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2019 Season Begins For Former Lady Tiger

Sports

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2:04 pm

2019 Season Begins For Former Lady Tiger

Former Mansfield Lady Tiger, Megan Rose, entered her second year of collegiate cross country running at Southeastern Oklahoma State. The Savage Storm sophomore was her team’s seventh best runner and the 19th fastest overall runner at the Endurance House Stampede in Wichita Falls, Texas on September 5.

Rose clocked in at 22:59.9 at the Savage Storm’s season opener. Providing displacer points, Rose helped her team for a second place overall finish.

The Storm’s scoring five amassed 47 points to fall just behind host Midwestern State’s winning 32 point total.

Tigers Tackle Heat For Seven Medals

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Tammy Teague

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1:51 pm

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It was hot! Plain and simple, the temperature at the UAFS/Fort Smith Cross Country Invitational on September 7 reached a point where Northside officials cut the distance of the final two races in half to protect the players.

Despite the heat, Mansfield’s overall medal count reached the equivalent of a touchdown and an extra point kick.

Lady Tigers Faith Rainwater, Darby Jones, and McKenzie Griffin handled the heat as well as anyone in a Mansfield uniform. The sophomore trio crossed in consecutive order at fourth, fifth, and sixth places among small school competition to begin the day’s bounty.

Fellow sophomore Ethan Chapman from the MHS senior high men’s team took the next reward with an eighth place finish of his 5K race. Soon after, three MJH girls got into the scoring action.

Mansfield seventh grader Trinity Triska led that trifecta with a fourth place finish. She was followed by fellow seventh grader Laney Wood and freshman Jadelynn Wood. The sister act crossed at seventh and eighth place among the 1A-4A division.

“We handled the heat pretty well,” said Mansfield coach John Mackey. “We saw a college athlete go down and at least one high school player succumb to the hot conditions. Our kids seemed to handle it well enough.”

By the conclusion of the college races, the on field temperature reached into the mid 80’s Fahrenheit. The senior girls’ event began in that moderate temperature range but fell victim to a hefty increase by the end.

The senior boys took off as temperatures felt like the upper 90’s. Just after, word came down from the Forth Smith athletic department to cut the junior high races down from a two mile distance to a one mile sprint.

“It was a good call,” recognized Mackey. “We just didn’t know of the switch until the race was already in progress. Our top junior girl was pretty annoyed because she went out in a two mile pace not a one mile rhythm. It cost her a higher position.”

Despite the switch, Mansfield junior girls squad came away with the runner-up plaque in the team scoring. Farmington, a class 4A power, rallied for the win.

The Lady Tiger youth movement scored with Triska, L. Wood, J. Wood, Maylei Rogers (17th), and Meghan Emery (20th). Alyssa James and Lita Hecox served as the team’s first two blockers.

Mansfield’s senior girls didn’t place as a team despite their high order of individual finishes. The group failed to field a required five member team. The remaining roster was intentionally DNP because of a rash of injuries.

Sophomore John Branche from the Tiger’s mens team had his best 5K race of his young career. He timed out at 23:17.9 for 19th place. Junior Renden Emery came in at 26:49.9 for 36th place. The Tiger’s top runner, Chapman, finished at 21:14.9.

Although sporting two top 20 finishers, Mansfield’s men were also left off the team standings with only three total runners.

Mansfield’s junior boys found similar circumstances as they two had high scoring runners but lacked depth.

Freshmen Tommy Phang (12th) and Ashton Hinkle (14th) ran enviable times but couldn’t overcome the five person limitation.

Cassidy Carlton, Addie Bowman, Aiden Fildes, Azlynn Nelson, and Megean Newman all made their cross country debuts for Mansfield. Eden Mounts also ran for the Lady Tigers.

Medal winners Darby Jones, McKenzie Griffin, and Faith Rainwater represent the MHS Lady Tigers.
Sophomore Ethan Chapman finishes top 8 at the First Tee xc course in Fort Smith.
Junior Tigers Ashton Hinkle and Tommy Phang finish top 14 at season opener for Mansfield.
Sisters Jadelynn Wood and Laney Wood finish within two-tenths of a second of each other for medal merits at the UAFS/Fort Smith Invitational. Trinity Triska, not pictured, topped the MJH girls’ results with a fourth place medal.
MJH girls are set for the season opening race despite the heat.
Tigers John Branche, Ethan Chapman, and Renden Emery await the start of the men’s 5K race at Ben Geren Park.

Rattlers Freezing Out Their Rivals

Sports

Megan Hecox

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1:38 pm

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Photos courtesy of LaWaynea Cox

Anyone with any sense knows that if you encounter a rattlesnake, you want to freeze and slowly retreat. Well, that is exactly what’s happening to the Magazine Rattlers competition this football season. Sitting with an accomplished 2-0 overall season record, the Rattlers have been striking anyone who crosses their path. After their 46-20 win over Bigelow in their first game, Magazine decided to go for broke and pulled out an exciting 39-14 victory over Mount Ida.

The first half of the game was where most of the excitement occurred. The Rattlers put 33 of their 39 points on the board during the first two quarters. Helping achieve that success was Xeng Yang with a high-speed 21-yard rushing touchdown along with Tatum Scotts 2 point conversion pass to Jacob Hall and the Rattlers score was set in place at 14-0. Nailing an 8-yard rushing touchdown was Kaedon Trejo and with the extra PAT, the Rattlers moved the board to 21-0 Magazine.

Quickly recovering a Mount Ida fumble was Ashton Droemer and along with the two added touchdowns by Scott and Caleb Hyatt, the Rattlers went into halftime up 33-0. Magazines defense continued staying busy in the second half of the game only allowing the Lions to put 14 points on the board. Kobe Faughn rushed for one more touchdown and the Rattlers ended the game with a huge win.

Magazine will have a bye week before hosting Cutter-Morning Star on September 20. This year, the Rattlers aren’t taking any lip service from anyone let along permitting the competition to come into their home with hopes of trying to defeat them.

ARVBands Travels to Waldron for Week Two

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Resident News Network

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12:54 pm

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ARVBands Travels to Waldron for Week Two

On September 6, Arkansas River Valley Bands traveled to Waldron for their week two Friday Night Feature of the Waldron Bulldog Band and the Mansfield Tiger Band. This was the first time for ARVBands to travel to Waldron since recently adding the band to their coverage.

Waldron-Bulldog-Mansfield-Tiger-Band — The Waldron Bulldog Band watching the Mansfield Tiger band play their Alma Mater.

During the pregame, the Waldron Band formed a semicircle block with the cheerleaders on the field. They played the National Anthem, Waldron Alma Mater, Fight Song, and the Hey Song. The band made its way to the end-zone to play the fight song as the football team ran onto the field.

Once the game got started, the Waldron Band was up and down, playing and cheering on their team. The game played a big role in the enthusiasm of both bands. Mansfield would play a stand tune then Waldron would play one. As halftime approached, Mansfield and Waldron made their way out of the stands to prepare for their performance.

In the Mansfield warm-up circle, the band focused on their individual instrument tone. At the Waldron circle, the band ran through their opener. This was the first night for Waldron to perform their halftime show, so nerves were running high. Waldron Director, Kevin Beirne, addressed his band saying, “Freshmen, this may be your first performance, but it will not be your last. Seniors, this is your last year so give it all you got.”

On the field, the Mansfield Tiger Band performed their 2019 show, “A Tribute to Westerns.” After a week of practice, there was an incredible amount of improvement from their run last Thursday night. Mansfield also added a drill to their opener this past week. The Waldron Bulldog Band was next to take the field. Their 2019 show is titled “Songs of the South” and they performed their opener “Song of the South” by Alabama. Waldron followed up their opener with the Waldron Fight Song.

Waldron-Bulldog-Band — The Waldron Bulldog Marching Band

The Waldron Band is off to a great season. Mansfield is making progress and their show is sounding better every time. The next performance for Waldron will be September 13 as the band travels to Paris. As for the Mansfield Band, they will perform their show next at home on September 13.

Arkansas River Valley Bands will be at Fort Smith Northside High School for their Week 3 Friday Night Feature of the Van Buren Band and the Northside Grizzly Band.

Prescribed Burns in Ouachita and Ozark-St. Francis National Forests

Tammy Teague

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12:37 pm

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Prescribed Burns in Ouachita and Ozark-St. Francis National Forests

National forest fire managers are currently conducting prescribed burns in areas across the Ouachita National Forest and the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests. This notice provides information on the day’s expected activities.

Prescribed burns expected to occur today, Monday, September 9, 2019 include:

Ouachita National Forest:
Oklahoma Ranger District – vicinity of Smithville, McCurtain County, 235 acres.
Jessieville-Winona Fourche Ranger District – vicinity of Story, Montgomery County, 406 acres.
Poteau – Cold Springs Ranger District – vicinity of Waldron, Scott County, 34 acres.

Ozark-St. Francis National Forests:
Big Piney Ranger District – vicinity of Jerusalem, Conway County, 155 acres.

A prescribed fire is one that is ignited by highly trained fire personnel under specified fuel and weather conditions to achieve specific resource objectives. Daily prescribed fire updates can also be found at: www.fs.usda.gov/ouachita or by calling 1-888-243-1042.

Jr Hornets Are Uncatchable

Sports

Megan Hecox

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11:17 am

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Photos courtesy of Mandy Foster

It looks like for the Jr High Hackett Hornets that history really does repeat itself. And in this case, that’s a good thing. Last year, Jr High went undefeated 7-0 in their football season and by the way things are looking, it doesn’t seem too far fetched to say they just might acquire the same outcome again this year. With wins against Mansfield and most recently their 26-16 victory against Heavener, the Hornets are already sitting undefeated 2-0.

“The team looked great against Heavener,” says Jr High Coach, Jordan Shelby. “They played really well as a team.” Offensive leaders for the Hornets were Cole Ketchum and Nate Gordon, bringing in two touchdowns each. Tyler Pittman had an outstanding game on defense with his multiple over the top takedowns.

“I was really happy with the way we played. We really flew to the ball on defense and the offensive line did great opening holes for our backs.” The Jr High Hackett Hornets will be able to rest up and continue perfecting their football skills as they sit in a bye week. The team will get back to business on September 19 when they will face JC Westside at home.

Former Hackett Resident Arrested for Conspiracy to Commit Murder

Tammy Teague

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10:53 am

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Former Hackett Resident Arrested for Conspiracy to Commit Murder

Former Hackett resident, Mary Byers-Diaz was arrested on Friday, September 6, after allegedly offering money to the family’s contract laborer to kill her husband.

In a statement released from the Sebastian County Sheriff’s Office that employee felt “pressured into killing Dr. Lawrence Diaz,” the husband of Mary Diaz. Additionally, that she “mentioned on several occasions that she wanted her husband dead and offered to compensate the cooperating individual for completing the act of murder.”

Investigators with the SCSO and Barling Police Department conducted an operation in which the cooperating individual recorded a conversation with Mary Diaz. In that recording, according to the SCSO, Mary Diaz assisted in coming up with a plan to murder her husband. Additionally, that she provided a payment of property in exchange for the act, and a promise of more property when the act was complete.

Following that operation, a warrant for conspiracy to commit capital murder was obtained through the Sebastian County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and was served on Friday, September 6.

Assisting with the investigation was the Van Buren Police Department, Veterans Administration Police Department, and the Barling Police Department.

Mary Diaz is currently awaiting arraignment in the Sebastian County Adult Detention Center on a $200,000.00 cash only bond.

Pirates Treasure Chest Returns Home

Sports

Megan Hecox

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10:29 am

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Photos courtesy of Malinda Mizell

The Crawford County Treasure Chest had returned home. After losing it to the Mountainburg Dragons during last season 40-28 loss, the Cedarville Pirates pillaged it back. Bringing in an explosive 46-0 victory over the Dragons, this is the first time in four years that the Pirates haven’t been sunk by Mountainburg. Cedarville now sits 2-0 on their season and are looking to be unstoppable.

The secret is out about sophomore Running Back, Darryl Kattich. Being productive in his dominate running game, Kattich logged a total of five touchdowns with four of them coming from the first quarter alone, for the Pirates with 29 carries totaling 358 yards. Junior Running back, Kelin Mitchell, also rocked the show with his two Pirate touchdowns. Mitchell gained 129 yards off of 10 carries.

Quarterbacks, Calloway Henslee, and Cody Dickens, successfully executed getting the Pirates ball in the pocket every time helping in the attainment of the final outcome of the game. Head Coach, Max Washausen, was extremely proud of how his team executed in all three phases of the game en route to a dominating performance. With no rest for the weary, the Pirates will prepare to hit it hard again on September 13 when they will face the Bigelow Panthers at 7 p.m.

September 11th: A Day to Remember The Real Heroes

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Resident News Network

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9:41 am

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September 11th: A Day to Remember The Real Heroes

On Wednesday, our nation will pause again as it does each year to remember the victims of September 11, 2001. Our country was attacked that day on U. S. soil, the first since the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. We remember the many victims of New York City, Washington, DC, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

If you are old enough, you will never forget the images we saw on television that day: the airplanes crashing into the World Trade Center towers, the collapsing of the towers, the fire and destruction at the Pentagon, and the report of an airliner hijacked and eventually crashing in Pennsylvania after it was discovered that brave passengers aboard the plane saved it from possibly crashing into another building in Washington, DC or elsewhere.

Sports have always played a big part in my life. From playing, to working in the field of athletic training at the collegiate and professional levels, to simply being a fan of the games, I have always wondered if our nation overemphasizes sports and the players we idolize. Don’t get me wrong, I had my fair share of sports heroes, and I continue to have those players in mind that I admire and enjoy watching. There is something about the wonderment and respect I have for people who are talented and make very difficult skills seem so easy.

But in a day and age when we continually see professional athletes rewarded for bad behavior, it frustrates me to know that we as a nation villainize the real heroes of our nation. By that I mean police officers, firefighters, first responders, and service men and women.

It was an absolute crime for our nation to treat returning Vietnam veterans they way we did in the 1970s after they returned home from serving our nation. I think of police officers today, who have always accepted the risk that is involved in protecting our towns and cities, to only now be castigated in the news media, and scrutinized to the point that everyone now has a cell phone and video camera recording their every moves and hoping to set them up for eventual dismissal or legal charges against them as they try to protect us all.

If it sounds like I am angry, then I guess I am. Our members of the service who faced or are facing danger in their service to protect our nation are the real heroes, and I think they are often forgotten until we need them. There simply is not enough praise or respect we can give them for what they have given and continue to give to our nation. As much as I love sports and admire the great athletes that play the games, I think of people like my father who served in the United States Navy during World War II…he and others like him are the real heroes.

The real heroes don’t serve our country for fame, fortune, or publicity. In fact, anyone I have ever talked to that served in the military has acted almost embarrassed to share the great deeds and accomplishments of their service. In fact, if you press them on it, they will likely say something like, “I was just doing my job.”

I will never forget that day in September, eighteen years ago. As divided politically as our country was at the time, the tragedies of the day brought our nation together like no other time since World War II. As a nation, we found a way to put our political differences aside and stand united for our country. Boy, is that needed now. I just hope it doesn’t take another tragedy to make it happen.

So this article is my salute to the real heroes; the veterans and our current service men and women, our police officers, our first responders, and any other service organization that is involved in protecting or reinvesting themselves into the preservation of this great nation.

This Wednesday, take time to thank a service member. Thank them for their service and their willingness to put themselves second to focus their lives on our nation and ensuring that all of us are free, protected, and cared for. As much as I admire our great athletes, I suggest to all of you that our real heroes are our service men and women and our community servants.

God bless them and our nation on this day of remembrance.

Little League Tigers Chain Down Dragons

Sports

Megan Hecox

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9:14 am

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Pictured is #13 Cordell Stone

The Little League Football season started up on Saturday, September 7^th with the Mansfield Tigers not disappointing as they dominated the Mountainburg Dragons 36-8 in both of their games. The Tigers were one of the favorites picked to win the West Central Football League championship this season and they definitely showed everyone that they are capable of achieving that goal.

#17 Lincoln Allison and #10 Layton Pyles

Mansfield’s 3rd and 4th grade team kicked the night off first against the Dragons. The Tigers wasted little time getting on the scoreboard as they took the first play of the game within seconds. Mansfield’s offense leaned on their impeccable speed which set the field on fire racking up 36 points on the Mountainburg defense. Mountainburg attempted a late push in the game, but the Tigers defense had no part of it. Mansfield’s 3rd and 4th grade team were able to hold the Dragons to only one score ending the game with a lopsided 36-8 victory.

The Tigers 5th and 6th grade squad were the definitions of balance in their big win over Mountainburg. The offense scored with multiple different players in multiple different ways. The Tigers were able to flawlessly execute passes, runs up the middle, and sweeps around the outside with precision, lighting up the scoreboard with 36 points. The Tiger defense made short work of all attempts Mountainburg made to get into the end zone. They were in Mountainburg’s backfield all night disrupting the Dragons plans at every turn only giving up 8 points and ended the game defeating Mountainburg 36-6.

#1 Cooper Edwards and #34 Dawson Robinson

Mansfield was able to not only get the wins, but they were also able to get every player on both teams time on the field providing them with valuable game experience. The Tigers will take their 1-0 records north on Saturday, September 14 when they face the Greenland Pirates starting at 6 p.m.

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