Here you'll find your up to date playoff bracket for TAPPS 11 Man D1 throughout the playoffs.

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Here you'll find your up to date playoff bracket for TAPPS 11 Man D1 throughout the playoffs.

Denton Ryan Raiders vs. Leander Glenn Grizzlies
WHEN: Saturday, March 7th (3/7) -- 11:00 AM
WHERE: Alamodome -- San Antonio, TX
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DENTON RYAN RAIDERS
Head coach Monesha Allen and the Lady Raiders find themselves exactly where they were a year ago, as the team’s quest to repeat has come full circle. The defending 5A Division I State Champions return to San Antonio riding a 17-game winning streak, most recently defeating Tascosa (54-34) and Walnut Grove (40-28) to improve to 36-4 and secure the program’s second appearance in the UIL title game.
The No. 3-ranked squad in Texas (MaxPreps) still boasts much of the arsenal that powered last year’s gold finish — particularly reigning 5A Division 1 MVP Kaylin Jackson (SMU signee), senior Zaviyana Madison (Lamar), junior Jamyla Anderson and James Madison–bound senior Kinley Lewis.

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LEANDER GLENN GRIZZLIES
The tone was set in last week’s Region IV Final, when Glenn defeated San Antonio Wagner 63–59 to secure the program’s inaugural UIL State Tournament appearance. On Tuesday, first-year head coach Katina Flournoy-Walker watched her squad dispatch La Porte 54–42 to punch its ticket to the Alamodome — a remarkable milestone for a school that opened its doors in 2016.
Glenn’s most dynamic weapon, junior guard Elizabeth “Libby” Lee, has answered the call time and again, while freshman sister Jennah Lee has quickly emerged as a rising star this winter. Senior CeCe Flournoy-Walker (Angelo State) and junior Ariel Goppy have also been vital pieces for a Grizzlies squad hungry to cap its monumental campaign with a crown.

THERE’S A NEWFOUND BUZZ AROUND ELSIK BASEBALL, AND IT STARTS WITH FIRST-YEAR HEAD COACH VERNON TUBBS.
Tubbs and his staff are breathing life into a program that, frankly, wasn’t even on the radar — sometimes even inside its own school.
“I had teachers in the hall who didn’t even know we had a baseball team,” Tubbs said.
A three-year starter at Prairie View A&M, Tubbs has taken on the role of promoter, builder, and culture-setter all at once.
“I’ve been a ringmaster of sorts, just promoting the program within the walls of Elsik High School,” he said. “My staff is made up of college baseball guys, and we have a plan. We don’t just want to win a few district games and sneak into the playoffs. We want to beat the best teams in this district — Foster, Fulshear, Strake Jesuit — and become a power. I can see it.”
The team’s new rally cry?
“Every time we break out as a team, it’s: 1, 2, 3 — Playoffs.”
Those are lofty goals for a program that has gone 14–68 over the last three seasons — a team without a true locker room, an equipment closet, or a clear identity. Tubbs isn’t shying away from that reality.
“We stripped it all down,” he said. “The first thing was preaching that we can compete with anyone we play. Our staff believes in these guys. We’ve seen tremendous growth during the fall and offseason. We hit the weight room and broke fundamentals down by position. Our pitchers are stronger. Our defense has vastly improved. We’re on our way.”
Tubbs’ baseball journey includes an unexpected chapter. After college, he earned several Major League tryouts, chasing the dream every ballplayer knows.
“I’ll never forget being cut at a Florida Marlins camp,” he said. “I wanted to get to the league That was my dream. I failed — and it hurt.”
Tubbs returned home to Houston and had to start over.
“That’s baseball,” he said. “You’re going to fail, and you have to be resilient.”
He coached briefly at his alma mater and with Perfect Game programs, but for nearly a decade, baseball wasn’t his profession. Instead, Tubbs became a therapist for the Mental Health & Mental Retardation Authority of Harris County.
“I worked with the homeless, juvenile offenders, and people with severe mental illnesses,” he said. “It was extremely tough work.”
That experience now defines his coaching philosophy.
“I learned to compartmentalize,” Tubbs said. “I couldn’t bring the work home. I left it at work, woke up the next day, and tried to do better than the day before.”
It’s a lesson he passes directly to his players.









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