By FRED CONLEY
T-H Sports Editor
SHERWOOD -- The Forrest City T-Ball All-Star team finished 1-2 at the Cal Ripken 5-6-year-old State T-Ball Tournament played over the weekend at Sherwood.
The Forrest City-McCain team opened play Friday with a loss to the Cabot National All-Star team, who went on to reach the championship game played Monday.
From the loser's bracket, Forrest City defeated the Cabot All-Stars before being eliminated on Saturday by Maumelle.
Another FCity T-Ball team originally scheduled to be part of the 17-team tournament field, withdrew before the tournament began.
The Sylvan Hills Redbirds 6-year-old All-Star team won the state title Monday, defeating the Cabot National team, 17-9 in the final.
The Sylvan Hills Bandits finished third while the Cabot American All-Stars finished fourth.
Pine Bluff Northern and Star City tied for fifth while Marion and Vilonia ended up sixth.
The Wynne All-Stars finished 1-2, defeating Vilonia in the first game on Friday before losing to the Bandits and being eliminated by Pine Bluff.
The Forrest City 12-year-old All-Star team will open play on Friday, July 11, at the 12-year-old state tournament in Marion.
Forrest City is scheduled to play at 3:15 p.m. The team won the District 7 tournament last week.
The 13 and 14-year-old Forrest City All Stars played this past weekend in their respective district tournaments, but as of press time tournament results were not available.
Forrest City Sports Complex will host the July Baseball Bash, sponsored by the Delta Storms traveling youth team, July 18-20.
The tournament will feature age divisions from T-Ball through 14-Under.
Entry fees are $150 per team for the three-game guaranteed tournament.
Interested teams can call Wayman Cochran at 870-633-8668 (day) or 870-633-4441 at night.
The younger ages will play Cal Ripken rules.
The Jonesboro AA Ricemen scored three runs in both the second and fourth innings to hand Forrest City a 6-2 loss Monday night in an American Legion baseball game played at Woodland Field.
Jonesboro's Hunter Smith pitched five innings, giving up three hits, two runs and a walk while striking out seven.
Jeremy Davidson, who relieved Smith in the sixth inning, held Forrest City hitless the rest of the way.
Michael Dewitt was 2-for-3 with a three-run home run and five RBIs. Hunter Smith was 3-for-3 while Jeremy Hart was 2-for-2.
Jonesboro (23-9) had nine hits.
On Saturday, the Forrest City team took the short trip to Searcy to face the Land O'Frost team in AA Legion action.
Even though the Searcy team had not played in a week, Land O'Frost cruised to a 10-0 victory against Forrest City at Crain-Yancey Field.
Searcy's AA American Legion team (15-9, 6-1 Zone 2) maintained its hold on first place in Zone 2 and defeated Forrest City for the third time this season.
Robbie Hohler got the complete-game victory on 82 pitches, giving up three singles and three walks while striking out five.
LOF hadn't played since losing two of three games last weekend at the George Kell Classic in Newport, but nailed Forrest City starter Logan Knight for eight runs (six of those earned) in one-plus innings.
"We came and worked out this morning before the game ... to get back in the rhythm," Searcy Coach Clay McCammon said. "We hit the ball pretty well today."
McCammon is a former Forrest city coach.
Forrest City used two singles to left to mount its largest threat of the game in the top of the first inning, but Hohler struck out Knight to end the frame.
Forrest City's other hit came from Catfish Hankins in the fifth inning.
Land O'Frost got on the board with an unearned run in the bottom of the frame. Blake Robertson's lead-off fly to right was dropped by Taylor Clark, allowing Robertson to take second. Robertson stole third, then scored on Hohler's single to right.
Searcy's first seven batters reached and scored in second inning. Justin Holloway was hit by a pitch, then Blake Wright and Ryan Evans walked to load the bases.
Robertson followed with a two-RBI single to left. Evans and Robertson scored when Hohler reached on a three-base throwing error by Knight.
A Dillon RBI double and a walk to Will McGary chased Knight from the mound without recording an out in the second inning.
Curtis Cole moved from third base to pitch. He gave up three singles that allowed Dillon and McGary to score, but got Evans to ground into an inning-ending double play that left LOF ahead 8-0.
After going down in order in the third, LOF scored two more runs in the fourth.
Three singles to left did all the damage as Jacob Robertson drove in Adam Bennett and Holloway with the runs that triggered the mercy rule after Forrest City failed to score in the fifth.
The Forrest City American legion team has three playing dates left on the regular season schedule before beginning play in the AA district tournament on July 17.
The team will host Blytheville Thursday before traveling to Lonoke on Tuesday, July 15.
By FRED CONLEY
T-H Sports Editor
The second annual Ralph charity golf tournament, played last week at Forrest City Country Club, generated close to $9,000 in support of the East Arkansas Chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
The tournament is held in honor of the late Ralph Thompson, of Forrest City.
The team of Don Guthrie, Dean Morrison, Rich Trail, Mike Bender and Matt Howton won the tournament while the team of Mike Dunaway, Jim Murry, Will Huffman, Hank Collins and Don Mills finished second.
Ron Killingsworth, Steve Stevens, Alan Curtis and Buddy Billingsley finished third.
David Valdwin was closest to the pin on hole No. 2 while Kerry Molder achieved the feat on the fifth hole and Bill carter was closest to the pin on the 15th hole.
Twenty-eight teams took part in this year's Ralph.
The tournament has raised more than $17,000 for FCA over the past two years.
By FRED CONLEY
T-H Sports Editor
Barnes Timber won twice Monday in adult men's softball played at the Sports Complex.
So did Gym 2000.
And the two teams remain locked in a tie for first place in the league. Barnes and Gym 2000 are 13-1.
Kerby's, sitting in second place at 8-6, split their Monday double header.
Barnes defeated M&T Paving 145-2 and then downed Morgan 21-11 in the nightcap.
Gym was awarded a forfeit win over Boar's head and then held on to edge Kerby's 14-12 in the second game.
Kerby's downed Poison 17-7 in the first game.
The league will continue playing out their regular season schedule into next week.
M&T paving remains in third place in the league at 7-7 while Poison is 7-8 for the year and in fourth place.
The Sports Complex will host the men's and women's district softball tournaments, beginning July 18.
Rainout games from June 2, will be played Thursday night at 7 and 8 p.m., while rain out games from June 12, will played on Monday, July 14. The league closes out on Thursday, July 17, by playing rain out games from June 19.
The Trumann Lions Club will sponsor a Jamboree for youth baseball teams, ages seven through 12, July 11-13.
The entry fee is $75 plus two baseballs and interested teams can call (870) 483-1098 to enter.
The 7-8-year-old division will be pitching machine while the 9-10 and 11-12-year-old divisions will be live pitch.
All proceeds will go to the Mid South Lions Sight and Hearing program.
Former Forrest City graduate and Arkansas State University golfer, Adam Rauth, finished at 9-under par at the Gateway LG Electric Invitational played recently at Scottsdale, Ariz.
Rauth is in his second season on the professional tour series and the 9-under finish was his best to date. He shot a 68, 69 and 70 and finished 16th in the field of 168 entries.