Category: Sports

Cade Giles

Seven hits and 3 Coffee County errors resulted in a 10 run 2nd inning by Tullahoma on Tuesday night as the Red Raider baseball team fell 13 to 2 to the Wildcats in Tullahoma. After giving up a single run in the first inning, Coffee County saw the Wildcats send 13 batters to the plate in 2nd inning to effectively seal the Raiders fate.
Coffee County did manage to bang out 10 hits on the night but could only put up 2 runs in a 4th inning rally. After a pair of singles from Jacob Langham and Nathaniel Tate to open the 4th, Cade Giles hit his 2nd double of the game to plate Langham. Tate scored on a passed ball for the Raiders second run before 3 straight strikeouts ended the inning and Coffee County’s comeback bid.
Giles finished 2 for 2 to lead the Raider hitting attack. Noah Anderson and Langham each finished with 2 singles. Kohl Young took the loss for the Raiders who fell to 5 and 6 in district play.
The Raiders return home on Wednesday night for the final district game of the season as they welcome the Wildcats to Powers Field. Wednesday night will also be Sponsors Appreciation Night as all of the 2016 sponsors are invited to the game and encouraged to promote their business. Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast of Wednesday’s game beginning with the pregame show at 5:50.

In a rematch from last season’s thrilling Region 4AAA semifinals, the Coffee County soccer team traveled to Murfreesboro on Tuesday for match with Oakland. The Patriots scored on a penalty kick in the 8th minute to take a 1 to 0 lead as they shut out the Red Raiders 3 nil at Ray Hughes Stadium.
The penalty kick was awarded to the Patriots when a Coffee County defender slipped inside the 18 yard box and had the ball bounce off his hand. Oakland converted the PK opportunity and added a 2nd goal in the 19th minute to take a 2 nil lead at the half.
In the second half, Oakland added a goal in the 48th minute to up the score to 3 to 0. For that point on, the Patriots defense was able to stymie the Raider offense attack with a physical marking attack.
The Raider soccer team returns to the pitch on Saturday when they welcome Ooltewah to the Raider Soccer Field for a 1 PM match.

Kayla Wright

The Coffee County Lady Raider tennis team lost in the first round of the District 8AAA team tennis tournament on Tuesday as Lincoln County dropped the Lady Raiders 4 to 3 in Fayetteville. The Lady Raiders got wins in singles from Ali Shelton(8 to 3) and Kayla Wright(8-3) plus a victory from the doubles team of Anna Harrell/Kayla Wright(8-6) for their 3 match wins.
Coach Mike Ray expressed his admiration for his team after the match. “I’m very proud of our girls effort today; they played every point, every game with all their heart. They just fell a little short against a very good team” said Ray.
The Raider and Lady Raider netters will next be in action on Friday when they travel to Sewanee’s Bruton-Guerry Tennis Courts at the University of the South for the District 8AAA individual and doubles tournaments. Both the varsity and JV will be in action as tournament play begins at 10 AM.

David Price matched a career-high 14 strikeouts and tossed eight strong innings with the benefit of the early lead Travis Shaw provided when he highlighted a five-RBI game with a three-run, first-inning homer in Tuesday night’s 11-4 win over the Braves at Turner Field.

Price struck out each of the final five batters he faced and recorded eight of his final nine outs via strikeout. The former American League Cy Young Award winner surrendered three consecutive singles and issued a walk with two outs in the first inning before escaping a bases-loaded threat by striking out Drew Stubbs.
Matt Wisler was not nearly as successful during the five-inning effort he provided the Braves, who have lost 16 of their first 20 games for the first time since 1988. Wisler settled down after enduring a four-run first inning, but the early damage proved too significant to overcome against Price.
The most important part of Tuesday’s performance by Price is that he gave the bullpen almost an entire night off by going eight innings. The Red Sox have asked a lot out of their relievers of late, and they’re in the midst of a stretch of playing 32 games in 33 days. The lefty was magnificent, finishing the performance with back-to-back strikeouts. Price’s best performance thus far in his short time with the Red Sox immediately followed a clunker last week at home against the Rays, when he was touched up for eight hits and eight runs over 3 2/3 innings.
Still developing: Wisler was nowhere near as sharp as he had been when he limited the Dodgers to one earned run while throwing a career-high 115 pitches over 6 2/3 innings on Thursday. But after enduring the 38-pitch first inning, which included Shaw’s homer and Brock Holt’s RBI double, the young right-hander totaled 28 pitches over his next three innings. Dustin Pedroia drilled a leadoff double and scored on a wild pitch during Wisler’s fifth and final inning.
Shaw provides early liftoff: Thanks to a big swing by Shaw for a three-run shot to right in the first, Price pitched with a lead for the entirety of his start. Shaw’s homer was a rocket, leaving the bat at 109 mph and landing a projected 418 feet away, according to Statcast™.
Jeff Francoeur began his two-hit game when he drove in a first-inning run with the third of three consecutive one-out singles surrendered by Price. Francoeur opened the fourth inning with another single and scored on the sacrifice fly Wisler drove to right field with the bases loaded. The Braves’ left fielder went 8-for-12 against left-handed pitchers (Alex Wood, Clayton Kershaw, Steven Matz and Price) during this homestand.
With David Ortiz at Turner Field for the final time on Tuesday night, the Braves recognized him with a video tribute that played before the top of the second inning. As the video concluded, the fans — many of them Boston transplants — applauded. Ortiz, who didn’t start either of the two games here, came out of the dugout and tipped his cap. As the top of the ninth inning started, fans chanted “We want Papi.” But with the Red Sox holding a commanding lead, manager John Farrell had Chris Young hit for Price instead of Ortiz.
Second baseman Daniel Castro continued to dazzle with the glove in the fourth inning, when he raced into shallow right field to rob Mookie Betts and begin a double play. Castro extended his left arm and then watched the ball bounce off his glove into his bare right hand as he slid across the outfield grass on his backside. Castro then threw to first base to retire Price, who had run toward second base.
Bud Norris will take the mound when this Interleague series shifts to Boston on Wednesday. Adonis Garcia is expected to serve as the Braves’ designated hitter during the two-game set at Fenway Park. Castro, Jace Peterson or Kelly Johnson will likely man third base.

Chad Pinder’s double scored Joey Wendle in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Nashville Sounds a 7-6 win in walk-off fashion over the New Orleans Zephyrs in front of 4,695 fans at First Tennessee Park Tuesday night.

It was a back-and-forth game that featured five lead changes between the two teams. With the game tied 6-6 to start the bottom of the ninth, Wendle hit a popup on the infield that fell untouched. Pinder got a 1-0 pitch from Greg Nappo and rifled it down the left field line. Wendle, celebrating his 26th birthday, scored just ahead of the throw to give the Sounds a win in the series finale.

The Sounds had a 2-0 lead in the top of the third when Robert Andino’s RBI double off Zach Neal made it a one-run game. The next batter, Xavier Scruggs, launched a two-run homer to give New Orleans a 3-2 lead.

They upped it to 4-2 before Nashville answered with three in the fifth. Max Muncy drove in Wendle to make it 4-3, and Renato Nunez clubbed a two-run homer to give the Sounds a 5-4 lead after five.

Neal turned in a scoreless sixth and struck out Adrian Nieto on his 104th pitch of the night to end the inning.

The Zephyrs weren’t done as they scored two runs in the seventh to regain the lead. They put two runners on against Eduard Santos before Patrick Schuster relieved the right-hander. Schuster hit Don Kelly with a pitch to load the bases before Isaac Galloway made it hurt with a two-out, two-run single to give New Orleans a 6-5 lead.

Nashville answered back right away when Muncy led off the seventh with a mammoth solo home run into The Band Box in deep right field to even it at 6-6. It was Muncy’s fourth home run over his last seven games.

Schuster worked a scoreless eighth before he combined with Ryan Brasier to put up a zero in the top of the ninth, clearing the way for Pinder’s game-winner.

Wendle celebrated his birthday in style with a 3-for-4 night. Pinder went 2-for-4 and drove in a pair of runs. Brasier picked up the win and improved to 1-1 on the season. Nappo was tagged with the loss to drop his record to 2-1.

The Sounds have an off day Wednesday before heading to Round Rock, Texas for a four-game series with the Express set to begin on Thursday. First pitch of game one is scheduled to begin at 7:05 p.m.

Haley Hinshaw (Photo by John StClair – JohnStClairPhoto.com)

Kaylee Skipper held the Columbia Lady Lions to 2 hits on Monday night as the Coffee County Lady Raider softball team got an 11 to 0 win in the district match-up in Columbia. The Lady Raiders built a 6 to 0 lead heading to the fifth before a 5 run outburst ended the game early due to the mercy rule.
Coffee County banged out 12 hits on the night led by Haley Hinshaw who was 3 for 3 with a walk, 2 doubles and 3 runs scored. Raven Rogers also had a pair of doubles in 3 at bats with a walk, 2 runs scored and 2 RBI. Rhianna Roberson also added 2 hits and 2 RBI and Tori Bell had a 2 RBI double for Coffee County.
“We hit the ball well from the start and Kaylee(Skipper) was on again” said coach Steve Wilder after the game. “We fielded the ball well too. (I am) very pleased with the effort tonight” added Wilder.
The Lady Raiders return home on Tuesday night when they take on Tullahoma in a 7 PM game at Terry Floyd Field. A win by Coffee County on Tuesday would sew up the regular season district title for the Lady Raiders. A special edition of pregame festivities will get underway at 6:30 PM. Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast of that game beginning with the pregame show at 6:50.

Jenna Garretson

The Coffee County Middle School track team closed out the regular season when they hosted a tri-meet with North Franklin and South Franklin on Monday at Carden-Jarrell Field. With the conclusion of the CCMS soccer, softball and baseball seasons last week, the track team had its full complement of team members on hand as they spilt the meet with the visitors from Franklin County. The girls had strong showings in the field events as they won the meet 54 to 47 over South. North came in 3rd at 23. Despite a personal best in the discus from Brandon Jernigan, The Red Raiders were edged out by South with a final score of 52 to 43.5. North finished in 3rd place at 24.5 points.

Individual Medalists were:
Girls
Shot Put: Marissa Douglass-1st, Marley Perry-4th
Discus: Marissa Douglass-2nd, Marley Perry-3rd
High Jump: Julia Duncan-2nd, Jenna Garretson-3rd (Tie)
Long Jump: Jenna Garretson-1st, Julia Duncan-2nd
4x100m relay: 2nd-Macy Tabor, Laura Bogard, Ashley Evans, Marissa Douglass
1600m: Katie Christian-2nd, Shelby Watkins-4th
100m: Marissa Douglass-2nd, Karie Wooten-4th
4x200m relay: 2nd-Willow Hobbs, Macy Tabor, Mady Gravitt, Kayla Johnson
400m: Ryan Green-2nd, Gracie Pippenger-3rd
800m: Olivia Evans-2nd, Jasie Willis-4th
200m: Willow Hobbs-2nd
4x400m relay: 1st-Journey Arnold, Emilee Roberson, Ryan Green, Jade Arnold

Brandon Jernigan

Boys
Shot Put: Brandon Jernigan-2nd, Gilberto Infante-3rd
Discus: Brandon Jernigan-1st, Gilberto Infante-3rd
High Jump: Hayden Skipper-2nd (Tie), Blanton Brown-4th
Long Jump: Hayden Skipper-1st, Blanton Brown-2nd
1600m: Larson Meltzer-1st, Ethan Welch-4th
100m: Christian Alvarez-3rd
400m: Jalen Morris-1st, Ethan Beaty-3rd
800m: Ethan Welch-4th
200m: Christian Alvarez-4th
4x400m relay: 2nd-Larson Meltzer, Gabe Sons, Ethan Beaty, Jalen Morris

The Raider track teams will host the CTC conference meet on Saturday morning at Carden-Jarrell Field. Teams from Warren County, North Franklin, South Franklin, East Tullahoma and West Tullahoma will competed for the CTC crowns. The meet will begin with the field events which get underway at 10 AM.

Olivia Lewis

Maci Lawrence shot the low round of 60 on Monday as the Westwood Middle School Lady Rockets edged Coffee County Middle School at WIllowbrook in a 4 team match. North Franklin finished in 3 place and South Franklin was 4th. Olivia Lewis had the second lowest round of the day as she shot a 67 for Coffee County. Also for Westwood, Elizabeth Brown carded a 70 and Brayden Gray finished with a 78. For Coffee County, Olivia Howell came in at 75.

Christopher Robinson

For the boys, the Westwood Rockets got a 6 stroke advantage over Coffee County to finish 2nd in the boys competition. North Franklin got 3 scores of 51 or better to race away with the win. Christopher Robinson carded a 53 to lead the Rockets while Nicholas Johnson shot a 61, Gavin Prater got around in 76 and Andrew Green carded a 79. For Coffee County, Logan Hale had a 51, Xavier Bartley shot a 71, Isaac Pauley carded a 76 and Caleb Jarrell came in at 77.
The middle school golf teams will be back in action on Thursday when they travel to Tullahoma to take on the Wildcats. Tee time is set for 4 PM at Lakewood Country Club.

Alise Clark

The Coffee County Middle School tennis teams made their final road trip of the season on Monday as they traveled to McMinnville to take on Warren County and came away with a split. In singles action, Anna Amado(by a score of 5-1) and Alexis Clark(5-4) got match wins while the doubles team of Macy Brown/Mary Anne Walker(5-1) won in doubles as the Lady Raiders fell by a final score of 4 to 3. In bonus matches, the Lady Raiders got 3 victories as the teams of Caitlin Callahan/Lindsey Cauble(5-4), Lexie Bryan/Arianna Hanson(5-0) and Sydney Bell/Mary Anne Walker(5-2) all got wins.

Luke Irwin

The Red Raiders swept the doubles matches and won 4 of the 5 singles matches to claim the 6 to 1 team win. Joseph Sadler(5-0), Luke Irwin(5-2), Jaden Talley(5-2) and Ben Davis(5-3) got singles wins while the doubles teams of Sadler/Irwin(5-0) and Talley/Davis(5-1) scored wins in the doubles matches. The Red Raiders also won both extra matches as the team of Zachary Leroux/Loren Hansen(5-3) won while Leroux captured a 5 to 1 win in singles play.
The Raider netters will end the season on Friday when they play host to Warren County at the Raider Academy. First serve is set for 4 PM.