At the 2015 Arkansas High School Swimming & Diving Championships, El Dorado's Isabella Gati won the state championship in the girls 100-yard butterfly. The freshman dominated the event in a time of 57.70. Russellville's Andrea Bond was a distant second in 1:01.37.
I wrote at the time Gati was "believed" to be El Dorado's first-ever state champion in swimming.
After some research, I feel confident she is the first and only El Dorado girl to win the title. El Dorado sports historian Randy Ross did some research and discovered the name of Bobo Sweeney, who swam for the Wildcats and won the boys state title in the 200 individual medley back in 1965.
Mr. Ross could not find records of an El Dorado girl winning. I've been here since 1991 and I'm almost positive the school hasn't won any swimming state titles in that time.
Basically, congratulations to Miss Gati for accomplishing an historic feat. I'm looking forward to seeing how much more history this young lady can make during her high school career.
Friday, March 20, 2015
Monday, March 9, 2015
No good byes in state
El Dorado's basketball teams said goodbye to their seasons Monday. Actually, that's a misnomer. There's no such thing as a good bye.
Well, perhaps in football, a bye isn't the worst thing in the world. Most teams welcome an open date during such a grueling season.
But, in the sport of basketball, teams that are awarded a bye in the state tournament can usually wave bye, bye, bye to their seasons.
First of all, there shouldn't be any byes in a state tournament. It's supposed to the best of the best all playing on equal ground to see who reigns supreme. For that reason alone, byes should be eliminated from the 6A and 7A Basketball State Tournaments in Arkansas.
Here's the other obvious reason, it's a huge disadvantage.
In the 6A Tournament Monday night in Siloam Springs, eight teams took the floor after having a first-round bye. Four of those eight teams were upset.
That included El Dorado's boys, who battled for a good seed all season only to come out flat and fall to Russellville 85-61. The Cyclones, of course, had a state-tournament game under their belt and entered the game on a high. The Wildcats, meanwhile, had the normal jitters of taking the floor for the first time in the big tournament. Throw in the fact they hadn't played in about 10 days due to the weather cancellations and, well, when you think about it, it really wasn't that much of an upset.
Parkview's top-ranked boys also fell victim to the bye, falling to No. 6 seed Pine Bluff 49-48.
On the girls side, top-seeded Little Rock Hall lost to Jonesboro 69-60 and Mountain Home awoke from its bye to find the host Siloam Springs looking down at the Lady Bombers after a 46-26 stunner. Hell, Greenwood was supposed to be a heavy favorite and had to rally from five down in the final minute to beat Benton 55-54.
I'm not trying to sell any of the winners short. That's kind of the point. Having a bye and then playing a poor team isn't a big deal. But, playing a good team that is coming off a win while you've been sitting at home or in a hotel room is simply not a fair fight.
El Dorado girls coach Stephen Harshaw said so before the state tournament. Although the Lady Wildcats fell to Parkview 50-41 Monday, Harshaw felt good about his team's chance because they did not have a bye.
Arkansas Activities Association, are you listening? Having a bye in the state tournament is such a big advantage that nobody wants it.
What are the solutions, you say? There are only 16 schools in Class 6A. Do we let everybody in?
No, we don't.
But, why doesn't Class 6A play two conference tournaments? The four semifinalists in each conference advance to play in an 8-team state tournament. Play the conference tournaments the same week the smaller classes compete in their regional tournaments.
I'm sure there are a million reasons this won't work so I'll sit back and let you throw 'em at me. Hey, I'm just trying to find a solution because one thing is for certain - we need to say goodbye to byes in the state tournament.
Well, perhaps in football, a bye isn't the worst thing in the world. Most teams welcome an open date during such a grueling season.
But, in the sport of basketball, teams that are awarded a bye in the state tournament can usually wave bye, bye, bye to their seasons.
First of all, there shouldn't be any byes in a state tournament. It's supposed to the best of the best all playing on equal ground to see who reigns supreme. For that reason alone, byes should be eliminated from the 6A and 7A Basketball State Tournaments in Arkansas.
Here's the other obvious reason, it's a huge disadvantage.
In the 6A Tournament Monday night in Siloam Springs, eight teams took the floor after having a first-round bye. Four of those eight teams were upset.
That included El Dorado's boys, who battled for a good seed all season only to come out flat and fall to Russellville 85-61. The Cyclones, of course, had a state-tournament game under their belt and entered the game on a high. The Wildcats, meanwhile, had the normal jitters of taking the floor for the first time in the big tournament. Throw in the fact they hadn't played in about 10 days due to the weather cancellations and, well, when you think about it, it really wasn't that much of an upset.
Parkview's top-ranked boys also fell victim to the bye, falling to No. 6 seed Pine Bluff 49-48.
On the girls side, top-seeded Little Rock Hall lost to Jonesboro 69-60 and Mountain Home awoke from its bye to find the host Siloam Springs looking down at the Lady Bombers after a 46-26 stunner. Hell, Greenwood was supposed to be a heavy favorite and had to rally from five down in the final minute to beat Benton 55-54.
I'm not trying to sell any of the winners short. That's kind of the point. Having a bye and then playing a poor team isn't a big deal. But, playing a good team that is coming off a win while you've been sitting at home or in a hotel room is simply not a fair fight.
El Dorado girls coach Stephen Harshaw said so before the state tournament. Although the Lady Wildcats fell to Parkview 50-41 Monday, Harshaw felt good about his team's chance because they did not have a bye.
Arkansas Activities Association, are you listening? Having a bye in the state tournament is such a big advantage that nobody wants it.
What are the solutions, you say? There are only 16 schools in Class 6A. Do we let everybody in?
No, we don't.
But, why doesn't Class 6A play two conference tournaments? The four semifinalists in each conference advance to play in an 8-team state tournament. Play the conference tournaments the same week the smaller classes compete in their regional tournaments.
I'm sure there are a million reasons this won't work so I'll sit back and let you throw 'em at me. Hey, I'm just trying to find a solution because one thing is for certain - we need to say goodbye to byes in the state tournament.
Friday, March 6, 2015
Always play to win ... unless ...
A few days ago, Slick Rick suggested I blog about the Tennessee high school girls basketball teams who were each trying to lose a game in order to get a better draw in a tournament. The story is old enough that most have heard about it so I won't bother to re-post any of the original article. I believe both of the teams and coaches were reprimanded for their actions.
I've read a few opinions, most suggesting the coaches and players should be burned at the stake or, at the very least, be given a stern dressing down. As Herm Edwards says, "you play to win the game." If you're not playing to win, then you're doing something wrong.
My first thought, however, was what a horrible job of bracketing a tournament. When it's more advantageous to lose than it is to win, that's a faulty bracket.
If I had a high school team, my ultimate goal would be to advance to the state tournament and try to win it. If by losing a game earlier in the season, I can somehow get an easier path to the state tournament, I'm not gonna lie, I might consider it.
Hey, in this year's Arkansas 2A Boys Tournament. Junction City and Clarendon, arguably, are the two best teams. The bracket has them meeting up in the semifinals. If either one of them had lost in the regional finals, they would've been on the opposite side of the bracket.
I'm not saying they should've thrown the game. But, if they had, as Chris Rock might say, "I'd understand."
I understand why the Tennessee coaches did what they did. Perhaps their biggest crime was being so blatant. To have kids intentionally miss free throws and shoot at the wrong basket, that really is making a mockery of the game.
If you're going to play, play to win.
On the other hand, if you're going to draw up a bracket, do the damn thing right. Seed the teams properly and this sort of thing won't happen.
I've read a few opinions, most suggesting the coaches and players should be burned at the stake or, at the very least, be given a stern dressing down. As Herm Edwards says, "you play to win the game." If you're not playing to win, then you're doing something wrong.
My first thought, however, was what a horrible job of bracketing a tournament. When it's more advantageous to lose than it is to win, that's a faulty bracket.
If I had a high school team, my ultimate goal would be to advance to the state tournament and try to win it. If by losing a game earlier in the season, I can somehow get an easier path to the state tournament, I'm not gonna lie, I might consider it.
Hey, in this year's Arkansas 2A Boys Tournament. Junction City and Clarendon, arguably, are the two best teams. The bracket has them meeting up in the semifinals. If either one of them had lost in the regional finals, they would've been on the opposite side of the bracket.
I'm not saying they should've thrown the game. But, if they had, as Chris Rock might say, "I'd understand."
I understand why the Tennessee coaches did what they did. Perhaps their biggest crime was being so blatant. To have kids intentionally miss free throws and shoot at the wrong basket, that really is making a mockery of the game.
If you're going to play, play to win.
On the other hand, if you're going to draw up a bracket, do the damn thing right. Seed the teams properly and this sort of thing won't happen.
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