State sports briefs

ATHLETICS

Arkansas announces 2018 Hall of Honor class

The University of Arkansas, Fayetteville on Thursday announced its 15-person 2018 induction class for the UA Sports Hall of Honor.

Football players to be inducted are defensive linemen Ron Faurot and Irvan Jordan and punters and kickers Greg Horne and Bruce Lahay.

The class includes basketball players Rickey Medlock, Sytia Messer, and Jonathon Modica along with April Steiner Bennett and Randy Stephens (track and field), Ewell Lee (tennis), Steve Loy (golf), Dana McQuillin (gymnastics), Nick Schmidt (baseball), Jerry Spencer (swimming and diving) and Kim Storey Chronister (volleyball).

Inductees were elected to the UA Sports Hall of Honor based on a vote by former Razorback letter winners in conjunction with the A Club. This year's class will be inducted on Sept. 14 -- the Friday night before the Arkansas-North Texas football game -- during a banquet at the Fayetteville Town Center. They will be introduced during halftime of the football game, which starts at 3 p.m..

Tables and individual tickets to the induction banquet and the Hall of Honor golf tournament may be purchased from the Razorback Foundation. Sponsorships are also available for the banquet and golf outing. For more information, visit the Hall of Honor website or call the Razorback Foundation at (479) 443-9000.

FOOTBALL

ASU picked to win Sun Belt

Arkansas State University was selected Thursday to win the Sun Belt Conference championship by the league's head coaches.

ASU also was chosen to win the West Division, while Appalachian State was selected to win the East title.

The Red Wolves earned nine first-place votes and 49 points overall. Louisiana-Monroe was picked second in the West, with South Alabama, Louisiana-Lafayette and Texas State rounding out the division. South Alabama earned the division's other first-place vote.

Appalachian State earned 46 points overall and six first-place votes. Troy had the other four first-place votes in the East and is picked to finish second. Georgia State, Georgia Southern and Coastal Carolina round out the division.

For the first time in conference history, the Sun Belt is moving to a divisional format to determine a champion. The league's championship game will be played Dec. 1 at the site of the divisional team with the best overall conference winning percentage.

TRACK AND FIELD

Hogs add 12 to men's team

Arkansas Coach Chris Bucknam announced the signing of 12 athletes for the 2018-19 season on Thursday.

Vernon Turner, a Big 12 Conference champion in the high jump and two-time All-American at Oklahoma, headlines the signing class.

Travean Caldwell, a 2016 state decathlon champion at Crossett and NJCAA national championship qualifier at Arkansas Baptist College in Little Rock, is one of two Arkansans to join the Razorbacks along with Jon Conley. Conley, the son of former Razorback Mike Conley, will compete in the 100 meters and the long jump.

Other signees include Tre'Bien Gilbert of Converse, Texas (110- and 300-meter hurdles), Rashad Boyd of Houston (100 and 200 meters), Kevin Wilkinson of Moorpark, Calif. (800 and 1,500 meters), Trey Grayson of Glenpool, Okla. (400 and 800 meters), Carl Elliott of Fort Pierce, Fla. (200 meters, 110-meter hurdles, triple jump), and decathletes Kyle Costner of Brentwood, Tenn., Brittan Burns of Prior Lake, Minn., Daniel Spejcher of Bloomington, Ill., and Connor Holzkamper of Keller, Texas.

-- Democrat-Gazette Press Services

SOCCER

Little Rock Rangers meet fundraising goal

In less than 24 hours, nearly 250 people donated $20,000 to a GoFundMe account to help pay for a Little Rock minor league soccer franchise's playoff trip to Miami.

The Little Rock Rangers, a member of the National Premier Soccer League, advanced to the league's quarterfinals with a 2-1 victory Tuesday night against Laredo Heat SC, and the nonprofit franchise didn't have enough money to pay for its trip to play at Miami FC 2 on Saturday.

Rangers owner Jonathan Wardlaw started a GoFundMe account Wednesday morning, and by 9:20 a.m. Thursday, 249 people had donated the $20,000 necessary to make the trip.

The Rangers will play at Miami FC 2 on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Saint Thomas University in Miami Gardens, Fla.

-- Brooks Kubena

GOLF

Long second at Southern Amateur

Luke Long of Fayetteville is two strokes behind the leader and sits in second place at the 112th annual Southern Amateur championship at The Club at Olde Stone in Bowling Green, Ky. Long shot a 4-under 68 Thursday to go with his 6-under 66 from Wednesday for a 10-under 134. That’s two stroke behind Patrick Cover of Cornelius, N.C., who shot a 9-under 63 on Thursday and is 12 under for the tournament. Long started his second round on the back nine and had a 3-under 33. He made eight consecutive pars on the front before making birdie at the par-4, 9th to finish his 4-under round. For the tournament, Long has 11 birdies, 24 pars and 1 bogey. Peyton Wilhoit of Searcy shot an even-par 72 on Thursday and sits in a tie for 42nd place at 1 under. Matthew Cole of Fayetteville is one shot behind Wilhoit at even par after a 1-over 73. The tournament concludes Saturday.

— Democrat-Gazette Press Services

Sports on 07/20/2018

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