Thursday’s Prep Results
CCMS Baseball lost to MTCS – 7 to 2
CHS Tennis split with Lawrence County – Girls lost 7 to 0; Boys won 6 to 1
CCMS Softball defeated Whitworth-Buchanan – 10 to 1
CCMS Soccer lost to North Franklin – 3 to 0
CHS Baseball lost to Blackman – 15 to 5
CHS Softball lost to Plainfield East, IL – 4 to 2
CHS Softball defeated Heritage, AR – 10 to 4

Hannah Richardson of CCMS Softball

An 8 run outburst in the 3^rd inning by the Coffee County Middle School Lady Raiders lifted them to a 10 to 1 win over Whitworth-Buchanan on Thursday night at CCMS.  Keri Munn had the big knock in the 3^rd as she came with 3 feet of hitting a grand slam before settling for a 3 RBI double.  The non-conference win broke a 2 game losing skid for the Lady Raiders and sends them into Spring Break with a solid record of 7 and 2.

After surrendering a run on a pair of hits and a hit batter in the first inning, Lady Raider pitcher Hannah Richardson settled down and did not allow another baserunner until the 5^th inning.  The Lady Raiders rallied in the bottom of the first to tie the game at one before taking the lead with a single run in the 2^nd.  After the 3^rd inning explosion, the outcome was never in doubt as Richardson finished with 4 strikeouts.  Offensively, Jayden Scheller led the Lady Raiders attack as she had a triple and 2 singles and drove in 2 runs.  Richardson helped her own cause with 3 hits and a pair of RBI, while Amber Ingleburger was 2 for 2 with a double and an RBI.

The Lady Raiders were scheduled to play in a tournament at Moore County this weekend which has been cancelled.  Coffee County is now off until Monday, April 3^rd when they return to conference play in Winchester against South Franklin.

Shlip Patel of CHS tennis (file photo)

After damage to their home courts from Tuesday night’s storms, the Coffee County tennis teams were forced to move their home opener to Lawrenceburg on Thursday as the Raider netters took on district foe Lawrence County.  The boys kept their season record perfect with a 6 to 1 win while the Lady Raiders were swept by Lawrence County.

The Red Raiders got wins from Joseph Sadler(8 to 3 score), Grey Riddle(8 to 6), Shlip Patel(8 to 4) and Reid Lawrence(8 to 2) in singles play.  In doubles, the team of Sadler and Patel won their match 8 to 4 while the team of Riddle and Lawrence captured an 8 to 3 match win.  For the Lady Raiders, Rachel Henley took her match to an extra game before falling 9 to 7.

The Raider netters hope to host their first home match of the year on Monday, April 3^rd when Franklin County visits.  That match will get underway at 4 PM and will be the next match for Coffee County.  As always, Thunder Radio will keep you updated on schedule and venue changes.

Kaylee Skipper of CHS Softball(file photo)

The Coffee County Central High School softball team spilt their first 2 games on Thursday night at the Lady Warrior Southern Classic at Riverdale.  Coffee County opened the night with a 4 to 2 loss to Plainfield out of Illinois.  The Lady Raiders bounced back with 10 to 4 win against Heritage High School out of Arkansas.

Five Lady Raider errors was not the recipe for success in game #1 against Plainfield East out of Illinois.  Coffee County outhit the visitors from the North 6 to 4 on the night but the 2 unearned runs allowed proved to be the difference in the 4 to 2 loss.  Trailing 4 to 0 going into the 6^th inning, the Lady Raiders rallied for a pair of runs but could not carry the rally over into the 7^th inning.  Haley Hinshaw and Sarah West each had an RBI double in the 6^th inning.

In the nightcap, the Lady Raiders scored runs in each of the first 5 innings while banging out 9 hits to capture the win.  After taking a 2 to 0 lead in the top of the first inning, the Lady Raiders saw Heritage explode for 4 runs of their own in the bottom of the first.  Coffee County battled back retaking the lead in the 3^rd inning as they shut down their Arkansas opponent the rest of the way.  Kaylee Skipper had 2 hits, including a triple, and a walk with scored 3 runs to lead the Lady Raiders.  Katie Rutledge had a single and a triple and 2 RBI.  Rutledge also got the start in the circle and captured the win.

Coffee County returns to Murfreesboro on Friday for another doubleheader in the Classic.  The Lady Raiders will take on Lexington out of west Tennessee at 2 PM and Floyd Central out on Indiana at 4 PM.  Both games will be held at McKnight Park in Murfreesboro.

Jacob Langham of CHS baseball

Five errors by the Coffee County Central High School baseball team on Thursday night led to 10 unearned runs for Blackman in a 15 to 5 loss to the Blaze.  Coffee County committed 3 errors and walked 2 batters in the 3^rd inning that allowed Blackman to plate 8 runs and race out to a 12 to 3 lead.  The loss ended a 3 game winning streak for the Red Raiders.

After spotting Blackman a pair of runs in the bottom of the first, Coffee County rallied to take a 3 to 2 lead in the 2^nd inning on a pair of singles by Hayden Skipper and Jacob Langham.  Blackman retook the lead for good in the bottom of the second as they scored their first 2 unearned runs of the game.  The Red Raiders rallied for 2 runs in the 5^th but the Blaze ended the game in the bottom of the inning via the mercy rule.  Langham finished the game with 2 RBI for Coffee County.

Coffee County will play host to Blackman on Friday night at Powers Field.  First pitch is set for 6 PM and Thunder Radio will bring you the action beginning with the pregame show at 5:50.

Marshall Haney of CCMS Baseball

The Coffee County Middle School baseball bats went cold on Thursday as they opened play in the Blackman Challenge at Middle Tennessee Christian.  Facing the Cougars of MTCS, the Red Raiders were held to 4 hits on the night as they dropped a 7 to 2 decision.

MTCS was able to plate a pair of runs in the 1^st inning, 2 in the 3^rd inning and 3 more in the 6^th inning.  Marshall Haney swung the hot bat for the Raiders as he was 2 for 3 on the game.  Haney had a part in both Raider runs as he had an RBI double in the 2^nd inning and singled and scored in the 5^th inning.

The Raiders return to MTCS on Saturday for a doubleheader in the Blackman Challenge.  The Raiders will take on Christiana at 12:30 PM and Clarksville Academy at 3 PM.

Connor Fox of CCMS soccor

A bad first 10 minutes and a bad last 10 minutes were how CCMS soccer coach Kenny Lockhart described Thursday night’s match with North Franklin.  The visiting Gators controlled the time of possession during those crucial time frames to blank Coffee County 3 to 0 on Thursday night at the Raiders’ home pitch.

North used pressure in the final minutes of the first half to score goals in the 26^th and 28^th minutes and send the match to the half with the Raiders trailing 2 nil.  North tacked on their last goal in the 37^th minute to put the game out of reach for the Raiders.  Coffee County’s lack of depth was evident in the closing minutes of each half as the Raiders could not mount an effective offensive counterattack.

Coffee County is off until Monday, April 3^rd for Spring Break.  The Raiders will be back at home on that night as they will play host to South Franklin.  Opening kick is set for 5 PM.

In a game with crucial playoff implications, the Predators defeated the Calgary Flames 3-1 at Bridgestone Arena on Thursday.

The Predators trimmed their deficit in the Western Conference wild-card race, now trailing the Flames by one point. Nashville also kept pace with St. Louis, which won Thursday to maintain the teams’ tie for third place in the Central Division at 85 points.

Wild West: With Western Conference playoff seeding far from decided, Thursday’s game between the West’s two wild-card teams held significance. Combining for 18 goals in their first two meetings, the Predators and Flames waited until the second period to arrive offensively, with Nashville holding a 2-1 lead at the conclusion on goals from forwards Calle Jarnkrok and Colton Sissons. The Predators endured a nearly 15-minute stretch without a shot following Sissons’ goal and finished with a season-low 17, but outlasted the Flames for an important victory.

Riding Rinne: The play of Predators goaltender Pekka Rinne on Thursday was pivotal. With his teammates struggling to generate consistent offense and the Flames receiving five power plays, Rinne made 24 saves, allowing one goal for the third consecutive start. In those three starts, he has a 0.99 goals-against average and .959 save percentage.

Fisher out: Predators captain Mike Fisher didn’t play and is day-to-day with a lower-body injury, according to the team. Fisher, who didn’t complete Nashville’s win against Arizona on Monday and didn’t practice Tuesday or Wednesday, missed his fifth game this season and first since Nov, 8. Sissons, playing in his 100th NHL game, centered forwards Colin Wilson and Craig Smith in Fisher’s place. Center Vernon Fiddler played for the first time since March 7, rejoining the fourth line.

Up next: The Predators wrap up their homestand Saturday against the San Jose Sharks. The two teams haven’t played at Bridgestone Arena this season, splitting the first two games at SAP Center.

Pete Weber’s Post Game Report