State sports briefs

Henderson State senior wide receiver Darius Davis (shown, left) was named to The Associated Press’ Little All-America first team Thursday.
Henderson State senior wide receiver Darius Davis (shown, left) was named to The Associated Press’ Little All-America first team Thursday.

BASKETBALL

Anderson to speak at Tip-Off Club

Arkansas’ men’s coach Mike Anderson will be the guest speaker at today’s Downtown Tip-Off Club luncheon at the Wyndham Riverfront Hotel in North Little Rock. Lunch will be served at 11:15 a.m. and the program will begin around noon. Annual memberships to the club are $40 with lunch costing $15. Lunch is $25 for non-members.

— Tom Murphy

FOOTBALL

HSU’s Davis named AP Little All-American

Henderson State senior wide receiver Darius Davis was named to The Associated Press’ Little All-America first team Thursday.

Davis, 5-11, 212 pounds, was the Reddies’ top receiver. He caught 56 passes for 1,261 yards and 18 touchdowns, averaging 114.64 yards per game. Also, Davis led the nation in average yards per catch with 22.5 and second nationally in touchdowns.

The Frisco, Texas, native holds the Henderson State and Great American Conference record for career receiving yards (3,686 yards), receptions (179) and touchdowns (47).

ATHLETICS

Hogs 15th in Learfield Cup standings

Arkansas leads the SEC and ranks 15th of 106 teams in the country in the latest Learfield Sports Directors Cup standings released Thursday.

The Razorbacks, with 171 points, are the only SEC program in the top 30. The standings reflect points given only for men’s and women’s cross country and soccer, women’s field hockey and men’s water polo. Arkansas notched 75 points for the fifth place finish at the NCAA Cross Country Championships by Coach Lance Harter’s women’s team and 46 points for the 28th place finish by Coach Chris Bucknam’s men’s team.

Coach Colby Hale’s women’s soccer team scored 50 points for advancing to the second round of the NCAA tournament.

“We’re first in the SEC and we’re excited,” Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long said. “That’s one of the many things I love about Arkansas. We get to compete in more than just football and men’s basketball. Our teams are out there at a high level.

“The fact that we have a strong history of finishing in the top 25, with only 19 sports, really is a testament to our total program here.”

Arkansas has been in the top 30 nationally six times in the last seven years. The Razorbacks finished 28th in the standings last year and were fourth among programs with 19 or fewer sports.

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