By Tammy Moore Teague
The Arkansas Department of Education announced today that local educator, Tracie Opolka, will receive a $1,000 sponsorship to attend the Computer Science Teachers Association Annual Conference this summer.
Opolka is a teacher within the Hackett School District. She and 17 other educators across the state received the sponsorship. These will assist educators with expanding their knowledge of computer science and give them the opportunity to network with other educators from around the world at the CSTA Conference, which will be held July 7-10, 2019 in Phoenix, AZ.
The sponsorships, according to the news release from the ADE, were open to Arkansas K-12 public school teachers, librarians, curriculum, coordinators, counselors, and other educators who have demonstrated their commitment to technology integration and computer science education at their school or district. Educators were selected by an impartial committee of ADE employees and statewide computer science specialists, who reviewed all the applications.
Congratulations to Opolka and to the Hackett School District.
Local Educator to Receive ADE Sponsorship
Mansfields Caroline Nicodemus All-State Cheer
By Megan Hecox
Mansfield High School cheerleader, Caroline Nicodemus, has been named 2018 All-State Cheer. Caroline is a senior at MHS and has been cheering since the 8th grade. She has a deep love for cheer and many other sports including softball which she is planning on playing in college. Caroline would also like to major in Early Childhood Education.
Along with being Cheer Captain for the Mansfield Tigers, Caroline also made All-American Cheerleader at cheer camp this past summer. Caroline’s cheer coach, Ashley Wilson, is super proud of all of the hard work she has put into this past year and will miss her cheerful and spunky personality.
Congratulations to All-State Cheerleader Rylie Green
It’s been a great year for Lavaca Cheer! The Golden Arrow Cheer team has had Cheerleaders qualify as B2 All-Americans. One of which has had a big couple of weeks. Rylie Green is the freshman daughter of Amy and Justin Green. She has a great work ethic and is very coachable. Rylie was a big part of the Lavaca’s State Championship Cheer team. She just returned from San Antonio, where she performed at halftime of the Alamo Bowl, to find out that she has also, qualified as an All-State Cheerleader. With 3 more years at Lavaca High School, Rylie has a bright future in the sport. Lavaca Cheer Coach, Danelle Overton posted the following about Rylie’s accomplishment.
“She was moved all over the floor to different positions this competition season and kept a good attitude through it all. She also worked extremely hard to be able to pull a heel stretch by State to match Allie. As a coach, I couldn’t ask for more out of an athlete. Proud of you, Rylie!”
We at Resident Press want to offer our congratulations to Rylie Green for being named All-State in 2018! We look forward to watching you continue to perfect your talents and use those talents to lead your team to another State Championship.
Game Day for Golden Arrows
Photos by Amanda Hall
It’s Game day for Lavaca!! The Golden Arrows will head east down Highway 22 to take on the Paris Eagles. The Arrows will take both Senior High teams as well as both Junior High teams. Junior High Girls will tip off the evening at 4:00. This should be another good match up for the Arrows. The Eagles are always tough especially in Paris. However, the Golden Arrow basketball programs are all playing very well. If you want to see some good basketball, make the short drive to Paris Friday night, you won’t be disappointed.
For the Lady Arrows, the keys to the game are going to hinge a lot on Rebounding and controlling the paint. Look for BethAnn May and Skylar Hyatt to play big tonight. Coach Wyles had this to say about tonight’s matchup,
“Should be a pretty good one. Paris has a lot of size and athleticism that can be tough to match up with at times. We’ll have to do a good job of keeping them out of the paint and limiting offensive rebounds.”
As far as the boys game is concerned, Coach Reed shared his thoughts on tonight’s game. He said,
“Paris is physical and athletic. They push the ball well and thrive off offensive rebounds and turnovers. We need to make sure we keep our composure and have good possessions. We can’t back down physically and must control the glass. It should be a high energy packed game and I look forward to the matchup!”
Look for Andrew Wright to control the tempo and Jordan Fenner and Cayden Hearn to own the paint.
Sr Tigers Pound the Boards Against Danville
By Megan Hecox
The Mansfield Sr High Tigers had a non-conference basketball game against the Danville Little Johns last Thursday night. Coming out of Christmas break and a long list of injuries, the boys’ team was looking to shake the rust off with this match-up but ended falling short 44-32. Jr Guards Ethan Stovall and Layton Howard led their team with a combined 21 points. The Tigers were, however, able to utilize the game to get quality minutes for several young and developing players. Boys Coach, Keith Dake, says the (1-4) Tigers look to bounce back and overcome their scoring struggles when they faceoff against the (1-3) West Fork Tigers in their conference home game on Tuesday, January 8 with the Jr High starting at 4 pm.
The (0-5) Mansfield Lady Tigers had problems of their own when they took on the Lady Little Johns. Although the girls ended up with a loss of 59-33, it was a great game to get the Lady Tigers warmed back up after their Christmas break and prepare them for conference play against the (1-3) West Fork Lady Tigers. In their game against the Lady Little Johns, the Lady Tigers were led in scoring by Makayla Strutton with her second double-double of the season with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Amber Elmore brought in 4 points and Hailey Walker, Mikayla Harrison, Rylea Weaver, Maggie Strunk, and Brooke Wright made a combined total of 9 points for the Lady Tigers. The Jr and Sr High Tigers teams will host the West Fork Tigers on Tuesday the 8th at 4 pm.
Jr Tigers Give Fans Best Of Both Worlds
By Megan Hecox
Are you the kind of fan who loves to watch an absolute blowout? How about the kind of fan who loves an edge of your seat thriller from tip-off all the way to the end? Well, have we got a deal for you. The Jr High Tigers and Lady Tigers showcased both types of basketball last night at Danville against the Little Johns.
The Mansfield Lady Tigers started off with a heavy dose of high octane offense in a 40-12 route of Danville. With all the rain outside, the Lady Tigers decided to bring the weather inside as they sank buckets the entire game. Alyson Edwards led the Tigers by scorching the Little Johns defense for 13 points on the night. Sadie Roberts took the fast pace breakaway role sinking 8 points while Skylynn Harris used power with finesse to rack up 6 points for the Lady Tigers. Natalie Allison, Kynslee Ward, Kaile Sysakayavong, Brooklyn Adams, and Haylee Helms added to the Lady Tigers blowout of the Little Johns.
On the Tigers boys squad, you had a matchup of epic proportions. The Tigers fell to Danville 46-43 in a nailbiter game. The wooden seats of the Little John arena were literally the size of toothpicks by games end. Both teams spent the first half playing tag on the scoreboard and then set the place on fire in the second half. Ethan Pettus and Tyler Escalante fed off of each other like Michael Jordan and Scotty Pippin. Both scored in every way you can score in the game of basketball with Pettus leading the Tigers with 20 points while Escalante knocked out 19 points. The Tigers also got BIG help from their BIG men in the game with Zayne Dugan and Dalton Pettigrew eating up rebounds. Dugan and Clint Stovall capped off the Tigers scoring by combining for 4 points. The Jr High Tigers will play again on Tuesday, January 8 against West Fork at 4 pm.
Sr Bulldogs Use Ferocious Defense Skills
By Megan Hecox
The Sr High Bulldogs are on a roll like “butta.” The Waldron Sr High JV boys team has successfully upgraded their conference play record to 2-0. It was a 3 point victory over the Lamar Warriors that allowed the Bulldogs to add another mark in their wins column. The Bulldogs walked away from their game with the scoreboard reading 54-51.
The Bulldogs used their suffocating defense skills to take control of the game, forcing many Warrior turnovers. Jaden Hutchens was able to sink 5 3-point shots and lead his team with 23 points. The Bulldogs showed great cohesiveness on the court and will continue to prove why they are undefeated. The Bulldogs will face the Charleston Tigers at home on January 8 starting at 4:30 pm.
Mansfield Chamber of Commerce
Pictured from left: Rick McDaniel, Beverly Lyons, Mike Gipson, Sheri Hopkins and Mansfield Mayor Buddy Black.
By Tammy Moore Teague
The Mansfield Chamber of Commerce met on Thursday afternoon. Newly appointed President and former Mayor, Mike Gipson presided over the meeting.
New officers for 2019 are:
President – Mike Gipson
Vice President – Sheri Hopkins
Treasurer – Rick McDaniel
Secretary – Beverly Lyons
Items of business to be discussed included future plans to grow the chamber, and increase revenue. “We want to build up the chamber with new and fresh ideas that involve businesses and the community,” stated Gipson.
Ideas include a Tiger Plunge, scheduled for the end of February, a Chamber Banquet, membership drive, horseshoes and cornhole for the Fourth of July celebration and a community Easter Egg Hunt.
“Everything we do for the city we want to get people involved,” added Gipson. Members also discussed the return of the farmers market, and displaying paintings and drawings from the art class at city hall.
The next meeting for the Mansfield Chamber of Commerce will be February 7.
Scott County Officials Take Oath
By Tammy Moore Teague
Elected city and county officials took the oath of office in Scott County on Tuesday morning at 10 a.m. –See related story
Those included members of the Scott County Quorum Court, area constables and Scott County deputies. Quorum Court member Tammie Luttrell was awarded a certificate of appreciation by Scott County Judge James Forbes and County Clerk Barbara Whiteley for serving the unexpired term of Bill Luttrell. She was appointed by Governor Asa Hutchinson to finish the term for Bill Luttrell, who had served as a Justice of the Peace for many years. Additionally, Bill Luttrell was her father-in-law. Her husband, and Bill Lutrell’s son, John, was elected in November to succeed his wife.
Kandis Carpenter, sister of the late Scott County Sheriff Cody Carpenter, was also sworn in. Carpenter is the first female to be deputized within the county.
The Scott County Board of Election Commissioners congratulated the newly elected and appointed county and city public officials.
