Category: Sports

Fifth Third Bank/Nashville Predators post-game report by Pete Weber

Pekka Rinne

Pekka Rinne stopped 38 shots as the Nashville Predators defeated the Anaheim Ducks by a 3-2 final on Tuesday night at Bridgestone Arena. The Preds won the season series with the Ducks, going 2-1-0 against their Western Conference foe.
Tuesday’s contest wrapped up a five-game stretch in Music City that saw the Preds go 3-1-1, including tallying 18 goals over their last four games.
Anaheim outshot Nashville 40 to 21 on the evening but thanks to a few goals and some timely saves from Rinne, the Preds earned their 11th victory of the season.
“It’s a huge two points,” Rinne said. “It doesn’t matter how we [do it], I think at this point after the game you’re always happy if you get the two points.”
The Preds scored first for the 12th time this season, courtesy of a Shea Weber power-play goal on this occasion. Weber’s sixth tally of the campaign came off a Roman Josi feed, the 100th assist of Josi’s career.
Anaheim countered just over a minute later on a Rickard Rakell wraparound that slid under the pad of Rinne, butJames Neal put the Preds back up 2-1 at the 13:13 mark of the opening frame. Neal’s ninth of the season came on a wrist shot from outside the blue line that fooled Frederik Andersen and slid through his legs, extending Neal’s point streak to four games in the process.
Miikka Salomaki gave the Preds a two-goal lead with a masterful tip of Mattias Ekholm’s shot from the left wall at 6:13 of the second period. It was Salomaki’s first marker of the season and the second of his NHL career.
Former Preds forward Mike Santorelli crashed the crease early in the third and poked home a loose puck to pull Anaheim to within one, but Rinne and the Nashville defense kept the Ducks off the board for the rest of the night. In addition to Rinne’s 38 stops, the Preds blocked 23 shots, led by four from Josi.
“Tonight we found a way to win behind our goaltender,” Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. “We battled, we blocked shots, we fought, we competed, we hit; it wasn’t a typical game for us, but we still found a way to win.”
With the five games in Nashville complete, the Preds now head out on the road for a five-game trip through Thanksgiving, a stretch that will bring its own sets of challenges.
“We’ve got five games on the road in a short amount of time too, so it’s going to be a tough road trip with some travel,” forward Mike Fisher said. “We’ve got to be solid and be sharper and be sharper than we were tonight for sure.”
Tuesday wasn’t the first time Pekka Rinne has turned in a stellar performance in his career, but his 38 saves against the Ducks helped to ensure Nashville earned two more points, and he was impressive in doing so.
“He was rock solid tonight and gave us an opportunity to win a game,” Laviolette said. “He was sharp, he saw a lot of pucks, he got down in the crease and tied up a lot of rebounds and he was really good.”
Perhaps Rinne’s most jaw-dropping sequence of the night came in the second period when Carl Hagelin was in alone on a breakaway. Rinne turned aside the first opportunity, followed by a dive to his right to fight off a rebound attempt as well. With a little help from defenseman Ryan Ellis, the chance was thwarted, keeping the Preds in front.
“You just try to be ready for anything, and I was happy to make that save and then the rebound,”
Rinne said of the play. “It was a team effort at that point, but a key moment of the game for sure.”
Rinne has now allowed two goals or less in 10 of his 15 appearances this season, and although his teammates would prefer that Rinne not have to be so spectacular throughout the game, they certainly appreciate what he does in the blue paint.
“It was all him tonight,” Fisher said of his netminder. “He was unbelievable on breakaways and odd-man rushes and he bailed us out for sure. It wasn’t our prettiest game by any means and it was all him.”
The Predators are now 11-3-3 on the season, including a 3-1-1 mark during their five-game home stand. Nashville remains undefeated in regulation at 6-0-1 when being outshot.
Nashville will hit the road beginning Friday as they travel to Columbus to face the Blue Jackets on Friday night. Minnesota is next on Saturday, followed by stops in New York to face the Rangers and Buffalo and finally Philadelphia before returning home on Nov. 28 to host the Sabres. As always, Thunder Radio is your home for all Nashville Predators broadcasts

Ellis Graham drives to the basket for the CCMS Lady Raiders

A pair of convincing wins over a county rival is always a good way to start your week.  That is just what the Coffee County Middle School basketball teams accomplished on Monday night against East Middle.  The Lady Raiders ran their season record to 5 and 0 with a 60 to 13 win over the Lady Panthers.  Coffee County held East without a field goal in the first half as they raced out to a 28 to 4 halftime lead.  Coffee County was led in scoring by Julia Duncan who scored 22 points.  Bella Vinson added 14 points and Ellie Graham tacked on 8 points.

Brandon Jernigan of CCMS basketball

The Red Raider’s 2^nd half defense gave the Panthers fits in a 30 to 15 victory.  After trailing at the end of the 1^st period, Coffee Middle used a late burst in the 2^nd quarter to take a 12 to 10 lead into the locker room at the half.  The Raider defense held East to 5 points in the 2^nd half with their effective zone defense.  Coffee County was led in scoring by Brandon Jernigan who had 12 points.  Kyle Farless netted 6 points and Trenton Scrivnor added 4 points.  The win improves the Raiders record to 3 and 2 on the season.

In JV action, the JV Red Raiders defeated the East JV 37 to 11. Coffee County will travel to West Tullahoma on Thursday night for another conference doubleheader.  The girls’ game will tip at 6:00 PM

Morgan Jones of Westwood basketball

The Westwood Lady Rockets claimed their 5^th straight win and completed a season sweep over Cascade on Monday night with a 35 to 19 win in Wartrace.  The Lady Rockets used a strong 1^st half to grab a 25 to 12 lead at intermission and never looked back.  Westwood was led in scoring by Ashley Starks who had 13 points.  Morgan Jones added 12 points while Beatris Barrera finished with 4 points.  The win improves the Lady Rockets record to 10 and 2.

Isaiah Owens of Westwood basketball

The Rockets fell behind early in the boys’ game and could not overcome a cold shoot touch as they fell 34 to 25.  The Rockets played the Champions evenly in the 2^nd half but that was not enough to erase an 8 point halftime deficit.  Westwood was led in scoring by Isaiah Owens who had 8 points including a pair of 3 pointers.  Jake Hollandsworth chipped in 4 points.  The loss evened the Rockets record at 6 and 6 on the season.

The Westwood JV Lady Rockets defeated Cascade 22 to 6.  Westwood will play host to Moore County on Thursday night.  The girls’ game begins at 6 PM.

The Coffee County CHS swimmers continued their strong showing in the freestyle stroke on Thursday night with a pair of 1st place finishes in a meet at LaVergne. The Lady Raider 200 freestyle relay team got a 1st place finish with a time of 2:17.61 and a 4th place finish in the 400M freestyle at 5:22.83. Team members are Emma Allen, Emily Warner, Ariah Tucker and Anna O’Conner.
In individual races, O’Conner finished in 2nd place in the 200M freestyle and 2nd place in the 100M butterfly. Allen finished 3rd in the 100M freestyle at 1:18.37 just ahead of Tucker who came in 4th place at 1:19.55. Warner claimed a 5th place finish in the 50M free at 34.45.

For the Red Raiders, Jack Beachboard got a 1st place finish in the 100M breaststroke at 1:18.91 and a 2nd place finish in the 200M freestyle with a time of 2:15.94. Beachboard teamed with Ryan Farless, Donald Ridner and Trevor Ivy-Bodman for a 5th place finish in the 400M freestyle relay. In other top individual finishes, Farless had a 6th place finish in the 100M butterfly and a 8th place finish in the 50M free and Ridner finished in 9th place in the 100M free.

The Coffee County swim team hosts their first home meet of the year on Friday night at the Manchester Rec Center. The starting gun sounds on the first race at 6 PM.

For complete results, visit the CHS Swim Team webpage at: http://chs.coffeecountyschools.com/?PageName=%27SportPage%27&SportID=%2711111%27

Elementary League Results
Girls
College Street dumps Hickerson
New Union downed Deerfield
Hillsboro beat East Coffee
Westwood edged North Coffee

Boys
College Street raced past Hickerson
New Union doubled up Deerfield
Hillsboro stopped East Coffee
Westwood overcame North Coffee

Elementary League Standings
Girls
New Union          4 & 0
College Street    3 & 1
Hillsboro              3 & 1
Westwood           3 & 1
Hickerson           2 & 2
North Coffee      1 & 3
Deerfield             0 & 4
East Coffee         0 & 4

Boys
College Street    4 & 0
Westwood           4 & 0
Hickerson            3 & 1
New Union          3 & 1
East Coffee         1 & 3
Hillsboro              1 & 3
Deerfield              0 & 4
North Coffee        0 & 4

Pete Weber’s Predators Report

Pekka Rinne

The Nashville Predators scored four times in the first period and never looked back as they knocked off the Winnipeg Jets by a 7-0 final on Saturday night at Bridgestone Arena.

It was the second time this week the Preds have put up seven goals in a game, the first coming on Tuesday in a 7-5 win over Ottawa. Six different skaters tallied for the Preds while Pekka Rinne stopped all 20 Jets shots he faced.

“That was a great first period, and it set the tone for the rest of the night,” Rinne said. “We kept going, we didn’t take our foot off the gas and we played a strong game until the end; a full 60 minutes and we deserved that big win.”

The Preds struck first when Cody Hodgson chipped a pass ahead to Calle Jarnkrok who one-timed the puck from the right circle past the glove of Michael Hutchinson for his third goal of the season. Craig Smith chimed in just over a minute later by finishing off a pretty passing play involving Seth Jones and Filip Forsberg, who found Smith with plenty of time on the doorstep to deposit the puck for a 2-0 advantage.

Seth Jones then got on the board of the first time on the campaign and chased Hutchinson in the process for a 3-0 lead. Jones’ point shot found its way through traffic, leading Jets Head Coach Paul Maurice to send Ondrej Pavelec in to tend net. The second Winnipeg netminder was welcomed by a goal from Mike Ribeiro, who potted his second of the season at the 14:33 mark for a 4-0 Nashville advantage to finish out the opening period.

The newly-formed line of Smith, Ribeiro and Filip Forsberg was on the ice for three of the four first-period goals. It was the most goals the Preds have scored in a single frame since they registered five in the third period at Toronto on Nov. 18, 2014.

“A lot of forwards jumped in and pushed some offense, which was good,” Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. “A few games in a row there have been lots of opportunities, lots of chances and sometime you’re just snake bit. Tonight it seemed to come out for us.”

James Neal started the second period off when he made it 5-0 at the 2:56 mark on a feed from Colin Wilson. It was Neal’s team-leading eighth of the season and his 14th all-time against the Jets, his most against any team.

Jarnkrok added his second of the night on the power play in the third period before Mattias Ekholm scored on the man advantage to round out the scoring.

The two teams also combined for 156 penalty minutes in a chippy affair, 72 of which were handed to Nashville, their third-highest, single-game total in club history. But the Preds kept their focus despite the commotion, finishing off one of their strongest efforts of the season, which started right from the opening faceoff.

“We talked about Winnipeg, we know what type of game they play, we know what they are capable of and our guys were really prepared for the first period.” Laviolette said. “We wanted to play a direct game and I think we accomplished that.”

Looking for a spark after the Predators only scored once on Thursday in a shootout loss to Toronto, Laviolette tweaked his top two lines Saturday night, putting Filip Forsberg alongside Mike Ribeiro and Craig Smith on one unit, while Colin Wilson skated with Mike Fisher and James Neal. It worked pretty well.

The Forsberg-Ribeiro-Smith line was on the ice for three of the four first-period goals, with Smith scoring his first since Oct. 17 at Ottawa.

“Our team has been playing great, and I think every line is just chipping in in some way,” Smith said. “On any given night, someone’s going to step up and make a play and get a goal… Not every game is going to be like this, but we got guys that have confidence to put one in.”

Ribeiro’s goal was his second of the season, his first since Oct. 22, and the veteran forward was pleased with the tweak in the trios up front.

“Usually when you make changes like that, it gives you some energy to play with different players,” Ribeiro said. “It was good to have a little change in the lines and when that happens, you get a little more jump into the game. [Smith] played great and it was just good to have a change.”

The Predators face the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night at Bridgestone Arena, the third and final meeting between the two clubs this season.  Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast of that game immediately following CHS basketball

Karen Medina of Westwood basketball

The Westwood Lady Rockets and Rockets got a big conference sweep on Thursday night at Forrest in middle school basketball action.  A 14 point first period helped Westwood race out to a 7 point halftime lead in the girl’s game.  The Lady Rockets held Forrest scoreless in the 4^th quarter to claim the 32 to 24 win.  Karen Medina hit three 3 pointers to lead all scorers with 10 points.  Ashley Starks had 8 points while Valerie Barger and Beatris Barrera each added 6 points.   With the win, Lady Rockets are now 9 and 2 on the season.

Roderic Brinkley of Westwood basketball

Tied at 24 at the half, the Rockets held Forrest scoreless in the 3rd quarter to earn a 45 to 33 win in the boys’ game.  Roderic Brinkley had a double-double to lead Westwood as he scored 19 points and pulled down 10 rebounds.  Jake Hollandsworth added 12 points and 5 assists as every 8th grader scored for the Rockets. The win improves the Rockets’ record to 6 and 5 on the year and avenged an early season loss at the hands of Forrest.

Westwood travels to Wartrace on Monday night to take on Cascade.  Tipoff for the girls game is set for 6:00 PM

CCMS Lady Raider Julia Duncan

The Lady Raider basketball team got 26 points from Julia Duncan to demolish White County 46 to 18 in middle school basketball action on Thursday night. Coffee Middle used a 20 point 3rd quarter to coast to their 4th straight win to start the season. Bella Vinson added 8 points including a pair of 3 pointers.

Brandon Jernigan of CCMS basketball

A furious 3rd quarter rally fell short in the boys’ game as the Red Raiders dropped a 44 to 30 decision to the Warriors. Brandon Jernigan led the Red Raiders in scoring with 13 points, 10 of those coming in the 2nd half. Jaxon Vaughn added 5 points for Coffee County.
The Coffee County Middle School basketball teams will be at home on Monday night as they take on East Tullahoma. Tipoff for the girls’ game is set for 6 PM.