Happy Tuesday! We hope you had a great weekend! Eight teams will be vying for a state championship this weekend — is yours one of them? 👇

What else is coming up in today’s edition of the Bulletin?

🎙️ Varsity Vibe Today gets you ready for hoops
📈 Scores and highlights from the weekend
🏆 Handing out awards for Team & Athletes of the Week

Let’s dive right in!

🎙️ Varsity Vibe Today. A lot is going on this week in high school athletics! Teams are gearing up to host basketball tournaments, and the football signing period begins on Wednesday. Plus, Alyssa Orange looks ahead to the 7A State Championships game rematch between Bentonville and Bryant. Hear what Bentonville HC Jody Grant has to say about the game.

 🏈 Tiger Takedown. Bentonville is heading back to the 7A State Championship after a clutch 26-21 win over Conway on Friday night. Trailing 21-20 late in the fourth quarter, the Tigers’ defense delivered a huge stop, setting up a final 54-yard scoring drive. Chris Ficklin carried Bentonville to the finish line, punching in a 2-yard touchdown with 10 seconds left. Ficklin finished with 100 rushing yards, while the Tigers’ defense held Conway to just 249 yards. Senior quarterback Cole Slepecki threw for 145 yards and Bentonville totaled 298 yards of total offense.

🐶 Blue Blood. The Greenwood Bulldogs punched their ticket to the 6A State Championship for the sixth-straight season following a 63-45 win over Benton. Despite trailing briefly in the second quarter, the Bulldogs scored touchdowns on seven consecutive possessions — with senior quarterback Kane Archer throwing for 259 yards and four touchdowns. Archer also ran 120 yards, while senior Champ Davis racked up 149 yards on the ground and five scores of his own. With the win, Greenwood extended their winning streak at home to a staggering 77 games.

⚜️ Finals Bound. Shiloh Christian defeated Sylvan Hills, 52-28, on Friday night to advance to their seventh-consecutive state championship. The Saints jumped out early behind junior quarterback Cole Creighton and senior running back Griffin Mason, building a 28-12 halftime lead. Sylvan Hills briefly cut the point-deficit to three points in the third quarter, but Shiloh Christian answered immediately and never looked back, putting up 24 points while shutting down the Bears’ offense. Creighton threw four touchdown passes while sophomore running back Charlie Kroell added three rushing scores.

 🏈 Joe T. Robinson is headed back to the 5A State Championship after fighting back for a 35-28 win over Morrilton on Friday night. Despite missing senior running back Kevin Williams, the undefeated Senators scored the final 15 points of the game. The late momentum was sparked by a touchdown from senior running back Isiah Reese, a tying two-point run from junior QB Reece Simpson, and a key defensive stop to prevent a Morrilton comeback.

🏈 When Elkins’ starting quarterback came out of the game, junior quarterback Austin Born stepped up and led the Elks to a 13-10 postseason win over defending 4A champion Arkadelphia to advance to the state semifinals. After entering the game late in the third quarter, Born put together a clutch 80-yard drive that ended with a 4-yard touchdown run, giving Elkins the lead.

⛹️‍♀️ Little Rock Central’s sophomore guard Janae Johnson delivered an impressive performance last week, leading the Lady Tigers to a 67-62 comeback win over Greenwood on Tuesday night. Johnson was electric, scoring a game-high 33 points to go along with seven rebounds. She helped spark the second-half run for Central that flipped the momentum. Her standout night, paired with a double-double from teammate Rosebella Onyango, was enough to help the Lady Tigers take the win and improve to a 4-1 this season.

🏈 Despite being down two touchdowns with three minutes left, the Bryant Hornets fought back and forced double overtime — ultimately beating Rogers, 50-43. The Mounties led 35-21 late in the game, but the Hornets scored quickly following a failed Rogers punt return. Senior quarterback Jeremiah Motes was able to tie the game at 35 with a 7-yard pass to senior tight end Cooper Billingsley. The teams traded touchdowns in overtime, but a score from senior running back Kollin Robinson and a key defensive stop for the Hornets clinched the win and sent them to the state title game.

Dec. 2:
🏀 6A Central @ Bentonville, 6:00 pm | Watch Here
🏀 6A/5A Siloam Springs @ Bentonville West, 7:30 pm | Watch Here
⛹️‍♀️ 6A/5A Siloam Springs @ Bentonville West, 7:00 pm | Watch Here

Dec. 4:
⛹️‍♀️ 6A Bartlesville (OK) @ Bentonville, 4:30 pm | Watch Here 
⛹️‍♀️ 6A Bentonville West @ Benton, 7:00 pm | Watch Here
⛹️‍♀️ 6A Fayetteville @ Central, 8:00 pm | Watch Here 

⛹️‍♀️ 4A Clinton @ Pea Ridge, 5:00 pm | Watch Here

Dec. 5:
🏈 7A Bentonville vs Bryant, 6:30 pm | Watch Here

🏀 6A Conway @ Bentonville, 6:00 pm | Watch Here
🏀 6A/5A Bentonville West @ Alma, 7:30 pm | Watch Here

🏈 5A Joe T. Robinson vs Lakeside, 7:00 pm | Watch Here 

Dec. 6:

🏈 6A Shiloh Christian vs Greenwood, 6:30 pm | Watch Here

👋 Hello There!

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