Category: Sports

The Coffee County Central High School soccer team will be hosting their annual Red Raider Invitational Middle School Tournament on Saturday at the Raider Academy.  The tournament will feature 11 teams from 7 different middle Tennessee counties.  The tournament will guarantee each team 3 games with champions being crowned in 3 divisions.

The action will get underway at 8 AM on Saturday morning and the Coffee County Middle School soccer team will face Prescott Middle School from Cookeville in the opening round game.  That match will take place on the football field at Carden-Jarrell Field.  Westwood will hit the pitch at 10 AM as they take on the winner between CCMS and Prescott.  That game will also take place on the football field.

Games will be played at the Raider Soccer Field as well as the Championship rounds are set to begin at 4 PM.  The Gold Champion will be crowned at 5.  Cost of admission is $5 and each game will feature two, 25 minute halves.  Concessions will also be available so make plans to come and enjoy a full day of middle school soccer action at the Raider Academy.

In a span of 15 minutes, the Nashville Predators set a flurry of franchise firsts, each more impressive than the last.

The Preds’ 4-3 victory over the Washington Capitals on Thursday night gave Nashville their first Central Division title in franchise history. The two points also bestowed a regular-season Western Conference crown on the Predators.

The final horn at Capital One Arena didn’t sound the end of the tension, however, as the team then ran to the locker room to view the closing moments of the Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers game on their phones. A Jared McCann goal with 5:37 left was just what the Panthers and Preds needed; the Panthers’ 3-2 triumph clinching one more banner for the Predators, this time the League’s regular-season crown as Presidents’ Trophy winners.

“The guys worked really hard,” Predators Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. “All year we’ve talked about doing the best we can and it’s always just been about home ice and trying to stay in our building and give ourselves the best chance to be successful in the playoffs… The guys did an incredible job of staying really focused and fairly consistent with their game, and because of it, we sit where we sit.”

As for the game the Predators directly played in, the visitors rallied twice, using a 2-for-2 performance on the power play to record their franchise-record 52nd win of the campaign.

Craig Smith scored two times and Roman Josi knotted the contest at 3-3 in the third period prior to Ryan Johansen pushing the puck just across the goal line for his 15th and the game-winner.

“There’s things you want to check off the list at the beginning of the year, goals you want to hit and I think it’s just the way that we play,” Smith said. “Tonight was great.”

Smith tallied on the power play less than five minutes into the game to give the Preds a 1-0 lead after 20 minutes, but Washington stormed back to start the second, potting two power-play markers of their own to grab their first lead of the evening.

But in a period that was largely dominated by the home team, and after Juuse Saros was done making save after save, it was Smith who found a loose puck for the second time, once again beating Philipp Grubauer to even the score.

Evgeny Kuznetsov’s second of the evening put the Capitals ahead 3-2 just 67 seconds into the final period, but the better team in the third would end up clearly being the Predators.

Down a goal, Nashville went to work, with Josi’s one-timer tying the game before the midway mark of the period, and later, the Preds’ first line got the deciding marker in wowing fashion. After Filip Forsberg skated through the Capitals’ defense – including putting a puck between a defenseman’s legs – the rebound from Viktor Arvidsson’s shot was just nudged across the goal line by Johansen.

And that was all the Predators needed to do something no Nashville team has ever done before.

“It’s a long road, but I think the guys did an unbelievable job of just staying focused,” Laviolette said. “When we did hit a bump in the road, that bump turned quickly in a different direction and they got back to work and got it working in a really positive way. The leadership in the room was excellent all year long.”

Banner Night:

The 2017 Western Conference Champions banner at Bridgestone Arena will have some company next fall.

A 4-3 win in Washington on Thursday night clinched the first Central Division title for the Predators in franchise history, as well as a regular-season Western Conference title.

But as the Predators retired to their locker room, plenty of jubilation in tow already, a game in South Florida grabbed their attention. A few cell phones streaming the Panthers and Bruins made their way out into the open, and just moments after clinching the Central and the West, the Predators watched, as a team, the Presidents’ Trophy come their way, too.

Quite a 15-minute span in the nation’s capital.

“Every rink you go to, there’s so many banners up there and we only have one banner,” Josi said. “[Winning the division, and possibly more] was definitely one of our goals. It’s such a great organization, and I’m so lucky to have been a part of it for such a long time.”

“It’s pretty special,” Nashville defenseman Ryan Ellis said. “I think we’ve been working toward that goal the entire year, and really the entire time I’ve been here. A lot of people say it’s the hardest division in the League, and I think year in, year out we find out how hard it really is. Tonight, to add a banner up there, it’s a good feeling for the guys.”

Perhaps it was somewhat appropriate that Craig Smith played a notable role in the victory. As one of the longest-tenured Preds, having skated all 515 games of his career with Nashville, Smith has seen highs and lows over the seven seasons, but lately, it just keeps getting better and better.

“It’s big for the organization,” Smith said. “A lot of guys have put in a lot of hard work and a lot of time to produce a season like that. It’s cool so far and we’re having fun with it, but we’re staying game by game here. We’re having fun with each other and holding each other accountable to get out there and play for each other, so it’s great.”

The Predators began the season with plenty they wanted to acheive. Capturing a Central Division title was one of them. And there’s still so much more to do.

“It’s definitely something we’re proud of, but obviously the main goal remains to win the Stanley Cup,” Josi said.

Notes:

With two tallies on Thursday, Craig Smith hit the 25-goal mark for the first time in his career.

Eeli Tolvanen was scratched for Nashville after skating in the first three games of his career against the Sabres, Lightning and Panthers.

The Predators will now return home to host their regular-season finale on Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena against the Columbus Blue Jackets. The 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs will begin next week, with Nashville set to host Games 1 and 2 of their Round One Series. A full postseason schedule will be released once the 2017-18 NHL regular season has concluded.

Pete Weber’s Postgame Report

The Nashville Sounds got 16 hits from the offense and five shutout innings from starter James Naile in an 11-0 rout over the New Orleans Baby Cakes on Opening Day.

Every member of the starting lineup had at least one hit for Nashville. Dustin Fowler went 3-for-5 to lead six different Sounds players with a multi-hit game.

Mark Canha got the offense rolling when he launched a solo home run to lead off the second inning. It was one of two homers Nashville would hit on the night. Second baseman Franklin Barreto gave the Sounds a 3-0 lead in third when he drilled a two-run blast to left field.

Nashville busted the game open in the fourth when they plated five runs on six hits to take an 8-0 lead. Hits in the inning came from Anthony Garcia, Nick Martini, Dustin Garneau, Jorge Mateo, Renato Nunez and Canha.

While the offense was busy building a lead, Naile was cruising along keeping the Baby Cakes off the scoreboard. The right-hander wiggled out of jams in the first and fifth on the way to his second career Triple-A win. Naile allowed only three hits and recorded five strikeouts in his five frames.

Nashville used another big inning in the eighth to put up a crooked number. Mateo’s RBI double made it a 9-0 game and Fowler’s third hit of the night extended the lead to double digits.

The bullpen trio of Jeremy Bleich, Jake Sanchez and Kyle Finnegan went the rest of the way for Nashville. Bleich faced the minimum six batters in two frames while Sanchez worked the eighth and Finnegan closed the ninth.

Nashville and New Orleans continue the five-game series Friday night at Shrine on Airline. Right-hander Frankie Montas starts for the Sounds against right-hander Zac Gallen for the Baby Cakes. First pitch is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

Post-Game Notes

• The Nashville Sounds Opening Day record is now 19-22, including 7-15 on the road. The win snapped a three-game Opening Day losing streak.
• Nashville and New Orleans have now met eight times to start their respective seasons. The series is tied 4-4 after Nashville’s win tonight.
• Sounds starter James Naile made his first career Opening Day start tonight. The right-hander tossed five shutout innings (5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K) and earned his second career Triple-A win.
• Mark Canha’s second inning home run gave Nashville a 1-0 lead. It was the first Opening Day home run by a Sounds player since Hector Gomez on April 4, 2014 at Omaha.
• Mark Canha and Franklin Barreto homered in tonight’s win. The last time the Sounds had two or more home runs on Opening Day was when Brandon Boggs and Edwin Maysonet homered in a win over New Orleans on April 7, 2011.
• Dustin Fowler went 3-for-5 and became the first Sounds player to have at least three hits on Opening Day since Sean Halton on April 5, 2012.
• The 11 runs Nashville scored is the most ever on Opening Day. The previous high was 10 runs in 2000 and 1994.
• Tonight’s shutout win was the first for Nashville on Opening Day since a 7-0 win vs. Edmonton on April 8, 1999.

The 2018 season is the Sounds’ 41^st in franchise history and fourth as the Oakland Athletics’ top affiliate. Opening Day at First Tennessee Park is scheduled for Tuesday, April 10 when the Sounds host the Iowa Cubs at 6:35 p.m. Season ticket memberships are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.

For the second night in a row, the Red Raider bats were held in check as Coffee County fell to hated rival Tullahoma on Wednesday night at Powers Field.  The Red Raiders were held to a pair of hits and committed 3 critical errors as they fell to the Wildcats 6 to 2.  The loss drops the Red Raiders record to 9 and 5 overall and 5 and 3 in district play.

Neither team could score in the first 4 innings, but Tullahoma was able to get runners on in 3 of the first 4 frames.  The Wildcats broke through in the 5^th inning when they plated 3 unearned runs.  The Raiders did not get their first hit until the 6^th inning when Nathanial Tate got a leadoff single and scored 1 out late on a Skylar Bratcher home run to make the score 3 to 2 entering the 7^th inning.  A pair of errors in the top of the 7^th allowed 3 more unearned runs.  Coffee County was retired in order in the 7^th.

For his home run, Skylar Bratcher was named the Crazy Daisies player of the game.  The Red Raiders are back at home on Thursday night when they square off against Ooltewah at Powers Field in the opening night of the Rebel Classic.  First pitch is set for 7:30 PM.

Download the broadcast of the game at: http://www.thunder1320.com/downloads/

Coffee County Central High School senior basketball player Alliyah Williams signed a letter of intent to continue her basketball career at the college level.  Williams accepted a scholarship offer from Martin Methodist in a ceremony at CHS last month.  Williams, a 4 year starter for the Lady Raider basketball team, will join her sister Aerial at the Pulaski university who is attending as a volleyball scholar-athlete.

Coach Joe Pat Cope mentioned the versatility of Williams as the strength of her game. “Alliyah will be a great asset to Martin Methodist.  She can play inside or outside and is very quick off the dribble.  She is a natural shot blocker and rebounds well” said Carr.

The Martin Methodist RedHawks compete in the Southern States Athletic Conference(SSAC) of the NAIA(National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics).  The RedHawks are coming off a conference championship this past season as they finished the season with a record of 27 and 7.  The RedHawks advanced to the NAIA National Championship where they lost in the first round to Lindsey Wilson.  Martin Methodist is coached by Kyle Bent.

Coffee County Central High School senior cheerleader Amanda McGowan signed a letter of intent to continue her cheer career at the college level.  McGowan accepted a scholarship offer from Martin Methodist in a ceremony at CHS on Wednesday.  McGowan completed the signing at CHS in front of family, coaches and teammates.

Coach Christy Clouse was effusive in her praise for McGowan calling her “one of the hardest working and consistent members of our squad.  She is both athletic and personable  and will be a great addition to their team.  Martin Methodist has an excellent program  with an NAIA National Championship in 2015”

The Martin Methodist RedHawks compete in the Southern States Athletic Conference(SSAC) of the NAIA(National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics).  The RedHawks are coming off a conference championship this past season and a 3^rd place regional finish.  The RedHawks advanced to the NAIA National Championship where they finished in 9^th place.  Martin Methodist is coached by the husband and wife team of Micah and Monica Hartsfield who just completed their 9^th season as RedHawk coaches.

The big reveal was a big hit.

On Wednesday night, on a stage in downtown Nashville, the Titans unveiled their new uniforms – and a new-look navy helmet — before an enthusiastic crowd on Broadway by First Avenue.

In the coming years, they’ll be on display on Sundays at Nissan Stadium and in NFL stadiums across the United States, and this October, in London. This is a story about the new, unique uniforms, including the background during the long process to get to this point.

The Titans unveiled three primary uniform color combinations that consist of: Navy blue jersey (home), White jersey (away), Titans blue jersey (light blue, Color Rush).

The helmet, formerly white with two navy blue stripes, is now the Titans’ primary navy blue with one two-toned silver stripe, which mimics the sword from the team’s logo. It includes a metallic silver face mask, and the logo decal now has a silver outline. The sword-inspired center stripe starts at the back of the helmet and comes to a point at the top front.

There’s a sword element on the pants and jerseys as well.

The shoulders of the jerseys feature the two-toned silver in the shape of a sword to mimic the sword from the team logo.

The color red accents the uniform, including the red stars on the inside back of the neckline — inspired by the three stars from the Tennessee state flag. These also tie to the fireball logo.

The number fonts are dramatically different – the custom, angular number fonts were designed with Greek or Roman lettering in mind. Every number on each jersey is shaped in a way that exemplifies the Northeast corner of Tennessee as the state appears on a map, a subtle ode to fans in the state.

The contrast insert on the under-arm of the jersey is a new addition to the uniform, and the two-tone silver stripe on the uniform pant signifies the sword in the team logo. The sword-sheath inspired design on the stripe of the pants is angled much like a sheath would hang. There’s a fireball logo on the left and right hip.

The color palette navy, Titan blue, red, silver and white remains unchanged. A second silver/gray has been added to give dimension to the sword as a more prominent design element. The Nike swooshes add red into the overall design to make the color palette pop.

The unveiling – and the entire process really – was a proud moment for Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk, who said leading up to the event she wanted it to be “fun.”

“Everything I do, I always have the fans in mind,” Strunk said. “To me, it is going to be fun.”

The uniforms have a look that should inspire, Strunk said leading up to the big reveal.

“You take our name, the Titans, and in Greek mythology they were gods, giant gods,” Strunk said. “The thing that Nike started from the beginning was, Titans, it’s superiority. So we wanted that feel. It is going to be what you think of a Titan.”

“Titans fans are going to be proud of what they see. They are going to kind of honor our great state. … That gives a little bit of something.”

In a video that played leading up to the reveal, officials from the NFL and Nike explained the history in making the uniforms. The designers of the uniform traveled to Nashville and visited The Parthenon to get a sense of the mythology before moving forward with the design, while remaining in contact with Strunk.

NFL Creative Director Shandon Melvin said the Titans uniform project began in 2014. It took a two-year halt before starting again, and being completed in time for the 2018 season.

“That team name is so powerful,” Melvin said. “We thought, ‘Wow, there’s an incredible amount of iconography and imagery and myth around the Titan that we could explore.’”

Nike Senior Product Director Kelly Morris said the project started with Nike, the NFL and the Titans getting together. Chris Stackhouse, NFL Art Director, said the Titans provided a unique challenge.

“One of the things that gets me most excited about doing this work for our clubs is to craft the why behind what creates the story and the mythology of a uniform and a club’s brand,” Stackhouse said. “The Tennessee Titans, in my opinion, have a truly incredible mythology. They have a literal mythology, they are Titans. And one of the challenges brought to us by Amy was to take your brand and to infuse meaning into it, in a new story.”

Johnathan Wright, NFL Director of Uniforms and Product Development, said the NFL, the Titans and Nike “all collaborated to come up with what the next generation of the Titans uniform is.”

The Nike Vapor Untouchable uniforms are 29% lighter (jerseys and pants) than the last version of the uniform, said Nate Retzlaff, Nike Apparel Design Athletic Director.

“What’s really unique about this new uniform is the minimal amount of panels and seams that are built into the garment,” Retzlaff said. “With the breathability element, we have been able to utilize technology called laser perforation, where the fabric actually gets laser burned holes where we can strategically place those holes, keeping them cooler, drier and more comfortable. So for all you fans out there excited to get your new jersey, I will share that the elite level jersey, which is our top quality, is exactly what is on field that your amazing athletes are wearing.”

Fans can purchase the jerseys on Wednesday night on Broadway, and at the Titans Locker Room store at Nissan Stadium.

The much-anticipated reveal was quite a spectacle on the streets of downtown Nashville.

Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota, linebacker Brian Orakpo, tight end Delanie Walker, safety Kevin Byard, defensive lineman Jurrell Casey and tackle Taylor Lewan walked onto the stage to reveal the uniforms. At the same time, images of Casey, Lewan and Byard were released from a photo shoot they took part in leading up to the reveal.

Former players who were a part of the unveiling of the old Titans jerseys in 1999 also took part in Wednesday night’s event, along with Strunk, general manager Jon Robinson and head coach Mike Vrabel. Titans play-by-play man Mike Keith served a emcee of the event, and Titans cheerleaders and T-Rac were also part of the show.

A concert by Florida Georgia Line kicked off just after the uniforms were unveiled.

The Titans will wear their new uniforms for the first time in a preseason contest in August. The light blue alternate uniform can be worn twice per season, as well as the Color Rush games.

The Titans will kick off the regular season in September. The NFL is expected to release the 2018 schedule later this month.

Tuesday Prep Results
> CCMS Golf lost to Liberty – 7 to 5 – See the story HERE
> WMS Golf lost to Harris- 10 to 2 – See the story HERE
> CCMS Tennis swept Harris – Girls won 8 to 1, Boys won 4 to 1 – See the story HERE
> CHS Tennis lost at Shelbyville – Girls lost 5 to 2, Boys lost 5 to 2  – See the story HERE
> WMS Tennis split with St. Andrews – Girls won 6 to 0, Boys lost 4 to 3 – See the story HERE
> CCMS Boys’ Soccer dumped North Franklin – 7 to 2 – See the story HERE
> WMS Softball beat Riverside Christian – 18 to 3 – See the story HERE
> CHS Baseball fell to Tullahoma – 4 to 1 – See the story HERE
> WMS Boys’ Soccer beat Tullahoma – 1 to 0 – See the story HERE
> CHS Boys’ Soccer tied Lincoln Co – 1 to 1 – See the story HERE
> CHS Softball beat Franklin Co – 8 to 1 – See the story HERE

Wednesday Prep Schedule
6:00 PM – CHS Baseball HOSTS Tullahoma – Thunder Radio broadcast