The TSSAA mandated dead period officially ends on Monday, July 12, and that means fall sports teams across the state will begin ramping up efforts for the 2021 campaign. Golf teams can officially begin practicing on Monday, July 12. Meanwhile, unofficial practice will commence for football, soccer, cross country and volleyball. The first official practice date for these fall sports is Monday, July 26. Thunder Radio has your sports covered this fall, with broadcasts and online coverage of all Coffee County Central, Coffee Middle and Westwood Middle sports. Have a question or suggestion for sports coverage, email...

This past school year (2020-2021) marked the end of an era for high school sports. It was the final year that Coffee County Central would compete in District 8-AAA as it stood for years. Three Lady Raider athletic teams marked the end of the era in style and it’s safe to say that other teams will be glad to see the Lady Raiders go. The CHS Lady Raider basketball team, volleyball team and softball team combined to go a perfect 39-0 in district competition last school year. Now the teams are celebrating and commemorating that dominance with t-shirt sales....

Coffee County Central High School has announced that Matt Rossman will take over as the head coach of the Coffee County Cross Country program. This includes cross country runners at Central High School and Coffee Middle School. Rossman takes over for Cameron Boyett. Any athletes interested in running cross country this upcoming fall can attend open facilities (open runs) at the Coffee County Raider Academy beginning on Monday, July 12. Open facility will be from 8-9:30 a.m. “I just like the running scene,” explained Rossman. “Coach Boyett left and I saw they had a need and I love this....

Braves outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. tore his right ACL and will be out for the season after surgery to repair it, the Braves announced late Saturday night. Atlanta won 5-4 win over Miami on Saturday at loan Depot park to reach .500 on the season, but it was a costly and the .500 record was short lived. Acuña exited the game in the bottom of the fifth inning after attempting to corral a ball off the bat of Jazz Chisholm Jr., who ended up with an inside-the-park home run on the play. The Braves went on to lose 7-4 Sunday to fall...

Coffee County Fastpitch Association city tournament has wrapped up with teams earning top spots in their respective age divisions. In the 12U division, LKQ took first place in the city tournament while Hometown Auto Sales won first place in the regular season. Coffee County Fastpitch 8U regular season champions are All Creatures Vet Clinic. In the 8U division, C&G Sheet Metal took first place in the city...

As much of a struggle as the first half of the season has been for the Atlanta Braves, a good showing in this weekend’s series in Miami could put the Braves over .500 for the first time this year as the All-Star Break approaches. Atlanta plays in Miami Friday, Saturday and Sunday. With a 42-44 record, a 3-game sweep could put Atlanta in good position for a second-half push. The Braves are currently 4.5 games out of first place in the NL Eeast. Catch the Braves all season long on Thunder...

Westwood Middle School is now searching for a new head boys basketball coach. Head coach Jerry Brown resigned from his post on Tuesday, July 6, after completing one full season at the helm of the Rocket program. Brown has accepted a position as a teacher and assistant girls basketball coach at Lighthouse Christian School in Antioch. “I would like to thank Dr. (Joey) Vaughn, (former Westwood principal) Julie Miller and (athletic director) Jim Dobson for giving me the opportunity to be a part of the Westwood family,” Brown told Thunder Radio sports. “I really enjoyed coaching the boys and...

Thanks to Drew Smyly’s turnaround and the re-emergence of a slumbering offense, the Braves avoided what would have been a demoralizing three-game sweep by claiming a 14-3 win over the Pirates on Wednesday afternoon at PNC Park. You heard the game live on Thunder Radio. Smyly surrendered Jacob Stallings’ three-run homer and faced every member of the Pirates lineup before ending the first inning. But those three runs would prove to be the only ones surrendered by the veteran lefty, whose effort was supported by Atlanta’s five-run sixth inning. “The longer he was out there, the better he threw,” Braves...