SOFTBALL
CLASS 3A
ATKINS (24-7) VS. BOONEVILLE (18-13)
GAME TIME 10 a.m.
WHERE Farris Field, Conway
ATKINS
CONFERENCE 3A-5
COACH Matt Porter
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 15 (defeated Maumelle Charter 15-0 on March 28)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 8 (lost to Beebe 8-0 on April 6)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Harding Academy 8-2 (regional first round), def. Baptist Prep 3-1 (regional semifinal), lost to Mayflower 8-3 (regional final), def. Salem 4-1 (state first round), def. Glen Rose 6-0 (state second round), defeated Lamar 4-3 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY This the second straight season that Atkins has reached the state title game. The Lady Red Devils lost to Ashdown 6-0 in last year's final. ... Atkins beat Booneville 7-2 in the second round in 2022. ... Libby May, a junior, has struck out 124 batters in 167 innings pitched. ... Lexxie Gooden and Makinley Coffman are hitting .398 and .388, respectively. The two have combined to drive in 48 runs.
BOONEVILLE
CONFERENCE 3A-4
COACH Chad Simpson
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 20 (defeated Two Rivers 20-0 on April 14)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 10 (lost to Hackett 12-2 on April 28)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Elkins 12-1 (regional first round), lost to Lincoln 8-0 (regional semifinal), def. Valley Springs 13-7 (regional consolation), def. Genoa Central 9-2 (state first round), def. Baptist Prep 2-0 (state second round), def. Hackett 5-0 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY Booneville lost to Hackett twice during the regular season by a total of 11 runs before stunning the Lady Hornets in the state semifinals. ... The Lady Bearcats haven't played in a championship final since 2004. ... Lexi Franklin is hitting .441 with 5 home runs and 39 runs batted in. She's also struck out 226 hitters. ... Layla Byrum and Leigh Swint are also batting .400 or better and have teamed for 51 RBI.
CLASS 5A
BENTON (28-4) VS. GREENE COUNTY TECH (25-6)
GAME TIME 1 p.m.
WHERE Farris Field, Conway
BENTON
CONFERENCE 5A-South
COACH Heidi Cox
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 18 (defeated Lake Hamilton 18-0 on March 31)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 4 (lost to Pea Ridge 4-0 on March 31, lost to Bentonville 4-0 on April 14)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Sylvan Hills 9-1 (state first round), def. Harrison 10-0 (state second round), def. Greenwood 1-0 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY Benton beat Greene County Tech in last year's state final, but the Lady Panthers also knocked off the Lady Eagles 9-1 on May 4. ... Stanford signee Alyssa Houston is hitting .691 with 13 home runs and 52 runs batted in. The senior, who's has 241 strikeouts on the season, hasn't allowed a hit in her last 35 innings on the mound. ... Lydia Bethards is hitting .474 and Addison Davis is batting .404. ... The Lady Panthers have won 13 straight games.
GREENE COUNTY TECH
CONFERENCE 5A-East
COACH David Reynolds
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 18 (defeated Jeff Davis, Ga., 19-1 on March 21)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 12 (lost to Orange Beach, Ala., 12-0 on March 21)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Mountain Home 9-6 (state first round), def. Sheridan 4-2 (state second round), def. Van Buren 2-1 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY Greene County Tech has won seven of its past nine games. The only loss during that span was to Benton. ... Ava Carter, a junior, has 6 home runs, 33 runs batted in and 10 triples. She's also hitting .578 on the season. ... Karley Burrow has tossed 137 innings with 110 strikeouts. ... The Lady Eagles also suffered a loss to the Lady Panthers in the 2021 state semifinals. Benton held on to win that game 4-0.
BASEBALL
CLASS 3A
HARDING ACADEMY (25-7) VS. RIVERCREST (21-3)
GAME TIME 4 p.m.
WHERE Bear Stadium, Conway
HARDING ACADEMY
CONFERENCE 3A-6
COACH Shane Fullerton
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 23 (defeated LISA Academy North 23-0 on March 28)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 6 (lost 9-3 to Cabot on March 27)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Baptist Prep 10-4 (regional first round), def. Pangburn 8-0 (regional semifinal). def. Atkins 8-2 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY Of its seven losses, three were to the Class 5A state finalists (Valley View, Little Rock Christian). ... A victory today against the Colts would give the Wildcats their seventh state championship and third in a row. They've won titles the previous six times they've played in finals. ... University of Arkansas commit Kade Smith is hitting .494 with 7 home runs and 44 runs batted in. ... Levi Lang has six home runs and 45 RBI.
RIVERCREST
CONFERENCE 3A-3
COACH Stephan Elrod
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 15 (defeated East Poinsett County 17-2 on April 11)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 13 (lost to Gosnell 13-0 on May 6)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Cave City 5-0 (regional first round), def. Melbourne 3-1 (regional semifinal), lost to Gosnell 13-0 (regional final), def. Mayflower 8-7 (state first round), def. Charleston 5-0 (state second round), def. Central Arkansas Christian 7-0 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY Rivercrest has beaten every team it's faced this season. The Colts split a pair of games with Harrisburg and lost two of three against Gosnell. ... This is the third time Rivercrest has reached the state final. It played in the title game in 2008 and 2009. ... Conner Vaughn is hitting .468, with a slugging percentage of .758. He also had 62 strikeouts in 48 innings pitched. ... Kevin Morris has hit six home runs.
CLASS 5A
VALLEY VIEW (29-4) VS. LR CHRISTIAN (30-3)
GAME TIME 7 p.m.
WHERE Bear Stadium, Conway
VALLEY VIEW
CONFERENCE 5A-East
COACH Josh Allison
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 16 (defeated Russellville 16-0 on March 3, defeated Benton 17-1 on March 23)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 3 (lost to Magnolia Heights, Miss., 4-1 on March 7)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Mountain Home 13-3 (state first round), def. Benton 1-0 (state second round), def. Maumelle 6-2 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY This will be Valley View's seventh time playing for a state championship. The Blazers won titles in 2008, 2009 and 2021. ... Valley View is 24-1 in its past 25 games. Rogers knocked off the Blazers 3-1 on May 5 in a nonconference matchup. ... Slade Caldwell, a Mississippi commit, is hitting .518 with 29 runs batted in and 40 stolen bases. ... Eli Crecelius is 8-1 on the mound with 88 strikeouts in just over 55 innings.
LITTLE ROCK CHRISTIAN
CONFERENCE 5A-Central
COACH Brandon Eller
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 17 (defeated eStem 17-0 on March 28)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 8 (lost 9-1 to Little Rock Central on May 4)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Hot Springs Lakeside 3-2 (state first round), def. Greene County Tech 2-0 (state second round), def. Texarkana 12-4 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY In each of Little Rock Christian's two prior trips to a state final, the Warriors have come up short. Their last appearance came in 2013. ... Little Rock Christian had been upset in the first round in each of the previous years before breaking through in 2023. ... Charlie Carter, an Oklahoma State commit, is batting .361 with 5 home runs and 35 runs batted in. ... Reece Tarini is perfect on the mound, going 11-0 with a 0.64 earned run average.
SOCCER
CLASS 4A BOYS
DE QUEEN (18-2) VS. DARDANELLE (14-5-1)
GAME TIME 10 a.m.
WHERE Estes Stadium, Conway
DE QUEEN
CONFERENCE 4A-South
COACH Stephen Sloan
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 8 (defeated Bauxite 9-1 on April 7)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 1 (lost to Southmoore, Okla., 3-2 on March 3, lost to Fort Smith Northside 3-2 on March 10)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. LISA Academy West 4-0 (state first round), def. Farmington 2-0 (state second round), def. Berryville 1-0 (state semifinal)
DARDANELLE
CONFERENCE 4A-West
COACH Bryan Hardaway
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 7 (defeated Subiaco Academy 7-0 on April 3, defeated Huntsville 7-0 on April 4, defeated Prairie Grove 7-0 on April 17, defeated Gentry 7-0 on April 21)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 3 (lost to Farmington 4-1 on April 10, lost to Clarksville 3-0 on May 1)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Warren 3-1 (state first round), def. Harding Academy 2-0 (state second round), def. Clarksville 2-1 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY De Queen last played for a state championship in 2021 when it lost to Valley View 3-1. ... Dardanelle was beaten in the second round last season by Nashville 2-1. ... Clarksville knocked off Dardanelle three times this season before losing to the Sand Lizards in the semifinals. ... The Leopards haven't been beaten in more than two months. Their last loss was to Fort Smith Northside 3-2 on March 10.
CLASS 5A GIRLS
PULASKI ACADEMY (20-1) VS. HARRISON (20-4-1)
GAME TIME Noon
WHERE Estes Stadium, Conway
PULASKI ACADEMY
CONFERENCE 5A-Central
COACH Chris Owen
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 13 (defeated Jacksonville 13-0 on March 7)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 1 (lost to Harding Academy 3-2 on April 14)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Sheridan 9-0 (state first round), def. Siloam Springs 2-1 (state second round), def. El Dorado 5-0 (state semifinal)
HARRISON
CONFERENCE 5A-West
COACH Chris Pratt
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 9 (defeated Farmington 9-0 on March 17)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 4 (lost to Fayetteville 4-0 on March 7)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Paragould 6-0 (state first round), def. Little Rock Christian 4-1 (state second round), def. Valley View 2-1 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY Pulaski Academy is 41-1-1 in its past 43 matches. ... Harrison is riding a 10-match winning streak since losing to Republic, Mo., 2-0 on April 14. ... The Lady Bruins have 16 shutouts this season, while the Lady Goblins have 13. ... Pulaski Academy outlasted Valley View 2-0 in last year's Class 5A final.
CLASS 3A BOYS
GREEN FOREST (15-3-2) VS. HAAS HALL BENTONVILLE (14-4-2)
GAME TIME 2 p.m.
WHERE Estes Stadium, Conway
GREEN FOREST
CONFERENCE 3A-West
COACH Adam Richter
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 11 (defeated Bergman 11-0 on April 20)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 2 (lost to Bentonville 2-0 on March 2, lost to Berryville 3-1 on March 13, lost to Haas Hall Bentonville 2-0 on May 1)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Hermitage 7-0 (state first round), def. Mountain View 10-0 (state second round), def. Central Arkansas Christian 4-1 (state semifinal)
HAAS HALL BENTONVILLE
CONFERENCE 3A-West
COACH Eric Powers
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 8 (defeated Bergman 8-0 on March 9)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 5 (lost to Harrison 5-0 on Feb. 27)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Episcopal Collegiate 4-1 (state first round), def. Crowley's Ridge Academy 3-0 (state second round), def. Decatur 4-0 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY
Haas Hall Bentonville dropped three consecutive matches before winning its last seven. ... Green Forest the second-place Huskies by one victory the 3A-West Conference standings. ... Haas Hall Bentonville was ineligible to play in the postseason last year. ... The Tigers last won a state championship in 2021.
CLASS 6A GIRLS
FAYETTEVILLE (16-1-2) VS. BENTONVILLE (16-3-1)
GAME TIME 4 p.m.
WHERE Estes Stadium, Conway
FAYETTEVILLE
CONFERENCE 6A-West
COACH Joe Thoma
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 7 (defeated Conway 7-0 on Feb. 23, defeated Fort Smith Southside 7-0 on May 2)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 2 (lost to Bentonville 2-0 on May 5)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Fort Smith Northside 3-1 (state second round), def. Mount St. Mary 4-3 (state semifinal)
BENTONVILLE
CONFERENCE 6A-West
COACH Steve Porter
LARGEST MARGIN OF VICTORY 10 (defeated Springdale 10-0 on April 21)
LARGEST MARGIN OF DEFEAT 1 (lost to Fayetteville 2-1 on Feb. 28, lost to Norman, Okla., 2-1 on April 1)
HOW THEY GOT HERE def. Bentonville West 3-1 (state second round), def. Rogers 3-0 (state semifinal)
NOTEWORTHY The teams split their season series at 1-1. ... This is the third consecutive year that Fayetteville will be playing in a state title match. The Lady Bulldogs won a crown in 2021 as well as in 2010. ... Bentonville has won eight state titles, with its last championship coming in 2017. ... Fayetteville hadn't lost until the Lady Tigers pulled off a 2-0 victory on May 5.