Lady ‘Topper Defense Highlights Elimination Win Over West Ridge

Maddie Diamond started the season at third-base, but the Science Hill defense has struck gold with the University of Delaware commit’s move over to shortstop. “Some things had happened and we just decided we needed to make some changes and shortstop, Maddie kind of owns that position,” said Science Hill coach Megan Harmon. “She’s our vocal leader, she’s our physical leader.” Tuesday evening Diamond started a pair of double plays that snuffed out potential West Ridge rallies in a 2-1 District 1-AAAA elimination win over the Lady Wolves at Daniel Boone High School. After West Ridge opened the fourth inning with back-to-back singles from Kami Clark and Lily Frazier, Diamond, Kaylee Oler and Annabelle Eanes rolled over the 6-4-3 twin killing. With one on and one out in the sixth, Diamond took a roller herself for the force and second and fired a seed to Eanes for the double-up. “Those double plays we work on every day,” noted Harmon. “We don’t get many opportunities for those on game day, but today we had two opportunities and we took advantage of both of them.” After Lacy Fugate’s single brought in the Lady Wolves’ only run of the game in the seventh, Diamond took a strike from Lora Wilgus to erase the potential tying run at second. “That’s something we work on every day, too,” added Harmon. The flashy defense was in support of the five-hit pitching of Isabel Meeks, who coming off an nine-inning, 115-pitch outing the night before against Dobyns-Bennett “Izzy was pretty efficient last night,” noted Harmon. “She said she was fine and not hurting and she wanted to go. She wants the ball and right now she’s pitching very well. We’re going to ride her as long as we can right here.” The Lady ‘Toppers (21-9) also posted two early runs in support of Meeks. Beth Pridemore and Kaylee Oler singled to open the both of the first with Pridemore coming on a Lora Wilgus roller to first. Malia Maroukas walked, moved to second on a two-out single by Eans, to third on another single by Pridemore and came home on a wild pitch. “She (Meeks) pitches a whole lot better when she’s got some offensive support,” continued Harmon. “I said that before the game, give her some runs, give her support. Scoring early is key for this team.” West Ridge finally put a run on the board in the seventh, but finishes the season at 23-17, the most successful of its first three campaigns. “We are trying to set a standard and we didn’t live up to it tonight,” said West Ridge coach Bill Wagner. “Now, the good thing is we have a standard we need to live up to. And we are just about there.” Frazier had two hits for West Ridge with Miranda Henley and Victoria Browder alternating in the circle. Browder went four innings, allowing four hits and striking out two in the middle of Henley’s two stints. Every Lady Wolf that dressed Tuesday evening returns next year. “This offseason, going into next year will be the turning point for this whole program. I am totally convinced of that,” continued Wagner. “I hate losing, but I am super proud of where we are at.” Maroukas and Pridemore finished with two hits apiece for Science Hill. Meeks struck out five and walked just one and will likely be back in the circle when the Lady ‘Toppers face Daniel Boone in another elimination contest on Wednesday. The winner earns a berth to the region tournament. West Ridge0000001-- 1 5 0 Science Hill1100000-- 2 7 0 West Ridge – Miranda Henley, Victoria Browder (2), Miranda Henley (6) and Savannah Pogue. Science Hill – Isabel Meeks and Lora Wilgus. W – Isabel Meeks, L – Miranda Henley. RBI – Lacey Fugate, West Ridge; Lora Wilgus, Science Hill. SAC – Kami Clark, West Ridge. SB – Lily Frazier, West Ridge; Malia Maroukas, Science Hill. DP – Science Hill 2. LOB – West Ridge 3, Science Hill 6.

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Lady Vikings Gain Regional Berth; 'Betsy, Crockett to Meet in Elimination; Unicoi, East Ousted in District 1-AAA Softball

BRISTOL – Tennessee High pitcher Carly Compton said she wasn’t up to par on Tuesday. Everyone should be lucky enough to have such a lofty substandard. Compton pitched a four-hitter, hit a home run and singled as the Vikings defeated David Crockett, 5-1, in the winners’ bracket final of the District 1-AAA softball tournament at Rotary Park. Tennessee High (21-4) clinched a region berth and will play tomorrow’s David Crockett-Elizabethton winner on Thursday at 6 p.m. in the championship. Elizabethton eliminated Unicoi County with a 12-4 victory. Compton (18-1) transferred to Tennessee High from Tazewell prior to the season. Her father Jack played baseball with major leaguer Billy Wagner at Tazewell. A junior committed to North Carolina, Compton (18-1) took the Upper Lakes Conference by storm. The Vikings outscored opponents 56-1 while running the table during the eight-game league slate. Compton pitched every inning of the dominance. In fact, the run she allowed to Crockett (20-13) during the regular season was unearned. She allowed her first earned run to a conference foe on Tuesday. “It wasn’t my A-game today,” Compton said. “It was one of those nights where I had to figure out a way to win. I’m coming off being sick for a week and other stuff, but I knew coming in that I had to do my job and the defense really played well for me.” Compton – oh, by the way – struck out nine. “Honestly, for us to be able to keep Compton to single-digit strikeouts was good,” Crockett coach Alex Dulaney said. “Not a lot of teams have been able to do that.” Compton entered with 0.22 ERA. “She’s dependable, works hard,” Tennessee High coach David Boggs said. “She’s very humble. A lot of times she’ll take credit for my mistakes. “She’s just a heck of a ballplayer. She has a lot of fire and she keeps everybody fired up. It’s just a real blessing to have her on the team.” Compton aided her outing by going 2-for-2 with the home run, and she was hit by a pitch. She spoiled a good pitch by fisting a single to left field to lead off the bottom of the second and scored on Lily Ware’s two-out single to center field. Kaylie Hughes hit a solo home run with two out in the third to give the Vikings a 2-0 lead, and Compton expanded the lead to three when she led off the bottom of the fourth with the home run against talented Crockett freshman left-hander Madelyn Dulaney. “She tried to throw me a screwball and that’s my pitch,” Compton said. “So I just turned on it.” Compton was nonetheless impressed with Dulaney, who gave up six hits, three earned runs and a walk while striking out eight in five innings. “She does her job and she’s even a tough batter to pitch to, too,” Compton said. “And for her to be a freshman – she moves the ball and she hits her spots. I mean, she’s really outstanding. She earned my respect from Day One.” Dulaney, a left-hander with exceptional movement, struck out eight in five innings. She allowed six hits, a walk and three earned runs. “She does well,” Boggs said. “She’s gonna make a lot of noise down the road. I think Carly’s No. 1 and she’s No. 2 in strikeouts in Northeast Tennessee. It’s a battle of two good pitchers.” In the top of the fifth, the Pioneers cut Tennessee High’s lead to 3-1. Eva Marler lined a one-out double to left-center field to score Molly Davis, who was running for Chelsea Williams. Tennessee High ended any suspense with two runs in the fifth. Hughes doubled with one out, Addie Wilhoit followed with a walk and Compton was hit by a pitch with two out to load the bases. Enter Maddi Hall, who delivered a two-run single to center. Hughes finished 2-for-3 with a double, a home run and an RBI. “Kaylie struggled for just a little while at the plate, but being the trooper she is, she worked hard and battled through it,” Boggs said. “It started coming back about a week and a half ago, and she’s back on fire now. And when she’s right, she’s tough to handle. She’s a heck of a defensive player as well.” The Pioneers’ Autumn Wynn went 2-for-3. “Autumn had half our hits tonight,” Alex Dulaney said. “She did not have a good first at-bat. I was really proud of her resolve after that. She went up there with a better mindset and got a couple of hits.” Wynn lined a single to left field to lead off the fifth and Williams followed with a walk. A passed ball put runners at first and third, and Crockett was threatening to make a game of it when a double steal went awry. The Vikings got a strikeout/throw-‘em-out double play to stunt the rally on the attempted double steal. Alex Dulaney appeared to argue for obstruction on the caught stealing at home plate after the return throw from the middle infielder to the catcher. “We made an aggressive play and that call did not go our way,” Dulaney said. “That’s about all I can say about that.” Ware went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a double. Wilhoit walked twice and scored a run. Dulaney was 1-for-3 with a line-out for Crockett, which defeated Elizabethton, 5-2, on Monday. The Pioneers will have to best the Cyclones again to extend the season. “We had a good tight one with them Monday,” Alex Dulaney said. “(Lela) Byrd threw really well. We’ve been able to beat her a couple of times. But honestly, we thought her velocity would help us get ready for Carly a little better. “The thing about Tennessee High is we’ve played better each time that we’ve played ‘em. … Honestly, for us to be able to keep Compton to single-digit strikeouts was good. Not a lot of teams have been able to do that. Hopefully we’ll do well tomorrow and see ‘em again.” Unicoi County eliminated Sullivan East with an 18-0 victory before having its season end against Elizabethton. The Blue Devils answered the Cyclones’ four-run first with a four-run first of their own. But the hits kept coming for Elizabethton. “We came out swinging the bats against East,” Unicoi County coach Abby Hensley said. “We came out ready to play. We came back with four runs against Elizabethton (in the first). That gave us the momentum. But Elizabethton’s a great hitting team.” Unicoi County had five seniors: Kynzie Jones, Emma Jones, Faith Bennett, Kylee Hensley, Katlyn Nelson. Sullivan East will graduate seven seniors: Olivia Ashbrook, Carly Bradford, Madyson Doss, Berkley Helbert, Shelbie Leffew, Brooklyne Loudy and Jade Sanders. “Softball is such a grueling season,” East coach Michael Forrester said. “It takes true dedication to stick with it for four years. Our seven seniors have been wonderful representatives of our school on the field, in the classroom and in the community. I’m proud of who they are and I’m forever grateful to have been their coach.” Tennessee High 5, David Crockett 1 David Crockett0000100-- 1 4 00 Tennessee High011120x-- 5 7 0 David Crockett – Madelyn Dulaney, Cara Wilson (6) and Bailey Dugger; Tennessee High – Carly Compton and Abby Haga. W – Carly Compton, L – Madelyn Dulaney. 2B – Eva Marler, David Crockett; Lily Ware, Tennessee High; Kaylie Hughes, Tennessee High. HR – Kaylie Hughes, Tennessee High (solo in 3rd); Carly Compton, Tennessee High (solo in 4th). RBI – Eva Marler, David Crockett; Maddisyn Hall, Tennessee High 2; Kaylie Hughes, Tennessee High; Carly Compton, Tennessee High; Lily Ware, Tennessee High. SB – M Davis, David Crockett 2; Madelyn Dulaney, David Crockett. Elizabethton 12, Unicoi County 4 Elizabethton4204011-- 12 16 2 Unicoi County4000000-- 4 7 1 Elizabethton – Lela Byrd, Lilly McDuffie (7) and Jozey Reece, Lela Byrd (7); Unicoi County – Kyndal Engle, Kaley Toney (4) and Aaliyah Engle. W – Lela Byrd, L - K Engle. 2B – Sadie Williams, Elizabethton; Lela Byrd, Elizabethton. HR – Lela Byrd, Elizabethton 2 (solo in 2nd, solo in 6th); Mikinna Blackwell, Elizabethton (one on in 4th). RBI – Elizabethton 11 (Mikinna Blackwell 4, Lela Byd 3, Adrian Heading 2, Lilly McDuffie, Emma O’Quinn) Unicoi County 2 (Kylee Hensley, Kaley Toney). SB – Aaliyah Engle, Unicoi County; Miley Woodward, Unicoi County. Unicoi County 18, Sullivan East 0 Sullivan East00000-- 0 2 5 Unicoi County5346x-- 18 16 0 Sullivan East – Raquel Del Prete, Breanna Rutledge (2), Raquel Del Prete (4), Breanna Rutledge (4) and Breanna Rutledge, Addison Holly (1). Unicoi County -- Kaley Toney and Aaliyah Engle. W – Kaley Toney, L – Raquel Del Prete. 2B – Unicoi County 5 (Aaliyah Engles, Faith Bennett, Kyndal Engle, Kianna Woodwad, Kylee Hensley). HR – Aaliyah Engle, Unicoi County (solo in 1st); Kaley Toney, Unicoi County (one on in 3rd); Kianna Woodward, Unicoi County (two on in 4th). RBI – Unicoi County 15 (Kaley Toney 3, Kylee Hensley 3, Kianna Woodward 3, Miley Woodward 2, Aaliyah Engle 2, Kyndal Engle 2.

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Crockett Side Earns First Region Berth; Will Face Elizabethton in District 1-AA Title Fixture

JONESBOROUGH — Using a hat trick from Diego Silva, David Crockett has advanced to the region soccer tournament for the first time in school history. Silva’s strikes led to a 3-1 result over Tennessee High in the District 1-AA semifinals Tuesday evening. Team played the first 39 minutes without either side breaking through before Silva used an individual attack to find the back of the net just before the break. The Vikings got the equalizer three minutes into the second half but Silva struck twice in a two minute stretch just four minutes later, converting a pair of Jael Rodriguez facilitations to give the Pioneers a two-goal cushion. Keeper Bradley Gouge kept Tennessee High off the board the rest of the way, finishing with four saves. Crockett (8-8-1) will travel to regular season champion Elizabethton Thursday at 6:30 p.m. to play for its first district title. The Cyclones (10-7-1) eliminated Unicoi County, 2-0, Tuesday at Citizens Bank Stadium. Will Churchill scored first for the Elizabethton with Reece Vernon assisting Drake Teague for the second. Tucker Taylor fashioned the clean sheet for the Cyclones. Unicoi County 3, Sullivan East 2 The Blue Devils won the tense play-in fixture on penalty kicks, 4-2, after regulation and two overtime sessions ended in a 2-2 deadlock. Emilio Soto scored both Blue Devil goals in regulation via helpers from Jose Lopez and Nehemiah Campbell. Victor Luquin, Soto, Campbell and Lopez all had penalty kick goals. Zeke Campbell had eight saves including an overtime save and a shootout save.

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'Betsy Boys Find Redemption, Win District 1-AAA Title

ELIZABETHTON – After being needled a year for its season-ending skirmish with Unicoi County, the Elizabethton baseball program got a shot of redemption. Jackson Buckles allowed two earned runs in 5 2/3 innings and catcher J.D. Hooks hit a two-run double during a four-run second as Elizabethton beat David Crockett, 6-3, in the District 1-AAA championship game on Monday at Northeast Tennessee Credit Union Ballpark. The title seemed to bring closure for the Cyclones following a double forfeit last year for fighting during the losers’ bracket final of the district tournament. “We’ve talked probably these last two or three weeks about how many people just left us for dead by the road, you know, looked at us and looked at our program and said, ‘That’s the end of that. Your culture is not what you said it was,’” Elizabethton coach Ryan Presnell said. “I’m incredibly proud that through everything this last year that these kids, these parents and our baseball community and our supporters have rallied around us and made sure that we have the opportunity this year to prove that we are who we say we are. We’re a good bunch of kids with a good bunch of parents who are gonna compete year in and year out for championships.” Presnell said the naysayers extended beyond Unicoi County. “It’s been hard,” Presnell said. “There have been the doubters. There have been folks saying things. And these kids continued to believe in themselves. And every night, no matter how hard it was, whether it was offseason or preseason or a tough loss during the year when we’re getting blown out by somebody, I just felt the Holy Spirit pull me toward telling them that you believe in them and you know they can do it. “And through it all, man, I can’t tell you how many times we’ve said, ‘Just stick to it. Just stick to Cyclones baseball. Just stick to being Betsy Boys.’ And man, they’ve done that – and it’s really cool.” Elizabethton (14-16), which won its first district since defeating Sullivan South, 9-3, in 2019, will play Volunteer at Tusculum on Friday at 5 p.m. in a region semifinal. Crockett (17-14) will play Greeneville in the nightcap. The winners will secure sectional berths. Buckles, a 6-foot-6, 207-pound sophomore, gave up seven hits and three walks, but his six strikeouts helped snuff rallies. He stranded seven runners, including six that were in scoring position. “He’s got a lot of faith in his pitches,” Presnell said, “and he’s got a lot of faith in his defense.” Certainly, Buckles has a lot of confidence in his catcher. “J.D. really helps me out, really gets me some calls behind the plate,” Buckles said. “He’s a great catcher. I just try to keep my composure and keep it rolling (in tight spots).” Buckles was thrilled to add to the proud Elizabethton program’s hardware. “It’s really satisfying,” Buckles said. “Growing up, I always wanted to play for Coach P (Presnell) and just be a part of the team.” Justin Whitehead relieved Buckles with two outs and a runner on first in the top of the sixth. Whitehead, also a sophomore, struck out three, walked one and allowed no hits in 1 1/3 innings. “Justin was huge,” Buckles said. “He came in the Tennessee High game (winners’ bracket final), too. He’s been great.” Whitehead’s default setting is unfazed. “He’s got the heartbeat of a vampire. He smiles through everything,” said Presnell, noting Whitehead smiling widely while taking warm-up pitches for the winners’ bracket final at Tennessee High last week. “I just love that. As a coach, you love giving a guy like that the ball. “I’m proud of him. He’s started, he’s middle relieved, he’s late relieved. He’s done everything we’ve asked on the mound and he’s done it really well.” Elizabethton scored a run in the first inning on a balk. The Cyclones scored four more in the second. Two misplayed bunts and an error in the outfield helped fuel that rally. David Crockett was 24 hours removed from stunning top-seeded Tennessee High, which was ranked No. 1 in the state and went undefeated in the Upper Lakes Conference. The Pioneers didn’t appear to possess the same intensity on a day when they were not playing for their postseason life. “There might’ve been (a letdown),” Crockett coach Spencer Street said. “There was a lot of high emotion (in Bristol on Sunday). But we’ve gotta do the little things well, and there’s really no excuse for not coming out and playing with a little more energy and fire today. “We’ve kind of prided ourselves on defense all year and we didn’t do enough defensively today. And we had some opportunities at the box and we just didn’t cash ‘em in. Been pretty good at that lately, but just a little off today with some miscues.” Hooks went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run. Second baseman Bugs Meadows was 1-for-3 with an RBI and a sacrifice fly. He hit the ball hard in three of four plate appearances. Speedy shortstop Jeriah Griffin was 2-for-3 with a bunt single. Griffin’s bunt came during the four-run second. Logan Campbell also reached on a bunt in that frame. Each of them scored. “That was a good job by Jeriah and Logan,” Buckles said, “doing what Coach P said with some small ball.” The Cyclones moved runners along and executed bunts essentially the entire tournament. “Bunting’s something we’ve really taken pride in this year,” Presnell said. “We really struggled early with scoring runs. We had to figure out ways to manufacture offense. We really started focusing on it probably a couple of weeks before the season ended. “We’re playing that side of the game and playing it well. They showed it tonight.” Elizabethton didn’t have a senior in the lineup Monday. “We’re young, but we knew we could do it,” Buckles said. “We’ve worked for this the whole season.” David Crockett shortstop Ronnie Hall went 2-for-3 with a walk. Marcus Greenway was 2-for-4 with two RBIs, a double and a run. Nolan Street was 1-for-2 with a walk, a run and a steal. “Marcus had a good day at the plate,” Street said. “Ronnie had a couple of hits. He’s come on in the last week and a half in the leadoff spot. We’ve just gotta do a better job getting ‘em all the way around.” Left-handed sophomore A.J. Ford allowed one earned run in five innings for the Pioneers. He struck out six while giving up five hits and three walks. Texas Rangers outfielder Evan Carter was a junior when Elizabethton won the district in 2019. The Cyclones advanced to the state that year with a 7-2 sectional win at Alcoa. They also defeated Pigeon Forge 4-2 in a state tournament elimination game. Carter’s senior season was wiped out due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That only seemed like a trying time after last season’s debacle, which prematurely ended the careers of a lot of seniors that had no skin in the scuffle. “I’ve thought about the seniors from last year a lot,” Presnell said. “And I hope they know that they had a lot to do with what happened tonight. These guys picked up the banner and moved it forward. They made Cyclones baseball very proud tonight. I think you could say it was redemption.” David Crockett0012000-- 3 7 5 Elizabethton140100x-- 6 6 1 David Crockett -- T.J. Ford and Jackson Whaley. Elizabethton -- Jackson Buckles and J.D. Hooks. W -- Jackson Buckles (5-1). L -- T. J. Ford (4-1). 2B -- Ayden Mullikin, David Crockett; Marcus Greenway, David Crockett; Bryson Rowland, Elizabethton; J.D. Hooks, Elizabethton. RBI -- David Crockett 3 (Marcus Greenway 2, Nate Walters); Elizabethton 4 (J.D. Hooks 2, Steven Meadows, Jack Blevins). SF -- Steven Meadows, Elizabethton. SB -- Nolan Street, David Crockett; J.D. Hooks, Elizabethton 2, Steven Meadows, Elizabethton; Bryson Rowland, Elizabethton.

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