IT’S A BIG FRIDAY OF volleyball as the final weekend of September looms. The Astros start their preparations for the postseason with trips to the Mariners and Angels to close out the regular season. The weekend will also have cross-country action as the state tournament moves closer to reality.
Wednesday: Zack Greinke (17-5, 3.05 ERA) gets his final regular season start when the Astros visit the Mariners at 9:10pm. Seattle counters with Yusei Kikuchi (6-10, 5.55 ERA). AT&T Sportsnet Southwest starts its coverage at 8:30pm with the pregame show.
The Dynamo are also on the west coast as they on LAFC starting at 9:30pm. KUBE 57 will air the game live.
Thursday: The Astros open their final regular season series when they visit the Angels starting at 9:07pm. Houston hands the ball to Wade Miley (14-6, 3.91 ERA), while Los Angeles hands the ball to Jamie Barria (4-10, 6.43 ERA). AT&T Sportsnet Southwest will have the pregame show at 8:30pm that will lead into the contest.
Friday: The high school volleyball schedule begins with Alvin at Clear Springs starting at 4:00pm, followed by Clear Brook at Dickinson at 4:15pm. La Marque visits HFCA at 5:00pm, with Kingwood at Clear Creek, Clear Falls at Clear Lake and Hitchcock at Palacios each beginning at 6:00pm. Friendswood at Crosby, Baytown Lee at Galveston Ball and Texas City at Santa Fe will conclude the evening’s matches at 6:30pm.
In team tennis, La Porte at Clear Brook and Clear Springs at Deer Park each start at 3:00pm. Friendswood at Clear Creek starts action at 3:30pm.
The cross-country slate will have Clear Brook, Clear Creek, Clear Falls and Texas City at the La Porte Invitational at 8:00am. Galveston Ball participates in the Cougar Classic at Sugar Land’s Imperial Park at 8:30am.
Rookie Jose Urquidy (1-1, 4.63 ERA) makes his bid to make the postseason roster in his final regular season start against the Angels at 9:07pm. Rookie hurler Patrick Sandoval (0-3, 5.25 ERA) gets the nod for Los Angeles when AT&T Sportsnet Southwest airs the game following the pregame show at 8:30pm.
Saturday: Galveston Ball’s cross-country team is back in action at the McNeil Classic at Imperial Park at 8:30am. Clear Springs’ cross-country squad is among the schools participating at the Hillacious Invitational in Brenham at 8:30am.
The Astros are likely to give Justin Verlander extra rest as he projects to be the starter for Game 1 of the American League Divisional Series, which begins next week. The team has yet to announce who fills his role in the penultimate game against the Angels, who will turn to Jose Suarez (2-6, 7.34 ERA). AT&T Sportsnet Southwest starts earlier, this time at 7:30pm before starting coverage of the game at 8:07pm.
This time, the games really count: District play begins in area
THE ROAD TO THE POSTSEASON begins in Districts 24-6A, 22-5A and 12-5A-2. Meanwhile, La Marque – which suffered a brutal 62-0 loss to state-ranked Columbia – finds the road tougher when the Cougars travel to state-ranked Jasper.
Thursday: No varsity games are on the schedule.
Friday: District 24-6A play begins with Clear Creek at Clear Brook (Veteran’s Memorial Stadium), Clear Falls at Clear Springs (Challenger-Columbia Stadium) and Clear Lake at state-ranked Dickinson beginning at 7:00pm.
The chase for the District 22-5A title kicks off when state-ranked Richmond Foster travels to Galveston Ball and Friendswood at Texas City each starting at 7:00pm. Texas City will honor its 1999 Class 4A Division I state championship team with pre-game and halftime ceremonies.
Santa Fe is at home for their District 12-5A-2 opener when Nederland rolls in for a 7:00pm kickoff.
Both Hitchcock and La Marque are non-district action. The Bulldogs host Houston KIPP Academy for a 7:30pm kickoff. The Cougars face their second straight state-ranked team when they travel to Jasper for a 7:00pm start.
Saturday: A busy day and evening of college football gets under way when #23 Texas A&M meets Arkansas at AT&T Stadium at 11:00am (KTRK 13). Prairie View is at Dallas’ Cotton Bowl in their annual clash with SWAC rival Grambling starting at 4:00pm. Texas Southern at Houston Baptist (ESPN3), Stephen F. Austin at Lamar (ESPN+), Sam Houston State at McNeese State (ESPN+) and Louisiana Tech at Rice (ESPN3) are each 6:00 pm starts, while Houston is at North Texas beginning at 7:00pm.
