophomore. Althouse and Ramsey are juniors.

An out from defeat in the bottom of the seventh, Grapevine (19-8-1) got a clutch RBI single from Zach Kornely for the run that sent the game into extra innings.

Grapevine's Satchel Goodwin, the son of former major leaguer Tom Goodwin, had a hit, scored a run and made an excellent running catch in center field.

It was an avenging victory for Heritage, which lost to Grapevine 10-1 on the road earlier in the district campaign.

We didn't show the same ability to battle in the game at Grapevine,'' McDougal said. "Now, we have control back in our hands.''

McDougal, originally from Sherman, graduated from Baylor and played two years for the Bears baseball team. His first coaching job was at Boswell (Fort Worth) followed by two stints at Arlington Heights (Fort Worth). He was a head coach for a year at Commerce in between Arlington Heights stops.



McDougal teaches math at Heritage in addition to his coaching duty. Alan and wife Britt, also a teacher, have a 4-year-old son, Jaxon.{PAGEBREAK}
Sole possession of the District 7-5A softball lead looked to be slipping away from Mansfield Timberview (Arlington) in Friday's showdown with Mansfield High.

Trailing 3-1 going into the bottom of the sixth, Timberview coach Donya Mooney saw a rare sign of doubt from freshman star pitcher Mariah Denson coming back to the dugout. Touched for six hits — including four for extra bases — through six innings, a frustrated Denson found herself in the unusual position of trailing.

Mooney asked Denson to turn around and look at her teammates.

"They have your back,'' Mooney said to Denson, who was the leadoff hitter in the sixth. "Now, go up there and get on base, because Ashley Timmons is about to hit a home run and tie the game.''

The coach was prophetic. Denson singled, Timmons, a junior catcher and cleanup hitter, launched a game-tying home run. Timberview went on to send 16 batters to the plate and score 12 runs for a 13-3 victory at Timberview‘s softball park. Mansfield never recorded the third out in the sixth inning. The 10-run mercy rule was invoked after a two-run single by Gabby Littles.

"That was crazy,'' said Mooney, selected as the Dallas Coach of the Week presented by Capital One Bank. "It was one of the most exciting games I've been involved in.''

Timberview (17-4-1, 10-0), winner of 12 straight, increased its district lead to two games over Mansfield (19-5-1, 8-2), its closest pursuer.



"I was thinking home run if I got an inside pitch,'' said Timmons, who upped her home run total to four.

Mansfield has only four games remaining to make up the deficit after being swept by Timberview in the season series.

The win was Timberview's 12th in a row and Denson improved to 14-2 with eight strikeouts, despite not having her best stuff.

"The defining moment this season for Mariah Denson came in a tournament game against Bryan,'' Mooney said. "They have a good team and their best player hit a couple of home runs off her. But she came back to strike out the side after the second one and, even though we lost the game, it was a confidence-builder for Mariah and her teammates.''

The coach said she never had any doubt about going almost exclusively with a freshman pitcher. "She's played a lot of ball against some of the best players in the nation in her age division, traveling to places like Las Vegas and California,'' Mooney said. "My concern was if she could come off the injury to her back.''

Denson spent several months leading up to the season in a back brace to help her recover from a stress fracture that worsened over time into a fractured vertebra. The brace appears to have done its job.



Mooney, in her fifth season at Timberview, said this group of players is special not only for its skill, but also for the way they get along.

Before coming to Timberview, Mooney made previous coaching stops at Bowie (Arlington) and Chapel Hill (Tyler). She is a native of Haltom City, and played all the school sports. But no softball.

Her high school days pre-dated softball becoming a University Interscholastic League sport. Mooney had to be satisfied with playing in summer softball leagues. Her position was shortstop.

She continued her athletic career at Southern Arkansas University.

On Mooney's watch, Timberview has risen to No. 9 in the Dallas Morning News' Class 5A area ranking.

At Timberview Mooney teaches health and also instructs physical education for special needs partners. One of her special needs students often throws out the first pitch at Timberview home softball games.



Mooney said she could sense something special about this year's team.

"You'll get a group of players like this every once in a while,'' Mooney said. "We're well-rounded in most areas of the game, but we try to do more than teach softball. We want them to learn things that will help them in life. That's why this group volunteers to work in the community.''{PAGEBREAK}
Danny Wallace is changing the mindset of the Flower Mound baseball program in his first season at the school.

So far, so good.

The Jaguars (21-3, 7-0 in District 5-5A), riding an 11-game winning streak, are the top-ranked Class 5A area team by the Dallas Morning News.

Flower Mound's recent 8-2 road victory came against its closest district pursuer, Coppell (15-4-2, 5-2). Six of the runs scored by Wallace's team came with two outs.

For his ability to tweak an already good team and make it better, Wallace was selected as Dallas Coach of the Week presented by Captial One Bank.

"Coming to Flower Mound, I knew talent wasn't an issue,'' Wallace said. "The baseball tradition here speaks for itself. But after talking to some coaches in the area that were familiar with this program, we put a plan together on how we could be better. We went to work on it in the fall.''



Wallace learned that Flower Mound had the reputation for big, strong hitters that too often swung for the fences.

"That can work okay against weaker competition,'' Wallace said. "But when you get into the playoffs, you begin to face pitchers that don't give up eight or nine hits in a game. We needed to change our approach.

"We want to stress team, not individual offense. Our goal in every game is to try to win each inning.''

The top of the first against Coppell was a perfect example. Following a solid leadoff single by Austin Mussachio, Taran Kilian dropped a sacrifice bunt — perhaps not the approach past Flower Mound teams might have taken.

Flower Mound scored four in the first inning and put the game away with another four-spot in the fourth.

Both big innings were prolonged by a Coppell error.



"Everything that came after the errors came by way of hits,'' said Wallace. "It wasn't like Coppell was throwing the ball all over the lot. We seized the opportunity.''

Designated hitter Jett Meenach nine-pitch at-bat in the first inning, which ended in a walk, is another example of the patience Jaguars hitters are exhibiting this season. Coppell starting pitcher Austin Gardner was removed after throwing 32 pitches in the first inning.

Before the uprising that led to four runs in the fourth, Flower Mound had two outs with the bases empty.

Said Flower Mound second baseman MacKay Jacobsen: "The difference this year is we don't give up after two outs.''

Jacobsen drove in four runs, with a two-run single and a two-run home run.

Wallace, a one-time University of Texas walk-on under legendary coach Cliff Gustafson, came to Flower Mound with an impressive resumé. His 20 seasons as a head coach included stops at Hutto (where his team reached the Class 2A state tournament), Connally (Pflugerville) and most recently Georgetown, where he spent 10 seasons.



At Class 5A Georgetown, Wallace's teams won three district titles and reached the regional finals twice.

"Danny is doing a great job at Flower Mound,'' Coppell coach Kendall Clark said. "I remember coming up against him in regional tournaments when I was at Plano West. His teams don't make mistakes. When you make a mistake, they capitalize.''

Wallace grew up in the Dallas area and was named the baseball MVP of his district while playing at Seagoville in 1985.

"When I was growing up in the Metroplex, I didn't know that Flower Mound existed,'' Wallace said. "But it is good to come back to the area. The baseball is very good.''

Danny and his wife Julie have been married 15 years and have four children: Austin, Abigail, Kayla and Garrett.