The 2023-24 school year brought breakout seasons and two state championships to southeast Arkansas.
First, the Pine Bluff boys’ basketball team won its second straight Class 5A title. Then, last month, the Sheridan softball team ended its title drought by capturing its first state championship since 2019.
The Zebras didn’t cruise to the title as easily as they did in 2023. That year, the Zebras went 15-1 in 5A South play to win the conference crown, then won every playoff game by double digits. Their 67-51 win against Lake Hamilton gave them their first title since 2015.
This year, Pine Bluff entered the state tournament as the No. 3 seed from 5A South after a 13-3 conference season. The Zebras slipped past Van Buren 53-50 in the first round before dominating Jacksonville.
Then came the state title rematch with Lake Hamilton, a team that Pine Bluff had gone 1-1 against in the regular season. The Wolves’ Ty Robinson scored 49 points, but Pine Bluff’s Courtney Crutchfield hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to force double overtime, and the Zebras went on to win a classic, 85-82.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Pine Bluff returned to Hot Springs to face Benton. The Panthers beat the Zebras twice in the regular season and seemed poised to win again when they took a 34-21 lead late in the first half. Pine Bluff trimmed the lead to 37-32 by halftime, then outscored Benton 36-26 in the second half to win its 15th state title, going back-to-back for the first time since winning three straight between 1933-35.
Sheridan won four straight softball titles between 2016-19 but had not reached the state finals since. This year, the Lady Jackets went 16-0 in 5A South play, dethroning a Benton team that had won the past three state titles.
The Lady Jackets slipped past Maumelle and Valley View in a pair of 3-2 playoff wins before blanking Beebe 5-0 in the state finals in Conway. Senior pitcher Callie Kilburn went the distance with 10 strikeouts and one walk. She allowed six hits, all singles.
Those two state championships weren’t the only excitement in southeast Arkansas, though.
The Pine Bluff football team, which had struggled for the past several years after being a juggernaut in the 2010s, returned to form. After a rough out-of-state road trip to open the season, the Zebras rebounded to win the 5A Central championship with a 7-1 record, the only loss coming 24-21 in double overtime to Mills.
The Zebras nearly booked their first trip to War Memorial Stadium since 2017 when they led Shiloh Christian 35-19 at halftime of the state semifinals, but the Saints rallied to win 49-41. Despite the heartbreaking end to the season, a senior-heavy group brought the Zebras back into the state championship conversation.
That senior class sent several players to the college football ranks. Crutchfield, the No. 1-ranked recruit in Arkansas, joined classmate Austyn Dendy in signing with Missouri. Two others, Landon Holcomb and Jonathan Goins, chose to stay home and sign with the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff.
Across town, Watson Chapel got one last season with its legendary girls’ basketball coach, Leslie Henderson. She led the Lady Wildcats to a 23-8 record in her final year before retiring and went 12-2 to share the 4A-8 Conference title with Hamburg. The boys went 11-3 in conference play to claim second place.
The White Hall boys made a run to the playoffs after knocking off Hot Springs twice at the end of the regular season to claim the final spot in the state tournament from 5A South. The Bulldogs ultimately lost 60-51 to Alma in the first round, but the experience could help the returning players continue to build the program.
Elsewhere in southeast Arkansas, three teams came close to state titles but fell just short.
Woodlawn saw its run of three straight Class 2A baseball state titles end in a loss to Ouachita, ending a tremendous 34-2 season. Warren reached the Class 4A football semifinals before losing 24-14 to eventual state runner-up Rivercrest, while Dumas fell 50-48 in the Class 3A boys’ basketball semifinals to Central Arkansas Christian, which went on to win the title.
Star City, DeWitt and Woodlawn all reached the softball state semifinals.
This past school year brought plenty of good sports memories, but it also brought tragedies.
White Hall lost its head football coach when Ryan Mallet, a former University of Arkansas and NFL quarterback, died while on vacation last summer. The Bulldogs played in his honor last fall, as well as that of former teammate Benjamen Redix, who died last May. Pine Bluff also suffered loss when football player Kendall Burton was shot and killed in January.
Jason Mitchell served as White Hall’s interim head coach this past season before the Bulldogs hired Daryl Patton from Little Rock Southwest. The Bulldogs also welcomed a new boys’ basketball coach, Matt Williams, after Josh Hayes left for Hot Springs.
Watson Chapel turned to Pine Bluff for a pair of new coaches, hiring PBHS defensive coordinator Steven Heard as its new head football coach and former PBHS basketball assistant Lenell Brown as its new girls’ basketball coach.
Sheridan made a splash hire for its new football coach by hiring Kevin Kelley, known for his analytics-based offense which rarely punts.
The final piece of the 2023-24 high school athletics season will come with the Arkansas High School Coaches’ Association all-star games, scheduled for June 19-22 at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway.
The Sheridan softball team poses with the Class 5A state softball championship trophy and banner following the state finals at the University of Central Arkansas on Thursday, May 16, 2024. (Pine Bluff Commercial/Tanner Spearman)
White Hall senior Aiden Jenkins carries the football for a touchdown during a November 2023 football game. (Special to the Commercial/William Harvey)
Watson Chapel junior MaKyah Earl attempts a shot during a January 2024 girls’ basketball game. (Special to the Commercial/William Harvey)