Wise County Messenger from Decatur, Texas • Page 12

OVER EASY Bodie Read, Paradise senior, clears the 12-foot mark Saturday in pole vault competition at a regional qualifiers meet in Muenster. Read won the event over seven athletes from Class B-AA schools. Looking on are (from left) Scott Bilby, Bridgeport; Robbie Trotter, Paradise and Paul Ray Baird, Alvord. (Photo by B.D. Deady) TENNIS CHAMP Stacey Sandford won second in regional tennis competition Friday at Commerce and will be going to state competition May 2-3 at Austin.

(Messenger photo by Carol King) FRANK'S SMALL CNGINC SCftVICC Mowers for Sale 2 Mi. West of Newark 489-2336 sgeum a when you buy Counter Chicken-tried meat strips, tries. Texas Toast. Country Gravy Dairy Queen Monday April 21 thru Sunday, April 27 Offer good only at Participating Stores. Sandford wins Austin tennis trip Decatur High School sophomore Stacey Sandford has achieved a goal very rare fora sophomore.

She will play in Austin next weekend in the state championship tennis tournament. Sandford won second place in regional competition last weekend at Commerce, qualifying her for a spot in the state tournament. As a freshman she was designated an alternate in last state competition, but did not get to play because both the Region II champion and runner-up made the tournament. Both of those girls have now graduated. On the first day of regional play Sandford drubbed a competitor from Paul Pewitt 6-1, 6-0, to advance to the second round where she defeated a Grand Saline player 6-0, 6-1.

Competition got tougher in the semi-finals where she had to go all out to take a 6-3, 6-4 decision over a player from Mineola. She earned a finals match with Kelly Kniffen of Whitehouse, a transfer student to the East Texas school district who is also a sophomore. Kniffen, who was the No. 2 seed in the tournament behind Sandford handed the Eagle sophomore one of her few defeats. She won the match 6-2, 6-2 with an overpowering forehand.

Stacey is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Bill Sandford of Decatur. Doug Whitehead for sheriff Balanced law enforcement: a reasonable Balanced law enforcement is simply a matter of professional peace officers providing service suited to the needs of Wise citizens. It involves two basic elements: and motivating the best-trained, most experienced lawmen available.

that although Wise County faces the problems common to all growing commmities, its lawmen should be the type of person who treats everyone as though he were his next-door neitfibor. Doug Whitehead has the experience and Inow- how to make that goal a reality. work toother to keep Wise County a great place to spend a lifetime by electing Doug Whitehead as sheriff. Vote for Doug Whitehead for sheriff of Wise County May 3rd Democratic Primary Bodie Read wins gold despite odds Time was, a person had to be pretty hard-headed to pole vault in Paradise. The Wise County Class school has no track and only this year developed a pole vault pit.

Paradise Senior Bodie Read is significant of the struggle his track program has made to achieve notoriety. Last year, track team members sold glasses to raise money to buy hurdles. With those hurdles, the school sent three athletes to regionals. Read, who was a standout in football, basketball and baseball, became interested in the pole vault last year about mid-season. He practiced running down the dirt runway, putting his pole into the makeshift wooden box and vaulting 9-10 feet in the air only to come down on a pile of old tires and bags of foam rubber.

Read's parents, Sonny and Gay, worked with him nights and weekends, settingthe bar after each miss, encouraging him when he increased his height. By the district track meet, Read had managed to get to 10 feet 6 inches, which took second place and qualified him for regional competition in Abilene. Read cleared opening height in Abilene, stayed in for one more round and then packed to head home. The experience gave him a taste of the elite competition and determination to return next year. Paradise purchased a fiberglass box before the 1980 season and added a well cushioned pad and interest in the sport picked up.

best finish this season was second place but prior to district competition he and Coach B. D. Deady concentrated heavily on his form and last week work and sacrifice paid off. Conditions were ideal in St. Jo April 15 for the District 7B meet.

Wind and cold temperatures that had pla gued the 130-pound vaulter all season were absent. Read cleared opening height with ease and con tinued. never missing, passing Sell it with a Messenger ad his nearest competitor at 11 feet 6 inches. It was then he decided to up the kar and set a new school record. Read cleared 12 feet 2 inches with room to spare to break the old 12 foot record.

The bar was then moved to 12 feet 5 inches. Reai missed his first try, scratched his second and cleared the third attempt, only to see the bar shake for a few seconds and then tumble to the ground. Read accepted the first place gold medal, returned to school to peal the name of the old school record holder off the board and pack for Abilene. JOHN CLAY CO. Of Fort Worth Livestock Commission Co.

624-1300 Hampton Butler 627-5698 tin Sundae only. No Flaetat, Parfaits. Political advertising paid for by Doug Whitehead for Sheriff committee, Doug Whitehead, treasurer, P.O. Box 510, Chico 12 WISE COUNTY MESSENGER, Decatur, Texas, Thursday, April 24,1980.