Among many coaching changes within Mansfield School District, Kaylie Pyles (Left), and Erica McKay (Right) were recently hired to join the districts staff and takeover coaching duties, and academic roles. Both Pyles and McKay are 2014 MHS graduates, and heartfelt about “Tiger Pride” being that they were also decorated student athletes in multiple sports.
Kaylie Pyles will be Head Senior High Volleyball coach as well as Assistant Basketball and Track, as well as Middle School Physical Education, and High School Health. Erica McKay will be Head Coach Junior High Volleyball and Basketball and assist in Softball, as well as Middle School Science.
Pyles commented, “I am beyond blessed to be able to have the opportunity to come back and coach at my Alma Mater. This community, people, and town mean everything to me. I want to bring intensity, passion, and excitement to volleyball and continue on the legacy. This group of girls deserve to have someone who is committed to teaching them to be their best today, tomorrow and for the future. I’m super excited to get started and I know it will be a great upcoming year for the Lady Tigers. Coaching alongside Erica McKay will make for a great year.
McKay stated, “I am thrilled to be a part of the Mansfield School District as a teacher and coach. I am excited to come back to my hometown to contribute in our school academically and in the athletic program. I am looking forward to working alongside a friend and former teammate and hope to continue to build our girls athletic program. We have high expectations of our girls and plan to encourage them to work hard on and off the court to be successful and represent Mansfield well.”
Regarding additional coaching changes, Josh Bryan will become Senior High head girls basketball Coach (previously Head Girls Junior High Coach), Keith Stovall will become Assistant Boys Basketball Coach (previously Head Girls Senior High Coach), Keith Dake will assist in Cross Country (previously Volleyball Interim Head Coach/Assistant). The additional coaching duties will not change with Dake (Head Senior High Boys Basketball), Bryan (Assistant Track), Stovall (Assistant Football)
“We are very excited about our future going forward. With the hires and changes we have made it will have a huge positive impact on a multitude of sports (cross country ,volleyball , basketball, track, football). We are able to bring more help and structure to our athletic programs as a whole and most importantly our kids will reap huge benefits.” stated Co-Director of Programs, and Personnel, Craig Bentley.
Bentley added, “A big thanks to our administration and school board for having the vision to make all this possible as well as our coaches who always put the kids first. I fully believe that we have our coaches in a position to where they can strive professionally and give our kids and programs the best chance to succeed to the best of their ability”
Pyles and McKay Join Tiger Staff
United Methodist Hosts Yard Sale
The United Methodist Women are having an INSIDE yard sale Friday, April 5th from 8:00am until 4:00pm and Saturday, April 6th from 8:00am until 12:00pm (noon). Everything is set up in the Church basement. Have trouble with stairs, there is a chair lift to take you down and bring back up to ground level.
“We have LOTS OF STUFF” stated Crickett Thomas. “Come and shop no matter what the weather!”
All proceeds will stay here locally and support the Mansfield Schools back -pack program and go toward school supplies for next year.
Support your community and come SHOP!
Frugal Funding and Impact On Interim Appointment
Article By Tammy Moore Teague
“It’s time to tighten the belt,” Becky Walker City Treasurer, said regarding the City of Mansfield’s general fund. So will this need to save the city’s funds influence the decision of the council on the town’s next mayor?
It will be April 12 before the council will make that decision but it was discussed at Thursday night’s meeting the possibility of appointing someone to fill the position without pay. Walker said “We need to be careful with our spending and most of that goes to salaries.” This decision would of course save the city money.
This comes on the heels of former mayor Larry Austin’s resignation who was owed over $1,800 in final pay.
Former Mayor Files Dismissal of Lawsuit
Article By Tammy Moore Teague
A motion to dismiss has been filed by former Mansfield City Mayor, Larry Austin. Austin, who in January filed a lawsuit against the city claiming the council violated the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act by illegally conducting city business via text messages. In resolution, the defendants including Sheri Hopkins, Rick McDaniel and Beverly Lyons admitted they violated the FOIA law and proposed a settlement.
Additionally, the lawsuit claimed the council’s removal of the mayor’s duties as listed in the personnel handbook policy was unlawful. A motion to dismiss this part of the lawsuit was filed by Austin’s attorney, Joey McCutcheon, on March 22. “It can be refiled,” city attorney Matt Ketcham said. “I don’t forsee why it would be, but as of now it is dismissed.”
Alderman Georganna Mabry inquired about who was liable for paying the legal fees involved in the lawsuit. Ketcham responded that Austin paid his personal legal fees and that the city would be responsible their own.
Young Tigers Undefeated In 4x400m Relay Races
Pictured above, Tigers Tommy Phang, Gage Rogers, Logan Cravey, and Branson Carver show of their first place ribbons for the men’s 4x400m relay at Mansfield.
Through the first three track meets of the season, the Mansfield seventh grade boys are undefeated in 4x400m relay races. After an inauspicious start to their career, the group has quickly built a strong reputation.
The winning streak the four young Tigers have put together almost never took place. At their first meet, which took place a little over a month ago, the collection of rookies felt the soreness and fatigue of a long night of events. By the time the concluding 4x400m relay race rolled around, there was plenty of excuses not to run.
“My foot is cramped. My quad hurts. I don’t know if I can make it.” Those were just some of the typical excuses being bantered about as the crew was looking for a reason not to run.
Longtime Mansfield coach John Mackey who’s seen and heard a lot over his 30 plus years of coaching wasn’t buying it. His response was an ultimatum. Run the relay or never run it again this season.
“It’s typical of the first seventh grade meet,” explained Mackey. “It’s so new. The intensity level stretched over 16 events and multiple hours takes it toll. The effort needed over such long a time frame is more than they realize.”
“Other sports in the seventh grade are over in about an hour,” the coach continued. “Track is a 4 to 5 hour marathon. The body just wants to rest. But, it will respond with strong mental will.”
Respond is what Tommy Phang, Gage Rogers, Logan Cravey, and Branson Carver did. They forgot their woes and dug deep. Together they forged a surprising win going away.
Since that time, they have not been challenged in the four lap cooperative. Mile relay victories have reached three consecutive. Confidence has moved off the charts.
“Sometimes it just takes the courage to take that first step,” reflected Mackey. “These boys just needed a boost. I knew they had talent. They needed to discover it for themselves.”
Phang and Cravey also run the hurdles for Mansfield. The brutal 300m style is quickly becoming their featured race as well. At the recent Mansfield Seventh Grade Ribbon Run on March 26, the two each won their individual heats.
Approximately 14 schools showed for the Monday night meet at Tiger Stadium. Mansfield’s seventh grade boys and girls both enjoyed marked success.
Official teams scores were not kept but by the bulk of ribbons Mansfield players hauled away, it was a good night to be a Tiger.
Carver showed off in the men’s high jump going 5’ 2” and was high among 100 meter dash runners with a 12.90 clocking.
Rogers went 13.93 in his heat of the 100m dash. He also joined Phang, Cravey, and Carver in a second place 4x100m relay grouping earlier in the night.
Braxton Byers, Codee Helms, and Levi Cothran continued to improve in the shot and discus rings. Seth Carter and Kindel Noblitt made strides in the triple jump sand.
Clint Stovall, Tyler Woolbright, and Ashton Hinkle joined Carter in a solid 4x800m relay finish.
Woolbright and Trenton Leroy were both clocked under 30 seconds for the 200m dash. Woolbright went 28.44 while Leroy crossed in 28.97.
On the girls side Madelen Jones, Skylynn Harris, and Olivia Bouse continued to head the class albeit in different ways.
Jones made her mark winning the 100m hurdles and placing high in the 300m hurdles and high jump.
Harris threw an amazing 80 feet 10 inches in the discus to secure another victory. She also pushed the six pound shot over 33 feet for another win.
Bouse broke the seven minute mark in the 1600m run. She was near the top in the 800m run and was the Lady Tiger’s top leg in the 4x800m relay.
Jadelynn Wood competed in her first 100m hurdle race, and went first in the 4x100m relay. The versatile athlete continued to fill the need among multiple events for Mansfield.
Cassidy Carlton, Natalie Allison, Serenity Brunson, and newcomer Lita Hecox continued to improve in their specific events.
Chloe Jones, Trinity Woods, and Bethany Sartin handled in respective order the 100m dash, 400m dash, and triple jump. Seven Sanderson, Alayna Turner, and Alayna Swanger added to the throws team.
Rylie Puterbaugh and Gary Willis ribboned for the first time at the Tiger seventh grade event.
Rose Blooms Again at Alma Invitational
Alma, Arkansas is known as the spinach capital of the world. However, it’s this time of year that it seems a Rose blooms the best. Megan Rose (shown above) at Alma after the 3200m run.
For the second consecutive year, Mansfield’s Megan Rose targeted Alma’s track as the place to go for the class 3A state standard to pre-qualify to state in the 3200m run. For the second consecutive year, it was mission accomplished.
So far this season’s lineup as been about getting race reps and getting in shape. To date, Rose has been scheduled for 4 miles of work at every meet thus far. Friday at Alma, the senior athlete and her coach strategized with a reduced load to knock out the state standard.
Sticking mostly to the script with just a little bit of wiggle room, Rose indeed punched her state ticket for a fourth straight season.
The mark Rose needed to undercut was 12:54.06. She crossed the finish line at exactly 12:53.44. That was a mere 0.62 second snap of the finger margin for the senior.
Mansfield mentor John Mackey and his prized pupil discussed the setup before spring break. The afternoon before the bus trip to Alma, they did the per lap math to give Rose her chance.
“Megan was nearly perfect to the target times,” said Mackey. “She went a little fast on the first lap but it gave her a seven second cushion for the next two.”
Rose was gunning for a 6 minute 22 second first mile of the two mile equivalent. She came by interval at 6:23. It was the only time she was slower than projections until the next to last lap in which she fell behind pace by 2 seconds.
Mackey implored his star to give it her all at the 300m mark. He knew she was a bit behind the pace chart they built together to include a 3 second cushion. Her father, Jeff Rose, standing near his usual spot at the final turn begged his baby to keep kicking for the finish.
Attending eyes, especially those with Mansfield interests, all seemingly glowed at the same time with the reflection of the MacDonald’s scoreboard. “4 Rose 12:53.44” beamed along the top edge of the display.
The Southeastern Oklahoma State recruit admitted after the race she was unsure why she continued to kick. She felt she was not going to reach her goal. She said she thought her opportunity was lost on the seventh lap.
“That’s why you continue to fight,” expressed Mackey. “You don’t really know. Megan has always been a fighter. It’s not in her being to give up.”
Overall Rose was fourth in the race. Earlier in the night she came in sixth with a updated best of 6:06.76 in the 1600m run.
Cross country teammate Devon Pyles also on the boys track squad did not pre-qualify but was spectacular to his own standards. The senior distance racer established his new personal record with 5:05.57 run in the 1600m. That was 10 seconds better than his previous performance.
Pyles also exhausted his energy supply with a 15 second betterment of his 3200m run. He went 11:26.54 over the 8 lap race.
For his conference leading times in both races, Pyles received the third and fifth place medals respectively for the two distance races.
Delilah McKusker continued the PR trend with four of her season’s best in the 4x100m relay, 100m hurdles, 300m hurdles, and 4x400m relay.
McKusker was just off the medal stand in a 20.17 clocking over the 100m high hurdles for ninth place. She had the best split as the 4x100m relay anchor at 14.36.
Over the 300m style barriers, McKusker posted a 57.12 for seventh place. She capped the night with another anchor best 1:13 for her leg of the 4x400m relay.
The Tiger men found point production from sprinter ace Jaicy Griffin. Griffin, just a sophomore, was top three in a very competitive 200m dash. His mark of 24.16 was just north of the state standard 23.31. Mansfield’s Jaicy Griffin (below video) long jumps at Alma for a 18 ft 8 inch jump.
Griffin also was close to a AAA standard in the 100m dash. His 11.64 clocking was three-tenths off the 11.34 average.
The young gun made it 4 for 4 in ribbon collections as he also placed high in the long jump (5th – 18’ 8”) and as anchor of the 4x100m relay (6th – 49.68).
Bryar Hattabaugh got some attention over at the long and triple jump pit. The senior, on a rare day off from baseball, leaped 17’ 11.5” in the long jump for seventh place. He was top Tiger at the triple jump with a fourth place bounce of 39’ 5.5”. The below video shows Mansfield’s Bryar Hattabaugh long jumping 17 feet 11.5 inches at the Alma Track meet.
Sophomore Will Meadows moved up in the local pole vault rankings with a season best 9’ 0” jump for 5th place. He saw his triple jump mark of 38’ 0.5” climb to seventh place overall.
Meadows along with Griffin, Jake Smith, and Blaine Bryant peopled the 4x100m team.
Addison Goetz, Lennon Woods, Corrina Wesley, and McKusker comprised the Lady Tiger sprint team. Alyssa Berry moved in for Wesley as the remaining relay girls also ran in the 4x400m relay. The results were fourth and third places respectively.
Miracle Pettigrew picked up a point in the women’s shot put. Jacob Brown was the close to ribbon production in the men’s discus at tenth place.
24 Schools Participated in Junior Sponsored Track Meet
The parking lot along the back side of Tiger Stadium was a sea of yellow. Yellow, the prominent color of school buses, dotted the landscape as 24 different schools attended the 14th annual Junior Tiger Relays at Mansfield on March 29.
“It was a tremendous crowd of athletes amassed inside our facilities,” spoke head Tiger John Mackey. “We try to put on a very competitive meet. Teams from as far as Russellville and Mena made their way to our corner of the Scott County.”
It was those caliber of schools that also made big impressions at the Tiger hosted event. Mena won the girls division. Waldron won the boys. Russellville came in second in both genders.
Mansfield’s girls had the most success from the local circuit. They finished in fourth place overall. The Tiger men came in at ninth on their side of the bracket.
Freshman Lady Tiger Danielle Lillie in her first meet of the outdoor season was a point away from high point honors. The ninth grade indoor medalist has been busy playing softball since the 1A-4A state championships concluded in February.
The talented sprinter won the 100m hurdles in a very close race. Her 17.80 marking edged out Lauren Sikes of Mena by 0.04 seconds.
Lillie was second in the long jump landing 14’ 5” in a rain soaked sand pit. She was also fourth in the 100m dash at 14.59 to cover her individual events.
Both the 4x100m relay and the 4x400m relay was anchored by the freshman. Haylee Helms, Hailey Walker, and Sadie Roberts joined Lillie for a 59.38 fifth place finish.
Faith Rainwater, McKenzie Griffin, and Shelby Cole completed the other cooperative with the high point runner-up in a time of 5:15.03 for fifth place.
Mansfield seventh grader Skylnn Harris blasted the junior high school record in the shot put with a mighty heave of 35’ 04”. She won the event.
The rookie competitor has quickly made a name for herself at both the shot and discus rings. Three days earlier at a seventh grade only competition she tossed the discus a school leading 80’ 10”.
Brooke Wright, an older teammate, whirled the discus 76’ 2” for seventh place. She was ninth in the shot at 30’ 10”.
Over on the boy’s side, Branson Carver and Bri Sanderson of Mansfield had some of the higher placings. Carver was third in the high jump at 5’ 4”. Sanderson was fourth in the discus at 118’ 3”.
Steven Perez had his best showing in the pole vault by going 8’ 6”. He was sixth overall after an hour delay was caused by an earlier jumper breaking the standards.
Mansfield maintenance specialist Ronnie Black came from his off duty hours to remedy the situation.
Perez, Dru Buckner, and Ethan Chapman were solid legs on the men’s middle distance races. Buckner was one of the top three Tigers in the men’s 300m hurdles along with Carver and Renden Emery.
Emery also went 15-10 in his first long jump competition. He has been Mansfield’s top triple jumper and 100m hurdler.
Austin Carlton was just off pace in the 100m hurdles behind Emery’s 19.13 eighth place mark. Carlton clocked in at 20.06 for tenth place among the multi-heat field.
Madelen Jones and Cole each made noise in the women’s hurdle races. Jones, just a seventh grader, crossed at 18.96 for seventh place overall in the 100m highs. Cole kept pace in the 300m lows for a fourth place 59.09 marking.
Olivia Bouse, another seventh grader, along with Rainwater, Griffin, and Hope Rainwater helped take the Tigers into fourth place in the 4x800m relay. Bouse also ran well in the open 800m. She was clocked at 2:59.31 for ninth place among nearly 40 runners.
Roberts was excited to clear 4’ 8” for the the first time this season over at the high jump venue. That clearance placed her second among 39 vertical jumpers.
Walker from the Lady Tiger jumps team cleared 4’ 2” for eight place at that same event.
Roberts also cleared 6’ 0” in the pole vault. That was good for four points to the Lady Tiger cause.
Hailey Burns posted her season best in the shot put. She went 31’ 7” throwing the six pounder. It measured as the eighth best throw on the day.
Hecox Keeps MMS Calendar Organized
Lita Hecox at Mansfield Middle School keeps the students, and faculty up to date with what is going on at the Middle School.
Lita diligently works to keep important dates listed in the Middle School lobby. The Calendar is for students to keep up with daily and weekly events at the Middle School campus.
Thank you Lita for the hard work and time spent keeping everything coordinated for the month.
MMS Middle School FBLA Update
FBLA is collecting coke can tabs for Arkansas Children’s Hospital. For every Gallon of coke can tabs, is a free cancer treatment for a child.
Please drop coke can tabs by the middle school office or send with a Middle School Student.
Pictured above, (Left to Right) Braxton Byers, Travis Martin, and Chandlan Silvey take tabs and fill a gallon jug with tabs from aluminum cans.
Casey’s Sets Opening Date
A Casey’s General Stores official has told RP staff that the Mansfield location is set to open their doors on April 12th, at 6:00am to the public.
Their Grand Opening will take place on April 13th, and 14th.
Casey’s General Stores, Inc., is a chain of convenience stores in the Midwestern United States, primarily within the states of Iowa, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, South Dakota, North Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Wisconsin. The company is headquartered in Ankeny, Iowa, a suburb of Des Moines.