FOOTBALL Lyon makes Kelley its coach
Lyon announced last month it was starting a football program for the first time since 1951. Now the Scots have a coach.
The Batesville school announced Monday that Kirk Kelley will be its coach to help restart a program that hasn’t played a game in 60 years.
“Coach Kelley built our baseball program from the ground up and knows how to get the job done,” Lyon Athletic Director Kevin Jenkins said. “He’s ‘old school’ in the sense that he’ll work hard day after day and make the sure the job gets done right.”
Kelley, 48, was Lyon’s baseball coach and athletic director in 1992-2009, starting the baseball program in 1993 and is now a member of Lyon’s Athletics Hall of Fame. He won 595 games as a coach and led Lyon to three NAIA regional appearances, finishing as runner-up in 2002. He coached more than 50 all-conference players and five all-Americans.
He spent 2011-2013 as associate head coach of the baseball team at the University of Central Arkansas, helping the Bears advance to their first NCAA regional appearance earlier this year. He was also athletic director and baseball coach at NAIA Oklahoma Wesleyan University in 2009-2011.
“There are going to be tough challenges ahead, there’s no doubt,” Kelley said. “But I love a challenge and the kids [we recruit] are going to be excited about starting something new.”
Lyon, which will play its first game in 2015, will hire two full-time coordinators in the next year as well as part-time coaches.
BASEBALL Arkansas team wins Elite World Series
The EM Majors 12-and-under team from Bentonville won the Elite World Series championship Saturday at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
In pool play, EM Majors went 3-0, with victories over the Detroit Bees (8-5) and Tidewater (Va.) Drillers Blue (6-2) on July 14. They then beat the West Monroe (La.) Sox 10-1 on Monday to reach bracket play.
In bracket play, EM Majors beat the Orlando Tigers 5-1 last Tuesday, Las Vegas Rebels Elite 6-3 on Wednesday, the Weston (Fla.) Black Hawks 5-3 on Thursday and 12-0 on Friday and the Arkansas Mighty Ducks of Russellville 2-0 Saturday morning to reach the championship game later Saturday. The Bentonville team then beat Norwalk (Calif.) Diamond MVP 4-3 in the championship game.
Devon Koonce won the overall tournament and offensive tournament MVP awards. EM Majors finished 9-0 in the tournament.
GOLF Arkansas State’s Holden qualifies for U.S. Amateur
Arkansas State’s Chance Holden has qualified to compete at the U.S. Amateur on Aug. 12-18 in Brookline, Mass., after finishing tied for fourth place at sectional qualifying July 15-17 at Meadowbrook Golf & Country Club in Ballwin, Mo.
Holden started the tournament by shooting a 2-over-par 74 on the first two days of the tournament. He shot an even-par 72 on the third day and turned in a 2-under-70 in the final round to finish with a 2-over-par 290 for the tournament.
Holden will be one of 312 players competing at The Country Club and Charles River Country Club. The Country Club will be set up at 7,310 yards and will play to a par of 34-36-70. The companion stroke-play qualifying course, Charles River Country Club, will be set up at 6,574 yards and will play to a par of 35-35-70.
Ater 36 holes of stroke play on Aug. 12 and 13, the field will be cut to the low 64 scorers. Six rounds of match play begin on Aug. 14 and the championship concludes with a scheduled 36-hole championship match on Aug. 18.
Sports, Pages 15 on 07/23/2013