The Coffee County Middle School JV soccer team advanced to the championship game of the Central Tennessee Conference JV soccer tournament on Saturday before falling to Warren County 1 to 0. The JV Lady Raiders, who got a first round bye, advanced to the finals by with a 1 to 0 win over Tullahoma in the semifinals. Ellie Fann scored the lone goal for Coffee County as she converted a pass from Ariana Hansen. The Central Tennessee Conference varsity soccer tournament will be held on Saturday at Tullahoma. Thunder Radio will have the times and pairing for you later in the week.

The Titans provided more drama, more defense, and another last-minute drive on Sunday against the Oakland Raiders.

They weren’t able to provide a win, however, and it felt like a punch in the gut.

“It’s tough to take,’’ linebacker Brian Orakpo said after the team’s 17-10 loss to the Raiders. “We were resilient, we fought all the way until the end, and we had some things go against us at the end. It hurts to lose this one. No one is happy about it.

“But I’m telling you, we have the arrow pointing up in the right direction. It’s a whole different brand of football that’s being presented out here at Nissan Stadium. This loss hurts, but I’m still optimistic. We’re still optimistic. We’re going to win ball games.”

The Titans fell behind 17-3, but nearly rallied to tie it late.

A fourth-down pass from quarterback Marcus Mariota to receiver Harry Douglas fell incomplete in the end zone with 12 seconds left.

Moments earlier, the Titans had a touchdown negated because of an offensive pass interference call against receiver Andre Johnson. The Titans made it all the way to the three-yard line at one point, but an unnecessary roughness penalty on tackle Taylor Lewan backed them up.

“We had a chance to win a game, all the way to the last play we had a chance to win the game and not play the best of football consistently,’’ coach Mike Mularkey said. “We made some plays. Again, there’s a lot we can learn from these games, there’s a lot of good things happening with our team. But this is a fine line in this business, if we make some mistakes, it’ll make it hard to win.”

Running back DeMarco Murray finished the game with 114 yards on 16 carries, along with a touchdown. He became the team’s first 100-yard rusher since Chris Johnson did it in the final game of the 2013 season.

Quarterback Marcus Mariota was 17-of-33 for 214 yards in the contest, with two interceptions, and a fumble.

The Titans kept the Raiders, ranked No.1 in the NFL in total offense entering the game, off the scoreboard in the second half. Mariota kicked himself for his mistakes.

“I thought (our defense) played great,’’ Mariota said. “They gave us an opportunity to win the game. We have to play better on the offensive side of the ball so we can kind of match what they are doing on defense.”

After jumping out to a 3-0 lead early on a 34-yard field goal by kicker Ryan Succop, the Raiders scored 17 straight points to take control of the game in the first half.

The Raiders scored a touchdown on their opening possession on a 22-yard run by Latavius Murray to make it 7-3, and following a Mariota fumble, they made it 10-3 on a 52-yard field goal by kicker Sebastian Janikowski.

The Raiders stretched the lead to 17-3 just before halftime on a 19-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Derek Carr to Seth Roberts.

A five-yard touchdown run by Murray cut Oakland’s lead to 17-10 with 5:51 remaining in the third quarter.

The two teams played a scoreless fourth quarter.

The Titans, who played without tight end Delanie Walker and receiver Kendall Wright, took over at their own 20-yard line with 1:51 remaining, with a chance to tie it. An eight-play, 68-yard drive put them in great position. But this time, unlike their come-from-behind win at Detroit last week, they weren’t able to finish.

The Titans (1-2) travel to Houston next Sunday to face the Texans.

“We can’t blame the refs,’’ Titans linebacker Avery Williamson said. “I thought we were about to have another fourth-quarter victory, but we just couldn’t get things to go our way.

“We have to bounce back and be ready to get a win next week.”

Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast as part of the Titans Radio Network.  Our coverage begins at noon.

Deceased Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez

Approximately five minutes before arriving at Marlins Park on Sunday morning, Freddie Freeman, Tyler Flowers and a group of other Braves on the team bus were suddenly overwhelmed with sadness and bewilderment as they learned Marlins ace Jose Fernandez died a few hours earlier in a boating accident.

“I’m at a loss for words,” Freeman said. “It’s utter disbelief and shock. I’m hoping to wake up from this nightmare. He was one of the best people I’ve ever met. He was an unbelievable competitor. It was an absolute treat to get to know him these past couple years.”

While the Marlins ended the Braves’ seven-game winning streak on Saturday night, Fernandez entertained his teammates in the dugout in the same manner he had since first gracing the Majors with his tremendous talents and vibrant personality. A few hours later, he and two friends were killed when their boat crashed and capsized near the entrance to the Miami Harbor.
“There’s a lot of shock and disbelief,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “Everybody in [the clubhouse] is just kind of staring at each other. As a parent, when you see something like this happen to a young man like that, it’s just hard to comprehend.”
Once Sunday’s game was postponed with no makeup date set, the Braves spent close to four hours at Marlins Park watching the news and dwelling on the reality that a man who had established himself as one of the game’s best pitchers and personalities was dead at 24.
“It’s always hard to see that happen to anybody, much less someone you saw last night,” Flowers said. “I think that makes it more surreal for myself. Whenever you hear of something like this, it’s amazing that 12 hours ago, he was across the way over there cheering for his team. It’s definitely a tough morning. I can only imagine what his teammates and family are going through.”
Upon hearing this tragic news, Flowers immediately thought about what transpired nearly two weeks ago, after Braves reliever Jose Ramirez threw a pitch over Fernandez’s head. The Marlins’ pitcher was understandably upset as the benches cleared. Once order was restored, he shared a cordial exchange with the Braves’ catcher and mentioned fear of sustaining an injury that would prevent him from caring for his family.
“He had a personality that was very rare in sports,” Freeman said. “Getting to see it over the years, it was a personality you got drawn to. He was always smiling and always having fun. He loved playing the game of baseball. Every time he got on that mound, he brought the best out of you. It’s not only a loss for baseball, but this whole country really, Cuba and everything. It’s a very sad day.”
Freeman homered in his first career at-bat against Fernandez and then doubled three innings later. Upon reaching second base, he gained a glimpse of the pitcher’s easy-going, competitive nature when Fernandez turned toward him, smiled and shook his head in a fun-loving manner while essentially saying, “What do I have to do to get you out?”
“He was always smiling at you,” Freeman said. “It was just a fun competition. It makes you better because he’s had so much fun out there, you just kind of forgot about everything. You just wanted to go up there and compete with him because he put on show every time he was out there. It was an honor to be a part of it.”

All season, the Braves have presented problems to Miami. On Friday night, Adonis Garcia’s two-out RBI single in the ninth inning lifted Atlanta to a 3-2 comeback win and pushed the Marlins closer to National League Wild Card elimination.

Former Marlins infielder Emilio Bonifacio slapped a pinch-hit, one-out single in the ninth off A.J. Ramos, stole second with two outs and advanced to third on catcher J.T. Realmuto’s throwing error. With the count at 2-2, Garcia lined a single to left, giving Atlanta the lead, while handing Miami its third straight loss.
With their seventh straight victory, the Braves guaranteed themselves of avoiding a 100-loss season that once seemed inevitable, especially after they totaled five wins in April and entered June with a 15-36 record.
“It was a good [win],” Braves catcher Tyler Flowers said. “We were grinding. There was good passion and good team camaraderie. Wins like this with that kind of emotion can really bring a group together, or it can take them apart. I think for us, it has brought us together. It has been like that for a while now. We’re having a lot of fun playing.”
Atlanta, 11-6 against the Marlins on the season, had numerous chances all night, collecting nine hits and leaving on nine on base.
The Marlins struck quickly off Matt Wisler, taking the lead on Martin Prado’s two-run double in the first. But the Atlanta right-hander didn’t allow a hit after the first inning, and he exited after six. Miami was held to three hits.
“You know, really, this is typical of the way we played, to be honest with you,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said after his team fell to 76-78. “We catch a little stretch where we play good, win three in a row, and you start to feel you’ve got a little momentum, and you lose three in a row.”
Atlanta closed to 2-1 in the second on Flowers’ RBI single off Andrew Cashner, who gave up that lone run in five innings.
“I kind of battled my fastball command a little bit,” Cashner said. “I thought I did a good job of not letting them barrel me up. Overall, I thought I mixed speeds well. It was just unfortunate.”
Flowers pulled the Braves even at 2 in the sixth with his two-out double off Mike Dunn. Freddie Freeman, who doubled to open the frame, scored.
“We’re playing like we’re trying to get a playoff spot,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “It’s a really good feeling and it’s fun.”
Bonifacio spent most of this season with Triple-A Gwinnett, but he proved he still has some of the speed he had when he played for the Marlins from 2009-12. The veteran utility man’s stolen base in the ninth inning was his first of this season and second since the start of 2015. Garcia’s game-winning single capped his 12th three-hit game of the season and third within his past six games.
“The way this team has been going lately, I really haven’t been focusing on home runs,” Garcia said. “I’ve been focusing on helping the team win, whether that’s by driving in a few runs or getting Freddie up to bat, so he can drive in the runs. It’s been a constant effort, and I’m glad we’ve been improving and winning the way we have been.”
The Braves tied it at 2 in the sixth inning and were primed to claim the lead on Jace Peterson’s two-out single to center. Flowers, who drove in the tying run with a double, attempted to score from second, but center fielder Christian Yelich made a strong throw home, and catcher Realmuto applied the tag for the third out.
Wisler allowed two hits, issued a walk and surrendered a pair of runs before recording his first out. But the right-hander did not allow another hit or run over the remainder of his six-inning effort. He pitched around a pair of walks in the third and ended up retiring each of the final 10 batters he faced. His effort was preserved by Mauricio Cabrera, who worked a scoreless ninth that concluded with Mallex Smith making a diving catch of Justin Bour’s sinking liner in left field.
“These past two starts have been huge for himself and our team,” Freeman said of Wisler. “A couple weeks ago, that might have gotten out of hand. He shut it down after that first inning. Good things are happening around here, and that’s all I care about right now.”
Ichiro Suzuki, who replaced Giancarlo Stanton in right field, led off the eighth with a single to left. It was the Marlins’ first hit since Prado’s double in the first. Miami advanced the 42-year-old to second base on Miguel Rojas’ bunt, but with the game tied at 2, Brandon Cunniff struck out Marcell Ozuna and Prado to end the threat.
“Obviously, you feel like you’re going to put some runs on the board,” Mattingly said. “You get a couple of runs in the first, and from there, obviously, they make adjustments, and we weren’t able to.”
Braves left fielder Matt Kemp was ejected when he voiced his displeasure from the bench after home-plate umpire Adam Hamari called a strike on Cashner’s 3-1 pitch to Nick Markakis with two outs and the bases loaded in the third inning. After looking at the called strike that appeared to be high and outside, Markakis flied out to left field. Kemp proceeded to complain and was thrown out by Hamari, who then tossed Snitker during an ensuing argument.
Aaron Blair will take the mound when Atlanta resumes the four-game series at 6:10 p.m. CT on Saturday. Blair recorded his first career win on Monday when he limited the Mets to two runs over six innings.  Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast as part of the Braves Radio Network beginning at 6 PM.

Kaylee Skipper of CHS Volleyball

Strong defense, excellent play at the net, and an aggressive and effective service game lifted the CHS volleyball team to a straight set win over district rival Columbia on Thursday.  Coffee County took the road match win by set scores of 26-24, 25-16 and 25-21.  The win also gave the Lady Raiders a season sweep over the Lady Lions.

Coffee County shined at the service line on the night with 17 aces.  Aerial Williams served 5 aces and Rachel Henley served up 4.  Bailey Morgan and Kaylee Skipper each added 3 service aces.  Baylee Nester led the Lady Raiders in kills with 8.  Skipper, Alliyah Williams and Laneva Bell each added 5.  Aerial Williams added 3 blocks while Morgan led the team in assists with 21.  Skipper added 11 digs as Tyana Fenton scooped up 10 digs of her own.

Coffee County is back in action on Tuesday when they play host to Franklin County at the Joe Frank Patch Memorial Gym.  First serve is set for 6 PM.  Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you the broadcast as part of the 1^st National Bank Hometown Sports Series.  We will begin with the pregame show at 5:50.  Coffee County coach Andrew Taylor will be a guest on Saturday’s Coffee Coaches Show to talk about the season and set the fans up for the postseason.  The Coffee Coaches Show is heard right here on Thunder Radio each Saturday morning at 10 AM and is broadcast live from Al White Ford Lincoln.