2016 Red Raider Invitational. Click to enlarge and print
With high school boys’ basketball teams coming from as far away as Hendersonville and Ooltewah, the 3rd Annual Red Raider Invitational tips off on Monday afternoon at the Joe Frank Patch Memorial Gym. Coach Micah Williams of Coffee County is welcoming 8 teams from Middle and East Tennessee for the 3 day tournament.
All eight teams will be in action each day as they work their way through the championship and consolation brackets. The first game time each day is 3 PM. Monday’s play gets underway at 3 PM as East Hamilton takes on Beech while Middle Tennessee Christian and Franklin County will play at 4:30 PM in the top part of the bracket. The evening session begins at 6 PM as Grundy County will take on Red Bank.
The Red Raiders will begin tournament play on Monday night at 7:30 as they take on Community. Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast of that contest beginning with the Powers Storage pregame show at 7:20.
In the coldest game in franchise history, Titans kicker Ryan Succophad ice water in his veins.
Succop nailed a 53-yard field goal on the final play of the game at the Titans rallied to beat the Kansas City Chiefs, 19-17.
Kickoff temperature was one degree with a wind chill of minus-9.
The Titans took over at their own 25-yard line with 1:07 left in the contest. Quarterback Marcus Mariota drove the team down the field, and put Succop in a position to win it.
Mariota completed 19-of-33 passes for 241 yards, along with an interception. Running back DeMarco Murray ran for 89 yards on 18 carries while Derrick Henry ran for 58 yards and two touchdowns on nine carries for the Titans.
The Titans (8-6) travel to Jacksonville next Saturday to face the Jaguars.
The Titans trailed throughout, but they rallied in the second half and had a chance to win it after a one-yard run by Derrick Henry made it 17-16 with just 3:12 remaining. The Titans tried to win it with a two-point conversion, but Mariota’s pass was incomplete.
But the Titans stopped the Chiefs, and got the ball back for a second chance.
The Titans got off to a miserable start, and they made it difficult on themselves throughout by committing three turnovers.
Chiefs receiver Tyreek Hill ripped off a 68-yard touchdown on Kansas City’s second offensive play, making it 7-0 early.
The Titans appeared on the verge of quickly answering back, but receiver Rishard Matthews lost a fumble inside the Kansas City five-yard after making a catch, and the Chiefs cashed it in for more points. It became 14-0 when Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith ran it in from 11 yards out on a scramble.
But the Titans answered back, scoring on a four-yard touchdown run by running back Derrick Henry early in the second quarter to cap off a six-play, 87-yard drive and make it 14-7. Henry had five carries for 41 yards on the scoring drive.
The Titans turned the ball over twice in the first half. In addition to Matthews, Mariota also lost a fumble that was recovered by Chiefs linebacker Ramik Wilson. The turnovers snapped a streak of four consecutive games without a turnover for the Titans.
The Titans turned in a pair of goal line stands to keep Kansas City out of the end zone.
The first came in the second quarter, and it was capped off with back-to-back stops from the one-yard line on third and fourth down. On the fourth-down play from the one, safeties Kevin Byard and Daimon Stafford stopped Chiefs running back Spencer Ware for no gain.
The second came in the third quarter, and it ended with an intercepted in the end zone from rookie cornerback LeShaun Sims. On the play, Sims was covering Chiefs receiver Jeremy Maclin, and he stepped in front of him to end the drive and keep the game at 17-7 with 6:02 in the third quarter.
The Chiefs made it 17-7 at halftime on a 34-yard field goal by kicker Cairo Santos.
The two teams played a scoreless third quarter before Succop connected on a 39-yard field goal to make it 17-10 with 11:54 remaining.
Then came the late rally, which sets the stage for a big finish to the 2016 season.
Juuse Saros made 26 saves through 65 minutes, but it wasn’t enough as the Nashville Predators fell 2-1 in a shootout to the New York Rangers on Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena. The result gives the Preds points in 13 of 16 home games this season and puts their overall record at 13-12-5.
Both goaltenders – Saros for the Preds and Henrik Lundqvist for the Rangers – turned in solid efforts, each holding the opposition to one regulation goal with the New York netminder turning aside 31 Predators chances on the night. Saros was especially impressive in the first 20 minutes of his fifth NHL start, making eight saves to keep his team in the game until they found the equalizer.
“I didn’t think we played very well in the first period; I thought we got a lot better in the second half of the game,” Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. “But the first period, for me, we turned the puck over too many times at their blue line. They have such good speed and good transitions, we knew we couldn’t do that. I think we did a better job of managing the puck in the second period and certainly in the third period.”
“We got scored on first in the last couple of games, but we have to give the other team credit,” defenseman Ryan Ellis said. “They’re working hard, they’re trying to make plays and score goals, too. Tonight was a good sign. [The Rangers] have a high-power attack; they score a lot of goals in this League, and [Saros] did a great job in net to hold that team to one goal and then go to a shootout.”
After giving up the first goal, Preds Captain Mike Fisher scored his 100th goal as a member of the Preds, beating Lundqvist at 9:22 of the middle frame to even the score at 1-1, his fourth goal in the last three games. The goaltenders stood tall the rest of the way and through overtime until the Rangers scored twice in the shootout to ice it.
“Both goalies had to be good,” Laviolette said. “I thought Juuse did an excellent job, especially early on against a team like that with so much speed and so much of an attack, a dynamic attack off the rush and off of transition that leads to a lot of opportunities.”
Nashville will now turn their attention to the road and a game in Philadelphia on Monday as they look for improvement away from home.
“We have to find ways to win and get rolling and move up in the standings,” Fisher said. “We know we can be better. We have to be better. [We] have to get back to the way we were playing a few weeks ago, and start getting some wins. We’re a confident group, and we have the guys in here to do it. We’re going to pick it up, and just keep improving and getting better.”
Notes:
Preds defenseman P.K. Subban missed Saturday’s game with an upper-body injury and is listed as day-to-day.
Defenseman Petter Granberg took Subban’s spot in the lineup and finished with four hits in 9:11 of ice time.
The Preds are set to head east as they prepare for a back-to-back set in Philadelphia and New Jersey, beginning Monday night against the Flyers.
In their last contest before the Christmas holiday break, the Coffee County Middle School basketball teams welcomed Harris Middle to the CCMS gym on Thursday night for a conference doubleheader. In a pair of games you heard here on Thunder Radio, the Coffee County teams each captured wins to enter the new year on a positive note. The Lady Raiders held off a late charge by the Eagles to capture a 30 to 22 win while the Red Raiders pulled away in the 4th quarter to win 34 to 26.
Despite struggling at the free throw line, Coffee County staved off a late charge from the Eaglettes to capture their 11th win of the year. The Lady Raiders hit 6 of their 13 free throws in the 4th quarter to power to the win. Coffee County was led in scoring by Bella Vinson who finished with 19 points. Marley Perry added 5 points and Kiya Ferrell finished with 4.
Trenton Scrivnor of CCMS basketball
After building a double digit lead in the 2nd quarter, the Raiders held off Eagle rallies in the 2nd and 3rd quarters to take a 25 to 24 lead into the final period. In the 4th quarter, Coffee County held Harris to one field goal while draining 9 free throws for the win. Jaxon Vaughn was the leading scorer for the Red Raiders as he finished with 14 points. Trenton Scrivnor added 8 points and Conner Shemwell finished with 6 points for Coffee County.
Coffee County will be off until January 5th when Warren County visits the Coffee County Middle School gym. Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you the broadcast as part of the First National Bank Hometown Sports Series. The opening tip will be at 6 PM, Lucky Knott will bring you all the action beginning with the pregame show at 5:50.
CHS wrestler Owen Teague(top) moves his Oakland opponent into position for the pinfall win on Thursday night
Facing a deeper and more experienced Oakland wrestling team on Thursday night, the Coffee County grapplers came up on the short end of the scoreboard in the dual meet. Originally scheduled to include Stewarts Creek, the Redhawks cancelled leaving Coffee County taking on Oakland in the 6 PM tussle.
A promising start saw Rein Bozich(145 pounds) fall in extra time by a 6 to 4 decision on an Oakland takedown in the last 10 seconds of the extra period. Owen Teague(152) followed that with an exciting pin to give the Raiders a 6 to 3 lead in the match. After a forfeit at 160 pounds, Reid Lawrence(170) dropped a hard fought 7 to 1 decision before pins and forfeits stoned and Raider momentum down the rest of the card.
The Coffee County wrestlers are back on the mat on Tuesday night when they travel to Chapel Hill to take on Forrest and Centennial. The three way dual meet will get underway at 6 PM.
The Nashville Predators were unable to come back from a first-period deficit, as they fell to the Minnesota Wild by a 5-2 final on Thursday night at Bridgestone Arena. The loss bumps Nashville’s record to 13-12-4 overall, just its third regulation defeat at home this season.
With the exception of a lapse late in the first period, in which the Wild took a 3-1 lead with two goals in less than 30 seconds, Nashville gave a strong effort, registering 36 shots on the night and creating quality scoring chances, but it wasn’t enough.
“It’s a tough way to play the game,” Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. “You’re fortunate when you bail out of it at 3-0, 3-1 this time, against one of the teams that gives up the least amount of goals. It’s not going to be an easy task. We couldn’t pull it off.”
As the second period began, it looked as though the Preds might stage their second come-from-behind win in as many games. Mike Fisher scored a power-play goal in the middle frame and the Predators continued to outshoot and out chance Minnesota through the remainder of the contest.
But the Preds were unable to get a third goal past Devan Dubnyk, and the Wild added two empty-netters late in the game to seal the victory, their sixth in a row.
“I liked our effort in the second and third,” defenseman Ryann Ellis said. “We got some shots to the net, good chances and had zone time, but that’s a good team over there. They’re good right now for a reason, and we’ve got to tighten the first period up, especially.”
Nashville now turns their attention to Saturday night and the New York Rangers, one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference.
“There’s a lot of positives out there in the second and third, but the first periods, they have to stop the way they’re going right now,” Ellis said. “Really, it’s what killed us there. But if we can play like we did in the second and third in the first, we’ll be a really good team.”
Notes:
With an assist on Ryan Ellis’s goal, Viktor Arvidsson extended his career-high point streak to five games (2g-4a).
Mike Fisher’s goal was his 99th in a Preds uniform. He has scored three goals in a two-game span for the first time since Dec. 28-30, 2013.
The Predators conclude their three-game home stand on Saturday night when they host the New York Rangers at Bridgestone Arena. Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast of that game as part of the Nashville Predators Radio Network beginning at 6 PM.
Trenton Thompson(right) of Westwood basketball watched by Westwood coach Will Pannell
It took a little while, but when the interior game of Cascade started clicking on Wednesday night, the Westwood Rockets basketball season came to a close in Wartrace in the quarterfinal round of the Duck River Valley Conference tournament. Cascade used their distinct height advantage in the post to key a 45 to 25 win. Cascade post player Ethan Swan accounted for 19 points as the Rockets had no answer for the 6’4” center.
Westwood battled hard on defense in the first quarter by denying the entry passes into the post and creating a handful of turnovers. Offensively, the Rockets were able to limit the Champions touches but they could not get a shot to fall until late in the period trailing 4 to 3 going into the 2nd. Cascade opened the 2nd quarter with a 3 pointer and then was able to employ the press and pick up the pace of the game.
Westwood was led in scoring by Trenton Thompson who finished with 8 points including a pair of 3 pointers in the first half. Wyatt Nugent finished with 4 points while Will Partin and Luke Beachboard each finished with 3 points on the night.
The CHS wrestling team fell in a single match at Riverdale on Tuesday night by a team score of 72 to 12. Coffee County got a pair of pinfall wins on the night. Rein Bozich(wrestling at 145 pounds) and Owen Teague(152) each submitted their opponents to capture the team points for the Red Raiders.
The Coffee County wrestlers are back at home on Thursday night when they welcome Oakland and Stewarts Creek to their home mat at the Coffee County Raider Academy. The three way dual meet will get underway at 6 PM
Abby Morgan of CHS basketball [Photo by Demarco Moore – Manchester Times]
Hitting the road for the last time together in 2016, the Coffee County Lady Raiders and Red Raiders traveled to Fayetteville on Tuesday night. Both teams got off to first quarter leads to bring home a pair of victories over the Tigers. The Lady Raiders routed Fayetteville 69 to 40 while the Red Raiders needed a full 4 quarters to put down the tenacious Cats 62 to 54.
The Lady Raiders raced out to a 21 to 4 lead early in the 2nd quarter and led by as many as 25 points in the 3rd quarter to capture their 7th win on the season. Lady Raider coach Herb Horton was able to empty his bench as 11 different Lady Raiders scored on the night. Abby Morgan had a phenomenal game scoring 25 points while barely playing in the 2nd half. Aerial Williams also finished in double figures with 11 points. Freshman Ellie Graham came off the bench to add 7 points in the 4th quarter. Graham also had prvided a defensive spark with steals and rebounds in the 2nd half and was named the Crazy Daisies player of the game for her efforts.
Tyrese McGee of Coffee County basketball[Photo by Demarco Moore – Manchester Times]
A nip and tuck first half saw missed shots from close range for the Red Raiders and second chance points for Fayetteville put Coffee County in a 5 point hole late in the 2nd quarter. After a Red Raider timeout, Coffee County scored 11 points in the last 2 and a half minutes of the half to close the deficit to 1 at intermission. The Red Raiders captured the lead early in the 2nd half and pulled away for their first ever win in Fayetteville’s gym. Tyrese McGee was the leading scorer for Coffee County as he netted 19 points to be named the Crazy Daisies player of the game. A quartet of Red Raiders came just shy of reaching double digits as Garrett Eldridge, DeAaron Rozier, Garrett Booth and Stephen Sullivan all finished with 9 points.
Now the 2 Coffee County teams go their separate ways to compete in Christmas tournaments. The Lady Raiders, who were supposed to begin play in the Hixson Tournament beginning Friday, found out the tournament is cancelled. The Lady Raiders are scrambling to attempt to schedule a possible makeup game or two this weekend. The Red Raiders will begin play in their own tournament on Monday when they welcome Community to The Patch for a 7:30 PM battle. Thunder Radio will bring you that broadcast and keep you updated on the Lady Raiders next contest.
Mike Fisher scored the game-winner and added an empty-netter as the Nashville Predators scored six unanswered goals to come back and defeat the St. Louis Blues by a 6-3 final on Tuesday night at Bridgestone Arena. It’s Nashville’s 10th home victory of the season, pushing their overall record to 13-11-4 and 30 points.
After falling behind 3-0 early in the second stanza, the Preds found their way back to the right side of the ledger, winning for the first time this season after being down after two periods, and doing so in convincing fashion.
“That was a great effort being down like that and coming back,” Fisher said. “We played really well in the second and third period against a great team too – a division rival. That was a big game.”
Prior to Tuesday’s game, the Preds spoke of their intention to come out with a strong start from the opening puck drop. They had their chances early on, but somehow found themselves down by three less than two minutes into the middle frame.
But just over three minutes later, James Neal found the back of the net. And the comeback was on.
“I think when it swung back the other way – and it was clearly evident – was James Neal’s goal just to get us on the board and get us going in the right direction,” Preds Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. “From that point, I thought our guys did an excellent job of playing the way we want to play.”
“It’s huge confidence-wise,” forward Colton Sissons said. “We were coming in confident at home with a pretty solid record, but to have a comeback win like that against a team like the St. Louis Blues is huge for us.”
All three members of Nashville’s first line – Neal, Forsberg and Ryan Johansen – scored their team’s first, second and third goals on the night, a strong showing from the newly constructed trio, and just a taste of what can happen if they start to find some chemistry together.
“They were really good,” Laviolette said of the line. “They got going, and they were generating a lot. They spent a lot of time in the offensive zone. We got zone starts that started in our favor. We’re in the offensive zone for faceoffs more – that’s a big thing… They started getting the right zone starts and being put in the right spots, and when they did they were able to capitalize on it.”
It didn’t start the way they planned, but once the Preds got going, so did their fans. Two goals less than three minutes apart brought about a standing ovation – one of many the rest of the night.
It’s not the first time the crowd at Bridgestone Arena has given the home team a much needed boost, and it won’t be the last, but every instance is just as appreciated as the next.
“It was great to get back here,” Laviolette said. “You could tell, not only for us, but even our fans, when Neal’s goal went in, it just brought a whole lot of energy into the building. They really got going. That gets us going as well.”
“It felt like a playoff game,” Johansen said. “During a couple of TV timeouts there, I felt like I needed some earplugs because my ears were getting sore. That’s a lot of fun, that’s what you enjoy so much about playing in the NHL is the atmosphere and coming into your home building and working for your fans. They were definitely a big part of it tonight.”
Notes:
Preds goaltender Pekka Rinne recorded his 250th career victory on Tuesday night, becoming the 51st netminder in NHL history to accomplish the feat.
Craig Smith recorded his 100th career assist on Mike Ribeiro’s goal.
Ryan Ellis and Colton Sissons both returned to the lineup on Tuesday after being activated from Injured Reserve. Ellis was a +3 on the night in 21:57 of ice time and Sissons skated 11:38 with two hits.
Viktor Arvidsson extended his career-high point streak to four games.
The Preds continue their home stand on Thursday night when the Minnesota Wild come to town, followed by the New York Rangers on Saturday.
Juuse Saros made 26 saves through 65 minutes, but it wasn’t enough as the Nashville Predators fell 2-1 in a shootout to the New York Rangers on Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena. The result gives the Preds points in 13 of 16 home games this season and puts their overall record at 13-12-5.
The Nashville Predators were unable to come back from a first-period deficit, as they fell to the Minnesota Wild by a 5-2 final on Thursday night at Bridgestone Arena. The loss bumps Nashville’s record to 13-12-4 overall, just its third regulation defeat at home this season.
