Arkansas soccer gets media help

Sean Sanders/Sports Writer
Sean Sanders/Sports Writer

If soccer is going to grow in Arkansas high schools, it needs to receive the same treatment as other more established sports.

The University of Arkansas, my alma mater, has just concluded the "Weekend of Champions," with state titles for baseball, softball and soccer determined over a two-day period at Baum Stadium, Bogle Park and Razorback Field, respectively.

At the Razorbacks' breath-taking baseball facility, renowned historian Walter Woodie, of Van Buren, holds court over the finals. Woodie, who also keeps track of every Class 7A and 6A conference during basketball season, prints out several copies of each team's lineup card, runs live stats online, informs media members of lineup changes and prints out box scores afterward.

At Bogle Park, the university's newest playing venue, Wadie Moore Jr., Arkansas Activities Association assistant executive director for media relations, sets up shop. He makes sure each media member receives a copy of each lineup card, making it simple to keep score of the softball on the diamond.

Soccer, however, doesn't get the same official treatment in the Razorback Field pressbox, leaving media members to fend for themselves. Fayetteville High, official host for all three events, compensates somewhat with the weekend's biggest hospitality spread, but the perception is established when the AAA only sends out email updates statewide for baseball and softball.

So, after watching Jonesboro, my high school alma mater, win the Class 6A baseball championship Friday morning, I served as official stat keeper and media liaison for the soccer finals. Fighting through traffic between sites, I reached Razorback Field by halftime of the 7A boys final between Bentonville and Springdale.

I watched that half for fun before providing rosters and records for each team, official statistics after each half and press-box play-by-play for shots, shots on goal, saves, corner kicks, goals and assists (with the corresponding minute) and bookings (minute included). I helped the clock keeper, in a different room, stop the clock at the appropriate time.

Observing 14 of the state's top soccer teams, witnessing more than 520 minutes of action over two days, made for an enjoyable weekend. Some takeaways:

Boys top goal: Erick Guadron's second goal for Hot Springs in the 5A final against Valley View made it 4-2. Mannie Santillan's best goal kick of the season found a single-marked Guadron about 65 yards downfield in the penultimate minute. Guadron put on a dribbling display that made every scrambling defender, including the Blazer keeper, miss, slotting home the open goal a la Brazilian legend Ronaldo.

Girls top goal: Harrison's Carlee Spears fired a 35-yard blast into the top-left corner for a 2-0 lead in the 27th minute of the 5A final against Pulaski Academy. The Lady Goblins won 4-2, energized by strikes from Spears and others. Her deep offering might be the longest girls goal in open play I've seen in eight seasons of covering high school soccer.

Boys top keeper: Bentonville's Ben Barron. The weekend featured two of the state's top keepers in Barron and Dardanelle's Reece Tenango. While Tenango made a leaping one-handed knock over the crossbar for his first save, he only had to make three stops for the dominant Sand Lizards, 5-0 over Mena. Barron was a wall for the Tigers, shutting down Springdale for a 2-0 victory.

Girls top keeper: Harrison's Makayla Campbell certainly deserved her plaque for the 5A most valuable player, stopping 12 of the Lady Bruins' 14 shots on goal. Five saves were high quality, including the weekend's best -- Campbell diving parallel with the ground and catching a shot from the top of the box heading into the top-left corner of the net.

Boys top player: Siloam Springs' Ricardo Aguilar. Garland County readers know Guadron's ability after his 49-goal junior campaign leading to 136 career goals (smashing that record). But Aguilar was equally impressive, scoring once and assisting the other goal in the Panthers' 2-0 victory. He was a nightmare for a Russellville defense that shut out Hot Springs last month.

Girls top player: Harrison's Katie Jones impressed me with her striking ability in Harrison's 9-0 first-round drubbing of Beebe at Reese Memorial Stadium. She replicated that against Pulaski Academy, scoring twice and assisting on another goal.

Boys top game: Hot Springs beating Valley View 4-2 in the 5A final. In the only comeback victory of the weekend, the Trojans overcame a one-goal deficit in both halves by scoring three goals in the final eight minutes.

Girls top game: Harrison 4-2 over Pulaski Academy 4-2 in the 5A final. The Lady Goblins were seen as underdogs in a sport dominated by the state's private schools. In the semifinals, the Lady Bruins bested reigning champ Little Rock Christian, which beat Harrison twice in the regular season. But the Lady Goblins played their hearts out, taking advantage of their scoring opportunities while fighting off PA's barrage on the other end.

So I thoroughly enjoyed the weekend despite fighting with graduation crowds for three of the state's largest schools for parking spaces near Walton Arena. As long as I remain in my native Arkansas and don't have a conflicting assignment, I extend my media services to the AAA for future soccer finals.

Sports on 05/25/2016

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