Tomball set a ton of firsts this year in baseball, but none as big as this: the first state baseball champions in school history.

The Cougars jumped to an early lead and never looked back, defeating Corpus Christi Moody 6-1 Friday night at Dell Diamond in Round Rock. The win earned Tomball its 35th victory of the season and the Class 4A title.

Click on the video above for a full photo gallery from the state tournament.

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The Tomball Cougars are a win away from bringing the school its first-ever state title in baseball.

Nick Banks, who got his first start of the season last week in the regional final, went the distance and struck out 10 as the Cougars defeated Wichita Falls Rider 5-2 in the state semifinal. Tomball (34-4) plays at 7 p.m. Friday in the Class 4A title game against Corpus Christi Moody (32-6-1).

Banks also gave the Cougars the early lead with a solo home run in the first inning.

The team left the school early Thursday morning with a parade of police cars and fire trucks, as fans cheered them on along the way. Another win, and the school may need to schedule an even bigger parade.

Check back for results tomorrow, and look for a complete photo gallery from the state tournament Monday.

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Tomball crushed Foster High 10-0 tonight at Rice University to earn the Cougars their first-ever trip to the state baseball tournament.

With the win, the Cougars (33-4) advance to play at Dell Diamond in Round Rock next weekend, just outside of Austin. The semifinal game is Thursday at 4 or 7 p.m., and if the Cougars win they will play for a state title on Friday night at 7.

This is the deepest Tomball baseball has ever advanced, and they did it in convincing fashion. Nick Banks threw a two-hit shutout as the Cougars collected 15 hits and won by mercy rule in the sixth inning.

Check back for more stories and previews of next week’s games here at the Cougar Claw online, and follow us on Twitter at CougarClawNews for updates. Next weekend, we’ll have live updates from Austin.

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It has been a record-breaking year for the Cougar baseball team. Most wins in a season. Deepest playoff run.

But right now, the Cougars have their sights on a first-ever trip to the state tournament.

One win and they’re in. Lose, and the season is over.

The Cougars (32-4) take on Foster High School (30-8) on Thursday night at 7, in a single-game Regional Final at Rice University. The winner advances to Austin for the state tournament.

Tomball is likely to face Foster ace Reid Garrett, who brings in a 1.27 ERA and has 91 strikeouts in 83 innings pitched this season.

Cougar Coach Doug Rush is hoping for a strong turnout from Tomball fans Thursday night.

Until next fall, we wish everyone a safe and happy summer.

The announcement was made after the Board of Trustees conducted a thorough search within and outside Texas. They narrowed down a field of 34 applicants to make the final decision.

According to state guidelines for hiring a superintendent, the Board is required to give public notice of the name of the lone finalist being considered for a superintendent position at least 21 days prior to finalizing the decision. The Board plans to hire Kinchen in June.

Kinchen has worked for the District for 13 years. He spent five years as the principal of Tomball High School, five years as the assistant superintendent of administrative services, and an additional three years as deputy superintendent.

“It is an honor to be selected as the lone finalist,” Kinchen said. “I am looking forward to transitioning the District to the next level and preparing for the future.”

Prior to working in Tomball ISD, Kinchen worked in Humble ISD and Spring ISD. In 1976, he earned a bachelors degree in science from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He received his masters degree in education in 1985 from Southeastern

Louisiana University.

“The Board was looking for a visionary leader,” Board President John E. McStravick said. “We not only wanted a visionary leader in terms of instruction, but also in respect to facilities, staffing, programs, and finance. We are confident Huey is that leader.”

Jimmy Butler visits with THS principal Greg Quinn during a campus visit on Monday. Butler, a former basketball star at Tomball, now plays for the Chicago Bulls in the NBA.

Next year, Kayla Boucher, Lexie Comeaux, Savannah Sandoval, and Kiana Workman are returning and expected to lead their team back into the playoffs.

“I believe our strength will lie in the experience that this team will have playing together,” said coach Benita Dunlavy, the winningest softball coach in Texas.

“Building pitching position and working on back up for our back up pitching positions would be our weakness and something that needs to be worked on.”

“My mom just kind of stuck me in a guitar class as something to keep me busy- and once I picked it up, I never put it down,” she said.

Three years later, on her 14th birthday, she had her first gig at Main Street Crossing.

“Looking back, I was so, so, so nervous,” she said, recalling her uncle going up to the general manager, Matt Davis, who was playing that night, mentioning his niece knew how to play the guitar.

She played a few songs that night at Main Street Crossing, but it was only the beginning of the music career ahead of her.

“Today, I play at Main Street regularly,” she said, in a monthly “Young Artist” showcase the venue hosts.

“Naming it ‘Courage’ just made sense, because I finally say everything I felt,” she said.

Four years after her first performance, she found herself performing at Main Street Crossing at her first album release show.Tori’s album, “Courage”, was released on April 14th, the day of the show.

Tori was first inspired to start on her own album when she won the school’s Talent Show with her original song “Try This Out” she co-wrote with the same manager who, four years ago, met her on her 14th birthday to sing at her first gig.

“We realized pretty quick that we had really great writing chemistry and didn’t stop,” she said.

The majority of the songs, she says, are about “relationships she’s been in- from wanting just a simple ‘fling’ of a relationship, to the heartbreak of a guy that moves away.

Not wanting to sound “too Taylor Swift-y”, Tori explains that “not all of the album is about boys,” she said. “You have listen closely and read between the lines on some of the songs.”

She explains that one of her songs in the album, titled “Talk, Talk, Talk” was written for “all the people that have ever liked someone in a band, because, if you ever meet or talk to them, the majority of the time, they have a tendency to flirt.”

But the song reveals the theme of the journey toward maturity, confessing her inner thoughts.

“I feel like a lot of people can connect with someone that they have a bit of a flirtation-ship with, but it’s never turned into anything more,” she said, “so you’re kind of left wondering, ‘Is this going anywhere?”

But Tori believes that it’s not just the lyrics and the voice that have helped build her success so far, but her supportive friends.

“Throughout this entire process, they’ve not only been there to motivate me and encourage me musically, but also be there for me as friends,” she said.

And the night of her show wasn’t the exception, where she had the chance to play all of her album’s songs in front of her friends who had been with her since day one.

“She’s been my best friend since before the guitar was in her hand, and when she picked it up I watched it click,” said senior Savannah Lee. “I love Tori’s music-because it is so her. Those words are words that came up in our conversations or ones she called me about because she was excited that they flowed so well.”

A career in the music industry didn’t seem too far away a month prior to her album release, when she had been competing in Houston Rodeo’s “Rodeo Rockstar” competition.She competed in the youth division for ages 16-21.

At first, she had to send in an audition video where people voted for the best online, in which she sang an original song, not included in her album.

The top 10 most voted-for videos from each age division moved on to the next round. Tori was one of the ten from her age group, going on to perform at the live competition on the Kids Country stage at the rodeo.

Tori made it all the way to the preliminary round, where she chose to sing an original song on her album – “Kiss Me Quick”. When the judges critiqued her, they admired how beat up her guitar was, telling her that it showed she had been practicing a lot.

“Which I do,” she said, “but I also just have a tendency to run into things whenever I have my guitar in my hands”.

The judges also noted that she had a “universal” voice.

Before she knew it, though, the competition was over, and the winners were being placed.

“When they got to first place of the Youth Division,” she said, “they said my name.

“It was a total surprise, because everyone in my division was so talented and had gorgeous, big voices, and here I am- with my not-so-big voice with a huge check in my hand for five-hundred dollars and a Houston Rodeo belt buckle.”

Tori will be returning to the rodeo next year to be in the Houston Rodeo parade.

But as she anticipates next year’s possibilities, she is reminded of the long road ahead of her.

Tori plans to go to Texas A&M to major in General Studies while she continues to pursue her musical interests.
“There’s so much to see and do- and to get to play music, travel, and tour everywhere would be a dream,” she said.
But even as her life changes seasons, she will always remember her roots.
“I’ll always be a Texas girl at heart,” she said.
Hear a song from Tori’s new album! Log onto the newspaper’s website at THSCougarClaw.com to listen, and catch songs by other THS singers as well.