Resident News Network

RNN Special: Watch for Hogs vs Missouri State Special Post-Game Coverage on Sunday!

Resident News Network

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8:29 pm

RNN Special: Watch for Hogs vs Missouri State Special Post-Game Coverage on Sunday!

Razorbacks fans, RNN Sports will again have a photojournalist on the sideline this Saturday night at Razorbacks Stadium as the Top Ten nationally-ranked Razorbacks host the Missouri State Bears and former Arkansas coach, Bobby Petrino. Ms. Salena Shelly will be taking action photos from the field to share with our readers following the game on Sunday!

Watch for this story on Sunday in RNN Sports on our online platform at residentnewsnetwork.com. The story and photos will be accessible online at no charge to our readers.

Stay with RNN Sports for Arkansas football coverage, and…GO HOGS!

Charleston Defeats Ozark 34-20 in “Battle for Franklin County”

Resident News Network

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8:09 pm

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Charleston Defeats Ozark 34-20 in “Battle for Franklin County”

The Charleston Tigers defeated the Ozark Hillbillies last Friday night in the “Battle for Franklin County”, 34-20, and in doing so improved their overall record to 2-0 on the season. Charleston has now defeated the top two predicted finishers in the 4A-1 conference.

Charleston now turns their attention to the Nashville Scrappers, another 4A team that will visit Alumni Field tomorrow. RNN Sports will be on hand to bring you exclusive coverage of the game with the Scrappers and will feature it on both the RNN online platform this weekend and in the weekly Logan County newspaper the week of September 22.

Charleston will go on the road next week to Greenland as the Tigers will take on the Greenland Pirates in the opening game of 3A-1 conference play. Watch for a preview of the Greenland game in next week’s Logan County newspaper.

Sometimes a good team has to win games when they are not quite playing their best, and Tigers fans may see last week’s game with Ozark as an example. But, from an optimistic standpoint, good teams can win when they are not quite playing their best, and a victory over a very good Ozark team when not quite playing up to speed is a positive sign for Charleston. The Tigers are very good and very athletic, and as long as they can dodge the injury bug that many teams deal with throughout the season, the Tigers will be in good shape as they head to their showdown at Booneville on October 21.

In two games, senior Tigers quarterback Brandon Scott has now passed for 367 yards on 33 attempts and 23 completions. He has a 68.7% completion percentage and averages just over 11 yards per completion. He has not been sacked, and has thrown three touchdown passes and just one interception.

Scott also leads all rushers for the Tigers with 133 yards rushing in his first two games. He has three rushing touchdowns and no fumbles.

Defensively, Reese Merechka leads the Charleston defense with eight solo tackles in two games, along with four assisted. Brycen Kindrix has added one interception for the Tigers on the young season.

Yours truly will be at Alumni Field tomorrow night to bring you special coverage of the Tigers game with Nashville. This should be a great high school football game with a lot of talent on the field for both teams. We will have a post game story on the game late Friday night along with a feature story the week of September 22 in the Logan County newspaper. I am looking forward to seeing all of the Charleston fans on Friday night, and I hope you have secured your subscription to the Logan County paper. In fact, the paper has grown so rapidly that it includes much more than just Logan County news and sports. Our reach is now up and down Highway 22, incorporating several communities into our coverage, and we are honored to bring you Charleston sports coverage!

If you have not yet subscribed, you can do so by going to residentnewsnetwork.com and clicking on the subscription link.

See you tomorrow night at Alumni Field!

Bear hunters can help study increased occurrence of mange in Arkansas bears

Outdoors

Tammy Teague

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2:20 am

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Bear hunters can help study increased occurrence of mange in Arkansas bears

Randy Zellers Assistant Chief of Communications

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission is asking anyone who harvests a bear in the Ouachita Mountains or Ozarks to help collect liver samples from their bear to help research mange in the Ozark bear population.

The liver samples needed aren’t used to determine the presence of mange, but the presence of possible contributing factors to the rise in cases seen recently.

According to Myron Means, AGFC large carnivore program coordinator, the first case of mange reported in Arkansas bears came in 2018. That year, four cases were documented in Ozarks bears. Since that time, sightings of bears with mange have steadily increased in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas and Oklahoma.

Mange is caused by mites (cousins of ticks and chiggers) that occur naturally in Arkansas. These mites rarely cause an issue, but that has changed in recent years.

“Sarcoptes scabies is the mite that causes bear mange, and it’s been around ever since bears have been around,” Means said. “The bear’s immune response usually allows it to live without seeing too many harmful effects from the mites, but something seems to have changed with some bears in the Ozarks.”

Dr. Jenn Ballard, state wildlife veterinarian for the AGFC, and AJ Riggs, AGFC wildlife health biologist, are working with Means to gather biological samples to determine any underlying cause contributing to the apparent increase in mange cases.

“Toxins, viruses and other environmental factors may be increasing the frequency of clinical mange, or it could be a new form of the mite,” Ballard said. “Evidence of toxins could be detected in the livers of legally harvested bears to help us compare bears with and without mange.”

Hunters who take a bear, whether it has mange or not, can submit a 3-inch by 3-inch square of the bear’s liver to help with this research. The sample can be placed in aluminum foil or a zip-sealed bag and placed in one of the many testing containers used to collect samples of chronic wasting disease from deer hunters.

“We have dozens of freezers throughout Bear Zones 1 and 2, so the network to collect scientific samples is really already in place,” Riggs said. “All hunters have to do is submit a tennis-ball-sized portion of the bear’s liver in one of the bags provided and fill out the sample tag at the location with the date, their name, phone number, sex of the bear and game check number.”

Hunters can find a drop-off location at www.agfc.com/cwd.

Samples of skin taken from bears with obvious mange also are needed for analysis.

“We want to do genetic analysis of the mites that cause mange in different species,” Ballard said. “If a hunter harvests a bear with obvious mange, they can collect a 3-inch square of the skin at the edge of the affected area, close it in a zip-sealed bag and submit it for testing as well.”

Additionally, any hunter who harvests a bear is reminded to submit a premolar tooth from that bear.

“When you check the bear, we’ll send you a packet that has two envelopes in it,” Means said. “You extract a tooth and put it in one envelope and put a sample of hair from the bear in the other and mail it back within seven days of receiving the packet to complete your check in. Instructions on how to remove and submit a tooth are available in the Bear section of the 2022 Arkansas Hunting Guidebook. We’ve also created a short video at https://youtu.be/aVUx4av8Ric to help with that portion of the checking procedure.”

Anyone who sees a bear with obvious mange or any bear in poor condition may report it to the AGFC’s wildlife health email at agfc.health@agfc.ar.gov with a location. Even if biologists cannot find the bear after the initial sighting, they can keep a record of these locations to watch for future outbreaks of mange and act accordingly.

Positive Progress at Waldron Schools

Networks

Tammy Teague

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6:32 pm

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The regular monthly meeting of the Waldron School Board was held in the Central Office Building Monday, September 12, 2022, at 6:30 p.m. Board members present were TammyeSherrill, Clay Woodall, Konnor McKay and Angela Hunsucker. School Board member Mac Davis was not present. Others present were Superintendent Daniel Fielding, Misty Owens, Kim Solomon, Zack Taylor, Darla Jeffery, Ryan Walker, Lisa Allen, Keith Brigance, Toni Dozier, Kristi Sigman, Lance Stinson, Tonya Cluck, Cheyenne Smith, Ethan Millard and Kurt Banta

President Tammye Sherrill called the meeting to order at 6:32p.m. McKay began the meeting with a word of prayer. Hunsucker led the Pledge of Allegiance.

A motion was made by Woodall and seconded by Hunsucker to add item F) Approve Invoice for Guy Fenter Education Service Cooperative for 2022-23 K-6 Virtual Consortium, to the Consent Agenda items. Motion carried 4:0.

A motion was made by Hunsucker and seconded by McKay to approve the Consent Agenda items: A) Approval of the August 8^th and August 10^th Minutes; B) Approve Financial Reports and Expenditures; C) Approve Purchase Order for Nearpod, Inc; D) Approve Invoice for Guy Fenter Education Service Cooperative for 2022-23 Professional Development Consortium; E) Approve Invoice for Guy FenterEducation Service Cooperative for 2022-23 Early Childhood Special Education Preschool Program; F)Approve Invoice for Guy Fenter Education Service Cooperative for 2022-23 K-6 Virtual Consortium; Motion carried 4 -0.

Kurt Banta addressed the School Board and audience concerning strategies and possibilities to take to deter school shootings from happening.

A motion was made by Woodall and seconded by Konnor McKay to approve the Petition for Transfer of Students. Motion carried 4-0.

A motion was made by Hunsucker and seconded by McKay to approve the Active Educator Retention Incentive in the amount of $3000 for Certified and $1700 for classified employees paid out by the end of September, 2022. Motion carried 4-0.

A motion was made by Woodall and seconded by Hunsucker to approve the Novice Teacher Mentoring Program. Motion carried 4-0.

A motion was made by Hunsucker and seconded by McKay to approve the Attendance Incentive Opportunity. Motion carried 4-0.

Ryan Walker, ABC/Adventure Online Academy Principal, reported to the Board that there are now 30 students enrolled in the virtual online school. Mr. Walker also stated that ABC and First Step are both almost at capacity. Mrs. Darla Jeffery informed the board that the Book Fair will be this week, as well as Grandparents Breakfast. Jeffery also stated that Elementary took their iReady assessments last week. Elementary will close this week off with a pep rally on Friday. Zack Taylor, Middle School Principal, reported that 388 parents attended “Meet the Teacher” night. Middle school is hosting the Book Fair this week. Mr. Taylor also wanted to thank Joe and Beverly Richmond for donating the volleyball net to the Middle School playground. Kim Solomon, High School Principal, stated that FFA had a huge turnout for the fair this year, she commented on the outstanding job that Laura Kitchens is doing with the program. Homecoming will be October 21^st.

A special thanks to Joe and Beverly Richmond for their time and effort to install the volleyball poles/net and the tether ball poles on the Waldron Middle School playground.

Superintendent Fielding reported to the board that Kristi Sigman secured a grant that would enable the school to purchase sensory items. He also discussed with the board members a date to approve the 2022-23 budget.

A motion was made by Woodall and seconded by Hunsucker to accept the resignation from Kandace Espinoza as High School Paraprofessional, effective August 11, 2022. Motion carried 4-0.

A motion was made by Woodall and seconded McKay to add 1 years’ experience to Amber Scott’s contract, retroactive back to August 11, 2022. Amber should have been given 7 years’ experience when hired instead of 6. Motion carried 4-0.

A motion was made by Woodall and seconded by McKay to adjourn. Motion carried 4-0.

Meeting adjourned at 8:15 p.m.

2022 Scott County Fair

Madison VanRavensway

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6:51 pm

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Scott County Fair Association held their 100th annual fair September 7-10, 2022. For its hundredth birthday the fair saw record breaking number of livestock, exhibitors, and money from the premium sale. Walking the livestock barn was sure a sight to behold. There were 105 animals present in the barn, shown by 71 exhibitors. Of the 105, about half (56) went into the premium sale. Buyers showed up and showed out, rewarding the exhibitors with great payouts.

The poultry and rabbit barn saw great numbers, too. There were 133 birds and 6 rabbits shown by 41 exhibitors. Honking, clucking, cock-a-doodles, turkey calling, and quaking noises were all taking place.

To be eligible to show at the Scott County fair kids need to be involved in FFA or 4H. Showing animals teaches responsibility, discipline, and self confidence. It can be an expensive venture to purchase and upkeep an animal, but the memories and lessons learned far outlast the show ring. The future of agriculture looks bright for Scott County seeing the excellent turnout of its youth for the fair, and their eagerness to work.

The Scott County fair board is responsible for the fair each year. The board this year was President- Caleb Free, Vice President, Rusty Craig, Treasurer- Heather Hale, Secretary- Amy Free and board members: Amber Craig, Sandra McEntire, Sue Williams, Betty Overturf. To be involved in the 2023 Scott County fair attend their meetings on the third Monday of each month.

Thank you to Jamie Goff, Cora Ozuna, Cheyenne Pottridge, Kimberley Lane, and LeighAnn Reynolds for sharing photos.

Timepiece:The Lovely Story

Featured

Tammy Teague

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5:31 pm

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Historians are always checking out cemeteries and old gravestone to discover history but one little expects to stumble across those stones right in the middle of a state park! Yet, there they sat, two stones side by side right in the middle of Dardanelle state park inscribed with weathered lettering designating the life and death of William Lovely and his wife Persis.

Little known today, the choices made by Lovely greatly influenced, not only the development of the River Valley, but of all the western frontier. A migrant from Dublin, Ireland, Lovely arrived in what was to become the U.S. just in time to fight in the Revolutionary War. He rose to the rank of Captain and was provided some 4,000 acres of bounty land for his service. Settling in Tennessee, he was appointed a position as an agent to the Cherokee tribe. In 1809, in order to prevent problems with settlers, many of the Cherokee requested and were given land in the new Louisiana Purchase and settled in an area along the Arkansas River from around Morrilton into present day Oklahoma. The chief and many leaders lived in an area around Spadra (Clarksville) and eventually Dwight Mission, a religious school for Cherokee children, was established near present day Russellville. William Lovely and his wife, as Indian agents, set up his home close to the mission on the east bank of the Illinois Bayou. Other tribes were assigned land in western Arkansas as well, resulting in a virtual Indian territory that extended west to the Rockies.

Located 300 miles from the nearest post office, Persis described the site as lonely, desolate, and dangerous. Her few neighborsand friends included the Witts, the Stinnetts (Stinnetts Station), Kirkbridge Potts (Pottsville), and the more famous Raven (Sam Houston) who was married to Cherokee Chief John Jolly’s daughter.

From the beginning, the western Cherokee clashed with the Osage tribe of north Arkansas. Violent warfare between the two groups threatened peace on the frontier. In 1815, Lovely came up with a plan to prevent this warfare, he purchased some three million acres of land from the Osage to serve as a border between the two tribes. Called the Lovely Purchase, this land included what is now Washington, Madison, and a portion ofCrawford County as well as a big part of eastern Oklahoma extending nearly to Tulsa.

At the time, there was no western boundary to Arkansas. As settlers began moving into western Arkansas, infighting between the various Indian tribes created a necessity to establish a western border. In Scott county, settlers and Choctaw eventually settled on a border along the Poteau River. North of that, a huge diamond shaped area of Arkansas extended far into what is now Oklahoma and the river valley was Cherokee Nation land. In 1928, to prevent clashes with settlers, the Cherokee gave up rights to all land in the River Valley to a straight line running from the western border of Missouri to the Arkansas River in exchange for Lovely’s Oklahoma Purchase. The boundaries of the state as we now know it was established by this little known individual, buried alongside his wife and a small adopted Indian girl, at our own Lake Dardanelle State Park.

Who knows, without him we might be talking about Clarksville, Indian Territory and Tulsa, Arkansas and the complete history of the Arkansas River valley would be forever altered.

Brace Yourself! Bobby Petrino Returns to Razorbacks Stadium!

Resident News Network

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1:54 pm

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Brace Yourself! Bobby Petrino Returns to Razorbacks Stadium!

Social media is buzzing with the satirical news of former Hogs coach Bobby Petrino returning to Razorbacks Stadium this Saturday. Petrino will bring his Missouri State Bears to DWR Razorbacks Stadium for a 6 p.m. kickoff with the Razorbacks. It will be the first time he has been in Razorbacks Stadium since his abrupt firing in April of 2012.

Social media is having a good time with his return, offering “advertisements” for neck braces, similar to what he wore at one of his final press conferences, for fans to wear to Saturday’s game. And for Hogs fans, it may be a joking matter now, directed to a polarizing figure in the Razorbacks football program history, but on Saturday, I would guess that Petrino has had this one circled on his calendar for a long time. Expect the high-flying bears to come out throwing the football all over field, much like his Hogs did more than ten years ago.

Here are some Missouri State notes as released by the University of Arkansas:

DATE: Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022
TIME: 6:00 p.m. (Central)
LOCATION: Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium
(76,000), Fayetteville, Ark.
SERIES: Arkansas leads 7-0
Last Mtg: Arkansas 51, MSU 7 (9/3/11)
TV: ESPN+ / SEC Network+
(Jay Alter, Stanford Routt, Tera Talmadge)
RADIO: KWTO 101.3 FM | MSU Bears Radio Network
(Art Hains, Dennis Heim)

♦ Missouri State returns to the road this week when the No. 5-ranked team in FCS travels to Fayetteville, Arkansas to take on the No. 10 (FBS) Arkansas Razorbacks at 6 p.m. (ESPN+/SEC Network+). It will mark the first meeting between the clubs since 2011, while Arkansas represents the second-highest ranked FBS team the Bears have ever played (No. 6 Oklahoma in 2020).

♦ The Bears are off to a 2-0 start for the first time since 2016 and for just the ninth time in the program’s Division I era (since 1982) — 1983, 1985, 1987, 1989, 2002, 2004, 2007 and 2016. Only the 1983, 1989 and 2004 Bears were able to start the season 3-0.

♦ QB Jason Shelley (Sr., Frisco, Texas) is the Missouri Valley Football Conference Offensive Player of the Week after he completed 19-of-24 passes for 297 yards and a career-high 5 touchdowns in last week’s home win over No. 14 UT Martin. The 2021 MVFC Offensive Player of the Year is one of 35 players on the 2022 Walter Payton Award Preseason Watch List, which recognizes the top offensive player in the FCS ranks.

♦ This week’s game marks the 200th career game as a head coach for MSU’s Bobby Petrino who brings a 134-65 (.673) ledger in his 17th season as a head coach. Petrino was 34-17 in four seasons as head coach at Arkansas (2008-11), including wins over Missouri State in 2009 and 2011.

♦ RB Jacardia Wright (So., Decatur, Ill.), a transfer from Kansas State, was named MVFC Newcomer of the Week for his efforts in Week Two. Wright logged his first career 100-yard rushing game in MSU’s win, carrying 23 times for 120 yards (5.2 yards per carry) in a breakout effort. He also scored on a 19-yard pass from Shelley with 35 seconds left in the first half, helping him rack up 162 all-purpose yards for the game. He ranks 35th nationally in rushing yards per game (79.0).

♦ This week’s game at Arkansas is Missouri State’s only game on grass this season and its first contest on a natural surface since the 2020 season opener at Oklahoma (9/12/20).

♦ Jason Shelley’s 5-touchdown passing effort last week vs. UT Martin was Missouri State’s first since 10/15/16 (Brodie Lambert vs. Western Illinois). Three of the other four players ever to throw 5 TD passes at Plaster Stadium ultimately became NFL quarterbacks — Sean Payton (1986), Carson Wentz (2014) and Easton Stick (2018).

♦ Milestone Updates: Montrae Braswell (CB, Avon Park, Fla.) is 3 tackles away from 100 (21g) at MSU … Jason Shelley is 90 passing yards away from 4,000 (14g) for his MSU career and would be the 7th Bears QB to do so.

♦ MSU’s defense is among the FCS national leaders in 3rd-Down Efficiency (3rd); team sacks (12th); tackles for loss (20th). The Bears .182 third-down efficiency also leads the MVFC.

♦ Braswell leads the nation (FCS) in kickoff return average (55.0). His career average (31 attempts) is up to 31.8.

♦ Led by Shelley’s exemplary start to the 2022 campaign, the Bears rank 4th nationally in passing efficiency (192.8), 13th in completion percentage (.685) and 17th in passing offense. Individually, Shelley ranks 3rd in passing efficiency, 6th in passing TDs (6) and 8th in points responsible for (42), all of which lead the MVFC. His 281.5 passing yards per game ranks 12th among all FCS players.

♦ Ty Scott (WR, Estill, S.C.) continues to set the standard for MSU receivers, ranking 3rd nationally in receiving TDs (3), 6th in receptions per game (8.0), 6th in receiving yards per game (128.0), 8th in receiving yards (256), and 31st in all-purpose yardage (129.0). He leads the Missouri Valley in receptions and receiving yards per game.

♦ Grant Burkett (P, Joplin, Mo.) boasts a 40.3 punting average so far this season, but is just shy of the minimum number of attempts (has 3.5 attempts per game – minimum is 3.6). He would rank 31st nationally with that average. Last season, Burkett ranked second in the nation with a school-record punting average of 46.2 per attempt, while helping the Bears rank second nationally in team net punting (42.81). He had 16 punts of 50 yards or better with 15 attempts downed inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.

2022 BEARS SCHEDULE
SEPTEMBER
Thu. 1 at (RV) Central Arkansas ESPN+ ………….W 27-14
Thu. 8 (14) UT Martin ESPN+ ………………………..W 35-30
Sat. 17 at (10) Arkansas SEC+ …………………….. 6:00 p.m.
Sat. 24 South Dakota State* ESPN3 …………….. 2:00 p.m.
OCTOBER
Sat. 1 at North Dakota* ESPN+ …………………. 12:00 p.m.
Sat. 8 Southern Illinois* ESPN+ ………………… 2:00 p.m.
Sat. 22 at Northern Iowa* ESPN+ ………………….. 4:00 p.m.
Sat. 29 Western Illinois* ESPN+ (HC) …………… 2:00 p.m.
NOVEMBER
Sat. 5 at South Dakota* ESPN3 …………………… 1:00 p.m.
Sat. 12 Youngstown State* ESPN3………………. 2:00 p.m.
Sat. 19 at Indiana State ESPN+ ………………….. 12:00 p.m.

*Missouri Valley Football Conference games (0-0);
Television designations in bold. Times listed are Central time.
Home games (bold) at Robert W. Plaster Stadium, Springfield.

#10 Arkansas
RAZORBACKS
2-0
Missouri State Record vs. Arkansas …………………………. 0-7
at Home……………………………………………………………. 0-0
at Fayetteville ……………………………………………………. 0-5
at Little Rock …………………………………………………….. 0-2
First Meeting ………………………Ark. 100, MSU 0 (9/30/1911)
Last Meeting ………………………….Ark. 51, MSU 7 (9/3/2011)
Date Site W/L Score
9/30/1911 ……. at Fayetteville, Ark…………….L……… 0-100
11/22/1918 ….. at Fayetteville, Ark…………….L……… 6-12
10/4/1924……. at Fayetteville, Ark…………….L……… 0-47
9/2/2000……… at Little Rock, Ark. …………….L……… 0-38
9/3/2005……… at Fayetteville, Ark…………….L……… 17-49
9/5/2009……… at Little Rock, Ark. …………….L……… 10-48
9/3/2011 ……… at Fayetteville, Ark…………….L……… 7-51
n PF – 40 (5.7); PA – 345 (49.3)

BEARS IN THE FCS POLLS
Preseason …………………………………………………..*5 8
9/5/22………………………………………………………….. 5 7
9/12/22………………………………………………………… 5 6
*Team’s highest preseason Top 25 ranking; Consecutive weeks in Top 25: 21

Arkansas’s defensive secondary will face a stiff challenge from the Bears’ passing attack. The Hogs hope to have Myles Slusher back this week. His return is much needed to improve an Arkansas secondary that has shown its vulnerability in the Hogs’ first two games this season. The Hogs should have a significant advantage on both lines of scrimmage, and the defensive front will be looking to put pressure on the MO State quarterback and not allow him time to find his receivers.

Razorbacks fans, if you live in Franklin or Logan counties, you will want to subscribe to the Logan County RNN weekly newspaper. You can subscribe by going to residentnewsnetwork.com and click on the subscription link.

So, the former Hogs coach will surely have a new wrinkle in the Bears’ offense….just for the game with Arkansas. So, Hogs fans, brace yourselves!

Note to Our Readers: The information in this story was sourced from the University of Arkansas Office of Communications, Kyle Parkinson, Associate AD / Communications

Tiger Distance Runners Take High Medal Count

Sports

Tammy Teague

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11:57 am

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Tiger Distance Runners Take High Medal Count

Addie Bowman and Trinity Triska are top two Lady Tiger finishers at Elkins.

It wasn’t quite a bus load of medals. However, Mansfield took its fair share of the awards offered at the Magazine Invitational Cross Country Meet on September 6.

With an 86% success rate, nearly every Tiger runner involved in long distance running at the Rattler pit came home with a medal. Twelve out of 14 Mansfield participants posted times worthy of a top 20 finish.

“It was a good day to be a Tiger,” said Mansfield head coach John Mackey. “Every division ran the same distance this meet. The familiarity with the conference course really helped.”

MHS senior girls take seocnd at Magazine XC race. Drop title to Waldron by 1 point.

Fact was Mansfield secured medal placements from every runner that had previously navigated the course in past seasons. The only two Tiger players not reaching qualifying times were a pair of novice runners stepping foot on Magazine’s 1.5 mile route for the first time in their careers.

MHS freshman Joey Williams blistered the shorter distance in the fastest time of any Tiger. An All-Conference runner the past two seasons, Williams was second overall in the junior boys race.

Williams won the 2A-4 district title along the same course in 2021. Although not the individual champion this time out, the rising star did set a personal course record along the familiar grounds in a time of 8:35. Only Jakrys Munoz of DeQueen ran a better time (8:28) for the junior high boys race.

“Joey has been working at a level three clip in practice,” stated Mackey. “That means he’s basically putting in the mileage of a high school senior. So far, his efforts are starting to pan out.”

Mansfield’s junior boys ran the table on medal rewards. All six entries on the Tiger team placed inside the top 20 with many running times similar to the top 20 in the senior high race.

MHS junior girls send all seventh graders to compete at the large Elkins Invitational 2-mile run.

For their collective efforts the Tiger cubs cobbled together a second place team score. Only DeQueen did better, pushing past Mansfield 40 to 44 in the team standings.

Gunner Williams (8th), Jonah Martin (9th), Hunter Whittaker, and Braxton Bartlett (18th) joined their team lead runner as the scoring five. Joseph Carter (19th) offered a blocker position to secure the runner-up plaque for the group.

Sisters Laney Wood and Jadelynn Wood gave the Mansfield senior girls their best boost in secring another runner-up team trophy for distance squad.

Laney Wood claimed fourth place overall in a time of 10:46. Jadelynn Wood came across one place behind that in 11:02.

Raine Hecox (11th), Ashley Martin (16th), and Addison Bowman (17th) joined the sister act for the team rankings. Altogether the senior girls scoring five finished with 31 points. That was only one point away from Waldron’s first place mark in the women’s division.

Sophomore Austin Ruiz scored a sixth place medal for the Mansfield men. As the only Tiger runner in that division, Ruiz’s well placed effort of 8:44 could not qualify for any type of team award. He competed as an individual instead of a five person squad.

Expectations Run High for Mansfield Jr Boys

Sports

Tammy Teague

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11:47 am

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Expectations Run High for Mansfield Jr Boys

Four of the Mansfield junior boys are in their third season together as a cross country team. Seasoned at an early age, the experienced distance racers are starting to see positive results. This past week the crew enjoyed a pair of runner-up team plaques at two different races.

Fresh off their second place team total in Magazine on Tuesday, the young Tigers did it again in an even larger meet in Elkins on Saturday, September 10.

“Elkins hosted one of the largest meets in the area,” stated Mansfield coach John Mackey. “Our players were not intimidated by the sight of over 200 runners in the race. These freshmen have been battling since the seventh grade. Their experience is starting to pay off.”

Mansfield’s junior boys cobbled together their second trophy run of the week in the very large 1A-3A divisional race in Elkins. The squad was supposed to run at Ben Geren Park in Ft. Smith but that race was canceled due to the unexpected death of Southside High School cross country coach Aaron Kareus.

“We didn’t want to lose a meet,” expressed the coach. “We completely understood the circumstances that canceled the meet in Ft. Smith. When that tragic news broke, we tried to keep some semblance of normalcy and looked for another opportunity to race. Elkins, although two hours away, was very accomodating.”

Mansfield’s young guns were led by ninth grader Joey Williams. The team’s number one ranked runner for the last two seasons finished in second place for the two mile course in 13:02.77. His compadres added to the mix helping accumulate 82 points in a 10 team setup.

Because of the large number of scoring squads, points were at a premium. West Fork took the winner’s trophy with 42 points. St. Joseph crossed in third at 102 points.

Jonah Martin, Braxton Bartlett, and Joseph Carter were the other three freshmen running for the Tiger’s junior team. All are in their third season having established league credentials from past seasons.

At Elkins, Martin (18th) and Bartlett (45th) finished in the squad’s scoring five. Carter (46th) maintained a blocker’s position for the second consecutive meet.

Eighth grader Gunner Williams medaled with a sixth place small school finish. His time was 14:08.62. Seventh grader Hunter Whittaker climbed to 25th with his first two mile mark in 15:15.82.

Mansfield’s Trinity Triska was the only other Tiger athlete to secure a medal at the Elks Invitational. The sophomore All-Star completed the season’s first 5K race in 23:59.58 for 8th place in the senior girls division.

Teammates Addie Bowman and Ashley Martin crossed in 23rd and 26th place for the MHS women.

The trio did not qualify as a team as the squad was reduced due to the venue change.

Abby Smith, a seventh grader competing in her first meet, ran well for the Lady Tiger junior girls. The diminutive runner started fast, helping push the pace of the top competitors. Her unfamiliarity with the longer two mile race brought her back in the pack leaving her outside the top 15 at 27th position.

“Abby has a lot of talent for this sport,” expressed Mackey. “She has the build and the desire to be good. The more running reps she gets you’ll see that time shrink and the rewards increase.”

Smith was not alone in her debut race. Classmates Adeline Bray, Miley Clopton, and Bailey Quick also toed the line for their first cross country race.

“These girls have a lot of pride and a desire to compete,” continued the coach. “I’m proud of how they took on the challenge of such a big race. There were 184 runners in their heat alone.”

Lilly Young, another Mansfield seventh grader who was in her third race of the season, joined the debut racers.

Together the MHS junior girls had their first chance to score as a team this season. They finished ninth overall.

What stood out was the fact that Smith and Bray finished as the second and fourth fastest runners among 1A-4 conference opponents in attendance.

Waldron FFA Says “Goodbye to Summer!”

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Tammy Teague

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4:08 am

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Contributed by Laura Kitchens

Over the 2022 summer your local FFA chapter was up to a lot! We had a sweetcorn fundraiser, where we supplied fresh picked Webbers Falls’ sweetcorn to our community for the Independence Day Weekend. It was a HIT and we intend to make it a yearly event! Alll of our livestock show kids worked with their show animals in preparation for fair season. On July 9th, Mr. Scoots Hames from Tuttle, OK, came to our ag barn and did a showpig workshop. 15 kids attended the workshop, and we would like to think: Waldron Farmers Co-Op, Poteau Farmers Co-Op, and The Cattlett Brothers feed store for their outstanding support in this event.

Now that school has started back, FFA members have started working in the barn to make sure that all the animals are going to be all prepared for shows. We had a very successful day on August 26th, with the Calloways coming and trimming cattle hooves to get us all set for the show ring! We are excited for this school year and ready to see what all we can accomplish!

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