Lady Mustang Mia Loza stood strong at the net during Natalia’s run at the Arabian round up tournament. Photo by Mable Byrd.
Matthew “Moose” Lopez Sports Editor The Natalia Lady Mustangs joined a merit of other teams in Devine’s home gyms for the annual Arabian round up. The Lady Mustangs faced some tough competition, no match was easy but the experience garnered is invaluable. The two-day tournament saw the Lady Mustangs take on five teams: Young Women Leadership Academy, John Jay and Hondo for pool play on Friday, then Fox Tech and Crystal City on Saturday for bracket play. Tournament stats:…LOGIN TO CONTINUE READING at www.devinenewsmembers.com. You will get instant access to our full E-edition, and begin getting the newspaper delivered to your home next week for $42 a year in Medina County. Support important local city, county, and school news like this!
Pirate football sets out on their first Voyage to Creek View
Matthew “Moose” Lopez Sports Editor After months of practicing, pep rallies, midnight madnesses and scrimmages, the time has come for the Lytle Pirates to storm the field once again! In their first official game of the season, the Pirates will sail to San Antonio to take on the Creek View Cougars. This will be the first ever matchup between the two programs in their history, so the teams and fans alike are in for a unique experience. Kickoff starts at 7:00 P.M. at Creek View High School Athletic complex on Friday, Aug. 28.
Mustangs travel to Boerne to take on Eagles in season opener
Matthew “Moose” Lopez Sports Editor The wait is finally over. The Natalia Mustangs will once again take the field for their first official game against the Geneva Eagles on Friday, Aug. 28 at 7:00 P.M. This will be the first official meeting of the schools in the two programs history. Both teams and fans alike are in for a unique and exciting experience as both teams gear for district play. Good luck to the Mustangs!
Jerel Beaty Staff writer After weeks of preparation, two preseason scrimmages, and plenty of sweat, the waiting is finally over as the Devine Warhorses officially open the 2026 football season Friday night when they travel to San Diego for a 7pm meeting with the Vaqueros. Devine’s Jacob Campsey and his squad have been steadily establishing its own identity since he took over February 1. Now the time has come to show what that identity is. Both of the Warhorses scrimmages provided valuable opportunities to evaluate players and polish assignments, but Friday night will bring an entirely different atmosphere. Mistakes will matter. Momentum will matter. And how players respond when things don’t go according to plan will matter most of all as the ball is not simply reset at the 30 yard line after a failed series of downs. San Diego enters…LOGIN TO CONTINUE READING at www.devinenewsmembers.com. You will get instant access to our full E-edition, and begin getting the newspaper delivered to your home next week for $42 a year in Medina County. Support important local city, county, and school news like this!
Jerel Beaty Staff writer Devine Head Coach Jacob Campsey liked what he saw in his team’s final tune up before the lights pop on for real in San Diego this Friday. The Horses scrimmaged Navarro last Thursday in their second of two scrimmages. “It was another great physical showing versus Navarro similar to what we had against Ingram the previous week,” Campsey stated. “We made huge strides offensively as we scored 5 or 6 times to their 4 times total with our starters coming out on top 4-3.” Devine hopes to be more than ready for the opening kick on August 28. “Against Navarro, we did a great job setting the tone from the get-go and were the more physical team. Offensively, we did a phenomenal job taking gifts in the throw game and had a ton of explosive plays whereas defensively we gave up too many explosive plays and too many 3rd down conversions that we will need to get fixed to have a better shot at winning our opener.”
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Arabian libero Greeley Malone and senior defensive specialist Calleigh Schneider are ready for the serve. Photo by Moose Lopez. Devine plays at 9, 11, and 1 on Friday, and Saturday’s game times are TBD.
Tourney in Devine this week…
By Jerel Beaty-Staff writer Devine Head Coach Samantha Mendez and her Arabian team welcomes Fox Tech, Uvalde, D’Hanis, Hondo, John Jay, YWLA, Natalia, Antonian JV, Crystal City, Ingram, and Lytle to the 2026 version of the Arabian Roundup on August 21-22. There are 18 pool-play scheduled matches throughout the day on Friday followed by more matches on Saturday which are to be determined. All games are scheduled for either Sessions Court inside the DSAC or the High School Gymnasium.
Best of luck to the Arabians as they fight for the championship! Pools/Friday Schedule Pool A/DSAC/Court One/Time—Devine vs Fox Tech 9am, Uvalde vs D’Hanis 10am, Devine vs Uvalde 11am, Fox Tech vs D’Hanis 12pm, Devine vs D’Hanis 1pm, Fox Tech vs Uvalde 2pm. Pool B/DSAC/Court Two/Time—Hondo vs John Jay 9am, YWLA vs Natalia 10am, Hondo vs YWLA 11am, John Jay vs Natalia 12pm, Hondo vs Natalia 1pm, John Jay vs YWLA 2pm. Pool C/High School Gym/Time—Antonian JV vs Crystal City 9am, Ingram vs Lytle 10am, Antonian JV vs Ingram 11am, Crystal City vs Lytle 12pm, Antonian JV vs Lytle 1pm, Crystal City vs Ingram 2pm. Saturdays game times are TBD.
Also pictured are Warhorses Aidan Martinez, Dylan Hinnant, and Payten Edwards. Photo by Moose Lopez.
The Warhorses took on Ingram this past Friday for Devine’s first preseason scrimmage. The Horses moved the ball, putting together several productive series that showed great promise for coaches and fans alike.
On the defensive side, Devine found ways to disrupt Ingram’s offense, even forcing two turnovers. The Warhorses next scrimmage will be against the Vaqueros on Friday, Aug. 28 in San Diego.
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Varsity Arabian Melanie Cardenas performed well in both her girls double match with Paige Barron and her singles match. Photo by Mandy Geries.
Jerel Beaty Staff writer The now-3A Warhorse and Arabian Team Tennis team dropped a 10-9 decision to close-to-5A Floresville on August 15 in Devine. With a ton of close matches throughout the day the winner was not determined until the final match of the afternoon. “It went down the wire,” stated Head Coach Kandi Darnell. “I’m proud of the way everyone played competitively! Our players gave it all you had in the heat. Floresville was very competitive, and previous to the start of play, I told our kids we would have fight in every match. Even though we lost 10-9, we need these kind of matches to make us better.” Several matches could…LOGIN TO CONTINUE READING at www.devinenewsmembers.com. You will get instant access to our full E-edition, and begin getting the newspaper delivered to your home next week for $42 a year in Medina County. Support important local city, county, and school news like this!
JV Arabian Chloe Ornelas was locked in during Devine’s match up against Medina Valley Creek View. Photo by Moose Lopez.
Matthew “Moose” Lopez Sports Editor With the Heart of a Mustang tournament wrapped up and the start of the regular season fast approaching, the Natalia Lady Mustangs are primed and ready to make a name for themselves on the court. Their high octane offense, bolstered by their disciplined defense makes them a tough outing for any squad across South Texas. Last season, Natalia finished with an overall record of 14-19 and a district record of 5-9, placing them fifth in the standings, just barely missing the post season. However, this new season doesn’t just bring a new set of games, but a fresh perspective as Natalia has a new head coach helming the reigns of the Lady Mustangs: Hannah Farruggia. Farruggia said what excites her the most about this opportunity, is that she has the chance to build something new with this group. “We have a brand-new group of girls and coaches, so we have the opportunity to create our own culture and establish good habits from the beginning,” Farruggia said Her coaching philosophy is centered around establishing a strong foundation rooted in accountability, commitment and discipline, while instilling the value of consistency in her players. Although the Lady Mustangs are eager to prove themselves on the court and hope for a deep playoff run, Farruggia knows that tomorrow’s success is built upon the preparation of today. “I want these girls to understand that success comes from consistency, hard work, and being committed to the team and to each other,” Farruggia said. “More than anything, I want to create a positive team culture where they grow not only as athletes, but also as confident, responsible young women who understand the value of teamwork, discipline, and perseverance.” Despite all the changes, Farruggia says “The vibe in practice has been really positive.” The team has been energetic and completive through all their hard work and are pushing each other to become better while still learning from one another. “We’re still building our team chemistry, but I like the direction we’re heading and the effort they’re bringing to practice each day.” The excitement we’ve seen so far from the blue and white has been nothing short of electric. The fluidity and trust the Lady Mustangs have on the court already is scary. As the season goes on they’ll only get more confident and more precise as their chemistry continues to blossom. Good luck to coach Hannah and rest of the staff as well as the Lady Mustangs!
Jerel Beaty Staff writer Devine Head Coach Hannah Thompson along with assistant Erica Squier and their band of Warhorse Cross Country runners began their 2026 season in Floresville on August 15. The Warhorse placed fourth overall out of whopping 21 teams in the 1A-through-4A division only 18 points behind third place Randolph. With 153 runners overall Devine’s average time was 18:53. Top 9 Boys Team Rankings 1st Great Hearts Northern Oaks 80, 2nd Gonzales 115, 3rd Randolph 122, 4th Devine 140, 5th Pearsall 189, 6th Cornerstone 208, 7th Northside Sotomayor 221, 8th Eagle Pass 241, 9th Pleasanton 250. Warhorse results 10th Zach Guerra 17:54.89, 12th Urijah Velasquez 17:55.14, 27th Shawn Lowe 18:54.24, 44th Zane Fritz 19:41.76, 58th Rafael Rodriguez 20:02.53, 68th Ryan Botello 20:15.07, 75th Jesus Cisneros 20:30.26, 90th Caleb Maxwell 20:52.03, 121st Jake Riou 21:56.82, Jaime Rodriguez 23:42.81.
Arabian XC hits the course in Floresville
Jerel Beaty Staff writer The Arabian Cross Country team under the direction of Head Coach Hannah Thompson and assistant Erica Squier got their 2026 season underway in Floresville on August 15. Devine placed 10th overall with 271 points, slightly ahead of 11th place Hondo and district rival Hondo who had 301 points. Out of 17 teams in their field consisting of 140 runners Devine finished with an average time of 15:50. Girls Team Rankings 1st Gonzales 70, 2nd Pleasanton 115, 3rd La Vernia 118, 4th Great Hearts Northern Oaks 134, 5th Northside Sotomayor 146, 6th Floresville 162, 7th Poth 174, 8th BASIS Shavano 200, 9th Port Lavaca Calhoun 203, 10th Devine 271. Arabian results 50th Claire Jones 15:26.42, 52nd Jessa Mata 15:28.10, 64th Allison Balencia 15:44.99, 74th Amy Outlaw 16:00.10, 92nd Kaytie Klein 16:33.85, 95th Claira Gulley 16:38.95, 121st Jovianne Gomez 17:44.53.
