No surprise for Tigers

Bentonville will play for its first state title since it won in 2015 when it takes on Conway in the Class 6A State Championship at 4 p.m. today at Benton.

The Tigers (23-10) will do so after they entered the Class 6A State Tournament as the fourth seed from the 6A-West. Bentonville then advanced to the championship game when it scored six runs after being down to its final out and taking a 7-3 win over Springdale Har-Ber, last year’s state runnerup, in Saturday’s semifinal game.

“It has sunk in a little bit,” Bentonville coach Todd Abbott said. “Reflecting on it, this group is certainly capable of what it has just done, so it’s not necessarily a surprise to be playing well and playing like that.

“It’s always tough in a single-elimination tournament, especially when you’ve seen some of these teams before. It was just tough to get in with our conference being a jumbled mess and everybody beating up on each other. We got it, which was great, and we’re playing well and enjoying the moment.”

Bentonville went through its share of ups and downs throughout the course of conference play. It eventually led to the Tigers being one of three teams that finished 6-8 in league play.

Abbott, however, said one constant he saw from his players was how they approached every game and every practice. That mindset has remained the same this week.

“These guys, the atmosphere has been the same,” Abbott said. “You wouldn’t be able to tell today from two weeks ago. These guys go out and take care of their business every day. They are intentional in what they do, and I’ve been very pleased with that.

“Obviously, it’s an exciting time. An opportunity awaits, but they’ve certainly taken care of the opportunities in the present with each day.”