Braden Brown of CHS baseball
The Coffee County Central High School baseball team welcomed Lawrence County to Powers Field on Tuesday night. After struggling to string together hits thus far this season, the Red Raiders exploded out of their slump with 13 hits in just 4 at-bats. Coffee County got their first district win of the year in an 11 to 1 win over Lawrence County.
After stranding a runner at 3rd base in the first inning, Coffee County snapped out of their early season funk in a big way on the 2nd inning. Using 7 hits and an error, the Raiders plated 7 runs to put the Cats on their heels. Lawrence County got their lone run in the 3rd inning but it was nto enough to stop the Marcy Rule win by Coffee County.
Hayden Skipper pitched all 5 innings giving up 3 hits and 1 earned run while striking out 10. At the plate, Skipper had a pair of doubles and a pair of RBI. Braden Brown was 3 for 3 on the night with 2 doubles and 3 runs driven in. Skipper and Brown were named the Crazy Daisies co-players of the game. Bryson Hullett had a double and a single while Noah Bradshaw had a pair of singles
Coffee County will hit the road on Wednesday as they travel to Lawrenceburg to take on the Wildcats in the 2nd game of the season series. First pitch is scheduled for 5:30 PM.
Download the broadcast at: http://www.thunder1320.com/downloads/
Jonathan Nelson of Westwood baseball
The Westwood baseball team welcomed conference rival Cascade to Fred Deadman Park on Tuesday night for the second game in the season series. Coming off a low scoring 1 to 0 loss to Cascade on Monday in Wartrace, the Rockets saw Cascade build a 13 to 1 lead after 2 ½ innings and coast to the 17 to 6 win.
After Cascade plated 3 runs in the top of the first, Westwood answered in the bottom of the 1st when Jonathan Nelson scored the Rockets’ first run without a hit. Cascade added 4 in the second and 6 more in the 3rd to put the game out of reach. Nelson ended up scoring 3 times for Westwood as he got on base on 3 walks. Westwood ended the game getting 10 walks put could not get a hit in the loss.
Westwood returns to action on Monday at home when Huntland visits Looney Riddle Field at Fred Deadman Park. First pitch is set for 5 PM. Jonathan Oliver will be on hand to broadcast that game as part of the Gilley Crane Hometown Sports Series. Thunder Radio’s live coverage begins with the pregame show at 5:20.
Monday Prep Results
WMS Baseball HOSTS Cascade – – See the results HERE
CHS Softball at Tullahoma – PPD, Makeup Date is TBD
Tuesday Prep Schedule
5:00 PM – WMS Baseball HOSTS Cascade
5:30 PM – CHS Baseball HOSTS Lawrence Co
Timothy Henderson of Westwood baseball
In a game that was exciting for all 7 innings, the Westwood baseball team saw the deciding action all come on the 1st inning on Monday night. Traveling to Wartrace on Monday for a conference matchup with Cascade, Westwood saw the Champions push across a run in the 1st inning and hold on for a 1 to 0 win over the visiting Rockets.
Westwood had a chance to get on the board early when Jayden Carter led off the game with a walk and stole 2nd and 3rd base. Carter was cut down at the plate for the final out of the inning ending the early threat. Westwood missed out on a bases loaded opportunity in the 5th inning as they loaded the bases with 1 out on a single, a walk and an error, but back to back strikeouts ended the frame. Westwood was held to 2 hits in the game as Timothy Henderson and Jonathan Nelson each had singles. Henderson took the hard luck loss on the mound.
Westwood returns home on Tuesday for the 2nd game of the season series with Cascade. The Rockets will host the Champions at Looney Riddle Field at Fred Deadman Park. First pitch is set for 5 PM.
Juuse Saros of the Nashville Predators
They’re in.
Ryan Johansen scored the goal, Juuse Saros stopped every shot he faced, and the Nashville Predators defeated the Minnesota Wild by a 1-0 final on Monday night to clinch their spot in the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The result gives the Preds a sweep of the season series, as well as 92 points to hang onto second place in the Central Division.
Looking to rebound from a loss in Winnipeg on Saturday night, Nashville got the monumental first goal – and what turned out to be the only goal – as Saros locked it down the rest of the way with 29 saves overall to send his club back to the postseason.
“You work all year to work your way and get into the Stanley Cup Playoffs, so tonight was the night we marked it,” Predators Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. “It was a good road win.”
“It was a good day for us,” Saros said. “That was a big thing for us to clinch the playoff spot now and then just focus on getting better.”
The game’s only goal came less than five minutes into the contest when Johansen sniped a shot – while shorthanded – over the shoulder of Devan Dubnyk for a 1-0 advantage. From there, the night belonged to Saros, who kept Minnesota off the scoresheet until the final horn.
“Juice is phenomenal,” Johansen said of Saros. “He’s such a quiet leader on this team. For such a young kid, he’s an absolute professional every single day. He earns everything he gets, and it’s easy to play for him. He’s a workhorse, and he’s going be a big part of this club for a long time.”
Forward Rem Pitlick made his NHL debut for the Predators on Monday night and skated 9:43 of ice time while leaving his head coach impressed.
“He played a smart game,” Laviolette said of Pitlick. “It’s a big task to come in as a young player that is meeting a team for the first time and a coach and a system – it can be a bit overwhelming, but our guys are pretty good in there. They’re good guys, and they took care of him, but then he’s got to go out and play the game… and I thought he did a good job in his first game.”
“That was crazy out there,” Pitlick said. “It was a lot of fun, definitely some learning moments, but something that I’ll never forget.”
Ticket Punched:
The Predators are starting to make a habit of this whole postseason appearance thing.
For the fifth-consecutive season – a franchise record – the Preds will be vying for Lord Stanley’s Cup when the postseason begins on April 10.
It’s no easy feat – only 16 out of 31 teams in the NHL get there in a single year, and to do it in five consecutive seasons is quite an accomplishment.
“It’s a good feeling, but you really have to look at how hard it is to make the playoffs over an 82-game season,” Johansen said. “You need to be healthy, and need guys to chip in and make big plays throughout the year. It’s a great accomplishment, and it’s something to be very proud of, but at the same time, we have a goal in mind and there’s a lot of work ahead still. We’re going to keep our foot down.”
“It’s a credit to the guys in the room,” Laviolette said. “It’s not an easy thing. Everybody goes into a year with good intentions and everybody has a plan in mind, and I’m sure they’re all including the playoffs. It’s not an easy thing and should never be taken for granted, but our guys worked hard and we got to this point. We have to continue to work on our game and get ready.”
While the Predators are certainly satisfied with achieving their goal, it’s not the only one they have in mind. With just five games to play in the regular season, there is still work to do, and the Preds can’t wait for the challenge that lies ahead.
“You look at our team and see the depth and go through the whole lineup, there’s a lot of tremendous players on our club,” Johansen said. “We’re all coming together, and we’re a pretty darn good hockey team. The focus right now is that there’s still a lot of work to be done. We’ll just enjoy this one tonight, enjoy making the playoffs here and get home, go to bed and get back to work.”
Notes:
Preds forward Rocco Grimaldi was absent from Monday’s game and is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Prior to Monday’s contest, the Predators assigned forwards Austin Watson and Miikka Salomaki to Milwaukee of the AHL on long-term injury loan.
Grimaldi, Watson, Salomaki, Matt Donovan, Cody McLeod and Frederick Gaudreau were all listed as scratches for the Preds on Monday.
Nashville will now head home, but their next game will also come on the road on Friday night at Pittsburgh.
Pete Weber’s Postgame Report
The Nashville Sounds edged the Texas Rangers, 4-3, in front of a record-breaking crowd of 11,824 at First Tennessee Park Sunday afternoon. It was the first Major League exhibition game in Nashville since June 3, 1999.
Outfielder Preston Beck provided the difference when he gave the Sounds a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning when he belted a two-run homer into The Band Box off Texas reliever Shawn Kelley.
Taylor Hearn got the starting nod for Nashville and cruised through five innings after a 44-minute rain delay prior to first pitch. Hearn’s lone hiccup came in the first when Texas plated a run on Hunter Pence’s sacrifice fly. The southpaw went five innings and allowed one unearned run on two hits. He walked two and struck out seven.
Ariel Jurado opposed Hearn and limited the Sounds to one run in 3 2/3 frames. After the sacrifice fly by Pence in the first, the Sounds evened the game at 1-1 on a run-scoring ground-rule double by Zack Granite.
It stayed 1-1 until the top of the sixth when the Rangers took advantage of Nashville’s second error. An errant throw by second baseman Nolan Fontana allowed Juremi Profar to score and give Texas a 2-1 lead.
The slim advantage didn’t last as Nashville bounced back in the home half of the sixth. Eli White started the rally by working a one-out walk off Kelley. Beck followed with his two-run homer to right field to put the Sounds on top for good.
A pair of walks issued by Texas closer Jose Leclerc came back to hurt him in the seventh. The right-hander walked Hunter Cole and Fontana before Ryan Dorow lined a base hit up the middle to bring in Cole to make it a 4-2 game.
Four relievers worked for Nashville after Hearn’s five frames. CD Pelham allowed the unearned run in the sixth, Tennessee native Brett Martin tossed a scoreless seventh, Tim Dillard followed suit in the eighth and Brady Feigl shut the door in the ninth despite Texas scoring a run to make it 4-3.
Pelham picked up the win in relief and Kelley was charged with the loss. Feigl earned the save in Nashville’s win.
The Rangers head to Arlington where they’ll host the Cleveland Indians in an exhibition game at Globe Life Park Monday night. Texas opens the 2019 season against the Chicago Cubs on Thursday afternoon, while the Sounds open their 2019 season on Thursday, April 4 at First Tennessee Park.
The 42nd season of Nashville Sounds baseball officially begins on Thursday, April 4, when the Sounds host the Iowa Cubs at 6:35 p.m. Season ticket memberships for the 2019 season are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.
Friday Prep Results
CHS Softball lost to Pisgah, AL at Warrior Classic – 5 to 2 – See the results HERE
CHS Softball lost to Bryant, AR at Warrior Classic – 15 to 7 – See the results HERE
WMS Baseball lost to Forrest – 16 to 4 – See the results HERE
CHS Boys’ Soccer lost to Loudon at Cleveland Classic – 5 to 1 – See the results HERE
Saturday Prep Results
CHS Bass Club at Region Tournament on Percy Priest Lake – See the results HERE
CHS Softball fell to Carl Sandburg, IL at Warrior Classic – 15 to 4 – See the results HERE
CHS Boys’ Soccer lost to Knox Catholic at Cleveland Classic – 1 to 0 – See the results HERE
CHS Softball defeated Florence, AL at Warrior Classic – 11 to 3 – See the results HERE
CCMS Baseball races past Rock Springs – 13 to 3 – See the results HERE
CHS Boys’ Soccer fell to McMinn County at Cleveland Classic – 5 to 2 – See the results HERE
CHS Baseball wins at Grundy Co -3 to 2 – See the results HERE
Monday Prep Schedule
5:00 PM – WMS Baseball at Cascade
6:00 PM – CHS Softball at Tullahoma – Thunder Radio broadcast – POSTPONED DUE TO WEATHER
Timothy Henderson of Westwood baseball
The Westwood baseball team welcomed Forrest to Fred Deadman Park on Friday for a conference match-up. In a game you heard here on Thunder Radio, the Rockets fell to Forrest by a final score of 16 to 4.
Westwood jumped out to a 2 to 0 lead in the 1st inning before Forrest exploded for 6 runs in the 3rd inning to grab a lead they would not surrender. Westwood plated 2 runs in the 4th inning but could not stop the Forrest offense. Westwood was led in hitting by Jayden Carter and Timothy Henderson who each had a pair of singles. Henderson scored twice and had an RBI.
Westwood returns to action on Monday when they travel to Wartrace to take on Cascade. First pitch is set for 5 PM in the conference game.
Download the broadcast at: http://www.thunder1320.com/downloads/
Cole Pippenger of CCMS baseball
Coffee County Middle School baseball team stepped out of conference play on Saturday as they visited Smyrna to take on Rock Springs. The Red Raiders plated 9 runs in the 1st inning as they coasted to a 13 to 3 win.
The Red Raiders got 10 walks in the game including 3 in the first inning as they sent 13 batters to the plate in the 9 run uprising. Cole Pippenger had a pair of doubles in the first inning. Pippenger finished the game with 4 RBI and scored twice. Jacob Holder had a pair of singles, 2 RBI and got the win on the mound as he struck out 8 batters.
Coffee Middle will take off next week for Spring Break. The Red Raiders will return to the diamond when they travel to Winchester on Monday, April 1st to take on South Franklin.
