Category: Sports

The Coffee County Central High School and Coffee County Middle School cross country teams hosted a huge meet on Tuesday at Old Stone Fort State Park. The meet, which featured 6 high school and 5 middle school teams and over 200 runners, also included the Rocket runners of Westwood.
In the middle school girls’ race, Coffee Middle’s Sophie McInturff won the girls’ division with a time of 13:52. Greenlee Woods of Coffee Middle came in 4th place with a time of 15:04. Westwood’s Kailee Rossman finished in 6th place with a time of 15:50. Westwood’s Rylea McNamara came home in 13th place just ahead of Ella Arnold on Coffee County who came in 14th place.
Other finishers for Westwood were: Jennifer Sanchez(27th place), Melisa Garcia(44th) Kimberly Garcia(66th), Raygan Dubler(89th) and Alexander Rivas Garcia(121st). Other finishers for Coffee Middle were Bailey Kitts(29th) and Mary Lynn Colter(58th). Due to severe weather, the middle school boys’ race and both high school races were cancelled.
Westwood will return to action on Thursday when they visit St. Andrews-Sewanee. The Coffee County Middle School harriers return to race action on Saturday, September 21st when they compete in the Regional Meet at Riverdale. The CHS runners are off until September 27th when they travel to Sewanee to compete in the Mountain Lion Cross Country meet.

Tuesday Prep Schedule
4:30 PM – CCMS Cross Country HOSTS Coffee Co MSCCA Meet at Old Stone Fort
4:30 PM – CHS Cross Country HOSTS Coffee County Home Meet at Old Stone Fort
4:30 PM – WMS Cross Country HOSTS Coffee County Meet at Old Stone Fort
4:30 PM – WMS Girls’ Soccer at Liberty
4:30 PM – WMS Volleyball at Warren County
5:30 PM – CCMS Girls’ Soccer at Harris
6:30 PM – CCMS Football at North Franklin
6:30 PM – CHS Girls’ Soccer HOSTS Lincoln County
6:30 PM – CHS Volleyball at Shelbyville

Kiya Ferrell of CHS volleyball

Non-district foe Oakland visited the Joe Frank Patch Memorial Gym on Monday coached by Coffee County volleyball alumnus Kaitlyn Thornton.  In a match you heard here on Thunder Radio, the Lady Raiders prevailed in 4 sets in a hard fought, tense matchup.  Coffee County won by set scores of 25-18, 25-19, 18-25 and 29-27.

Each set saw both teams in position to win the set in the final 8 or 9 points of the set.  Coffee County needed to rally from a 2 point deficit in the 4^th set as they trailed 22 to 20.  The Lady Raiders fended off a pair of set points and Oakland fought off 2 match points in an exciting 4^th set.

Coffee County was led in kills by Kiya Ferrell who had 12 kills including a kill on match point.  Ferrell also led the team in digs with 19.  Sarah West also added 11 digs.  Lexi Bryan added 8 kills and led the team in aces with 5.  Keelie Hillis finished with 6 kills and led the Lady Raiders in assists with 15.  Amanda Mukai had 14 assists and 9 digs.

The win improves Coffee County’s record to 7 and 1 on the season.  The Lady Raiders are back in action on Tuesday night as they return to district play in Shelbyville.  First serve is set for 6:30 PM at Shelbyville Central High School.

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

Elijah Clemmons of CHS football

The Coffee County CHS JV and freshman football teams traveled to Rockvale on Monday night for a doubleheader.  The JV team was blanked by the Rockets 20 to 0.  The freshman team trounced Rockvale 49 to 20 to help the Raiders leave with a split.

Elijah Clemmons had a pair of interceptions for the freshman team including one that he returned for a touchdown.  Clemmons added a touchdown reception on the night.  Nate Luttrell and Tristan Galey each rushed for a pair of touchdowns and Travis Martin caught a touchdown pass.  The freshmen are now 2 and 1 on the season.

The JV and freshmen will be back in action on Monday when they welcome Warren County to Carden-Jarrell Field.  The JV game will kick off at 5 PM.  The freshman game will follow at 6:30 PM.

Logan Hale of CHS golf

The Coffee County CHS golf team made the short jaunt up Highway 55 on Monday to take on the rival Pioneers of Warren County High School.  Taking part in an 9 hole match, the young Raiders put together their best round of the season as the clipped the Pioneers 180 to 200.

It was a balanced scoring effort for the Red Raiders as 10 strokes separated the top 4 finishers.  Logan Hale and Christopher Robinson each shot a 42 to lead Coffee County.  Chase Hancock was 2 strokes back as he carded a 44.  David O’Connor got around in 52 strokes and Avery Hill scored a 65.

Coffee County is back in action on Thursday when they hit the road again.  Coffee County will travel to Shelbyville for an 18 hole match against Shelbyville.  That match will tee off at 1 PM at Riverbend Country Club.

Zowee Dillard of WMS volleyball

The Westwood volleyball team welcomed South Franklin to the Joel Vinson Gym on Monday.  Looking to keep their winning streak alive, the young Lady Rockets continued to show improvement.  Westwood captured their 3^rd straight win in straight sets.  The Lady Rockets won by set scores of 25-9 and 25-16.  The JV Lady Rockets won their match to give Westwood a sweep on the night.

Lilee Scott led Westwood in aces as she had 12, including 10 in the 1^st set.  Zowee Dillard added 6 service aces.  Riley Earp finished with 4 aces for the Lady Rockets.  Dillard and Allie Sullivan each finished with 2 kills and Dillard had the lone block of the match.

Westwood will hit the road on Tuesday as they travel to McMinnville.  The Lady Rockets will take on Warren County Middle School at 4:30 PM on their home floor.

The Coffee County Middle School volleyball team traveled to Lincoln County on Monday for a match against non-conference foe Flintville.  Tangling with an always tough Flintville program, the Lady Raiders fell in straight sets.  Coffee County lost by set scores of 14-25 and 9-25.

Coffee Middle returns to the court on Thursday as they welcome White County to the CCMS gym.  Opening serve is set for 5 PM.

C.J. Anthony of CHS football

Opening region play on Friday night, the Coffee County Red Raider football team welcomed Blackman to Carden-Jarrell Field.   A young and hungry Red Raider squad was looking to match up against one of the preseason region favorites as each team was looking for their 1^st win of the year.  Blackman pushed the tempo from the opening drive and raced out to a 23 to 0 lead in the 1^st quarter to set the tone as they went on to win 65 to 0.

The bigger and faster Blaze from Blackman built a 44 to 0 halftime lead as they scored on the ground, through the air, on a safety and on a fumble recovery.  The physical game saw Coffee County lose starting quarterback Connor Shemwell to injury in the first half and starting outside linebacker Blanton Brown in the 2^nd half.  Additionally, a handful of Raiders missed portions of the game due to injuries suffered on the night.

Statistically, the margin between the teams in yardage was comparable to the scoring margin as Blackman outgained the Raiders 550 yards to – 8.  Marshall Haney led the Raiders in rushing with 16 yards on 10 carries.  C.J. Anthony caught one pass for 10 yards and added around 80 yards in kickoff returns on the night to be named the Mid Tenn Turf Most Valuable player for the Raiders.

Coffee County will enjoy a bye on Friday night as September 13^th serves as the open date on their schedule.  The JV and freshmen football teams will travel to Murfreesboro on Monday night to take on Rockvale.  The JV game is slated to kick-off at 5 PM with the freshman game to follow at 6:30 at Rockvale High School.

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

Mike Vrabel

The Titans quest to go from good to great got off to a nice start here on Sunday.

Underdogs in a hostile environment, the Titans took the fight to the Browns in a dominating performance – a 43-13 win.

It pleased Titans coach Mike Vrabel – at least for a day.

“Today, it was (great),” Vrabel said after the game. “But this is a long season. We don’t circle anybody on the schedule, we don’t red letter anybody on the schedule, they’re all tough. And we put everything that we could into this one and we’ll now move on and put everything that we have into Indy and go from there.”

There was a lot to like.

Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota completed 14-of-24 passes for 248 yards and three touchdowns, good for a 133.3 passer rating.

Running back Derrick Henry ran 19 times for 84 yards, and he scored twice — once on a run, another on a catch.

The two combined for a monstrous play in the third quarter, as Mariota connected with Henry for a 75-yard touchdown pass after the Browns had cut the lead and reenergized the crowd. The play gave the Titans a 22-13 lead with 1:57 remaining in the third quarter.

“I knew going in that we had an opportunity with that play, and it just hit,” Mariota said. “I knew if I could get the ball to Derrick that it was going to have a chance. Guys did a great job of blocking downfield and you get that guy in space and he’s tough to tackle.”

It was also a big day for tight end Delanie Walker, who caught a pair of touchdowns a year after having his 2018 season cut short with a season-ending injury in Week 1 at Miami.

An 11-yard touchdown pass from Mariota to tight end Delanie Walker made it 29-13, and then Mariota found Walker again for a seven-yard touchdown toss to make it 36-13.

And the rout was on.

The Titans kept their composure through it all on a day when the Browns had 18 penalties for 182 yards, including several roughness and unsportsmanlike penalties. Walker got punched in the face, and safety Kenny Vaccaro got kicked in the side of the helmet, leading to a Browns ejection.

“We are not the team that retaliates,” Walker said. “We retaliate by making plays and finishing blocks and I guess they didn’t like that.”

The Titans also didn’t mind the fact the Browns got all the buzz leading up to the game, and season.

That’s OK, Walker said.

“They were who we thought they were,” Walker said of the Browns. “If you want to crown them, crown them. But they still have to play football.

“Hey, keep us under the radar. That’s where we like to be. Thank you.”

The Titans racked up five sacks and three interceptions in the game.

Cornerback Malcolm Butler added to the flurry of scoring with a pick-6 late in the fourth quarter, and FirstEnergy Stadium emptied. It followed interceptions by safety Kevin Byard and cornerback Logan Ryan.

“You can look good on paper,” Butler said of the Browns, “but it has to match up when you get on that grass. We stuck together and won as a team today.”

Veteran outside linebacker Cameron Wake was beastly in his Titans debut, racking up 2 ½ of sacks, including one that resulted in a safety. The sacks were No. 99 and 100 for Wake, who joined the Titans this offseason after playing his first 10 seasons with the Dolphins. He later added a half-sack.

“It was a crazy offseason, but I think I landed in the right place,” Wake said. “This organization has welcomed me with open arms and obviously I want to do my part along with the guys up front. And I think we did that today as a group. It was a lot of fun.”

Kicker Cairo Santos was pretty good in his Titans debut as well, making kicks of 37 and 53 yards.

The Browns took a 6-0 lead early on a four-yard touchdown run by running back Dontrell Hilliard, which capped an eight-play, 73-yard drive. But the Titans stiffened up on defense, shutting out the Browns the rest of the first half.

Titans defensive coordinator Dean Pees, who turned 70 during the week, kept his players on point the rest of the way.

“Dean told us to ignore the noise and play with poise,” Ryan said. “We just kept playing.”

The Titans got their first points on a 37-yard field goal from Santos.

The defense got to Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield the next series when Wake recorded his first sack of the contest.

In the second quarter, the Titans put together a beautiful drive that produced a touchdown, which gave them the lead. Henry ended the 11-play, 87-yard drive with a one-yard run, which put the Titans ahead 10-6. Mariota connected with Walker on the drive, and the Titans also took advantage of some penalties on the Browns to move ahead 10-6.

Then came another sack from Wake, who tackled Mayfield in the end zone to give the Titans a 12-6 lead. Wake’s sack was set up by a 70-yard punt by Brett Kern that was downed at the three-yard line.

Santos hit a 53-yarder to cap Tennessee’s opening drive of the second half, making it 15-6.

After the Browns cut the lead to 15-13 on a Mayfield touchdown pass to tight end David Njoku, it was all Titans.

Mariota’s 75-yard touchdown pass to Henry was the biggest play of the game, and it was set up by a crushing block from guard Rodger Saffold, springing Henry loose and into open space.

After an interception by safety Kevin Byard set up the touchdown pass to Walker, and the Titans were on their way. Cornerback Logan Ryan later added his first interception as a Titan before Butler’s pick-6 late.

The Titans face the Indianapolis Colts Sunday at Nissan Stadium.  Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast of that game beginning at noon.