Wrapping up their preseason with a 3 and 1 record in a scrimmage play day on Saturday, the Coffee County Middle School Volleyball is ready to begin the season on Tuesday. The Lady Raiders captured wins over North Franklin, Harris Middle and the Harris Middle JV team before losing in the final game to Warren County.
Coach Malaysha Pack was pleased with her team’s service game. She also appreciated her young team’s understanding of the game after graduating the majority of experienced players from last year’s squad. She noted that the Lady Raiders will need to improve in the blocking and return game to perform well in the upcoming season.
The Lady Raiders open the regular season on Tuesday when they travel to Flintville for a 5:30 PM match. The Lady Raiders will get a rematch with Warren County on August 18th then travel to White County on August 23rd. The first home match for Coffee County will be on August 25th when they welcome Harris to their home court at the Coffee County Middle School.

Last in the Majors in runs scored, the Braves did not look offensively challenged at Busch Stadium this weekend. After scoring 13 runs to even the series a day earlier, Atlanta knocked around Adam Wainwright for six quick runs on Sunday that held up for a 6-3 victory over the Cardinals.

“Coming off last night, you never know what will happen with a quick turnaround,” Braves interim manager Brian Snitker said. “They just kind of picked up right where they left off. To come in here and take two of three from the Cardinals at any point in time, that’s really good.”
Wainwright retired the first two batters of the game and then watched 11 of the next 12 Atlanta hitters reach. Nick Markakis and Jace Peterson delivered run-scoring hits in a three-run first, and Erick Aybar’s two-run triple in the second left Wainwright teetering. By the time Wainwright closed the second with a double play, he had thrown 61 pitches and was staring into a six-run hole.
Though Wainwright rebounded with four scoreless innings to follow, the Cardinals never did. They turned six hits and two walks off Braves starter Mike Foltynewicz into one run. Foltynewicz was at his best when pitching with runners on base. Over the Cardinals’ last four games, they’ve scored a total of seven runs.
“You just try and put it in the back of your head,” Foltynewicz said of pitching with the lead. “It’s kind of difficult to pitch like that. You’ve just got to stay aggressive and still attack the strike zone which I think I did a good job [of] today.”
The Braves, who have won back-to-back series for the first time since June, have eight victories in their last 12 games.
As for the Cardinals, who dropped one game behind the Marlins for the second National League Wild Card spot, they have squandered an opportunity to separate themselves in that race over the last week. The club has lost six of eight and consecutive series against last-place clubs.
“Certainly for where we should be, it’s pretty dadgum dark,” Wainwright said. “Nobody in this clubhouse is quitting. Nobody in this clubhouse is expecting this to continue for the entire season. We’re all expecting to play much better baseball and more consistent baseball. We just need our starting pitcher to go out there and not give up six in the first two innings and give his team a chance.”
Wainwright has given up 11 runs to the Braves this season, tied for the most of any opponent he’s faced this season. His six runs against Atlanta on Sunday were the most he has given up in 12 career starts against them. He has now given up 34 runs to the Braves — the team that drafted him — in his career, the most among any team not in the National League Central. Foltynewicz was a Cardinals fan growing up and idolized Wainwright, against whom he got a hit in his first at-bat.
“Just trying to put the ball in play,” Foltynewicz said. “I kind of had a hunch he would keep throwing me the curveball 0-2 and I saw it pop up and tried to put the bat on the ball.”
Ender Inciarte extended his hitting streak to 18 games in the second inning with a single, tying his career high that spanned July and August 2014. He has hit safely in 24 of his last 25 games.
“He’s the kid we’ve been waiting to see,” Snitker said. “Credit to him for hanging in there, busting his tail. Swinging that bat really well.”
Despite falling into an early hole, the Cardinals had plenty of offensive opportunities to dent the deficit. However, the Cardinals went 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position against Foltynewicz. In both the first and third innings, the Cardinals put a runner on second with no outs yet could not advance him even as far as third. A scoring chance in the second with runners on second and third and one out stalled as well. The leadoff man reached against Foltynewicz in four of six innings but scored just once.
“They found some holes, and we didn’t,” said Brandon Moss, whose sacrifice fly in the fifth finally helped the offense break through. “Both teams put a lot of guys on base, and they were able to cash them in. I would venture to say we probably even hit the ball harder. But it’s not how hard you hit it or how many guys you put on base. It’s how many cross the plate.”
Cardinals manager Mike Matheny had reliever Jerome Williams ready in the second inning and nearly made the pitching change after Markakis drew a one-out walk. But Matheny stuck with Wainwright, and, despite having already allowed six runs, the Cardinals’ ace found his footing and managed to finish six innings. Had he exited in that second inning, it would have been the shortest start of Wainwright’s career.
“There were quite a few different times that we thought it might be a time to get him out, but once again, we needed his help to get us through the game,” Matheny said. “[I asked myself], ‘Is our bullpen ready to handle that kind of load?’ And the answer is, ‘I didn’t think so.'”
The Braves head to Milwaukee on Monday as Atlanta continues a 10-game road trip. Rob Whalen will make his second career start after earning the victory in his first on Wednesday against the Pirates. He went five innings and gave up four runs on four hits in his Major League debut. First pitch is scheduled for 6:20 p.m. CT.  Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast, as part of the Atlanta Braves Radio Network, beginning at 6 PM

Rangel Ravelo and Arismendy Alcantara hit back-to-back solo home runs in the seventh to help give the Nashville Sounds (67-49) a 6-1 win over the Round Rock Express (55-61) Sunday night at Dell Diamond.

Ravelo led off the Sounds seventh inning with his seventh home run of the season with a solo shot to left. Alcantara then quickly followed Ravelo with a solo shot of his own to put the Sounds up 6-1 in the seventh.

Sounds starter Raul Alcantara (3-0, 0.70) continued to impress in his fourth start as a Sound. The right-hander allowed just one run on a fifth inning solo home run by Drew Stubbs to cut the Sounds lead to 3-1.

Alcantara picked up his third win as a Sound giving up the one run on two hits while striking out three in five innings pitched. He would surrender his first walk in 25 2/3 innings pitched in Triple-A to Doug Bernier in the fourth.

With the game scoreless through three innings, the Sounds rallied for three runs in the fourth inning to take a 3-0 lead. Three straight singles by Jaycob Brugman, Chad Pinder and Renato Nunez led to the Sounds plating the first run of the game on the Nunez RBI single. After Matt McBride walked, Joey Wendle sent a two-run single to left scoring Pinder and Nunez to put the Sounds up 3-0.

Renato Nunez and Matt Olson would hit back-to-back doubles to give the Sounds a 4-1 lead in the sixth. Olson’s RBI double was his 50th RBI of the season.

Angel Castro and J.B. Wendelken both came on from the Sounds bullpen to pitch two scoreless innings a piece. Castro tossed a scoreless sixth and seventh, while Wendelken pitched a scoreless eighth and ninth to preserve a 6-1 Sounds win.

The four-game series continues with game two Monday night at Dell Diamond. Right-hander Chris Jensen (2-4, 3.76) starts for the Sounds against right-hander Chi Chi Gonzalez (5-8, 5.16) for the Express. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. CST.

The 2016 season is the Sounds’ 19th year in the Pacific Coast League and their second as the Oakland Athletics’ top affiliate. Tickets are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.

Freddie Freeman and Adonis Garcia each hit three-run homers, and Ender Inciarte and Matt Kemp also went deep in the Braves’ 13-5 win over the Cardinals on Saturday night at Busch Stadium.

Freeman’s 19th homer in the third and Garcia’s ninth in the fifth were all Roberto Hernandez (1-0) needed to pick up his first win as a starter since May 19, 2015. Hernandez, making his Braves debut after being called up from Triple-A Gwinnett, went five-plus innings and gave up three runs. Freeman finished 3-for-3 with three runs scored.
“It’s kind of like when Freddie goes, it kind of relaxes everybody I think,” Braves interim manager Brian Snitker said. “It was a nice night.”
Cardinals starter Carlos Martinez (10-7), who entered leading the staff with 10 starts of 7 innings or more, lasted just five innings and six of the seven runs he allowed were earned.
“From the first inning that I started pitching I didn’t feel right,” Martinez said through an interpreter. “I felt a little bit of a negative mentality.”
Inciarte led off the game with a single to extend his hitting streak to 17 games, and finished with three hits and three runs scored. Teammate Erick Aybar also singled to extend his hitting streak to 11 games. Markakis added three hits for the Braves, and Kemp’s first homer with Atlanta came during a six-run ninth. It was the first time the Braves scored at least 13 runs against the Cardinals since 2007.
“Obviously we don’t do that a lot, so it was good,” Snitker said of the home runs. “I think we’re capable now. Matt was struggling up to that point and maybe that homer gets him going and kind of gives him a burst of confidence. Freddie hit that long one and that was good to see out of him.”
The Braves rank last in the Major Leagues with 70 home runs — 20 behind the closest team — but it didn’t show Saturday. Freeman and Garcia’s home runs marked the second time in 21 starts that Martinez has given up more than one home run in an outing.
“It’s huge especially after [Friday’s 1-0 loss],” Freeman said. “You never want to start off a series like we did yesterday, and we came back and redeemed ourselves.”
Kolten Wong drove a 1-0 Hernandez pitch in the fifth into the right-field bullpen for his second homer of the season. It was the second pinch-hit homer of Wong’s career and a team-record 12th pinch-hit blast for the Cardinals this season.
Krol keeps lead: Jose Ramirez came into the game to relieve Hernandez and walked the bases full with two outs in the sixth inning. Left hander Ian Krol came in to face Wong, who had already homered and could tie the game with a grand slam. Instead, Krol got Wong to ground out to second baseman Jace Peterson to end the threat.
“Ian is pitching right now with a lot of confidence,” Snitker said. “The stuff he has, he should. He should be confident every time he goes out because he has as good of stuff as anybody. That was huge right there at that point in the ballgame because the momentum was fixing to change and that was real big.”
The Cardinals had several opportunities to change the game. Matt Carpenter was stranded after a leadoff walk in the first and Wong left the bases loaded in the sixth. The Cardinals also couldn’t pile on after getting three hits to start the eighth, unable to cut into what at the time was a 7-5 Braves lead.
“We were down, but we battled,” first baseman Brandon Moss said. “They kept adding and we kept adding and they broke it open there at the end. That happens. Come back tomorrow and try to win the series.”
Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina left Saturday’s game with a right hand contusion. Molina, a seven-time All-Star, was lifted for pinch-hitter Matt Adams in the eighth. He was replaced behind the plate by Alberto Rosario in the ninth.
Carpenter was lifted after the fifth in a double switch with Wong. Carpenter, who returned Friday from a lat strain, was slow leaving the field after his at-bat in the bottom of that inning and was lifted as a precautionary measure.
“Carp just didn’t look right, so we made a decision to get him out of there, but he’s checking out fine with the medical team,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “Yadi had a foul ball off his finger, just more of a bruise on his throwing hand. The middle finger, I think. Just one of those things that tightend up to where he couldn’t grip the bat or the ball how he needed to, but [we] had him looked at and everything came back negative.”
Mike Foltynewicz (4-4, 4.30 ERA) takes the hill for the Braves in the series finale against the Cardinals on Sunday at 1:15 p.m. CT. Inciarte will also look to extend his hitting streak to 18 games, which would tie his career high. Foltynewicz has never faced St. Louis in his career.  Thunder Radio will bring you all the action on the Braves Radio Network beginning at Noon.

The Nashville Sounds won 5-2 in a rain-shortened contest over the Colorado Springs Sky Sox Saturday night at Security Service Field.

Rain and thunderstorms rolled into Colorado Springs in the bottom of the sixth inning Saturday night. After retiring Lewis Brinson via a ground out, Sounds reliever Eduard Santos bounced a fast ball in the dirt with Garrett Cooper batting. Home plate umpire Alex Ortiz then quickly called for the tarp to be put on the field as they rain poured on Security Service Field.

After an hour and 30 minute rain delay, the conditions of the field were deemed unplayable giving the Sounds a 5-2 win.

Daniel Mengden gave up two runs on five hits in five innings of work before giving way to Santos. The mustached right-hander struck out three and did not allow a walk in his fifth win as a Sound.

The Sounds got out to an early 1-0 lead in the third after Chad Pinder roped an RBI single to left to score Colin Walsh who led off the frame with a double.

A three-run fifth inning started when Jaycob Brugman scored Rangel Ravelo with a sacrifice fly to left to give the Sounds a 2-0 lead. Matt Olson then doubled the Sounds lead when he sent a two-run double to right to score Arismendy Alcantara and Chad Pinder to put the Sounds up 4-0.

Colorado Springs answered back with two runs in the bottom half of the fifth to cut into the Sounds lead. Michael Reed broke up Mengden’s shutout bid when he launched a solo home run to center to put the Sky Sox on the board. Yadiel Rivera then singled and stole second to set up Kyle Wren’s RBI single to center to cut the Sounds lead to 5-2 after five.

The Sounds will now travel to Round Rock for their final stop on their current 12-game road trip for a four-game set with the Express Sunday night at Dell Diamond. Right-hander Raul Alcantara (2-0,0.44) starts for the Sounds against left-hander Michael Roth (9-3, 2.39) for the Express. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. CST.

The 2016 season is the Sounds’ 19th year in the Pacific Coast League and their second as the Oakland Athletics’ top affiliate. Tickets are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.