The Westwood cross country team traveled to Winchester on Monday afternoon to compete in “The Hornet” hosted by Huntland High School.  Three racers from both the Rockets and Lady Rockets finished in the top 10 in their respective divisions as Westwood came home with a pair of 2^nd place team finishes.

For the Lady Rockets, Kailee Rossman was the top finishers as she posted a time of 16:02 to come in 2n place in the girls’ division.  Ryleah McNamara was right behind her in 3^rd place with a time of 16:17.  Reagan Dubler came in 10^th place with a time of 19:18.  Kimberly Garcia was 12^th, Melisa Garcia was 13^th and Jennifer Sanchez captured 14^th place.  Alexandra Rivas Garcia rounded out the Lady Rocket runners with a 27^th place finish.

For the Rockets, Nico Sanfilipo was the top finisher as he captured 3^rd place with a time of 13:36.  Aiden Smith came in 7^th place with a time of 14:25 and Jaiden Warren finished in 8^th place with a time of 14:32.  Other Rocket runners were Caleb Cantrell(16^th Place), Hunter Crosslin(19^th), Lane Fann(21^st), Jaime Barrera(25^th), Neyland Grant(32^nd), Eduardo Chavez(33^rd), Thompson Lowe(34^th), Blake Cummings(36^th), Saleen Khan(38^th), Will Rogers(41^st), Matt Moore(47^th) and Kalex Goings(48^th)

The Rocket runners will return to action on Friday when they travel to Sewanee to compete at the Mountain Lion Invitational at St. Andrews. The first race begins at 4 PM.

Sydney Gilley of CCMS soccer

The Coffee County Middle School soccer team saw their season come to a close on Monday in Tullahoma.   The Lady Raiders put up a good fight defensively but could not get their offense on track as they were shut out.  Coffee County fell in the match 2 nil.

Tied at the half at 0, the Lady Raiders were unable to get a shot off in the second half.  Lady Raider keeper Sydney Gilley finished the match with 8 saves.

Matthew Pittman of CHS football

Big plays, timely defense, and poise under pressure was the perfect recipe for the Red Raider football team on Friday night as they rolled to a 42 to 36 win at Siegel.  In a game you heard here on Thunder Radio, the Raiders built a 21 point lead in the 4^th quarter but had to recover a pair of onside kicks to stave off a late Siegel rally.  The win is the first for a Coffee County football team over a Rutherford County football team since 2004.

Blanton Brown got the Raiders on the board first with 6 seconds remaining in the 1^st quarter when he intercepted a Siegel screen pass and rumbled 68 yards for a touchdown.  Felix Salinas hit the extra point to make it 7 to 0 Coffee County after one quarter.  Here is how it sounded on Thunder Radio:

After Siegel tied it, Coffee County marched down the field and scored with 1:22 left in the half as quarterback Matthew Pittman hit C. J. Anthony with a 13 yard touchdown pass.  Salinas drilled the extra point and the Raiders led 14 to 7 at the half.  Here is Dustin Murray with the TD call:

Coffee County and Siegel traded scores in the 3^rd period as Pittman had a 7 yard touchdown run but the extra point was missed as Coffee County led 20 to 14 going into a wild 4^th quarter that saw 6 touchdowns scored.  The Raiders went up 28 to 14 when Pittman rushed 22 yards for a touchdown then hit a fully prone Marshall Haney on the 2 point conversion pass.  Siegel matched that score with 9:47 left in the game to bring up a crucial kickoff.  Expecting an onside kick, Siegel kicked the ball deep and C.J. Anthony pulled it in at the 2 yard line.  Anthony raced toward the Siegel sideline and galloped 98 yards for the touchdown to put the momentum back in Coffee County’s hip pocket.  Here is how it sounded:

Marshall Haney tacked on an 11 yard touchdown run for the Raiders to make the score 42 to 21 with 6:20 left in the game.  Siegel added a pair of touchdowns, including one with 56 seconds remaining, but the Raiders recovered both onside kicks to control the clock and grab their first win of the year and the first win at Coffee County(in football) for head coach Doug Greene.

Pittman finished the game with 122 yards rushing on 15 carries and 2 touchdowns.  He was also 6 of 8 through the air for 111 yards and another touchdown as he was named the Mid Tenn Turf Most Valuable Player of the game.  Collin Ward caught 2 passes for 57 yards to lead the Raiders in receiving.  Haney had 58 yards rushing on 18 carries and a touchdown for Coffee County.  Kelvin Verge added an interception in the 4^th quarter to shut down a promising Siegel drive.

Coffee County will be back at home on Friday night when they welcome Cookeville to Carden-Jarrell Field for Homecoming.  Opening kick is set for 7 PM, Thunder Radio will have exclusive coverage of the game beginning at 6 PM with the Friday Night Thunder Pregame Show, maintained by Premier Lawn Care.

Download the broadcast at:

1^st Half – http://www.podcastgarden.com/episode/coffee-county-at-siegel-first-half_149006

2^nd Half – http://www.podcastgarden.com/episode/coffee-county-at-siegel-second-half_149010

The Coffee County CHS volleyball team welcomed 15 teams to Manchester on Saturday for their annual Southern Slam Tournament.  The Lady Raiders were 2 and 1 in pool play to qualify for the Gold Bracket.  Coffee County fell in the 1^st round of bracket play by eventual tournament champion Lawrence County.

The Lady Raiders opened up with a 2 set win over Fayetteville.  Coffee County won by set scores of 25-20 and 25-13.  Coffee County then dropped Franklin County in straight sets 25-8 and 25-11.  They closed out pool play with a hard fought loss to Columbia Academy losing by set scores of 24-26 and 21-25.

In the Gold bracket, took eventual tournament champion Lawrence County to 3 sets before falling 25-22, 13-25 and 10-15.  In the consolation contest, the Lady Raiders dropped a 3 set decision to White County.  Coffee County fell 25-20, 23-25 and 13-15.

The Lady Raiders will hit the road on Monday as they travel to Tullahoma for a rivalry matchup with the Lady Cats.  First serve is set for 6 PM.

Caiden Martin of Division 3 MYFL Red Raiders[Photo provided]

MYFL returned to action on Saturday with 3 games on the road and three games at Carden-Jarrell.
The Manchester Red Raiders of SMTYFA traveled to Fayetteville to battle the Fayetteville City Tigers. The Division 1 (5-6-7) year olds took an undefeated team, which has also not given up a point all season, into Fayetteville to face the Tigers who were also undefeated, to contend for sole possession of first place. The Tigers had no answer for the Raiders dominating offense and defense. Avery Hodges lead the scoring with two touchdowns. Karson Wimley and Hayes Shemwell added a touchdown each. Shemwell caught a pass for a two point conversion and also added two extra point runs. Davion Dycus contributed an extra point. The Raiders, now 4-0 and alone in first place with still no points allowed, took the victory over the Tigers. – Manchester 28 Fayetteville City 0.
In Division 2 (8-9) year olds. The Raiders took their potent offense and defense to the Tigers with the same results. Levi Scott ran for three touchdowns and Treyvion Mathis added a scoring run. Easton Hinson ran for an extra point and his brother Cooper made an amazing grab on a two point conversion. The Raiders now 3-1 and in 2nd place, posted another win. – Manchester 28 Fayetteville City 0.
The Division 3 ( 10-12 ) year olds went to Fayetteville one point behind the Tigers in points allowed with the number one ranking on the line. However, five touchdown runs later by Caiden Martin and a two point conversion by Tyler Martin and three extra point runs from Landen Abellana lifted teh Raiders to the win. The Raiders, with a convincing win are now in first place by themselves. – Manchester 35 Fayetteville City 7.
The SMTYFA Manchester Red Raiders have a bye on September 28th and will resume action at home at Carden-Jarrell on October 5th with Division 1 play beginning at 2:00 pm against Giles County.

In Tri County action, the Manchester Red Raiders hosted the Trousdale County Yellow Jackets. In Flag (5-6-7) year olds.  The B team had 6 touchdown runs by Trey Stevens. Ethan Proctor added also added a touchdown run. B Team final:
Manchester 44 Trousdale County 51
The A team rundown: Trip Trussler with a touchdown and a Walker Lovelace extra point. Kyson Norris scored but no extra point. Lovelace scored and the extra point failed.  Norris scored the next touchdown and Lovelace added the extra point. Norris scored one more time and the extra point failed.  The Raiders came up just a bit short and are now 0-2. – Manchester 32 Trousdale County 46.
In the Junior Division (8-9) year olds. AJ Whitman paced Manchester with two touchdown runs and the Red Raiders held the Yellow Jackets scoreless and took home the win and evened their record at 1-1. – Manchester 12 Trousdale County 0.
In the Senior Division (10-12) year olds Isaiah Deadman lead the offense with two touchdowns. Tristan VanMeter and Kaedan Jones added a score each but in the end the Raiders were unable to contain the Yellow Jackets and fell to a record of 0-2. – Manchester 20 Trousdale County 51
The TCYFL Manchester Red Raiders next games are on the road Saturday at Jackson Co.   Flag Division begins play at 10:00 am in Gainesboro.

The Coffee County Middle School JV soccer team completed their season on Saturday in the CTC JV Tournament at Tullahoma.  The Lady Raiders fell in both of their contests on the day.  They Lady Radiers dropped decisions to North Franklin in the semifinals and Harris in the consolation game.

The JV Lady Raiders opened up against North and played well in the first half trailing 1 nil at intermission.  North found their scoring touch in the 2^nd half as they powered to a 6 to 0 win.  Coffee County was led in shots by Jasmine Norris who had 2.  Andrea Lopez added a shot as well while Lady Raider keeper Hailey Campbell finished with 6 saves.  Against Harris, Coffee County was blanked again in a 5 to 0 decision.  Campbell finished with 11 saves.

The varsity Lady Raiders will open CTC post season play on Monday when they return to Tullahoma for a quarterfinal matchup.  That match will get underway at 5 PM at East Middle School.

Two defensively sound clubs each kept their net clean as Nashville Soccer Club and Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC played to a 0-0 draw at First Tennessee Park on Saturday night. With the point earned, Nashville is just one point behind a trio of clubs in first place in the East and remains in the top four of the conference.

Nashville was the dominant team throughout the 90 minutes as a red card shown to Pittsburgh defender Tobi Adewole in the 40’ minute changed the course of the match. Up a man, Nashville SC controlled more than 75% of the possession and searched for a winner. The Riverhounds ‘parked the bus’ making it nearly impossible for Nashville to break them down.

The backline of the Boys in Gold was just as impressive, limiting Pittsburgh to just five shots and none on target. Nashville defender Forrest Lasso was not in the lineup after a late week leg injury, but the trio of Jimmy Ockford, Bradley Bourgeois and Ken Tribbett shut the Hounds down for all 90 minutes.

Here are three takeaways from Nashville’s third consecutive home result.

1) Ríos Returns to the Starting Lineup

The Eastern Conference’s leading scorer, Daniel Ríos, made his return to the Starting XI following a substitute appearance on Tuesday night. Ríos missed three matches prior to that with a groin injury, but was impactful in his 73 minutes on Saturday, registering two shots including the match’s best look in the 11’ minute. Ríos chested down a flicked on ball from Matt LaGrassa and deked around a defender. His low shot was saved by the Riverhounds keeper, denying the forward his 18th goal of the season.

2) Pickens Gets Clean Sheet No. 101

One match after registering his 100th career shutout, NSC keeper Matt Pickens earned clean sheet 101 in the 0-0 draw. It will be one of the least stressful shutouts for Pickens who didn’t register an official save as Nashville’s defense held Pittsburgh to no shots on goal. It’s the 11th clean sheet for Pickens on the season, the second most of any USL Championship keeper in 2019.

3) Tighter at the Top

One single point now separates the top four teams in the Eastern Conference standings after the results on Saturday night. Louisville City’s 5-3 win over New York Red Bulls II means that New York, Indy Eleven and Tampa Bay Rowdies are all tied at the top with 56 points. Nashville SC is just one point behind with 55. Nashville has four matches remaining, three at home, to solidify its status as a top four team. One of those four spots would mean Nashville SC hosting a home match in the playoffs.

Up Next

Nashville SC will have a full week to prepare for its final road match of the season at Loudoun United FC. Nashville beat Loudoun in its season opener 2-0 at First Tennessee Park in March. Loudoun remains outside the playoff race with a 6-15-6 record this year. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Segra Field in Leesburg, Virginia.