Category: Sports

Motlow Bucks open season undefeated, host TCCAA rival Columbia State in home opener Friday

The Motlow Bucks remained undefeated heading into conference play when they swept a pair of contests over the weekend at the Quality Inn Classic at Northwest Florida State College in Niceville, Fla.

Friday evening the Bucks shot 55 percent from the field and outscored their opponent by 14 points in the second half on their way to an 85-63 win over Lincoln Trail College. Saturday afternoon, Motlow exploded out of the gate to a 48-19 halftime advantage and beat Coahoma Community College 74-42.

The Bucks (3-0, 0-0) have won their three games by an average score of 82-50. However, the going gets much tougher this week as Motlow prepares to host Tennessee Community College Athletic Association (TCCAA) rival Columbia State Friday, Nov. 11, with tipoff scheduled for 5:30 p.m. The Bucks will turn around Saturday and welcome conference foe Jackson State to Copperweld Arena for a 2 p.m. tip.

BUCKS 85 LINCOLN TRAIL COLLEGE 63

Motlow featured four double-figure scorers in Friday’s win over Lincoln Trail. Isaiah Hart led the way with 23 points and added five steals, four rebounds and two assists. Rashawn Fredrick had the first double-double of the season for Motlow with 21 points and 10 rebounds, plus a pair of steals.

Javel Gillespie came off the bench to score 13 points and add three rebounds, while starter Javion Hamlet scored 12 points with a team-high seven assists along with three rebounds and two steals. Aleksandar Zecevic scored eight points and had 10 rebounds; Dillon Smith added four points, two boards, two assists and two steals; and Kevonte Corley had seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and three blocked shots along with two points. Jalen Bell added two points as well for Motlow.

BUCKS 74 COAHOMA COMMUNITY COLLEGE 42

Saturday’s win over Coahoma saw the Bucks start strong with their 29-point lead at the intermission. Motlow connected on 11-26 three point shots, with nine different players hitting at least one. The Bucks had 22 assists on their 30 made field goals and pulled down 50 rebounds.

Hamlet led the scoring with 16 points, hitting 7-11 shots from the field, and added five rebounds, five assists and two steals. Zecevic scored 15 points with seven boards, two assists and three steals. Corley led all rebounders with 11 and added three blocked shots and two steals along with three points.

Hart hit a pair of threes and finished with 10 points and a team-high six assists along with five rebounds and four steals. Gillespie scored six and had five rebounds and Chad Emmons had six points and three boards, while Smith, Fredrick and Ross Plunkett each added five points, with Plunkett dishing out four assists and Fredrick pulling down seven rebounds. Bell hit a three pointer.

Through the first three games, four Bucks are averaging double figures in scoring with Hart at 14.3, Hamlet and Fredrick at 12.3, and Zecevic at 10.3. Fredrick and Zecevic average 8.7 rebounds each while Corley averages eight. Hamlet has dished our five assists per game and Hart averages 3.7 assists and leads the team with 4.7 steals per contest.

The Bucks and Chargers from Columbia State have been bitter rivals since they began playing basketball against each other in 1969. In recent years the intensity has increased, with the two meeting in the semifinals of the conference tournament four consecutive years. Each school has won two of those meetings, with the Bucks eliminating the Chargers last season 96-85.

Friday’s home opener against Columbia State will be preceded by a Veterans Day celebration and a tailgate party in front of Nisbett Center on Motlow’s Moore County campus. Festivities are scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m. Admission is free to Motlow athletic events and the public, alumni, students, faculty and staff are invited.

Visit the official website of Motlow Athletics at MotlowSports.com for rosters, schedules, stats and more. Interact with Motlow Athletics on social media at MotlowSports.

Lady Bucks upset No. 12 Northwest Florida, host Columbia State in home opener Friday

Trailing after three quarters, the Motlow State Lady Bucks outscored the nation’s 12th-ranked team 21-11 in the final stanza and upset Northwest Florida State College 59-52 Friday night on the opponent’s home court in Niceville, Fla.

The Lady Bucks (2-1, 0-0), participating in the Quality Inn Classic, played again on Saturday and dropped an 87-71 decision to Pensacola State College. Motlow will host Tennessee Community College Athletic Association (TCCAA) rival Columbia State on Friday, Nov. 11, with tipoff scheduled for 7:30 p.m. The next day, conference opponent Jackson State visits Copperweld Arena for a 4 p.m. tip.

LADY BUCKS 59 NORTHWEST FLORIDA STATE 52

Northwest Florida, where Lady Bucks Head Coach Bart Walker coached from 2008-2010, took the early lead 17-12 after one quarter and led 30-22 at halftime. Motlow crept closer though and only trailed 41-38 after three quarters. Motlow extended its lead to 11 points, 52-41, with six minutes remaining, but the home team fought back and closed the gap to four with under one minute to play.

In a game highlighted by stellar defense, the Lady Bucks shot 42 percent from the field but held the home team to 35 percent shooting. Motlow connected on 13-22 free throws and hit 4-10 from beyond the three-point line.

Sara Vujacic paced the Lady Bucks with 15 points, seven rebounds and a pair of steals, including hitting 5-6 free throws. After the first week of the regular season, Vujacic is Motlow’s leading scorer with an average of 17.7 points per game.

Sydney Floyd added 13 points, six rebounds and four steals, and is averaging 14 points and a team-high three steals through the first three games. Aja Robertson also scored in double figures with 10 points, three rebounds, four assists and three steals.

Kienya Jones scored eight points with four rebounds, and Tybriann Jones had six points, three blocked shots, and led the Lady Bucks with nine rebounds. Tamiah Stanford scored five points with four assists and three steals.

PENSACOLA STATE 87 LADY BUCKS 71

Foul trouble and turnovers were the story for Motlow in Saturday’s loss. Trailing 45-29 at intermission, the Lady Bucks fought hard to get back in it and played Pensacola even during the second half. However, the deficit was just too much to overcome as Motlow had two players foul out and three more end the game with four fouls. The Lady Bucks committed 36 turnovers and had only two steals.

Floyd led the scoring Saturday with 20 points on 7-12 shooting, including 5-8 three pointers, and added seven rebounds. Vujacic was right behind her with 19 points, four rebounds and five assists.

Ty Jones was once again Motlow’s top force on the boards, pulling down 14 rebounds and blocking three shots to go along with seven points. Robertson again scored 10 and had a pair of rebounds and two assists. Stanford had nine points with three assists, and Kienya Jones added four points and three rebounds.

Visit the official website of Motlow Athletics at MotlowSports.com for rosters, schedules, stats and more. Interact with Motlow Athletics on social media at MotlowSports.

Smyrna’s Ariel McAtee Signs Letter of Intent to play Softball at Motlow State

Stewarts Creek High School softball standout Ariel McAtee recently signed a National Letter of Intent to continue her career as a student-athlete at Motlow State Community College. Joining Ariel for the ceremony are, seated from left, Heather McAtee, Ariel, Bobby McAtee and Bryant McAtee. Standing from left, Lenora Word, Morgan Evans, Tory Atwood, Janice Morey, Motlow State head coach; Emily Morris and Jennifer Smith. Photo provided.

Coffee Swimmers Open the Season with a Splash

The Coffee County Swim Teams opened their regular season on Friday night with several spectacular individual performances and a 3rd place team finish against 5 Rutherford County schools. When the water had settled, 6 high school swimmers had posted times that were good enough to qualify them for the regional meet and one posted state qualification times. Additionally, 4 middle school swimmers posted regional qualifying times. And to top off the successes, 3 different relay teams won their races.
The Lady Raiders got 2 relay team wins. In the 200 yard medley, Lindsey Caudle, Kaylee Williams, Anna O’Connor and Lacey West won with a time of 2:03.5 which was a full 3 seconds ahead of Siegel. In the 200 yard freestyle relay, the team of Lindsey Caudle, Kaylee Williams, Lacey West and Anna O’Connor came in 1st place with a time of 2:05.63.
Individual swimmers with Top 5 times were:
Kaylee Williams – 1st place, 200 yard freestyle; 2nd place, 500 yard freestyle;
Anna O’Connor – 3rd place, 200 yard freestyle; 2nd place, 100 yard freestyle;
Region qualifiers were: Anna O’Connor (100 freestyle and 200 freestyle) and Kaylee Williams (200 freestyle, 500 freestyle)

The Red Raiders won the 200 yard freestyle relay with a time of 1:43.56 as the team of Ryan Farless, Andres Cavalie, Donald Ridner and Jack Beachboard beat Siegel by 4 seconds. The Raiders also placed 2nd in the 200 yard medley relay as the team of Andres Cavalie, Jack Beachboard, Ryan Farless and Donald Ridner touched the wall at 1:58.26
Individual swimmers with Top 5 times were:
Jack Beachboard – 1st place, 200 yard freestyle; 1st place, 100 yard butterfly;
Ryan Farless – 2nd place*, 200 yard IM; 2nd place, 100 yard freestyle;
Nick Smith – 3rd place, 50 yard freestyle;
Region qualifiers were: Jack Beachboard (200 freestyle and 100 butterfly); Ryan Farless (200 IM and 100 freestyle); Donald Ridner (50 freestyle and 100 freestyle); and Nick Smith ( 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle). Jack Beachboard qualified for the state in the 200 freestyle and 100 butterfly.

For the middle school swimmers, who were racing against the clock to qualify for the region, there were 4 regional qualifiers. Amber Ingleburger qualified in the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle; Emily Williams qualified in the 100 freestyle; Aly Hutchings qualified in the 50 freestyle; and William Tobitt qualified in both the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle.

The Coffee County swimmers will be back in action on November 17th when they travel to LaVergne. That meet will get underway at 6 PM.

Westwood Drops Basketball Doubleheader to Huntland

Allie Roberts of Westwood basketball

The Rockets and Lady Rockets of Westwood welcomed Huntland to the Joel Vinson Gym on Monday night for a Duck River Valley Conference basketball doubleheader. In a game you heard here on Thunder Radio, the Lady Rockets fell 35 to 30. The Rockets saw a pair of 2nd half rallies fall short in a 43 to 34 loss in the 1st National Bank Hometown Sports Series broadcast.
The Lady Rockets saw a first quarter lead disappear when Huntland went on a 12 to 0 run in the middle of the 2nd quarter to build an 8 point halftime lead. Westwood got as close as 2 points in the 3rd quarter but Huntland was able to hold off the Lady Rocket charge. Allie Roberts and Kasen Holt tied for the team lead in scoring for Westwood with 9 points. Alex Nelson and Clarissa Barrera each chipped in 4 points.
The Rockets got off to a slow start in their loss as they fell behind 11 to 0 to start the game. Westwood clawed its way back to within 1 point with 1:28 remaining in the 3rd quarter but could never quite catch the Hornets. Trenton Thompson was the leading scorer for Westwood with 16 points. Bodey Todd added 5 and Cruz Pitsinos chipped in 3 points in the loss.
Westwood will be back in action on Thursday night when they travel to Murfreesboro to take on Middle Tennessee Christian. The girl’s game will tip off at 6 PM.
You can download the broadcasts at: http://www.thunder1320.com/downloads/

CCMS Basketball Swept at White County

Bella Vinson of CCMS

After a one week layoff, the Coffee County Middle School basketball team was on the road on Monday night as they traveled to White County. The Raiders and Lady Raiders fell in the Central Tennessee Conference doubleheader. The girls lost 25 to 16 while the boys came up short 51 to 33.
The Lady Raiders were held scoreless in the 3rd quarter as White County built a 1 point halftime lead into an 11 point lead entering the 4th quarter. Bella Vinson led Coffee County in scoring with 11 points. Kylie Phillips chipped in 3, while Kiya Ferrell netted 2 points.
The Red Raiders were outscored 14 to 7 in the 3rd quarter of their game in the loss. The loss is the first loss of the year for Coffee County as they fall to 4 and 1. Jaxon Vaughn led Coffee County in scoring with 12 points. Trenton Scrivnor added 6 points while Kyle Farless and Hayden Hullett chipped in 4 points apiece.
Coffee County will host their first home game of the year on Thursday night when South Franklin visits the CCMS gym. Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast as part of the 1st National Bank Hometown Sports Series. Tipoff for the girls’ game is set for 6 PM, we begin our live coverage with the pregame show at 5:50.

Raiders Fall in Playoffs to End Football Season at Maryville

Coffee County running back Dearron Rozier(Photo by DeMarco Moore - Manchester Times)

Coffee County running back Deaaron Rozier(Photo by DeMarco Moore – Manchester Times)

Facing a team who has appeared in 14 straight state championship games, Coffee County drew the unenviable task of taking on Maryville on Friday night in a first round playoff matchup. The Rebels scored on the opening kickoff and rolled up 425 yards of offense in a 56 to 14 defeat of the Red Raiders. Coffee County scored on a pair of big plays on offense as their season comes to a close.
Alontae Taylor raced 80 yards for a touchdown run with 9:09 left in the first quarter to cut the Maryville lead to 14 to 7. DeAaron Rozier scored on a 56 yard run in the 3rd quarter as the Raiders scored the only points of the second half. Coffee County was able to amass 245 yards of total offense but a pair of turnovers stopped Red Raider drives.
Taylor finished the night with 101 yards rushing on 6 carries with a touchdown and caught 3 passes for 22 yards. He also passed 6 times with 3 completions for 16 yards. Rozier carried the ball 9 times for 91 yards and a score to earn the Thunder Radio/Crazy Daisies player of the game honors. Coach Ryan Sulkowski will talk about the season on Wednesday night LIVE at West Main Brick Oven on the Ryan Sulkowski Show. The Ryan Sulkowski Show is heard here on Thunder Radio beginning at 6 PM on Wednesday.

Elementary Basketball Results from Saturday

Listed below are the scores from Saturday’s Coffee County Youth Basketball League action in Week #3
In Girls’ action
North Coffee blitzed Hickerson – 37 to 2
New Union tamed Hillsboro – 22 to 16
East Coffee earned a forfeit over Deerfield
Westwood stopped College Street – 18 to 14

In Boys’ action:
Hickerson bested North Coffee – 31 to 18
Hillsboro outlasted New Union – 18 to 12
Deerfield rallied past East Coffee – 16 to 7
College Street squeaked past Westwood – 22 to 21

Updated Standings

Seed	Girls	Wins	Losses
1	New Union	3	0
2	Westwood	3	0
3	College Street	2	1
4	Hillsboro	2	1
5	East Coffee	1	2
6	North Coffee	1	2
7	Hickerson	0	3
8	Deerfield	0	3

Seed	Boys	Wins	Losses
1	College Street	3	0
2	Hillsboro	3	0
3	New Union	2	1
4	Westwood	2	1
5	Deerfield	1	2
6	Hickerson	1	2
7	East Coffee	0	3
8	North Coffee	0	3

Preds Fall to Hurricanes in Shootout

James Neal and Matt Irwin scored for the Nashville Predators, but the Carolina Hurricanes tied the game in the third period before prevailing 3-2 in a shootout on Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena. The loss is Nashville’s second in a row via the breakaway competition, pushing their record to 3-5-3.

The Preds have collected points in three consecutive games for the first time this season, but that stat doesn’t provide much of a relief for the club, unhappy with their effort at points in the game.

“I think we can be pretty satisfied with our first period, but that’s it,” Irwin said. “Our second period was as bad as it gets. That’s on us in this room. That’s going unprepared after that first period, putting that one behind you and pushing forward and trying to string 40 minutes together… It’s disappointing, but there’s no one else in here to blame but ourselves. We just have to be more prepared.”

Neal got his second of the season on a breakaway midway through the first period before Jeff Skinner evened the score in the middle frame. For the third consecutive game, Preds defenseman Matt Irwin found the back of the net to give the Predators the lead once more heading into the second intermission, but midway through the third, Ron Hainsey scored shorthanded for the Hurricanes to tie things, 2-2.

After a scoreless overtime, Cam Ward stopped all three Nashville shooters and Jaccob Slavin wristed the winner past Pekka Rinne.

“The excitement was here in the locker room before the game, but there is no excuse for the effort in the second period,” Irwin said. “We have to be better. We know it in here, and there’s no one to point the finger, but ourselves.

It’ll be back to work for the Predators on Monday before hosting the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday, as they look to find ways to improve their overall game.

“It’s a concern with the inconsistency,” Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. “It’s not good enough, and that’s the bottom line. Nobody is going to sit here and say that it’s been good enough because it hasn’t. We have to continue to work to get better. It’s frustrating.”

“The best thing about it is that it’s fixable,” forward Colin Wilson said. “We have a lot of talent on this team. We just have to get the work ethic in it and things are going to be good from there. We’ have to get there, but it’s got to be better.”

Notes:

Matt Irwin is on a three-game goal streak for the second time in his career. He last scored a goal in three consecutive games from March 14-18, 2013, a career high.

Preds Captain Mike Fisher missed his second consecutive game with an upper-body injury.

The Preds home stand continues on Tuesday night when they host the Ottawa Senators at Bridgestone Arena.

Pete Weber’s Postgame Report

Westwood Drops Pair of Close Games to Liberty

Valerie Barger of Westwood basketball

The Westwood Rockets and Lady Rockets lost a pair of heart-breaking games to Liberty at the Joel Vinson Gym on Thursday night in a basketball doubleheader you heard here on Thunder Radio. The Lady Rockets went toe to toe with the Lady Patriots before falling 26 to 24 on the 1^st National Bank Sports Series broadcast. The Rockets saw a 10 point halftime lead slip away in a 45 to 42 loss

The Lady Rockets used their smothering defense to frustrate Liberty all night before falling in the girls’ game. After tying the game at the half on an Elizabeth Brown 3 pointer, Westwood could not get an outside shot to fall down the stretch in the 4 quarter battle. Valerie Barger led the Lady Rockets in scoring with 8 points, including 4 points in the 4^th quarter. Allie Roberts added 4 points for Westwood.

Twenty Westwood turnovers in the boys’ game helped Liberty storm back in the second half to drop the Rockets to their 3^rd straight defeat. After leading the entire game, Westwood saw the visiting Patriot erupt for 30 points in the 2^nd half to steal the win. Trenton Thompson led the Rockets in scoring with 17 points. Cruz Pitsinos added 6 points as Westwood’s record falls to 3 and 4 on the season.

Westwood will be back at home on Monday night when Huntland visits the Joel Vinson Gym. Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast as part of the 1^st National Bank Hometown Sports Series. Tipoff for the girls’ game is set for 6 PM, we begin our live broadcast with the pregame show at 5:50.

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