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Scores - Oct. 5
Oct 05, 2007A rundown of Friday night’s prep scores:
Northeast Tenn.
Mountain Lakes Conf.
Tennessee High 17, Sullivan North 6
Sullivan East 20, Elizabethton 14
Sullivan South 49, Sullivan Central 6
Johnson Co. 17, Unicoi Co. 0
Non-conference
Knox Bearden 21, Science Hill 7
Southwest Va.
Cumberland District
Rye Cove 40, Coeburn 29
Hogoheegee District
Chilhowie 42, Northwood 7
George Wythe 38, Patrick Henry 0
Rural Retreat 17, Holston 13
Lonesome Pine District
J.I. Burton 59, Pound 14
Southwest District
Abingdon 35, Carroll Co. 14
Graham 28, Grundy 0
Richlands 16, Marion 14
Non-District
Haysi 55, Ervinton 7
Virginia High 33, Honaker 32
Big Creek (WVa.) 38, Hurley 0
Giles 49, Lebanon 21
Powell Valley 46, Thomas Walker 13
Prep Picks for Oct. 5
Oct 04, 2007Here’s a look at tonight’s games and predictions, courtesy of the BHC staff:
NORTHEAST TENN.
Mountain Lakes Conf.
Tennessee High at Sullivan North
The Vikings have the top overall defense in the conference. Tennessee High is allowing an average of just 9.8 points, 122.6 rushing yards and 184 total offensive yards per game. Meanwhile, the Raiders’ offense leads the conference with an average of 236.2 rushing yards per game. Something’s got to give. It’ll most likely be Sullivan North. The Raiders’ defense is suspect, which means Vikings running back Jeff Baker should run wild.
Prediction: Tennessee High 28, Sullivan North 10
Elizabethton at Sullivan East
The Patriots are on the rise, while the Cyclones are still rebuilding and are 0-3 on the road this season — this is East’s game to win (and lose). Patriots running back Caleb Looney should be the difference. Looney has 71 carries for 439 yards (6.18 average) and four touchdowns this season, and Elizabethton coach Shawn Witten said the Cyclones spent this week focusing on Looney and East’s impressive spread offense.
Prediction: Sullivan East 35, Elizabethton 14
Sullivan South at Sullivan Central
The Cougars are at home, and this may be Central’s only advantage. Quite simply, the Rebels should roll. Quarterback Curt Phillips (564 yards, 12 touchdowns, 914 pass yards, four TDs), and wide receiver Kaleb Kitzmiller (19 receptions, 323 yards) are going to feel like they’re back in junior high. However, should Central pull off the unthinkable, what a story it’ll be.
Prediction: Sullivan South 49, Sullivan Central 7
Unicoi County at Johnson County
It’s Longhorns quarterback Austin Phipps (555 yards, five touchdowns) against the Blue Devils’ stingy defense. Phipps and Johnson County should have the upper hand — the Longhorns’ offense ranks second in the conference with an average of 289.6 yards per game — but defense and experience go a long way, and the Blue Devils have plenty of both.
Prediction: Johnson County 14, Unicoi County 10
SOUTHWEST VA.
Clinch Mountain District
Gate City at John Battle
It seemed like old times at Legion Field last week as Gate City employed a full-house backfield. That traditional look produced 178 yards rushing and a 35-0 blowout over rival Virginia High. With hitters like Cameron Browder and Jason Begley, GC remains among the most physical teams in the area. John Battle will try to counter that approach with a diverse passing game and the athletic ability of Joe Cadle.
Prediction: Gate City 42, John Battle 7
Cumberland District
Rye Cove at Coeburn
It’s been a long time since Rye Cove has had a season this shaky. The Eagles have lost their first five games and have struggled in all of them. Coeburn has played a tough schedule with non-district games against Clintwood, J.J. Kelly and J.I. Burton. That has prepared the Blue Knights to make a run at the Cumberland District title.
Prediction: Coeburn 16, Rye Cove 14
Hogoheegee District
Chilhowie at Northwood
These Smyth County rivals were both off last week and have had extra time to prepare for one another. Northwood is off to a 1-3 start and the Panthers need to turn things around soon if they hope to reach the Region C, Division 1 playoffs. Chilhowie hasn’t played since a 3-0 shutout to Virginia High two weeks ago. The Warriors’ offense will fare much better against a Northwood defense that has struggled defending the pass. That is a good sign for Chilhowie wide receiver Curtis “Tuff” Williams, who has seven receptions for 130 yards and three touchdowns this season.
Prediction: Chilhowie 39, Northwood 16
George Wythe at Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry took a step in the right direction last week with a 21-14 win over previously unbeaten Holston. However, it doesn’t get much easier for PH tonight. George Wythe features impressive running backs Larry McCoy (457 yards, eight touchdowns) and Seth White (382 yards, three touchdowns) and the Maroons blasted Fort Chiswell last week. Quarterback Trey Johnson has come into his own for PH in the last two weeks, but the Rebels will not have an answer for GW.
Prediction: George Wythe 35, Patrick Henry 16
Rural Retreat at Holston
If Holston is to earn the top seed for the Region C, Division 1 playoffs, the Cavaliers will have to beat the three-time defending regional champions. Rural Retreat is off to another strong start this fall and the Indians have a plethora of talented running backs. Holston must rebound from last week’s controversial loss to Patrick Henry. That’s a pretty tough task against the Indians.
Prediction: Rural Retreat 30, Holston 13
Lonesome Pine District
J.I. Burton at Pound
This one has mismatch written all over it. Burton is Southwest Virginia’s only unbeaten team and the Raiders haven’t missed a beat from the success of past seasons. Pound has shown improvement under first-year head coach Chris Crabtree but that will not equal many wins this season for the Wildcats.
Prediction: J.I. Burton 55, Pound 12
Southwest District
Carroll County at Abingdon
Last week’s come-from-ahead loss at Honaker put the Falcons’ playoff hopes in peril. Abingdon must win out and get help to make the tough Region IV, Division 4 field. The enigmatic Cavaliers are in town following two straight blowout losses against teams which they figured to at least compete well against, if not beat.
Prediction: Abingdon 24, Carroll County 20
Graham at Grundy
Winning three straight games by a total of 12 points, the G-Men sit atop the SWD. The Golden Wave couldn’t run the ball last week against Marion, dropping a 27-0 decision. Graham has been tough against the run lately, so this doesn’t appear to be a good matchup on paper for Grundy.
Prediction: Graham 21, Grundy 6
Richlands at Marion
Fueled by some position changes and motivational ploys, the Blue Tornadoes swamped hapless Tazewell last week to bounce back from their first loss in 34 regular season games. The physical Scarlet Hurricanes are looking at this as a statement game, but Austin Fuller and Co. might have something to say about that.
Prediction: Richlands 28, Marion 13
Non-District
Haysi at Ervinton
Haysi has dominated this Dickenson County rival for years and the trend should continue tonight. The Tigers have a Region D, Division 1 playoff appearance as a goal and they have played well through the season’s halfway point. It’s been a long season in Nora, as Ervinton remains winless. The Rebels will not get that first win tonight.
Prediction: Haysi 52, Ervinton 8
Thomas Walker at Powell Valley
Nobody figured that Powell Valley would be 2-3 and have a three-game losing streak at this point in the season. The Vikings have dropped consecutive games to Richlands, J.I. Burton and Clintwood, all quality opponents. However, Powell Valley has scored just 12 second-half points in those three contests. The Vikings will take out their frustration on Thomas Walker.
Prediction: Powell Valley 58, Thomas Walker 6
Lebanon at Giles
Giles dusted both Lebanon and Powell Valley last year en route to the Division 2 state title game. The single-wing is paying dividends again for coach Steve Ragsdale and the 3-1 Spartans. Lebanon running back Skyler Musick has compiled an array of impressive stats while earning attention from the likes of Liberty, Richmond and William Mary. Musick has rushed for at least 126 yards in every game but one this season. It will be a fun night at Ragsdale Field.
Prediction: Lebanon 28, Giles 27
Honaker at Virginia High
Virginia High hopes to use this homecoming game to ease the sting of last week’s demoralizing loss at Gate City. While guys like Shaka Andrew, Brent Davenport and Robbie Stout continue to deliver, youth is a problem for VHS. Honaker rallied from a 14-point halftime deficit to stop Abingdon last week. Players to watch are Logan Ball (691 yards rushing, 13 TD’s) and Justin Hall, who has thrown for nearly 900 yards. Andrew made 25 tackles at Honaker last year, yet the Bearcats fumbled away a 14-7 loss.
Prediction: Virginia High 17, Honaker 14
Big Creek (WV) at Hurley
Finally, the Rebels get to play a home game, their field having been approved by Buchanan County Schools after their first two home games were moved to Grundy. The 3-1 Owls are ranked 14th in Class A, good enough for a playoff berth at the moment. Hurley will have to play without starting linebacker Jay Tester and Brandon Justus, which could be a difference-maker.
Prediction: Big Creek 22, Hurley 14
Saturday
Appalachia at St. Paul
St. Paul moved a step closer to the Cumberland District title with a 27-26 double overtime win over Castlewood on Monday night. The Deacons can pick up some more important power points tonight against Appalachia. The game was originally scheduled for Friday, but was moved to accommodate St. Paul, after the team played on Monday night. The Appalachia duo of Brett Leedy and Morgan Ireson might be too much for St. Paul to handle.
Prediction: Appalachia 28, St. Paul 20
Hogoheegee District Football
Oct 04, 2007The Hogoheegee District schedule gets into full swing tonight with three games being contested.
The most intriguing matchup has to be Rural Retreat’s game at Holston. The winner of this game will earn a large amount of Region C, Division 1 power points and could almost surely lock up a top seed.
Rural Retreat has not had a losing season since 1985 and the Indians have relied on the trio of Justin Stoneman, Wyatte Pickett and David Harrison this fall to rack up plenty of yards this fall. Harrison actually leads the Hogoheegee District in rushing and has been an inspiring story for head coach Quinton Hensley’s team. Harrison missed almost the entire 2006 season with a gruesome hand injury, but has come back in a big way.
Holston must rebound from last week’s 21-14 loss to Patrick Henry which ended in controversy.
Chilhowie will host Smyth County rival Northwood tonight. Northwood is just 1-3 and the Panthers have struggled with their pass defense and costly penalties. If Northwood is to qualify for the playoffs for the third straight season, the team must pull off some upsets.
Chilhowie features one of the area’s top dual threats in linebacker/running back Alex Russell.
Patrick Henry hosts George Wythe in the other district matchup. GW’s Larry McCoy is another one of the district’s top running backs and he’s put up impressive numbers thus far.
Through the midway point of the Hogoheegee District season, one thing is for sure. There are some quality running backs in the six-team district. Rural Retreat’s Stoneman, Pickett and Harrison are strong, while GW has the duo of McCoy and Seth White and Holston possesses the one-two punch of Aaron Reynolds and Eric Mefford.
Oh yeah, Chilhowie has Russell and Tyler Grinstead, while Patrick Henry’s Marcus Montgomery and Northwood’s StevenEarly Spence have also put up some big numbers.
Posted by Tim Hayes Mance tries motivational ploys, position changes
Oct 03, 2007
They did something new at Richlands a week and a half ago—practice football after a loss.
The Blue Tornadoes’ 18-13 defeat against Graham Sept. 21 was stunning, because the G-Men didn’t appear to match up that well with them on paper, yet inevitable because Richlands had played without much passion at times in the season’s first half.
So coach Greg Mance, after watching films and racking his brain to discern the problem, put his team through a test while they eyeballed the tape.
“I told them if they saw a play when they saw a teammate helping each other up or playing with emotion to raise their hand,” he said Tuesday night. “Out of [123] plays, they raised their hand four times.
“That told me they were going through the motions, playing without emotion. We challenged them to pick it up, have fun again.”
Mance also made some position changes, moving receiver Romulo Fajardo to running back and sending the season’s leading rusher, Kheven Schweingruber, to wide receiver.
In Friday night’s all-too-predictable 49-14 rout of winless Tazewell, Fajardo rushed for 93 yards, which doesn’t sound like a big deal until one realizes it’s the second-highest total for a Blues RB this season.
“Romulo’s 180 pounds and he’s been through the battles for three years now,” Mance said. “Kheven’s 140 pounds and he was getting beat up. We just wanted to find a way to get all our good athletes on the field at once.”
Fajardo perhaps becomes the team’s key player in the second half and the playoffs. If he can keep averaging 93 yards per game, it will force defenses to respect the run enough and permit improving QB Joel Elswick more opportunities to use athletes like Austin Fuller, Ben Addison, Matt Davis and Schweingruber in one-on-one matchups.
That’s how the offense was so powerful last year. Caleb Jennings’ presence at running back made defenses play seven men in the box, gIving the likes of Fuller and C.J. Arms one-on-ones which QB Justin McCracken exploited adroitly.
With a trip to Marion on the horizon for Friday night, Mance feels his team is back on the beam. What’s more, one gets a sense the loss may have lifted a huge burden off this team’s back.
“Sometimes, you can get complacent in what you’re doing,” Mance said. “Kids can take things for granted. Since the loss, they’ve practiced hard and they played extremely well at Tazewell.”
Tennessee High 3, Sullivan Central 2 – Volleyball
Oct 02, 2007Outstanding volleyball match between Tennessee High and Sullivan Central on Tuesday evening at Viking Hall.
Check Wednesday’s paper for the full write-up. Here’s a quick recap.
____
The Vikings started off Senior Night proudly celebrating the efforts of seniors Erin Hyde, Kendra Snapp and Allie Stollings.
Then Tennessee High decided to add one more lasting memory to the trio’s scrapbook.
Down 2-1 overall, and behind 18-14 in the fourth game, the Vikings battled back to defeat Sullivan Central 25-22, 21-25, 12-25, 25-19, 15-13 in a down-to-the-wire match that left Tennessee High thrilled, and both teams completely exhausted.
How tough was the win (and the loss)?
Tennessee High (24-13, 10-5 Big Nine) coach Mary Johnson had nearly lost her voice following the match, while Sullivan Central (15-15, 8-7) coach Tracy Graybeal was ghost-like minutes after the Vikings’ Erin Hyde spiked home the match’s final point.
“I had to get out of there, that really isn’t a good place for me to be right now,” said Graybeal from the Tennessee High parking lot.
Graybeal wasn’t upset. But she’d just watched her team slowly give away an emotional loss, and … losing’s never easy – especially in a match as roller coaster-like and back-and-forth as Tuesday night’s was.
“We just lost our intensity in the fourth game,” Graybeal said. “We got tight, and when we get tight, we make mistakes.”
But in the second and third game, the Cougars played fearless.
Sullivan Central senior outside hitter Lucie Jones was especially impressive. Jones’ low, slicing serve plagued the Vikings, and Tennessee High had no response.
But Hyde, Snapp, Stollings and the rest of the Vikings weren’t about to have Senior Night ruined.
After spending the second and third game looking lost and defeated, Tennessee High heeded Johnson’s fierce words and turned it around.
The Vikings’ comeback was spurred by sophomore outside hitter Mandy Hyde, who rolled off six straight service points in the fourth game, leading Tennessee High from 13-7 down to a 13-all tie.
Erin Hyde led the Vikings with a game-high 11 kills and 11 blocks, while Stollings (19 assists, nine digs), Brooke Hatcher (12 assists, nine digs) and Mandy Hyde (11 service points, 11 digs) all had big nights for Tennessee High.
Jones led the Cougars with 10 kills and nine service aces, while Holly English contributed 10 kills, Emily Boggs had six kills and Charli Caulkins had 18 assists.
Posted by Brian T. Smith 
