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WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2010
The
Daily Citizen MORRIS
ELECTED MAYOR — P 3A AGE
Wallace wins in Bald Knob
By Luke Jones ljones@thedailycitizen.com Doyle Wallace won the Bald Knob mayoral runoff Tuesday with a comfortable lead. “Well, I'll tell you, this was one race where I could not get a feel for whether I'm doing better or whether [Bob Carpenter’s] doing better,” Wallace said. “It was a good, clean race, there wasn't any mud slinging or anything like that. We're friends,
our families have been friends for years.” Wallace said the race was positive. “It feels good,” he said. “Being an old exfootball coach, you always want to win when in competition. I feel like we have WALLACE got some things to offer. I have a lot of friends in Bald
Knob I'm looking forward to it.” For the immediate future,Wallace plans to relax and get his bearings in town. “This has been a struggle,” he said. “I'll have to wait and look into the situation— I'm not up on the different departments—between now and then I'll find out everything that needs to be done and do my best to get them done.” “I was mayor before,” he said. “I was on the city council for six years
and so I know quite a bit about how things are done. I’m not really up on what needs to be done currently, but it won't take me long to learn.” “I want to congratulate Bob Carpenter on a good, clean race without having anything negative to say about each other—which is a little unusual in local, small town politics—everything went off well,” he said. “It feels good and I'm just CONTINUED ON PAGE 3A
Election results Final unofficial election results.
Searcy Mayor David Morris Belinda LaForce
2,022 (59.58%) 1,372 (40.42%)
Bald Knob Mayor Doyle Wallace Bob Carpenter
226 (58.85%) 158 (41.15%)
Pangburn Mayor James Williams Harold E. Glenn
123 (68.33%) 57 (31.67%)
Pangburn mayor stays in office
Current, future voters come to polls
Williams wins with 68 percent of vote
By Luke Jones ljones@thedailycitizen.com After the Pangburn mayoral race came to a head, the runoff ended with incumbent James Williams back in office. “I want to thank everyone that came out and voted for me and the mayor,” said police chief Harold Glenn, who faced Williams in the runoff. “It shows that the people WILLIAMS of Pangburn do care. I believe that the people have spoken and are satisfied with what has gone one for the past four years, and the city CONTINUED ON PAGE 3A
Poll worker Frankie Mitchell, right, sets up a voting machine for Barbara Headley and grandson Tanner Balmer, 2, looks on at the Downtown Church of Christ in Searcy Tuesday afternoon. Jacob Brower/jbrower@thedailycitizen.com
Burge appointed Bald Knob interim superintendent Plan to purchase buses is on the move
By M. A. Webb Special to The Daily Citizen BALD KNOB — The school board unanimously named former Riverview School District Superintendent Hugh Burge as the interim superintendent. Burge will serve from Dec. 1 until the end of the school term. The decision came at the regularly scheduled school board meeting Monday night.
After serving three and a half years, the current superintendent, James Staggs, is retiring at the end of the month. Burge addressed the board saying that he had the highest regard for Staggs. “I have big shoes to fill,” Burge said. Burge pledged to work toward yielding positive results for the children of Bald Knob. In other business, transportation director Gary Vest recommended that the school board purchase two buses.
WEATHER
Today: Showers likely. Highs around 70. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph. Tonight: Cloudy. Lows in the mid 50s. South winds 10 to 15 mph. Vol. 156, No. 281 ©2010 The Daily Citizen
He explained that the buses would replace bus Nos. 9 and 10. Vest said that he had compiled three bids and suggested that the board buy the least expensive buses. The board unanimously agreed to acquire two 71-passenger buses for $68,600 each. The board unanimously accepted two personnel recommendations. Custodian Paula Wright was moved from substitute status to a salaried position David Landers was hired as a bus driver.
Elementary teacher Kari Nixon and middle school instructor Stephanie Muckelberg were acknowledged for achieving National Board Certification. The Elementary and Middle School Chess Team was honored for their performance at the Wilbur D. Mills Co-Op competition. The next meeting of the Bald Knob School Board will be 6 p.m. Dec. 27. The board meets the fourth Monday of each month at 103 W. Park.
INDEX NATION & STATE, 2A OPINIONS, 4A LIFESTYLES, 5A CALENDAR/OBITUARIES, 6A SPORTS, 1B CLASSIFIEDS, 5B
“
AGFC wants lawsuit tossed
The Associated Press LITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission is asking a judge in Pulaski County to dismiss a lawsuit filed by its former chairman who says the panel's committee structure is illegal and violates the state constitution. Sheffield Nelson sued the seven-member commission in Pulaski County Circuit Court in September, claiming that it is violating the state Constitution. Nelson claims in the lawsuit that the panel's committee rules allow three members to "exercise total and complete domination and control" of the commission's actions.
That's what mayors do. They lobby Congress to provide resources for their city. MAXINE WATERS
American politician, 1938
Contact us: 3000 E. Race, Searcy, AR 72143, (Phone) 501-268-8621, (Fax) 501-268-6277
”
The Daily Citizen
FROM PAGE ONE
David Morris celebrates with wife Gail after two of four Searcy precincts were announced at the White County Courthouse Tuesday evening. Morris unseated incumbent Mayor Belinda LaForce, 59 percent to 41 percent. Jacob
Morris unseats LaForce in Searcy mayor’s race Brower/jbrower@thedailycitizen.com
Former county judge wins by 3-to-2 margin
By Warren Watkins warren@thedailycitizen.com Former White County Judge David Morris was elected mayor of Searcy Tuesday in a run-off three weeks after the General Election. Current Mayor Belinda LaForce was voted out by a 60 percent to 40 percent margin, and her eight-year occupancy of the city’s LAFORCE chief executive’s office will end in 38 days on Dec. 31. “What do I say?� Morris said moments after White County Election Chairman Winston Collier announced the results, prompting an eruption of cheering from a group of his supporters on the second floor of the courthouse. “I want to thank all the people of Searcy that put their trust and confidence in me since February when I announced I was going to run.� Unofficial results showed Morris garnered 2,022 votes to LaForce’s 1,372. “This election wasn’t about David Morris, it was about a lot of people working hard,� Morris said. Morris, who will take the oath of office Jan. 1, said he will work on a easy transfer of power with the current administration. “I look forward to working with
Wednesday, November 24, 2010 • Page 3A
3 groups sue EPA
By Frederic J. Frommer The Associated Press WASHINGTON — Three environmental groups sued the Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday to force it to prevent lead poisoning of wildlife from spent ammunition and lost fishing tackle. ThelawsuitwasfiledinU.S. District Court by the Center for Biological Diversity, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and the hunters group Project Gutpile. It comes after the EPA denied their petition to ban lead ammunition and lead fishing tackle, which the groups say kills 10 million to 20 million birds and other animals a year by lead poisoning. "The EPA has the ability to protect America's wildlife from ongoing preventable lead poisoning, but continues to shirk its responsibility," said Jeff Miller, conservation advocate with the Center for Biological Diversity. The lawsuit asks a judge to order the EPA to develop rules to prevent wildlife poisoning from spent lead ammunition and fishing tackle. In August, the EPA denied the ammunition part of the petition, saying it didn't have authority under the Toxic Substances Control Act. A few weeks ago, it rejected the fishing tackle portion, saying the petition didn't demonstrate a ban was necessary to protect
against unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment, as required by the law. In the lawsuit, the groups say that EPA erred when it said it didn't have the authority to ban lead ammunition. They argued that the legislative history of the Toxic Substances Control Act makes it clear that components of ammunition — shots and bullets — may be regulated as chemical substances. The groups' original petition cited nearly 500 peerreviewed scientific articles that they said document the toxic effects of lead on wildlife, and the lawsuit argues that large amounts of lead continue to be deposited into the environment. According to the lawsuit, animals often mistake lead shotgun pellets and fishing tackle for food, grit or bone fragments, and avian scavengers are particularly vulnerable to lead in carcasses, gut piles and wounded prey species. Gordon Robertson, vice president of the American Sportfishing Association, said the EPA got the decision right the first time. "We fundamentally think this is the jurisdiction of state fish and wildlife agencies to address these types of problems where they may exist," he said. "The data shows this is not a population problem as it relates to the use of lead in fishing gear."
White County Election Commission Chairman Winston Collier reads the final election results at around 8:30 p.m. Tuesday at the White County Courthouse, as David Morris and wife Gail listen from the front row. Jacob Brower/jbrower@thedailycitizen.com
Mayor LaForce on a smooth transition,� Morris said. “I’ve got a lot of specifics to learn about the city budget and I want to meet with all the department heads in the very near future.� The vote tally was significant, Morris said. “I feel like the people of Searcy have made a statement,� Morris said. “I pledge to them to treat everyone fair and equal and do the best of my ability to lead our city government.� LaForce said she was disappointed with the outcome of the race, but pledged a smooth transition.
“We had a very positive campaign, and I’m very proud of that,� she said. “We knew the outcome of a run-off could go either way, but we accept the outcome and we’ll move on from here.� LaForce thanked those who supported her throughout the campaign, and during her tenure as mayor. “I think the hardest part about leaving is all the wonderful relationships and friendships I’ve had with everyone in the city. I appreciate their support. It will be tough not being here to see the city through some things, but I’ll turn those over to the hands of the incoming mayor and I’m sure things will turn out great.�
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Cliff Lee gives $1M to Ark. Children's Hospital
The Associated Press LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas Children's Hospital says Texas Rangers pitcher Cliff Lee and his wife, Kristen, have donated $1 million to fund an endowed chair
in pediatric hematology and oncology. Lee, an Arkansas native, made the donation in honor of his son, Jaxon, who battled cancer as an infant atArkansas Children's Hospital.
The donation also honors Dr. Robert Saylors, who was Jaxon's physician at Children's Hospital. Jaxon was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia, a cancer that starts in the blood marrow, when he
was 4 months old. He's now healthy and cancer-free. Lee led the Rangers to their first World Series appearance this year, and he's one of the top free agents in the league right now.
sition as smoothly as possible.� “It’s not the end of the
world or anything,� he said. “The sun's still going to come up. I congratulated [Wallace]
and I'm sure he'll be down in the next few days and we'll start to transition.�
Bald Knob: Doyle Wallace wins in Bald Knob race
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1A
going to kind of lay back for just a little while here and absorb what this all means.� Carpenter also expressed relief that the race was over. “There was low voter turnout,� he said. “But I’ve already called [Wallace] and congratulated him for winning. I said I’d help him tran-
Pangburn:
Mayor stays in office
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council will be at ease now.� Williams refused to comment for this story. Glenn said the race did not go quite the way he expected. “[The results were] pretty surprising, after the man said he didn't want the job,� Glenn said. “When it comes to relations like this, it's complicated. I'm sure that the mayor and I will be talking pretty soon and we'll thrash things out. I just want it understood that when I got into this race, mayor Williams had told me that he did not want to continue serving as mayor.�
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The
Daily Citizen
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2010
SPORTS
SECTION B Interim Sports Editor Annette Whitehead 501-268-8621 awhitehead@thedailycitizen.com
BISONS CELEBRATE HOMECOMING WITH VICTORY
Harding dominates Tech 42-7
T
By Annette Whitehead awhitehead@thedailycitizen.com he Bisons celebrated their 51st Homecoming game with a victory Saturday when they beat out Arkansas Tech 42-7 at First Security Stadium. “I couldn’t be prouder,” said Head coach Ronnie Huckeba. “I’ve been saying all year long that this is a really good football team. I think today we proved, without a doubt, that we are. I’m so proud of our guys because we had a great week of practice. We have been extremely focused. We’ve become more encouraging, more positive, and today was a culmination of that.” The Bisons rushed more than 300 yards against Arkansas Tech, which has only allowed an average of 66 yards per game. Most of those yards were from Kale Gelles, who had 257 yards. “The O-line was a big part of it,” Gelles said. “When I did get the ball and could see an opening, it was huge. I’d just try to run as fast as I can, which isn’t very fast.” Gelles now has more than 1,000 career rushing yards and he said he’s trying to increase his speed. “Jeremy Holt is trying to teach me to be faster and he said, ‘you have got to trust your speed,’” Gelles said. “So I kept looking forward and tried not to look back. I’m always expecting someone from behind.”
42
7
Harding wide receiver Jordan Watson jumps for a pass from quarterback Josh Powell during The Bison's 42-7 Homecoming win over Arkansas Tech Saturday. Jacob Brower/jbrower@thedailycitizen.com
CONTINUED ON PAGE 3B
Harding running back Kale Gelles rushes past a pack of Arkansas Tech defenders during the Bisons' 42-7 Homecoming win over the Wonder Boys at First Security Stadium Saturday afternoon. Gelles rushed for 257 yards in the contest. Jacob Brower/jbrower@thedailycitizen.com
Harding wins 3rd straight GSC title
By Nathan Looney Special to The Daily Citizen HOOVER, Ala. – The Harding men’s cross country cruised to its third straight Gulf South Conference championship and its 10th in the last 11 seasons on Saturday at KIRWA Veterans Park. Junior Daniel Kirwa became the first runner ever to win the GSC individual championship three straight seasons. Harding, ranked 10th nationally in Division II, finished with 24 points and won by 39 points over second-place West Florida (63 points). Kirwa finished the 8K race in 25 minutes, 15.50 seconds. Three other Harding runners also earned 1st Team All-GSC honors. Junior Philip Biwott placed second in 25:36.12, and senior Wojciech Kopec was third in 25:59.24. Freshman Taylor Lively placed sixth in 26:19.54. Sophomore Manase Busienei placed 12th in 26:43.47, and junior Ryan Johnson placed 14th in 26:46.29. Both earned 2nd Team All-GSC. The Bisons will be back in action on Nov. 20 at the NCAA Division II South Region Meet in Huntsville, Ala.
Women’s XC places LSU trickery works again in 2nd at GSC meet
24-21 victory over Alabama
Harding University senior midfielder Hayley Withrow had four shots in the game against West Florida Friday. The Lady Bisons finished the season with an 8-9-1 record. HU Sports Information
Lady Bisons fall to West Florida in tourney
By Nathan Looney Special to The Daily Citizen PENSACOLA, Fla. – The Harding women’s soccer team saw their season come to end on Friday as they fell to No. 7 West Florida 5-0 in the first round of the Gulf South Conference Tournament in Pensacola, Fla. The Lady Bisons finish the 2010 campaign with an 8-9-1 record. Harding stayed with the 2010 GSC regular season champions until the 19th minute when Jodi-Ann Robinson put the Lady Argonauts on the board. West Florida forward Shakira Duncan, GSC Player of the Year, had the first of her three goals when she found the back of the
net in the 24th minute. A minute and a half later, Noha Saleh found Duncan for her second goal on the day. The Lady Argonauts took a 3-0 lead into halftime. Duncan completed her hat trick in the 47th minute with Tina Murray found Duncan for her 30th goal on the season, which leads the GSC. Robinson finished the scoring for the Lady Argonauts in the 61st minute when she found the back of the net for her 19th goal on the season. Harding took 14 shots in the match, four were on goal. Senior goalkeeper Chelsea Hornbeck had four saves for Harding.
By Brett Martel The Associated Press BATON ROUGE, La. — As Les Miles' latest stab at fourth-down trickery was about to unfold, the LSU coach bent down, snatched up some blades of grass — and ate them. "I have a little tradition that humbles me as a man, that lets me know that I'm a part of the field and part of the game," Miles said as a smile widened on his face. "You should have seen some games before this. I can tell you one thing: The grass in Tiger Stadium tastes best." What Miles saw next was even sweeter for him than anything coming out of the sprawling sugar cane fields only a few miles away. DeAngelo Peterson went 23 yards with a reverse on fourth-and-1 to set up Stevan Ridley's go-ahead 1-yard plunge in the fourth quarter, and No. 12 LSU held on for a 24-21 upset of the fifth-ranked Crimson Tide on Saturday. The victory added to Miles' growing resume of audacious fourth-down conversions — the most recent a fake field goal to set up a winning TD at Florida. Miles, who
fans call the Mad Hatter, argued his playcalling isn't always as risky as it seems. "We practice these things. It's not a grab bag," said Miles, who called a timeout before running the play. "This play looked to be there and it was prepared extremely well by our team and it would have been a mistake not to call it." The triumphant result inspired players to give Miles the game ball and brought roars of approval from fans that for now should drown out any critics still longing for the days when Nick Saban coached LSU. The victory came at Saban's expense and likely knocked Alabama (7-2, 4-2 SEC) out of contention for a second straight national championship. Now the Crimson Tide will need LSU (8-1, 5-1) to lose twice and Georgia to beat Auburn just to have a shot to repeat as SEC West champions. "This whole year, everyone around us has been very concerned about the results in comparison to what was accomplished a year ago, and that has not been the best thing for the development of this team," Saban said. "They have become too resultoriented, and we never have developed to become as good a team as we can be. ... How we respond to this will show us what kind of character we have and what kind of pride we have."
No. 4 TCU blasts No. 6 Utah, 47-7
By Lynn DeBruin The Associated Press SALT LAKE CITY — As a smattering of TCU fans chanted his name, quarterback Andy Dalton ran into the visitors locker room satisfied that the Horned Frogs had made a statement. "We showed we can play with anybody," he said. Dalton passed for a career-high 355 yards and three touchdowns and the fourth-ranked Horned Frogs turned the biggest game in Mountain West Conference history into 477 demolition of No. 6 Utah on Saturday. From the opening drive, TCU looked every bit like a team worthy of busting into the BCS championship game.
Dalton passed for two first-quarter TDs and receiver Jeremy Kerley, a QB in high school, also threw a TD pass as TCU (10-0, 6-0) jumped out to an early 20-0 lead, quieting a sellout crowd clad almost entirely in black for the "blackout" showdown. By halftime, the Horned Frogs had outgained Utah 328-72 en route to a 23-0 lead. They finished with an advantage in every statistical category: first downs (23-11), rushing yards ( 177-51), passing yards (381148), and third-down conversions (.66.7 percent to 23 percent) . "They smoked us. It's disheartening. We got killed," Utah defensive end Christian Cox said.
By Nathan Looney Special to The Daily Citizen HOOVER, Ala. – The Harding women’s cross country team placed second among 14 teams at the Gulf South Conference Championships, held Saturday at Veterans Park. Harding, ranked No. 3 in the NCAA II South Region, had two runners in the top three and four in the top 20 and finished LANDECKER with 68 points. Alabama-Huntsville, the No. 2 team in the region, won the meet with 52 points. The Lady Bisons will be back in action in two weeks at the NCAA II South Region Meet in Huntsville, Ala. The top two finishers at the Regional Meet advance to the NCAA II National Meet in Louisville, Ky. Sophomore Naomi Landecker placed second for Harding, finishing the 5K race in 19 minutes, 4.16 seconds. She earned 1st Team All-GSC honors for the second straight season after finishing ninth last season. Junior Gladys Kimtai placed third for Harding in 19:15.30. It was Kimtai’s third straight All-GSC honor. She has finished in the top four each time. Harding had two runners earn 2nd Team All-GSC honors. Senior Rysper Sirma placed 13th in 19:51.47, and junior Mary Samoei placed 15th in 19:53.97. The Lady Bisons fifth runner was senior Laura Lovett, who placed 35th in 21:01.35. Jeniffer Cherono of Alabama-Huntsville won the race in 18:45.81.
SPORTS
The
Daily Citizen
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 14, 2010
SECTION B Interim Sports Editor Annette Whitehead 501-268-8621 awhitehead@thedailycitizen.com
Bald Knob passes playoff test
Bulldogs advance to second round, will visit Harding Academy
By Warren Watkins warren@thedailycitizen.com BALD KNOB — The stage was set for a local showdown this Friday night with the Bald Knob Bulldogs against the Harding Academy Wildcats as Bald Knob made short work of Lafayette County Friday
BALD KNOB VS. LAFAYETTE COUNTY
Final score: Bald Knob 56, Lafayette County 20 Next for Bald Knob: Visit Harding Academy, 7:30 p.m. Friday Big dog: Chris Joyce, 85-yard interception TD
night, winning 56-20 in the first round of the state playoffs.
The Bulldogs started slow, giving up the ball on their first drive when quarterback Cordell Crisp threw the first of two interceptions of the game and the Cougars marched to the Bald Knob nine. The Bulldog defense held, however, and with 4:27 left in the first quarter Bald Knob began a seven-play, 91-yard scoring drive capped by a touchdown pass to Jordan Johnston. Bald Knob got the ball back on an interception at 1:29 left in the
first quarter and eight plays later was once again in the end zone and enjoying a 14-0 lead just as the second quarter began. Recovering their own onside kick, the Bulldogs quickly fumbled on the next play, but the Cougars were unable to take advantage. With 3:03 left in the first half Lafayette burst into the endzone with a 51-yard run and with a failed CONTINUED ON PAGE 4B
BISONS END SEASON WITH LAST-MINUTE HOME WIN
SEARCY LIONS
Friday's result: Lost to Texarkana 26-14 on the road in the first round of the playoffs. Final record: 5-6
Lions end gridiron season 5-6
By Annette Whitehead awhitehead@thedailycitizen.com Searcy’s head football coach Tim Harper spoke with pride as he discussed his team’s end to the season. The Lions traveled more than three hours Friday night to get to the field where they would ultimately play their last game of this year. They faced Texarkana in the first round of playoff games, but the home team won out, beating Searcy 26-14. “I think it was a better ballgame than the score indicated,” said head coach Tim Harper. “Overall we played well, offensively and defensively.” Harper said some of the issues were mentality, special teams and bad field position. “They were up 16-7 at the half,” he said. “They’d gotten a safety. The kids responded well. It was 19-14 early in the fourth.” The coach said after a penalty against the Lions for roughing the punter got the opposing team a new set of downs, it was over. Harper said the long trip didn’t affect the team, but the weather did. “It was pouring rain,” he said. “We had to go for it on fourth and eight and were unable to complete it.” Senior running back Jacob Mowrer said the rain did hinder the team, but he’s glad for the experience. “It’s always good to be in the playoffs,” he said. “We had a good team, and I thought we’d CONTINUED ON PAGE 4B
Harding running back Colton Kamper crosses the goal line for a touchdown during the second quarter of the Bisons' season finale against North Alabama at First Security Stadium Saturday afternoon. Jacob Brower/jbrower@thedailycitizen.com
Harding defeats No. 15 North Alabama
H
Bisons defensive back Eddie Russ Jr. intercepts a North Alabama pass in the end zone during the second quarter of Harding's season finale against the Lions Saturday afternoon. Jacob Brower/ jbrower@thedailycitizen.com
By Annette Whitehead awhitehead@thedailycitizen.com arding ended the season on a high note against No. 15 North Alabama Saturday at First Security Stadium, making a last-minute comeback to win 29-28. Harding was the first to put points on the board when Colton Kamper scored his first touchdown of the season just five minutes into the game. North Alabama answered back with an interception, only the second for Harding this season. Three plays later, the Lions were on the board with a tied score. Harding missed its next opportunity to score with a missed field goal from Adin Menkin from the 42-yard line, but was able to come up with a fumble recovery not long after. Though the first quarter ended with the tied score, that didn’t last long. With the Bisons on the 4yard line, it only took one play and four seconds for Kamper to score his second touchdown. Halfway into the quarter, the Bisons inched the score up with
29 28 a 26-yard field goal by Menkin. Three minutes later, Harding lengthened its lead with a 49yard rush by Jeremy Holt. The Lions took over after a Harding fumble at the 17-yard line, and was able to get a score with 38 seconds left in the half, leaving the score at 23-14 at the half. The third quarter started off badly for the Bisons when they fumbled the ball and North Alabama ran it 73 yards for the first touchdown of the second half. The rest of the quarter was saturated with fumbles and penalties, adding to Harding’s season-high of seven fumbles during the game. North Alabama was the team able to benefit
from the mistakes, scoring a touchdown with less than two minutes left on the clock, taking the lead. The third quarter ended after the Lions recovered another fumble from the Bisons, but the score stayed at 28-23. “They’ve got great players,” said head coach Ronnie Huckeba. “They were causing those turnovers. They made some adjustments at halftime and gave us some different looks. The looks they gave us were a little bit more difficult for us to decipher out there. I think we finally figured it out, but when we figured it out, we’d already allowed them to establish some momentum.” The fourth quarter was scoreless until the final 45 seconds. The Bisons got the ball with two minutes left and were able to convert two fourth down plays before setting up for the final touchdown when quarterback Josh Powell connected with Jordan Watson on a leaping 22-yard catch into the end zone to bring the Bisons just a point ahead of UNA. The catch by Watson gave him more CONTINUED ON PAGE 2B
Persa leads Northwestern past No. 13 Iowa, 21-17
By Andrew Seligman The Associated Press EVANSTON, Ill. — Dan Persa's last pass of the season gave Northwestern it's biggest victory of the year. The Wildcats' star quarterback connected with Demetrius Fields on 20-yard TD pass to with 1:22 to play, then ruptured his PERSA Achilles'tendonwhen he started running to join his celebrat-
ing teammates. Persa accounted for all three Northwestern touchdowns in a 21-17 victory Saturday that dealt a severe blow to No. 13 Iowa's Big Ten title hopes. The injury will end Persa's season. "He'll be back and ready to for his senior year," coach Pat Fitzgerald said. "When you look at the first chapter for him as a full-time starter, it's pretty impressive. One thing I know about Dan is he won't be satisfied, No. 1. No. 2, you better look out because he's going to come back."
Persa threw for 318 yards and capped an 85-yard TD drive with a 6-yard pass to Jeremy Ebert with 6:21 to go to bring the Wildcats within three. The touchdown throw to Fields completed a 91-yard drive, but Persa never even reached his joyous teammates. Persa was on the ground, holding his right leg. He was helped to the sideline and several of his teammates circled the table he was on to keep TV cameras away. Persa was scheduled to undergo surgery later Saturday.
Iowa (7-3, 4-2 Big Ten) is now a long shot to win the Big Ten and its home game against Ohio State next week just lost much of its luster. Again Northwestern (7-3, 3-3) played spoiler to the Hawkeyes, beating Iowa for the fifth time in six games. "The Big Ten race, obviously we're out of that," quarterback Ricky Stanzi said. And for that, he was blaming himself. Northwestern was trailing 17-7 after Stanzi threw two touchdowns passes early in the third quarter.
BEEBE BADGERS
Friday's result: Lost to Alma 34-14 at home in the first round of the playoffs. Final record: 6-5
Badgers’ loss brings end to winning season
By Alexandra McClain Special to The Daily Citizen After a promising conference season, Beebe took the field Friday in what would turn out to be their final game of the season. “The score makes it look worse than it was,” Badgers Head Coach John Shannon of his team’s 34-14 loss to Alma in the first round of the playoffs Friday night. “We played a good game, we played them close.” The Badgers drew first blood only 10 seconds into the second quarter when quarterback Scot Gowen connected with Chase Weatherly on a 57 yard pass to go up 7-0, but the Airedales answered by returning the subsequent kickoff for a touchdown. Entering halftime, the Badgers trailed 14-7. After tying it up in the third, the Airedales scored three unanswered touchdowns. “It was a tough loss, especially for our seniors, we weren't ready for the season to end but we made some mistakes and they capitalized on them,” Shannon said. Jay Holdway and Michael Kirby lead Beebe's offense. Holdway had 20 carries for 130 yards and Kirby chipped in 100. The Badgers had more total offense than Alma, 369 yards, 308 coming from the ground game, compared to the Airedales 323 yards. The defense held Alma's key play maker Isaac McCoy in check, allowing him only 5 CONTINUED ON PAGE 3B
The
Daily Citizen
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2010
SPORTS
SECTION B Interim Sports Editor Annette Whitehead 501-268-8621 awhitehead@thedailycitizen.com
Searcy offense hits stride against LR Hall
By Chris O’Dell codell@thedailycitizen.com The Searcy offense has struggled at times this season, but never bigger than in last week’s 34-0 loss to Jonesboro. So when the Lions put up 39 points on confer- HARPER ence foe Little Rock Hall Friday night, head coach Tim Harper said he was pleased with his team’s week nine performance. “It’s always a good thing when you put points up on the board,” Harper said. “We overcame some mistakes tonight and I was proud of them for that.” The Lions took a 21-0 lead into halftime behind three touchdowns from the ground game — two from senior Mike Brown and one from
running back Jacob Mowrer. “We finally started clicking,” Mowrer said. The Lions didn’t let up in the second half either. Quarterback Dezmond Stegall connected with Preston Tarkington for a long touchdown pass and Stegall ran in a 49-yard touchdown on the ground to put Searcy up 33-0 after three quarters of play. “This win was big for us,” Harper said. “We should have clinched a playoff spot with this win.” The Lions held on to win the game 39-8 and now get Mountain Home at Lion Stadium in week 10. “It’s a big game as far as seeding goes,” Harper said. “We could be anywhere from the four, five or six seed depending on what happens next week. So we’re looking forward to it.” The game between the CONTINUED ON PAGE 2B
Searcy defenders tackle a Jonesboro ball carrier during week eight. Searcy will face Mountain Home at Lion Stadium Friday at 7 p.m. Ricky Davis/Special to The Daily Citizen
HARDING CELEBRATES A BIG VICTORY AT HOME 33 26
Bisons win, 33-26
T
By Annette Whitehead awhitehead@thedailycitizen.com he Bisons celebrated the first of three home games with a win against Arkansas-Monticello Saturday with a final score of 33-26. Arkansas-Monticello started scoring with an early field goal just five minutes into the game. On Harding’s second possession, the Bisons fumbled and allowed the Boll Weevils to recover, but UAM couldn’t follow through with a score. The Boll Weevil offense dominated the time of possession in the first quarter, having the ball over 12 minutes, but had trouble getting the ball into the end zone. Terrence Davis intercepted a pass from UAM in the end zone, and it took the Bisons only two plays to get on the board. After a five-yard run on first down, the Bisons took the ball 75 yards down the field when quarterback Chaz Rogers connected to Jordan Watson who ran it into the end zone. The Bisons led 7-3 at the end of the first quarter. The Bisons started the second quarter by blocking a field goal attempt by Taylor Pontius of the Boll Weevils, but even after that and another interception by Davis, the Bisons couldn’t turn up a score. The Boll Weevils scored after a fumble by the Bisons, regaining the lead 10-7 halfway through the second quarter.
Above: Harding defensive lineman Josh Aldridge blocks a field goal attempt by ArkansasMonticello kicker Taylor Pontius at the beginning of the second quarter of the Bisons' home game against the Boll Weevils Saturday afternoon. Left: Bisons wide receiver Jeremy Holt attempts to get past Boll Weevils defensive back Cantrelle Monk in the second quarter of Saturday's contest. Jacob Brower/jbrower@ thedailycitizen.com
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Bulldogs dominate at home
By Chris O’Dell codell@thedailycitizen.com BALD KNOB — Following a tough 35-point loss to Rivercrest last week that saw 10 offensive turnovers by the Bulldogs, the Bald Knob football team made ball protection a priority during practices last week. With a 3-2 conference mark heading into Friday night’s game, head coach Paul Johnston and his team had no intention of losing a second straight conference matchBald Knob quarterback Cordell Crisp looks for an up. The Bulldogs played host to open receiver during Friday night's match-up against Hoxie. The Bulldogs move to 4-2 in conference after CONTINUED ON PAGE 3B the 35-6 win. Jacob Brower/jbrower@thedailycitizen.com
Beebe enters final week with 6 in a row
By Annette Whitehead awhitehead@thedailycitizen.com BEEBE — Beebe players were beaming despite the cold weather Friday night after winning their sixth game in a row. The Badgers came out with a 4110 victory over Nettleton in Beebe, letting them keep their perfect conference record. Nettleton hasn’t won a game yet this season. Despite the win, head coach John Shannon said he knows his team can do better. “We came out flat in the first half,” he said. “But we picked it up in the second half.” The game was scoreless for the majority of the first quarter. Beebe put the first score on the board after running back Colby Taylor ran the ball 56 yards into the end zone. The next score didn’t come until Quarterback Scot Gowen hands off to running a few minutes into the second quar- back Colby Taylor during Friday night's contest ter when Taylor got the ball again. against Nettleton. The Badgers won 41-10 and advance to 6-0 in conference play. Craig Rainbolt/ CONTINUED ON PAGE 2B
Special to The Daily Citizen