Moore County senior softball player Emily Parks recently signed a National Letter of Intent to continue her career as a student-athlete at Motlow State Community College. Joining Emily for the signing ceremony and seated with her are her parents Scott and Tara. Standing in the back, from left: Janice Morey, Motlow softball head coach; Emily’s brother Sawyer; Kim Harvey, Moore County softball coach; and Wendy Hart, Moore County athletic director. Photo provided.
Kaylee Skipper of CHS Softball(file photo)
A quick start and a strong finish lifted the Coffee County CHS softball team to a pair of wins in Alabama on Friday afternoon. Returning from a tournament in Gulf Shores, the Lady Raiders stopped in Montgomery on Friday for a double header with Macon East Academy and Glenwood, AL. The Lady Raiders got a pair of wins on the night to give them 6 wins in their last 7 games.
The Lady Raiders scored 3 runs in the first inning in the first game to power themselves to a 4 to 2 win over Macon-East. Kaylee Skipper went the distance in the circle scattering 3 hits and striking out 3 to capture the win. The Lady Raiders got 4 hits on the game. Haley Hinshaw had 2 RBI, one in the 1st inning and one in the 3rd to lead Coffee County.
In Game #2, Coffee County pushed 3 runs across in the 8th inning to capture a 4 to 1 win over Glenwood out of Phenix City, Alabama. Tied at 1 thru seven innings, Coffee County pushed across 3 runs with 2 outs on 3 straight hits and a Glenwood error. The Lady Raiders were led by RBI singles from Tori Bell and Haley Richardson. Richardson finished the game with 2 hits and 2 RBI while Sarah West had a pair of hits too. Skipper came on to pitch in the 6th inning to relieve Katie Rutledge to get the win.
Coffee County returns home for a district game on Monday night as they play host to Columbia. First pitch is set for 5:30 PM at Terry Floyd Field.
Davis Green of CHS baseball
The Red Raider baseball team used a solid defense and a tremendous pitching effort from Davis Green on Saturday to upset Blackman 1 to 0 in their final game of the Warrior Classic. The Red Raiders bounced back after suffering a pair of losses on Friday night. Timely hitting in the 7th inning and a strong relief appearance from Nathanial Tate in the bottom of the inning gave the Red Raiders their most complete victory of the season.
Despite getting only 2 hits in the game, Coffee County used 2 Blackman errors and a squeeze bunt from Green in the 7th inning to plate their lone run. Coffee County was retired in order in the first 3 innings before Chris Langham led off the 4th by getting hit by a pitch. Davis Green had a 2 out double in the 5th and Langham was hit by a pitch again in the 6th. In the 7th, the Raiders were able to put it all together as Tate led off with a single, after one out and a stolen base moved him to 3rd. Green then came to the plate and laid down a perfect bunt to score Tate and give Coffee County the only run of the game.
Coffee County will return to district play on Tuesday when Franklin County visits Powers Field for a 6 PM game. Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you all the action as Lucky Knott will be on the call beginning with the pregame show at 5:50.
Lady Raider 2017 seniors (left to right) Aerial Williams, Bailey Morgan, Holli Smithson & Kyan Northcutt-Starr
The Coffee County CHS basketball teams held their end of the year awards banquet on Sunday. Both teams celebrated the accomplishments of 4 Lady Raider seniors and 5 Red Raider seniors and their respective teams. Individual awards were handed out along with senior awards and varsity letters. Each team finished the year with identical 21 and 8 records.
Lady Raider seniors Kyah Northcutt-Starr, Bailey Morgan, Holli Smithson and Aerial Williams each were honored and recognized by Lady Raider coaches Herb Horton, Abby Lynch and Sarah Elam. The team as a whole was awarded the TSSAA Distinguished Academic Achievement Award for a team GPA of 3.81. Of the 26 players in the Lady Raider basketball program, 23 were honored for having a GPA of 3.5 of better.
Lady Raider 2017 Award winners
Individual awards for the Lady Raiders were:
Junior Varsity MVP – Ashley Starks
Coaches Award – Byanka Woods
Most Hustle Award – Jenna Garretson and Alliyah Williams
Most Improved Player – Jacey Vaughn & Kyah Northcutt-Starr
Best Offensive Player – Abby Morgan
Best Defensive Player – Bailey Morgan
Player of the Year – Holli Smithson
Lady Raider Award – Aerial Williams
Red Raider 2017 Seniors (left to right) Garrett Eldridge, Maurice McGee, Tyrese McGee, Stephen Sullivan & Grant Sadler
Red Raider seniors Garrett Eldridge, Maurice McGee, Tyrese McGee, Grant Sadler and Stephen Sullivan were honored and recognized by Red Raider coaches Micah Williams, Andrew Taylor, Derek Jones and Jon Spears. Twenty of the 30 players in the Red Raider program were honored as recipients of the TSSAA Distinguished Academic Achievement Award as having a GPA of 3.5 or better. The Red Raider team GPA for the year stands at 3.42 and 3 Red Raider seniors, Maurice McGee, Tyrese McGee and Stephen Sullivan are members of the Top Ten Percent for the Class of 2017.
Red Raider 2017 Award winners
Individual Awards:
Rebounding Award – Grant Sadler
Steals Leader – Tyrese McGee
Assists Leader – Garrett Booth
Leader in Drawing Charges – Tyrese McGee
2 Point Field Goal % Leader – Stephen Sullivan
3 Point Field Goal % Leader – Grant Sadler
Free Throw % Leader – Garrett Eldridge
Offensive Player of the Year – Garrett Eldridge
Defensive Player of the Year – Tyrese McGee & Stephen Sullivan
Most Improved Player(Freshmen) – Jalen Morris
Most Improved Player(JV) – Harley Hinshaw
Most Improved Player(Varsity) – DeAaron Rozier
Raider Award(Freshmen) – Sawyer Vaughn
Raider Award(JV) – Justin Jones
Raider Award(Varsity) – Maurice McGee
Most Valuable Player(Freshmen) – Roderick Brinkley
Most Valuable Player(JV) – Darius Rozier
Most Valuable Player(Varsity) – Stephen Sullivan
Jacob Langham of CHS baseball
The Coffee County Red Raider baseball team dropped a pair of games on Friday night in the 2nd day of the Warrior Classic in Murfreesboro. Coffee County took on Loretto and Stewarts Creek High Schools at Stewarts Creek. In the opener, Coffee County dropped a 7 to 4 decision to Loretto. In the nightcap, the Red Raiders lost to Stewarts Creek by a score of 10 to 0.
Against Loretto, a 4 run 5th inning was not enough to capture a win against the Mustangs. Loretto built a 5 run lead before Coffee County rallied in the 5th to make it a 1 run game. Coffee County banged out 5 hits to plate the 4 runs highlighted by a 3 run home run from Nathaniel Tate. Jacob Langham had a single and a double and Davis Green finished with a pair of singles. Jacob Duncan took the loss on the hill for Coffee County.
In the nightcap, Stewarts Creek pounded out 11 hits in a 10 to 0 victory over Coffee County. After scoring 3 runs in the 2nd inning to put Coffee County on the ropes, the Red Hawks delivered the knockout blow with a 6 run 3rd inning. Coffee County was held to 4 hits on the game led by Jacob Langham who had a pair of singles. Scottie Duke got the start for Coffee County and took the loss. Freshmen Garrett Davis and Zach Milan also saw time on the mound for Coffee County.
The Raiders will conclude play in the Warrior Classic on Saturday when they travel to Blackman for a noon game with the Blaze. Coffee County will return to district play on Tuesday when Franklin County visits Powers Field for a 6 PM game. Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you all the action as Lucky Knott will be on the call beginning with the pregame show at 5:50.
The Nashville Predators failed to clinch a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs when they were defeated by the St. Louis Blues, 4-1 at Scottrade Center on Sunday.
The Predators (40-28-11) can still clinch a spot on Sunday if the Los Angeles Kings lose to the Arizona Coyotes in any fashion.
St. Louis moved two points ahead of Nashville for third place in the Central Division.
The Blues (43-28-7) got second-period goals from Alexander Steen and David Perron to break a 1-1 tie, and Jake Allen made 35 saves to improve to 9-1-2 in his past 12 starts, allowing two or fewer goals in 10 of 12.
Perron had a goal and two assists, and Vladimir Tarasenko and Joel Edmundson also scored for St. Louis, which improved to 5-0-1 in its past six games at home.
Ryan Johansen scored for the Predators and Juuse Saros made 21 saves. Nashville, which has three games remaining, went 2-3-0 playing five games in seven days.
Tarasenko gave the Blues a 1-0 lead at 5:22 of the first period, 19 seconds after a Nashville power play that included 1:04 of 5-on-3.
The Predators scored on a 5-on-3 in the first, with Johansen scoring 11:22 to tie the game at 1-1.
Steen put the Blues ahead 2-1 55 seconds into the second after a Perron pass, and Perron made it 3-1 at 6:47.
Edmundson made it 4-1 at 8:11 of the third period.
It’s down to one.
Pekka Rinne stopped all 31 shots he faced and the Nashville Predators defeated the Minnesota Wild by a 3-0 final on Saturday afternoon at Bridgestone Arena. The result gives Nashville 40 wins and 91 points, while bringing their magic number to clinch a playoff spot to one.
An afternoon that played out like a playoff game, according to Predators Head Coach Peter Laviolette, saw solid play from the home club from start to finish.
“I thought both teams played really hard today,” Laviolette said. “It was playoff hockey. It was fast, and it was tight. Any team that didn’t play like that for 60 minutes, you probably weren’t going to win the game.”
“We knew they were a really good team,” Filip Forsberg said. “We’ve played them a couple of times, and we knew it was going to take a 60-minute effort. I’m really proud of everyone for what we did today, that’s for sure.”
A scoreless first period was turning into a goaltender duel between Pekka Rinne and Alex Stalock, and the two clubs almost went through the first 40 minutes without a tally, until Filip Forsberg and Kevin Fiala broke through.
At 17:21 of the second stanza, Forsberg tipped in a Roman Josi point shot for his 31st goal of the season, and just 10 seconds later Fiala drove to the net all by himself and tucked the puck past a sprawling Stalock to give Nashville a 2-0 advantage after two periods.
From there, Rinne shut the door down the stretch and P.K. Subban added an empty-netter for his 10th goal of the season and a 3-0 victory over the Central Division rival.
“Any time you have a good game it is nice, especially at the end of the season,” Rinne said. “A shutout is a bonus on top of that. Again, I thought it was a great game, and the guys did a really good job in front of me.”
Now it’s on to St. Louis for the Predators, and just one point on Sunday afternoon against the Blues (or the Kings failing to gain a point against the Coyotes) would clinch a spot in the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs for the third-straight season.
“[Tomorrow] is probably the biggest game of the year so far, and it’s going to be fun,” Forsberg said. “It’s going to be really fun to go in there and try to climb the standings as high as we can.”
It was beginning to look as if the Preds might not be able to get anything past Alex Stalock on Saturday afternoon. Ten seconds in the middle frame changed all that.
Goals from Filip Forsberg and Kevin Fiala right after the other gave the bench – and the building – life as Nashville continued their second-period dominance over their opponents, outscoring teams by 33 this season, the highest margin in the NHL.
“Kevin’s goal really put some energy on the bench,” Laviolette said. “You don’t want to chase a game like that, you don’t want to be down 1-0 or 2-0. You want to get that first goal and get that lead in a game like this. I think it was really important. I think the guys were happy about that, but for Kevin to knock one in 10 seconds later was huge.”
“[They were] two big goals at a good time,” Forsberg said. “Fans got their Big Macs, and everyone is happy.”
And Then It Was One:
With a win on Saturday over Minnesota, the Predators brought their magic number to one when it comes to postseason metrics, setting themselves up for a chance to clinch a spot in the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs on Sunday.
Even with two losses last week, Laviolette is seeing exactly what he wants from his team more often than not as of late – solid defensive play and timely scoring with his team pushing the pace. After winning a potential playoff matchup against the Wild, there’s just one more point to snag.
“I think, as a team, you always have to give respect to the other team,” Rinne said. “Minnesota is a really good hockey team. I think we always play pretty entertaining games against them. It was a pretty big matchup, considering if [we] face them in the first round. These games matter.”
“We’re playing the right way,” Laviolette said. “Hopefully, the results lead to something that you’re happier with like today. It’s a good way to be playing right now.”
Notes:
James Neal was scratched from Saturday’s game with an upper-body injury. Craig Smith returned to the lineup on Saturday after missing Thursday’s outing with an upper-body injury.
Colin Wilson appeared in his 500th NHL game on Saturday, all of them coming as a member of the Predators.
Nashville hit the 40-win plateau for the 10th time in franchise history, all of them coming within the last 12 seasons.
The Predators are right back at it tomorrow afternoon in St. Louis, a 3 p.m. CT meeting with the Blues from Scottrade Center to begin the final week of the regular season. Nashville then returns to Bridgestone Arena on Tuesday night against the New York Islanders for their final home game of the regular season.
Cade Giles of CHS baseball
Despite a Cade Giles 1st inning home run, the Coffee County CHS baseball team dropped a hard fought 12 to 8 decision to Central Magnet on Thursday. The game, played as part of the Warrior Classic, saw the lead change hands 4 times before Central Magnet put the game away with a 4 run 4th inning. Coffee County battled back to score single runs in the 6th and 7th innings before taking the loss
The Raiders grabbed an early 2 to 0 lead on Giles’ home run to straightaway centerfield driving in Jacob Langham who had led off the game with a walk. The Tigers added 5 runs in the 2nd as they banged out 4 hits, got a walk and got the help of a Red Raider error. Coffee County retook the lead in the 3rd as they batted around using 5 hits to plate 4 runs. Central regained the lead in the bottom of the 3rd and never trailed again.
Giles finished the game with 3 hits and 3 RBI in 4 plate appearances. Garrett Eldridge was 3 for 4 as well as he scored twice and finished with 1 RBI. Jacob Langham added a hit, a walk and 2 runs scored for the Red Raiders. Freshman Hayden Skipper got the start for Coffee County on the hill and took the loss.
The Raiders return to action on Friday with a doubleheader at Stewarts Creek against Loretto and Stewarts Creek before concluding on Saturday taking on the Blaze of Blackman at Blackman High School.
Brady Nugent of Westwood baseball
The Westwood Rocket baseball team took on Middle Tennessee Christian at Looney Riddle Field on Thursday. The dominating Cougar pitching staff struck out 11 Rocket batters on their way to handing Westwood a 17 to 4 defeat. MTCS banged out 19 hits and drew 8 walks to drop Westwood’s record to 4 and 4 on the season.
After seeing MTCS score 5 runs in the 1st inning, Brady Nugent led off the bottom of the first with a double, his first of 3 hits on the day and came around to score for Westwood after a Luke Beachboard single. In spite of the early run, the Rockets could not match the firepower of their visitors from Murfreesboro. Beachboard finished the game with 2 hits while Wyatt Nugent had a double and a single. Brady Nugent scored 3 of Westwood’s 4 runs.
The Rockets are back on the road on Monday when they travel to Fayetteville to take on Fayetteville City. That game will get underway at 5:45 PM.
Filip Forsberg
Filip Forsberg scored his 30th goal of the season, but it wasn’t enough as the Nashville Predators fell by a 3-1 final to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night at Bridgestone Arena. The result keeps the Preds at 89 points overall, meaning they’ll have to wait until at least Saturday for a chance to clinch a spot in the postseason.
After slipping behind 2-0, a third-period push from Nashville saw them register 13 shots on goal and almost tie the game before Toronto put it out of reach with an empty-net goal, handing the Preds a second consecutive loss and keeping their magic number at three when it comes to clinching a spot.
“We have to be desperate,” Forsberg said. “We know what spot we’re in, and we’re in a good spot, but at the same time we haven’t clinched anything. We have to keep pushing. We’re playing teams that are in the same spot that we are and trying to clinch as well, and our desperation could be higher.”
Power-play goals from Toronto to close the first and second periods, almost at identical times – 18:42 of the first, then 18:43 of the second – gave the Maple Leafs a 2-0 advantage after 40 minutes of play.
It wasn’t until the third period that Forsberg broke Frederik Andersen’s shutout bid when he snapped home his 30th of the season at 9:37 to pull the Preds to within one. The tally marked the second consecutive season Forsberg has hit the 30-goal plateau, while becoming the first player in Nashville franchise history to score 30 goals in more than one season.
The Predators continued to pressure Toronto with a power-play chance, but Andersen held his ground before Connor Brown iced it.
In his 1,000th NHL game behind the bench, Preds Head Coach Peter Laviolette would’ve preferred his team put more opportunities at the opposition net from start to finish.
“I think we were a little bit too cute in the first two periods,” Laviolette said. “The whole game is about shooting the puck right now, honestly. Just get it in the offensive zone and shoot the puck. It can hit anything – it can hit them, it can hit us, it can hit a stick, it could be a rebound, there could be a second opportunity. In the third period, we had a little bit more of that mindset.”
From here, the club will prepare for a full weekend which begins Saturday afternoon against division foe Minnesota. As the Predators continue to try and solidify a spot in the postseason, the focus remains simple – they can only control what happens inside of their locker room.
“Our focus is on playing the right way,” defenseman P.K. Subban said. “We did a lot of things well today… but we have to do that for a full 60 [minutes]. A lot of the teams that we’re playing from here on, are teams that are battling for playoff spots and battling for their lives, so we’ve got to surpass their urgency and take it for 60 minutes.”
“Our goal is to move forward and qualify for the playoffs, and we’re not there,” Laviolette said. “We have work to do.”
Notes:
After missing four games due to a lower-body injury, Preds Captain Mike Fisher returned to the Nashville lineup on Thursday night with three shots and two hits in 14:19 of ice time.
Forward Craig Smith missed Thursday’s game with an upper-body injury and is day-to-day. Defenseman Yannick Weber missed his third consecutive game, also with an upper-body injury.
Nashville will now prepare for a busy weekend, beginning on Saturday at Bridgestone Arena with a 1 p.m. CT start against Minnesota. The Preds will then jet to St. Louis to prepare for a 3 p.m. CT meeting with the Blues on Sunday afternoon.