By FRED CONLEY
T-H Sports Editor
BEEBE -- It's been a great summer for Dwight Lofton's Forrest City Mustang basketball team.
The team completed their second camp Thursday night with a solid third-place finish at Beebe's summer camp, finishing with a 6-2 mark.
Earlier this month, the Mustangs finished 5-2 at the Keith Jackson P.A.R.K. Camp, held at the Court of Dreams in Little Rock.
That's 11-4 through 15 games.
The four Forrest City losses were by a combined 12 points.
"I'll take those stats any day," Lofton said. "I am very pleased with our efforts at the two camps. The minutes that the players got and the competition we saw will go a long way come January."
At the Beebe camp, which also included the Hughes Blue Devils, the Mustangs defeated Central Arkansas Christian, Lonoke, Vilonia, Brinkley and Bryant while losing to Little Rock Mills and Conway.
Mills went undefeated in the tournament at 8-0 while Conway finished 7-1.
The Mustangs won their final two games on Thursday without the services of projected starting sophomores Stephon Weaver and Marcus Britt, who were on the road at the National AAU Tournament.
Lofton was also missing Chris Williams (injury) and Nick Grady (death in the family).
"The final two games, we used junior Michael Alston, seniors Sherman Allen, Jacobi Morton, Taurus Moore, junior Jarvis Palmer, sophomore Kelson Stewart and junior Larry Summage," Lofton said. "And if I had to pick an MVP, I would go with Alston. He is pushing for a starting spot in the fall and right now, that is what I'm looking for -- those players who are willing to step up and be leaders on the court."
In pool play at the P.A.R.K. summer camp, Forrest City defeated Conway's junior varsity 58-32 and lost to Conway's varsity squad 43-41. The Mustangs lost 53-50 in overtime to Little Rock Catholic before defeating Lonoke 50-41 and Pulaski Robinson 45-39.
They capped off the camp by defeating Benton in the semifinals 45-38 and then held off Little Rock Christian 45-37 in the championship game.
The Mustangs will take a breather before regrouping in mid-July for additional summer workouts, according to Lofton.
"They're tired, I'm tired, we need a break," Lofton added. "They have played hard and they deserve the break."
The time off is especially welcome for Alston, whose father is returning home after spending most of the past year in Iraq.
The Mustangs were not the only AAAAA-East Conference team at the Beebe camp.
The Cabot Panthers also competed.
"I was impressed with the way they played," Lofton said. "They are going to make some noise in the conference this next season."
The Sylvan Hills Bears return to the AAAAA-East ranks this coming season, replacing long-time member Blytheville, who dropped down to Class AAAA status.
The Mustangs finished 15-12 overall a year ago and ended their conference run with a 7-7 mark, which was good enough for fourth place and a berth into the Class AAAAA state tournament.
Forrest City lost to North Little Rock in the first-round game.
"They're tired, I'm tired, we need a break," Lofton added. "They have played hard and they deserve the break."
The time off is especially welcome for Alston, whose father is returning home after spending most of the past year in Iraq.
The Mustangs were not the only AAAAA-East Conference team at the Beebe camp.
The Cabot Panthers also competed.
"I was impressed with the way they played," Lofton said. "They are going to make some noise in the conference this next season."
The Sylvan Hills Bears return to the AAAAA-East ranks this coming season, replacing long-time member Blytheville, who dropped down to Class AAAA status.
The Mustangs finished 15-12 overall a year ago and ended their conference run with a 7-7 mark, which was good enough for fourth place and a berth into the Class AAAAA state tournament.
Forrest City lost to North Little Rock in the first-round game last March.
Two local fishermen participated in the recent Ford Big Bass Bonanza Tournament, and placed third in one of the categories.
Tracy Rogers and Eddie Raper, both of Colt, landed a 4.25 pound bass on Friday morning during the fourth hour. They were beaten by two ounces for second place.
The two came in 83rd over all, out of more than 5,000 fishermen who were looking to land the biggest bass, which was worth $100,000.
Rogers and Raper were sponsored by True Value of Forest City, Nimocks Oil Company of Forrest City and Ross Ford/Toyota of Wynne.
The event is the largest amateur bass tournament in the nation, and a portion of the proceeds benefits Arkansas Children's Hospital in Little Rock.
The biggest bass caught during the tournament was landed by Brian Gorman of Hampton and weighed in at 6.68 pounds.