HOT SPRINGS — The Magnet Cove High School archery team clawed their way to a decisive victory Saturday at the Archery in the Schools Arkansas State Tournament at the Bank OZK Arena and Hot Springs Convention Center.
The team’s score of 3,313 out of a possible 3,600 points was 68 points higher than the next highest-finishing team, Bryant High School. The solid performance, the first-ever win for the Panthers archery team, was anchored by a trio of archers who placed in the top five individual scores: Cash Hignight, Clayton Bates and Callan Hignight.
Only three points separated the always steady Bryant High School Hornets from the third-place De Queen High School Archery team. Charleston High School and Valley Springs High School rounded out the top five teams in the Senior Division.
Aimee Swaim, Archery in the Schools coordinator for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, said this year’s event continued the trend of excellence at the state tournament that was established by a shift in qualifying procedures last year.
“We used to have regional competitions, but if you were in a strong region you might not get to go to the state tournament while someone in a weaker division advanced with a lower score than you posted,” Swaim said. “Now, teams can shoot in as many of the qualifying tournaments as they want, but only the top 30 scores statewide get an invitation to the state tournament. All of the archers competing this weekend are truly the best in the state and deserve recognition for making it here.”
In addition to trophies, the top individual-scoring male and female archers in the Senior Division also received scholarships ranging from $500 for fifth place to $2,500 for first place. Cash Hignight of Magnet Cove posted 292 points, just enough to edge out fellow Magnet Cove archer Clayton Bates, who delivered a personal best score of 291 to take second place in the boys’ division. Travis Cook of Lead Hill High School finished in third place with a score of 290. Callan Hignight of Magnet Cove and Nathan Canada of Waldron High School rounded out the top five individuals in the Male High School Division.
Competition in the Female High School Division was even tighter than the boys, with all five top shooters posting scores within one point of each other. Rebecca Moore of Acorn High School, Maddie Johnson of Charleston High School and Danielle Baser of Pangburn High School all posted scores of 285. In the end, it came down to the number of bull’s-eyes each archer posted, giving Moore’s personal best round the edge and the first-place trophy. Johnson took second place and Baser held third. Brooklyn Carmical and Peyton Williams, both from Cabot High School, posted twin scores of 284 with the edge and fourth-place trophy going to Carmical based on number of bull’s-eyes. Williams rounded out the top five in the Female High School rankings.
Washington Middle School in El Dorado took first place in the Middle School Division with a score of 3,298 during Friday’s elementary and middle school division competitions. Des Arc Elementary finished second with a score of 3,229 and El Dorado’s Barton Junior High, last year’s winners, took third place with 3,216 points.
Jackson Nix of Homeschoolers on Target had the highest score among middle school males. His score of 292 actually tied the top archer in the High School Division. Taylor Middle School’s Kaden Harris and Ozark Junior High’s Koen Masingale both scored 290s, with the second-place trophy going to Harris, based on bull’s-eye count. Case Hardin of Pinkston Middle School was fourth with a score of 287, and Gauge McClard of Magnet Cove Middle School held fifth place with another score of 287.
The top archer in female middle schoolers was Priscilla Martinez of Washington High School, whose score of 284 would have placed her in the running for the top five in the High School Division as well. Abby Knighton and Jackie Vasquez of Barton Junior High both posted scores of 283 with the second-place trophy going to Knighton. Jocelyn Necaise of Valley Springs High School took fourth place with a score of 282, and Jonsie Bledsoe of Washington Middle School was fifth place with a score of 280.
El Dorado’s Washington Middle School Elementary team also took first place in the Elementary Division with a score of 3,056. Hill Farm Elementary of Bryant was second with a score of 3,022 and Salem Elementary, also of Bryant, was third with a score of 2,999. Charleston Elementary and Magnet Cove Elementary were fourth and fifth place, respectively.
Porter Pozarek from Salem Elementary was the top-scoring male shooter in the Elementary Division with a score of 273. Graysen Newton from Washington Middle School was the top female archer with a score of 276.
The AGFC’s Archery in the Schools Program teaches students the sport of archery using modern compound bows that will fit a wide range of users. Teachers and other school staff learn from the AGFC’s archery instructors how to bring this sport back to their students and offer them a sport that children of nearly any size and ability are able to enjoy.
Visit www.agfc.com/ais for more information about Archery in the Schools and a complete list of team and individual scores.
