Category: Sports

The Coffee County CHS Red Raider basketball team finished up their 2^nd day of play in the Lebanon play day on Friday.  The Red Raiders went 1 and 2 on the day to finish the camp with a record of 3 and 3.

On Friday, Coffee County opened the day with a win over old rival Cookeville on Friday morning.  In the afternoon session, the Raiders dropped decisions to Dickson County and Clarksville Northeast.  Head coach Micah Williams called out the play of Jaylon Wooten, Colin Ward, Kyle Farless, Hayden Hullett, Tyler Taylor and C.J. Anthony.

The Raiders will practice next week on Monday thru Wednesday preparing for a team camp late next week.  Coffee County will travel to Murfreesboro on Thursday and Friday of next week for a team camp at Oakland.  Thunder Radio will pass along that schedule when it becomes available.

The Westwood Rocket and Lady Rocket basketball teams wrapped up a week of summer workouts on Friday at a team camp at Eagleville.  The Rockets squared off in 3 games against larger schools going 2 and 1.  The Lady Rockets also tangled with 3 larger school and finished the day with a record of 1 and 2.

The Rockets opened the day with a split against former conference foes Cascade and Community in the morning session.  Westwood lost to Cascade 37 to 25 before beating Community 48 to 38.  After a short break, Westwood stunned the always talented Eagles of Harris 35 to 25.

Coach Will Pannell got strong offensive performances from Braden Dixon, Izick Sierra and Jayden Carter.  “They did a great job leading the offense, were aggressive on defense and did a good job communicating and leading the team” said Pannell.  “We need to continue to focus on rebounding in order to be successful.  We can use our physicality and athletic ability to rebound but we are not going to be the kind of team that can just plant ourselves and get rebounds” added Pannell.

The Lady Rockets opened up with a 5 point loss to Central Magnet.  Leonor Moreno led the Lady Rockets in scoring with 6 points.  The Lady Rockets bounced back to get a 28 to 11 win over old conference rival Community.  Moroeno and Kenna Seivers led Westwood in scoring with 6 points each.  Remi Benjamin and Allie Sullivan each added 5 points.  The Lady Rockets dropped the nightcap to Cascade as Benjamin again led Westwood in scoring with 7 points while Bryleigh Gray added 3 points.   She called out Gray for defense and Benjamin for doing a good job on the boards.  She also had high praise for Moreno for her strong work in the pos against taller players.

Coach Angela Houck was pleased with the team’s hustle and intensity.  “We were aggressive and dove on the floor for loose balls and really rebounded well” said Houck.  She went on to say “I like this little team.  We are small but fast and we played hard and did a good job of boxing out.” The Lady Rockets will take off for the summer before beginning practice in August when school starts.  “We will need to work on basic individual defense and passing and develop better team chemistry(in the fall)” added Houck.

The New Orleans Baby Cakes scored three runs in the eighth inning leading to a 7-4 win over the Nashville Sounds in front of 6,707 fans at First Tennessee Park Sunday afternoon. The Sounds went 5-8 on the longest homestand of the season.

Nashville’s three-run bottom of the seventh staked them to a 4-3 lead. Trailing 3-1 entering the frame, the first five batters reached against New Orleans reliever Mike Kickham. Chase d’Arnaud doubled, Adam Moore walked and Tyler Depreta-Johnson doubled down the right field line to trim the deficit to 3-2.

With runners at the corners, Zack Granite dropped in a bunt single to even the game at 3-3. Carlos Tocci followed with a go-ahead RBI single up the middle to give the Sounds a 4-3 lead.

Nashville starter Seth Maness did his part with his third quality start of the season. He limited the Baby Cakes to three runs over six innings. Taylor Guerrieri was the first reliever out of the bullpen and put up a zero in the top of the seventh.

The lead didn’t last, however, as New Orleans came right back with three runs in the eighth to take the lead for good. Three straight reached against Jacob Lemoine as Isan Diaz, Yadiel Rivera and Lewis Brinson picked up hits. Brinson’s RBI single evened the game at 4-4 and Gabriel Guerrero’s two-run single to right-center gave the Baby Cakes a 6-4.

The Sounds went six up and six down against New Orleans reliever Kyle Keller in the eighth and ninth innings.

Granite, Tocci and Tyler Pill had multi-hit games for Nashville.

The Sounds will enjoy a league-wide off day Monday before traveling to Reno to begin a three-game series with the Aces on Tuesday. Left-hander Wes Benjamin (1-5, 7.63) starts for the Sounds against right-hander Braden Shipley (1-2, 9.23) for the Aces. First pitch is scheduled for 9:05 CST.

Post-Game Notes

– With today’s 7-4 loss, the Sounds are now 22-35 on the season.

– Today’s attendance of 6,707 boosted the 13-day homestand total to 110,239.

– Nashville starter Seth Maness turned in his second straight quality start and his third overall. His final line was 6.0 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 2 K.

– Tyler Depreta-Johnson’s RBI double in the seventh was his first career Triple-A hit.

Tim Dillard pitched well in tonight’s game versus New Orleans, but Baby Cakes’ pitcher Hector Noesi pitched a little better as the Sounds were shutout 3-0. Nashville was able to scratch across just four hits in the contest.

The game was scoreless until the top of the sixth inning when Isan Diaz hit a solo home run just right of the 403-foot sign in center field.

That would be the only mistake Dillard made in the night, finishing with a line of 6.0 innings, six hits, one earned run and five strikeouts. He threw just 75 pitches with 55 of those being strikes.

The Sounds threatened to score a run in the bottom of the seventh. Matt Davidson was able to reach third base with two outs, but Nashville failed to score. The Sounds were 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position after that.

New Orleans would score two runs in the top of the eighth. Magneuris Sierra singled and stole second base with two outs. Sierra would score on a Diaz triple, who scored next on an infield single by Yadiel Rivera. That put the Baby Cakes up 3-0.

Nashville made noise in the bottom of the eighth. Tyler Depreta-Johnson and Zack Granite led the inning off with walks. Delino DeShields would reach on a fielder’s choice with Granite out at second. DeShields stole second to put runners on second and third with one out. However, the Sounds failed to score.

Tomorrow’s day game will conclude Nashville’s 13-day, 14-game homestand. With first pitch at 1:05 p.m., the Sounds will start right-hander Seth Maness (3-1, 4.19) against the Baby Cakes’ starter Elieser Hernandez (3-1, 1.07). Nashville has won five straight games in which Maness has started.

Post-Game Notes

– With today’s 4-2 win, the Sounds are now 22-33 on the season.

– Tim Dillard’s start tonight was his 54th career start with Nashville, moving him tied-for-eighth all-time among Sounds pitchers (tied with Luis Eduardo Vasquez, who pitched from 1989 – 1991). Dillard recorded five strikeouts tonight, the second consecutive “long outing” where he had at least five strikeouts. He struck out six Round Rock batters on May 27 (a resumed game from April 18).

– Matt Davidson had two of the four hits for the Sounds, which was his eighth multi-hit game of the season. His last was on May 23 versus Memphis.

– It was the fifth time the Sounds were shutout this season. Their latest shutout was the resumed game from April 18 on May 27, where Nashville lost 2-0.

Tyler Pill’s two-run double in the bottom of the seventh propelled the Nashville Sounds to a 6-5 win in front of a sellout crowd of 11,097 at First Tennessee Park Friday night.

Pill stepped to the plate with the Sounds trailing 5-4 and the bases loaded with two outs in the seventh. He bounced a ball perfectly in between two New Orleans infielders and hustled into second base as Delino DeShields and Eli White scored to give the Sounds a 6-5 lead.

Josh Fields took over for Kyle Bird in the top of the eighth and worked around a one-out hit batter to post a zero. Brett Martin took over for Fields in the ninth and worked around a pair of hits in the ninth to notch his first save of the season.

It was a back-and-forth game in the early innings as the Baby Cakes jumped out to a 3-0 lead thanks to a two-run homer by Matt Snyder in the second and a run-scoring single by Isan Diaz in the third.

Nashville quickly erased the deficit with a three-spot of their own in the bottom of the third. White knocked in a run with a base hit to left field, Patrick Wisdom drew a bases loaded walk to force in another run, and White scored on a balk to even the game at 3-3.

Both teams plated a run in the fourth inning. Rodrigo Vigil gave New Orleans a 4-3 lead with an RBI single, and Nashville scored another run on a balk to make it a 4-4 game.

Micah Brown was the last batter Nashville starter Phillips Valdez faced in the top of the sixth. The New Orleans shortstop belted a solo homer to deep left field to give the Baby Cakes a 5-4 lead. It stayed that way until Pill’s two-run double in the seventh.

Valdez got a no-decision after tossing 5 2/3 innings. The right-hander struck out a season-high nine batters. Bird earned the win in relief for Nashville.

Game three of the four-game series is scheduled for Saturday night at First Tennessee Park. Right-hander Tim Dillard (3-4, 5.11) starts for the Sounds against right-hander Hector Noesi (4-2, 2.45) for the Baby Cakes. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.

Post-Game Notes

– With tonight’s 6-5 win, the Sounds are now 22-33 on the season.

– Tonight’s sellout crowd of 11,097 was the sixth sellout of the season at First Tennessee Park.

– Nashville’s Phillips Valdez recorded a season-high nine strikeouts. His previous high was five.

– Eli White and Chase d’Arnaud collected multi-hit games for Nashville.

– Brett Martin earned his first save of the season and second in his career with a scoreless ninth inning.

The 2019 season is the 42nd in Nashville Sounds franchise history and first as the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. Single-game tickets are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.

C.J. Anthony of Coffee County CHS basketball[file photo]

The varsity team opened up with a win over Pope John Paul II before dropping a decision to Gallatin.  The Red Raiders closed out the day with a win over Creek Wood.  The JV team opened the day with a win over Creek Wood before falling to White House.

“The team chemistry has been great in the early summer season” said Raider coach Micah Williams.  “Everyone’s positive and working together with a common goal to improve each day and get better” added Williams.  Williams recognized Jaylon Wooten, Kyle Farless, Rod Brinkley, C.J. Anthony and Jaxon Vaughn as having good days on Thursday.  He wants to see his team develop more patient on the offensive end and improve their rebounding going into Friday’s games.

The Red Raiders return to Lebanon on Friday for the final day of the team camp.  The varsity Raiders will take on Cookeville at 11, Dickson County at 1 PM and Clarksville Northeast at 3 PM.  The JV Raiders will take on the JV squad from West Creek at 2 PM and the freshman team from Ravenwood at 3 PM.

Signups for the Manchester Youth Football League continue this Saturday at the Manchester Recreation Center. The signups will be held from 9 AM to 1 PM for the football players AND cheerleaders. The MYFL is looking for boys and girls ages 5 to 12 for the league for the upcoming fall season.  The final 2 Saturdays for registration days will be the next 2 Saturdays,  June 1st and June 8^th.  Folks can also register online at the league’s website at: www.MYFLRaiders.com

The league will begin practices in July.  Folks needing more information can email Lawrence Phillips at: myflraiders@att.net

The New Orleans Baby Cakes scored a pair of late runs to help top the Nashville Sounds, 5-3, in front of 8,319 fans at First Tennessee Park Thursday night.

New Orleans broke a 2-2 tie with single tallies in the sixth and seventh innings to help win game one of the four-game series.

Delino DeShields started the game with a bang when he drilled a solo homer to leadoff the bottom of the first inning. The solo shot for DeShields to straightaway center field was his third long ball of the season.

The lead didn’t last as New Orleans picked up three hits in a two-run top of the second inning. Singles by Gabriel Guerrero, Matt Snyder and Rodrigo Vigil helped the Baby Cakes take a 2-1 lead.

Right-hander Pedro Payano made his Nashville and Triple-A debut and went four innings. He didn’t factor into the decision after allowing two runs on five hits. Payano struck out two and didn’t walk a batter.

DeShields was at it again for Nashville in the fifth inning. The center fielder started the inning with a sharp single up the middle. He quickly swiped second base and moved to third on a botched pickoff attempt. A batter later, DeShields scored on a smash to left by Andy Ibanez to make it 2-2.

Gabriel Guerrero’s RBI single off Taylor Guerreri gave New Orleans a 3-2 lead in the top of the sixth. Magneuris Sierra followed in the seventh inning with another run-scoring single to make it 4-2.

Nashville’s offense didn’t do much the rest of the way aside from Carlos Tocci’s solo homer to lead off the bottom of the ninth inning.

New Orleans starter Dustin Beggs went seven innings for the Baby Cakes and picked up his fourth win of the season. He limited Nashville to two runs on six hits while recording five strikeouts.

Game two of the four-game series is scheduled for Friday night at First Tennessee Park. Right-hander Phillips Valdez (1-6, 5.40) starts for the Sounds against right-hander Ben Meyer (2-4, 6.75) for the Baby Cakes. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.

Post-Game Notes

– With tonight’s 5-3 loss, the Sounds are now 21-33 on the season.

– Pedro Payano made his Triple-A debut tonight and got a no-decision. Payano’s final line: 4.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 K.

– Peter Fairbanks made his Triple-A debut tonight and got a no-decision. Fairbanks’ final line: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K.

– DeShields, Ibanez and Tocci had multi-hit games for Nashville.

The 2019 season is the 42nd in Nashville Sounds franchise history and first as the Triple-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers. Single-game tickets are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.

The Westwood Rocket and Lady Rocket basketball teams wrap up a week of summer workouts on Friday with a team camp at Eagleville.  With both teams looking to replace some key contributors from last season, the camp will give the Westwood coaches a chance to experiment with some different lineup combinations.

The Rockets will open the day at 10 AM with a game against Cascade.  They will follow that up taking on Community at 11 and close out the day taking on Harris at 1 PM.  The Lady Rockets will play 3 games on Friday beginning at 1 PM.  The Lady Rockets will face Central Magnet at 1 PM, Community at 3 PM and Cascade at 5 PM.

Nashville SC’s run in the 2019 U.S. Open Cup came to a crashing, heartbreaking end in penalties against Charleston Battery on Wednesday night at Hayes Stadium in Murfreesboro that finished 1-1 and 3-0 in penalty kicks.

Nashville SC controlled a huge majority of possession, winning the battle 68.4% to 31.6% and outshot the Battery 27-11. The Boys in Gold couldn’t find the finishing touch however as 27 shots produced just a single goal.

It was Charleston that struck first in the 24’ minute as forward Nicque Daley opened up the Nashville defense and scored on a breakaway, beating NSC keeper Connor Sparrow to give the Battery a lead against the run of play.

It took nearly 40 minutes for Nashville to find an equalizer, but in the 72’ minute Kharlton Belmar tapped in a Ropapa Mensah cross to give Nashville SC life and eventually send the match into extra time. More NSC chances went wasted in the two 15-minute extra time sessions and the match fell to penalty kicks.

Nashville missed its first three penalties while Charleston made three of its four, sealing the match for the visitors.

Here are three takeaways from the match:

1) Chances Wasted – The Nashville SC offense was electric, creating 21 chances, led by Justin Davis and Taylor Washington who each had four. The final touch was severely lacking, however, as Nashville managed just five shots on target despite dominating the run of play. It is a large opportunity missed for Nashville as it now will have to wait until 2020 before it plays another competitive match against an MLS club.

2) Belmar Finds the Net – The lone bright spot in the finishing was Kharlton Belmar who scored the single Nashville SC tally. It was his second goals of the season in all competitions and was set up beautifully by Alan Winn and Ropapa Mensah who supplied the assists on the goal.

3) A Break is Much Needed – Nashville SC has played eight matches in 26 days, two matches a week for the last four weeks, and legs are heavy throughout the group. Nashville SC will now get a chance to rest as it doesn’t take the field again in USL Championship play until June 9 at Bethlehem Steel FC.