Panthers fall to Dardanelle; to battle Subiaco

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Heber Springs senior Zane Lozeau reacts to a play in the bottom of the seventh-inning as the Panthers comeback attempt came up short against Dardanelle on Tuesday. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO

By LARRY “SCOOP” McCARTY

Weather put Heber Springs’ baseball 4-4A Conference Tournament seeding on hold for now.

The Panthers (2-3 in 4-4A, 10-11 overall) lost to Dardanelle (4-2 in 4-4A, 12-5 overall) 5-3 Tuesday at the Heber Springs Sports Complex and missed an opportunity of clinching a No. 2 seed for the tournament.

“This game really hurts because it has been a while since Heber had an opportunity of a No. 2 seed,” Heber Springs coach Ryan Bridges said. “The guys played and worked hard, but we got to do that before the seventh inning.”

Dardanelle clinched the No. 2 seed with the win, while Morrilton will be the top seed. The Sand Lizards and Devil Dogs assured themselves of regional tournament berths.

Heber Springs and Ozark currently are tied for third place in the conference standings. Weather canceled Wednesday’s Subiaco Academy at Ozark game. Ozark needs one win to earn the No. 3 seed. The Panthers, who are scheduled to host Subiaco Academy on Thursday. Heber Springs can avoid the play-in game with a win against Subiaco Academy.

“We want to avoid the play-in game,” Bridges said. “That would force us to win two games for a regional tournament berth, instead of just one win. I’m hoping playing on senior night will give us extra motivation against Subiaco Academy. We need to play well and win. I like our chances, especially playing at home.”

J.T. Spears, who was the starting and losing pitcher, allowed five hits, four runs with nine strikeouts and four walks against Dardanelle. Corbin Jones relieved Spears at the beginning of the seventh inning, allowing one hit and one run with two strikeouts.

“J.T. pitched well,” Bridges said. “We probably needed to throw more off-speed pitches in that first inning because they had trouble hitting those type of pitches. Instead, we threw all fastballs and they hit them. I saw something from J.T. that I’ve not seen this year, more energy. He got into his zone during the second, third and fourth innings.”

Zane Rose started Dardanelle’s three-run first inning with a walk. Drew Vega hit a double, putting runners on second and third bases before Robert Millard’s two-run double. Millard later scored on Colvy Holt’s RBI single.

“Just wish there was a way to take the three runs Dardanelle scored in the first inning away,” Bridges said. “I thought (third baseman) Liam (Buffalo) had a chance to make a backhanded catch, but the ball hit the bag and bounced over Liam’s head.”

Dardanelle scored runs in the fifth and seventh innings for a 5-0 lead before the Panthers threatened to tie the game in the bottom of the seventh.
Heber Springs loaded the bases with no outs when Xander Lindley and pinch-hitter Ty West each walked and Preston Fitzsimmons was hit by a pitch. Lindley scored on Zane Lozeau’s sacrifice fly and Kenan Sneed followed with an RBI single. Fitzsimmons came home on Cole Peyton’s sac fly, reducing Dardanelle’s lead to 5-3 with two outs.

The game ended when reliever Ty Roper, who replaced starter Titus Spencer with one out in the seventh, on a strikeout.

“We had good at-bats during the seventh inning,” Bridges said. “We need to do that throughout the game and get on base anyway we can. When we do that, we will have opportunities to win games.”

Dardanelle        300 010 1–5 6 1
Heber Springs 000 000 3–3 4 2

DARDANELLE HITTERS: Robert Millard single, double, 2 RBIs, 1 stolen base; Colvy Holt 2 singles, 1 RBI; Drew Vega double, 1 stolen base; Clayton Weatherford single, 1 RBI, 1 stolen base.

HEBER SPRINGS HITTERS: Kenan Sneed 2 singles, 1 RBI, 1 stolen base; Zane Lozeau double, 1 RBI; Preston Fitzpatrick single; Cole Peyton 1 RBI.

DARDANELLE PITCHERS: Titus Spencer (WP) 3 hits, 1 run, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts in 6 innings; Ty Roper (Save) 1 hit, 2 earned runs, 1 walk, 1 strikeout in 1 inning.

HEBER SPRINGS PITCHERS: J.T. Spears (LP) 5 hits, 4 earned runs, 4 walks, 9 strikeouts in 6 innings; Corbin Jones 1 hits, 1 run, 2 strikeouts in 1 inning.

Panthers fall to Dardanelle, host Clarksville Saturday

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Heber Springs’ Parker Brown goes up for a dunk attempt in the first half against Dardanelle Tuesday night at the Panther Den. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO

By LARRY “SCOOP” McCARTY

Heber Springs coach Jordan Riley issued a challenge to the Panthers minutes following Tuesday’s 48-25 loss to Dardanelle at the Panther Den.

Despite the loss, the Panthers (3-7 in Conference 4-4A, 12-11 overall), trail fifth-place Pottsville (3-6 in Conference 4-4A, 9-12 overall) by one-half game. Heber Springs has two games remaining during the regular season, while the Apaches have three games left.

Heber Springs will host Clarksville (5-5 in Conference 4-4A, 10-11 overall) at 2 p.m. Saturday and play at Pottsville on Tuesday. Pottsville will play at Morrilton on Friday, with home games against Panthers on Feb. 8 and Ozark on Feb. 11.

The fifth-place team will avoid playing a play-in game at the conference tournament.

“We have a lot of basketball left to play,” Riley said. “It’s up to the players how this team will be defined after the season ends. The team already exceeded most expectations (of fans). They either will fizzle out or work hard and improve on offense and defense. Hopefully, we will fight, battle and finish the season strong.”

Braden Tanner scored a game-high 21 points for Dardanelle (7-3 in Conference 4-4A, 14-7 overall). Robert Millard contributed 11 points. Gavin Vaughn led Heber Springs with seven points.

“Dardanelle did a good job of keeping us on the from the middle of the court,” Riley said. “We were able to keep the ball in the middle of the floor and created more room for passes in the first game (a 45-42 loss at Dardanelle). We didn’t do a very good job of protecting the ball in (Tuesday’s) the game and shot poorly for the second straight game.”

Parker Brown opened the game by converting a short jumper to give Heber Springs its only the lead during the game. Tanner made a 3-pointer and Chase Jordan’s jumper and started a 17-4 run by the Sand Lizards. Brown scored again and Eli Riggs had a field goal, but Dardanelle maintained control and built a 17-6 lead going into the second quarter.

The Sand Lizards pulled away with a 10-3 second quarter scoring run and for a 27-9 halftime lead. Dardanelle took a 38-16 advantage into the fourth quarter.

Riley planned extra work on offense for Friday’s game against Clarksville. The Panthers scored 46 points in two games this week.

“You can’t win games when scoring in the 20s,” he said. “We were taking good shots, but didn’t make many. We will work on improving what we had been doing on offense.

Riley said the plan was to put pressure on Dardanelle’s two shooters (Tanner and Millard, who combined for six 3-pointers 32 of the 48 points.
“We let those two guys loose on the perimeter and make multiple 3’s,” Riley said. “We dug a deep hole for ourselves. We played better defense during the second half, but it’s tough when you are down by 18 points.”

Riley expects his team to accept his challenge, starting with Clarksville.

“Clarksville is playing well,” he said. “We will be ready to defend the Den and win. We need to win the next two games for a better tournament seed. I hope that is how the team will be defined during the remainder of the season, a team which fought until the end.”

Dardanelle         17 10 11 10 -48
Heber Springs    6   3   7  9 -25
DARDANELLE SCORING (48): Braden Tanner 21, Robert Millard 11, Chase Jordan 7, Chris Wrinkle 6, Noah Weisenbach 2, Tyler Spencer 1.
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (25): Gavin Vaughn 7, Hud Haggard 6, Parker Brown 4, Ladd Choate 3, Austin Winchester 3, Eli Riggs 2.

Panthers head to district tournament as No. 4 seed

February 10, 2020

The Heber Springs junior high boys closed out their regular season with a 46-24 victory over Subiaco Academy Friday night at the Panther Den.

Eli Riggs (11) and Conner Riddle (10) each finished in double figures as the Panthers led 24-14 at the half and 41-22 at the end of three quarters.

Heber Springs finished the season as No. 4 seed and will open the 4A-4 District tournament today at Ozark. The Panthers will play Dover at 5 p.m. The Pirates defeated Heber Springs at the Marshall tournament, 43-36, and on January 24 at Heber Springs, 39-28, while the Panthers won at Dover on December 10, 45-33.

The winner of the Dover/Heber Springs contest will play at 5:30 p.m. in the semifinals at Ozark.

February 7
SUBIACO ACADEMY AT HEBER SPRINGS
Subiaco Academy   4  10  8  2 - 24
Heber Springs     9  15 17  5 - 46
SUBIACO ACADEMY SCORING (24): B. Koch 9, G. Vargas 8, M. Mayeux 4, L. Hess 3
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (46): Eli Riggs 11, Conner Riddle 10, Ladd Choate 7, Xander Lindley 6, Luke Greenwald 4, Bent McClain 4, Hud Haggard 2, Bauer Pruitt 2

February 6
CEDAR RIDGE AT HEBER SPRINGS
JUNIOR BOYS "B"
CEDAR RIDGE SCORING (10): No. 14 4, No. 31 2, No. 5 2, No. 44 2
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (30): Hud Haggard 12, Easton Cusick 10, Wyatt Winchester 6, Ladd Choate 2

February 4
HEBER SPRINGS AT DARDANELLE
Dardanelle      22  12  9   1 - 44
Heber Springs    4   5  7  13 - 29
DARDANELLE SCORING (44): Braden Tanner 12, Robert Millard 10, Drew Vega 7, Chase Jordan 6, Holt 5, Trenton Whitecotton 4
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (29): Hud Haggard 12, Conner Riddle 7, Ladd Choate 6, Bauer Pruitt 2, Bent McClain 2

January 31
HEBER SPRINGS AT OZARK
Ozark         20  19  16  7 - 62
Heber Springs  9   8  14  7 - 33
OZARK SCORING (62): Watson 22, Shaffer 11, Masingale 10, Peters 5, Archer 4, Wright 3, Cowell 3, Stane 2, Parker 2
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (33): Conner Riddle 12, Eli Riggs 8, Bent McClain 6, Bauer Pruitt 5, Wyatt Winchester 3, Hud Haggard 2, Ladd Choate 2
HEBER SPRINGS JUNIOR BOYS BASKETBALL
2019-2020 SCHEDULE/RESULTS
COACH: Chad Johnson
OVERALL RECORD: 6-16
4A-4 RECORD: 3-6
November 9 - Greenbrier 37, Heber Springs 17 ^
November 12 - Nemo Vista 45, Heber Springs 37
November 13 - Heber Springs 54, Yellville-Summit 50 ^
November 14 - Dover 43, Heber Springs 36 ^
November 19 - Heber Springs 44, South Side Bee Branch 38
November 21 - Riverview 51, Heber Springs 21
November 23 - Cabot South 8th 37, Heber Springs 33 *
November 23 - Conway Blue 71, Heber Springs 39 *
November 26 - Clinton 44, Heber Springs 27
December 10 - Heber Springs 45, Dover 33 #
December 13 - Marshall 46, Heber Springs 38
December 16 - Heber Springs 36, White County Central 35
December 20 - Ozark 46, Heber Springs 28 #
January 7 - Pottsville 51, Heber Springs 35 #
January 10 - Heber Springs 33, Subiaco Academy 3 #
January 14 - Dardanelle 43, Heber Springs 17 #
January 16 - Mount Vernon-Enola 44, Heber Springs 41 (OT)
January 24 - Dover 39, Heber Springs 28 #
January 27 - Mayflower 52, Heber Springs 20
January 28 - Pottsville 59, Heber Springs 28 #
January 31 - Ozark 62, Heber Springs 33 #
February 4 - Dardanelle 44, Heber Springs 29 #
February 7 - Heber Springs 46, Subiaco Academy 24 #
February 10 - Heber Springs vs. Dover $

(^ - Denotes Marshall Tournament)
(* - Denotes Heber Springs Tournament)
(# - Denotes 4A-4 Conference Game) 
($ - Denotes 4A-4 District Tournament at Ozark)

Panthers fall to Warhawks in Overtime

Heber Springs’ Conner Riddle goes up for a shot against Mount Vernon-Enola on Jan. 16 at the Panther Den. PHILIP SEATON PHOTO

January 16, 2020

Despite a 28-point performance from Conner Riddle, Heber Springs dropped a 44-41 nonconference decision to Mount Vernon-Enola on Jan. 16 at the Panther Den.

Heber Springs trailed 16-4 at the end of the first quarter but bounced back to make it a 22-15 game at the half. The Panthers had a chance to close the gap further right before the half but missed a shot after holding the ball and the Warhawks were able to get another field goal to increase their advantage.

The Panthers cut the deficit to 28-27 at the end of the third quarter after closing the third on a 7-0 run on an Eli Riggs 3-pointer and a pair of baskets by Riddle.

The Warhawks led by five at 37-32 before a 3-pointer by Luke Greenwald and three-point play by Riddle gave the Panthers a 38-37 advantage with 38.1 seconds left in regulation.

The Warhawks were able to tie things up at 38-all after hitting one of two from the free-throw line with 24.6 to play. Heber Springs had a couple of chances to win the game in regulation but couldn’t get a shot to fall.

Heber Springs led overtime 41-40 after Riddle hit 3-of-4 from the free-throw line, the last coming at the 1:28 mark. Mount Vernon-Enola closed the game by going 4-for-4 at the line.

Riddle finished the night by going 10-of-15 from the line.

The Panthers were coming off a 43-17 setback to Dardanelle on Jan. 14 as Heber Springs trailed 22-4 at the half.

On Jan. 10, Riddle had seven points in the first quarter and finished with 11, including a perfect 7-of-7 from the free-throw line as Heber Springs downed Subiaco Academy, 33-3.

Riddle scored 16, including hitting a perfect 8-of-8 from the free-throw line, on Jan. 7 in a 54-35 setback to Pottsville at the Panther Den.

Heber Springs led 14-12 at the end of the first quarter, but were outscored 37-10 in the second and third quarters as the Apaches pulled away for the 4A-4 victory.

JANUARY 16 BOXSCORE
Mount Vernon-Enola   16  6  6  10  6 - 44
Heber Springs         4 11 12  11  3 - 41
MOUNT VERNON-ENOLA SCORING (44): Chapman 21, Millsaps 7, Furiegh 6, Hoover 2, Emery 2, Walls 2, Rowe 2, Henery 2
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (41): Conner Riddle 28, Eli Riggs 6, Luke Greenwald 3, Bent McClain 2, Maddox Reed 2

JANUARY 14 BOXSCORE
Dardanelle        5  17  19  2 - 43
Heber Springs     4   0   7  6 - 17
DARDANELLE SCORING (43): Robert Millard 16, Braden Tanner 16, Trenton Whitecotton 4, Drew Vega 4, Ethan Turnbow 2, Victor Padilla 1
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (17): Xander Lindley 4, Luke Greenwald 3, Wyatt Winchester 3, Eli Riggs 2, Easton Cusick 2, Conner Riddle 2, Hud Haggard 1

JANUARY 10 BOXSCORE
Heber Springs     16  4  8  5 - 33
Subiaco Academy    0  0  1  2 -  3
SUBIACO ACADEMY SCORING (3): Logan Hess 2, Brady Koch 1
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (33): Conner Riddle 11, Hud Haggard 9, Xander Lindley 6, Eli Riggs 5, Luke Greenwald 2

JANUARY 7 BOXSCORE
Pottsville      12  20  17  5 - 54
Heber Springs   14   8   2 11 - 35
POTTSVILLE SCORING (54): Stanley 18, Ybarra 14, Palmer 5, Furrh 4, Daily 4, Martin 4, Williams 2, Bradley 2, Snowden 1
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (35): Conner Riddle 16, Bauer Pruitt 5, Eli Riggs 5, Ladd Choate 3, Luke Greenwald 2, Hud Haggard 2, Bent McClain 2
HEBER SPRINGS JUNIOR BOYS BASKETBALL
2019-2020 SCHEDULE/RESULTS
COACH: Chad Johnson
OVERALL RECORD: 5-12
4A-4 RECORD: 2-3
November 9 - Greenbrier 37, Heber Springs 17 ^
November 12 - Nemo Vista 45, Heber Springs 37
November 13 - Heber Springs 54, Yellville-Summit 50 ^
November 14 - Dover 43, Heber Springs 36 ^
November 19 - Heber Springs 44, South Side Bee Branch 38
November 21 - Riverview 51, Heber Springs 21
November 23 - Cabot South 8th 37, Heber Springs 33 *
November 23 - Conway Blue 71, Heber Springs 39 *
November 26 - Clinton 44, Heber Springs 27
December 10 - Heber Springs 45, Dover 33 #
December 13 - Marshall 46, Heber Springs 38
December 16 - Heber Springs 36, White County Central 35
December 20 - Ozark 46, Heber Springs 28 #
January 7 - Pottsville 51, Heber Springs 35 #
January 10 - Heber Springs 33, Subiaco Academy 3 #
January 14 - Dardanelle 43, Heber Springs 17 #
January 16 - Mount Vernon-Enola 44, Heber Springs 41 (OT)
January 23 - Marshall
January 24 - Dover #
January 27 - at Mayflower
January 28 - at Pottsville #
January 31 - at Ozark #
February 3 - Quitman
February 4 - at Dardanelle #
Februaryr 7 - Subiaco Academy #
February 10 - District Tournament at Ozark

(^ - Denotes Marshall Tournament)
(* - Denotes Heber Springs Tournament)
(# - Denotes 4A-4 Conference Game)