Arkansas

Arkansas high school volleyball: Meet the state’s top setters

Published

2 years ago

September 4, 2024

Arkansas high school volleyball: Meet the state’s top setters

A football team has a quarterback. A basketball team has a point guard. A volleyball team has a setter.

If there is one thing in common with those positions, it is that they are the one who is largely responsible for making decisions on the floor and making sure the other playmakers get a chance to be successful.

With volleyball season around the corner, here is SBLive’s list of the top 25 setters in the state of Arkansas. Statistics are from the 2023 season and comments are from coaches when they nominated their players for the 2023 SBLive all-state team.

Players are listed in alphabetical order.

Audrey Adair, 5-5 senior, Bentonville

Adair had 728 assists on the season with 59 aces and 207 digs while earning all-conference honors and being named to the Bentonville High School Early Bird all-tournament team.

Hayden Allen, 5-9 senior, Rogers

Allen had 419 assists for the Lady Mounties a year ago. She had a season-high 28 assists in a 3-1 victory over Rogers Heritage.

Piper Batie, 6-1 junior, Fayetteville

Batie, who transferred from Gravette, has committed to Missouri. At Gravette, she had 482 assists with 370 kills, 270 digs and 113 aces. She had a season-high 32 assists in a 3-1 victory over Lincoln, 22 kills in a 3-2 victory over Prairie Grove, 19 digs in a 3-1 victory over Clarksville and a season-high six aces in victories over Siloam Springs and Seneca, Mo.

Laura Cathey, 5-6 senior, Little Rock Central

Cathey had 394 assists, 23 aces and 137 digs for the Lady Tigers a year ago. She had a season-high 24 assists in a 3-2 victory over North Little Rock and had 16 digs in a 3-1 victory over Bryant.

Laila Creighton, 5-7 senior, Shiloh Christian

Creighton had 1,092 assists, 88 kills, 21 blocks and 225 digs while earning all-state and all-state tournament honors. “Laila took control of the offense this year after running a 6-2 last season. She showed maturity with her decision making and led our offense extremely well. This team had the highest hitting percentage in a while for Shiloh, and that speaks to the decision making of Laila (as well as how productive our hitters were). She was steady this year and also made it look easy,” said Shiloh Christian head coach Nathan Bodenstein.

Sydney Crowder, 5-9 junior, Little Rock Central

Crowder had 327 assists and 118 digs a year ago for the Lady Tigers.

Mattyx Cureton, 5-6 junior, Jonesboro Westside

Cureton had 671 assists, 285 digs and 23 blocks for the Lady Warriors, who reached the Class 4A state tournament.

Presley Curry, 5-9 senior, Mansfield

Curry had 600 assists, 45 aces, 115 digs, 20 blocks and 28 kills while earning all-conference honors.

Sunnie Davis, 5-5 senior, Sheridan

Davis had 577 assists for the Lady Yellowjackets, who finished 25-5 a year ago.

Loren Eckhart, 5-11 senior, Greenwood

Eckhart had 870 assists with 41 kills, 61 aces, nine blocks and 246 digs while earning all-conference honors for the Lady Bulldogs.

Addie Fielder, 5-8 senior, Baptist Prep

Fielder earned all-state and all-state tournament honors with 918 assists, 215 digs and 76 aces. She had a 37 assists in a 3-0 victory over Hackett in the Class 3A state championship match. She had a season-high 19 digs in a 3-0 victory over Bryant and a season-high seven aces in a 3-0 victory over Jessieville.

Brennan Holland, 5-6 senior, Valley View

Holland, who is the second setter for the Blazers in a 6-2 set, had four kills, 39 aces, 404 assists and 188 digs.

Drew Hudspeth, 5-6 senior, Benton

Hudspeth had 602 assists in a 6-2 offense with a season-high 42 assists in a 3-2 victory over Shiloh Christian. She added 70 aces, 44 kills and 208 digs.

Rachel Krafft, 5-7 senior, Fort Smith Northside

Kraft had 334 assists a year ago as a backup to Caroline Snow. She is expected to be the Lady Grizzlies’ starter at setter. She had a season-high 39 assists in a 3-1 victory over Bentonville West.

Lauren Latham, 5-9 senior, Hot Springs Lakeside

Latham, who committed to Kansas State, earned all-state and all-state tournament honors for the Lady Rams, who shared the 5A-South Conference title with 5A state champion Benton. She had 45 aces, 181 kills, 64 blocks and 718 assists in a 6-2 set with 224 digs.

Riley Owens, 6-2 senior, Valley View

Owens had 91 kills, 60 aces, 445 assists, 225 digs and 11 blocks for the Blazers, who ran a 6-2 set.

Maggie Miller, 5-7 senior, Marion

Miller had 888 assists, 54 aces, 16 blocks and 328 digs while earning all-state honors and being selected as AVCA Phenom. “We ran a 5-1 with Maggie again this season,” said Marion head coach Lisa Beasley. “Although tiny, she is mighty. Maggie had a great season. She set a school record for career assists with 1,774 so far. Maggie is a wonderful teammate and leader; she works her tail off. I have seen her do amazing things with a volleyball. What she lacks in size, she more than makes up with her heart. I can’t say enough about this young lady; she has already left a legacy in this program and school, and she isn’t finished yet.”

Mileah Neal, 5-9 senior, Fort Smith Southside

Injuries limited Neal’s playing time as a junior to 23 matches, where she finished with 279 assists playing on a team that uses a 6-2 set. She had a season-high 23 assists in a 3-0 victory over Springdale Har-Ber. She had 112 digs with a season-high 10 against Fort Smith Northside and 25 aces with a season-high seven against Har-Ber.

Lily Roark, 5-5 senior, Mayflower

Roark had 763 assists, 285 digs and 24 aces a year ago for the Lady Eagles. She had a season-high 45 assists and 25 digs in a 3-2 loss to Central Arkansas Christian. She had a season-high four aces in a 3-0 victory over Little Rock Southwest.

Chloe Rodriguez, 5-11 senior, Brookland

Rodriguez had 1,057 total assists, 109 kills, 269 digs, 52 aces and 31 blocks for the Bearcats, who repeated as Class 4A state champions. She also earned all-state and all-state tournament team honors and recently committed to Northwest Mississippi Community College. “Chloe excelled in many areas outside of being a setter,” said Brookland head coach Nancy Rodriguez. “She ran a very efficient and balanced offense and was key to our success this season.”

Emma Schnackenberg, 5-8 junior setter, Episcopal Collegiate

Schnackenberg earned all-conference honors with 505 assists and 192 digs and 40 aces. She had a season-high 33 assists in a 3-2 victory over Mayflower. She had a season-high 19 digs and 6 aces in a 3-1 loss to Central Arkansas Christian.

Haley Thomas, 5-7 junior, Siloam Springs

Thomas had 48 aces and 84 kills while hitting .218 with 755 assists and 199 digs on the season. She had a season-high 54 assists against Mountain Home and had 46 assists against Russellville. She earned all-state honors and was named setter of the year in the 5A-West Conference. “Haley’s one of the hardest working players you’ve ever met. She is constantly pushing herself to meet new goals. Her teammates would frequently turn to her to ask questions about the strategy of the game, and she knew how to adjust the offense to put our team in situations to score. She was also an attack option for us by finding the right time and places to score on a dump, and she led our team in aces. She is a well-rounded, smart, coachable, and hungry young athlete, and I am so grateful to have her as a part of our program,” said Siloam Springs head coach Carrie Thammarath.

Emerson Traylor, 5-9 senior, Bryant

Traylor had 299 assists playing in a 6-2 offense with 116 digs and 32 aces while earning all-conference honors and committing to Louisiana Tech. “Emerson is one half of a 6-2 offense that had over 700 assists for the season,” said Bryant head coach Leigh Ann Back.

Emma Kate Vertz, 5-7 senior, Prairie Grove

Vertz had 45 aces, 100 kills, 242 digs and 815 assists for the Lady Tigers, who reached the second round of the Class 4A state tournament where she earned all-state honors.

Reese Wilburn, 5-4 senior, Bryant

Wilburn had 442 assists, playing in a 6-2 offense with 29 aces and 181 digs while earning all-conference honors and committing to TCU. “Reese is one half of a 6-2 offense that had over 700 assists for the season,” said Bryant head coach Leigh Ann Back. “She is a calming influence on the court.”

– Jeff Halpern | @SBLiveARK

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Arkansas

Report Assesses Access to Primary Care in Arkansas – ACHI

Published

8 hours ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

Report Assesses Access to Primary Care in Arkansas – ACHI

Arkansas has made significant investments to strengthen its primary care physician workforce over the past decade. New medical schools have opened in the state, residency program slots have increased, and loan forgiveness programs have been established to incentivize residency graduates to remain in the state to practice. Despite these efforts, access to a usual source of care (i.e., a place where one goes for routine healthcare needs) remains a challenge for many Arkansans, according to a new report.

Published February 12 by the Milbank Memorial Fund, the report, “Investing in Primary Care: The Missing Strategy in Americaâs Fight Against Chronic Disease,” evaluates statesâ primary care performance. Among its findings is that 18% of Arkansas adults report not having a usual source of care, which is comparable to the national estimate of 17%. That means that nearly 1 in 5 Arkansans do not have a consistent way of interacting with the stateâs healthcare system.

Access to a Usual Source of Care

Nationwide, the report finds that among adults with chronic disease, having a usual source of care is associated with lower odds of hospitalization and lower total spending on health care. These findings are particularly relevant for Arkansas, where chronic disease prevalence remains high. The most recent Americaâs Health Rankings report from the United Health Foundation ranked Arkansas 44th among all 50 states and the District Columbia for its percentage (15%) of adults with three or more chronic conditions â such as arthritis, diabetes, or cancer â in 2023, with the top-ranked state having the lowest percentage.

The Arkansas Primary Care Payment Improvement Working Group, established under Act 483 of 2025, is currently examining primary care investment in the state. The group, which includes a representative from ACHI, is tasked with measuring current primary care spending, evaluating the adequacy of the primary care delivery system, and recommending spending targets for Medicaid and commercial insurers. These efforts align with national recommendations to track and increase primary care investment, an issue we highlighted in a previous post.

Arkansasâs Primary Care Workforce

The countryâs primary care workforce supply is another focus of the Milbank report. The report estimates that Arkansas had 58 primary care physicians per 100,000 residents in 2023, below the national average of 68 per 100,000 residents. The Milbank report also finds that 29% of Arkansas physicians were working in primary care in 2023, compared to 27% nationally.

The stateâs higher-than-average share of physicians choosing primary care is encouraging, but long-term retention and geographic distribution remain challenges. ACHI developed the Arkansas Primary Care Physician Workforce Dashboard, an interactive tool that allows users to view data on primary care physicians practicing in Arkansas. The dashboard â which uses a broader definition of âprimary care physicianâ than the Milbank reportâs â shows that per capita rates of primary care physicians vary widely between urban and rural counties, and that two counties, Montgomery and Newton, had no active full-time primary care physician in 2022. The dashboard also shows that 26% of fill-time primary care physicians in the state were 60 or older in 2022, raising concerns about future supply as many approach retirement.

The Milbank report finds that in communities with higher levels of social deprivation â measured by the social deprivation index, a composite indicator of socioeconomic hardship â primary care physician availability in Arkansas is lower on average than in similarly deprived communities nationwide. Given the high burden of chronic disease among Arkansans, this is a concerning finding.

Recommendations

States that invest in primary care, as highlighted in the Milbank report, experience downstream improvements in population health and lower healthcare costs. Arkansas has established the infrastructure to evaluate and potentially increase those investments. ACHI will continue to track physician supply, distribution, and access to help inform primary care policy discussions.

Find more information about Arkansasâs healthcare workforce on our topic page.

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Arkansas

Arkansas to honor Nolan Richardson with statue outside arena

Published

20 hours ago

March 5, 2026

Press Room

Arkansas to honor Nolan Richardson with statue outside arena

Myron MedcalfMar 5, 2026, 12:03 AM ET
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- Covers college basketball
- Joined ESPN.com in 2011
- Graduate of Minnesota State University, Mankato

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Former Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson, who led the Razorbacks to the 1994 national title, will be immortalized with a statue outside Bud Walton Arena, the school said Wednesday.

Richardson was on the court at halftime of No. 20 Arkansas’ 105-85 win over Texas in the team’s regular-season home finale Wednesday night when athletic director Hunter Yurachek surprised him and told him the school had commissioned a statue to commemorate his achievements.

Per the school’s announcement, work on the statue is set to begin soon.

“Coach Richardson’s impact on the game of basketball and our state is immeasurable,” Yurachek said in a statement. “He represented Arkansas with a toughness and intense work ethic that endeared him to our fans while changing the lives of numerous athletes, coaches and staff under his direction. His ’40 minutes of Hell’ changed college basketball and led to the 1994 national championship that changed Arkansas and our university forever. Coach Richardson will stand tall outside the arena for the rest of time.”

BUILD THE STATUE. LIVING LEGEND. 🐐 pic.twitter.com/2nJPh1d6zo
— Arkansas Razorbacks Men’s Basketball 🐗 (@RazorbackMBB) March 5, 2026

Richardson coined the phrase “40 Minutes of Hell” in reference to the ferocious, full-court defense his Arkansas teams played during his tenure (1985-2002). Between Arkansas and his first Division I job at Tulsa, Richardson amassed 508 wins (389 with the Razorbacks), reached the Final Four three times and secured Arkansas’ only national title.

Richardson also was a member of the Texas Western (now UTEP) teams that preceded the school’s victory over Kentucky in 1966, when five Black players started an NCAA championship game for the first time and won. That game paved the way for Black players to compete at schools that had previously rejected them.

Richardson, one of six SEC coaches to win a national title since 1990, was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014.

After Wednesday’s game, current Arkansas coach John Calipari joked that he’s contractually obligated to clean the statue once it’s finished.

“Which I will do in a pleasant way because I love it,” he said. “He’s been so good to me since I’ve been here.”

Richardson and Arkansas were not on good terms when they divorced in 2002. But the two sides have repaired the relationship over the years. The university renamed the floor at Bud Walton Arena “Nolan Richardson Court” in 2019. Richardson praised Calipari’s hiring in 2024 after he left Kentucky, and he has been around the program since Calipari’s arrival.

“He should have been had a statue, I think,” said Trevon Brazile, who finished with 28 points on his senior night Wednesday. “They won the national championship.”

Added Darius Acuff Jr., who finished with 28 points and 13 assists against the Longhorns: “It’s great to see that for sure. Coach Richardson is a big part of our team. He’s been to a couple of our practices, so it’s always good to see [him]. He’s a legend.”

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Arkansas

Autopsies rule Arkansas mothers death a suicide; twin children’s deaths homicides

Published

1 day ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Autopsies rule Arkansas mothers death a suicide; twin children’s deaths homicides

BONANZA, Ark. (KATV) — According to our partners at 40/29 News, autopsies show that Charity Beallis died by suicide, and her six-year-old twin children died by homicide.

Beallis and the children were found on December 3, 2025, in their home in Bonanza. All three had gunshot wounds.

Records show that Beallis and her husband were in the process of divorcing when the murders happened. 40/29 reports that Beallis’ son has asked that their divorce be considered final, while her husband, Randall Beallis, has asked the court to dismiss the divorce proceedings.

The news release listed the following evidence:

— An examination of the transcripts of the deposition of Mrs. Beallis in the divorce/custody case and the final hearing on the case on 12-2-2025, reveal that she wished to be reconciled to her estranged husband, which did not happen. Mrs. Beallis, after being represented by four different attorneys, represented herself in the contested divorce/custody hearing. At the conclusion of the hearing, Mrs. Beallis was ordered to begin joint custody of her children with her estranged husband.

–Mrs. Beallis’ estranged husband was a driver of a Tesla electric vehicle at that time. Tesla has compiled location data on Tesla vehicles, and according to the information provided by Tesla, Mrs. Beallis’ estranged husband’s vehicle was not near the residence in Bonanza on the night in question. Also, the estranged husband’s phones did not “ping” any of the cell towers proximately related to Ms. Beallis’ location.

–Information from the home security alarm company shows the alarm was deactivated by Mrs. Beallis by her phone (she had exclusive access to the security system) at around 10 pm on the night in question. Even though deactivated, the alarm company was able to provide information showing no doors or windows to the home were opened during that time. When law enforcement arrived after 9:30 am on 12-3-2025, there were no doors or windows open, and they had to use a key to enter the home. SCSO rigorously tested the functioning of each door and window and found them to be operating properly.

The court released an order on Wednesday stating that it does not have jurisdiction to rule on those motions regarding the divorce. Beallis’ body has been released to her son, while the children are with Randall Beallis.

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