Van Alstyne Panthers claim District 6-4A title after 9-1 season

The Van Alstyne Panthers have claimed the District 6-4A championship, capping a 9-1 regular season with a perfect 5-0 district record. The team secured the title Thursday night with a 49-28 victory over Sanger, marking a significant turnaround from the previous year when the Panthers finished 4-6 overall and 3-3 in district play.

The 2026 season saw substantial improvements on both sides of the ball. Offensively, the Panthers increased their scoring average from 33 points per game in 2025 to nearly 48 points per game this season. Defensively, the team lowered its average points allowed from nearly 31 per game last year to just under 22 in 2026.

These statistical gains were reflected in the team’s ability to reverse outcomes against several opponents that had defeated them in the 2025 season, including victories over Krum and Aubrey.

The most notable reversal occurred in the regular-season finale against Sanger. In 2025, Sanger defeated Van Alstyne 73-23, which was the most points the Panthers allowed in a single game that season. This year, the Panthers held Sanger to 28 points while scoring 49 to close out their district campaign.

The Panthers’ only loss of the 2026 regular season came against Sunnyvale. The Raiders defeated Van Alstyne 36-24, a result that saw the Panthers hold their opponent to 13 fewer points than in last year’s 49-41 playoff loss. Van Alstyne is expected to face Venus in next week’s Bi-District round, although the matchup has not yet been finalized.

The date, time, and location of the game are still to be determined, with additional information to be shared once details are confirmed.

Note: 2026 scoring averages are based on nine games played and exclude the scheduled game against Gainesville, which was not played.

Van Alstyne ISD scores 92 on the state's school finance checkup, earning a Superior rating before Monday's hearing

The district lost points on just one of the Texas Education Agency's 21 measures, the one comparing future debt payments with local property value. Trustees hold the required public hearing at their Nov. 9 meeting.

Jubal PenningtonNovember 7, 20261 min read

Van Alstyne

School board weighs a $500 December retention payment for every eligible Van Alstyne ISD employee

Trustees vote Monday on one-time payments for full-time and half-time staff hired by Oct. 1. The packet also shows enrollment at 3,027 and a May 2027 construction start for the fourth elementary school.

Jubal PenningtonNovember 7, 20262 min read

Van Alstyne

Library would charge 10 cents a gram for 3D prints from two donated printers under fee change up Monday

A consent item on the Nov. 9 council agenda sets $1 minimum 3D-print charges and large-format printing rates, and the council will ratify the library's bid for a state grant to build a play-and-learn space for children up to age 3.

Jubal PenningtonNovember 6, 20262 min read

FEMA approves Texas' appeal for individual aid after July storms, opening grants to residents of 20 counties

Households in Kerr, Bexar, Uvalde and 17 other counties can now apply for help with temporary housing, home repairs and other uninsured losses. A separate appeal for hazard mitigation money is still pending.

Dana WhitlockOctober 31, 20262 min read

Texas

Harris County strips audience targeting from get-out-the-vote ads the state sued over

The clerk's office removed the tags Thursday night "to avoid unnecessary distractions," hours after the attorney general's office asked a judge to pull or reconfigure the Facebook and Instagram ads. How the change affects the suit is unclear.

Hollis TrappOctober 30, 20261 min read

Texas

Quail season opens Sunday, with state surveys counting more bobwhites than average across most of Texas

Texas Parks and Wildlife biologists drove more than 3,300 miles of survey routes in August and expect a good season, strongest in South Texas and the Trans-Pecos. Public hunters need the annual permit.

Dana WhitlockOctober 30, 20262 min read