NEXT-LEVEL GUYS: Temple College's baseball program on Wednesday celebrated its six players who signed with NCAA Division I programs last week: second baseman Travis Chestnut (left) with Texas A&M, outfielder Joseph Redfield and shortstop Zane Spinn with Sam Houston State, outfielder/designated hitter Clark Henry with Texas-San Antonio, right-handed pitcher Davis Pratt with Purdue and lefty pitcher Hudson Luce with Texas Tech. Other than newcomer Luce, all the players are soph

By GREG WILLE TempleBeltonSports.com After being rated the fastest runner and the No. 199 overall prospect in Major League Baseball's 2021 amateur draft, Temple College standout shortstop Seth Stephenson unexpectedly was not selected in the 20-round event that concluded Tuesday. Meanwhile, Temple High School graduate TJ Rumfield saw his name called when the Philadelphia Phillies picked the current Virginia Tech slugging first baseman Tuesday in Round 12 of the three-day draft

SEASON-SAVING PERFORMANCE: With Temple College needing to beat Midland on Sunday evening to extend its season in the NJCAA Region V tournament, sophomore left-hander Dylan Blomquist pitched seven innings and struck out six as the Leopards defeated the Chaparrals 12-3 in eight innings at Abilene Christian University. Belton graduate Blomquist (5-3) scattered nine hits, issued only one walk and benefited from an offensive barrage by Temple (39-15). Coach Craig McMurtry's Leopar

LONG GONE: Temple College freshman second baseman Travis Chestnut follows the flight of his two-run home run off of McLennan pitcher Brady Rose in the bottom of the sixth inning in Saturday afternoon's NJCAA Region V tournament game at MCC's Bosque River Ballpark in Waco. Rose (8-1) led 6-0 and hadn't allowed a hit through five innings before Chestnut's blast. The Leopards charged back and got within one run twice, but the 15th-ranked Highlanders held on for an 8-7 victory. T

HIS TIME TO SHINE: Temple College freshman left fielder Andre Jackson produced a big game in the Leopards' 5-3 win over Midland in an NJCAA Region V tournament opener Friday afternoon at Bosque River Ballpark in Waco. Jackson threw out a runner at home plate in the seventh inning, then delivered the go-ahead RBI single in the eighth. He and TC (38-14) moved into a winners-bracket showdown at 2 p.m. Saturday against rival and No. 15-ranked McLennan (38-16), which is hosting th

SAME LOCATION, DIFFERENT RESULT?: Last Thursday, Temple College sophomore Nathan Medrano pitched a four-hit complete game in a 2-0 loss to rival McLennan in Waco. At 2 p.m. Friday, Houston signee Medrano (8-4) gets another opportunity at Bosque River Ballpark when he starts for coach Craig McMurtry's Leopards (37-14) against Midland (28-14) in a first-round NJCAA Region V tournament game. The Leopards-Chaparrals winner will advance to Saturday's 2 p.m. game against the winner

NEXT STOP, POSTSEASON PLAY: Freshman shortstop Seth Stephenson (9) and the Temple College Leopards (37-14) finished in third place in the Northern Texas Junior College Athletic Conference with a 20-12 record after being swept by league champion McLennan in a four-game series. Coach Craig McMurtry's TC squad next will compete in a four-team, double-elimination NJCAA Region V tournament that begins Friday at McLennan's Bosque River Ballpark in Waco. The Leopards' opening oppone

BRIGHT SPOT: Temple College freshman shortstop Seth Stephenson connects for a fourth-inning double to left field against McLennan pitcher Logan Henderson in Thursday's doubleheader opener at Bosque River Ballpark in Waco. Stephenson hit another double in the sixth, but he had the Leopards' only hits as Henderson struck out 10 to help the Highlanders win 2-0. Temple's Nathan Medrano (8-4) pitched a complete game. In Game 2, MCC scored four runs in the eighth and beat 16th-rank

BIG-GAME ASSIGNMENT: Temple College pitcher Nathan Medrano, shown delivering against Hill last week, will make his 14th start this season when the 16th-ranked Leopards (37-10, 20-8) battle first-place McLennan (33-16, 21-7) at noon Thursday in the first game of a Northern Texas Junior College Athletic Conference doubleheader at Bosque River Ballpark in Waco. Medrano, a Houston signee, is 8-3 with a 2.49 earned-run average and 74 strikeouts in 65 innings. His likely counterpar

GOT HIM: Temple College freshman pitcher Davis Pratt strikes out Hill's Kade Brewer looking with a fastball in the ninth inning of the 17th-ranked Leopards' 6-5 comeback win over the Rebels in Wednesday afternoon's second game at Danny Scott Sports Complex. Catching for TC is freshman Andruw Gonzales. The Leopards trailed 5-1 when Pratt relieved starter Kolby Wilson in the fifth. Pratt (2-0) retired all 13 batters he faced and struck out six as Temple improved to 36-9 overall

REVENGE OF THE SETH: Temple College freshman shortstop Seth Stephenson connects for a two-run home run to left field against Ranger pitcher Joe Wolf during the second inning of the 18th-ranked Leopards' 15-3, five-inning win in Wednesday's second game at Danny Scott Sports Complex. It was the team-leading eighth homer this season for Stephenson, the Tennessee signee and Major League Baseball draft prospect who had three hits in TC's 6-4 victory in Game 1 and scored four runs

TWO-WAY STANDOUT: Temple College second-year freshman Dylan Blomquist had a productive all-around day Monday afternoon to help the Leopards sweep Grayson in a doubleheader at Danny Scott Sports Complex. In Game 1, the left-handed Belton graduate pitched a complete game and scattered eight hits as the 18th-ranked TC battered the Vikings 11-1 in six innings. Serving as the Leopards' designated hitter in Game 2, Blomquist went 2-for-4 with a double and scored a run as Temple pre

BRIGHT FUTURE: Temple College freshman shortstop Seth Stephenson has produced an outstanding season for the No. 12-ranked Leopards (29-7), who lead the Northern Texas Junior College Athletic Conference with a 12-5 record. A 5-foot-9, 170-pound Tennessee signee, Stephenson is batting .339 and leads TC with seven home runs, five triples, 19 extra-base hits and 33 runs batted in while stealing 17 bases. He hit three homers and a triple last Saturday as the Leopards swept Cisco.

SLUGGING SATURDAY: Temple College freshman shortstop Seth Stephenson hit three home runs Saturday as the Leopards defeated Cisco 19-9 and 16-6 in two six-inning, run-rule games at Danny Scott Sports Complex. The Tennessee signee extended his team-leading total to seven homers as No. 15-ranked TC improved to 29-6 overall and 12-4 in the Northern Texas Junior College Athletic Conference, tied for first place with rival McLennan. Cole Payne hit two of the Leopards' eight homers,

TempleBeltonSports.com staff report CISCO – Temple College got another strong pitching performance from Nathan Medrano to beat Cisco 4-1 in Wednesday's first game and the No. 15-ranked Leopards were in position to sweep the road doubleheader, but the Wranglers stormed back to score four runs in the final three innings and seize a 5-4, walk-off win to earn the split. Temple (27-6) saw its six-game winning streak end in the finale, leaving head coach Craig McMurtry's Leopards w

TempleBeltonSports.com staff report Temple College extended its hot streak Thursday afternoon, scoring 25 first-inning runs – a staggering 17 in Game 2 – and 29 overall in a pair of run-rule wins against Galveston in a non-conference baseball doubleheader at Danny Scott Sports Complex. The No. 18-ranked Leopards (25-5) beat the Whitecaps 11-1 in the opener and 18-7 in the finale. Both games were scheduled for seven innings but ended in the fifth because of the 10-run rule. Af

RISE AND FIRE: Temple College sophomore Marlaina Spearman (right) takes a contested jump shot over Weatherford defender Adreanna Waddle (20) during the first half of the host Lady Leopards' 88-65 loss to the Lady Coyotes in a first-round Northern Texas Junior College Athletic Conference Tournament game on Wednesday evening at TC Gym. Spearman made two 3-point baskets in the first half and scored eight points overall for Temple (14-7), which led 20-15 after the first quarter b

By GREG WILLE TempleBeltonSports.com gwille2@hot.rr.com The Temple College basketball teams finished the regular season in much different styles last Saturday afternoon against Weatherford at TC Gym. On the women's side, the Starr Jacobs-led Lady Leopards of first-year head coach Amber Taylor staved off Weatherford for an 83-82 win that secured a share of third place with Ranger at 10-6 in the Northern Texas Junior College Athletic Conference. Later, the TC men couldn't match

TOTAL CONTROL: Temple College freshman Ulises Quiroga, shown during a March 13 home game against Weatherford, pitched six innings of two-hit, shutout baseball with 10 strikeouts Saturday as the Leopards beat North Central Texas 9-0 in the first game of a doubleheader in Gainesville. Quiroga (6-0) improved his earned-run average to 0.85 and has won all six of his starts this season. First-place TC (21-5, 9-3) extended its winning streak to nine games in the Northern Texas Juni

GETTING A HAND UP: Sophomore guard Tyler Watkins (1) of Temple College contests a 3-point shot by Weatherford sophomore guard Aaron Heft during the first half of the Leopards' 102-88 loss to the Coyotes on Saturday afternoon at TC Gym. Heft made five 3-pointers and scored a game-high 31 points, while Watkins scored 20 points in his final TC home game. Aleu Aleu scored a team-leading 25 points for the Leopards (5-13), who lost their 12th straight Northern Texas Junior College