The Family Dollar Store has announced their newest location, 720 Highway 71 N. in Mansfield.
Engineering plans for construction and remodeling the former Walmart Express location are currently underway.
“The City of Mansfield is extremely happy to welcome our newest business,” stated Mansfield Mayor Buddy Black. “Family Dollar has announced that they will be opening in the former Wal-Mart…This building is relatively new with Wal-Mart occupying it for just over one year before closing the Wal-Mart Express operation. Renovations are underway for the new Family Dollar which has a targeted opening date of January 7, 2021. Welcome to Mansfield, Family Dollar!”
The 2020-2021 basketball season is just around the corner for several area teams including Mansfield. With that, Mansfield Public Schools has issued some protocols that should be followed when attending home basketball games.
Because of limited seating due to Covid-19 health regulations, Mansfield will go to a voucher system for admission into home games. This will actually be the case for most away games as well.
If you plan on entering a home game for the Tigers, plan on securing a voucher beforehand. Those printed documents will be made available through the two Tiger head coaches or from the high school office.
With a voucher, a fan may purchase a ticket to a specific event at the Tiger Ticket Window on the night of the game. General admission price will be $5 with the voucher.
If all vouchers are not distributed beforehand, it is possible extras will be available at the door. This is not a guarantee. Those wishing to attend home games should be aware they may be turned away at the door if they do not have a proper voucher for that game.
School officials do however guarantee that holders of current Mansfield season passes, student discount passes, school employee passes, or senior citizen passes will be admitted without vouchers.
Fans should also be aware that in some cases when high occupancy games are anticipated the gymnasium may be cleared between specific games. In that case, a fan would need to have a voucher for each contest that night. This is to ensure the opportunity for families to see their specific children who may be participating.
For example, a fan wants to watch the junior girls game and the senior boys game of a three-game night that includes the senior girls. That fan would need both a junior girls voucher and a senior boys voucher to enter as each contest is about to take place.
The fan would enter for the first game, exit for the second, and re-enter for the start of the third contest. Only a one-time admission fee per person for the night would be required regardless of how many vouchers a person had on that date.
All people entering the gymnasium will be required to wear masks at all times. Masks may only be removed when consuming food or drink. Children under grade six must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
Seating will be prohibited in the marked off blue rows. Family units may sit together in the open occupancy rows. Non-family units should maintain a 6-foot social distance in open row seating.
There is absolutely no loitering in the lobby or common areas. Maintain social distance anywhere lines may form such as at the concession area or restrooms.
It should be noted, the women’s restroom near the visitor’s stands will be converted to a girl’s locker room on game nights. Ladies will be diverted to the women’s restroom near the entrance and close to the band room.
Only authorized school officials are allowed along the rail near the concession stand except those that are waiting in line to purchase food or drink. As soon as concession purchases are made, a customer must return to their seat immediately.
Fans are not allowed on or near the playing court or locker room areas. All people are asked to leave the building immediately after the contests through the designated exits.
No one should enter the Mansfield gymnasium if they are experiencing any symptoms associated with the Coronavirus. Those include unexplained coughs, difficulty breathing, sore throat, loss of taste or smell, close contact with an infected person (Covid-19) within the previous 14 days, or fever of 100.4 within the last 48 hours.
Questions may be directed to the high school office or athletic department.
Fans that follow the Tigers on road games should be aware similar requirements are being implemented at all area schools. Some schools on the Mansfield basketball schedule have very limited seating. In these specific cases, only immediate family members of players will be allowed a visiting voucher.
It has been expressed that some gyms are restricted to as few as 14 visitor seats. Please communicate with the Mansfield coaches or school officials before making a trip to an away game this season.
When we found out our second baby would be another boy I knew we wouldn’t have to buy very much in terms of gear! We saved all of our oldest’s, well, everything. I also knew I wasn’t planning to go back to work. I needed something that would allow us to get out of the house, and could hold both kids.
I often use a baby wrap with the baby still, but I found a stroller-wagon that would hold his car seat should I need to not be holding him. I also knew I wanted a wagon despite us already having two regular strollers from my first. I wanted it to have the ability to grow with us, and last a long time.
I chose a Jeep stroller-wagon, but there are lots of stroller-wagon options.
So we bought a Jeep stroller-wagon- it hit all my marks! It allows us to walk to the pond to go fish, we take it for a lot of walks when everyone is crabby and we need outside. It also has enough room that I can add our portable baby bed and allow the baby to nap outside in it.
It’s not marketed as an all terrain wagon, and it shouldn’t be. It’s really not the best going through cow pastures unless we are on a trail. But that’s not stopped us from going!
A wagon allows me to keep adventuring with my kids and save my sanity. We love ours and recommend wagons over strollers every chance we get now! It’s just much more practical for outdoor families.
The Greenwood Bulldogs traveled to Lake Hamilton for the final game of the regular season and left with an undefeated conference record.
The Bulldogs were in for a dog fight in the regular season finale. Greenwood would get the only score of the first quarter on a 26-yard field goal from senior kicker Luis Morales with 31 seconds left in the first quarter.
After briefly trailing 7-3, the Bulldogs would tally a 6-yard touchdown when senior quarterback LD Richmond would find Luke Brewer on a slant in the end zone moving the Bulldogs ahead 10-7 with 8:30 left in the 2nd quarter. After another Lake Hamilton score, Greenwood would go to the locker room at half with a 14-10 deficit.
The 2nd half would start of rocky for the undefeated Bulldogs as they fall behind 21-10 with 5:36 left in the third quarter.
LD Richmond would start the scoring in the 2nd half with a designed quarterback run for a 1-yard touchdown up the middle. With 2:57 left in the third quarter, the score set at 21-17 in favor of Lake Hamilton.
On the ensuing kickoff Luis Morales would bunt an onside kick up the right hash and catch Lake Hamilton off guard leading to a Bulldog recovery.
Using the momentum from the recovered kick, Greenwood marches down the field and converts 4th & goal on Hunter Wilkinson 1-yard touchdown run. Greenwood would take the lead 24-21 with 23 seconds left in the third quarter.
With 6:50 left in the 4th quarter, Lake Hamilton would regain the lead with a 3-yard touchdown run. In a rare situation for this Bulldog team they would trail 28-24.
However, the Lake Hamilton lead would be short lived. On the 2nd play of the following drive, senior running back Hunter Wilkinson would take the hand off and spring 63 yards to the house. Wilkinson showed his athleticism on what would be the play of the game but credit to the offensive line as Wilkinson was basically untouched on the run. With 6:13 left in the 4th quarter, Greenwood takes the lead 31-28.
Lake Hamilton would move into the red zone with 2:56 left in the game but the Bulldog defense would recover a fumbled snap to take possession, and momentum, away from the Wolves.
The Bulldogs would get another shot with less than a minute to go in the game but another bad snap would sail over the Lake Hamilton quarterbacks head and, after an initial recovery and errant throw, would wind up in the Wolves end zone only to be recovered by Bulldog junior Parker Gill for a defensive touchdown.
Greenwood would leave Lake Hamilton with a 38-28 victory and the 6A West Title. With the number 1 seed, the Greenwood Bulldogs will have the benefit of home field advantage throughout the playoffs.
Due to an unusual, Covid-19 stricken, season, the Bulldogs will host West Memphis on November 13th inside Smith Robinson Stadium. West Memphis finished 2-8 overall and 1-6 in conference play. Normally eliminated from the playoffs, stipulations due to Covid-19 allow for West Memphis to enter the playoffs.
According to the Arkansas Activities Association, if just one team from any classification cannot play all of it’s normally scheduled conference games, then every team in that classification will qualify for the postseason.
The Mansfield Jr High Tigers ended their season on a low mark after dropping their final game to the Hackett Hornets 38-14. The Tiger’s final record for 2020 was 3-7 overall and 3-4 in conference. If this is the first Mansfield Jr High article your reading this year, then you may think that the Jr Tigers weren’t good this season. But if you made it to the games, followed the stats, and knew the intangibles the Tigers faced this season, you’d understand that this is a special group with future greatness tattooed across their chests.
#61 Turner Wright
Mansfield faced an onslaught non-conference schedule to start the season. In past years, non-conference games were against other 3A teams or smaller 2A teams. This season though, the Tigers faced much larger 4A teams by traveling to Mena and Elkins while hosting Waldron at home. Conference wise, we all know that the 3A-1 is one of the toughest conferences in the state and that proved to be true yet again this season. But as the season progressed, the Tigers started getting in the groove. Losses weren’t blowouts and games became a lot tighter. Mansfield was blown out losing two of their first three conference games by a combined score of 36-86. In the last four games, on the other hand, the Tigers closed the gap by two of four with a combined score of 110-122. Those stats ladies and gentlemen show that the Tigers have the most important factor in competitive sports. They don’t give up when the chips are down.
#4 QB Peyton Martin
The Jr Tigers also had what may have been the smallest number of 9th Graders in the league this season. Suiting up only nine 9th Graders, Mansfield was low on the numbers, but not on talent and leadership. Quarterback, Peyton Martin, was a dual-threat to defenses all season. Martin could hit targets in the pocket or on the run and could scramble to gain yardage at any point. Tyler Turnipseed was the Tigers all in one player. Run, pass, catch, tackle, return kicks, anything Mansfield needed Turnipseed did and then some. Need a touchdown? Call Turnipseed. Need an interception. Hit redial and call him again. Wide Receiver and Defensive Back, Zach Hayslip, played the perfect quick route runner for solid catches while also defending opponents passing game by sticking to receivers like pine tar. Defensive End, Dakota Langford, was a man on a mission this season. Langford was such a force on the field that teams would shift their plays away from him purposefully so that they could stand a chance at gaining yards.
#10 Tyler Turnipseed
If there was a toughness and all-in award for Mansfield this year, it would be awarded to lineman Turner Wright. Wright played most of the season banged up with injuries but it wasn’t evident by how he played every snap. Wright played like a man on fire giving solid blocks on offense and vicious hits on defense. Trey Vaughan played the monster amongst men on defense. If a quarterback or running back tried to run outside the pocket, they were met with “Great Paw of Vaughan” as he’d snatch them and drag them to the ground. With a grip like a steel trap, once Vaughn grabbed hold of an opponent, the end result was imminent. Defensive Back, Raine Hecox, played her position without fear. Hecox would take at least one huge hit every game and bounce back up as if she was asking “Is that all you got”? A student of the game, Hecox continually learned from mistakes made and gave all she had all season.
#2 Raine Hecox
Lineman, Sammy Sellers, was the gentle giant on both sides of the ball. Sellers could move anyone at any time with ease. But if you got him pumped up or mad, then whoever was across from him found out rather quickly how it feels to fly as Sellers would toss them around like rag dolls. Last but not least, Defensive Back, Jeremiah Butler was exactly what any team needs. A player who was willing to play anywhere, at any time, in any way. A fresh body whenever one was needed, Butler was sure to step up and help.
#21 Jeremiah Butler
If anyone wanted players who gave their all against all odds, it was this group. These stellar 9th Graders will be moving up to Sr High football next season where they will surely make quite the impact. That though leaves a void in the Jr High. Although these players can never be replaced, their positions can be filled by a plethora of talented up and coming 8th Graders. When this group of 8th Graders was in 7th Grade, they ran the table going undefeated for the entire season against teams like Booneville, Charleston, Greenland, and others in their conference that year. Not only do they have the talent to fill the positions, but they also have the numbers too. This season’s Jr High had 15 8th Graders on the roster and if all return next season, look out!
#79 Sammy Sellers
Most of these players contributed a lot and got substantial playing time this season which gives them added experience next year. Offensive weapons like Jeremy Strozier, Austin Oldham, Trey Powell, Toby Towe, Boston Elmore, and Aaron Person are poised to be atom bombs on the offensive scoreboard next season. Need the beef? This eighth-grade squad will have a full buffet in 2021. Linemen Austin Ruiz, Zach Chapman, Eli Garner, James Olinghouse, Dakota Deer, Andrew Pettigrew, and Cisco Fildes roll out the list on both the offensive line and defensive line. With that many quality linemen, fresh beef will always be prepared for the Tigers next season.
#30 Dakota Langford
In the end, the 2020 Jr High season showed Mansfield fans that they have a fighting Jr High football program. With imminent growth ahead and talent flowing out of the wazoo, the Mansfield Tiger Jr High football program will continue to feed the pipeline of Tiger football pride. Congratulations Mansfield Jr High and best of luck in 2021.
Pictured is QB Cooper Edwards, #59 Wyatt Boyd, and #50 James Bausley
The Mansfield 7th Grade had quite the season in 2020. Although they did not complete an undefeated season as their 2019 counterparts, they did make it clear to every program that they were not to be taken lightly. Finishing the season with a 6-3 overall record and a 5-1 conference record, the 7th Graders held their own against every opponent. Mansfield fell to 4A opponents Elkins and Mena but beat Waldron. Their sole loss in the 3A conference season was a 22-14 nail baiter where Charleston scored literally in the final minute of the game. Very few schools held a full 7th Grade team, so the 7th Grade Tigers played almost all of their games against teams mixed with 7th and 8th graders. The 7th Grade played up with the 8th Graders for a win over Magazine and contributed the only points in the Jr Highs loss to Hackett when they moved up on the final week.
Traevin Copeland
The most impressive point of emphasis on the season was the depth of talent in Mansfield’s backfield. Running Backs, Zander Walters and Dawson Robinson, ran rampant throughout the season as the Tiger’s primary workhorses. Walters was the impossible to tackle grinding runner who willed his way across goal lines while Robinson used high-end speed and ankle-breaking moves to put points on the board. If a defense keyed in on one of them, the other would make them pay dearly. As with everyone, the dynamic duo needed a break now and then. That’s where depth in talent comes into play. Running Backs, Ethan Martin and Traevin Copeland, were more than capable to step in and keep the Tiger Train rolling.
Zander Walters
Think you can stop the run game? Then the Tigers would use Quarterback, Cooper Edwards, and his Wide Receiver core of Dominic Shores, Logan Newman, and Joey Fildes to force defenses to spread the field open again. Dominic “Sure Handed” Shores made wild catches that NFL scouts would drool at while speedy receivers of Newman and Fildes snagged passes on traffic which gave them the advantage over defenders in quick yardage routes. Edwards wasn’t merely a pocket passer though. If a defense blinked twice, Mansfield would pull the ol’ Cooper Keeper and send Edwards running for big yardage gains. All in all, Mansfield racked up an astounding 198 points in their solo games this season.
From L to R: Logan Ore, Kanon Fisher, Ethan Martin, and Joey Fildes
To be overall successful in football though, you must have a stout no-nonsense smash-mouth defense. Mansfield not only had that kind of defense, but they also mixed it with a batch of meanness and attitude to boot. Linemen, James Bausley, Kanon Fisher, Wyatt Boyd, Cadien Ore, and Logan Ore. The group formed what is known as the “Wall of Pain” and there was a steep toll to pay if an opponent wanted to cross that wall. Bausley was the wrecking ball for the defensive line as it wasn’t uncommon to see him in the backfield creating chaos right when the ball snapped. The Ore brothers could be dubbed “Pain and Regret”. Anyone who came head to head with the twins would feel a lot of pain and immediately regret running their way. Fisher and Boyd were linemen who could replace starters for anyone in the league as they used pure power and effort to plow their way for big takedowns.
Dawson Robinson
Often opponents would try to outrun the “Wall of Pain” and use speed to get outside of the dangerous linemen. Lying in wait would be Walters and Robinson who hit just as hard on defense as they do on offense. The pair made as many tackles on defense as they did yards on offense this season. Going to pass? Good. Waiting for you will be the QB Killer Alex “AxMan” Hecox. Hecox made a habit of chopping down quarterbacks and led the team in quarterback sacks this season. If an opponent was lucky enough to get a pass off, Defensive Backs, Edwards, Newman, Fildes, and Shores would be stuck tighter than OJ’s glove on the receivers. The Tiger’s depth was evident on defense too. Mansfield’s defense didn’t have subs, they had rotation. Jacob Elmore and Jacob Delp stepped in on many occasions to help close out the game. With excitement and hunger, both Elmore and Delp could build confidence in their teammates and make opponents second guess what they were doing before each play. The Tiger defense did allow 134 points on the season, but most of those points came against their 4A non-conference opponents.
With this skilled crew moving up to the 8th Grade next season and joining an already star-studded group who will be 9th Graders, all signs point up for the 2021 Jr High team. This group has already faced most of the talent their opponents will have this season and they were successful against the older players. They have the capability of winning every game but if they do lose one, their opponent will most definitely know that the Tigers were there. Congratulations on an awesome season 7th Grade Tigers.
After much consternation as to how the Class 3A football playoff brackets would be formed and which non-qualifying teams across the state would elect to participate in play-in games due to COVID justifications, the Arkansas Activities Association (AAA) has released the 2020 state playoff bracket. The bracket is contained below in a tweet by Charleston Tiger Football. To view the bracket, just click on the blue link within the tweet.
Among the highlights in the bracket, the non-qualifying schools (schools who did not traditionally qualify for a playoff position in seeds 1-5) who have chosen to participate in November 13’s play-in games are: Hackett, Walnut Ridge, and LR Baptist Prep. Hackett will play at Mountain View, Walnut Ridge will play at Lakeside, and Baptist Prep will play at Corning.
In the first round of the tournament, Booneville, a one seed in the tournament, will play the winner of the play-in game between Hackett and Mountain View on November 20. Also on November 20, Hoxie awaits the winner of the play-in game between Walnut Ridge and Lakeside. The Newport Greyhounds will play the winner of the play-in game between Baptist Prep and Corning.
In addition to those games played on November 20, the rest of the 3A bracket will begin play. Locally, the Paris Eagles will host the Salem Wolverines from 3A-2. If Paris wins this game, they will play the winner of the first round game between Greenland and Perryville.
In 3A-1, the Charleston Tigers, the number one seed from their conference, will play the Mayflower Eagles at Alumni Field. If Charleston defeats Mayflower, the Tigers will play the winner of Glen Rose and West Fork.
Resident Press will have more playoffs analysis on Sunday, November 15. So football fans, get ready to enjoy great state playoffs football that will end with the crowning of a new state champion in Little Rock on December 19th!
And Resident Press will be there with you, all the way to War Memorial Stadium and the Class 3A state championship!
The Arkansas Department of Agriculture is pleased to announce the new Arkansas School Garden Grant Program to help schools start or expand gardens on school grounds. The Department will award $500 grants to 40 schools to purchase soil, specialty crop seeds and plants, and gardening equipment, and will provide technical assistance to grantees upon request.
Applications will be accepted through November 30, 2020 and can be found at https://www.cognitoforms.com/ArkansasAgriculture1/ArkansasSchoolGardenGrantProgram.
“School gardens provide a hands-on opportunity for children to learn about Arkansas agriculture and where their food comes from. The lessons learned through school gardens have a lasting impact on children, their families, and entire communities,” said Secretary of Agriculture Wes Ward.
The grant program is available to public and private K-12 schools, early childhood education facilities, and alternative learning environments. All eligible schools are encouraged to apply, whether they are just getting started with a garden or have had a garden program for many years.
The grant program was developed with funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Block Grant Program to increase the production of specialty crops in school gardens. Specialty crops are defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture, and nursery crops, including floriculture.
More information about the Arkansas School Garden Grant Program can be found at agriculture.arkansas.gov/arkansas-department-of-agriculture-programs/farm-to-school/or by contacting Hanna Davis at hanna.davis@agriculture.arkansas.gov.
In my possession are my mother’s mother’s photo albums. Lining the packages are photos of memories, sacred photos of some who have already passed on. They are timeless reminders of years passed.
In 2020 we are likely taking more photos than ever before, and we are also likely losing my photos than ever before. It’s not enough to post your photos on social media. Facebook is not a good place to safe keep your photos. At anytime Facebook can remove your account. Using a cloud storage site to back up your photos is a much more secure place.
An additional idea would be some sort of offline digital storage such as a flash drive or external hard drive. Storing on one of these and placing in a file cabinet is an excellent safety guard for your precious images.
Studies show kids with photos of themselves on the wall have more self confidence than those without it. Kids have a better sense of belonging attributed to their pictures on display.
Photographs connect us to our memories, and they need to be preserved. Ideally every important photo would be printed, but even those that aren’t printed can be stored digitally safely. Future generations will thank you for the photos so they can feel a connection to their ancestors and know more about their family. I am thankful to have so many albums full of memories in my home.
The Paris Eagles capped a tremendous regular season on Friday at Danville with a 49-22 win over the Little Johns. Paris (9-1, 5-1) finished the 2020 regular season as conference runner-ups and will go into the state playoffs as a number two seed. Friday’s win at Danville was a “business-like” performance on the road following an emotional loss at home the week before to Booneville for the conference title. Paris will have a week off as it awaits the results of next week’s play-in games of non-qualifying teams who have been given an opportunity to play due to COVID-related cancellations within their conferences across the state.
Resident Press Photo
The Eagles were too much for a Danville team that has been decimated by injuries and off-the-field issues that have greatly affected the Little Johns all season. Danville is a program of great pride and tradition, but this year, it has been a season to forget for the Little Johns. Paris led at the half by a score of 49-6, and once again forced their opponents into a mercy rule, shortened second half. Eagles coach Tyler Clark emptied his bench to start the second half and was able to rest and protect his starters for the playoffs.
Resident Press Photo
The Eagles Duke Walker, who had two fumble recoveries and returns for touchdowns last week versus Booneville, added a first half interception and a return for a touchdown to his long list of spectacular plays this year for Paris. Walker has been “Superman” for Paris and has fit in extremely well with a very talented and experienced roster of Eagles that could make a serious run in the playoffs. With the week off next week, the Eagles have the opportunity to heal some of their bumps and bruises and correct issues that the team may have before their first game of the playoffs.
Resident Press Photo
After the game, Paris coach Tyler Clark expressed his love and respect for this year’s team that had just completed a 9-1 season. Coach Clark said immediately after the game, “Super proud of the kids, as always; I feel like I say that every week, but it’s the truth. They just play so hard, man, and it doesn’t matter who we are playing. We have preached all year, a nameless and faceless opponent. They’re just going to show up and do what we do and I am super proud of them.”
Resident Press Photo
So many Eagles have contributed to the team’s success this year. Many outstanding seniors and juniors have led the way for the conference runner-ups. Coach Clark was able to get them out of the game by halftime on Friday night, and all of them should be healthy and ready to go for their first playoff game in two weeks. Coach Clark commented, “And that has been big for us all year (getting starters out of the game and reducing risk to injury). Honestly, it was big for us tonight to get back to what we usually are (playing with big leads and resting starters). You also gain confidence going into the playoffs.”
Resident Press Photo
Perhaps most impressive of the Eagles win on Friday was the focus of the team after the emotional loss last week to Booneville. The team came out loose and focused and took the game to Danville early, squelching any thoughts the Little Johns may have had that Paris would play in a “fog” and give Danville a chance to pull an upset. Coach Clark said, “Credit to them (the Paris players) that they really understood the fact that we take things one week at a time, and that something that happened last week is just that, it was last week. It doesn’t matter anymore. So, I thought they did a good job of focusing all week.”
Resident Press Photo
The Booneville Bearcats, who wrapped up the conference title last week against Paris, finished their conference season Friday undefeated with a 41-16 win over Perryville. In other conference action on Friday:
Atkins 28, Mayflower 14
LR Baptist Prep 27, Two Rivers 0
The final standings in conference 3A-4 are:
Booneville 5-0
Paris 5-1
Atkins 5-2
Perryville 4-3
Mayflower 2-4
Danville 1-3
Baptist Prep 1-4
Two Rivers 0-5
Resident Press Photo
Resident Press will have more on the final brackets for the Class 3A state football playoffs on Sunday. Superintendents have until 8 a.m. Saturday morning to declare their intentions to opt-in or out of the playoffs. As soon as a bracket is known, Resident Press will publish it for our readers. RP wlll have a playoff preview of the Eagles first round opponent on Monday, November 16. As a two seed, Paris will host a playoff game at Eagles Stadium on November 20.
Resident Press Photo
Congratulations to the Paris Eagles for a 9-1 season and finishing as this year’s conference runner-up! Paris fans have so much to be proud of this team, and although several Paris seniors have now played their final regular season game, this year’s class of Eagles has a lot of football left to play in the state playoffs. Congratulations to coach Tyler Clark and the entire staff. It has truly been a special year, but…it is not over!
Stay with Resident Press for the most complete coverage of Paris Eagles football and the Class 3A state playoffs! Additional photos from this game will be posted on Facebook at Paris Eagles Sports on Saturday afternoon.
