January 14 2020 Archives

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)

Heber Springs junior girls fall to Mount Vernon-Enola

Heber Springs’ **Rylee Harrod** dribbles past a Mount Vernon-Enola defending in junior girls action at the Panther Den on Jan. 16. **PHILIP SEATON PHOTO**

January 16, 2020

Sophia Stone finished with 15 points while Jaylea Hooten added 10 in a losing effort as Heber Springs fell to Mount Vernon-Enola, 38-33, in junior girls action at the Panther Den.

The two teams were tied at the half, 20-20, while the War Hawks led 29-26 at the end of the three quarters in the nonconference contest.

Heber Springs pulled to within one at 34-33 with 3:18 left after at Hooten basket but the Warhawks went 4-of-4 from the free-throw line down the stretch to seal the win.

The junior girls return to action on Thursday when they host Marshall.

The Panthers have dropped three out of four contests to start the new year.

On Jan. 14, Stone finished with 16 points as Heber Springs fell to Dardanelle, 32-29, in a 4A-4 contest at the Panther Den.

On Jan. 9 at Newport in nonconference play, it was Hooten who finished with 16 as the Panthers downed the Greyhounds, 40-21.

Stone (15) and Hooten (10) both finished in double figures in a 34-31 setback to Pottsville in the Panther Den on Jan. 7.

JANUARY 16 BOXSCORE
Mount Vernon-Enola  7  13  9  9 - 38
Heber Springs       6  14  6  6 - 33
MOUNT VERNON-ENOLA SCORING (38): Raby 14, A.J. Person 6, Wooley  6, Vaught 6, Kelley 3, Pruitt 2, Jobe 1
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (33): Sophia Stone 15, Jaylea Hooten 10, Rylee Harrod 4, Hope Turney 2, Savannah Stout 2

JANUARY 14 BOXSCORE
Dardanelle        7  8  8  9 - 32
Heber Springs    12  4  4  9 - 29
DARDANELLE SCORING (32): Kaylee Meredith 14, Bethani Walter 8, Pfiefer Flemming 3, Karlie Barber-Cursh 3, Rylea Manning 2, Jayden Vasquez 2
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (29): Sophia Stone 16, Madison Clemons 6, Jaylea Hooten 4, Riley Bailey 2, Hope Turney 1

JANUARY 9 BOXSCORE
Newport        4  5   4  8 - 21
Heber Springs  8  8  16  8 - 40 
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (40): Jaylea Hooten 16, Sophia Stone 8, Addison Hudspeth 6, Madison Clemons 3, Hope Turney 2, Riley Bailey 2, Cristina Garcia 2, Mary Evans 1

JANUARY 7 BOXSCORE
Pottsville    9  7  8  10 - 34
Heber Springs 6 10  4  11 - 31
POTTSVILLE SCORING (34): Garner 8, Pennington 8, Sweeden 8, Cunningham 6, Greathouse 2, Francis 2
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (31): Sophia Stone 15, Jaylea Hooten 10, Madison Clemons 4, Riley Bailey 2

HEBER SPRINGS JUNIOR GIRLS BASKETBALL
2019-2020 SCHEDULE/RESULTS
COACH: Jamey Riddle
OVERALL RECORD: 9-7
4A-4 RECORD: 1-3
November 9 - Heber Springs 27, Greenbrier 16 ^
November 12 - Heber Springs 33, Nemo Vista 27
November 14 - Dover 60, Heber Springs 49 ^
November 16 - Heber Springs 40, Marshall 25 ^
November 19 - Heber Springs 44, South Side Bee Branch 22
November 21 - Heber Springs 46, Riverview 13
November 23 - Heber Springs 62, Cabot South 8th 10 *
November 23 - Conway Blue 35, Heber Springs 29 *
November 26 - Clinton 48, Heber Springs 40
December 10 - Dover 43, Heber Springs 33 #
December 12 - Heber Springs 52, South Side Bee Branch 31
December 20 - Heber Springs 21, Ozark 7 #
January 7 - Pottsville 34, Heber Springs 31 #
January 9 - Heber Springs 40, Newport 21
January 14 - Dardanelle 32, Heber Springs 29 #
January 16 - Mount Vernon-Enola 38, Heber Springs 33
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 #
February 10 - District Tournament at Ozark

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

Lady Panthers topple Dardanelle

Heber Springs’ **Ellie Riddle** (left) drives past a Dardanelle defender during Tuesday action at the Panther Den. **MICHELLE McCARTY PHOTO**

January 14, 2020

By LARRY “SCOOP” McCARTY

It didn’t take long for the Heber Springs Lady Panthers to establish control against Dardanelle at the Panther Den Tuesday.

Libby Stutts and Ashley Spanel each made 3-pointers during the opening two minutes as the Lady Panthers coasted past Dardanelle 47-29 in a 4-4A Conference basketball game.

Heber Springs (3-1 in conference, 12-5 overall) built a 15-0 lead by the end of the first quarter.

Dardanelle (0-4 in conference, 2-16 overall) didn’t score until 5:21 remaining in the first half.

The Lady Panthers led 29-8 at halftime and took a 38-14 lead into the fourth quarter.

Stutts paced a balanced Heber Springs attack with 13 points. Jillian Herring scored nine points and Spanel had eight points.

Abby Apple led Dardanelle with eight points.

“Dardanelle is not having a good year, but it can play and make the game ugly,” Heber Springs coach Jamey Riddle said. “I’m glad we played with a lot of intensity to start the game. The players knew Dardenelle’s record, but they didn’t play that way against them. We made more shots than our last game. We did a good job of running our offenses.”

Riddle said the team improved in two areas from previous games.

“We did a better job of rebounding and played good defense by holding them scoreless in the first quarter and eight points for the first half,” he said. “We used different presses to speed the game up. We wanted to keep the ball from getting inside.”

Riddle said Spanel’s shooting was a pleasant surprise.

“We don’t rely on Ashley to score a lot of points, but she is capable of making shots,” he said. “It was good to see her do that.”

Heber Springs will face one of its toughest challenges this season by playing conference leader Clarksville (5-0 in conference, 9-9 overall) on the road at 6 p.m. Friday.

“We welcome the opportunity to upset a team at the top of the conference standings,” Riddle said. “We can do that if we will play with the same intensity against Dardanelle.”

HEBER SPRINGS 47, DARDANELLE 29
Dardanelle     0  8 6 15 - 29
Heber Springs 15 14 9  9 - 47
DARDANELLE SCORING (29): Abby Apple 8, Grace Eidson 5, Anette Navarrete 4, Elizabeth Flores 4, Brooklyn Tidwell 3, Whitley Catlett 3, Ellie Stokes 1.
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (47) Libby Stutts 13, Jillian Herring 9, Ashley Spanel 8, Mary Shearer 6, Ellie Riddle 4, Claudia Newberry 5, Lili Chaney 1, Brandy Meredith 1.

JANUARY 9 BOXSCORE
HEBER SPRINGS 70, NEWPORT 51
Heber Springs 25 12 15 18 - 70
Newport       11 12 16 12 - 51
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (70): Jillian Herring 16, Libby Stutts 13, Ashley Spanel 10, Claudia Newberry 9, Ellie Riddle 8, Mary Sherear 6, Kylie Carr 4, Olivia Norton 4
NEWPORT SCORING (51): Jerikah Balentine 10, Kianna Fite 9, Maci Cagle 8, Alicia Neal 7, Hilda Price 5, Taniya Keener 4, Jakayla Dixon 2, Lindsey Marlar 2, Lucy Hernandez 2, Jiniekqua Rackley 2

4A-4 STANDINGS
                 Conference Season
Clarksville          5-0      9-9
Morrilton            4-1     11-5
Heber Springs        3-1     12-5
Pottsvile            2-2      8-6
Dover                1-3     10-7  
Dardanelle           0-4      2-16
Ozark                0-4     12-5

HEBER SPRINGS SENIOR GIRLS 
2019-2020 SCHEDULE/RESULTS
RECORD: 12-5
4A-4 RECORD: 3-1
November 12 - Heber Springs 55, Nemo Vista 31
November 19 - Heber Springs 70, South Side Bee Branch 45
November 21 - Heber Springs 67, Riverview 27
November 26 - Heber Springs 56, Clinton 54 (OT)
December 3 - Conway St. Joseph 47, Heber Springs 44 #
December 5 - Heber Springs 53, South Side Bee Branch 34 #
December 7 - Heber Springs 44, Wonderview 43 #
December 10 - Heber Springs 59, Dover 56 ^
December 13 - Marshall 70, Heber Springs 52
December 16 - Heber Springs 51, White County Central 31
December 20 - Heber Springs 55, Ozark 42 ^
December 26 - Heber Springs 70, DeWitt 34 *
December 27 - Pea Ridge 49, Heber Springs 44 *
December 28 - Mayflower 58, Heber Springs 37 *
January 7 - Pottsville 49, Heber Springs 45 ^
January 9 - Heber Springs 70, Newport 51
January 14 - Heber Springs 47, Dardanelle 29 ^
January 17 - at Clarksville ^
January 21 - Morrilton ^
January 24 - Dover ^
January 28 - at Pottsville ^
January 31 - at Ozark ^
February 4 - at Dardanelle ^
February 11 - at Morrilton ^
February 14 - Clarksville (Senior Night) ^
February 17 - 4A-4 District at Dardanelle

(# - Denotes Conway St. Joseph Tournament)
(^ - Denotes 4A-4 conference contest)
(* - Denotes Steve Landers' Cowboy Chevrolet Holiday Tournament at Heber Springs)

Heber Springs fall to Dardanelle

January 14, 2020

By LARRY “SCOOP” McCARTY

Dardanelle dominated from start to finish and defeated the Heber Springs Panthers 70-13 in a 4-4A Conference basketball game at the Panther Den Tuesday.

Heber Springs played without senior Adam Martin, the team’s leading scorer, who injured his shoulder last week.

Dardanelle built a 13-2 lead by the midway point of the first quarter. The Sand Lizards went on a 10-2 scoring run and took a 23-4 lead into the second quarter.

By halftime, Dardanelle increased its lead to 47-11.

Garrett Hudspeth led Heber Springs with five points. Blake Chambers scored 10 points for Dardanelle.

Heber Springs (1-4 in conference, 1-14 overall) will play at Clarksville starting at 7 p.m. Friday.

Dardanelle    23 24 12 11 - 70
Heber Springs  4  7  1  1 - 13
DARDANELLE SCORING (70): Blake Chambers 10, Marteez Jackson 9, Sam Williams 8, Tristan Broadway 8, Clayton Potter 8, Jordan Metcalf 8, Kendall Bishop 6, Nathaniel Griffith 4, Cruz Castro 2, Jorge Alvarez 2, Trace Bernard 2, Skylar Wrinkle 2, Titus Spencer 1.
HEBER SPRINGS SCORING (13): Garrett Hudspeth 5, Dalton McCollum 3, Wyatt Sanders 3, Austin Winchester 2.

4A-4 SENIOR BOYS STANDINGS
                 Conference Season
Morrilton            4-0     12-5
Dardanelle           4-1     17-1
Ozark                3-1     10-6
Pottsville           3-2      5-8
Clarksville          1-3      5-11
Subiaco Academy      1-2      5-9
Heber Springs        1-4      1-14
Dover                0-4      4-13

HEBER SPRINGS SENIOR BOYS BASKETBALL
2019-2020 SCHEDULE RESULTS
RECORD: 1-14
4A-4 RECORD: 1-4
November 21 - Riverview 68, Heber Springs 36
November 26 - Clinton 71, Heber Springs 35
December 3 - Conway St. Joseph 44, Heber Springs 21 #
December 5 - South Side Bee Branch 50, Heber Springs 49 #
December 10 - Heber Springs 37, Dover 32 ^
December 12 - South Side Bee Branch 64, Heber Springs 53
December 13 - Marshall 69, Heber Springs 43
December 16 - White County Central 65, Heber Springs 43
December 20 - Ozark 69, Heber Springs 34 ^
December 26 - Rose Bud 68, Heber Springs 65 (OT) *
December 27 - Batesville 72, Heber Springs 60 *
December 28 - Mayflower 66, Heber Springs 41 *
January 7 - Pottsville 59, Heber Springs 26 ^
January 10 - at Subiaco Academy 47, Heber Springs 28 ^
January 14 - Dardanelle 70, Heber Springs 13 ^
January 17 - at Clarksville ^
January 21 - Morrilton ^
January 24 - Dover ^
January 28 - at Pottsville ^
January 31 - at Ozark ^
February 4 - at Dardanelle ^
February 7 - Subiaco Academy ^
February 11 - at Morrilton ^
February 14 - Clarksville (Senior Night) ^
February 17 - 4A-4 District at Dardanelle

(# - Denotes Conway St. Joseph Tournament)
(^ - Denotes 4A-4 conference contest) 
(* - Steve Landers' Cowboy Chevrolet Holiday Classic at Heber Springs)

Game and Fish stock more than 9.3 million fish in 2019 in Arkansas waters

January 14, 2020

By RANDY ZELLERS/AGFC

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas Game and Fish Commission hatcheries produced and stocked more than 9.3 million fish during 2019 to improve fishing conditions for Arkansas anglers in 2019.

Tommy Laird, AGFC Assistant Chief of Fisheries who coordinates the efforts of four warmwater hatcheries and one coldwater hatchery operated by the agency, says last year was a typical production year despite some setbacks caused by flooding in spring.

“The flooding we saw in some parts of the state eliminated the contribution from some of the nursery ponds on some lakes,” Laird said. “But in high-water years, boosts to natural reproduction from the thousands of acres of additional spawning habitat can often outweigh the shot-in-the-arm our nursery ponds may give, so that’s not entirely a bad thing. In a lake with abundant habitat and stable water levels, Mother Nature can produce many more fish than our hatchery system.”

Fluctuating temperatures also played havoc on the hatcheries’ abilities to get certain species to spawn.

“Our Florida bass broodstock did not get good spawns last year, and we were worried about meeting our production goal,” Laird said. “We did get some younger bass to spawn late and stocked our growing ponds at lower densities than usual. To our surprise, we saw much higher than normal survival rates of those fish as they grew in the ponds.”

Laird explained that only 40 to 50 percent of Florida largemouth fry that go into a hatchery pond actually make it to fingerling size. The rest are typically eaten by larger fry from the same spawn. However, with the lower stocking rate, the hatcheries saw survival rates of 60 percent and higher, which allowed them to surpass their stocking goal of 1.4 million Florida largemouth bass stocked in the state.

“It was a good learning experience and may play into future hatchery management as we move forward with our Florida bass program,” Laird said. “We are increasing production of this species, and this lesson may pay off in the long run.”

Strictly looking at the numbers, threadfin shad made up the largest amount of fish stocked in Arkansas last year, and stockings of forage species have been well received by anglers throughout the state. However, there’s more to the stockings than overall numbers. The sizes at which the fish are stocked play a key role in the survival and contribution that stocking may play in a lake or river.

Laird says channel catfish and rainbow trout likely represent the best survival rate, as most of them are near 10- to 12 inches when they are released for fishing derbies and seasonal fisheries to get anglers hooked.

“These two species can be fed commercial feed and raised to larger sizes,” Laird said. “They’re also good choices for introducing a new angler to the sport with inexpensive gear.”

Stocking is only part of fisheries management, but it often is the first solution that comes to mind for anglers.

“We have to use our resources wisely and concentrate our efforts where they have the best chances of success,” said AGFC Fisheries Chief Ben Batten. “Simply throwing more fish into a lake with a habitat problem won’t create a great fishery, but stocking can play a key role in some waters that have issues with inconsistent reproduction.”

Batten points to one study in 2004 where 17 percent of fish found in the backwater areas of the Pine Bluff pool of the Arkansas River were identified as having previously been stocked. This is probably a best-case scenario on a year when natural reproduction was not very successful due to high river flows.

“Those results are not typical,” Batten said. “But they do show that stocking can be beneficial on the Arkansas River in years when prolonged high flows through spring and summer reduce the spawning success and survival of native spawned fish.”

Number of fish stocked per species in Arkansas during 2019:

Florida Largemouth Bass	1,526,869
Northern Largemouth Bass	648,834
Smallmouth Bass	24,338
Striped Bass	660,415
Hybrid Striped Bass	84,200
Bluegill	98,051
Redear Sunfish	126,715
Channel Catfish	567,526
Flathead Catfish	13,431
Threadfin Shad	2,936,206
White Crappie	7,150
Black Crappie	197,097
Walleye	338,354
Saugeye	124,861
Golden Shiners	205,340
Grass Carp	28,619
Fathead Minnows	185,000
Brook Trout	32,695
Cutthroat Trout	98,786
Brown Trout	95,951
Rainbow Trout	1,497,992
Total	9,498,430