By FRED CONLEY
T-H Sports Editor
The Mid-South Heat is setting Forrest City on fire.
Almost one year from organizing the area's AAU track team, former Forrest City athlete Eric Walker has the Mid-South Heat track athletes up and running at championship levels
The Heat crowned several individual state champions recently at the AAU State Track Meet held on the University of Arkansas campus at Fayetteville.
The state champions include Walker's son, Eric Jr., who won the 200-meter and the young men's 400-meter division race. Walker won the 400-meter showdown against North Little Rock sensation Robert Alexander in a time of 49.42.
Walker also finished second in the long jump and third in the high jump.
Heather Hodges won the state title with her first place finish in the intermediate girls race/walk.
Chatman Tucker took first in the sub-midget discus while Jimmy Bean was first in the young men's division of the shot. T.J. Walker won the youth shot and the youth discus events while Justin Ross won the intermediate long jump and the intermediate 400-meter.
Walker's daughter, LeJoy finished third in the 200-meter run and fourth in the 400. Dexter Lyles was fifth in the 800-meter run and sixth in the 1,500-meter while Mario Sims was fourth in the 200.
James McKinney ran seventh in the 1,500-meter event. Shalon Johnson was seventh in the 400-meter run and Kyle Houston was first in his division of the 800-meter and third in the 1,500-meter run.
Walker returned to Forrest City after living and coaching in Georgia for several years to help get area youths "back on track."
He began those efforts last year by organizing and coaching the Mid-South Heat Track Club, comprised mainly of Forrest City athletes.
In the first season, six of his first 10 team members achieved state champion status and qualified for the AAU Regionals.
In the Heat's first full season, the team brought home nine Gold Medals, 11 Silver Medals and six Bronze Medals.
While living in Georgia, Walker coached the Georgia Striders Track Club and was the assistant coach of the Boys and Girls Club of Metro Atlanta and worked with the Olympic development program. During that time, these programs produced 10 state champions, 10 regional champions, four regional record holders and had 19 athletes qualify for nationals.
Walker was founder and CEO of the Georgia Striders Track Club in Stone Mountain, Ga., and was head coach of the Georgia Golden Wings Track Club, which produced 12 state champions, 11 regional champions, two record holders and qualified 27 athletes for nationals.
Walker's teams have won several national championships in the AAU and the USA Track and Field Association.
He has brought those same goals and opportunities to Forrest City.
"I want to provide a solid track and field feeder program for the high schools as well as teach these young athletes the right way to become champions," Walker said.
The next task for the Mid-South Heat comes July 1-4, when the team will compete at the AAU Region VIII Meet at Junge Stadium in Joplin, Mo. The Regionals will include AAU track teams from Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas and Arkansas.
The top four finishers from each event will move on to compete in the AAU Nationals.
Walker is currently accepting donations to help defray the costs of taking the team to Regionals.
"We have to house the kids while at the competition and provide meals and that all takes money," Walker said. "Any donations made to the Mid South Heat Track Club would be appreciated."
Donations can be made by calling 870-261-3212.
By FRED CONLEY
T-H Sports Editor
The remainder of the Forrest City youth baseball and softball schedules may be in jeopardy.
The fields at the Sports Complex have been silent this week after several days of rain.
The 12-under, and 16-under girls' fast pitch softball leagues have completed their seasons as have the Bambino 11-12 League and the Junior Babe Ruth League on the baseball side.
That leaves the Minor or pitching machine League, the Bambino 9-10 and the girls' 10-under slow pitch leagues hanging in limbo with several regular games and some earlier rain out dates to make up.
The post season T-Ball tournament, which started last Friday, may be stopped in its tracks as well.
As of press time today, there was no official word from Recreation Director Kenneth Taylor as to which games may or may not be played.
In the Minor League, Easley Law is unbeaten for the year at 12-0 with two games remaining to be played. Hartman Diesel is in second place at 9-2 while Vaccaro is one game behind Hartman at 9-3.
Vaccaro and Hartman are scheduled to play Thursday night, weather permitting.
Beyond that game, the rest of the league's scheduled games and rain outs could be in doubt.
The 10-under girls' league had been scheduled to play doubleheaders Tuesday night in an attempt to get their games in but another round of rain stopped the league in its tracks.
Walker Insurance, at 12-0 has already clinched the league's National Division title while Forrest City Bank has done the same in the American Division side at 11-1.
Both second-place teams in each division have four losses.
The original plan was to have the two divisional winners meet in the league's overall championship game.
Leslie's Construction leads the Bambino 9-10 League with an 11-1 record. First National Bank is 9-2 for the year.
Leslie has two games remaining to be played while First National Bank has two games and a suspended game hanging in the balance.
One of the remaining two games for each team is against each other and could affect the outcome of the league title.
The league was rained out Tuesday and had a pair of rain out games scheduled for Thursday, although the Leslie-FNB matchup was not included in the makeups.
*The 12-year-old All-Stars will open play Friday in the District 7 Bambino Tournament at Marion.
Coached by Jim Bailey, the 12s will play West Helena at 3 p.m. The winner advances to meet Wynne Saturday at 3 p.m.
In the other first-round game scheduled for Friday, East Crittenton County will play Pine Bluff International at 5 p.m.
The 13 and 15-year-old Junior Babe Ruth district tournaments will be played July 1-5, at White Hall and Pine Bluff.
By FRED CONLEY
T-H Sports Editor
The Lucas Trucking 12-year-old traveling youth baseball team finished second over the weekend at the West Memphis Eagle Invitational Tournament.
Lucas opened the tournament by defeating another Forrest City team, the Colts 16-2.
Derek Buchanan picked up the pitching victory for Lucas who got three runs each from Henry Henderson, Jim Bailey and James Humphrey.
The team made it 2-0 in the tourney by defeating Team Memphis 6-3 behind Henderson's pitching effort and his two runs scored.
The Memphis Redbirds stopped Lucas' momentum with a 9-5 win in the third game of the tournament. Bailey, who worked into the fourth inning, took the loss for Lucas.
Henderson and Bailey scored two runs each while Bruce Heard added a single run.
Another 6-4 win over Team Memphis got Lucas back into the championship game and a rematch against the Redbirds.
Bailey got the win against Team Memphis.
In the championship game, the two teams were tied at 1-1 after one inning and Lucas took a 5-2 lead after two innings.
The Redbirds plated three runs in the third to tie the game and won it by scoring seven times in the fourth.