MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Hendrix’s Madelyn Klinkerman captured the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) title in the discus and finished second in the hammer, helping the Warriors to a fourth-place finish after the second day of the SAA Championships at Wolfe Track and Field Complex on the campus of Rhodes (Tenn.) on Friday. The Warriors totaled 87.5 points.

“The field events definitely carried us on the women’s side, especially in the throws,” Hendrix head coach Andrew Raske said. “It’s always great to get a 1-2-3 sweep like we did in the discus. A huge credit goes to our seniors, who gave great performances and leadership.”

Klinkerman won the discus after a throw of 39.17 meters. Jaydan Hunt finished second after a heave of 39.06 meters, Alivia Allen was third with a mark of 33.98 meters and Kya Carroll was eighth at 26.80 meters.

Klinkerman’s best hammer throw went 42.41 meters, and Allen’s was 31.05 meters.

Klinkerman and Hunt tied as the ninth-highest scorers among all participants, as each compiled 18 points.

Allison Long finished third in the long jump with a distance of 5.15 meters, while Margaret Anderson was fifth at 4.88 meters. Anderson was third in the triple jump after recording a distance of 10.40 meters, and Jackie Greenwell came in seventh with a mark of 9.41 meters. Allana Sisco tied for third in the pole vault after clearing 2.88 meters. Rachel Woppman claimed seventh in the 100 meter hurdles in 18.66 seconds.

The 4×100 meter relay team of Long, Sisco, Woppman and Romee Blokland finished fifth in 52.25 seconds. The 4×400 meter relay team of Long, Woppman, Sisco and Blokland claimed fifth with a time of 4:26.84.

The Lynx won the team championship with 258 points.

The post Klinkerman wins SAA title in discus; Warriors finish fourth appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.

LITTLE ROCK – As part of Southern Athletic Association (SAA) Championship Day on the weekend of March 13-14, Hendrix will make the 30-minute drive south to Little Rock to face an East Division opponent at War Memorial Stadium, Warriors head coach Buck Buchanan announced Friday. SAA Championship Day, organized by Buchanan and stadium event manager Rick Tilley, will feature four contests, with each pitting a West Division team against one from the East Division based on order of finish from the regular season. SAA Championship Day will mark the first time in the illustrious 70-plus year history of the historic venue that any NCAA Division III team will play a game on its grounds.

“We are grateful to the War Memorial board, the Governor’s office and the state of Arkansas for being willing to be the host for our conference championship and crossover event,” Buchanan said. “This is an opportunity to add the schools from the SAA to the list of storied programs that have played at War Memorial Stadium. This event may be the first time any of us play in front of fans all year, so this will be extra special for our players, and it will be a very special send off for all the seniors in our league. Our student-athletes deserve to have some good things happen for them this year, and it is my hope that people will come out and watch live college football in March.”

During the four-game SAA regular season starting Feb. 6, all West Division teams will play each other, while all East Division squads will square off. Sewanee (Tenn.) has opted out of the spring season and will not compete in the March event. The top team from the West Division and top finisher from the East Division will play in the 2020-21 SAA championship game. The NCAA announced in August that no traditional fall sports will crown a national champion in 2020-21.

War Memorial Stadium has played host to major college football games, concerts and events for more than 70 years. The stadium has gone through several renovations since opening in 1948.

War Memorial Stadium opened with an original seating capacity of around 31,000. Expansion has seen the stadium’s capacity grow to 54,120, but fan attendance March 13-14 will be limited to just 25 percent capacity (13,530) due to COVID-19 safety guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The once-open areas on the north and south sides of the stadium have been closed with additional seating. Concession stands and restrooms have been renovated. The press box, once voted the best in the country, was torn down, rebuilt, and reopened in 2010 as part of a $7.3 million renovation that features a new, three-story press box and major improvements in club seating.

War Memorial Stadium was dedicated as a tribute to Arkansans who had given their lives in the service of their country during the two great World Wars. The Sturgis Plaza opened in 2008 on the northwest side of the stadium as a place of remembrance and reflection. The plaza was the centerpiece of the celebration of War Memorial Stadium’s 60th anniversary and rededication.

The stadium’s first event in 1948 was a Razorbacks football game, and War Memorial Stadium has since hosted more than 200 Arkansas contests. The stadium’s tailgating atmosphere is one of the best in college sports, expanding west to the War Memorial Golf Course.

Arkansas, Arkansas State, Central Arkansas, Arkansas Pine Bluff and multiple NCAA Division II teams from the Gulf South Conference have all played games at War Memorial Stadium.

Even though the Warriors will make their first trip to War Memorial Stadium in program history, 10 current Hendrix players have already played at the venue while in high school. War Memorial Stadium is the home of the Arkansas Activities Association high school state football championship games, and six Warriors on this year’s roster – Matthew Scirto, Eli Martin, Kevin Douglas, Matthew Bennett, Will Sewell and Garrett Pritchard – played in such contests. Scirto’s Har-Ber Wildcats appeared in the 7A championship game in 2015, while Martin and Douglas won 6A titles in consecutive seasons (2017-18) with the Greenwood Bulldogs. Sewell and Pritchard won the 5A championship with Pulaski Academy for three-consecutive seasons (2015-17) before losing to Bennett and Little Rock Christian Academy in 2018. Bennett also played in the title game in 2019. Caleb Sanders played home games at War Memorial Stadium while attending Catholic, while Joshua Cole and Tanner Barrett were on the opposite sideline with Little Rock Central. Tristan Sehika, while a student at Bryant, played at War Memorial Stadium in “The Salt Bowl” against rival Benton.

Sports are not the only events to make history at War Memorial Stadium. Concerts such as the Rolling Stones, Billy Joel and Elton John, The Eagles, George Strait and N’ Sync have graced the stage at the stadium, drawing tens of thousands of fans for each show. In 2017, big concerts returned to War Memorial Stadium when Guns N’ Roses played to some 25,000 music lovers.

Hendrix returns nine projected starters on each side of the ball this season and opens its campaign Feb. 6 at Millsaps (Miss.).

The post Hendrix to play season finale at War Memorial Stadium appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.

DURANT– Southeastern’s defense pitched its second shutout of the season en route to a 21-0 win over No. 15 Southern Arkansas on Homecoming Saturday afternoon at Paul Laird Field.

The win is the fourth-straight for the Savage Storm and lifts them to 5-2 on the year and in Great American Conference play heading into a 2 p.m. matchup on Oct. 20 in Arkadelphia, Ark., against Henderson State.

The win is also the team’s first over a top-25 ranked opponent since a 55-28 win over No. 9 Central Oklahoma on Oct. 30, 2004.

“I’m proud of these guys,” said head coach Bo Atterberry. “We played well together all day.  We’re just trying to be better every day and I thought we got better today.”

“Anytime you get a zero,” he continued, “It’s a joint effort in all phases of the game.  An unbelievable effort from top to bottom.”

The Storm defense held one of the league’s best offenses to 243 total yards on the day and just 59 yards rushing.

The defense was paced by Conner Swopewith 10 tackles, including a half-sack, while Luke Craddock and Seu Luafatasaga each finished with eight stops.

Daquawn Brown added five tackles and posted a season-best five pass breakups while primarily covering Karonce Higgins who came into the contest as the GAC’s leading receiver but was held to three catches for 16 yards against Brown.

The offense finished with 323 total yards on the contest, paced by a 215-yard passing effort from Rollin Kinsaul who finished 14-of-25 in inclement weather conditions with a touchdown.

Braxton Kincade led the way with 76 yards on five catches and a touchdown receiving, while Felton hatcher hauled in six catches for 63 yards with Jaylen Simsadding two catches for 46 yards.

The Storm finished with 108 yards rushing on the day, led by Kenneth Burks who had 57 yards on 18 carries with a touchdown, while Ryan Taylor added 46 yards on 10 carries with a score of his own.

The teams traded three-and-out drives to open the game, with SAU punter Jordan White connecting on a 78-yard punt that pinned the Storm at its own two-yard line.

SE would proceed to march 98 yards on eight plays, bolstered by a pair of big play Kinsaul to Hatcher connections before Kinsaul would find Kincade for an 18 yard TD toss with 4:24 to go in the first quarter for a 7-0 lead.

That score would hold up over the next two quarters until the Storm took over to start the fourth quarter at its own 32 yard line and went 68 yards in seven plays before Burks s cored from two yards out to push the advantage to 14-0 with 12:24 to play.

Southeastern would hold on SAU’s following drive and take over at its own 19 yard line and use a 16-play drive that burned 9:00 off the clock before Taylor scored from four yards out to put the Storm in front 21-0 with 1:06 to play.

The Muleriders would threaten to end the shutout on their final drive, but a Craddock tackle at the SE five yard line would end the final play and keep SAU off the scoreboard.

The post Savage Storm defense shuts out No. 15 Muleriders appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.

SILOAM SPRINGS – The No. 18 John Brown University women’s basketball team sank six triples in the first quarter and built a commanding 28-5 lead after the first quarter and used 17 total treys in the contest to start 2018 off with a decisive 103-27 victory of Central Christian of the Bible (Mo.) inside Bill George Arena on Monday afternoon.

The Golden Eagles (8-4) shot 17-of-35 from behind the arc, tying the third-most triples made in any game in program history. Junior Karina Chandra was nearly unstoppable by knocking down 5-of-7 from long range, including a 7-of-9 effort from the field to pace the hosts with 19 points, six assists and five rebounds, helping JBU improve to 5-3 at home this season.

A pair of triples from senior Jana Schammel and another from sophomore Sara Williams bolstered an early 11-0 lead for John Brown before CCCB could find the scoreboard.

The Saints (2-7) dressed just five players as the quintet of players each logged the entirety of the 40 minutes, committing just three fouls in the contest.

Struggling from the field all afternoon, the visitors managed converting just 10-of-51 attempts from the floor (19.6 percent), while committing 24 turnovers and facing a 45-30 rebounding disadvantage.

JBU hit the 20-point mark in each quarter, led by a perfect shooting effort from the floor from junior Baily Cameron. Hitting 8-of-8, Cameron registered 17 points while Schammel finished with 14, marking a trio of players in double-figure scoring.

Senior Courtney Fine hit 2-of-2 from three-point range while Williams added a 3-of-5 mark from downtown.

Assisting on 32 of 42 field goals (76.2 percent), 13 of 14 players who saw action scored for John Brown, defensively, sophomore Ally Teague and junior Preslea Reece each registered a pair of rejections in the lopsided affair.

JBU closed out the non-conference portion of its 2017-18 slate with a 6-3 record against non-league opponents.

While the Golden Eagles were able to field 13 players after a two-week hiatus, JBU returns to action on Thursday (Jan. 4) when John Brown welcomes Wayland Baptist (Texas) back to Bill George Arena, this time for a Sooner Athletic Conference matchup at 6 p.m. The Flying Queens (9-1) sport a perfect 3-0 league record and just had its 9-0 start snapped with a 65-52 setback to No. 3 Campbellsvile (Ky.) on Dec. 21.

SILOAM SPRINGS – In his first-career start, freshman Nathan Corder shot 6-of-12 from behind the arc and scored a team-best 19 points, leading the John Brown University men’s basketball team to an 89-63 win over Central Christian of the Bible (Mo.) on Monday afternoon inside Bill George Arena.

With the victory, the Golden Eagles (7-4) finish non-conference play with a 5-3 record and improve to 4-3 at home on the season. John Brown will now finish the week with a pair of Sooner Athletic matchups, including Wayland Baptist (Texas) on Thursday (Jan. 4), followed by a matinee tilt with Oklahoma Panhandle State on Saturday (Jan. 6), both of which will happen in Siloam Springs.

Powered by 15 triples, the hosts shot 47.1 percent from the floor (32-of-68) and held a commanding lead in the rebound margin, 53-26, paced by 10 caroms from junior Marquis Waller and eight apiece from sophomores Mateo Habazin and Brenton Toussaint.

The visiting Saints (3-6) relied on five triples through the first five minutes to maintain a brief, yet steady lead on JBU. Once the visitors’ reliance on the long ball faded, a Josh Bowling bucket in the paint provided the eighth lead change early in the contest, giving the hosts a 17-16 advantage, and the lead for the rest of the afternoon.

Toussaint netted six points down the stretch while Caudle’s triple extended the JBU lead to a half-best 15 points at the 1:31 mark, handing John Brown a 48-33 lead just before the intermission.

The offense slowed in the second half, but the Golden Eagle defense held CCCB to just 31.3 percent from the floor (10-of-32) in the final period and leaned on Corder’s 4-of-7 mark behind the arc to prop up the offensive pressure in the final 20 minutes of play.

A 25-8 John Brown run over a 10-minute span in the second half produced the game’s largest margin at 34 points, 87-53, with just over five minutes remaining in the contest.

Junior Kristijan Joksimovic added 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting off the bench while Waller added 8 points and 10 boards.

The Saints featured four players in double-figure scoring, paced by Jaime Rodriguez’s 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting. Jesse Granados and Kedron Rollings each added 14 points while Chandler Gheen hit 4-of-5 from behind the arc to register 12 in the loss.

The post John Brown gets wins over Central Christian of the Bible to open 2018 appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.

Stanton has also been equally involved in service. He was an active member and usher at One Church in Conway, and was a part of the disaster relief team, Convoy of Hope, working the tornado relief efforts in Vilonia. Additionally, he served as a coach and disciple for the American Football Mission Camp to Czech Republic. He also has been a Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership ambassador from 2011-2016, and was the co-founder and vice president of the Hendrix College Fishing Team.

In a joint effort to honor the Southern Athletic Association’s most elite student-athletes, Summit Management Corporation and the SAA partnered to create the annual SAA Man and Woman of the Year. The awards, selected by a committee comprised of Summit Management and SAA representatives, are given to the senior class male and female nominees who best exemplify traits of leadership, character, athletic and academic success.

The criteria for SAA Man and Woman of the Year nominees included that they must be a senior with no eligibility remaining, they must have been named First Team All-SAA in the sport in which in the participated during their athletic careers, and they must have qualified for the SAA Academic Honor Roll during their tenure as a student-athlete. Additionally, SAA Man and Woman of the Year candidates are expected to be involved in their local community in some meaningful way.

The post Stanton named SAA Man of the Year appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.

CONWAY – Former Hendrix College standouts Max Cassidy and Dayton Winn will continue their football careers by playing professionally in Europe. Cassidy has already started playing for the Marsburg Mercenaries of the the German Football League. Winn will start with the Copenhagen Towers of the National Ligaen in Denmark this week.

Cassidy, a center from Plano, Texas, helped the Mercenaries to a 16-10 victory over the Schwäbisch Hall Unicorns on Saturday. Cassidy was a three-time All-Southern Athletic Association Honorable Mention. He started all 41 games for the Warriors during his career. In 2016, Cassidy was a part of the offensive line that led the nation with 600 yards of total offense per game. 

Winn, a running back from Pea Ridge, Ark., was a two-time AFCA All-America First Team running back. He was also a 2016 D3football.com All-America First Teamer and a two-time member of the AP Little All-America teams. He won the SAA Offensive Player of the Year in 2015 and 2016 and was an all-conference First Team selection all four years. Winn was a semifinalist for the Gagliardi Trophy in 2015 and 2016 and participated in the 2017 Dream Bowl. He recorded 5,009 yards rushing with 85 touchdowns, another 1,221 yards and 10 touchdowns receiving and finished with 8,296 all-purpose yards for his career.

Teammate and quarterback Seth Peters signed with the Kuopio Steelers of the Finnish 1st Division of American Football earlier in the year.

The post Cassidy, Winn continue careers in Europe appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.

CONWAY – Hendrix College junior right fielder Matthew Lillard was named to the D3baseball.com National Team of the Week on Tuesday.

He hit .667 (8-for-12) with six runs, six RBI, two doubles and two home runs as the Warriors went 3-0 on the week. In Wednesday’s 8-7 win against Ozarks, the Dallas native went 2-for-4, including a double and home run, with three RBI. Lillard was 3-for-4 with a double, RBI and two runs scored in Saturday’s 14-3 win at Oglethorpe.

He capped the week by going 3-for-4 with three runs, two RBI and a solo home run in a 10-8 victory over the Petrels. For the week, Lillard had a .714 on-base percentage and 1.333 slugging percentage.

Hendrix will open the SAA Tournament in Memphis on Friday against Millsaps at 2:30 p.m.

The post Lillard selected to National Team of the Week appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.

ATLANTA, Ga. – The Hendrix College men’s lacrosse team dominated Oglethorpe University 26-5 in Southern Athletic Association action Sunday.

The Warriors (7-5, 2-2) tied their program wins record and scored the third most goals in school history.

The Stormy Petrels (1-12, 0-4) scored the first goal 4:20 into the contest, but the Orange & Black answered with a 14-1 run over the rest of the half. Hendrix scored seven unanswered goals in the third and early in the fourth to go up 22-2. OU found the cage three times in a row, but Hendrix netted the final four goals of the game for the 26-5 victory.

For the game, Hendrix recorded 26 goals, 13 assists, 71 shots, 48 on goal, 60 ground balls, won 30 faceoffs, 14 turnovers and 11 caused turnovers while going 15-of-17 on clears. Oglethorpe had five goals, two assists, 17 shots, seven on goal, 21 ground balls, five faceoffs, 23 turnovers and five caused turnovers while going 13-of-17 on clears.

Hendrix Notes
– Freshman midfielder Elias Ramos went 18-of-21 on faceoffs, tie for the fourth most won in school history. He also had a goal, an assist and seven ground balls.
– Junior midfielder Tucker Holihan was 12-of-13 on faceoffs with nine ground balls and a goal.
– Senior Alex Ortenstone recorded three goals and three assists.
– Sophomore attacker Matt Latham scored four times with five ground balls.
– Freshmen Brendan Rolland and Allen Weber each had three goals and two assists.
– Freshman T. Michael Thomas recorded two goals, two assists, six ground balls and caused a turnover.
– Alex Wood, Drew Scanlan, Graham Marcus, Jason Blatt, Owen Morse, Cullen Robinette and Thomas Adamo also had a goal a piece.
– Junior defenseman Reed Mershon had an assist and three caused turnovers.
– Sophomore Andrew Davidson had a goal and an assist.
– Adamo caused a pair of turnovers.
– Sophomore Dominic Dachile recorded three caused turnovers and three ground balls.
– Marcus and Blatt each picked up six ground balls.
– Sophomore Russell Riley recorded two saves in 21 scoreless minutes in goal.

Oglethorpe Notes
– Nathaniel Gillespie led the Petrels with two goals.
– Tyler Stridiron had a goal, an assist, six ground balls and three caused turnovers.
– Andrew Houghton recorded a goal and an assist.
– Sulton Rahim also scored a goal.
– Andrew Kwapil picked up six ground balls.
– Sean Merritt had 22 saves in goal.

Up Next
Hendrix will face Birmingham-Southern College on in conference action on the road Saturday.

The post Hendrix blasts Oglethorpe appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.

CLARKSVILLE – The Hendrix College baseball team blasted three home runs en route to an 11-1 road win over the University of the Ozarks on Tuesday afternoon.

The Warriors (9-16) took a lead in the first when sophomore shortstop Jorge Leon led off with a double and scored on a single up the middle from junior center fielder Drew Judson.

They added five runs in the second on three hits, a walk and an error. Senior left fielder Wyatt Hogan blasted a three-run homer over the right field fence.

The Eagles’ (9-13) only run came in the sixth when third baseman Patrick Clifford led off with a solo home run to left center.

Hendrix went up 9-1 in the top of the seventh on a three-run homer to left field from junior right fielder Matthew Lillard. Leon started the eighth with another double and later scored on a Lillard base hit. Hogan hit a solo home run over the left field fence in the top of the ninth to make the game 11-1.

Freshman Evan Ingram (1-1) started and allowed just three walks, two hits and a strikeout over four scoreless innings to earn the win. Josh Gonzales, Hayden Seay, Skylar Furey, Connor Nelson and Will Brabsoncombined for five frames of relief, allowing five hits, one run and striking out one. Furey threw a perfect seventh inning. Ozarks’ Dylan McLemore (1-1) took the loss, giving up five hits, six runs and three walks in 1.2 innings.

Hogan went 3-for-4 with three runs scored, four RBI, a stolen base and two homers. Leon was 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles and three runs scored. Lillard was also 3-for-4 with four RBI and three runs scored with the home run and a double.

Ozarks’ designated hitter Edwin Rodriguez was 3-for-4 and stole a base.

Hendrix will travel to Jackson, Miss. for a Southern Athletic Association series at Millsaps College beginning Saturday.

The post Hendrix uses long ball to rout Ozarks appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.

TEXARKANA, Texas – The Hendrix College baseball team lost to Austin College 9-4 in Texarkana, Texas at Tiger Field Wednesday afternoon.

The Kangaroos (5-15) outhit the Warriors (7-10) 15-9. The Hendrix pitching staff did manage to strike out 11 batters.

Austin scored in the bottom of the second when second baseman Seth Howard singled and later scored on a base hit from center fielder Oscar Hernandez.

Hendrix tied it up in the fifth when senior catcher James Martin led off with a single, stole second and advanced to third on error on the attempt. Martin crossed the plate on a passed ball by the ‘Roo catcher.

Austin went up 3-1 in the bottom of the fifth after two runs were scored on two hits, an error and a passed ball. They added three more runs in sixth when first baseman Scott Gelbart hit a double with the bases loaded that brought everyone home.

In the top of the seventh, sophomore third baseman Dylan Bowers and sophomore shortstop Jorge Leon hit back-to-back singles. Junior right fielder Drew Judson followed with triple off the center field wall to make the game 6-3. Judson scored on a passed ball, cutting the deficit to two runs.

Brett Taff recorded a two-run double and later stole home in the bottom of the eighth to give Austin the 9-4 win.

Hendrix used seven different pitchers with freshman reliever Hayden Seay (0-1) taking the loss. Taff (1-1) earned the win by allowing five hits, an unearned run, a walk and two strikeouts over five frames. Gonzalez picked up a four-inning save, giving up four hits, two earned runs, two walks and three strikeouts.

Hendrix Notes
– Leon went 3-for-5 with a pair of stolen bases.
– Judson drove in two runs with the triple.
– Sophomore second baseman Tanner Cooper had a pair of hits.
– Bowers singled and scored.
– Martin had a hit, a stolen base and a run.
– Junior first baseman Jakie Wiegand also posted a single.
– Freshman reliever Skylar Furey struck out two batters in a perfect fourth inning.

Austin Notes
– Taff went 3-for-5 with two runs, two RBI and a stolen base.
– Catcher Michael Winterrowd was 3-for-5 with a RBI and a double.
– Gelbart drove in three runs with his double.
– Gonzalez was 2-for-4 with a stolen base, run scored and RBI.
– Left fielder Thomas Oberg was 2-for-4 with two runs.

Up Next
Hendrix will take on Sewanee at home in a Southern Athletic Association series beginning Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

The post Warriors fall to ‘Roos at neutral site appeared first on ArkansasSports.Net.