Category: Sports

The Westwood Rocket and Lady Rocket cross country teams competed in a match at Fayetteville on Tuesday at Fayetteville’s Don Davidson Park. The Rockets and Lady Rockets each won team titles on the day. The Lady Rockets finished 1st out of a field of 5 teams while the Rockets were 1st out of 6 teams.
For the Lady Rockets, Patricia Barrera was the top finisher for Westwood as she took 4th place out of a field of 44 runners in a time of 11:45. Sunshine Mai was 13th, Lizabeth Martinez was 14th, Alaya Barnes was 16th, Elizabeth Brown was 17th, Zoe Mills came in 20th and Kennedy Norman-Young was 21st.
For the Rockets, Bradey Nugent was the 4th place finisher in the boys race that had a field of 72 runners. Nugent, who finished in a time of 10:47, finished just ahead of 4 teammates. Louie Frazier was 5th, Bodey Todd was 6th, Jack Beachboard was 7th, Lukas Workman was 9th, John Dobson was 13th and Wyatt Nugent finished in 22nd place.
The Fayetteville race closed out another successful season for the Westwood runners. Coach Jim Dobson will be a guest on Saturday’s Coffee Coaches Show to talk about the season.

The Coffee County Central High and Middle School cross country teams traveled to Normandy on Tuesday to take part in a meet on the hilly Arrowhead Ranch course.
The Red Raiders remained perfect on the season as they outdistanced second place Warren County by 5 points. James Lynn was the overall top finisher as he won the boys race. Bradley Kishbaugh was 4th, Andrew Godwin was 5th, Andres Cavalie was 6th, Reuben Chaput was 16th, Larson Meltzer was 30th and Neil Slone came in at 37th place.
The Lady Raiders had a respectable showing in spite of having several runners missing. Official team results and times have not been released for the meet as of yet but Sarah Pearson finished in 2nd place as the top Coffee County runner. Emily St. John was 5th, Byanka Woods finished 20th, Jasmine Farrar was 31st, Kelsey Selvage was 33rd and Keisheal Norton was 35th.
The CCMS runners had the best showing of the year as Raider runners won both the boys and girls races. For the Red Raiders, Ethan Welch finished first followed by Jacob Rutledge in 2nd and Jaylen Selvage in 7th place. For the Lady Raiders, Shelby Watkins was the first place runner followed by Jasie Willis in 2nd place.
The CHS thinclads are back in action on Friday when they travel to St. Andrew’s-Sewanee for the Mountain Lion Invitational meet.

To keep pace with the Cardinals and Giants in the National League Wild Card race, the Mets understand they must take advantage of every opportunity. Less than two weeks to go in the regular season. No slip-ups now.

But the Mets allowed a prime opportunity to fall through their fingers this week at Citi Field, losing a 4-3 game to the Braves on Wednesday that completed a series sweep for Atlanta. Taking a three-run lead into the seventh inning, the Mets lost it amidst a lengthy string of pitching changes and pinch-hit plate appearances, going behind for good in the ninth.
Yoenis Cespedes nearly won the game for the Mets on a walk-off, three-run homer in the ninth, but center fielder Ender Inciarte robbed him with a leaping catch at the wall. The resulting win was the sixth in a row for the Braves at Citi Field and their fifth straight overall.
According to Statcast™, Cespedes’ drive had an exit velocity of 101.7 mph and a launch angle of 28 degrees. Batted balls with those traits go for a hit 84 percent of the time and a home run 72 percent of the time.
Inciarte broke a lot of Mets fans’ hearts with his amazing grab
Inciarte had a first step of -0.73 seconds on the play, which means he was actually moving before the crack of the bat. He reached a top speed of 19.2 feet and covered 104 feet.
The loss ensured the Mets would remain tied with the Cardinals, who lost earlier Wednesday, while temporarily dropping them a half-game behind the Giants in the NL Wild Card race.
Jumping out to a 3-0 lead on Asdrubal Cabrera’s two-run homer in the first inning and Rene Rivera’s solo shot in the fifth, the Mets seemed as if they might cruise to victory from there. But an Anthony Recker two-run shot in the seventh inning brought the Braves back within a run of the lead, before a Dansby Swanson single chased starter Bartolo Colon from the game.
Mets manager Terry Collins made a series of unorthodox bullpen decisions at that point, bringing setup man Addison Reed into the game in the seventh, lefty specialist Josh Smoker in the eighth and, with the game on the line, closer Jeurys Familia in the ninth. The moves backfired when Matt Kemp tied things with a sacrifice fly off Familia.
An inning later, with Familia still in the game, Inciarte hit a go-ahead RBI groundout.
The Braves executed almost perfectly to get the winning run home in the ninth. After Jace Peterson led off with a single, manager Brian Snitker had Swanson bunt Peterson to second base. Pinch-hitter Emilio Bonifacio followed with a single to shallow left, but third-base coach Bo Porter had to hold Peterson at third. Inciarte followed with a slow grounder past the mound that allowed Peterson to score.
Freddie Freeman’s fourth-inning single off Colon gave the Braves’ first baseman a 41-game on-base streak, equalling the longest by his mentor, Chipper Jones. Only two players in Atlanta Braves history and three in franchise history have had longer streaks: Gary Sheffield, 52 games in 2002; Dale Murphy, 48 games in 1987; and Hank Aaron, 43 games for the 1962 Milwaukee Braves.
After the Mets coughed up the lead in the top of the eighth, they had an opportunity to take it right back in the bottom of the inning. But Cespedes did not run hard out of the box on his one-out double, which saw Kemp leap at the wall in an unsuccessful catch attempt. The Braves loaded the bases on intentional walks, before pinch-hitter Kevin Plawecki struck out on five pitches — four of them outside the strike zone — to end the threat.
Recker caught Colon in 17 games with the Mets from 2014-15. He got in the batter’s box against Colon for the first time in a game on Wednesday night and helped make it close with a two-run home run. Recker left the Mets as a free agent last offseason and signed with the Indians, then was acquired by the Braves in May.
The Braves move on to Miami, where they’ll play their final four road games of the season. Right-hander Josh Collmenter (2-0, 4.61 ERA), who beat the Nationals in his Braves debut, starts Thursday night’s 6:10 CT series opener at Marlins Park. Right-hander Jose Urena (4-7, 5.59 ERA) starts for the Marlins.  Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast beginning at 6 PM on the Braves Radio Network.

CHS Golfer Ashley Gilliam

The Coffee County CHS golf teams closed out the regular season on Tuesday with a pair of 18 hole match wins at Indian Hills Golf Club in Murfreesboro. The Raider teams captured wins over Riverdale and Oakland on the course that will host the Region 4AAA tournament coming up next week. The Lady Raiders continued their winning ways as they won their 13th straight match and captured their 39th straight team win. The Red Raiders captured their 53rd team win of the season and their 22nd since August 29th.

The Lady Raiders were led by sophomore Ashley Gilliam who shot a 4 over 76 to lead Coffee County. Savannah Quick carded a 78 and Sophie Vinson fired a 79 for the Lady Raiders. The strong showing gave Coffee County a 154 to 163 win over Oakland. The win will give the Lady Raiders a final regular season record of 46 and 3.

Austin Farris of CHS Golf

Senior John Parigger had the low round for the Red Raiders as he carded an even par 72 to lead Coffee County to the win. Austin Farris was one stroke back as he fired a 73. Reid Lawrence added an 80 and Samuel Lawrence carded an 81 to carry Coffee County to a team score of 306. Oakland was 2nd at 314 while Riverdale was a distant 3rd at 376. The win will finish out the Red Raiders with a team record of 53 and 14. .
Up next for the Raider golf teams will be the District 8 tournament on Monday at Bear Trace Golf Course at Tims Ford. The Raider teams and individuals will be attempting to return to Indian Hills on the 29th for the Region 4AAA Tournament. The TSSAA state golf tournament will be held at Willowbrook on October 11th and 12th.

Kiya Ferrell of CCMS Volleyball

The Coffee County Middle School volleyball team saw their 6 match winning streak come to a halt on Tuesday night in a match heard here on Thunder Radio as part of the 1st National Bank Hometown Sports Series. Warren County used a strong service game that netted 18 aces to claim the win 2 sets to none. The Lady Raiders dropped the match to the Lady Pioneers by set scores of: 15-25 and 21-25.
The Lady Raiders could only win consecutive points on 4 occasions in the first set as Warren County built a 22 to 10 lead before claiming the opening set win.  In the second set, The Lady Raiders rallied from an early 7 point deficit to claim a 21 to 20 lead. But Warren County closed out the set with a side out and 4 consecutive aces to earn the season sweep over Coffee County.
Kiya Ferrell led Coffee County with 4 kills while adding an ace and a block. Maci Head had a pair of kills and served a pair of aces. Lauren Brandt also tied Head for the lead in aces with 2 and added 3 assists. The Lady Raiders are back in action on Monday when they travel to Eagleville for a 5 PM match. Coffee Middle closes out the regular season at home on Thursday, September 29th when they host North Franklin at the Coffee County Middle School gym.
You can download a copy of the broadcast at: http://www.thunder1320.com/downloads/

Baylee Nester

The Coffee County CHS volleyball team fell in a 4 set match on Tuesday night to district leading Lincoln County in a match held in Fayetteville. After capturing the opening set, Coffee County saw too many errors at the net prevent the upset win. Coffee County lost by set scores of: 25-21, 16-25, 18-25 and 16-25.
Coffee County was led in aces by Baylee Nester with 7. Nester, a senior, added 7 kills and 7 digs for the “jackpot stat line.” Alliyah Williams led the Lady Raiders in kills with 12 while adding a block. Aerial Williams led in blocks with 2 while Tyana Fenton had 12 digs and Bailey Morgan had 22 assists to lead Coffee County in those departments.
Coffee County will be on the road again on Thursday when they travel to Columbia to take on the Lady Lions. 1st serve is set for 7 PM. Coffee County is back at home on Tuesday when they play host to Franklin County at 6 PM. Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you the broadcast as part of the 1st National Bank Hometown Sports Series.

Caitlyn Moore of CHS soccer(file photo)

The Coffee County Central High School soccer team dropped a 4 to 2 decision to defending district champion Lincoln County on Tuesday night in Fayetteville. The Lady Raiders battled hard surrendering only 1 first half goal against the talented and experienced Lady Falcons. The loss is the first on the district for Coffee County.
Lincoln County got the scoring started in the 10th minute as they connected on a shot that was the only score in the first half. The Lady Falcons added an insurance goal in the 47th minute to increase their lead and put the game out of reach in the 65th minute to stretch the lead to 3 to 0. Caitlyn Moore gave the Raider fans a glimmer of hope in the 68th minute as she scored Coffee County’s first goal. Lincoln County shut down the Lady Raider uprising with a goal in the 73rd minute to drop Coffee County’s record to 9-3-1 on the year and 3 and 1 in district play.   Moore added a goal in the final minute for Coffee County’s last goal.
The Lady Raiders are back on the road on Thursday when they travel Winchester for a 7 PM match with Franklin County. The Lady Raiders are back at home on Saturday for a 10 AM match with Central Magnet.

CCMS running back Marshall Haney(#12 in red) (Photo by John StClair – www.JohnStClairPhoto.com

The Red Raider football team of Coffee County Middle School ran into the buzz saw of conference leading Warren County on Tuesday night in McMinnville.  The unbeaten Pioneers scored on all 4 of their first half possessions en route to a 36 to 6 win.

The Pioneers stifled the Raider offense early as they built a 28 to 0 halftime lead.  The Red Raiders had a promising drive in the 2^nd quarter that came up empty after Warren County intercepted a pass.  In the second half, the Pioneers scored on their first drive to build a 36 to 0 lead before substituting.   Marshall Haney had a rushing touchdown with 4:11 remaining in the game for the Raiders lone points.

The Red Raiders will close out their season on Tuesday at home when they play host to White County.  Kickoff is set for 6:30 PM at Carden-Jarrell Field.

The mark of good teams is often beating poor ones. Last year, the Mets fattened up on the Braves, Phillies, Reds, Rockies and others, all of whom finished with losing records. Their renaissance this year dovetailed with the softest portion of their schedule.

But the Braves, a thorn in New York’s side for decades, are no longer playing along. In coming from behind to win a 5-4 game over the Mets on Tuesday, the Braves improved to 9-9 against the Mets this season, putting their rival’s playoff chances in jeopardy. The loss temporarily shaved the Mets’ National League Wild Card lead to just a half-game over the Cardinals and Giants.
“I know the Braves, where they sit in the league — they had a terrible, terrible first half,” Mets manager Terry Collins said. “They’ve got a pretty nice lineup right now. … They’re scoring runs. We knew we were going to be in a dogfight.”
The common thread in many of those Braves victories has been starting pitcher Julio Teheran, whose seven innings of one-run ball made him 2-0 with a 0.90 ERA against the Mets this season. After allowing Asdrubal Cabrera’s RBI double in the third inning, Teheran retired 15 of the final 16 batters he faced.
“Last year, I was just OK against them,” Teheran said. “This year has been better, so I just went with the same plan as last time.”
Atlanta’s offense broke through against Robert Gsellman in the sixth, tying the game on a pop single that fell in between Curtis Granderson and Jay Bruce, before taking the lead for good on a bases-loaded walk. An inning later, Adonis Garcia gave the Braves some needed insurance with a three-run homer off Jerry Blevins, taking the punch out of a late Mets rally.
“It’s a lot more fun when the team’s doing well,” Garcia said through an interpreter.
It was an outfield miscommunication that poured gasoline on Atlanta’s two-run rally in the sixth. After Gsellman allowed a pair of one-out singles and a walk, Matt Kemp lifted a fly ball to right-center that Statcast™ measured at a 79-mph exit velocity and 31-degree launch angle — a combination that produced zero hits in 30 instances dating back to 2015. But neither Bruce nor Granderson made a play on the ball, allowing it to drop in for a hit. The next batter, Markakis, walked to force in the go-ahead run.
“I didn’t call it,” Granderson said. “Being in center field, it was my ball to be had if I could get to it. But I felt like I was probably going to have to dive for it, and wasn’t 100-percent sure if I was going to be able to catch it. Jay, being the right fielder, was waiting for me to say something in that situation, and I didn’t. By the time I pulled up, it was too late.”
Freddie Freeman struck out in each of his first two at-bats, but this wouldn’t be the night his streaks ended. A sixth-inning walk extended his on-base streak to 40 games, the longest by a Brave since Chipper Jones reached base in 41 straight games in 2008. An inning later, Freeman ripped a double to deep center field off Blevins, extending his hitting streak to 24 games, the longest by a Brave since Dan Uggla hit in 33 straight in 2011. The double was Freeman’s National League-leading 79th extra-base hit of the season, the most by a Brave since Jones had 87 in 1999.
With Bruce mired in an 0-for-13 funk and a 3-for-38 slump dating back to Sept. 4, Collins opted to pinch-hit Eric Campbell — a 29-year-old Minor League veteran with zero big league plate appearances since May — for the Mets’ prized Trade Deadline acquisition in the eighth. Campbell grounded an RBI single through the left side to make it a one-run game, but two batters later, Travis d’Arnaud stranded the potential tying run on third base.
A lack of run support has been a common theme of Teheran’s season, the reason he had only five wins despite a 3.18 ERA in his first 27 starts. The Braves, who scored two runs or fewer in 11 of those 27 games, seemed ready to continue the trend when they were blanked for the first five innings Tuesday. But two runs in the sixth and three in the seventh turned it into one of Teheran’s better-supported efforts this season.
“It was nice to get him a win,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said.
The Braves will look to complete the three-game sweep behind rookie right-hander Ryan Weber (1-1, 5.46 ERA), who will make his second Major League start this season in Wednesday’s 6:10 p.m. CT finale at Citi Field.  Thunder Radio will join the Braves Network broadcast in progress immediately following the Ryan Sulkowski Show.

Marley Perry of CCMS Soccer

Despite missing 3 penalty kicks, the Coffee County Middle School soccer team was able to shut out Warren County 3 to 0 on Monday night at CCMS. The win avenged an early season draw with the Lady Pioneers and improved Coffee County’s final conference record to 6 and 0 on the season.
Marley Perry got the scoring started in the 16th minute as she drilled a shot past the Warren County keeper. Maddy Jones added a goal in the 25th minute to give the Lady Raiders a 2 to 0 halftime lead. In the 2nd half, Jones added a goal in the 38th minute off an assist from Reagan Ellison.
The Lady Raiders end the regular season at home on Wednesday when they play host to North Franklin in a friendly. The match will also be 8th Grade Night as the 8th grade Lady Raider players will be honored in a ceremony following the match. The match will begin at 4:30 PM with the 8th Grade Night festivities to get under way shortly after 5:30.