LITTLE ROCK — Injured Star City senior linebacker Zack Towers remained in serious condition Tuesday afternoon at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in Little Rock.
Towers has been hospitalized since leaving Star City’s Nov. 1 regularseason finale against Crossett with a head injury.
Towers underwent brain surgery at Jefferson Regional Medical Center in Pine Bluff before being transferred to Children’s on Nov. 4.
PARIS
Flying high
After a two rough years at his alma mater, Bryan Hutson has Paris (10-2) in the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season.
“We’ve had a pretty good crop the last few years,” said Hutson, the former coach at Little Rock McClellan and North Little Rock. “It goes in cycles.”
Paris won only four games Hutson’s first two seasons (2007-2008), but finished 8-4 in 2009, 8-3 in 2010 and 9-2 last fall.
The Eagles are one of the most experienced teams in Class 3A, with 17 seniors on their 35-man roster.
All 11 of Paris’ offensive starters, including running back Justin “Pee-Wee” Estala, are seniors, Hutson said.
Estala set a Class 3A record (14 feet, 9 inches) in the pole vault in May.
Paris eliminated defending Class 3A runnerup Barton (37-23) last week behind 184 rushing yards by Estala.
Paris is at Fountain Lake, the 2009 Class 3A champion, for a quarterfinal game Friday night.
“Fountain Lake is super good,” Hutson said. “They’re going to dress out twice as many as we do.”
PULASKI ACADEMY
Closing in
Pulaski Academy senior wide receiver L.J. Wallace moved closer to becoming the state’s all-time leader in receiving yardage and receiving touchdowns in last week’s 77-35 victory over White Hall in the quarterfinals of the Class 5A playoffs.
He caught 11 passes for a career-high 246 yards and 3 touchdowns.
Wallace enters Friday’s semifinal game against Batesville with 250 receptions for 4,016 yards and 54 touchdowns in his career.
Crosby Tuck set a state career record for yardage (4,381) in 2004-2007 at Shiloh Christian.
Zann Jones, who played at Shiloh in 2007-2010, holds the state record for career touchdown receptions (57).
Wallace also has a chance to break single-season state records for receptions (139) and touchdown receptions (27).
Wallace has caught 119 passes for 1,775 yards and 24 touchdowns this fall.
Brian Langford of Pulaski Academy set the receptions record in 2006. Greg Washington of Nashville set the record for touchdown receptions in 1996.
Pulaski Academy senior quarterback Lawson Vassar needs 486 passing yards to set a single-season state record.
Spencer Keith of Pulaski Academy threw for 5,310 yards in 2008. Vassar, an Arkansas baseball signee, has thrown for 4,825 yards.
Friday’s games
CLASS 7A FS Southside at Bentonville Fayetteville at North Little Rock CLASS 6A El Dorado at Greenwood Jonesboro at Pine Bluff CLASS 5A Camden Fairview at Wynne Batesville at Pulaski Academy CLASS 4A Ozark at Booneville Heber Springs at Highland Warren at Stuttgart Nashville at Prairie Grove CLASS 3A Glen Rose at Charleston Prescott at Greenland Harding Academy at McGehee Paris at Fountain Lake CLASS 2A Bearden at Magnet Cove Mineral Springs at Carlisle Junction City at Salem Walnut Ridge at Murfreesboro NOTE All games begin at 7 p.m. Tickets are $6 for adults and students, according to the Arkansas Activities Association.
Sports, Pages 22 on 11/21/2012