Tractor Supply Company to have grand opening on Tuesday
Maumelle students honored; State tournaments start today; Simmons Bank, Stephens Inc. partner on PGA event in Little Rock plus sports and headlines
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Pandemic deaths unknown
The state Department of Health, didn’t release a report for the first week in May. The virus has killed 13,779 Arkansans since the pandemic began four years ago. That would mean the pandemic death toll has now passed Marion’s 13,635 people, the state’s 29th largest city.
Covid toolkit
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If you don’t want to get sick and die, there’s some things you can do:
Get vaccinated
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The Headlines
Meetings: The North Little Rock School Board will have a special call meeting at 5:30 p.m. tonight. The North Little Rock City Council will meet next Monday night at City Hall. The Pulaski County Special School District School Board will meet at 6 p.m. next Tuesday.
Events: The new Tractor Supply Company Distribution Center will be having its grand opening at 10 a.m. next Tuesday. For more, keep on scrolling. Mother’s Day is Sunday. Plan accordingly. State tournaments also start today, so safe travels to the schools and families who will be attending. There’s also college baseball this week at North Little Rock’s Dickey-Stephens Park.
Eye on the Sky
Today: Sunny, with a high near 84 and a low around 58 and a 20 percent chance of rain.
Friday: Sunny, with a high near 77 and a low around 54.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 79 and a low around 58.
Sunday:(Mother’s Day) Partly sunny, with a high near 79 and a low around 61. There’s also a 30 percent chance of rain.
For why we are asking: Into the Deep (end): Center on the Lake mulls adding indoor pool
Tractor Supply Company to have grand opening on Tuesday
A number of elected officials and local dignitaries including Maumelle Mayor Caleb Norris and Gov. Sarah Sanders, will be at the city’s new Tractor Supply Company distribution center for its grand opening on Tuesday.
Ceremonies will begin at 10 a.m. and also on hand will be the company’s CEO, Hal Lawton, for the 10th distribution center nation-wide for Tractor Supply.
The center will service Tractor Supplies as well as the company’s Petsense stores.
When fully staffed up, the center will have 500 full-time employees and the 1.15 million square foot building represents a $175 million investment.
The Maumelle facility will be the largest in the company when it opens and will also fulfill e-commerce orders, in addition to the stores.
The event will have a pallet-cutting with a chainsaw to open the building and will feature a tour as well as donations to a number of local charities as well as the police and fire departments.
The building is located at 150 Champs Boulevard and also has a 10,000 panel rooftop solar array.
Tractor Supply has a total of 2,233 stores in 49 states and employs more than 50,000 people while Petsense has 202 locations, including one off Maumelle Boulevard, in 23 states.
State tournaments start today
It will be a full day of high school sports today as Maumelle, Maumelle Charter, Central Arkansas Christian and North Little Rock will all have teams competing in their respective classification state tournaments for spring sports.
The sites are spread across the state and are weather permitting.
The forecast isn’t so good for some locations, so before traveling check with the school or plan to overnight in lovely downtown Bergman, or wherever.
Roundup by school:
Maumelle Charter
Boys soccer
Record: 12-3-2
Upcoming matches: The Falcons face Riverview (8-1-4) at 7 p.m. tonight in Harrison. While Bergman is serving as the host school, all matches will be played at Harrison’s Parks & Rec soccer complex. For the complete bracket, and field assignments, click here. The winner plays at 4 p.m. on Friday against the winner of Green Forest/Subiaco Academy. The semi finals are at 4 p.m. on Saturday. Conference rival CAC is on the other side of the bracket.
Girls soccer
Record: 8-7-1
Upcoming matches: Maumelle Charter is the No. 4 seed and will play at 9 a.m. today against No. 1 seed Cave City (12-6-1). For the bracket, click here. Matches are at Harrison’s Parks & Rec soccer complex.
CAC
Baseball
Record: 15-5
Upcoming schedule: CAC lost in the regional finals and will be the No. 2 seed in the 3A state tournament at Majestic Park in Hot Springs. The Mustangs will face a familiar foe in Elkins (24-8-1) at 12:30 p.m. today. For the bracket, click here.
Softball
Record: 8-7
Upcoming schedule: CAC has made the postseason something special as the Mustangs claimed the regional title last week and are the No. 1 in the 3A state tournament. CAC will face East Poinsett County (17-9) at 3 p.m. in a game that will be played at Forrest City Sports Complex. For the bracket, click here.
Boys soccer
Record: 12-3-2
Upcoming matches: The Mustang are the No. 1 seed and open the 3A state tournament at 11 a.m. today against Cave City (9-11-3) and for the bracket, click here. The winner will play at noon on Friday against the winner of Danville/Decatur and the semifinals would be at noon on Saturday. All matches will be played at Harrison’s Parks & Rec soccer complex.
Girls soccer
Record: 13-3
Upcoming matches: The Mustangs will face Conway St. Joseph (2-7) at 1 p.m. today. Click here for that bracket.
Maumelle
Baseball
Record: 15-11
Upcoming schedule: The Hornets face Marion (20-8) at 5:30 p.m. today at Harrison. For the bracket, click here.
Softball
Record: 21-6-1
Upcoming schedule: Maumelle is the No. 2 seed from the 5A-Central for the state tournament at Harrison and will play at 12:30 p.m. today against Searcy. For the bracket, click here.
Girls soccer
Record: 12-8
Upcoming matches: Maumelle is the No. 3 seed from the 5A-Central and will play at 10 a.m. today against Valley View (14-6). The tournament will be held at Hot Springs Lakeside and for the bracket, click here.
North Little Rock
Softball
Record: 10-18
Upcoming schedule: North Little Rock is the No. 4 seed from the 6A-Central for the state tournament in Fayetteville and will play at 10 a.m. today against the No. 5 seed from the 6A-West, Rogers Heritage (16-14). For the bracket, click here.
Boys soccer
Record: 9-9-1
Upcoming matches: The 'Cats are No. 6 seed from the 6A-Central with a noon match today against Fayetteville (8-5-1). This year’s state tournament is at Little Rock Southwest. For the bracket, click here.
Maumelle students honored at competitions
Students from Maumelle High School were among those recently honored at the Arkansas Choral Directors Association competition last month.
The Maumelle Hornet Choir, above, earned an Excellent rating overall at the ArkCDA State Choir Festival during the State Choral Performance Assessment with scores of 88, 89 and 91.
Dedicated to giving students across the state meaningful music experiences, the association has been hosting choral events since 1967. The State Festival was held at the University of Central Arkansas on April 15-19 and the State Solo & Ensemble was held at Parkview Arts & Science High on April 20.
Maumelle student artists honored
Students from Maumelle High, as well as other PCSSD high schools, made a strong showing at the Arkansas Young Artist Association Convention and Competition, held April 18 at the Hot Springs Convention Center.
The organization has over 60 member high schools and has been in operation since 1979.
Maumelle students honored, above, include:
Maumelle AYAA TeamMakayla Harris - 2nd place First year 3D/Craft
Phinehas Little - 3rd place Digital Art Expressive
Keely Walker - 4th place Colored Pencil Expressive
Ayda Lovett - 4th place Ceramics Functional and 4th place Charcoal/Conte Expressive
Marlowe Qualls - 4th place Portraits Abstract
At Delta Dreams, unlock how to fund your business idea
Financial pros will share how and where to get the money to pursue a business ownership dream at two free forums in Helena-West Helena and Stuttgart in June.
The Helena-West Helena event is 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on June 13 at the Fine Arts Center on the Phillips Community College of the University of Arkansas Helena-West Helena campus, while the Stuttgart event will follow on June 27 at 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Grand Prairie Center at the PCCUA Stuttgart campus.
The new events are presented by the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center and the Arkansas CDFI Coalition.
Both events will feature panel discussions, Q&As and resource expos.
“We want people to know about the funding and support available to turn your business dreams into reality. If you’re ready to take the next step toward entrepreneurial and financial success, you’re invited to join us at Delta Dreams,” said ASBTDC State Director Laura Fine.
Delta Dreams is presented free of charge, but pre-registration is requested. To sign up visit asbtdc.org/asbtdc-events or call the ASBTDC Info Line, 800-862-2040.
For more information about either event, contact Nick Stevens at njstevens@ualr.edu or 501-804-4530.
Sports
Simmons Bank, Stephens Inc. partner on PGA event in Little Rock
The Simmons Bank Championship, coming to Pleasant Valley Country Club later this year, now has Stephens Inc. onboard as a presenting sponsor.
The PGA Champions event stop will start on Oct. 21 and conclude on Oct. 27. The Champions Tour is for players 50 and over and the event is the second round of the annual Charles Schwab Cup Playoffs. The field will be 54 players and competing for $2.3 million in prize money.
Stephens’s roots in golf are well known with company co-founder Jack Stephens a former chairman at Augusta National, while sone Warren Stephens helped start First Tee, the youth golf program, as well as building Alotian, the world-class golf course in rural west Little Rock.
There’s more, of course, but enough for now.
"We are delighted to be able to partner with Stephens in establishing the Simmons Bank Championship," said George Makris, Jr., Simmons Bank's executive chairman.
This will be the second professional golf stop in Arkansas as the LPGA Tour has an event in northwest Arkansas. There’s also been other professional golf stops in Fort Smith, Hot Springs and El Dorado but none are currently going.
"We have a deep respect for the game,” said Warren Stephens, “and it will be wonderful to welcome players for whom we have cheered throughout our lives to Little Rock and watch them compete at Pleasant Valley Country Club. These types of events only help develop our state and its economy, and we are happy to continue to lend our support to them."
The partnership is for five years and the event will be known as the Simmons Bank Championship presented by Stephens through 2028.
For more information visit simmonsbankchampionship.com.
Dickey-Stephens Park to host college baseball
The Great American Conference, a collection of Arkansas and Oklahoma NCAA Division II schools, will have its baseball championships this week at North Little Rock’s Dickey-Stephens Park.
First pitch, weather permitting, is set for 1 p.m. today as Arkansas-Monticello will face Southern Arkansas in Game 1 and that will be followed by Arkansas Tech and Harding at 5 p.m. in Game 2.
The double-elimination tournament will also have games on Friday and Saturday with the schedule as follows:
Friday
G3: 11 a.m. | Winner Game 1 vs. Winner Game 2
G4: 3 p.m.. | Loser Game 1 vs. Loser Game 2
G5: 7 p.m. | Winner Game 4 vs. Loser Game 3
Saturday
G6: Noon | Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 5
G7: (If Necessary)
Tickets, an all-day pass, are $10 a day and can be purchased by clicking here. The same rules that normally apply at Dickey-Stephens Park – clear bags, cash-less – will be in effect for these games.
All four school are in ranked in the Top 10 regionally with the Wonderboys of Arkansas Tech checking in at No. 3
Upcoming Travs games
At Wichita, now through Sunday
Opponent – Northwest Arkansas
Tuesday, May 14, 6:35 p.m.
Mad Mallards Week: In honor of Central Arkansas' obsession with waterfowl hunting, the Travs will become the Mad Mallards! | Presented By Arkansas Ducks Unlimited
Dog Day: Human fans can get $3 Berm tickets by bringing their dog to the game (only available at DSP Box Office). NOTE: Dogs are only allowed in the Berm areas | Presented By Rock N Roll Sushi
Wednesday, May 15, 6:35 p.m.
Dog Day: Human fans can get $3 Berm tickets by bringing their dog to the game (only available at DSP Box Office). NOTE: Dogs are only allowed in the Berm areas | Presented By Rock N Roll Sushi
Thursday, May 16, 6:35 p.m.
Mad Mallards Week
$3 Thursday: Enjoy $3 Beer Garden Tickets and Concessions deals, including Hot Dogs, Soft Drinks, Cotton Candy, and a Select Canned Beer & Seltzer!
Friday, May 17, 7:05 p.m.
Mad Mallards Week
Fireworks Friday - Country Music: Presented By Arkansas State Parks
Saturday, May 18, 6:05 p.m.
Mad Mallards Week
Kids Run the Bases:Kids 13 and under are invited to run the same basepaths the Travs run after the game!
Sunday, May 19, 1:35 p.m.
Mad Mallards Week
Kids Baseball Clinic: Kids 13 and under are invited to join Travs players on field for a baseball clinic starting at noon! | Presented By Hog Wash
Kids Run the Bases: Kids 13 and under are invited to run the same basepaths the Travs run after the game!
Operation: Military Appreciation: Service Members get $3 off General Admission and Field Reserved tickets by presenting a Military ID (only available at DSP Box Office) | Presented By Mid-South Ford Dealers
Family Sunday: Get $2 General Admission tickets by presenting a physical or digital church bulletin (only available at DSP Box Office)
At Corpus Christi, May 21-26