Resident News Network

16 Apps Parents Should Know About

News

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5:00 am

LITTLE ROCK – Arkansas parents across the State want what is best for their children. So many Arkansans benefit from technology, but at the Attorney General’s Office, we routinely hear about preteens and teenagers who are bullied or have started relationships with strangers online.

“Keeping Arkansas kids safe is a top priority,” said Attorney General Leslie Rutledge. “Being informed, opening every app on your child’s phone and knowing who they are talking to are some of the best ways we can protect our kids from predators and online bullying.”

Attorney General Leslie Rutledge is alerting parents to 16 smartphone apps that may make children vulnerable to dangers online:

Bumble – Bumble is a popular dating app that requires women to make the first contact. It is common for minors to use this app and falsify their age.
Calculator% – Calculator% is one of several “vault” style apps that appears to be a harmless app, but is used to hide photos, videos, files and even browser history.
Chatous – Chatous is a messaging app that allows users to chat and share images. This app makes it easy for predators to engage in age-inappropriate conversations with potential victims.
Discord – Discord is a voice and text chat tool that allows gamers to communicate in real time. Users can chat, add friends one-on-one or in larger groups. This app discusses content geared towards adults, but allows users as young as 13.
Grindr – Grindr is a dating app for LGBT adults, not children. The app gives users options to chat, share photos and meet with people based on a smartphone’s GPS location.
House Party – House Party is a group video chat app that allows users to communicate via live video chats and texts. There is no screening and the video is live. Users can also communicate with people they don’t know.
Live.Me – Live.Me allows users to livestream videos using geo-location to share the videos so other users can find the broadcaster’s exact location. Users can earn “coins” to “pay” minors for photos.
Monkey – Monkey is an app that allows users as young as 12 to chat with people all over the world during a brief introductory call, then users are given the chance to add each other on Snapchat.
TikTok – TikTok is a popular app among kids that is used to create and share short videos with limited privacy controls. Users are vulnerable to explicit content and cyberbullying.
Tinder – Tinder is a dating app that allows users to “swipe right” to like someone and “swipe left” to pass. Users can falsify their age, share photos, messages, and meet.
Tumblr – Tumblr is a blogging app and website that allows users as young as 13 to create an account. There are very few privacy settings and pornography is easy to find. Most posts are public and can’t be made private. This app was removed from the Apple App Store in ’18.
Snapchat – Snapchat is a photo & video sharing app that promises users their photo or video will disappear even though it doesn’t. Snapchat stories allow users to view content for up to 24 hours and share their location.
WhatsApp – WhatsApp is a popular messaging app allowing users to text, send photos, make calls and leave voicemails worldwide.
Whisper – Whisper is a social network that allows users to share secrets anonymously and it reveals the users’ location so strangers can meet.
Yubo – Yubo is a social media app that allows users as young as 13 to create a profile, share their location, view other users’ profiles in their area and view livestreams. Substance use, profanity, racial slurs and scantily clad people are common.
YouTube – YouTube is a video sharing app that may not be age appropriate for kids. Inappropriate content can be found using innocent search terms, but with parental controls this can be avoided.

For more information on smartphone, apps and internet safety, call the Arkansas Attorney General’s Office at 800-482-8982 or visit ArkansasAG.gov.

Funding Available Through Arkansas Rural Connect Program

News

Tammy Teague

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4:35 am

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Funding Available Through Arkansas Rural Connect Program

On Sunday, September 6, State Representative Jon Eubanks issued the following statement regarding the Arkansas Rural Connect Program:

With more Arkansans working and learning remotely in an effort to stop the spread of coronavirus, the issue of broadband access has become increasingly relevant.

Yet as broadband access becomes more necessary to normal modern life, there is growing concern about a digital divide, whereby some areas are cut off from opportunities for distance learning and economic development by a lack of adequate broadband service. Those with lower incomes and people living in rural areas are particularly likely to face digital obstacles when trying to do schoolwork at home during the Covid-19 outbreak. That is why House and Senate leadership recently made a request to the CARES Act Steering Committee to transfer $100 million of CARES Act funding to the Arkansas Rural Connect Program (ARC).

The committee agreed with the recommendation and the measure was ultimately approved by the Arkansas Legislative Council. The Arkansas Rural Connect program is a grant program designed to expand the broadband footprint in rural Arkansas communities. The ARC program will provide grants to qualifying communities of at least 500 people to assist in the deployment or improvement of high-speed broadband to its residents. The ARC program builds on the work of the Arkansas General Assembly.

In the 2019 Regular Session, we passed Act 198 which gave municipalities and other public entities new options to apply for funding to deploy broadband. Arkansas currently ranks 41st in broadband access. This relatively low ranking is closely related to the fact that over 20% of Arkansans remain without access to a wired broadband connection capable of 25 mbps speeds or faster.

But with the added funding, we hope to see access improve. To date, the ARC program has awarded 21 projects. Those projects have a total of more than $27 million.

There are more projects that have been submitted and are currently being reviewed. Communities and providers may still apply. The Department of Commerce will continue to receive applications until all funds are expended or until there is not enough time left to deploy broadband and meet the CARES Act deadline of December 30, 2020.

I have provided a link to the grant application on our website www.arkansashouse.org

Young Charleston Tigers Return Home Friday to Take on Pottsville

Sports

Resident News Network

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7:26 pm

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Young Charleston Tigers Return Home Friday to Take on Pottsville

After a week one loss at Dardanelle that can be best characterized as a very young football team getting their feet wet on the road against a very good Class 4A team, the young Charleston Tigers (0-1, 0-0) return home this week to Alumni Field to take on the Posttsville Apaches (2-0, 0-0). Charleston, who is known for playing a tough non-conference schedule, will play three of the four top teams in the tough Class 4A-4 conference. The Tigers, already having played at Dardanelle, will play Pottsville this Friday and will host the top-ranked team in the Class 4A-4 conference, the Ozark Hillbillies the following week. Charleston head football coach Rickey May compared his team’s non-conference schedule to that of “playing in the SEC West.”

Charleston is very talented, but at the same time, very inexperienced. Last Friday night’s performance may have been a case of early nerves for the young Tigers as many played their first varsity football game. Playing that first game on the road against a very good Class 4A team may have been a little overwhelming to the young Tigers.

Charleston head football coach Ricky May said after the game, “We had a lot of young mistakes. We just didn’t take care of stuff. We had two turnovers and two interceptions, and I want to say we had 14 or 15 penalties. Early in the game our corner and safety did not communicate and they ran a seam route that put them on the ten and they scored a few plays later. We started the game on offense with a five yard penalty on the first play. We had another sophomore who snapped the ball over our punter’s head. They got the ball on our three yard line. A few plays later they scored again, and we were down 14-0. I stayed that way until the fourth quarter. We got a little tired on defense and then had a couple tough interceptions, and it just didn’t go our way. We dropped several passes. I told them after the game that nobody is hurt and they say that your biggest jump is from the first game to the second. So, hopefully that is true for us. There was a lot of promise in what we saw, we just didn’t execute.” In short, it was a really young and inexperienced team that went on the road and got their feet wet against a good 4A team. That experience will pay off in the future for Charleston. “Once we settled down, we didn’t play bad at all. We just never got any field position. We hit a couple of good plays; I thought Breckon Ketter had a good night, but we just could never get it together.”

But not all was gloom and doom for Charleston last Friday night. After early errors that dug the Tigers into a deep hole on the scoreboard, the young team dug their heals in and competed with Dardanelle into the fourth quarter where they held the Sand Lizards scoreless for almost two quarters. But then the mistakes surfaced again for Charleston, and the final score was Dardanelle 27-0 over Charleston.

Perhaps the best news and possible silver lining to the trip to Dardanelle was, unlike last season, the Tigers did not lose anyone to injury, and Charleston showed glimpses of the good team they will become this year. Although the team is very inexperienced, they are ahead of last year at this point when after a devastating loss, the team had lost multiple starters to injury. By getting out of the Dardanelle game healthy, Charleston has a chance to work on the issues that surfaced in last week’s game with all of their personnel before they play this Friday.

After playing at the number two team in the Class 4A-4 conference, the number four ranked team from that conference, the Pottsville Apaches will travel to Charleston this Friday. Pottsville is a big and explosive team and the young Tigers will have to grow up fast this week.

Pottsville plays in the 4A-4 conference with Ozark, Dardanelle, Mena, Waldron, Lamar, and Dover. According to Hooten’s Arkansas Football publication, the predicted order of finish in this conference is:

Ozark
Dardanelle
Mena
Pottsville
Waldron
Lamar
Dover

The Apaches have made the state playoffs the last two years, but have faced powerhouses Arkadelphia and Joe T, Robinson in first round losses. Pottsville is looking to finish higher than their projected fourth place finish to draw an easier first round game in the state playoffs.

Pottsville is a big, physical, and athletic team that features a very good pocket passing quarterback, Konnor Carpenter, and perhaps one of the best wide receivers in Arkansas, Elijah Bradley. The Apaaches’ excellent skill players combined with a very large and physical offensive and defensive line makes Pottsville a strong contender in Class 4A. “In years past, they have been a “T” formation team that will run it right at you. I guess because of that kid (Konnor Carpenter) they have gone to more of a spread offense. They will drop back into the “T” formation in short yardage situations, but man they have probably one of the best skill kids (Elijah Bradley) around. They have him listed as a wide receiver, but he plays all over the field. He plays running back, inside and outside receiver; they just try to get him the ball in a variety of ways, and he’s pretty good.”

Charleston has a tradition of playing up in competition each year to prepare their teams for conference play. In this reporter’s opinion, Charleston will not face anyone as tough in conference play, with the exception of possibly Cedarville, as they will face in their non-conference schedule. Tigers fans certainly want to win every time they take the field or the court, but Charleston will keep their eyes on the prize as they prepare for conference play that is their pathway to the Class 3A playoffs. The Charleston fans will want to see progress and development of their young players, along with staying healthy during the non-conference schedule. If Charleston does this, the Tigers will be very strong in conference play.

This is a year that Tigers fans will have to be patient with a young team as they gain experience playing together on the varsity level. But make no mistake, this group of young Tigers is very talented and they will show significant improvement each week of the season. They need your support and encouragement as they play two more of the top 4A teams in the state on the way to the start of the conference schedule. And at the end of the season, the Tigers will be there and will be ready to make some noise in the Class 3A state playoffs.

Kickoff Friday at Alumni Field is set for 7 p.m. Don’t forget to bring your masks, and please remember to observe the AAA and Arkansas Department of Health regulations that will be in effect for all those in attendance.

Good luck to the Charleston Tigers in Friday’s home opener against Pottsville! Resident Press will have a recap of the game and a preview of the Tigers game with Ozark next Sunday night.

Paris Plays First Game on the Road at West Fork Friday

Sports

Resident News Network

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6:19 pm

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Paris Plays First Game on the Road at West Fork Friday

After a decisive senior night victory last Friday against Johnson County Westside, the Paris Eagles go on the road for the first time this season when they travel to Northwest Arkansas on Friday to play the West Fork Tigers. Both teams are 2-0 on the young season, and Paris will face its first road test against a much-improved West Forks Tigers team.

West Fork plays football in Class 3A-1 conference. Their conference opponents include Cedarville, Charleston, Greenland, Lincoln, Hackett, Mansfield, and Lavaca. This year, the 3A-1 conference is a mixture of traditional 3A powers along with Lincoln, who has dropped down from Class 4A, Hackett and Lavaca who have moved up from Class 2A, and the Mansfield Tigers who play 3A football and Class 2A in all other sports. According to Hooten’s Arkansas Football publication, the West Fork Tigers are predicted to finish eighth in their conference. The predicted order of finish in Class 3A-1 is:

Cedarville
Charleston
Greenland
Lincoln
Hackett
Mansfield
Lavaca
West Fork

But don’t tell the West Fork Tigers that they are going to finish at the bottom of their conference. The Tigers are 2-0 on the season and would love nothing more than to knock off a good Paris team this week to set the stage for their conference opener on September 25 when they host the Mansfield Tigers. West Fork gets a week off before the Mansfield game, and if things bounce their way, West Fork could be off to their best first half start to a season in a few years. West Fork has not made the state playoffs since 2015, and the Tigers are a program of young talent and moving in an upward trend. To win the game, Paris will have to show up Friday night focused and ready for a hard-fought football game from the Tigers. Paris will need another strong performance from its running game to establish control of the game that will be played away from Eagles Stadium.

Coach Clark is very impressed with the progress of the West Fork football program. “They are much improved. I think they are the biggest line we have seen so far. They are pretty physical up front. They’ve got some skill kids that can go. And the big thing is, they are 2-0 right now. They’re riding high. And confidence is a big deal for a team that’s not used to it; we got to feel that a little bit last year. I expect it to be a heck of a game, and their head coach (Justin Smith) I coached with him at Marion. It (Marion) was both our previous jobs. I know him well. I respect him a lot as a coach and I know he is going to have those guys ready. West Fork is a much better team than last year, and this game will be a pretty good measuring stick for us.”

West Fork will run the flexbone offense. Razorbacks fans may recall the Ken Hatfield era in which Arkansas was very successful running and passing the ball out of the flexbone. “They will run all of the basic flexbone stuff, and have a quarterback who can throw the ball. But there is no doubt they want to run the ball.”

I asked Coach Clark if he thought his team was ready mentally to play their first game away from home. Coach Clark said, “It’s hard to say. The road environments are not going to be what they could be (due to the COVID restrictions on total fan attendance for each game), but at the same time, there’s also a lot of other things that our kids are going to have to deal with that we haven’t had to due to the fact that we have not played on the road yet this season. COVID puts so much extra on it; how we eat a pregame meal, how long we can be in a locker room together, and stuff like that. There is going to be some new obstacles for those guys, but, overall, I think we are going to be OK. I think home or away, our kids are really, really hungry right now.”

West Fork has wins this season against Green Forest and Hazen. The Tigers were originally scheduled to play Berryville in week two, but due to the COVID virus, the Berryville game was canceled, and West Fork was able to schedule Hazen in its place. The Hazen victory is impressive. Although Hazen is a 2A school, it is a delta school that historically has produced great athletes. The Tigers defeated Haven 19-12, indicating that they are capable of running the ball, controlling the clock, and giving their opponents little time to score throughout the course of a game. Friday’s game will be a challenge for the Paris defensive line and linebackers as they will have to be physical and make the right reads to defeat the West Fork flexbone offense. Defending the option demands discipline and a fast linebacker core can have its speed used against them in the option offense.

Paris linebackers will have to play disciplined defense against the West Fork running attack

Paris coach Tyler Clark, who was less than pleased with his teams week one effort, was very pleased with the adjustments and the effort his team gave in the week two route of Westside. He believes his team is mentally in a good place at this point, and he is very pleased with the bonding of his team and the fun his players seem to be having playing football at Paris. He and his players definitely know that the schedule will get harder with each week, but the team is in the best place it can be at this point in the season, and that is what the entire coaching staff has been pointing to all off-season. “The things I wanted to see against Westside got fixed. It was really encouraging. And all of our kids were confident, and the most exciting part for me was seeing how excited they were after the game. That makes me really excited about the things to come this season.”

Paris escaped the Westside game without any injuries, mainly due to heavy substitutions that were made by mid-way into the second quarter. “No injuries, and we’re ready to go. We played mainly our backups for much of the game, and that is valuable reps for those kids. It’s just a good deal all around. You go inside (in the locker room after the game) and we had a really good time in the locker room with those kids. And everyone of them felt like they were part of it.”

I asked Coach Clark if he was concerned about his team looking past West Fork toward their first conference game against Mayflower on September 25. Coach Clark said, “I really am not. The bye week (September 18) really helps us there. But at the same time, we’ve stressed with our kids that we have a chance to be good, but if we overlook anybody we will get beat. I think they (the Paris players) are a little more locked in this week. I think our kids right now are mentally in a good place. They are taking it one week at a time, and are ready to get after it.”

Both teams will undoubtedly be ready to get after it at game time on Friday. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at West Fork. As part of my weekly reminders, please remember to wear your masks and observe the COVID restrictions that will be in place throughout the game.

It should be a good game Friday night and the weather should be perfect for a high school football game. The Weather Bug forecast for Friday is cloudy and a high of 78 degrees in West Fork. Temperatures should be around 70 degrees by the end of the game.

So Eagles fans, enjoy the trip to West Fork and make sure you are there when the Eagles come charging out for kickoff seeking a 3-0 start to the 2020 season!

See you in West Fork!

Mansfield Sr Volleyball Overcomes Triple Trial

Sports

Megan Hecox

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12:32 pm

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Mansfield Sr Volleyball Overcomes Triple Trial

Starting the season off playing in a new conference has the Mansfield Sr High Lady Tigers feeling like a breath of fresh air. And after a handful of matches already in 2A volleyball, it has them looking better than ever. Being led by head coach, Kaylie Pyles, the Lady Tigers have been hitting the court this season with confidence and ferocity that has opponents dropping left and right. After three intense matches this past week, Mansfield now holds a 5-0 season record and is 4-0 in conference play.

First up in the week, the Lady Tigers went toe-to-toe with non-conference foes the Waldron Lady Bulldogs. With three close and intense sets of 25-21, 25-18, and 25-20, Mansfield walked away holding the 3-0 trophy. Next up on their to-do list take-down, the Lady Tigers hosted conference nemesis, the Lavaca Lady Arrows. And after four nail-biting sets, it was Mansfield who was unbreakable in their 3-1 victory. Wrapping up their fast-paced week of volleyball, the Sr Lady Tigers hit the road to face first-time conference competitors, Thaden. Not sure what lay ahead in this new Barnstormer territory, Mansfield took on the challenge like pure champs by pulling in their third straight win of the week.

L to R is Kiara Thomas, Brooklyn Adams, and Skylynn Harris

During their three-day volleyball reign of terror, the Mansfield Sr Lady Tigers totaled some off the charts mind-blowing stats. “Killing” it and drilling it was Brooke Wright with 53, Sadie Roberts with 16, Brooklyn Adams with 23, Skylynn Harris with 15, Natalie Allison with 21, Alayna Turner with 5, Madelen Jones with 1, and Kiara Thomas with 1. “Acing” their court skills was Jones with 7, Harris with 7, Adams with 6, Wright with 6, Thomas with 6, and Allison with 4. “Blocking” out the opposing team was Roberts with 7, Adams with 2, Allison with 2, and Wright with 10.

With better “digs” than a paleontologist was Thomas with 61, Jones with 21, Allison with 24, Wright with 9, Harris with 8, Adams with 29, Turner with 1, and Haylee Helms with 12. And “assisting” in the Lady Tigers greatness was Thomas with 2, Jones with 72, Allison with 45, Wright with 3, and Adams and Turner with 1 each. Head coach, Kaylie Pyles, had this to say about her Sr High squad, “I was very proud of the girls and how they played last week. They played three tough games three nights in a row and earned well-deserved wins. They continue to fight hard while never giving up and improving day by day.” Next up for the Mansfield Sr Lady Tigers, they will be on the road to take on Life Way Christian on Thursday, September 10 at 4:30 pm.

Waldron Jr Bulldogs Bury Mansfield Tigers

Sports

Megan Hecox

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10:28 am

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Waldron Jr Bulldogs Bury Mansfield Tigers

Pictured is #23 Joseph Rogers

This season, the Waldron Jr High football team that marched onto the football field this past week to take on the Mansfield Jr High Tigers, was unrecognizable compared to last year’s team. Fans already know they will be getting a treat when they hear the words Waldron, Mansfield, and football in the same sentence. But with a new football program under a new Bulldog Top Dog in Doug Powell and Jr Coach Garett Lazenby maintaining his same position leading the Jr Bulldogs, the top to bottom changes were hard to miss. From the way they executed their plays like a well-oiled machine to the way they communicated, the Jr Bulldogs meant business. And this season, business was good.

The Bulldogs and the Tigers spent the majority of the 1st quarter testing the waters by getting a feel for each other’s strengths and weaknesses. But at the two-minute mark, Chris Lopez was done playing nice as he slammed out the first touchdown of the night. Followed by a two-point conversion and the Bulldogs got the scoreboard lights rolling 8-0 Waldron. 6:44 into the 2nd quarter, running back, Kason Davis, ran in the Bulldogs second TD for the night and with the two-point no good, the score was set 14-0 Waldron.

After the Bulldogs recover an onside kick, Joseph Rogers was written down in the stats book for his TD run, one minute left in the first half. Like a thief in the night, the Bulldogs steal their third interception of the game leaving the Tigers scratching their heads in confusion of what just happened. Before closing out the first half of the game, Davis punches downfield like a freight train securing a 45-yard run. Both teams exit the field with the halftime score reading 20-0 Waldron.

At this point, it’s very clear to the Tigers that they are going to need to step up their ground and pound game if they even want a chance at taking down the Bulldogs. The 3rd quarter was somewhat quiet, if you will, with not much action happening. As the clock winds down in the 4th quarter, the Bulldogs defense continues to mow over every player wearing red, while outdoing Mansfield physically with downright ruthlessness. With the timeclock slowing down, the Bulldogs keep heating up. Logan Young not only runs in a TD for Waldron but he completes the two-point conversion as well upgrading the score to 28-0 Waldron.

With 1:40 left in the fourth, Mansfield is able to get on the board with a TD of their own but their excitement is quickly silenced as Lopez delivered a kick return for a TD. Adding the PAT, the games ended with a final score of 36-6 Waldron. “Our offensive stand-out in the game was running back, Kason Davis, and our defensive stand out was linebacker, Logan Young,” stated Coach Garett Lazenby. “I really enjoyed the physicality my team played with. The offensive line created some huge holes for the running backs. They really set the tone on offense. Running backs ran with some authority by running through tackles and dragging defenders. The defense played like a pack of wild animals flying to the football and delivering one big hit after another.”

Bulldog line including #53 Taylen Bates, #54 William Atchley, and #55 Zayden Jones

Street Project Underway in Hartford

News

Tammy Teague

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3:56 pm

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The planned street projects for the City of Hartford are currently underway. Work is scheduled for East 4th Street, East 1st Street, South Pine Street, and Hartman Street.

Former Mayor Larry Hall announced before resigning office that several streets had been approved for repair.

The street projects are paid for by grants and locations are determined by the state. Interim Mayor Richard Hartsfield stated that those streets which did not make the list, will be submitted again for review at the next grant cycle.

Want to see more improvements to streets and bridges? Be sure and participate in the 2020 Census. It determines funding for infrastructure such as roads and bridges for your city!

Sr Lady Hornets Continue To Freeze Out Opponents Like A “Block” Of Ice

Sports

Megan Hecox

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2:05 pm

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Sr Lady Hornets Continue To Freeze Out Opponents Like A “Block” Of Ice

The Hackett Sr High Lady Hornets, have been slammin’ and jammin’ their way through one opponent after another in 3A volleyball. Green Forest, Elkins, Alma, and Lincoln have already felt the wrath of the Lady Hornets and there are a plethora of teams left waiting in fear for when it’s their turn to take on Hackett. This past week, the Lady Hornets raced off to Alma to take on the 5A Lady Airedales. The Airedale dog breed is known for its size and intelligence but when it comes to facing Hackett, all of that goes down the drain. A hornet might be small in size and keep to itself, but when they do decide to attack, it can be fatal.

And that’s just what happened on Monday, August, 31. The first set between Hackett and Alma showed the Lady Airedales having a hard time getting their legs under them with a score of 25-9 Hackett. But by the time the next two sets came along, Alma was good and warmed up. Although the matches left both sides of fans on the edge of their seats, the Lady Hornets took the wins 25-21 and 25-23 earning themselves a 3-0 victory. The “ace” of spades title went to Madeline Freeman with 5 and Kayla Richardson with 1. “Killing” the Lady Airedales with kindness was Freeman with 14, Shayla Foster with 4, Rain Vaughn with 10, Jamye Durham with 2, Kandace Byrd with 3, and Madi Taylor and Kenadi Wright with 1. No mental “blocks” happening here as Durham got 3, and Wright and Freeman each earning 1. “Assisting” with this winning endeavor was Freeman with 10, Foster with 3, Taylor with 12, Richardson with 2, and Vaughn, Durham, and Byrd with 1 each. And taking a “dig” at their opponents was Freeman with 12, Foster with 16, Vaughn with 1, Richardson with 13, Durham with 2, Byrd with 11, and Taylor with 6.

The next night on Tuesday, September 1, the Lady Hornets kept their volley party going as they temporarily put down roots in Lincoln. By the end of the night, the Lady Wolves were left dazed and confused as they tried to figure out what had just happened. In almost complete annihilation, Hackett pulled the rug right out from under the Lady Wolves as they won all three sets 25-7, 25-9, and 25-13. With plenty of “aces” up their sleeves Taylor and Durham each made 1, Byrd earned 5, and Freeman snagged 7. With a ton of time to “kill” was Wright and Byrd with 5, Mendenhall and Durham with 2, Vaughn with 12, Freeman with 9, and Foster with 4.

Proving there were no mental “blocks” happening in this match was Wright and Mendenhall with 1 each. Willing to “assist” whenever needed was Wright with 4, Richardson with 5, Taylor with 11, Byrd with 1, and Freeman with 18. And with plenty of “digs” left in their back pocket was Wright and Sarah White with 2 each, Richardson with 6, Taylor with 5, Brooke Holt, Emma Infalt, and Vaughn with 1 apiece, Byrd with 7, Freeman with 4, and Foster with 8.

The Lady Hornets will divebomb headfirst into the new week with a season record of 4-0. On Tuesday, September 8, Hackett will face the Lady Bulldogs in Waldron at 4 pm. And on Thursday, September 10, the Lady Hornets will stay home and host the Paris Lady Eagles with a 4 pm start time.

Photos courtesy of Mandy Foster

Paris Races to Crushing 62-6 Senior Night Victory Over Johnson County Westside

Sports

Resident News Network

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12:55 am

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Paris Races to Crushing 62-6 Senior Night Victory Over Johnson County Westside

After last week’s victory over Lavaca, Paris head football coach Tyler Clark was happy to get a win, but was very concerned over the mistakes and the effort of his team, particularly in the second half. Coach Clark challenged his team this week saying that the JC Westside offensive and defensive lines looked more physical than his team’s to that point. The Eagles must have taken the challenge to heart, because last evening’s game against Westside was over in about ten seconds. Senior Paris tailback Ely Fore took a short opening game kickoff and returned it all the way for a touchdown. Paris never trailed, and the Eagles were off and running toward a crushing win over the Rebels. The win improved the Eagles record to 2-0 on the season.

Paris capitalized on several Westside fumbles and seemingly scored at will against Westside. Paris showed their coach that they can be a physical team on both sides of the ball. And all though the Eagles did not roll up big chunks of yards for massive total offense numbers, the offense took advantage of breaks created by their defense. By midway through the second quarter, the game was far out of reach, and Coach Clark began to empty the bench. Reserves played for Paris from approximately six minutes to go in the first half and finished the game in the continuous clock format in the second half.

After the game, Coach Clark said he felt much better about his team than he did a week ago and was very pleased with his team’s effort. He gave a lot of credit to the JC Westside team for continuing to play hard. But perhaps most of all, he was grateful to end the game without any injuries to the team. In fact, Jude Simmons, who left the game early last week with an injury, started and played the entire game last night.

Late Friday night, or if you will, early Saturday morning, Coach Clark, like a lot of other high school football coaches, was up late. No doubt, he and his staff had probably just finished watching last night’s game film. But early Saturday morning (1:15 a.m.) the Paris coach took to Twitter and posted the following message for his team and their fans.

https://twitter.com/ParisEagles/status/1302128202085793792?s=20

So the Eagles appear to be in good shape as they now turn their attention toward their first road game of the season when they travel to Northwest Arkansas to play the West Fork Tigers.

The victory capped a memorable senior night ceremony that was held before the game. Approximately 26 seniors were honored. Paris senior football players, bandsmen, cheerleaders, golf, and tennis players were honored with their families. Senior night is traditionally held on the last home game of the season, but in this time of uncertainty due to the pandemic, Paris held their ceremony in week two of the season to insure that each senior participant would have the opportunity to be publicly recognized.

Paris will play at West Fork next week and then will have a bye week the following week on September 18. The Eagles open conference play on Friday, September 25 at home against Mayflower. Paris would like nothing more than to complete the non-conference portion of their schedule at 3-0 with a win next week, and have a week off to rest players and make adjustments before returning to play on September 25. The Eagles are starting to show glimpses of the team that everyone anticipated going into the season, but it also has to keep its focus as the quality of opponents will gradually increase starting next week at West Fork and in its first conference game with Mayflower. If Paris remains healthy and continues to improve with each week, the Eagles could make some noise in conference play and position themselves to return to the state playoffs for the first time since 2017. But it is one game at a time for Paris, and a big win over a Class 2A school that has not had a lot of success over the past few years is not enough alone to get the Eagles where they want to be. If the Eagles will take Coach Clark’s challenge to heart each week, they can be as good as anyone on their schedule.

Look for more on this game on Sunday afternoon in Resident Press along with a preview of the Eagles next game against West Fork. Resident Press will be here all season to bring Eagles fans the latest and most complete coverage of Paris football.

Senior night photos, along with additional game photos taken from the Eagles game with Johnson County Westside can be found later this weekend on Facebook at Paris Eagles Sports.

And from Resident Press, congratulations to all of the Paris seniors who were recognized last night on Senior Night!

Jr Lady Hornets Prove Their Sting Is Worse Than Their Buzz

Sports

Megan Hecox

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6:27 pm

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Jr Lady Hornets Prove Their Sting Is Worse Than Their Buzz

As the Hackett Jr High Lady Hornets continue to maneuver nicely through their new 3A conference, not only are they unfazed by any opponent they face but the Jr Lady Hornets are also proving that they are worthy to compete against any contender in any town, in any conference. To start this past week off, Hackett took their game to Alma to face the “Big Dogs” in the 5A. For most people, Mondays are a blah day where you just don’t want to do much. But for the Jr Lady Hornets, it is just another day for volleyball dominance.

#23 Makenzie Freeman and #20 Alona Rothwell

One other thing that Hackett doesn’t need in their unbreakable ride to the top, is time. In just two short sets, the Jr Lady Hornets were able to take control of the Lady Airedales leash and chain them back up to the doghouse. Hackett finished 25-17 and 25-9. “Digging” their way around the world was Alona Rothwell with 3, Makenzie Freeman with 2, and with one each was Prairie Vaughn and Michaelyn Freeman. “Assisting” in this victory was Jessie Mendenhall with 6, Vaughn with 5, and Rothwell and Aubree Ruggles with one apiece. Giving better “blocking” protection than sunblock was Ruggles and Rothwell with 2 each. Playing as the true definition of “Killing” It was Freeman and Freeman with 4 each, Vaughn with 3, Rothwell with 2, and with one solo each was Ruggles, Lexi Gann and Aaliyah Escoffier. And rounding out these Jr Lady Hornets volleyball “aces” was Vaughn with 3, Makenzie with 2, and Michaelyn and Rothwell bringing in 1.

With their first victory of the week in the bag, the Jr Lady Hornets kept their roadshow moving right along as they set up camp in Lincoln. When it came to Hackett’s match against the Lady Wolves in terms of difficulty, it could best be described as an appetizer. Although it’s a nice little treat to settle your hunger, you’re still left craving more. The Jr Lady Hornets made the two sets with Lincoln quick and painless like ripping off a bandaid when they won 25-7 and 25-9. Ending the night “acing” the court was Vaughn with 5, Rothwell with 4, Michaelyn with 3, Ruggles with 2, and Mendenhall and Makenzie with 1 each.

“Killing” it softly with their plays was Rothwell and Makenzie with 6 apiece, Vaughn with 5, Gann with 3, Freeman with 2, and Ruggles with 1. With more “digs” than a South Dakota prairie dog was Freeman with 5, and Rothwell and Makenzie with one each. Netting the Jr Lady Hornets with impeccable “assistance” was Vaughn with 12 and Mendenhall with 7. And coming in as the lone “block” barrier was Rothwell with 1. The Jr Lady Hornets will start next week’s play with a 4-0 record as they take on the Lady Bulldogs at Waldron on September 8th at 4 pm. Then on Thursday, September 10th, Hackett will host the Paris Lady Eagles at 4 pm.

Photos courtesy of Mandy Foster

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