SPORTS STORY >> Hogs shuffle linebackers before UTEP

By NATE ALLEN Special to The Leader FAYETTEVILLE – One surprise emerged from the Arkansas Razorbacks’ closed practices last week, unveiled on the depth chart released Monday for Saturday’s season opener against the Texas-El Paso Miners. Junior Josh Williams, previously listed as the starting strongside Sam linebacker, a position in coordinator Robb Smith’s Arkansas defense often swapped for an extra […]

SPORTS STORY >> Lady Devil volleyball gets sweep of Patriots

By GRAHAM POWELL Leader sportswriter After a fairly close first game, the Jacksonville High School volleyball team went on to comfortably sweep Little Rock Parkview in Monday’s nonconference match at the Devils’ Den by scores of 25-20, 25-8 and 25-15. The final score of game one ended up being closer than the game itself actually was. Jacksonville jumped out to […]

SPORTS STORY >> Cabot plays best match at Spikefest

By RAY BENTON Leader sports editor The Cabot Lady Panthers and the Beebe Lady Badgers played well enough in pool play of Saturday’s Spikefest Volleyball Classic to advance to the Gold level bracket, but both lost their first-round matches in the highest of the four eight-team tournaments. The Lady Panthers played their pool at the Little Rock Christian auxiliary gym […]

SPORTS STORY >> Bears put offensive doubts to rest

By RAY BENTON  Leader sports editor Preseason concerns about a brand new offensive line were emphatically put to rest for Sylvan Hills on Monday. The Bears racked up a school record 657 yards of offense en route to a 62-28 blowout of Vilonia in the 103.7 The Buzz Kickoff Classic at War Memorial Stadium. The Bears scored the first six […]

EDITORIAL >> A good choice for high court

You expect governors to make political appointments whenever there is a vacancy in the electoral establishment, even when the vacancy is in the judicial branch, where independence from politics is a foundational principle. Just like his predecessors, Gov. Asa Hutchinson took the political route in his first six months in office, but not last week when he was faced with […]

TOP STORY >> New Cabot library doing well

By JEFFREY SMITH Leader staff writer The new $2.6 million Cabot Public Library that opened two weeks ago continues to attract visitors. “It’s been great and very busy,” branch manager Tammie Evans told The Leader on Monday. She was astonished by the number of patrons and the amount of positive support the community is giving to the branch. The library […]

TOP STORY >> Marker honors Civil War duel

A marker commemorating the Marmaduke-Walker Civil War duel was recently placed at Reed’s Bridge Battlefield in Jacksonville. Although the duel was fought at the Godfrey LeFevre plantation in North Little Rock, not being supported in the 1863 battle that took place at Reed’s Bridge was the last straw for Confederate Gen. John Sappington Marmaduke, according to community outreach director Mark […]

TOP STORY >> Districts to tackle rankings

By JOHN HOFHEIMER Leader senior staff writer Jacksonville High School, Jacksonville Middle School, Murrell Taylor Elementary and five other Pulaski County Special School District schools are among 151 Arkansas schools cited for chronically poor performance this week by the state Education Department. Harris and Daisy Bates elementaries, Fuller and Maumelle middle schools and Wilbur D. Mills High School were also […]