Category: Sports

Pete Weber’s Postgame Report

Tanner Pearson scored in overtime and the Los Angeles Kings topped the Nashville Predators by a 2-1 final on Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena. The result still gives the Preds a point in the standings, marking the fifth consecutive game they’ve recorded at least one point.

“The points are important, but it’s disappointing coming off of a loss,” Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. “Any time you leave an overtime loss, or a shootout loss, it’s difficult to be excited about a point. But, we have to keep collecting them. The guys played hard tonight, and we came out on the wrong side.”

After Jake Muzzin gave the Kings a 1-0 lead with just over four minutes to play in the opening period, Preds defenseman Ryan Ellis cleaned up a loose puck in the crease and tucked it past Jonathan Quick to even the score with 27 seconds to play in the frame. The power-play goal was Ellis’ seventh tally of the season, extending his point streak against Los Angeles to five games.

Both teams traded chances for the final 40 minutes of the contest, including a number of Nashville shots that ultimately rang off the post and bounced in the wrong direction. Preds goaltender Pekka Rinne made 11 saves in the third period, but in the extra session, it was Pearson who ended it for Los Angeles, marking the eighth consecutive contest between the two foes that has been a one-goal game.

“It was heavy; they were fast and physical and I thought our guys did a really good job,” Laviolette said. “We competed hard and had a lot of opportunities to score. We hit a couple of posts, a shin guard on an empty net, a shaft on an empty net; we had a lot of opportunities. Their goalie made some big saves, but we had a lot of opportunities to score.”

“Maybe we deserved a little bit of a better fate,” Johansen said. “We had a couple of chances, just a couple of unlucky bounces. But both goalies were great; [Rinne] was awesome. It was a good hockey game; it’s too bad we couldn’t have found a way to win this before going on the road.”

Nashville now heads off on a three-game trip, starting Monday in Montreal, and the opportunity for more points exists with 23 contests now left in the regular season.  You can hear the Fifth Third Bank/Nashville Predators broadcast of that game beginning at 7 PM

Aerial Williams of CHS Basketball

A 16 to 1 run in the first half by Franklin County gave the home standing Rebelettes all the momentum they would need to end the Lady Raiders basketball season on Thursday night in the opening round of the District 8AAA tournament. Coffee County, who opened up with an 8 to 2 lead, saw the shooting touch of Franklin County return as the Lady Raiders fell by a final score of 56 to 42. Franklin County’s Rebecca Caroland hit back to back 3 pointers, one before the buzzer to end the 1st quarter and 1 on the first possession of the 2nd quarter, to give the Rebelettes an 11 to 8 lead and Franklin County never trailed again in the game.

CHS junior basketball player Holli Smithson

Trailing by 8 points at the half, Coffee County saw Franklin County extend their lead to as much as 19 points in the 4th quarter. Coffee County had no problems with the full court press of Franklin County that caused the Lady Raiders so many problems in their February 5th matchup. The Lady Raiders won the turnover battle with Franklin County as Coffee County committed only 11 turnovers in the game to Franklin County’s 15. Juniors Holli Smithson and Aerial Williams each scored 9 points to lead the Lady Raiders and they were named the Gateway Tire and Service Center Co-Players of the game. Bailey Morgan and Abby Morgan each added 8 points for the Lady Raiders who end the season with a final record of 10 and 15.

The Red Raiders will play their quarterfinal game on Friday night as they take on Shelbyville in Shelbyville.  That game will tip off at 6 PM and Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast beginning with the Powers Storage Pregame Show at 5:50.

Updated Dist 8AAA Basketball Tournament Bracket

CHS Wrestler Josh Tobitt

A 1st round pinfall win in the consolation round was not enough momentum to carry CHS wrestler Josh Tobitt into the 2nd day of the TSSAA state wrestling meet on Thursday. The CHS senior saw his season, and career, come to a halt in his 3rd match of the evening as he was pinned by Jason Gardner of Nashville Overton in the 182 pound weight class. Tobitt dropped into the consolation bracket after falling in a 13 to 6 decision loss in the opening round on Thursday afternoon. Tobitt, who finished in 3rd place in last weekend’s Region 5 tournament, was the lone wrestler from Coffee County to qualify for the state tournament being held in Franklin.

CHS wrestling coach Roger Barlow was extremely complimentary of his senior captain following his elimination. “He left it all on the mat. He represented our school and community well. (I am) very proud of the young man.” Tobitt was the first wrestler to represent Coffee County in the state meet since 2013. Tobitt finished the season with a final record of 33 and 9.

Pete Weber’s Postgame Report

Pekka Rinne

Pekka Rinne made 29 saves, Filip Forsberg had a goal and an assist and the Nashville Predators beat the Boston Bruins 2-0 on Thursday night.

Craig Smith had the other goal and Mike Ribeiro had two assists for Nashville, which has won of two of three.

The Bruins have lost two of three. Tuukka Rask made 22 saves.

Seeing his first action in nearly a week, Rinne was sharp throughout. He made his best save 8:39 into the second when he denied Brad Marchand’s deflection from just outside of the crease. The shutout was Rinne’s third of the season and 39th of his career.

Carter Hutton started Nashville’s previous two games and got a win and an overtime loss.

The Predators return to the ice on Saturday night when they welcome the Los Angeles Kings to the Bridgestone Arena for a 7 PM contest.  Thunder Radio will bring you the action on the Fifth Third Bank/Nashville Predators Radio Network

District 8AAA Basketball Tournament bracket

A busy weekend of sports kicks off on Thursday as winter sports sprint to the finish line, while spring sports get set to take the baton. Josh Tobitt begins his quest for an individual state title in the 182 pound weight class at the TSSAA state wrestling meet in Franklin this afternoon at 3 PM. Tobitt, a senior, enters the tournament with a record of 32 and 7 on the season after a 3rd place finish in this past weekend’s Region 5 tournament. You can keep up with Joshua’s progress, and got any other information about the state meet at: http://tssaa.org/2016-tssaa-state-wrestling-championships/
At 6 PM, the CHS Lady Raider basketball team opens district tournament play as they travel to Winchester for a quarterfinal matchup with Franklin County. A win on Thursday night would advance the Lady Raiders to Saturday’s semifinals and guarantee them a berth in the Region 4AAA tournament next week. Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you the broadcast beginning with the Powers Storage Pregame Show at 5:50.
On Friday, Tobitt returns to Franklin for Day #2 of the state wrestling meet beginning at 10 AM. At 6 PM, the CHS Red Raider basketball team opens district tournament play as they travel to Shelbyville for a quarterfinal matchup with the Eagles. A win on Friday night would advance the Raiders to Saturday’s semifinals and guarantee them a berth in the Region 4AAA tournament next week as well. Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you the broadcast beginning with the Powers Storage Pregame Show at 5:50.

2016 Cody Holder Tournament Schedule

At 6 PM, the Coffee County Middle School baseball team will get the Cody Holder Tournament underway as 6 other teams join the Red Raiders for the 2 day preseason tournament.

And on Saturday, the Coffee Coaches Show starts your day as we broadcast live from Al White Ford/Lincoln. We will be talking high school spring sports as David Martin of the CHS baseball team, Steve Wilder of the CHS softball team and Robert Harper of the CHS soccer team will be our guests. The Coffee County Middle School boys’ soccer team opens play in the North Franklin Preseason Playday at 10:20 AM in Winchester. The state wrestling individual tournament wraps up in Franklin on Saturday. The semifinal round of the District 8AAA basketball tournament gets underway at 2 PM at the Joe Frank Patch Memorial Gym. A win by Coffee County tonight would pit the Lady Raiders against Lawrence County in that 2 PM game. Should the boys get a win Friday, they would play at 6:30 PM on Saturday.  And the Cody Holder middle school baseball tournament concludes with an 8 PM game on Saturday night as the Red Raiders take on Siegel.

Stephen Sullivan of Coffee County basketball

A 25 point outburst in the 4th quarter helped Coffee County stave off elimination in the play-in game of the District 8AAA basketball tournament on Tuesday night as the Red Raiders dropped Tullahoma 56 to 35. Leading by 6 points entering the final period, the Red Raiders got huge 4th quarter performances from Stephen Sullivan and Caleb McKenzie to drop the Wildcats for the 2nd time in 5 days. McKenzie scored all 8 of his points in the last frame hitting a pair of 3 pointers to spark a rally that saw the Raiders close out the game on a 10 to 2 run. Coffee County took the lead in the final 2 minutes of the 1st quarter and never trailed in the final 3 periods to extend their season to the District tournament quarterfinals on Friday night in Shelbyville.
Coffee County was led in scoring by Grant Sadler and Wyatt Day who each netted 13 points. Sullivan added 11 points, including 9 in the second half to be named the Gateway Tire and Service Center player of the game. After the game, Coach Micah Williams had this to say about Sullivan:

The Red Raiders dominated the play in the paint on the 2nd half as they limited the 2nd chance baskets that Tullahoma had relied on in the 1st half. Coach Micah Williams had this to say about his team’s execution in the rebounding game.

With the win, Coffee County will now face Shelbyville on Friday night for a 6 PM game in Shelbyville. A win on Friday night guarantees the Raiders their 2nd region berth in the last 3 years and will give them a game at home on Saturday in the District Tournament semifinals. The Lady Raiders open tournament play on Thursday when the travel to Winchester to take on Franklin County in the girls’ quarterfinal round. That game tips off at 6 PM as well. As always, Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you all the action. We begin our broadcast both nights at 5:50 with the Powers Storage Pregame Show.

District 8AAA Basketball Tournament bracket

The CHS Lady Raider softball team poses for a picture prior to the Midnight Madness practice on Monday morning

“…57…58…59…It’s midnight!” screamed assistant softball coach Jackie Wilder as another spring sports season kicked off at Coffee County Central High School early Monday morning at Terry Floyd Field. February 15th was designated as the date that spring sports teams could start practicing and the Lady Raider softball team continued a 20 year tradition of beginning at the stroke of midnight with “Midnight Madness.” The CHS soccer team also got in on the act as they hit the field at the stroke of midnight getting in a spirited 1 hour workout before Monday’s rains set in.
Coach Steve Wilder begins his first season at the helm of Lady Raider softball program as he becomes the 4th coach in program history and only the 3rd coach in the last 25 years. Battling wind and a little bit of rain, Wilder was able to get in a good round of infield/outfield in front of a small crowd of bundled up onlookers as temperatures hovered around 45 degrees. The Lady Raiders are looking on improving on last year’s sectional tournament appearance.
Across town, the Red Raider soccer team opened at midnight for the 2nd straight year and Coach Robert Harper was pleased with the turnout and enthusiasm. “We were able to get in some work that we could not get in (Monday) afternoon due to the weather” said Harper. The Red Raiders advanced to the region tournament last year falling in overtime to Oakland.
The other CHS teams were also forced indoors on Monday afternoon. The Raider tennis teams held a short indoor “informational meeting” as they hope to get out on the courts by Wednesday. The Lady Raiders are looking to recapture last year’s district title and return to the region tournament.
The Raider track teams will attempt to get started on Tuesday after the rain forced them to cancel Monday’s workout as well. Coach Stan Jarrell hopes to return a CHS track athlete to the state meet for the 26th consecutive year.

The CHS Soccer team goes through drills during their Midnight Madness practice on Monday morning

The Red Raider baseball team was able to do some hitting in their facility and worked on defensive drills in the gym as Powers Field was too wet on Monday afternoon. The baseball team is coached by first year head coach David Martin.
Remember, you can keep up with all spring sports all season long by visiting our website daily at WMSRradio.com. Additionally, Red Raider baseball and Lady Raider softball will return to the airwaves in March as Lucky Knott will bring you exclusive coverage of Coffee County games both home and away. We will be releasing out broadcast schedule in the next few weeks.

From Missouri Valley Conference Press Release

Southern Illinois University pitcher Brianna Jones, seen here during the Lions Classic in Hammond, Louisiana, fires a pitch in her firs collegiate game on February 12.(Photo courtesy of Saluki Media Services)

All but one of the MVC Softball teams were in action during the first weekend of play. As a whole, the league went 24-20 with each team that played earning at least one win. Danielle Freeman was named MVC Player of the Week, Brianna Jones of Southern Illinois took Pitcher of the Week with Drake’s Kennedy Frank taking MVC Newcomer of the Week.

MVC Pitcher of the Week
Brianna Jones, Freshman, Manchester, Tenn. – Southern Illinois
Southern Illinois pitcher Brianna Jones pitched two complete-game shutouts for the Salukis over the weekend. Jones still has not given up an earned run in 14.0 innings pitched. She has struck out 16 and walked just three while limited opponents to a .192 batting average. Jones leads the conference in ERA, and she is the only pitcher in the league that threw two complete-game shutouts on opening weekend

MVC Player of the Week
Danielle Freeman, Utility, Junior, Grand Rapids, Mich. – Evansville
In the first weekend of the season, Danielle Freeman showed just why she is one of the top offensive players in the MVC as she batted .571 leading Evansville to a 4-1 mark. Freeman opened the year going 1-2 while drawing two walks versus Eastern Michigan. She followed with her top game of the weekend, going 3-4 with 4 RBIs and three runs scored against Alabama State as she hit her first home run of the season. She recorded another 2-hit outing at Troy while posting one hit in the other two games. Freeman notched four doubles on the weekend while walking three times.

MVC Newcomer of the Week
Kennedy Frank, Outfielder, Freshman, Chesterfield, Mo. – Drake
Frank had an impressive debut weekend for Drake. She was 9-for-18 at the plate with one home run, three doubles, three runs scored and four RBI as the Bulldogs went 4-1 at the UNI-Dome Classic. Frank smacked her first career home run, a two-run shot, in a win over South Dakota State. In 18 at bats, she did not strike out once.

Pete Weber’s Postgame Report

Mattias Janmark scored the game-winning goal, as the Dallas Stars defeated the Nashville Predators by a 3-2 final in overtime on Monday night at Bridgestone Arena. The result gives the Preds a point, bumping their total to 62 on the season.

The Preds and Stars went back and forth all night long, be it offensive chances, impressive goaltending and physical play in the first of four meetings set to take place between the two clubs over the next eight weeks.

“It was a hard-fought game, a division game against a good team,” Preds Captain Shea Weber said. “We knew it was going to be hard. It was hard fought right until the end, and we just need to be better in overtime.”

“It was a game that went back and forth,” Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. “They had some good moments, and we had some good moments. It was pretty tight, and they’re a dangerous team. Defensively, I thought we were pretty good. When we needed some big saves from Carter [Hutton], I thought he did a good job.”

Craig Smith gave the Preds a 1-0 lead at 11:32 of the first, picking up a Mattias Ekholm rebound at the left side of the cage and lifting it past Antti Niemi for his 12th of the season.

After Dallas took a 2-1 lead in the second, courtesy of goals from Cody Eakin and Ales Hemsky, the hostility ramped up a bit between the Central Division rivals. Weber and Antoine Roussel fought at the side of the Preds net, and just over a minute later, Paul Gaustad and former Pred Vernon Fiddler had a spirited scrap.

“It’s always great when guys step up like that,” forward Filip Forsberg said. “Weber got the first one, and then Gaustad got that big one too. Those guys are important, and it brings a lot of energy back.”

The fisticuffs brought the Bridgestone Arena crowd to life and Forsberg gave them another reason to cheer when he potted his 19th goal of the season at 16:18 to even the contest at 2-2.

The third period brought about a number of stellar stops from Preds goaltender Carter Hutton, who was making his second consecutive start. Hutton stopped 29 of 32 shots he faced on the evening and kept his club in the game against one of the League’s top teams.

Overtime was required to decide a winner, and Nashville got caught on a line change, allowing the Stars to capitalize off a 3-on-1 rush that was finished by Janmark.

“That was a change; Filip came to the bench, and for whatever reason, no one was ready to go,” Weber said. “That’s something that’s easily fixable. We’ve been better. We’ve improved since. We’ve done some work on it, but still, those points make the difference.”

Nashville hosts the Boston Bruins at Bridgestone Arena on Thursday night before welcoming the Pacific Division-leading Los Angeles Kings on Saturday.  Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast of Thursday night’s game immediately following Coffee County Lady Raider Basketball.

CHS wrestler Josh Tobitt(second from left) recieves his 3rd place medal on Saturday night at the Region 5AAA Individual tournament in Cookeville. (Photo provided by Roger Barlow)

Coffee County senior wrestler Joshua Tobitt qualified for the TSSAA State Individual wrestling tournament with a 3rd place finish in this weekend’s Region 5AAA wrestling tournament held at Cookeville. Tobitt, wrestling at 182 pounds, is the first Coffee County wrestler to qualify for the state tournament since Zach Lusk(138) in 2013. Tobitt was 4 and 1 on the tournament to improve to 36 and 8 on the season and earn 20 team points for the Raiders. Tobitt won a pair of pinfall wins before falling in the semifinals by a 9 to 5 decision to Blackman’s Hunter Winters. Tobitt captured 2 more pins in the consolation bracket to earn the 3rd place finish and his first trip to the state meet.
Owen Teague(138) also advanced to the semifinal round before losing a 5 to 4 decision to Cookeville’s Derrick Christensen. Teague also earned 8 points for the Coffee County team. Teague fell short in advancing to the state when he was pinned in the consolation bracket semifinals. Teague ends the season with a record of 19 and 9. Rein Bozich(132) and Michael Pressley(170) each earned 3 team points as each was 1 and 2 on the weekend.
The state individual tournament gets underway on Thursday at 3 PM at the Williamson County Expo Center in Franklin. The first 2 rounds will be held on Thursday with the quarterfinals and semifinals scheduled for Friday beginning at 10 AM. The semifinals and championship rounds begin at 10 AM on Saturday. Championship information can be found at: http://tssaa.org/2016-tssaa-state-wrestling-championships/