Sports and Outdoors

The Forrest Rockets sent 10 grapplers to the TSSAA Class A-AA Wrestling Championships this weekend at the Williamson County Ag Center in Franklin and seven were still competing after the first day with four Chapel Hill boys vying for state titles in today’s evening session beginning at 4 p.m. Two-time defending state champion and four-time region champion Jeff Gross swept through the first day of action Friday as the number-one seed, coming up with a 15-2 technical fall win over Upperman’s Patrick Lair in round one before pinning CJ Dyer from Pigeon Ford in the second round.

After a decade long drought, the Marshall County Tigerettes (22-6) have solidified their return to prominence after coming away with a bruising 51-43 win over Community (18-9) Thursday night in the District 12-AA Tournament semifinals at Forrest. “I knew that would be that kind of game, you always hope you can win each quarter and extend the lead, but that’s not going to happen against them,” MCHS coach David Steely said. “It was just emotional, tough, and physical and I’m proud of us that we put up 51 tonight, which is good because we had six girls score.”

The Forrest Rockets lost 14 out of their last 15 games and 10 in a row to end the season, including a tough 56-48 defeat at Murfreesboro Central Magnet School (MCM) Tuesday night in a first-round District 12-AA Tournament satellite game. “They fought hard, we did everything that we could possibly do,” Forrest coach Randy Toombs said. “We still made some of the little mistakes we have been making and good teams will take advantage of that.” “He’s (MCM coach Douglas Worsley) got a good basketball team, they are well-coached, but we played hard.”

The nightcap of Tuesday’s District 8-A Tournament featured the sixth-seeded Cornersville Bulldogs versus the three-seeded Cascade Champions. The Champions, behind hot shooting Noah Maddox’s four 3-pointers, took a 20-point halftime lead and never looked back in a 55-38 victory. Cascade faced the second-seeded Fayetteville Tigers in Thursday night’s semifinal contest at Cornersville, while top-ranked Eagleville played Moore County.

The Forrest wrestling team continues to reach new heights as they broke a school record on Saturday at the Region 3-AA Tournament at Eagleville with eight male grapplers and two female wrestlers qualifying for this week’s Class A-AA Wrestling Championships at the Williamson County Agricultural Exposition Park in Franklin. “It’s been a year of ups and downs, it’s been a whirlwind,” Forrest coach Chris Slaughter said. “We didn’t wrestle perfect, but we wrestled with passion and we wrestled with heart and we did not stop.”

Adversity keeps piling up for the Forrest Lady Rockets, who came out shorthanded versus Murfreesboro Central Magnet School in Monday night’s opening round District 12-AA Tournament tilt at Chapel Hill. Forrest lost its leading scorer Carissa Curtis for the season when she tore her ACL in practice last week and the flu bug kept several other players out of Monday’s game, including a key cog in Laura Mealer.

Friday’s first game of the District 12-AA doubleheader at Pulaski featured the Marshall County High School Tigerettes and the Lady Bobcats. The Tigerettes, with the help of a huge third quarter came away with a 50-30 win. MCHS was in the hunt for a second-place finish in the district and Giles County, with only one win since the New Year began, looked to continue this fierce neighborly rivalry.

The finale of Friday night’s doubleheader at Pulaski saw the MCHS Tigers facing off against the hometown Giles County Bobcats in a District 12-AA matchup. The Tigers looking for a first-place district finish, out-gunned the Bobcats 78-72. Before a near capacity crowd celebrating Senior Night, this long-time rivalry highlighted the best of high school basketball. Mr. Basketball finalist KJ Johnson did his part, scoring 34 points but the play of number five, Cornelius Turner, who burned the nets up with six 3-pointers and 25 points, proved too much for the Bobcats.

The opening game of the District 8-A Tournament Monday night featured the hometown Cornersville Lady Bulldogs versus the Raiderettes of Moore County. Moore County led by the 20 points from Olivia Richards, ended the season for the Lady Bulldogs in a 53-44 loss. Moore County moves on to the semifinal round of District 8-A play and faces top-seeded Cascade in a 6 p.m. matchup Wednesday night. The first quarter began with a controlled tip by Cornersville and Bethany Fitzgerald was fouled on a shot attempt, sinking one of two free throws to put the Lady Dawgs up 1-0.

The Associated Press' Top 10 teams in each of Tennessee's three Division I non-financial aid classifications and in the combined Division II financial aid classification as selected by Tennessee AP-member sportswriters and broadcasters. With first-place votes in parentheses, records through Feb. 11, total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote:...

The Associated Press' Top 10 teams in each of Tennessee's three Division I non-financial aid classifications and in the combined Division II financial aid classification as selected by Tennessee AP-member sportswriters and broadcasters. With first-place votes in parentheses, records through Feb. 11, total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote:...

Monday, February 11 Girls District 8-A Basketball Tournament At Cornersville (4) Moore County vs. (5) Cornersville, 6 p.m. (3) Huntland vs. (6) Fayetteville, 7: 30 p.m. Girls District 12-AA Tournament First round satellite games (5) Murfreesboro Central Magnet at (4) Forrest, 7 p.m. (6) Giles County at (3) Community, 7 p.m. Note: First day of practice for baseball, softball, tennis, and boys soccer.

The Marshall County Tigers remained undefeated in District 12-AA play away from Dottie Kelso Memorial Gymnasium in Lewisburg after the road warriors came away with a huge 72-68 comeback win at Nolensville Tuesday night that pulled them even with the Knights at the top of the district standings with one league game remaining for both teams. It was sweet revenge for the Tigers, who lost by 44 points at home to the Knights on January 18.

As witnessed by county schools being closed yesterday and today due to illness, the Marshall County Tigerettes went in to Tuesday night’s battle for first place at Nolensville in a weakened state with the sickness bug. The Lewisburg girls hung tough for three quarters with the Lady Knights before withering in the fourth quarter of a 45-39 loss.

Marshall County High School senior and Lipscomb University signee KJ Johnson has been named as one of the three finalists for the 2019 Class 2A Mr. Basketball Award. The other two finalists are Blake Atwood (Johnson County) and Chandler Lawson (Wooddale). Johnson won the award last year over Jayden Lockett (East Nashville) and Jessie Walker (Brainerd).

Longtime Marshall County High School head baseball coach Joe George has been selected as one of five inductees into the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association’s Hall of Fame Class of 2019. George will be inducted along with Jim Barr, administrator from Nashville; Ike White, administrator from Memphis; Tommy Colvin, coach from Humboldt; Mickey Marley, coach from Jackson; Hubie Smith, coach from Nashville; and Tom Weathers, coach from Chattanooga at the annual ceremony at the Embassy Suites Hotel and Conference Center in Murfreesboro on Saturday, April 13.

It was a packed house Friday night at Chapel Hill as the Forrest Lady Rockets took on Marshall County High School in a late season intra-county rivalry contest that also big implications on the regular season District 12-AA standings. The fans got their money’s worth as the game went the distance and more with Forrest taking a 45-41 double-overtime senior night win.

The Forrest Rockets, buoyed by the girls win in double overtime, had Marshall County on the ropes Friday night at Chapel Hill before a big second half comeback turned in to an 82-70 win for the Tigers in the intra-county rivalry. 2017-2018 Class 2A Mr. Basketball KJ Johnson put on a show, wheeling and dealing his way to a game-high 37 points, including 15 points in a high-scoring second period. Johnson was also deadly from the free throw line, canning 8-of-11 attempts from the charity stripe with six free throws coming in the third quarter Tiger comeback.

The Fayetteville (4-17, 0-8) Lady Tigers came calling on the Cornersville (11-14, 2-7) Lady Bulldogs for a District 8-A contest on Friday night. The Lady Bulldogs, led by Sarah Beth Prosser’s 14 points, came out ready to go in the third quarter, then survived a fourth quarter comeback by the Lady Tigers to claim a 42-37 victory. The win enabled the Lady Bulldogs to gain a sweep of the season series and prevent a last place finish in the district standings.

The fifth-ranked Fayetteville (21-4, 8-1) Tigers and the Cornersville (9-12, 2-7) Bulldogs met Friday night in a District 8-A battle. The Tigers proved too much for the Bulldogs as they easily rolled to a 64-27 victory and a sweep of the district series. Both teams, as well as their communities are in the middle of battling illness with players on both sides having to play through to continue the season’s remaining games.

The Associated Press' Top 10 teams in each of Tennessee's three Division I non-financial aid classifications and in the combined Division II financial aid classification as selected by Tennessee AP-member sportswriters and broadcasters. With first-place votes in parentheses, records through Feb. 4, total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote:...

HERMITAGE- - - The 2019 TSSAA Hall of Fame inductees have been selected. Nine new members will be inducted into the TSSAA Hall of Fame at the annual luncheon at the Embassy Suites Hotel and Conference Center in Murfreesboro on Saturday, April 13, 2019. Two administrators, five coaches, one official, and one contributor will be inducted that day to join others in the annual gathering of those selected since the process began in 1982.

The threat of snow for the area on Tuesday led to school officials rescheduling the District 12-AA game to Monday night between the Murfreesboro Central Magnet Lady Tigers (0-16, 0-6) and the Marshall County Tigerettes (19-4, 5-1). The Tigerettes, who had defeated the Lady Tigers on January 11, completed the sweep with a 37-26 victory. The game began with MCHS controlling the tip, but a missed shot and a Magnet rebound led to Kaitlin Polly scoring the game’s first basket.

A battle of Tigers from Murfreesboro Central Magnet School (14-8, 3-3) and MCHS (11-11, 5-1) completed Monday night’s District 12-AA doubleheader contest. The Central Magnet Tigers scored a 60-50 win, avenging an earlier loss to Lewisburg. MCHS, coming off an emotional win over Community on Friday, wore special jerseys for the “Pink Out” night (American Cancer Society) at the Dottie Kelso Memorial Gymnasium in Lewisburg.

Forrest just cannot get over the hump when it comes to beating Nolensville as the first place Lady Knights came to Chapel Hill Monday night riding a three-game winning streak over the Lady Rockets. Nolensville left as winners of four in row after the Lady Rockets squandered the lead and lost 46-43, mostly due to a poor 3-for-12 effort from the free throw line. “It came down to one phase of the game and that’s free throws,” Forrest coach Jeremy Jean said. “Three for twelve you are not going to win any ballgames.” “We played well enough to win the game, defensively we were fine, offensively we were fine, and it just came down to missed free throws.”

The Nolensville Knights (14-9, 6-1) held on to first place in the District 12-AA standings with a 69-57 win at Forrest Monday night, while the Rockets (5-18, 1-6) fell to the cellar. The Knights got some help in taking over the top spot from Murfreesboro Central Magnet as they beat Marshall County 60-50 at Lewisburg Monday night. The Rockets lost by 32 points when the two teams met at Nolensville earlier in the season and Forrest played good enough Monday night to get the win, but just couldn’t get a few breaks late in the third quarter and early in the fourth period to pull off the upset.

The Marshall County Tigerettes needed a win over Community in Friday night’s homecoming game at Dottie Kelso Memorial Gymnasium in Lewisburg to keep pace with Nolensville and they got it done with a hard fought 33-29 win. The Tigerettes held the Viqueens to their lowest scoring output of the season in a defensive effort reminiscent of the days when Danica “The Glove” Hopkins roamed the Lewisburg hardwoods for head coach David Steely’s championship squad of 2008. “Both teams had real good plans on how to stop the other one,” Steely said. “Just two teams that are starting to know each other real well and have played several times the last two years and we were both able to take each other’s streaks away.”

Friday night’s game at Cornersville saw the Eagleville Lady Eagles (14-8, 5-1) and the hometown Lady Bulldogs (9-13, 1-6) square off in a District 8-A contest. The Lady Bulldog’s youth, inexperience, and growing pains were evident in a 44-25 loss. The Lady Eagles were hoping to keep pace with Cascade for the top spot in district standings and they did as both teams finished the night with 5-1 league marks.

The Eagleville Eagles (19-3, 5-1) brought their number-one ranking in 1A and the number five leading scorer in the state, Ryley McClaran (24.3 points per game), to face the Cornersville (8-9, 2-4) Bulldogs in a District 8-A matchup. The Eagles showed why they had the top billing as they rolled over the Bulldogs 69-37 with McClaran getting his average (24) points. The Bulldogs, without the services of Tyler Wolaver, who will miss several more games with a bad ankle had to man up to stay with the Eagleville crew.

AP Top 10 Boys Poll The Associated Press' Top 10 teams in each of Tennessee's three Division I non-financial aid classifications and in the combined Division II financial aid classification as selected by Tennessee AP-member sportswriters and broadcasters. With first-place votes in parentheses, records through January 28, total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote:...

AP Top 10 Girls Poll The Associated Press' Top 10 teams in each of Tennessee's three Division I non-financial aid classifications and in the combined Division II financial aid classification as selected by Tennessee AP-member sportswriters and broadcasters. With first-place votes in parentheses, records through January 28, total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote:...

It was a Friday night homecoming slugfest at the Dottie Kelso Memorial Gymnasium in Lewisburg as the Marshall County Tigers hosted the Community Vikings in a big District 12-AA clash. It also turned into the perfect night to break a record and that’s what 2017-2018 Class 2A Mr. Basketball and Lipscomb University signee KJ Johnson did as he poured in 47 points to lead MCHS to an 81-78 win.

Sometimes deja vu is good, sometimes it’s bad. On Thursday night at Nolensville it was bad when the Forrest wrestling team could not defeat the Knights in the Region 3A-AA Dual Tournament and land a spot in next week’s TSSAA State Dual Wrestling Championships, losing 44-22. Forrest, Nolensville, Eagleville, Cascade, and East Nashville were the top five teams from the region to qualify for the tournament at Nolensville Thursday and for the second year in a row, the only two teams that showed up were the Knights and Rockets.

Marshall County High School’s ace righty Hunter Haurez’ pursuit of his boyhood dream took a giant leap forward last week when he signed a Letter of Intent to attend Spalding University at Louisville, Kentucky on a baseball scholarship next season. “It feels amazing, I’ve been working hard for this,” Huarez said. “My goal was to be able to play baseball longer and I’ve got that done, so it feels great.” Huarez, who will be a four-year letterman when the prep baseball season opens for official practice on February 10 had an outstanding 2017-2018 season for the Tigers, posting a 6-1 record with a stellar 1.12 earned run average.

After three consecutive District 12-AA losses, the Forrest Lady Rockets got a win and some confidence back as they took care of business Tuesday night at Chapel Hill with a 37-25 victory over Murfreesboro Central Magnet School (MCM). “The girls played hard, we did what we wanted to do defensively again tonight, I thought we played pretty good,” Forrest coach Jeremy Jean said. “That’s three games in a row defensively we played good enough to win and tonight we got that win.”

The Forrest Rockets came into Tuesday night’s home game versus Murfreesboro Central Magnet School (MCM) mired in a three-game District 12-AA losing streak, while the Tigers rode a two-game league winning streak into Chapel Hill. After a good first half in which the Rockets led twice and were tied several times, a second half sputter led to a 43-33 loss. “What a night, our defense showed up, but without the scoring we are capable of,” Forrest coach Randy Toombs said. “Just going to go back to work on our shooting and hope we get back to the offensive team I know we can be at some point.”

When the Giles County Bobcats come calling to Dottie Kelso Gym for a District 12-AA doubleheader clash you know the excitement builds. The MCHS band is playing Rock ‘n Roll, the student section is full early, the Concert Choir sings a stirring Star Spangled Banner, and the Tigerettes start the ball rolling with a win. Now it’s ShowTime!! The Tigers did not let the crowd down as they rolled to a 69-51 victory and a regular season sweep over their archrivals from Pulaski.

An old rivalry was revisited at Dottie Kelso Memorial Gymnasium in Lewisburg Tuesday night as the Giles County Lady Bobcats (7-9, 0-4) came to town to face the MCHS (18-4, 4-1) Tigerettes. The Tigerettes prevailed 56-30, recalling the old days of the 23rd District when duels between these two teams flourished. MCHS, in second place in District 12-AA play at 3-1, were needing a victory to keep pace with front-runner Nolensville.

The Forrest wrestling team was as about as healthy as they have been all season coming into Thursday’s senior night dual meet with Cheatham County and Cascade and it paid off as the Rockets took the sweep. “Things kind of worked out for us tonight, we had a couple of double forfeits, but it didn’t hurt us too bad,” Forrest coach Chris Slaughter said. “We should be stronger for next week’s region duals.”...

In what was once a promising season for the Lady Rockets, things have gone downhill in a hurry as the injury bug is decimating the Chapel Hill roster. With Sydney Hill still hobbling from an ankle injury and now Laura Mealer dealing with shoulder damage, Forrest is limited in their approach and it showed in a 39-32 Homecoming loss to Community Friday night at Chapel Hill...

The Forrest Rockets gave it all they had in Friday night’s Homecoming game versus Community, but just couldn’t get some shots to fall at the crucial moments or receive a fortunate bounce when they needed it as they suffered a tough 52-42 loss. “It was another tough loss,” Forrest coach Randy Toombs said. “We can't seem to get our offense on the move. Our defense is keeping the score where we want it, but we can't seem to get our shots to go down.”...

The Nolensville Lady Knights came calling on Friday night to face the Marshall County High School Tigerettes. Despite an early first half lead, the Tigerettes could not hold on and Nolensville came away with a close 45-42 win. The Tigerettes came into the contest with a 17-3 record, coming off a 39-24 win over Forrest on Tuesday, while the Lady Knights were 14-5 and coming off a 70-42 win over Giles County in their last outing...

The 11-8 Nolensville Knights brought their fast-paced and intimidating big man Nate Bloedorn to Dottie Kelso Memorial Gymnasium at Lewisburg Friday night. Bloedorn scored 18 points and was one of four Nolensville players in double figures that left the Tigers in their wake via an 87-43 win...

The Associated Press’ Top 10 teams in each of Tennessee's three Division I non-financial aid classifications and in the combined Division II financial aid classification as selected by Tennessee AP-member sportswriters and broadcasters. With first-place votes in parentheses, records through January 21, total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote:...

The Associated Press' Top 10 teams in each of Tennessee's three Division I non-financial aid classifications and in the combined Division II financial aid classification as selected by Tennessee AP-member sportswriters and broadcasters. With first-place votes in parentheses, records through January 21, total points based on 10 points for a first-place vote through one point for a 10th-place vote:...

The Cornersville Lady Bulldogs came to Fayetteville looking for their first District 8-A victory, but Lady Tigers of Fayetteville were looking for a district victory too and hoped to win the game before a home crowd. It was not to be as Cornersville prevailed 40-26. Fayetteville took an early 1-0 lead on a Carly Andrews free throw and the Lady Tigers added to their lead with two baskets by Tatum Delay, one of them a 3-pointer.

The Marshall County Tigerettes continued their hot streak Tuesday night at Dottie Kelso Memorial Gymnasium in Lewisburg as they turned in a stellar defensive effort to shutdown Forrest in a 39-24 win. “We had a plan and we executed it,” Marshall County coach David Steely said. “We were patient and our players stepped up, so it was the best we played this year, but it’s just round one, you know how it is….there will probably be more than one more, but I’m really proud tonight.”