GREENBRIER — The Bryant Blue Lady Hornets eighth grade team of Bethel Middle School out-scored Greenbrier’s Lady Panthers 13-4 in the third quarter to break open a close game on the way to a 31-18 victory on Monday night.

The Lady Hornets led just 6-4 after a quarter and 14-10 at the half but, after the breakout third quarter, the lead ballooned to 27-14.

CINCINNATI — After a spectacular season in the Class AA and Class AAA levels of the Minor Leagues, Bryant's Travis Wood, son of Jay and Dena Wood of Bryant, has been added to the 40-man roster of the Cincinnati Reds Major League Baseball team for the first time.

Wood, a former star with the Bryant Hornets high school team and the Bryant Black Sox American Legion team, was a second-round draft pick by the Reds in the June 2005 first-year player draft. According to a story on mlb.com, Wood and six other members of the Reds' Minor League organization were added to the 40-man roster to protect them from the Rule 5 Draft at MLB's Winter meetings next month. It also indicates that the Bryant product will be invited to the Reds' Major League spring training in February 2010.

GREENBRIER — The Bryant Hornets freshman team held the Greenbrier Junior Panthers without a field goal for the last 38 seconds of the first quarter, the entire second quarter, the entire third quarter and the first 1:30 of the fourth quarter.

Though they didn’t take big advantage of that defense in the second period, the third quarter proved to be too much for the Panthers to overcome as the Hornets forged a 33-21 win.

Bryant led by as much as 15 along the way as the team bounced back from its first loss of the season to North Little Rock in the finals of the Bryant Invitational on Saturday. Now 4-1, the Hornets will open play in the South Division of the Central Arkansas Junior High Conference on Monday, Nov. 30, at Conway Blue.

GREENBRIER — Bryant Lady Hornets freshman guard McKenzie Adams finished Monday’s game at Greenbrier with as many points as the hosting Lady Panthers.

Adams hit for 26 in Bryant’s 46-26 victory. She had 19 by halftime when the Lady Hornets, who improved to 6-0 on the season, had built a 27-13 advantage.

CABOT — Melinda Murdock hit a 3-point basket late in the fourth quarter to get the Bryant White Lady Hornets eighth grade team of Bryant Middle School within a point of the Sheridan Stingers but they could get no closer in a tough 18-17 loss at the Cabot North Tournament on Saturday.

“We looked much better Saturday,” said Bryant coach DeAnna Ward. “We just weren’t able to get a last-second shot off. We just ran out of time.

BENTON — The Saline Memorial Health Foundation will host the third annual “A Holiday Affair”, a community festival for holiday goods and crafts. The event is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 2, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Thursday, Dec. 3, from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., in the Health and Education Building at Saline Memorial Hospital (SMH).

Only one football team in each classification gets to end its season with a playoff victory and in 1999 that wound up being the Fort Smith Northside Grizzlies, who beat the Springdale Bulldogs in the Class AAAAA State championship game. Along the way, the Griz brought down the high-flying Bryant Hornets at Bryant Stadium, ending the greatest season in the program’s history, the 10th anniversary of which we’ve celebrated this year. — Rob

Northside ends Hornets’ dream season

By ROB PATRICK

BRYANT TIMES

Bryant Stadium, still aglow in the November night, was nearly empty. At one end, a trio of 20-somethings took turns trying to kick field goals. At the other end, a television crew of two prepared for an on-the-spot report for the 10 o’clock news. At midfield, a lone figure stood, gazing at the turf then lifting his head to look around him.

For awhile, he wandered a bit, eventually shuffling to the sideline — the home side. There, Aaron Mears slumped down on the bench, sat back and surveyed the scene, where he and his teammates had spent so many nights of blood, sweat and joy, where he and his fellow seniors had just played for the final time in the blue, white and red of the Bryant Hornets.

ARKADELPHIA — The Bryant High School swim team combined to finish third at the 10 school competition at the Arkadelphia Invitational Swim meet held Saturday, Nov. 20, at Ouachita Baptist University. Texas High from Texarkana, Texas won the meet with 1,021 points. Conway was second (729), the only team to finish higher than Bryant (550). Magnolia was fourth (363).

The same order of finish held in the girls and the boys respective competitions.

SPRINGDALE — For the seventh time, the Bryant High School varsity dance team has captured the Class 7A State Dance Championship with their performance on Saturday, Nov. 14, at Springdale Har-Ber High School.

In doing so, the Bryant squad qualified for Nationals in Orlando, Fla., in February. It’s the 13th time, Bryant has made Nationals and the last two years they’ve been National Finalists in Hip Hop and Pom.

By Kirk Stewart

End of the year honors were announced for the Saline County Boys and Girls Clubs Flag Football season.