By Kyle Sutherland

HOT SPRINGS - Adam Carlton was primed to get back to work after Mount Vernon-Enola lost in the 1A state quarterfinals to eventual state champion Norfork a year ago.

Despite the imminent move up to Class 2A, he knew this season had a strong chance of ending at Bank OZK Arena with every major contributor returning. 

“We had a mission after we got knocked out last year to try and get to this point,” Carlton said. “All of these kids did a great job. We even had a group of eighth graders come in every day and practice with us because we did not have a big group.”