Wednesday, February 3, 2021 The Issue 30 • 1 Section • 6 Pages Murfreesboro Diamond 75¢ Serving South Pike County, Arkansas Since 1975 USPC 103-230 Home of the Crater of Diamonds State Park Monthly USDA senior commodi- Rattler basketball continues ties will be available at the Mur- freesboro CADC Senior Activity MURFREESBORO -- Rattler bas- free-throw line in the process. Center this Thursday, Feb. 4. ketball participated in a trio of bas- Campbell added 13 points and ketball games last week, hosting Santana Leeper scored nine with Attendees are reminded that both Eagletown and Cutter Morn- eight rebounds. COVID-19 protocols are being en- ing Star at home, while traveling to Stivers would record a team forced, which include no exiting of Horatio. leading nine rebounds. the vehicle and commodities must Emma Ray scored 10 points to EAGLETOWN be placed by volunteers in the trunk spearhead the Lady Lions’ offen- On Monday, January 25 the high of the vehicle and not the back seat. sive output. school squads hosted the Eagle- As a team, the Lady Rattlers Also, recipients will be asked to town, Oklahoma Eagles for a pair shot 41% (11/27) on two-pointers, show an identifi cation through the of games. 40% (4/10) from three and 63% closed vehicle window as part of The Lady Rattlers opened the (19/30) from the free throw line. distribution policy. action with a 44-17 win, utilizing MHS would get 13 steals on de- Additionally, if recipients have their defense to jump out to leads fense, while turning the ball over to 19-1 after the fi rst quarter, 32-5 not completed a new application 22 times. at halftime and 38-6 after the third. for the year 2021, it is required that The senior Rattlers earned a 60- Mallorie Stivers would lead the one be submitted yearly. 54 win over Horatio, outscoring team in scoring with 12 points Horatio 17-9 in the third quarter to and ten rebounds, with all points open up their lead to 42-30. scored in the fi rst half. Rhealee Horatio would make a run in Continuance granted in Campbell netted 11 while adding the fourth on a 21-14 score that fell a team leading four assists and short by game’s end. Kevin Walk- Honrbeck proceedings seven steals. ers would scored 13 of his team- Emma Corbitt added eight leading 17 points in the fi nal stan- MURFREESBORO -- A continuance was points and Brooke Westfall fi ve za, including three three-pointers. granted Monday in the case against a former points with six rebounds. Ketrick Dennis scored 21 for Murfreesboro High School coach accused of The team shot an excellent 54% Murfreesboro, including fi ve treys six counts of sexual assault which allegedly (14/26) from two point range, to lead the Rattlers in scoring. happened during his time at the school. while only 11% (3/28) from three- Aden Henderson added 18 points, The case against Charles “Si” Hornbeck, 37, point. The team also fl agged a bit along with Jay Stuard’s eight. now of Springdale, has been continued until from the charity stripe, going 41% the summer with a pretrial date set for July 26 (7/17) as a team. CUTTER MORNING STAR and an Aug. 19 trial date. Horneck, who was Staff Photos As a squad the Lady Rattlers col- The junior Rattlers opened the scheduled for pretrial Monday, pleaded inno- OFFENSIVE EFFORTS ... In basketball action last Friday night, (above) lected 13 steals versus nine turn- set with a 41-29 loss to Cutter, out- cent to the charges at previous court appear- Laytan Wilcher passes the ball to a downcourt teammate on a fast break, overs of their own accord. scored by the visiting team 26-17 in ance. (below) Aden Henderson scores on a layup after penetrating the Cutter Churchwell and Lane each the second half. On Sept. 9, 2020, fi ve counts of fi rst-degree Morning Star defense while (far below) Emma Corbitt passes into the interior scored 5 points for the Lady Eagles. Dylan Turley (three three-point- sexual assault and one count of second-degree past a pair of Lady Eagle defenders. The Rattlers would fall in the ers) and Jamarion Conway would sexual assault were fi led against Hornbeck. close non-conference game 59-56 each score 11 points pace MJHS. Hornbeck worked as a Rattler coach and after holding a lead of 30-37 lead Laytan Wilcher contributed six teacher on the MHS campus of the South Pike at halftime. points. County School District from 2007 to 2014. The third quarter proved to be Thornton scored 13 to lead the Hornbeck was most recently employed by MHS’ undoing, as the Eagles out- junior Eagles. the Farmington Public Schools in northwest scored the home team 16-9 in the The Lady Rattlers scored their Arkansas. According to the school, Hornbeck third quarter. second blowout victory of the resigned there in August 2020. Kade Caldwell led the team in week, prevailing by a 53-15 mar- The investigation of Hornbeck’s alleged as- scoring with 15 points, including a gin. saults began in August of 2019 when the Ar- trio of three-pointers. Gavin Rawls Campbell scored 23 points for kansas State Police Crimes Against Children added 14 and Tra’Million Hender- MHS, all of which came in the fi rst Division Child Abuse Hotline received a fax son scored 13. half, including fi ve three-pointers. from the Pike County Sheriff’s Department Short scored 23 points for Eagle- Corbitt contributed 15 points for regarding an assault of a former 16-year-old town to lead all scorers, including MHS, with Leeper tallying seven. female student, according to an affi davit for four three-pointers. Devin Humphries scored eight arrest. points for CMS. HORATIO The offenses involved three victims, all less The Lady Rattlers would shoot The teams traveled to Horatio than 21 years of age. “There is a four year time 42% (9/21) from inside the arc and on Thursday, January 29 for three span as to when the offenses occurred,” ac- 31% (8/26) from behind it. A 69% games. cording to case fi les. (11/16) effort from the free-throw The MJHS Lady Rattlers would The victims said the alleged assaults took line was combined with a 17/6 open with a 32-17 loss against the place in the Rattler Field House, at the coach’s steal to turnover ratio for the team. junior Lady Lions, falling behind home and at the “residence of coach’s parents Cutter Morning Star’s senior 11-1 by the fi rst quarter’s fi nal in Murfreesboro.” boys would close out the evening buzzer. First-degree sexual assault carries a maxi- with a 57-52 win after the game Carley Cox would score seven mum sentence 30 years and a fi ne not to ex- was tied at the end of the third points to lead the team, followed ceed $15,000. Second-degree sexual assault has quarter at 44. by Jenna May with fi ve and San- a maximum sentence of 20 and a fi ne not to Caldwell would lead MHS in tana McMillian with four. exceed $15,000. scoring with 19 points, including Kirby led the junior Lady Lions four three-pointers. T. Henderson with 12 points. and Dennis (three three-pointers) The Lady Rattlers would follow each had 11 points. with a 53-35 win, avenging a loss a Pike County man faces week earlier to the Lady Lions. THIS WEEK MHS would take advantage in The teams will host three sets of charges involving teenager the fi rst and third quarters, out- games at home this week, includ- scoring Horatio 15-4 and 11-5 re- ing Monday’s game against Fore- MURFREESBORO -- A Newhope man has spectively. man, Caddo Hills on Tuesday and been charged in Pike County Circuit Court Corbitt scored 17 point to lead Poyen on Thursday. with fourth-degree sexual assault involving a the team, going 10/14 from the teen. Christopher S. Rider, 27, was charged Jan. 27. He pleaded not guilty to the charge Mon- day and an April 26 pretrial date was set. A no- contact order was put in place concerning the alleged victim. An investigation started in May 2020 when a report was received from the Arkansas State Police Crimes Against Children division and involved a 15-year-old female. During the in- vestigation, it was determined the teen was pregnant. Rider initially denied any involvement with the teen but later recanted that the he had sex with her in July 2020. His story was confi rmed by the victim who told investigators Rider was the father of the unborn child. Also Monday, a Glenwood man pleaded guilty to a felony drug possession Monday and will be sent to Pike County Drug Court. Izek Christopher Brock, 20, was ordered to enter the drug treatment program and also fi ned $1,500 plus court costs. Brock was arrested the night of April 3, 2020 by Glenwood Offi cer Jimmy Foreman. Brock told the offi cer he had a small amount of mari- juana in his vehicle but a search of his person found methamphetamine. DO YOU KNOW SOMETHING WORTH TELLING? Staff Photos PIKE COUNTY LAW ENFORCER OF THE YEAR ... Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge recently hosted the 2020 Law Enforcement Offi cer of the Year Submit Your Local Luncheon at the Benton Event Center, where she announced the state offi cers of the year.