Airedales win 5A-West opener
By Kevin Taylor
Alma Schools
Alma coach Dominic Lincoln feels pretty good about his starting five.
After Saturday’s second-half comeback at Harrison, he likes his second five just as much.
Alma junior Eddie Tate scored six points and pulled down a career-high 12 rebounds as the Airedales rallied to beat Harrison, 59-48, for the team’s first victory at Harrison since Jan. 15., 2013.
Junior Israel Towns-Robinson led Alma (8-8, 1-0) with 16 points and eight rebounds. The Airedales outrebounded the Goblins 43-22 and had 18 offensive boards to go along with 38 points in the paint.
“The hardest thing to do is to win a 5A conference game,” Lincoln said. “Everybody knows you; everybody knows what you’re going to do, plus you’ve got really good coaches and players. We have to take it one game at a time and try to get a win and then stack them (wins).”
The Airedales host Siloam Springs on Tuesday.
“We are leaps and bounds where we are this year (compared to last season),” Lincoln said. “I’ve seen the growth in our team, (but) now we have to see it translate over into conference play.”
The Airedales have plenty of weapons from which to pull from, including 3-point shooters Camden Curd, Easton Boggs, and Miles Kendrick.
But one of the biggest keys is Towns-Robinson.
“We’ve all just got to step up and play together,” Towns-Robinson said. “We’ve learned that we have to work hard and we have to score and play defense to get a win. There’s definitely bigger people that tower over us.”
Alma junior Isreal Towns-Robinson battles for position on the block during a recent game. He had 16 points in Saturday’s 59-48 win over Harrison.
Soccer
Alma soccer coach Corey Sturdivant said Saturday’s second Alumni game was a hit.
“It was great seeing all the former players back on the field and just to see the legacy they have helped build with our program,” Sturdivant said. “The alumni girls weren’t very deep, but came out on top thanks to a goal from former Lady Airedale Alyssa Thomas.”
The current Airedales team defeated the alumni boys group, 2-1, thanks to goals from senior Matthew McCarver and sophomore Lukas Wald (PK).
Andrew Duncan accounted for the alumni’s lone goal.
Alma opens its seventh soccer season on March 2 against Magnolia.
“These (alumni) players helped build and mold Alma soccer as we approach our seventh season, and to have this number of alumni returning for the game just speaks how big of a role they all played in starting and playing in this program and how much they care about it.
“As a coach, that is extremely rewarding.”
Junior High
Both the Alma Lady Airedales and Airedales’ basketball teams opened conference play with wins over Greenwood on Tuesday.
Coach Angela Rushing’s teams doubled up the Lady Bulldogs, 44-18. Faith Sartor, Lauren Settle, and Olivia Hughes combined for 31 points to help lead the winners (10-2, 1-0).
Alma’s Jaeda Cahoon and Anna Swarnes added eight and five points, respectively.
Carson Curd’s nice catch-and-shoot 3-pointer with 1.3 left at the end of the first helped fuel Alma’s 46-33 win over Greenwood. Curd, Luke Stogsdill, and Boaz Benson had 11 points apiece for the winners (11-2, 1-0).
The Airedales trailed 7-4 in the first quarter before going on a 14-2 burst to take control of the game.
Hudson Loughridge, Cade Moore, Sammy Moore, Landon Taylor, and Chase Wood combined for 13 points for the winners. Alma’s bench accounted for 22 points.
Alma’s eighth-grade girls dropped a 30-25 decision. Ellyse Wright and Madie House finished with 10 and eight points, respectively. Titus Benson had 15 points in Alma’s 40-35 seventh-grade boys game against Greenwood.
Alma’s seventh-grade girls teams split with Greenwood. Sonnie Tally had eight points, and Ryliegh Flord and Collins Driscoll added six and five, respectively, during the ‘Green’ team's 26-19 win. Alma ‘Gold’ lost, 9-4. Matalyn Robinson led the charge with three points.
This Week In Airedales History
On Jan. 8, 2019, the Alma Airedales rallied to clip Siloam Springs, 71-67, behind the scoring of Tanner Shelton and Cejay Mann. Shelton had a game-high 22 points and Mann added 14 to help the Airedales win their second 5A-West game in three days.
The Airedales finished 13-13, 9-5) finished third overall, and lost to Little Rock Hall in the first round of the state tournament.