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Six Red Raider Soccer Players Named to All-District Team
Wyatt Day Signs Basketball Scholarship with Martin Methodist

Wyatt Day signs a basketball scholarship with Martin Methodist as his family and coaches look on. Front row(from left) Edna Sutherland, Glenn Ray, Wyatt Day, Samantha Day and Scarlett Day. Back Row(left to right) Coach Derek Jones, Coach Ben Holl, Coach Micah Williams and Coach Andrew Taylor
Coffee County senior basketball player Wyatt Day signed a letter of intent to play college basketball next season with Martin Methodist on Friday at a ceremony at Central High School. Day, used mostly at the win g this past year, is projected to compete as a combo guard at Martin.
Coach Micah Williams was effusive in his praise for Day saying: “Wyatt has had a great career here at Coffee County and his signing represents a huge accomplishment for him.” Williams went on the say that Martin was impressed with Wyatt’s scoring ability and obvious offensive talents. “Wyatt understands the game of basketball and is a student of the game” added Williams.
When asked why he chose Martin, Day liked the idea of being close enough to home so that his mother and sister could see him play. “Pulaski was cool, I liked the small town feel” said Day. “They also have a good business program for my major” added Wyatt. Day thinks he will end up as a shooting guard at the college level and looked forward to the opportunity to impress his coaches during a full JV schedule at Martin.
Martin Methodist is located in Pulaski, Tennessee and competes in the Southern States Athletic Conference as a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics(NAIA). Martin Methodist is coached by Scott Combs.
Middle School Golf Season Comes to a Close
The Coffee County Middle School and Westwood Middle School golf teams ended their season on Thursday in the conference match at Riverbend.
A pair of undermanned Westwood teams were not able to compete for team crowns but the Rocket and Lady Rocket golfers had several strong showings. For the Lady Rockets, Macie Lawrence shot a 68 on the day for the 7th lowest round of the match. For the Rockets, Christopher Robinson carded a 53 while Nick Johnson was one stroke back at 54. Gavin Prater finished his round in 67 strokes.
The young Raider and Lady Raider teams struggled to put up low numbers for the most part. Logan Hale shot a 50 for the Red Raiders to lead them to a 5th place finish. Larson Meltzer cared a 62, Xavier Bartley had a 67 and Issac Pauley got around in 76.
The Lady Raiders finished in 3rd place just 6 strokes behind Fayetteville. Olivia Lewis had a 77 while Olivia Howell shot an 81 for Coffee County.
Braves Come Up Short After Gritty Rally in 9th
The ninth inning of Sunday’s loss to the Royals was a microcosm of the Braves’ season. They were scrappy and kept fighting. But in the end, they didn’t get the sweet reward of a victory as the Royals pulled out a 4-2 walk-off win on Kendrys Morales’ two-run homer in the 13th.
Down 2-0 against All-Star closer Wade Davis, Atlanta managed to overcome long odds by handing Davis his first blown save of the season with a two-run ninth. A team that came in 0-21 when trailing after eight innings saw the first four men reach base. Ender Inciarte singled to center and Chase d’Arnaud walked. Then, Mallex Smith lined an RBI hit to right before being caught between first and second on the ill-advised notion that he could stretch a single into an extra-base hit. Still, the Braves forced extra innings on Erick Aybar’s RBI single.
Was that rally something for a young team to build on? Or do those type things only matter when you finish the deal?
The Braves lost two of three to the defending World Series champs, but were within a play here or a better decision there of getting their first series win since mid-April.
“We played well, other than the last inning where they walked us off and the eighth inning [Friday],” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “We did a lot of good stuff. It’s just a shame that you walk out of here having lost two of three.”
The growing pains of a young club were evident even in the ninth-inning rally.
Had it not been for Smith’s over-aggressiveness on the bases, the Braves might well have grabbed the lead against Davis, who suffered a blown save for the first time since July 12, 2015.
“We could have cashed it in, but we came back and battled,” said Braves starter Matt Wisler, who logged 7 1/3 strong innings in a no-decision. “Hopefully, we can start turning that into wins.”
The Braves weren’t intimidated by the stats which showed that Davis entered the game having limited opponents to an .083 batting average.
“We just wanted to stay alive,” Smith said. “Put good at-bats together and pass it down to the next man.”
Those sentiments were echoed by d’Arnaud.
“We had a plan,” d’Arnaud said. “Ender had a great at-bat. I just wanted to be as short to the ball as possible and he walked me on four pitches. Mallex came up big and got that hit. I thought for sure he was going to get a double, but I guess the right fielder was playing fairly shallow.”
Aybar’s clutch hit tied it, but in the end, Atlanta couldn’t look back and celebrate.
“I feel like we always have a chance, especially today,” d’Arnaud said. “Unfortunately, they came out on top.”
Right-hander Williams Perez (1-0, 3.54 ERA), who needed only 85 pitches to get through eight innings in a win over the Phillies last Wednesday, will try to stay on that pitch efficiency track on Monday in the opener of a road set against the Pirates at 6:05 p.m. CT. Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast on the Braves Radio Network.
Sounds’ Offense Leads to Second Straight Win
A balanced offense led the Nashville Sounds to a 6-3 win over the Fresno Grizzlies in front of 7,423 fans Sunday afternoon at First Tennessee Park.
Coupled with last night’s win over Fresno (15-21), it marks just the second time this year the Sounds (18-19) have won two home games in as many days.
All but one player in Nashville’s starting lineup had at least one hit, RBI or run scored.
Fresno’s Jon Singleton gave the Grizzlies a 1-0 lead in the top of the first when he knocked in Tony Kemp who started the game with a single.
The Sounds then scored in five of the next six innings, starting in the second. Matt Olson singled to right and raced home from first on Rangel Ravelo’s double down the left field line.
Nashville took a 2-1 lead in the third when Andrew Lambo came through with a two-out RBI single to left field.
Fresno third baseman Colin Moran brought it back to even at 2-2 when he launched a solo homer off Henderson Alvarez in the top of the fifth.
An error cost Fresno the go-ahead run in the home half of the fifth. With Max Muncy on first, Jake Smolinski hit a line drive at right fielder Jon Kemmer. The ball bounced before Kemmer and skipped past him all the way to the wall to allow Muncy to score and make it 3-2.
Bryan Anderson knocked in a run in the sixth on a groundout before a bases-loaded double play brought in a run for the Grizzlies to trim the deficit to 4-3.
That’s when Chad Pinder and Olson came up with a pair of two-out run-scoring hits. Pinder’s line drive to right scored Muncy, and Olson’s second double of the game plated Pinder from first. Olson finished the game with a season-high three hits to go along with a pair of runs scored and an RBI.
Alvarez allowed two runs on six hits in five innings and picked up his first win with the Sounds. Brady Rodgers was tagged with the loss after he allowed three runs in five innings. Reliever Patrick Schuster worked the final 2 1/3 innings and kept the Grizzlies off the board to earn his third save of the season.
Game three of the series is set for Monday night at First Tennessee Park. Right-hander Zach Neal (4-1, 2.70) starts for the Sounds against right-hander Mike Hauschild (2-3, 4.55) for the Grizzlies. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.
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.
5/19/16 — Wendell Hall McCullough
Funeral services for Wendell Hall McCullough, age 80 of Manchester will be conducted at 2pm, Thursday, May 19 at the Manchester Funeral Home Chapel. Burial will follow in the New Beechgrove Cemetery. Visitation with the McCullough family will be Wednesday from 5pm until 8pm at Manchester Funeral Home. Mr. McCullough passed this life Saturday, May 14 at Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville.
Mr. McCullough was born in Coffee County, Tennessee the son of the late Thomas Hall McCullough and Mamie Duke McCullough. He was formerly a grocery store manager for Doug’s IGA in Tullahoma and Fuller Foods/Big Star of Manchester. In addition to his parents, Wendell was also preceded in death by 4 brothers, Carl, Earl, Oki and Wayne McCullough, and by a sister, Mildred Shasteen. Wendell is survived by:
His loving wife of 57 years, Mrs. Bobbie Jean Fears McCullough of Manchester
Children- Christy Harrell of Manchester
Mike (Karen) McCullough of Manchester
Lamar (Crystal) McCullough of Tullahoma
Three grandchildren, Holly (Brian) Heckler, Erin McCullough and Lindsay Harrell
THE FAMILY SUGGESTS MEMORIAL DONATIONS TO THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION
MANCHESTER FUNERAL HOME IS HONORED TO SERVE THE McCullough FAMILY
Man Flees from Deputy in High Speed Pursuit
In Deputy Marcom’s report he says the driver lost control of his vehicle on Riley Creek and Ovoca Lake Road in Tullahoma and flipped the car several times.
The deputy says in his report that he noticed the driver started to try and get out of the car then appeared to hang in the seat belt. At this time there were flames coming from the front of the car but was extinguished by some bystanders who had witnessed the accident. The deputy says when he approached the vehicle the driver was alert and had lit a cigarette and asked to call his parents. Deputy Marcom then got his crowbar and busted the sunroof and pulled the driver out of the car.
The deputy states the man was identified as Jeffery Bartholomew Finchum age 40 of Larkway Dr Tullahoma. He was taken to Tennova Harton Hospital to be treated for his injuries before being released and transported to the Coffee County Jail.
Finchum was charged with Evading Arrest, Reckless Endangerment and driving on revoked/suspended license. His bond was set at $26,500 and court date of June 26, 2016.
Also Finchum had warrants for failure to appear in Sumner County TN and a warrant out of California for stealing a car.
Grundy County Woman Arrested On Child Neglect, Endangerment Charges
At the request of 12th District Attorney General Michael Taylor, TBI Special Agents joined investigators with the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office on November 22, 2013, in investigating allegations of child endangerment and neglect of a male infant. During the course of the investigation, Agents developed information that in February 2013, Meredith Richardson was responsible for the endangerment and neglect of her infant son.
In March, the Grundy County Grand Jury indicted Richardson, charging the 34-year-old with one count of Aggravated Child Neglect and one count of Aggravated Child Endangerment. She was arrested last week by deputies with the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office and booked into the Grundy County Jail. She is being held on a $100,000 bond.
Homicide Investigation Continues in Grundy County
Grundy County Sheriff Clint Shrum says a search warrant was recently carried out at 287 W. Pickett Road in Coalmont. The warrant involves the homicide case of Samantha Chandler. Chandler’s body was discovered in the Ross Creek area on May 1, with wounds sufficient to open an inquiry.
Sheriff Shrum had previously that they suspect foul play just by some of the things that was at the scene.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation conducted the search with GCSO assisting. The TBI removed some type of items from the home. No other details are available.
Report: Barriers to Child Care Assistance Can Be a Burden

Advocates are pushing for a child-care tax credit based on family income that would let parents choose their own child-care facility. (Katia Strieck/flickr.com)
Wading through the paperwork involved in getting government help to pay for child care can be overwhelming to already overworked parents. A new report by the Center for American Progress looks at how difficult it can be for low-income families to navigate an underfunded child-care support system. As child-care costs keep rising, applying for and finding assistance can become a full-time job of its own, said Judith Warner, a senior fellow for the center who authored the study, “Jumping Through Hoops and Set Up to Fail.” “It’s the sort of psychological, emotional side of things that really hit me in a very, very gut way,” she said. “Imagine doing all of the things you already do, while in addition you have to file a degree of paperwork that goes far beyond all those medical forms and permission forms you normally file just for school.” According to Child Care Aware of America, day care costs nearly $6,000 a year for infants in Tennessee and a little less for pre-schoolers. While that figure is less than many other parts of the country, Warner said that when budgets are tight, families are forced to choose cost over quality in child care. Warner said parents who qualify for assistance with child-care expenses often aren’t given a lot of help to navigate the system. “You’re dependent on people who may or may not lose your paperwork, and may or may not want to help you,” she said, “and if things go wrong, your child loses a stable, good place in child care that brings them so many advantages.” The Center for American Progress report made some recommendations – including less paperwork for parents and more child-care funding. Last fall, the group also proposed a “High-Quality Child Care Tax Credit,” worth up to $14,000 per child, based on family income. The money would be paid directly to a child-care provider chosen by the parents. The report is online at americanprogress.org.