Category: Sports

Members of the Coffee County Claybusters were in action on Saturday in an individual tournament at Highland Rim Shooters Club in Tullahoma.  As expected, the Claybusters came away with the bulk of the honors sweeping the 5 titles in the youth classes. 

The overall singles winner was Logan Meadows.  Victoria Majors captured the Lady’s title.  Hayden Jacobs was the high scorer in the junior division.  Garrett Taylor was the winner of the Sub-Junior division and Jacob Anderson won the title in the Class C division. 

The Claybusters return to action on Saturday, March 14^th when they return to Highland Rim for another individual shoot.  That shoot is set to get underway at 9 AM. 

In a game they desperately wanted, the Nashville Predators fell behind by three goals in the first period and were unable to claw back in a 6-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Monday night at Rogers Arena.

The loss came in the finale of the Predators’ four-game road trip, a stint away from Nashville that began with such promise. The club won the first two stops in Winnipeg and Calgary, but then fell in Edmonton and Vancouver, with the final outing leaving the Preds wondering what could have been.

“The first period, Vancouver was the better team, and I just think we didn’t play the way we need to play,” Preds Head Coach John Hynes said. “The second period, we played really well, and I thought we had an opportunity to either tie the game or get the lead in the game, but [Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom] was very good… and in the third period we just didn’t have enough.”

“We definitely could’ve played better [in the first period], but I didn’t think it should’ve been a 3-0 game,” Preds Captain Roman Josi said. “Overall, I didn’t think it was a 6-2 game. I thought it was way closer than that, but we have to find a way to score goals.”

The Canucks took control of the contest from the start by netting three in the opening 20 minutes. Vancouver made it 4-0 early in the second period and ended the night of Pekka Rinne, who was making his first start of the trip.

“There were a couple of breakdowns. We gave up some good chances, and then [Rinne] had some unlucky plays and they went in the net, and I told [Rinne] when he came out, I didn’t pull him because of [his play], we had to play better in front of him,” Hynes said. “These are big games, but to not have a lot of emotion in the first period and playing the game with the hardness you need to play with this time of year is something that we have to figure out why. Why did we come out in the first period that way?”

After the goaltender switch, Nashville put forth their best showing of the game, by tallying twice in 66 seconds.

First, Craig Smith tallied on the power play at 5:59 of the period, and Mikael Granlund potted his third in four games to bring the Predators back to within two. The deficit nearly dropped from there, as Nashville put 19 shots on the Canucks’ net in the period, but they couldn’t find the all important next goal.

“You have to give [Markstrom] credit, he was really good in net,” Josi said. “He made some huge saves, but I thought we created a lot to definitely get more goals than two.”

Vancouver changed the tune for the third period by going back up by three late in the second with J.T. Miller’s 22nd of the season. Jake Virtanen concluded the scoring at 6-2 early in the final period to see the Predators drop their second straight to finish the trip.

Nashville will play eight of their next 10 games at home. Perhaps most importantly, they have six games before the NHL Trade Deadline on Feb. 24, and the next test comes Thursday night against the Islanders, a game the Predators will want to complete with a bounce-back effort.

But for now, the Preds will look back at Monday’s loss as another they let escape their grasp.

“After they scored that third goal, we kind of stopped playing the right way,” Josi said. “The message has to be like, ‘Even if you’re down 3-0, you have to stick to the game plan.’ You have to play the game the right way. You can’t play to the score, and I think we saw in the second, when we played the right way we created a lot of chances and could’ve gotten a couple more goals.”

Notes:

Calle Jarnkrok returned to the Nashville lineup on Monday night after missing the previous five games due to illness. Austin Watson was also back for the Preds after being scratched for the first three contests of the trip.

Yakov Trenin, Colin Blackwell and Matt Irwin were scratched for the Predators against the Canucks.

With their four-game trip through Western Canada now complete, the Preds will head back to Nashville on Tuesday ahead of a Thursday-night tilt with the New York Islanders at Bridgestone Arena

The Coffee County CHS basketball teams hosted Lawrence County on Friday night in a district doubleheader.   The Raiders and Lady Raiders captured their 10^th straight doubleheader sweep on a night when the members of the school’s 1,000 point club were honored.  The Lady Raiders battled their way to a 47 to 23 win while the Red Raiders won in a 69 to 27 blow-out. 

The Lady Raiders clinched the regular season district title, and the #1 seed in the district tournament, with the win and season sweep of 2^nd place Lawrence County.  Coffee County jumped out to an 8 to 0 lead before Lawrence County could get on the scoreboard.  Leading by 14 entering the 4^th quarter, the Lady Raiders opened the final period on a 13 to 2 run to salt away their 23^rd win of the season.  Bella Vinson led Coffee County in scoring as she netted 11 points.  Seniors Ellie Graham and Jenna Garretson each scored 10 points as they were named the Stone Fort Mortgage co-players of the game. 

The Red Raiders held Lawrence County to 6 points in the first half as they took a 40 to 6 lead into intermission.  Coffee County carried a 41 point lead into the 4^th quarter as they rolled to their 18^th win of the year.  Tyler Taylor led Coffee County in scoring as he had 18 points to earn the Stone Fort Mortgage player of the game honor.  Kyle Farless and Jaxon Vaughn each netted 10 points and Shawn Anderson added 8 points.

Recognized at halftime of each game were members of the school’s 1,000 point club.   Former Lady Raiders who achieved 1,000 points in their career are: Allison Peercy Binswanger(Class of 91), Allison Sain Chumbley and Sarah Marcrom McKamey(Class of 93), Kandy Gilley Mueller(96), Monica Dillon Saine(97), Katie Sipe Neel(01), Amber Benjamin Florence(03), Cassie Carden Patton(05),Heather Grose Thacker(05), Sarah Beth Elam and Cortney Page Haviland(08), Abby Morgan(19) and Bella Vinson(21).  Former Red Raiders who were identified as having 1,000 points are: Mark Lynn(77), Danny Lynn(84), Joey Vaughn(86), Jermaine Jackson(90), John Collins(96), Micah Williams(06), Lance Crismond(13), Darius Rozier(19).

Coffee County returns to the court on Monday night as they travel to Fayetteville.  Coffee County will take on Lincoln County in a crucial district doubleheader.  The girls’ game will tip off at 6 PM and Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you all the action.  Our live coverage begins at 5:50 with the Char-El  Apartment and Home Rental Pregame Show.

Download the broadcast at: https://www.thunder1320.com/downloads/

The Coffee County CHS Dance team competed in the Peachtree City Championship located in Peachtree City, GA this weekend. Going up against teams from Tennessee, Georgia and Florida, the dance team got a pair of Top 10 finishes.  The Raiderettes placed 8th in the Pom Pom routine and 3rd in Hiphop routine.

Dance coach Ashley Kraft was pleased with her team’s performance.  “Getting that 3rd place in Hiphop during our first year at this competition is huge!” said Kraft. 

The Raiderettes compete again on February 29th in Huntsville, Alabama in the America’s Best Dixie Championship.   The Huntsville competition will end the season.  The dance team will host tryouts on March 18th and 19th for the 2020 – 2021 season.

Three members of Coffee County CHS swim team competed on Friday and Saturday in Knoxville at the Tennessee Interscholastic Swim Coaches Association High School Championships.  Kaylee Williams, Emily Williams and Nick Bogle represented the Raider program in the 2 day event. 

On Friday, Kaylee and Emily Williams each competed in the 200 Individual Medley preliminaries.  Kaylee posted a time of 2:20.49 to come in 36^th place.  Emily finished in 40^th place with a time of 2:22.30.  Nick Bogle competed in the 200 freestyle preliminaries coming in 32^nd place.  Nick posted a time of 1:50.77. 

On Saturday, Kaylee and Emily each competed in the 100 breaststroke preliminaries.  Kaylee finished in 12^th place to qualify for the finals.  Kaylee posted a time of 1:07.44.  Emily came in 59^th place with a time of 1:14.96 which was 2.53 seconds better than her qualifying time.  In the finals, Kaylee improved her time to 1:06.24 which was good enough for 12^th place.  Nick Bogle competed in the 100 freestyle preliminaries.  Nick posted a time of 50.79 to finish in 53^rd place.   

Tennessee football rising junior cornerback Alontae Taylor is set to represent the Vols as a member of the Southeastern Conference Leadership Council this weekend.

The council consists of one football student-athlete from each of the conference’s 14 schools and will meet for its annual gathering at the SEC offices on Birmingham this Friday and Saturday.

Among the agenda items for the group is a review of NCAA and SEC legislative items, open discussion on topics submitted by members of the Council, and engagement with football officials on rules of the game and student-athlete/referee interaction.

The event also includes a conversation with SEC alum and three-time NBA All-Star Antoine Walker to discuss his book, “Gone in an Instant” along with a discussion on financial literacy and education. The meeting is closed with an opportunity for the players to meet and talk with SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey.

The Football Leadership Council is one of three components of the SEC Student-Athlete Leadership Council. The other two components are the Men’s and Women’s Basketball Leadership Councils. Student-Athlete Leadership Councils were introduced for the sports of football and men’s and women’s basketball, which, in addition to the conference’s longstanding Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC), provide student-athletes with additional opportunities to engage with campus leaders and conference office staff. The councils serve as a conduit of communication to the conference office on issues related to student-athlete experience and student-athlete wellness.

Taylor appeared in all 13 games this past season and started six of them for the Vols. The Manchester, Tennessee native, finished the year with 33 tackles, one interception and three pass breakups. Taylor started the final four games of the season and had two tackles in the Vols’ victory over Indiana in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl.

The student-athletes who comprise this year’s SEC Football Leadership Council are: Alontae Taylor (Tennessee), Mac Jones (Alabama), Jordan Silver (Arkansas), Kameron Brown (Auburn), Kaiir Elam (Florida), Kearis Jackson (Georgia), Josh Paschal (Kentucky), Avery Atkins (LSU), Mahomed “MoMo” Sanogo (Ole Miss), Kobe Jones (Mississippi State), Larry Rountree III (Missouri), Ryan Hilinski (South Carolina) and Andre White Jr. (Texas A&M) and Cam Robinson (Vanderbilt).

A hard-fought, playoff-type game went the Edmonton Oilers way on Saturday night at Rogers Place, as they came back to defeat the Nashville Predators. The Preds held a 2-0 lead late in the second period, but saw their bid for a spot in playoff positioning and a three-game winning streak denied.

“We deserved better tonight,” Preds Head Coach John Hynes said. “I really liked our game, and I thought we played well enough to win. I think, unfortunately, a couple bad bounces went in, particularly the first [Edmonton] goal… but I think there’s a lot to build off of tonight’s game. Unfortunately, [we] didn’t find a way to win it, but I think if we play like we played tonight, more often than not, we’re going to find ways to win games.”

Leon Draistial tied the contest at 2-2 early in the third and put his team ahead later in the period with a power-play goal that ultimately proved to be the game-winner to give the Oilers victories in both games in the season series thus far.

“It was a good game, and there’s a lot of back and forth,” Preds forward Craig Smith said. “It was exciting and fast, but it would’ve been really nice to get the winner.”

Nashville scored the game’s opening goal for the first time on the trip, when Craig Smith backhanded a shot past Oilers goaltender Mike Smith midway through the first period. The 1-0 score held through most of the second stanza, but things changed late in the period.

With less than three minutes left in that middle frame, Nick Bonino tipped home a Dan Hamhuis wrist shot for his 17th goal of the season and 2-0 Nashville lead. But with time winding down in the period, the Oilers went on the power play. Moments after Juuse Saros stoned Connor McDavid on a partial breakaway, a loose puck deflected off the skate of Kyle Turris and into the Nashville net with just nine seconds left in the period.

The Preds made a push late in the third, after a pair from Draisaitl, but they weren’t able to even the score before the horn sounded.

“The first 40 minutes, I thought we were really good, played really well for being on the road,” Preds forward Ryan Johansen said. “The third period just wasn’t as sharp, and that costs us tonight.”

Saros made his third consecutive start and stopped 33 shots on the night, and just like the entire Predators squad, the netminder deserved better.

“He played really well, and he was a little bit indicative of our team,” Hynes said of Saros. “We played well enough to win the game, but we didn’t find a way to do it. We have to find it against Vancouver.”

The final contest of the trip comes in British Columbia on Monday night, and while the Predators will certainly go back and review some items to improve upon, they know an effort like this will likely yield the results they’re looking for before returning home.

“You have to stay steady on the rudder,” Hynes said. “We played a good game. We’re coming. There’s belief we’re playing the game the right way, so it’s unfortunate we didn’t get it tonight. But we’ve got to make sure we’re moving on to Vancouver.”

Notes:

Nashville’s lineup remained the same as it was on Thursday in Calgary; Calle Jarnkrok, Austin Watson and Matt Irwin were scratched for the Preds, and Ryan Ellis, who has been skating with the team, remains on Injured Reserve.

The four-game excursion through Western Canada concludes on Monday night in Vancouver when the Predators face the Canucks.

The Temple Baptist Christian School basketball team ended the season on Saturday with in their annual Eagle Invitational Classic.  The Eagles finished the 2 day tournament with a 4^th place finish.   The tournament championship was captured by Victory Baptist Academy of Shelbyville. 

Temple lost in the consolation game 44 to 39 to Faith Christian of Jamestown.  Faith used a strong 2^nd quarter to a 27 to 19 lead into the halftime break.  Temple rallied to cut the deficit to 2 in the 2^nd half before Faith closed out with a strong 4^th quarter.  Alex Gloden led the Eagles in scoring with 23 points and 3 assists.  Mich Gloden 9 points and David Tran finished with 5 points and 4 rebounds. 

The Eagles advanced to the consolation game with a 24 to 19 win over Shenandoah Baptist in their final pool game on Saturday morning.  Alex Gloden was the leading scorer for Temple as he had 15 points and 7 steals.  Sam Floyd chipped in the final 9 points.  The Eagles were 0 and 3 in pool play on Friday night.  Temple finished the season with a record of 8 and 12. 

Victory Baptist won the tournament title with a win in the championship game over Philadelphia Christian School of Calhoun, Georgia.  Isaiah Lukis was the tournament MVP and the Hotshot Shootout winner.  Named to the All-Tournament team were Noah Hohmann of Shenandoah Baptist, Cameron Thomas of Philadelphia Baptist Academy, Aaron Nance of Faith Christian Academy, Marty Foday of Victory Baptist and Alex Gloden of Temple. 

Three members of the Coffee County CHS swim team are set to swim this weekend in Knoxville.  The trio are competing in the Tennessee Interscholastic Swim Coaches Association state championships at the University of Tennessee.  The 2 day championship will be held at the Allan Jones Aquatic Center on the University of Tennessee Campus.

Competing on both days for the Raider swimmers are:  Nick Bogle, a freshman, is swimming in the 200 free on Friday and the 100 free on Saturday.   Emily Williams, a freshman, is swimming in the 200 Individual Medley on Friday and the 100 Breaststroke on Saturday.  Senior Kaylee Williams is swimming in the 200 Individual Medley on Friday and the 100 Breaststroke on Saturday.   Kaylee is ranked 10th in the 100 Breaststroke, and is looking for a spot in the finals on Saturday night.

The Temple Baptist Christian School basketball team will host their annual Eagles Invitational Classic basketball tournament this Friday and Saturday.  The Eagles will welcome 4 additional teams to the E.C. Bailey Gym at Temple Baptist Christian School for the 2 day tournament.

Round robin pool play will begin at 1:00 PM on Friday afternoon and continue through 9 PM on Friday night.  Pool play will resume on Saturday morning beginning at 8:45 AM.  The consolation game is set to begin at 2:15 PM with the championship set for 3:45 PM on Saturday afternoon.  Temple will play its pool games at 1:00, 3:30 and 7:15 PM on Friday and 10 AM on Saturday.  Admission for the tournament is $4 for students and $8 for adults.  Persons can also purchase a family pass for $20 which is good for both days.  A full concession stand will be available with food and drinks.