HERSHEY TRACK AND FIELD GAMES HERE APRIL 16The Hershey Track and Field Games will take place in Jacksonville on April 24 at Jacksonville High School. The deadline for entry is April 17.Winners in the Jacksonville meet will advance to the state meet on June 21. State meet winners do not automatically advance to the North American Final. They are entered […]

By JASON KINGLeader sportswriterCAVE CITY — It may not have been as pretty as Abundant Life coach Tim Ballard may have wanted, but the Owls advanced through the opening round of the 3A state tournament with a 43-34 win over West Fork at Caveman Arena on Thursday night.The Owls took on Bergman last night in the quarterfinals in a game […]

By JASON KINGLeader sportswriterDUMAS — It took much longer than expected, but Lonoke finally came up victorious in the quarterfinals of the 4A State tournament with a 56-49 double overtime win over Prairie Grove on Friday night. The Lady Jackrabbits improved to 25-8 on the season, and played the winner of last night’s game between Dumas and Dardenelle in the […]

By JASON KINGLeader sportswriterDUMAS — A fan of slow-paced defensive struggles may have found it difficult to enjoy Friday night’s quarterfinal game between Lonoke and McGehee. The Jackrabbits held on for a 72-63 win in the high-octane contest to advance to today’s semifinals.Lonoke improved to 28-5 on the year with the win, and moved into today’s semifinal round against the […]

By JASON KINGLeader sportswriterCONWAY — It took them 31 years just to get an invitation. Now that they’ve gotten through the door, they aren’t in any hurry to leave.The Cabot Panthers picked up their biggest win ever on Friday night with a 64-50 win over Little Rock Central at Conway High School to reach the 7A state semifinals for the […]

By JASON KINGLeader sportswriterCONWAY — The only thing more tenacious than the Lady Bulldogs’ offense was their stifling defense.In what was up to that point a letdown for the West Conference in both boys and girls brackets during the opening round of the 7A state tournament, Fayetteville backed up its No. 1 seeding with a 68-36 blowout win over Cabot […]

By KELLY FENTONLeader sports editorEven after Jacksonville followed up its impressive win over defending champion Jonesboro last Friday with a nearly flawless performance in the opening round of the 6A state tournament on Thursday, head coach Vic Joyner wasn’t ready to say whether or not his team was peaking at the right time.“You can hope so,” Joyner said after the […]

Gov. Beebe is reported to be ready to summon the legislature to Little Rock to raise the severance tax on natural gas. It will be far harder to do than the weak arguments against it suggest. A handful of lawmakers in either house —nine in the Senate or 26 in the House of Representatives — can stop the legislation.The opposition […]

By RICK KRONLeader staff writerMissing money in the police drug-buy fund, unprepared budgets for special revenue funds and temporary checks not properly numbered were some of the problems uncovered in a state audit of Beebe’s 2006 city financial statements.The nearly $5,000 in missing money is the subject of a state police investigation.Jacksonville, on the other hand, received the highest ratings […]

By JOHN HOFHEIMERLeader senior staff writerSince the beginning of the year, payday lenders have been prohibited from making high-interest loans to active members of the military, but beginning Monday, Little Rock Air Force Base airmen and spouses with power of attorney who are in need of quick, small, interest-free loans can go directly to the Air Force Aid Society, according […]